Revell Type VII Build advice

[Avera]

Can anyone advise how to remove the air intake from the tube? I am afraid of breaking either part, especially the Lexan tube if I simply use pliers to twist off the intake resin part.

[Avera]

Thanks for the tips, greatly appreciated. I am hoping to perform my sea (pool) trial this weekend before drilling any holes on the deck. I have a few in the sail and since the air does escape when the boat is submerged and shaken. I will try to see if when I force it to dive (forward motion with down planes), the air will escape naturally. If that does not work then it is drill time.

On a side note, I need to "unglue" the blue resin air intake 90 degree mount and move it a little bit so I can have room to pressurize the ballast. It was glue onto the Lexan tube with CA for plastic. Any suggestions on how to free it without damaging the tube? I was thinking just using pliers and a twist motion.

[ADDINGTON]

I also noticed a measureable improvement when I opened the square "holes" in the access hatches fore and aft of the conning tower.
Even tho I expanded them a bit to meet David's axiom that anything under 1/8" will be ineffective due to surface tension, they looked logical on the deck and were a welcome tradeoff for the effect as I saw the bubbles escape. See attached pic of a pair of openings I sneaked on either side of the forward scope in the bridge floor. Other folks get the job done without these additional openings, but it was good for me.
Your call, Kapitan.
-Kerry

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

Andrew,

The bollard heads engraved in the deck. Those are round. Open them up, they will be the escape path for the bubbles trapped under the flat deck. Sorry, this post of your's slipped under my radar.

David

[Avera]

HI Folks,

I was hoping that someone would respond.

Thanks,

Andrew

[Avera]

Hi Folks,

Just got back from my vacation and need some advice concerning the bubbles underneath the deck. If you look at the first video you will see what I mean. I can hear the air escaping from the sail holes as I push the boat around by hand. I need for the air to leave naturally. Should I drill a bunch of holes on the deck? Also, once the air bubbles leave, is the boat submerged enough for diving?

Thanks for your input,

Andrew

PS: Dave I sent you a message regarding the parts

[Avera]

Here are some photos of the trim test. Basically I have to remove trapped air bubbles in order to get the sub to lower with the deck below water. I am guessing that a few holes on the deck would suffice. Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Andrew

PS: there are really two layers of foam. layer one for surface trim and a higher layer for submerged trim as once the first layer is completely underwater, it will not keep the sub are diving depth; it goes to the bottom. I added a higher second layer above the waterline, underneath the deck, to allow the sub to float with the deck submerged, also added a little foam to the conning tower to keep the snorkel opening above water. I made a video and will try to post.

Here are the video links showing surfacing and diving:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqdrN6EqJoI&feature=youtu.be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4xP4mENGWg&feature=youtu.be

[Avera]

Hi Myron,

I had already tried that and it works as a temporary solution, but you need to add the styrene to both sides to keep the magnet properly aligned. I rather start anew.

Thanks

Andrew

[vital.spark]

Andrew,

you can fix the cross members by CA gluing a bit of white styrene on to them. I had a similar problem as with the ballast weights in place the hull spread apart slightly.

Myron

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

I'll fix you up, Andrew. E-mail me a list of what's needed along with your mailing address.

David

[Avera]

Getting closer. Did another trim test; bow floats nicely, the stern still sinks but overall the boat floats slightly above waterline with empty ballast with the stern supported by hand. Removed a bit more keel weight and added foam from/to the stern area and a little weight to the port forward side to offset a right tilt. Need to let the RTV dry. Discovered another two builder errors. 1) I placed the snorkel part (air intake/fill) too close to the fill stem on the SD so I cannot attached the air can to fill the ballast. Will need some sort of extension. 2) The magnetic cross members to mount the deck to the hull are too short from earlier sanding. The hull top opening is a little wider now (probably due to the numerous openings I have done) than in the beginning so those parts easily detach.

Dave is it possible to get/purchase another set of the those five resin parts plus magnets?

Hope to test the trim again tomorrow before I go on vacation.

Andrew

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

1/4" Bit.

Device idle current is next to nothing, the real pull is from the propulsion motors. But, a switch makes life easier.

Weight is not the issue, displacement is. A normal load-out of devices within the SD produces a total weight that is easily compensated for with displacing foam in the saddles and other portions of the hull. Don't hard-wire any more than you have to! Makes life a ***** when it comes time to trouble-shoot and swap out stuff.



22-Gauge power cable is fine here. Shorting the ESC switch wires is a good move -- saves much room.

David

[Avera]

BTW, I also got the waterproof switch. I presume that goes into that little pocket in the bow cap of the SD. What size drill bit are you using?

Also, in an effort to loose some weight and streamline the electronics I am planning wiring directly the electronic side to the battery wire (with a little bit of length to fully expose the components), eliminate the ESC switch, and eliminate the T connectors on both ends. The battery side already has a built-in connector with the JST plugs. Currently I am using two 7.4v 1100mAh batteries in parallel. To lower the weight, I was going to use 1 battery and install the switch to minimize the time current is being drawn before the boat gets into the water. Right now once I seal the SD, the power is on, no external on/off switch; bit of a pain.

I want to use a smaller guage battery wire (the wire traveling between WT compartments) than the one included with the SD as it is very stiff and can easily jam the ballast servo arm when the electronics are installed. The smaller guage wire idea came from the wiring for my lipo batteries which appear to be around two guages smaller than the connecting wire. To me it makes sense to use a similar guage wire since the distance is short and not a lot of amperage is being drawn (not racing the motors).

Any suggestions or comments?

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

You know ... that last bit, about using Allen screws for those long, hard to reach places. I never thought of that! Good stuff. I'll see if my supplier can get those in. Good thinking there. That would make such work a whole lot easier. Now ... where's that Scotch!

David

[Avera]

Thanks and will do as suggested, but your reply was a bit late as I had taken several shots of a single blend Scotch in anticipation my next course of action. Could have saved (and enjoyed better) the Scotch for a less stressing contemplation. Oh well, next time I'll wait a bit longer.

On a more serious note, perhaps in the future instead of the Phillip head screws you can use Allen head bolts of similar size. This would make it easier to install/remove. I use them on my slot cars to secure the motor to the chassis as well as to secure the deck of my RC Blue Devil destroyer.