Need some help with Arkmodel 1/48 Type VII

[tifosi12]

YES! Not only the gluing aspect, but the actual printing as well! The colored Solutech filament that I used before my new Dremel would not extrude as well as the white! Experimented a lot with temps.to get it to extrude properly. I am using Dremel filaments with my new machine this time around!

I found that Solutech white PLA is the easiest to glue together. For just regular 3d printing my fav brand is Hatchbox and of those the easiest to deal with PLA is their "wood".

Solutech green PLA is the worst ever. Brittle like crazy, breaks just feeding it into the printer.

[rwtdiver]

Thanks a lot. I'm on my way alright. Let's see how far it will lead me this time. In general I have a positive feeling and feel confident enough for the stuff I know. It's the unknown unknows which will get me every time. For instance I just discovered that different PLA colors and manufacturers react differently when being CYano glued together. Didn't see that one coming, thought PLA is PLA. Well it ain't.

YES! Not only the gluing aspect, but the actual printing as well! The colored Solutech filament that I used before my new Dremel would not extrude as well as the white! Experimented a lot with temps.to get it to extrude properly. I am using Dremel filaments with my new machine this time around!

Rob
"Firemen can stand the heat"

[tifosi12]

Nice work with the cutter! From what I am hearing, you my friend are well on your way! Great attitude!!

Thanks a lot. I'm on my way alright. Let's see how far it will lead me this time. In general I have a positive feeling and feel confident enough for the stuff I know. It's the unknown unknows which will get me every time. For instance I just discovered that different PLA colors and manufacturers react differently when being CYano glued together. Didn't see that one coming, thought PLA is PLA. Well it ain't.

[tifosi12]

Tifosi12,
David's fittings kit are usually molded in polyurethane resin. Did you remember to "wash off " any residual mold release agent a wax that can interfere with the adhesives?

Of course not. :) Thanks for hint. Water under the bridge now, but good to know for future endeavours.

[tifosi12]

Giving me Moderator authority in a forum is akin to handing a loaded, chambered, and cocked semi-auto .45 to a two-year-old.

Better I not have such awesome, terrible power at my trembling finger-tips. Let Bob wield the sharp knife in these here parts.

I hear you. I'm actually a mod on a different forum and even if you know what you're doing, it's often a pain in the you know what to keep things and users under control.

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

Ah shucks. Now I have two responses of mine on here that are not posted because the system thinks they are spam. Great. :(

I edited them a couple of times as I tend to make typos along the way. Apparently if you edit too many times you're a spammer. Nice.

Maybe the one who shall not be named can release my posts as non SPAM please? Not that they are greater than Shakespeare, but...

Giving me Moderator authority in a forum is akin to handing a loaded, chambered, and cocked semi-auto .45 to a two-year-old.

Better I not have such awesome, terrible power at my trembling finger-tips. Let Bob wield the sharp knife in these here parts.

David

[redboat219]

Tifosi12,
David's fittings kit are usually molded in polyurethane resin. Did you remember to "wash off " any residual mold release agent a wax that can interfere with the adhesives? With my Kilo fittings I initially soaked them in some lacquer thinner followed by vigorous brushing with a toothbrush followed by hot soapy water to remove the mold release.

[redboat219]

My other issue was that the little plastic sticks you made for the fittings kit didn't stick to the boat. I used a gazillion ton of Krazy glue and Epoxy and made them stick somewhat but that was still no clean way to mount the top part.

David's fittings kit are usually molded in polyurethane resin. Did you remember to "wash off " any residual mold release agent a wax that can interfere with the adhesives? With my Kilo fittings I initially soaked them in some lacquer thinner followed by vigorous brushing with a toothbrush followed by hot soapy water to remove the mold release.

[rwtdiver]

Actually after my first attempt with the XXIII I built a rig even you'd been proud of (see picture). Problem was that the hull of the boat is so think, it starts to flex and warp once the Dremel cutter puts pressure on it. Then the cut is no longer a perfect line. My other issue was that the little plastic sticks you made for the fittings kit didn't stick to the boat. I used a gazillion ton of Krazy glue and Epoxy and made them stick somewhat but that was still no clean way to mount the top part. That said your other parts from the fittings kit were excellent, I got the dive planes and the prop to work just fine but could never cleanly close that hull. So yes, that's an abandoned mine at this point.

So I'm using your Caswell WTC for Ota's 1/12 Seehund. Fingers crossed. I'm in the honeymoon phase of a new sub project. Haven't reached the 7th year itch yet.

