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sink-me
Model Boating
You'll remember we mentioned briefly here last issue that the S.C.M.B.Y.A. of
Los Angeles had a date with TV station KTLA to run model boats during an intermission
of outboard (full-size) races. Run they did, and from all reports the event was
a real success, the TV people asking the club to return again the following week,
and to run again frequently in the future. We haven't heard yet what the public
reaction to this televising was, but it's quite likely that some new members may
have been brought out for the organization.
Heading photo shows start of free-running race, during which camera followed
the craft making precarious trip over rough salt water lake. Next, several members
ran R/C boats, one of which - a Wavemaster owned by Lloyd Allen and powered by a
K&B .29 - stole the show, attempting to submerge a floating paper cup. The following
Sunday saw the club men on hand again; this time some real stunts had been planned.
First Chet Allen placed a doll to which a long fishing line had been attached on
the upper deck of his electric-powered R/C cabin cruiser. The boat was headed out
toward the center of the lake with a helper paying out the line till at about 250
ft. the end was reached and the unfortunate doll was toppled into the drink.
Then Harry Rogers sent out his R/C two-masted schooner (running with auxiliary
motor since there was no wind) to make the "rescue." The schooner trailed a short
line with a hook on the end; Harry circled the unfortunate lass, snagged her neatly
with the hook and towed her triumphantly back to shore. This episode is shown in
the photo below, as seen from the camera location; the cabin cruiser is at the right;
circled is a duck that got into the act!
Sturdy engine mounts are favored among model boatmen in the
Ontario, Calif. area. A sketch of the usual mount they employ in Fig. C. A chunk
of 1/2 or 5/8" plywood is cemented to the hull, with hardwood mounts attached to
it. The holes for the engine mounting bolts are made with the correct size "tap"
drills - that is, the drill intended for making a hole in metal, which would later
be threaded. The machine screws are then forced in and cut their own threads, holding
indefinitely. Rather short screws are used, so that if one of the holes is stripped
of threads (it's never happened yet!) a longer screw can be used to make further
threads. A recess must be cut for the flywheel, of course .
Ontario builders have had little success with the usual beam mounts suspended
between bulkheads.
TV station KTLA photographs power boats; Charlie Canard swims into the act (circle).
Desiring a larger outboard model engine than could be had on
the market Les Stormon of Manhattan Beach, Calif. gathered some scraps of brass
and aluminum and set to work. Results are seen on Photos A and B. Basic power head
of the unit is a K&B .19 engine, and a modified O & R 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 prop
is used. This prop is driven by hardened steel gears cut by Les, and the engine
is cooled by a water scoop, piping being carried inside the lower casing. A brass
water jacket was shrunk on the cylinder after the air-cooling fins had been turned
off. Water is ejected at top rear of lower unit, just as in full-sized outboard
engines. Engine has been tested in a tank and is now awaiting construction of a
hull large enough to carry it; this may take the form of an R/C hydroplane of 3-4
ft. length. Finished engine is just about twice size of commercial .049 units, as
illustrated by Allyn Sea Fury outboard in upper shot.
"Bottom Rocker" in the version built by Joel Zimmerman (3440
25th St., San Francisco 10, Calif.) is a real success (Photo D). His version of
the YM design is powered by an Atwood .049 water-cooled engine, and a 1 x 1" prop
is used. Water pickup scoop is behind the prop and the outlet is on the right side
of the hull. On the first trial the boat cracked across the. middle, so ply strengtheners
were run along the sides. Craft has always been run free, and Joel reports she is
very steady, even in rough water, never having flipped. He tells us everyone says
it is the fastest boat on Spreckels Lake!
Nope, that's not a bathtub the young lady reposes in (Photo
E) - it's a king-size cruiser hull. R. A. Welker (3701 Shelby #E1, Indianapolis
27, Ind.) has always been a great admirer of the Chris-Craft 63 ft. Motor Yacht,
and has a very fine model of one built from the Berkeley 40" kit. This boat is fitted
with two Pittman motors, and R/Ced by means of a 5-channel target drone receiver.
Looked so pretty on the water that Mr. Welker scaled up the plans to 6 ft.
length; it is the hull of this one in which his daughter looks so pleased. Finished
job is propelled by a Forster .99 water-cooled engine, with twin exhausts and twin
counter-rotating 2 1/4" 3-bladed props. Controls give forward, reverse, and idle
prop, and the engine speed is varied by moving the ignition timer. R.A. says enigmatically"
... that's not all," promises to send further details and finished pix of his big
craft. He is a member of the Indianapolis Model Power Boat Club, which he reports
now has somewhere around 70 members.
