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Post by hairy apple on Jun 27, 2010 1:44:21 GMT -5
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Post by hairy apple on Jun 29, 2010 21:32:40 GMT -5
I have wanted to do this for YEARS.. but it was always just too small. After researching I now believe that RC stuff has shrunk enough to do it and make it work. 80 Elco PT boat. 1/144 scale. The Fletcher class DD superstructure should give you an idea just how small this little ship is.
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Post by hairy apple on Jun 30, 2010 17:26:27 GMT -5
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Post by hairy apple on Jul 12, 2010 15:38:50 GMT -5
THIS IS WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT... COMBAT!!!! [/img] [/img] [/img] [/img] [/img] [/img] [/img] Torpedo run. South Dakota puts to the water... Another topedo attack... USS Atlanta USS Iowa vs two axis cruisers. Iowa battling German dreadnought and cruiser. Iowa moves into to attack French battleship and Japanese topedo cruiser. French battleship and Iowa slugging it out. Atlanta topedos Mogomi (Japanese light cruiser) Axis light ships move in to protect the French battleship showing signs of it's battle with Iowa. Mogomi minutes after topedoed by Atlanta... ..and she goes down. HMS Rodney's battle damage. Iowa's battered hull. French battleship's damaged from Iowa. Unexploded shell! Near miss.. Topedos away! Axis ganging up on the Iowa.. Trying to stop the Iowa from attacking axis transport. French battleships goes down after damage from topedo attack. The fatal topedo damage. At the end of the day, two twin brother's and there twin German dreadnoughts had a duel to the death. However, they both were sunk in the duel. After 4 battles during the day, the Allied fleet won every battle. Although the Axis did more damage overall, a number of axis ships were sunk and the allies completed more cargo runs to reduce the points scored against them.
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Post by jimbo12rodgers on Jul 12, 2010 17:33:12 GMT -5
If I had the time or the money this would be an awesome hobby to take up! Go Allies!!
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Post by hairy apple on Jul 13, 2010 1:17:26 GMT -5
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Post by CharleyNovember on Jul 13, 2010 14:01:03 GMT -5
That looks like expensive fun!...but lots of fun.
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Post by hairy apple on Jul 14, 2010 0:34:32 GMT -5
It does cost a lot to get going, but once you have something to battle with it's not that bad. The ships last forever... the Iowa in these photos is 20+ years old. There isn't much to hurt them fatally, hell, that Jap cruiser sank 4 times that day and was fine. The electronics are all waterproofed and are not damaged. Masking tape is used to patch the holes during the day, between the battles, once they get home just a little bit of wood putty and glue and fresh paint and they are good to go.
Funny, I know almost all kids who built models would get bored with them at some point and shoot them with bb guns, or put a fire cracker in them, or set them on fire... haha... this is pretty much the same thing just on a more "grown up" scale. I guess in the long run we're still playing with toy boats, but it's super fun.
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Post by hairy apple on Jul 27, 2010 20:02:15 GMT -5
My girlfriend Danielle, and our friend Sheep and I have been hard at work on new ships. Two American Fletcher class destroyers and a British Tribal class destroyer. The Kidd and the ribs being laid out for her two younger sisters. Danielle cutting our the ribs for the Tribal class. The two Fletchers with the ribs and subdecks installed. USS Johnston, Kidd, and O'bannon. Sheep sanding the Johnston Danielle fitting the ribs to the HMS Tartar The two Fletcher hulls and the keel of the HMS Tartar.
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Post by zzs8mm on Jul 28, 2010 1:26:48 GMT -5
Looks awesome, thanks for sharing.
I would think it would be harder to aim without video?
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Post by hairy apple on Jul 28, 2010 1:54:27 GMT -5
Well, the camera was just on there to get video after the fact, it wasn't a live feed to a tv screen to help aim or anything like that. They just aim by looking at there ship, looking at where the turret is, and kinda guessing.
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elder90
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Post by elder90 on Aug 7, 2010 17:46:28 GMT -5
This looks like a lot of fun how can I get started like how much would it cost for a beginner I dont need a really big ship haha. I am really good with balsa wood I have made model cars with it I just need help with this.
