AeroNaut do large triple prop battleships like Bismarck (above) with huge packs of fittings and armaments.
| Building R/C Scale Working Boats |
| Wood, fibreglass and ABS plastic are the main boat building materials. Wood construction can be either with sheets of plywood for fast modern boats, or intricate hull planking for beautiful period static sailing ships. Fibreglass or ABS hulls from Graupner, AeroNaut, Krick and R M Marine build fast and some have moulded rivet and plate detail on the hull for tremendous realism. A huge bag of brass and white metal fittings is included. |
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AeroNaut do large triple prop battleships like Bismarck (above) with huge packs of fittings and armaments. |
| The Graupner kit range are some of the most detailed and accurate working model kits. These superb kits consist of a moulded fibreglass or A.B.S hull, some of which include plate and rivet detail. The superstructure and deck assemblies are from dye printed, or pre-cut marine ply. Fittings are almost entirely from cast white metal, most of which are themselves in kit form and require assembly. Full building instructions and plans are included. Krick Steam Launches from Germany are quite exceptionally beautiful with fine wood veneers for decking. The smaller Billings hulls are wood or ABS plastic and make good boats in the smaller sizes. Miranda are mini scale models. It is worth knowing that AeroNaut are the worlds largest manufacturer of model ship parts & fittings. This enables the model builder who likes to make the boat from scratch, building with wood, to detail and fit out the ship using AeroNaut fittings : portholes, anchor, chain, doors, winches, pulleys and so on. It also explains why the AeroNaut make of ship kits have such huge and high quality fittings packs without costing the earth! |
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Which power unit? |
 Hi-power Speed 600 electric motor delivering high torque. Mainly suitable for direct drive with 6 to 8 cells. Motor comes standard with removable stator ring. |
You can power your boat with an electric motor and NiCd battery packs. Because boats have ample interior space for batteries, running times of over 1-2 hours can be achieved with some models. Electric racing boats can go 20-25 mph and run for 20 minutes. Electric motors have a speed controller fitted between the battery and the motor. The speed controller varies the power reaching the motor and this changes the boats speed. Electric motors are reliable, cheap and quiet. |  The OS MAX 21 XM outboard motor features an integral silencer, water cooling and a variable-angle motor mount. Ideal for use on racing catamarans and other boats with a length of around 700 to 950 mm. |
| Glowfuel motors have superior performance and realism in terms of noise & speed! Inboard engines require running hardware. Inboards with integrated pull-start units are very easy to use. Outboard engines are simple to install: no hardware - just bolt it on to a Formula-One tunnel and it's ready to go. |
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Don't forget steam engines. Period scale ships are perfect for steam propulsion. An open launch is nostalgic perfection with the steam plant, engine and pistons all working away in full view.
A discreet gas cylinder fuels our Saito Steam Plants, and all have a lovely polished finish just as suitable for coffee tables as it is for boats! |
THE GREEN HOBBY BOAT PROPELLER GUIDE
SCALE BRASS 3-4 BLADE PROPS GUIDE:
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| Buyers Guide to Boats |
| Young modellers often like speedboats, adults are possible yacht users, & a modeller could prefer to build jetboats or scale ships.
We suggest you choose a first boat with an electric motor. This is because fast engine (glowfuel) raceboats can suffer from engine cut out due to being not tuned properly. Now if the engine stops, that is not the end of the world. BUT experienced boaters will have the recovery procedures down to a fine art … a spool of fishing line or twine, you walk up this side and I go that side and we "sweep" it in. OR a spool of fishing line, with a hook, a lead weight and a catapult, over the boat it goes, and catch the rail for a tow in. OR a dinghy. In other words a cut out can spoil the beginners day, involving paddling, but it is just a 2 minute glitch to the old-timer.
However electric boats slow down gradually as batteries fade, giving warning of the end to come, electric cut outs don't happen, so electric is suitable for beginners..
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