Dan Kautz
Slow Start
I am writing in LibreOffice Writer, a component of Fedora Linux. The office program seems to be much the same as the OpenOffice.Org which is written in Java and now sponsored by Oracle. Looks like Linux is getting more commercial than they claim. Oh well, it seems to be very similar and functional.
I have Fedora installed on one of the shop computers and in the shop is where I have been all day (so far). The weather is so nice that I hate being in the house with so much that can be done here. It has been raining off and on for several nights so the yard is at last getting well refreshed but not ready for a cutting.
It’s nice to have a comfortable workshop again. I haven’t started the build on the Dauntless but it is getting close. The project is a hobby, not a business so things like a daughter getting married move to first in the line. That event just ended with a hitch and in this case that is a good thing.
I have been looking for an 18” hollow core door panel for a boat building surface. It is one panel of a bi-fold closet door. I don’t have time of the energy to haunt scrap yards as I can buy a new 24” single door for under $30.00. I am about to go do that. Too wide is OK.
First job will be to cut down the length to make it more manageable. I figure about 20- 24 inches removed should do it. That operation will probably be the next post.
Motor Mount Ideas
I have a machine shop and engineering project for the Dauntless boat project.
I have done a fair amount of research on the motor mount of scale model boats that use electric motors. One thing that totally astonishes me is the casual use of cheap universal or “ball” joint between the motor and the drive shaft. What is typically displayed in the Dumas (boat kit manufacture) and other brands is a fairly noticeable angle between the motor and the drive shaft. Many times a crude plastic “dog-bone” connector is in use between the yokes.
Of course I have seen a lot of very good installs. The racers usually have found out the secret to best running is with straight shaft alignment. The modeler shouldn’t always follow prototype with a waterline level engine mount fastened to an angled drive shaft. Even if there are quality parts available to do it.
This is not a problem for an automobile and other low RPM drive-shafts that have no slop roller bearings built into the cross and yoke design. In my experience and opinion, slop is one heck of a problem for very high speed drives like are used in fast running model boats. I am talking 5000 to 10,000+ RPM. Would anyone build and run a dragster with the bearings removed from the U-Joint? Model boat builders seem to do it all the time. This is where a lot of the vibration noise is coming from.
I have installed hundreds of powerful motor and pump systems in commercial central plant HVAC system with a precision drive coupling between the pump and the motor. There are especially trained technicians with very expensive test equipment who do the alignment job correctly. For highest efficiency and lowest wear and noise (power loss) the two shafts and the coupling must be perfectly aligned. I believe no less care should be taken with the high RPM model boat drive line.
Yes, the quality model u-joints are made for a small angle but it is probably not wise to run anything more than a few 1000 RPM for short periods with that set-up.
So my design goal is to build a motor mount system with coupling and engine room drive shaft alignment built in. This includes the HQ stuffing tube mount through the hull. The prop end mount will have to be carefully designed if the boat design requires an exceptionally long drive shaft. I may even use ball bearings on the shaft and stuffing tube if I can figure a way to do it. However, I have read that BB’s are somewhat overkill as flanged Oilite bearings work great and are easy to replace.
A lot of time getting this part of the build right will pay big dividends when running out on the pond. I have read a lot of stories where the motor was installed (for the first time) the night before the big outing with a couple of straps to hull blocks and the u-joint expected to take care of all the alignment.
That’s not for me.
Kit Dauntless
Got my delivery today. Here is the starting point on the Dauntless build. The box of wood that will eventually get glued together in the shape of a rather large model boat called the Dauntless. There is a date on the box 5/2/2011 so this is a fresh kit at a very good price. Not much more I can say at this point. I’ve got a building board I need to make from a luaun door panel. Enjoy the pics.
Psyched
Yes I am really psyched for the construction of the Dauntless. Maybe that is because it is so big. Little plastic boats are toys but a big wooden boat like the Dauntless is a project. I kind of like the fact that there is an owners/builders cult around the Dauntless. There are (relatively) a lot of them sold and either finished or in some stage of construction.
Some of the boat kits sold are certainly overwhelming to the buyer/builder. It is NOT a “shake the box*” construction as I think some of them may have assumed. Some folks have no idea how to finish a scale model boat. Some boats are so poorly constructed there is no reason to finish them, so they get set aside.