As for your kind offer regarding the 1/72 Type VII. Yes, I'd love to get some input from you for that. My feeling is that its a bit of a lost case at this point. I think I drilled too big of a hole for one of the rudder anchors and that's why it is unstable. And honestly once I get the 1/48 Type VII to run, my interest in the smaller boat will likely be eclipsed. It was my first boat and I learned a ton. I don't even know whether I'd be willing to take it as is to Carmel. People would probably just laugh at me and it.

Nice work with the cutter! From what I am hearing, you my friend are well on your way! Great attitude!!

Rob
"firemen can stand the heat"

[tifosi12]

Excellent. Your credentials are extensive and will serve you well. Send me pictures of the 1/72 Type-7 rudder mechanism -- maybe we can work out the rudder throw problem and get that boat into running shape for you.

Since I retired from the SD business Bob is working his best to finalize his own version and will only put those up for sale once he's confident he has a reasonably priced, well working product -- as his standard of business demands. I'm sure one of his first SD's will be a two-shaft version sized for that beautiful bigger Type-7 kit.

But that's water under the bridge -- after clobbering three expensive hull kits you've likely soured on that project. However, that SD will find application in the soon to be released 1/96 STURGEON GRP kit Bob will be selling mid-year. May I recommend that to you?

You want a running boat by regatta time. Which will it be, sir?

David

Actually after my first attempt with the XXIII I built a rig even you'd been proud of (see picture). Problem was that the hull of the boat is so think, it starts to flex and warp once the Dremel cutter puts pressure on it. Then the cut is no longer a perfect line. My other issue was that the little plastic sticks you made for the fittings kit didn't stick to the boat. I used a gazillion ton of Krazy glue and Epoxy and made them stick somewhat but that was still no clean way to mount the top part. That said your other parts from the fittings kit were excellent, I got the dive planes and the prop to work just fine but could never cleanly close that hull. So yes, that's an abandoned mine at this point.

So I'm using your Caswell WTC for Ota's 1/12 Seehund. Fingers crossed. I'm in the honeymoon phase of a new sub project. Haven't reached the 7th year itch yet.

As for your kind offer regarding the 1/72 Type VII. Yes, I'd love to get some input from you for that. My feeling is that its a bit of a lost case at this point. I think I drilled too big of a hole for one of the rudder anchors and that's why it is unstable. And honestly once I get the 1/48 Type VII to run, my interest in the smaller boat will likely be eclipsed. It was my first boat and I learned a ton. I don't even know whether I'd be willing to take it as is to Carmel. People would probably just laugh at me and it.

[tifosi12]

tifosi12! Start from scratch, research, learn, experiment, and then build on! You will get it if you WORK at it! As your success's grow, so will you a long with your enthusiasm! Sorry for the rant guys! Just my take on this wonderful hobby we have! Thank you Bob Martin, David M. SUB Ed, just to mention many that have helped me (and are still helping me) along the way!!!!

Actually I love the unchartered path and finding out stuff and learning. To be totally honest, that's why I stopped with tanks: Once you've built one as a kit, the rest are similar, so I developed my own. I love that part. What frustrates me to no end is that there are vendors out there (not including Bob of course) who sell stuff or as Dave called it a stinking pile of xXXX knowing full well it won't work. That's disappointing. And Arkmodel is not the only ones who have done that. I had other bad experiences in Asia as well as in Europe.

And just for the record: I have a successful surface runner and one so-so capable of diving. Now I want to build one that static dives without an asterisk or excuses. I'm pretty sure I'll get there eventually. As Ringo said: With a little bit of help from my friends.

Once I have a fully working static diver I'll move on to develop my own. As my boss once told me: Ideas are easy, implementation is hard. I'm full of ideas. :)

[tifosi12]

Ah shucks. Now I have two responses of mine on here that are not posted because the system thinks they are spam. Great. :(

I edited them a couple of times as I tend to make typos along the way. Apparently if you edit too many times you're a spammer. Nice.

Maybe the one who shall not be named can release my posts as non SPAM please? Not that they are greater than Shakespeare, but...

[tifosi12]

tifosi12! Start from scratch, research, learn, experiment, and then build on! You will get it if you WORK at it! As your success's grow, so will you a long with your enthusiasm! Sorry for the rant guys! Just my take on this wonderful hobby we have! Thank you Bob Martin, David M. SUB Ed, just to mention many that have helped me (and are still helping me) along the way!!!!

