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Glue and forget is what I did.
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An alternative to etch primer is to brush some ferric chloride over the brass parts until they go dull. Then ordinary primer will grip well enough.
You could also use epoxy primer. The car trade use this on bare metal in place of etch primer these days and is considered an improvement.Comment
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Well to answer a question posed by Redboat ( I think it was) about the lack of posts. I for 1 have been away and ill, a bit. Also the state of my Fiscal being is currently not good so products I am starting to need are being saved up for in earnest. I have however not been too idle but have decided to play around with/ mock up the stern joint between the 2 upper hull parts, as below.
The pegs are 3/32" brass rod and the tube being 1/8". The styrene will be replaced for 3mm G10 epoxy sheet...........when I get it. The top of the sheet will be reverse scalloped( hole type thing put in it) to allow air to travel freely and not get trapped and the half circle affair will not travel the full half circumference of the 2 hull pieces.....just enough, in other words. The mock up is purely so I can be doing something ! although I have been trawling through my Akula pics looking for more ways to detail the hull, so I have enough to be getting on with.
PeterComment
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Good! Keep a steady bubble.IT TAKES GREAT INTELLIGENCE TO FAKE SUCH STUPIDITY!Comment
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Man, I love that Akula. You've done a great job and now its got my envy level to the point where I might have to go and buy one!Comment
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If you're able to contact with Vladimir, tell me how, cause I've tried a lot and had no response.Comment
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The only email that worked for me was tregub@tut.by . Having said that the last time I emailed him was at least 18 months ago possibly longer. Hope it works.
PeterComment
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Hey Peter,
Hope you are well and still working on the Akula. I'd love to know where you are with it now and also get some more insights into your build process. I have to confess to an ulteriour motive; as Vladimir sent me one for Christmas! (I had to pay for it but it did arrive at Christmas). What a boat. I contacted him at submarine@scaleships.biz and he's been quite responsive. Currently struggling to get the hull aligned and 'Z" cut it.Comment
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Hello Scott, Happy Christmas and all that, I am still about but work has got the better of me at the moment. Yep it is a heck of a kit in my humble opinion. The Z cut was easy.... But only when the hull is aligned, if you have the same problem I did then Mr M's advice is perfect wrap the hull tight with electrical tape, apparently tape colour isn't important, and gently heat it with a hot air gun then let it cool before removing the tape. Mine worked a treat, I did do it again just before performing the Z cut but that is because I had a pedantic half hour. One thing I did do, and I am not sure that this has any technical merit, was to reheat the hull a 2nd time after the 1st heat up and cool down. Just felt like the right thing to do.
It is now necessary for you to start a build thread so we can all follow your build, lots of pics too please. I have read of idiosyncratic differences between individual hulls so it would be interesting to see how your and my hulls differ if at all.
If I can help in my very novice way then I will, I had planned to post during the holidays regarding choosing a correct Subdriver as I am finally getting the funds for one.
All the best,
PeterComment
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Got the message with the heat gun, but, contrarily, my hull was right on the money. Everything just fitted snugly along the median line. Maybe Vladimir has been stealthily improving the product over time? Did the Z cut this evening and glassed the bow and stern bits. I've elected to do all the alignment and glassing before cutting holes and fitting brass bits and pieces just in case "FORCE" is required. Don't want all those fiddly bits shaking loose. So whilst all that glass is going off, I'm sitting here painting the rescue buoy. Very relaxing.
Regarding the correct SD for the Akula, I'm looking rather seriously at the 3.5" SD in my skipjack and wondering why not. Looks like it will do the job and it is already fitted with all the bits that I need.Comment
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Yes, that SD might have the ballast water capacity to get your boat up to the designed waterline -- even though the prototype AKULA's had about a 35% reserve buoyancy, compared to the SKIPJACK's 20-or-so percent of reserve buoyancy. This owing to the very thin wall of the hull and sail in these kits; not much displacement in all those above waterline structures (if it's an early AKULA with the tear-drop fairing above the rudder, make it free-flooding). Give it a shot.
MWho is John Galt?Comment
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Thanks Mate. Will do. The model is an early version of the II with the large towed array container above the rudder but the thing is solid resin. I've drilled a small hole in the rear of it for realism's sake. Do you have a spare snort valve with float kicking around?Comment
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Can't you cut it in two radially and hollow out each end with a Dremel? Won't be as thin and light as a vac form, but an improvement on something solid.Comment
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OK given your comments a bit of thought, As I Don't have a Vacforming machine or I may confess the skill to cut the pod in half, scoop out like a melon then rejoin could I core it instead, let me try to explain. The hole at the rear end of the pod which I have put in for decorative reasons is 2.5mm ( a little over 3/32" if my maths is correct)
The Pod at it's thickest is about an inch, but based on the picture below I have the option to put in a vent/access panel at the front of it. Now it isn't a detail of the K157 but I am not a rivet-counter and quite like the idea of putting it in as a detail, but if I were to put a 9mm (3/8") hole in from the front towards the rear for say about 75mm (3") I could lose a reasonable amount of weight, I could then use a diamond burr to hollow out the pod more losing even more weight. A 3mm (1/8") hole down from the top, a vent covering on top of that and Hey presto........and er ...so forth.
hopefully you are as confused as me at what I have just written. !!??
PeterComment
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