cesnas

hi im a begginer to this hobby and i was wondering if anyone knew of a rc battleship that is prebuilt or a kit (It must be below $350 im only 12 so i dont have allot)

jkotlanger

Limberg makes two nice kits, the PT 109 that can be r/c and the Blue Devil (a copy of the Fletcher class destroyer) which is also r/c-able. My son actual built the Blue Devil as his first R/C boat when he was 13. I think that Dumas also makes a 32 inch version of the PT 109 which comes in around your price range. Take a look at Towerhobbies.com. If you are into submarines, Revel also makes a Gato Class Submarine that can be r/c'd. It is a dynamic diver. If you did that one it would pay to have a pool so that you could chase it. If you are into sailboats, there is a little 10 inch boat called Footie which cost $65 for the kit and it really sails like a real boat. I bought 4 of them for myself, my wife and my two children. (My kids are 24 and 17 respectively. Good luck with your first r/c combat ship adventure. My son and I have had a ball with it and it has actually helped him in his quest to become an engineer. He goes off to Penn State this August to start his engineering program and he is still into r/c. We have several projects going simulataneously: a four foot PT 596 which shoots real torpedoes, a 9 foot copy of the Red October, a Typhone class submarine with firing missiles and torpedoes, a 61 inch USS North Carolina battleship with shooting bb canons, and a 72 inch HMS Hood with shooting bb canons.

Umi_Ryuzuki

If you actually want to fight combat, I would not buy any plastic kit boats.

Are you looking for scale models like the kits jkotlanger is suggesting or
do you want to buy a "combat" warship with airguns on board?

Wreno

Cesnas,

If you are intending combat, I would first look for the local club - I think I heard some guys from South Coast Battle Group may still be active in your area. You will haqve more luck getting in touch with them over in Yahoo Groups at BigGunsModelWarship, or you might want to try rcnavalcombat.com to look for a group and contacts.

Many clubs have club ships for beginners to battle (sometimes just a freighter, but you learn a lot with a freighter - I have been battling for years, and am still having a ball with my freighter - never have driven an armed ship- though I may this year).

As for used ships, this is a case ov caveat emptor. As for kits, you should not expect combat ships in the kind of complete kits you may be used to. BDERC.com has plans and pattern sets, if you have access to a scrollsaw or sabersaw. They also developed a Tashent destroyer kit with laser-cut ribs and keel that is pretty reasonably priced (it is not on the web site yet). But the club ship may be a better, cheaper option.

There is also an article that you might find useful for getting you up to speed on the www.ntxbg.org website that was published in Servo Magazine.

Good luck,

Wreno

kotori

If you're looking to join a COMBAT club, which actually fights and sinks models, then you should first contact the nearest club to you. The club nearest to San Diego that has a website is the Southern California Region Attack Patrol, or SCRAP. Their website is here:
http://www.scrapcombatships.com/
The South Coast Battle Group is also based in Los Angeles, and they still have events, but their website is down and I don't have contact info for them.
I would highly recommend contacting them and visiting a battle or two before buying your first ship. Be sure to drag along your parents (or an older sibling) and get them hooked as well. Hopefully SCRAP will have a used ship or two in good condition that you can buy, but you won't find out until you contact them and visit. If that doesn't work out, then you can get a ship from [link=http://www.battlersconnection.com/]Battler's Connection[/link]. I guarantee these methods work, because that's how I got started in the Magnificent Obsession.
Most of the ships and all the gear to run them are a bit outside your stated price range of $250, but if you build a warship and enter it in competition, you'll be glad you did. Lastly, if you haven't already then show your family these [link=http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=kotori87]videos[/link]. That's RC combat at its best, and nothing short of actual participation can beat what I've posted on YouTube. While you're at it, you should also check out the [link=http://www.rcnavalcombat.com/rcnavalcombat/PhotoGallery/photosInOrder.aspx]RC Naval Combat Gallery[/link], with some of the best photos of the sport the world has ever seen. Of course there's better, but those have yet to be taken.

Anyway, good luck and I hope to see you at the pond soon.

mgt guy24

hey me and want to get to boats and battel each other every once and a while i was looking for a boat and the cannons where to i buy these and how much is it gonna cost cuase i am only 14

johnmCA72

I've got an average of about $1000-1200 apiece into mine, plus tools.

JM

cordvarty

I would love to start building a battleship like the Iowa this year but I don't know where to start. I don't mind putting in $1000 plus. Can you give me some resources to read or look at? I think I should go with 1/144 scale right?

cordvarty

After looking at www.battlersconnection.com, I may be better off buying the parts and building it that way. I was going to make the hull and everything. Is there also a way to just buy a complete ship?

johnmCA72

I'd contact the Midwest Battle Group:

http://www.midwestbattlegroup.org/rc...estbattlegroup

They have members in Michigan. Go see a battle, build session, or whatever they're doing. Mingle, ask questions, look around. They may very well have or know of some used ships available for sale.

JM

subhunter13

I'm 14, and It's alot cheaper to build a ship than to buy one from battlers connection.
See If you can buy a members old ship. You might find something there.

cordvarty

What if I buy the parts for the Yamato at http://www.battlersconnection.com/html/yamato.html ? If I only buy what I need for a R/C Ship and forget the guns for now, it looks like I can get it for around $660. If I want the guns then about $1200.

johnmCA72

There's more to arming a warship than just hanging some guns on it. The guns are a warship's whole reason for being, not just an accessory that's tacked on as an afterthought. Everything inside is there to support those guns & equipment is placed where it needs to be so that the guns fit where they need to be first, & everything else goes around them where it can. Trying to build a ship & arm it later, you stand a pretty good chance of winding up with something where at least some of the guns don't fit right at all, or the ship has stability/trim issues.

Consider building a cargo ship first. I offer this advice to everybody, but few actually take it (I wouldn't have, either!). Think about it this way: A first-time builder is probably going to make plenty of mistakes. Would you rather have those mistakes in a $1000 (or more; mistakes can increase the cost) ship that you intend to keep & battle for many years or a $300 one that's largely a target or a "loaner" that you often let others drive? When you do get around to building that Yamato (or whatever), you'll know a lot more about ship building & handling than you do now. Your experience will make that Yamato a much better ship. There's also the matter of cost. As noted, it's pretty easy to build an unarmed merchant ship for about $300 or less. Without guns, there's a lot less complexity & a lot more room inside to work & arrange equipment.

Be aware, also, that there are several different formats of R/C warship combat. Equipment that works well in one may be completely unsuitable for another. Battlers Connection caters mainly to the "small gun" format. See who's doing what in your area, so that you know who you're going to be fighting with. Build what's appropriate for that group.

JM