Lamb's Lovely Yacht. Ever since the new Air Trails Model Annual
hit the newsstands the editors have been swamped with inquiries about a luxury yacht
model which was shown in the "Model Boats More Popular Than Ever" story. We show
two more views (Photos F) supplied by Lowell Lamb (6034 5th Ave., Los Angeles 43).
This is a 50" long, 1/2" to foot scale model of an English motor yacht, "Micaroso."
Power is electric beam is 10". Babcock radio control equipment used. These excellent
photos were made on Super XX film at 1/00 sec. f/11.
Calif. engine mount works fine (Fig. C).
Our most prolific correspondent in model boating matters is
certainly Jack McDougall (141 N. 85th, Seattle 3, Wash.) who keeps us well informed
of the boat doings in that area, and apparently things are really hot in his club
- the Seattle Model Yacht Club - and in other cities near Seattle. Quite a few race
and regatta dates have been set up (refer to our Calendar of Meets and Shows in
"Young Men's World" section); in addition, a club picnic has been set for July 4th
at Green Lake. Members are asked to bring their families, their boats and something
to eat. Boat running will be just for fun. Time trials for the Miniature Seafair
Trophy Race will be held on July 14 and 15, with the expectation that the entry
field will be narrowed down to about twelve boats - all that can be handled comfortably
on one pylon at the final Trophy Race on July 29th.
The latter is one of the biggest events of the season for the Prop Riders, since
it is sponsored by the Seattle Exchange Club in conjunction with the big-boat Seattle
Seafair. Note that this Miniature Seafair is open to any member of the I.M.P.B.A.
It has been learned that a new model power boat club is being started at Bellevue,
Wash., but no other data is available on this as yet. At a recent meeting some new
boats were brought out, several of them R/C. One that stirred up lots of talk is
a racing hydro by Ray Browder, which will be twin-screw, and driven by a pair of
McCoy .60's. Jack was able to interest one of the local TV stations - KING - in
giving the S.M.Y.C. gang a short spot, but things got a bit fouled up when it came
program time. The boys had assembled 12 1/2 boats (the half being Jack's unfinished
VS-6) and were to have had 6 minutes of chit-chat with the M.C., but programming
was running late, and as Jack says, "... we were cut off at the pockets." The camera
made a quick sweep of the boats, which showed up well, according to those who watched
the program, and someone got a chance to put in a phone number where viewers could
get further info on the club. Quite a few did call, and enough interest was shown
so that another opportunity on the air may be offered. Furthermore, the club may
have a few recruits from among the technical staff of the station!
Jack has been trying to get some info from the Sailboat Div. of the S.M.Y.C.
for us, and C. O. Davis (6521 Fremont, Seattle 3), Secretary of that group, has
sent details of a beautiful new A Class yacht; recently finished by Duane Golay;
the hull is of western red cedar, and is 75" overall, with 13 1/2" beam. Built primarily
for R/C, the boat is fitted with a modified Ra-Con reed receiver, only three channels
of which are used. R/C will work the rudder, while the sails will be handled by
an automatic servo controlled by a small vane on the after deck. The boat is designed
along the lines of the famous International racing yacht "Enterprise"; C.O. says
these lines have been proven in model size, since he has a model with similar lines
that has been a consistent winner in manual-controlled racing. The new boat weighs
38 lb. less R/C equipment, and Duane is apparently a master craftsman, since Mr.
Davis says this is one of the most beautiful model yachts he and other club members
have ever seen.
Zimmerman (Photo D) and Bottom Rocker.
A final note from Jack McDougall brings news that a group of modelers is active
in Bellingham, Wash., both in Speed and R/C, and some competition is expected from
this area soon. Also, it appears the Prop Riders may get a basin on 15th Ave., near
the Naval Depot; they hope to get some of the sailers in on the fun.
Miss Walker (Photo E) and 6' Chris·Craft.
Lamb's grand R/C scale yacht (Photo F).
Boat members of the New York Model Knights met at the home of
Henry Parohl recently, and were shown two new Class B engines that Henry has been
working on over the winter months, also his new and almost-finished boat. A race
schedule was made up (see Meets and Shows Calendar of "Young Men's World" section
this issue); all races of this group are held at Kissena Park, Flushing, N. Y. Our
informant, Bob Graham (127 Cottage St., Jersey City 6, N. J.) also gives us a few
dates for the Baltimore Model Power Boat Club, notes that this group has been saddened
by the death of member Oscar Perkins. Despite his age of more than 70 years, Mr.
