brasseagle6

Hi. I am wanting to build a boat out of balsa wood something easy. i wanna make an electric boat.

1. what kind is easiest to build and use?

2. anywhere that has free plans?

3. what kind of glue is best to use for balsa

icyuod2

theres a glue called zap thats great for gluing balsa (dries in seconds like crazy glue) but any carpenters glue will work.

when i did my first scratch build, i made my boat out of paper/cardboard, and then transfered it to 1/8" plywood. no plans, just the paper model first.

how big a boat you gonna build? a racing boat? tug? ship? what ya thinkin?

brasseagle6

i was thinkin an air boat but not sure i think itll be easier to build but i heard they flip sometimes

maybe 1.5-2 foot or so

alanalex

About two years may be more there was a free plan in one of the english model mags not sure which one. its a box with motor and prop on top and rudders. i used the bits from an old remote controlled car for the motor and RC and built it from balsa using super glue and car paint to finish cannot help with plan but old pictures attached may help.

you could down load paper models from the web and use them as a template for your model.

best for luck, stick with it

Alan

alanalex

pictures

brasseagle6

thanks for the help so far

where would i download paper models?

Flabum

I scratch built a few from scrap pieces of balsa and light ply I had laying around. Just started with the transom and a couple bulkheads then added the sides, bottom and deck. Here's a pic of one in the making:

Covered it with light fiberglass cloth and West System epoxy.

martno1fan

build a small deep v they are easy to build from lite ply or balsa.the wildthing is a nice boat and it would suite electric if you keep it small at arround 24" or maybe less.airboats are also easy to build but conditions limit when you can use them,a mono hull will handle most conditions.

brasseagle6

do i need to use fiberglass or can i just use a laquer or something i like the look of the wood stained?

where can i get the running gear and how do i keep water from going in where the gear comes out?

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

If you're going to make the boat electric, you can use any finish that's waterproof.

LtDoc

brasseagle6,
"how do i keep water from going in where the gear comes out?"
The most common way is to use something called a 'stuffing box'. Not really a 'box', most times it's a metal tube that has bushings or bearings in the ends, that the drive shaft runs down through. The stuffing box is sealed to the hull. It's also usually filled with some type of water proof grease or oil, which provides lubrication along with stopping water from getting in.
The same sort of thingy is used for running the rudder through the hull except there usually isn't any bushings or bearings. Maybe an "O" ring on the rudder shaft at the top to sort of seal it (grease doesn't hurt either).
- 'Doc

Flabum

The finish can be anything that is waterproof. The runing gear is usually epoxied in place on sub-surface drives and on some surface drives. the shaft in the drives are greased and the grease does a decent job of keeping most of the water out if you keep it well greased. The flex shaft itself has a spiral to it that actually pumps the water out of the shaft tube while it is running.
You can get running gear anywhere, I got mine at the LHS using Aquacraft V27 stuff with LiPo batteries. I wanted fast stuff, so I got a brushless motor and all water cooled stuff, I push 50+ with that crappy boat I posted pics of. It weighs less than half of what the Aquacraft weighs.

alanalex

here three web address where you can download paper model ships


http://www.papershipwright.co.uk/index.shtml

http://www.digitalnavy.com/

http://www.btinternet.com/~wizzo.design/prod01.htm


what is you would like to build?

what have you scatch built before?

this will help me point you in the right direction.

brasseagle6

i have never built anything from scratch

i would like to make something easy first and then maybe try to make a pt boat or something later

if you have some simple pt plans that would be awesome

i would like to build it for less than $50 not counting balsa

i have a 2 channel radio already and a 7.2v battery pack with tamiya plug

thanks

alanalex

I don't have any pt boats but I do have a free plan and article from " Marine Modelling International" July 2006 of a French customs launch. This gives you a model approx 71 cm long, see picture.

i not sure if this is the best model to start your marine modelling life with?

ernest2

brasseagle, you can use a boggie board (i dont know the exact term), and cover it with epoxy resin and glass. also you need to add a plywood stiffiner on the top for the motor motor to hold on to.

alanalex

check this out

http://www.pt-boat.com

escipion

Hello!!!!
There are some boats called Springers, they can be as expensive as you want, you can make them from balsa, ply, styrene, what ever you want.

Go to this place
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=522762

There you can find the basic plans and a lot of good ideas

Have a nice day
Escipion

retaobcr

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