Scale Models - View Single Post

IainM · 21-02-2008

Hi Alan,
Don't know whether it will help or hinder, but there are some pictures of my Brave Class (1:35 scale) build on the Galleries (IainM's Gallery).
As has been said ...... keep things as light as possible otherwise getting realistic performance on the water will be difficult.

I opted to make and install a tooth belt drive with a ball race shaft to enable me to play around with speed reduction ratios and also to easily change over motors. The current setting is 2.5:1 reduction and it performs pretty well on 9.6V NiMH's with a 40mm racing prop. There are drawings for this on the gallery.
The motor is an MFA Stingray 600. The MFA Torpedo 500 I tried first was underpowered at anything less than 12 volts and was much more power hungry.
Of course none of this applies if you are going for three screws!!

Couple of things to be aware of ....
None of the fast cure epoxy adhesives is truly water proof. 24 hour stuff is OK. I used chemical metal repair compound to fix the prop shaft sleeve into the hull.
Secondly it is really worth making the transom flap adjustable since small changes in setting can have a dramatic effect on performance. (see pikkies)

Best of luck with your build. If you get it right the KD's can look really good on the water.

Iain

21-02-2008	#7 (permalink)
IainM Scale Model Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Edinburgh Real Name: Iain Moffatt My Models: TID Tug, Admirals Barge, Crash Tender, Working on Brave Borderer & ASRL Visit IainM's Gallery Posts: 106 Images: 40	Hi Alan, Don't know whether it will help or hinder, but there are some pictures of my Brave Class (1:35 scale) build on the Galleries (IainM's Gallery). As has been said ...... keep things as light as possible otherwise getting realistic performance on the water will be difficult. I opted to make and install a tooth belt drive with a ball race shaft to enable me to play around with speed reduction ratios and also to easily change over motors. The current setting is 2.5:1 reduction and it performs pretty well on 9.6V NiMH's with a 40mm racing prop. There are drawings for this on the gallery. The motor is an MFA Stingray 600. The MFA Torpedo 500 I tried first was underpowered at anything less than 12 volts and was much more power hungry. Of course none of this applies if you are going for three screws!! Couple of things to be aware of .... None of the fast cure epoxy adhesives is truly water proof. 24 hour stuff is OK. I used chemical metal repair compound to fix the prop shaft sleeve into the hull. Secondly it is really worth making the transom flap adjustable since small changes in setting can have a dramatic effect on performance. (see pikkies) Best of luck with your build. If you get it right the KD's can look really good on the water. Iain Last edited by IainM; 21-02-2008 at 02:08.