1:100 Russian Typhoon kit - coming soon!

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  • RCSubGuy
    Welcome to my underwater realm!
    • Aug 2009
    • 1768

    1:100 Russian Typhoon kit - coming soon!

    Good afternoon, all!


    Aside from the Disney Nautilus, I have one all-time favorite boat... the Russian Typhoon-class subs. Honestly, I'm a fan of a lot of the Russian boats. They just look right to me, aggressive, sleek and dangerous.

    Over the years, I've built 3 of the Engel Typhoon kits, and I love the size and presence that they have on and under the water. Ordinarily, with such a great product on the market I wouldn't even think about making something that is a direct alternative to it, but I've been hearing over and over that Engel is no longer replying to communication attempts by customers, and they certainly didn't react to any of my own inquiries about the possibility of buying a hull kit only from them after repeated attempts.

    All that said, I've been taking a closer and closer look at an old Typhoon kit that I got from Germany about two years ago. The company is no longer manufacturing sub kits at all, so this is another source for these subs that has gone away. This kit is done in 1/100 scale, and, unfortunately, has a lot of major inaccuracies. The rear prop shrouds are far too small, meaning that the entire rear section needs to be reworked to accommodate larger parts and props. The deck scribings are way off, the sail is too far back and about 20% too small for the boat. It's also set up as a dry-hull boat, as many European modelers are wont to do.

    In my mind, in order to make a good model of it, everything needs to be scrapped with the exception of the main hull shell itself.

    Having decided to build the boat up anyway, I've decided that I might as well take the time to mold it up and offer kits. Now, I don't have the facilities (or the time) to do this in-house, so I've decided to engage the expertise of Bob Dimmack of OTW. Anyone that has seen Bob's products knows that he's a perfectionist, and his layups are of the highest quality. Together, we're going to bring this project to light.

    My part in this is to completely re-build the master model.

    The entire stock sail was pitched in the garbage. All of the hull scribings have been filled in. The stern has been cut up and completely rebuilt with larger, more accurate prop shrouds that will allow for 50mm, custom-manufactured brass props. I have plans to offer fully detailed missile hatch pieces that can be installed as functional doors. A full set of periscopes will be included. I'm also working up the engineering that will allow a pair of 3.5" cylinders to be installed side-by-side, exactly like the original boat. This will allow operational periscopes in the middle as well. No plans to render scribed anechoic tiles. In this scale, they are better represented via creative paint than oversized lines.

    Will this be a hyper-accurate, bolt-for-bolt re-creation of the Typhoon? Nope. I've got to work with the parts that I have to work with. Will it be a slick model that will build into a beautiful representation of the boat. You bet!

    At this point, I've nearly completed the re-work of the stern. The new sail has been fabricated and I'm currently sanding, priming, filling, sanding, getting it ready for paint and scribing.

    I wanted to share the progress so far. If you have ideas, suggestions or (creative) criticisms, by all means, fire away!


    Bob
    Attached Files
  • Michael Laubach
    Ensign
    • Feb 2018
    • 66

    #2
    I'm really looking forward to this!

    Comment

    • Rick Teskey
      Lieutenant Commander
      • Jan 2009
      • 233

      #3
      Scan it into a file.
      consider a 144 th size too save the hernia truss!

      Comment

      • Subculture
        Admiral
        • Feb 2009
        • 2119

        #4
        Although a 1/100 Typhoon is never going to be a lithesome lightweight, it can be a lot more manageable than the Engel beast by using a cylindrical dive module and aspirated or partially aspirated/hybrid ballast system.

        Comment

        • trout
          Admiral
          • Jul 2011
          • 3545

          #5
          Something in the 40-ish inch range, but not more than 50" to fit in regular vehicles. Bob, looking forward to your build on this.
          If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

          Comment

          • RCSubGuy
            Welcome to my underwater realm!
            • Aug 2009
            • 1768

            #6
            96th / 100th scale is on the smallish scale for typical boats. While making a smaller boat would be more manageable from a transport perspective, many people want to match scales with their existing fleets. 96th and 72nd are the most common, with 48th and 32nd close behind.

            I suppose 1/144 is not too uncommon, that would put the boat at 48" overall length with a beam of 6.2".

            Oh well. I've already got this one started. No going back now.

            I like big subs and I cannot lie....

            Comment

            • trout
              Admiral
              • Jul 2011
              • 3545

              #7
              There are a couple of 1/144 scale subs out there, 1/144 Typhoon would be PERFECT!
              If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

              Comment

              • HardRock
                Vice Admiral
                • Mar 2013
                • 1609

                #8
                Tom, please stop trying to lead Bob away from the light.

                Comment

                • trout
                  Admiral
                  • Jul 2011
                  • 3545

                  #9
                  LOL, o.k. 1/144 1/144 1/144
                  If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

                  Comment

                  • Rick Teskey
                    Lieutenant Commander
                    • Jan 2009
                    • 233

                    #10
                    So says Sir builds alot
                    so what is the finished length?
                    5'6"?

                    Rick

                    Comment

                    • RCSubGuy
                      Welcome to my underwater realm!
                      • Aug 2009
                      • 1768

                      #11
                      She'll be about 69" long and have a 9" beam. A beastly boat, for sure!

                      Bob

                      Comment

                      • trout
                        Admiral
                        • Jul 2011
                        • 3545

                        #12
                        It is the 144th Kentucky Derby, just saying! 1/144 1/144 1/144 1/144
                        If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

                        Comment

                        • HardRock
                          Vice Admiral
                          • Mar 2013
                          • 1609

                          #13
                          Is your life insurance paid up Tom?

                          Comment

                          • trout
                            Admiral
                            • Jul 2011
                            • 3545

                            #14
                            LOL, yes as matter of fact it is! Do I need to keep looking over my shoulder?
                            If you can cut, drill, saw, hit things and swear a lot, you're well on the way to building a working model sub.

                            Comment

                            • HardRock
                              Vice Admiral
                              • Mar 2013
                              • 1609

                              #15
                              No need, you won't see me coming!

                              Comment

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