Actually I love the unchartered path and finding out stuff and learning. To be totally honest, that's why I stopped with tanks: Once you've built one as a kit, the rest are similar, so I developed my own. I love that part. What frustrates me to no end is that there are vendors out there (not including Bob of course) who sell stuff or as Dave called it stinking pile of xXXX knowing full well it won't work. That's disappointing. And Arkmodel is not the only ones who have done that. I had other bad experiences in Asia as well as in Europe.

And just for the record: I have a successful surface runner and one soso capable of diving. Now I want to build one that static dives without an asterisk or excuses. I'm pretty sure I'll get there eventually. As Ringo said: With a little bit of help from my friends.

Once I have a fully working static diver I'll move on to develop my own. As my boss once told me: Ideas are easy, implementation is hard. I'm full of ideas. :)

[rwtdiver]

[WARNING! - the following is a pre-coffee, unedited, early AM response, so apologies if I'm less amiable than usual. No offense intended]

Re: Arkmodel cylinders:

Go directly to jail. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Since we're mildly criticizing, the community is here to help, and that includes advice on what to get and why. A quick question to the forum, on the DiveTribe that you're a member of, or to me directly would have netted you the right answer up front and saved you time, money and hassles. We have resources to help people in this crazy, frustrating hobby. Use them!

Re: Hobby Frustrations:


This is not a hobby for the timid, the untalented or the inexperienced. Many, including myself, consider this a hobby for the elite. That's not pride or snobbishness, it's a simple statement of fact. Part of the reason for the exclusivity is the difficulty of building these things and the lack of information and resources. I agree with that. But, don't blame the few vendors who are trying to keep this hobby afloat (or patrolling at depth, as the case may be). The issue is that the hobby is so darned small. We're talking, at most, a few thousand people in the entire world with working boats. The superb and easy to assemble tank, plane and car kits you mentioned earlier are the result of decades of R&D and hundreds of thousands of products supported by hundreds of vendors worldwide. How many vendors support subs? I bet you could count them on your fingers and have a lot of digits left over.

I agree that a simple and easy to assemble kit is a must, and I and a few others are currently working on project to bring this into reality. No, I don't have an ETA. I won't commit to one for exactly the reason that you highlighted above. Things happen. Dates get pushed back. Potential customers get mad.

Re: "Mild criticism"

I've always tried to be forthcoming with my efforts to put a new cylinder to market, my progress, or my lack thereof. I've always been up front about the challenges with workload at the shop and my struggles with implementing a new cylinder design. I'm sorry that the timeline didn't fit into your schedule. I'm doing the best I can. Bear in mind that everything that is put out there is shoehorned in between customer builds, R&D, advertising, website updates, accounting, inventory ordering and control, packing and shipping. It's just me and one other guy.

All I can say is that the wait will be worth it.


Bob

tifosi12,

I agree with everything Bob states above! I have been in this hobby about 1 1/2 years now! Totally new to it from the start. My passion is 3D printing, and building stuff! I went to Thingiverse, found a submarine called the "Gotland" I built it as just a model, and then I was hooked! Then I researched around and found Bob Martin (Nautilus Drydocks) Started asking questions (by email at first) His advice to me right off the bat, was "Crawl First Then Walk" David M. gave that same advice!

I now have 7 Nautilus Drydocks 3D printable subs, 3 in parts stage as I write, and 1 I just started before my Dremel took a dump! At this point in my sub hobby, I have yet to be able to put one sub under the surface! I have scratch built 6 WTC for these boats with just motor, rudder, and dive planes! Surface runners only, with only one that was capable of a dynamic dive!



Long story short! I have just reached the point where I am starting to understand how an RC Sub works! I spent hours and hours experimenting just to get my boats in the water. Experimenting with the hull preparation, how to build a WTC to house the motor and electronics!

tifosi12! Start from scratch, research, learn, experiment, and then build on! You will get it if you WORK at it! As your success's grow, so will you a long with your enthusiasm! Sorry for the rant guys! Just my take on this wonderful hobby we have! Thank you Bob Martin, David M. SUB Ed, just to mention many that have helped me (and are still helping me) along the way!!!!

Rob
"Firemen can stand the heat"

[TuptubBuilder]

Thanks everyone. This is all great stuff. It helps me to stay motivated. I only mentioned the 2.4 GHz because of size, features, cost and availability.