Perkins had been very active in building and racing boats. Bob says the famed French
model power boat racer, Gems Suzor, will visit the U. S. in July, and will bring
along a boat to run with the Model Knights. He also tells us that IMPBA President
Charles Baxmann has suffered a heart attack, will be laid up for some time, and
would welcome letters from his model boating friends; write to him at his home address,
2991 Garland Ave., Detroit, Mich.
Some pictures unfortunately unsuitable for reproduction have
been received from Carlisle King (ENI USN, USS Dextrous, MSF 341, c/o FPO, San Francisco,
Calif.), showing his model of a steam-driven freighter, which was built in an unusual
manner. When he made the model he had little in the way of shop facilities or supplies,
finally secured some usable material in Japanese hardware stores. The frame of the
hull is iron wire! The heaviest wire he could buy was a type used for clothesline,
and a 40" length was bent up to form the keel. Frames were made of the next smaller
size, each frame wire being wrapped around the keel wire several times. There are
50 frames, spaced about 3/4" apart. Still smaller iron wire (of the size usually
known as "baling wire") was used for stringers, beams, etc. All joints were made
by simply wrapping the wire, no solder or cement being used.
Next, the steam power plant was installed; a tiny single-cylinder engine was
found in a Japanese hobby shop, which drives a 3-bladed prop through a 12-1 reduction
gear. Engine itself turns at about 4,000 rpm. A stop-and-reverse mechanism is fitted
to the engine. Next came the skin, which is simply a triple layer of very thick
lead foil, of the sort used by the Navy to wrap spare electronic and engine parts.
Foil was held to the frame with model cement.
After completing a model of a 32 ft. cabin cruiser, from a Berkeley
kit, Scott Gehrke (411 S. Grove St., Stillwater, Minn.) decided to fit it with R/C.
However, a hobby shop man with whom he discussed the installation discouraged the
use of a regular escapement; Scott understood him to say that this would only allow
right and left rudder position, but no neutral or straight ahead. Well, seems there
is a misunderstanding somewhere, for the normal 2-arm self-neutralizing escapement
will give the desired two turn positions plus neutral. So will compound escapements.
However, most lightweight escapements made for model plane use do not have enough
power to handle the rudder of a good-sized boat (Scott's kit job is about 32" long)
especially if it is driven by a glow engine. There are a few escapements that will
do a good job, though - among them the E. D. Clockwork escapement, Cameron Boat
escapement, etc. If you want still more power, you can go to the motor-driven units
such as the Babcock Servo, and dmeco Multi-Servos. The former require two control
channels, one for each direction of movement, while the latter operate on a single
channel, but do not offer infinite rudder positions. None of these motor-driven
units weigh more than about 3 oz. Scott says this is his first attempt at R/C and
he is already engrossed in problems!
Commercial Items. Two new all-in-one-unit power assemblies are
offered by Polk's Modelcraft Hobbies (314 5th Ave., New York 1, N. Y.). Model B
Motor Power Assembly has an Aristo-Craft No. 0 motor, costs $1.75; Model C has the
No. 2 motor and sells for $2.00. Aside from the motors, the units are identical;
they consist of a metal frame about 5" long on one end of which is mounted the motor
at an appropriate angle. Other end of the frame has a holder for two C size flashlight
cells. Switch is included, which has an arm long enough to reach above the deck.
Also included are mounting screws, a spring-type flex coupling, a streamlined lamp
housing with bulb and wire, and a small life preserver.
Storage cells useful for the larger boats are available from Gyro Electronics
Co. (325 Canal St., New York 13, N. Y.); known as type TS7F, cells measure 4 3/4"
x 1 1/4" x 6 1/2" high. A special filler cap extends 1 1/2" higher. These are lead-acid
cells of 35 AH capacity, are unused and come to you dry. They weigh about 3 1/2
lbs., and sell for $2.50 each.
Three new boats with their Super Detailed Formed Plastic Hulls have been introduced
by Cavacraft (Philadelphia, Pa.). Kit E9 is an outboard cabin cruiser, retails for
$5.95. E8 is an inboard run-about for $4.95, while E7 is an outboard runabout, for
$4.95. All have formed plastic hulls and mahogany decks.
New boat and electric outboard motor are offered by K & O Models Inc. (Van
Nuys, Calif.). Hurricane outboard sells for $2.98, while together with the Thunderbolt
runabout, price is $4.95. Boat is 13 1/2" long, is not sold without motor; it is
of wood construction with nickeled windshield and two-tone finish.
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