But then there are the good ones. I have seen some truly great examples of the Dauntless. It is not an overly fancy boat and some scale details are missing or wrong. Those appearance items are totally under control of the builder to add detail and improve from what was in the box.
Scale boats and ships are not so much an operations type of avocation but rather a builder’s paradise. The enjoyment derived is from making the construction decisions and being creative and precise. I think the folks that fail to finish the build; do not have a real knack or lose enjoyment from the slow construction.
They may have originally seen scale model boats out running around on the local pond and think operation is what the hobby is all about. What they witnessed was just the end result, the answer to the “What do I do with it now that I have it built?” question. Some builders choose to keep them dry and put them on the mantel and look at them. Others put them on the pond to see how they look and perform in real water. The casual observer has no idea about the six month, twelve month, or more build time. Sometimes it takes years to get to the water and some boats are always being detailed and improved, never “finished”.
My RCS control system project is to put more interest in the operation, and is not intended to detract from the enjoyment of creation of the model. I am going to saver every frustration and reward of the build. Then spend a lot more time experimenting with the control system.
A well built large model boat will have the ability to exist for quite a long time. I think it can outlive its builder if it is a high quality build and has been properly finished and waterproofed. To that extent it has a much higher survivability factor than an R/C model aircraft. (I know, I have crashed my share of model aircraft.)
What is missing for the R/C flyers when they operate a scale model boat is all the speed, action and thrill of the three dimensional operational freedom. High speed power boat (racing) also provides a lot of the same adrenaline rush and so it too is quite popular. But flat water scale speed put-putting is not much of an operating adrenalin thrill. It is more like appreciating fine art.
A few builders of scale boats overpower them in an attempt to “get them up on plane” when the prototype was never intended or was capable of doing it. I believe it is an attempt to put some thrill into the operation. So what if it isn’t authentic operation, it’s fun to watch. “Hey look! There’s the QM2 up on plane jumping her own wake!” Ha!
It’s a hobby. Whatever gets you psyched is OK with me.
*Just shake the box and the loose parts join together and the boat falls out completely assembled.
The Dauntless Chosen
The choice has been made. I selected the boat that will house the RCS control system. I did a LOT of internet searching and found out the Dumas Dauntless does have a long and fairly loyal following. Here is a link to a forum with lots of Dumas Dauntless builders.
There are quite a few kits that died on the vine, started but not finished. Also some very poorly built and finished examples. That’s just how it is. The kit build is a serious undertaking and is not a well documented build from Dumas. I bought the plans a few months ago and I can see why some builders struggle.
From what I can determine, the kit has been around (produced by Dumas) for almost 35-40 years. I’ll post the true length of production when I find out for sure.
As plans go, the Dumas Dauntless plans are minimal as far as step by step instruction. What a kit provides is a box of wood and some almost scratch builder plans. There are some details in the plans but Dumas says quite clearly that the plans are not suitable for scratch building. For example there are no full size hull formers (frames) drawn. I am sure that is intentional. Since the kit wood is already die cut, little measurement is provided. The plans do look to scale but there is nothing confirming that.
All in all I believe I am capable of the Dauntless construction task having built many wood models in my life including several smaller Dumas boat and many aircraft kits. Let’s say I am not intimidated of doing something incorrectly.
I did the same research on the Dumas American Enterprise. It’s an older kit than the Dauntless. I saw some pictures of the kit being built “right side up” from the keel and it looked like the builders were having a very serious problem keeping it straight. I also read a lot of complaints that the wood supplied was of dubious quality with some plywood delaminating. No idea how long ago that was. The Dauntless is built upside down on a flat building board as were the other Dumas boats (Deep V’s) that I have constructed.
I think the American Enterprise is a beautiful boat and would like to build one someday. I have seen some well constructed examples and they are exotic. The models on the internet have model jet drives but I read no reports on how they run.
In any case I am committed to the Dauntless on this project. I ordered the Dumas kit through Amazon and it will be shipped from Best Service Stores for a total cost of $130.95 including shipping. Not bad since Dumas direct wants $210.00 plus shipping.
Since I have access to a complete modeler sized machine shop I am anticipating making most if not all the operating hardware myself. I think the Dumas running gear is minimal design and far too expensive. There other much nicer commercial model boat driveline vendors on the internet. Their product looks very good but also higher priced than the Dumas. There appears to be much higher value in the “after market” gear. I think I can do as well.
Stay tuned. This is a major project. Much more to come on the Dauntless build.