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Post by hairy apple on Aug 8, 2010 0:07:00 GMT -5
Check out rcnavalcombat.com
There is a lot of good info there and you can look for a club near you. There are a couple of differant kinds of rc ship combat. "big gun" and "fast gun", before you really get started you should figure out what kind of groups are near you and what style you want to build a ship for. You can build a ship for pretty cheap... around $200 or less if you build more then buy. Check out strike models and battlers connection's websites for fiberglass hulls, they are a lot less work, but a lot more $$$.
But, to start out I would try to find a group near you and go from there.
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Post by hairy apple on Aug 9, 2010 0:25:55 GMT -5
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Post by hairy apple on Aug 9, 2010 16:58:46 GMT -5
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Post by hairy apple on Dec 11, 2010 19:03:20 GMT -5
Bought myself a little Christmas present for all the hellishness I get to deal with this month... Seen here with a Fletcher class destroyer to give you an idea of the size. Pennsylvania class battleship. This will be the USS Arizona BB-39. Best known for being destroyed at Pearl Harbor with the loss of 1,177 of it's 1,400 man crew. However, the ship served this country for 25 years before it's loss, and after it's sinking served as a powerful symbol of why we were at war. When built in 1916 this "super dreadnought" was considered the most powerful warship alfloat. I will be building it to repersent how it was on Dec 7 1941. It will be armed with 12 7/32 ball bearing cannons and should be a nasty little battleship when she's done. It's going to be a long term project as I want to do it very detailed and pretty.
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Post by hairy apple on Dec 15, 2010 23:02:37 GMT -5
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elder90
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Post by elder90 on Dec 19, 2010 4:35:23 GMT -5
Hay Harry Apple, I was wondering If i could get the plans for the Flecher Class ships so i can build on just for display in my room. I dont have the money nor the technical no how to build a working one but I would love to just build a hollow model to sit on my shelf with my airplanes.
Thanks!
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2nd Bat
Master sergeant
Posts: 11,813
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Post by 2nd Bat on Dec 26, 2010 13:16:28 GMT -5
How do they replicate torpedoes? It seems that is one of the more critical elements for naval engagements especially when trying to sink large warhips from relatively smaller ones.
Looks like a really cool hobby.
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Post by hairy apple on Dec 30, 2010 20:18:30 GMT -5
The torpedoes are 1/4 ball barrings. They are however aimed at a steep downward angle and the destroyers almost always have under the waterline shots. They also load 3 balls into the barrel so it actually puts 3 1/4" holes under the waterline... or one large gash or tear. Either way, very bad news for the ship that was hit. The little fletcher we built this summer sunk a transport on it's first shots in anger. The larger torpedo boats (crusiers) have 3 1/4" barrels about a half an inch apart. These almost always leave a gash under the waterline that will sink even the biggest, meanest battleship quickly. The most effective ships are actually the torpedo ships. They are fast, hard to hit, low to the water, and pack a nasty punch. The rotating guns and size of the battleships is awesome, but the torpedo cruisers and destroyers are scary. They however do not have the ablity to take damage and survive. Battleships can come back after a battle with dozens of holes, one small hole in a destroyer or torpedo cruiser can be fatal. Battleships have room for larger pumps, and have the reserve displacement to take on water and still float. It is a really fun, and really addicting hobby. My first love of ww2 came from the naval battles. As a kid that is what really got me into ww2 history... so once I discovered this you can imagine I got hooked pretty easy. Well, much progress has been made on the Arizona... ... I need to add the main mast and rear fire director, finish the foremast and forward fire director, add on the fire control radar on the empty wings of the bridge, add railings on the gun deck, add barrels to the 5" guns. Cranes, more life boats, and a few more little details. The Arizona was actually a pretty simple ship as far as the superstructure. Next week I hope to have the motors mounted and the rudder mounted and be able to sail it around... although it will not be armed this year. Next year...
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Post by hairy apple on Feb 2, 2011 17:39:57 GMT -5
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Post by volkssturm on Feb 2, 2011 22:50:12 GMT -5
It was a "Q" Ship? An armed transport disguised to look unarmed so the U-boats would surface to sink it with gunfire instead of using a torpedo. I built a model of one when I was a kid. The model I built had hidden guns on the foredeck and stern.
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Post by hairy apple on Feb 3, 2011 13:04:33 GMT -5
No, the War Pengiun was not a Q ship. It was a WW1 era transport, unarmed (or lightly armed for defence).
I have been thinking more and more about a Q ship or auxillery cruiser as a fun ship to battle. Have a transport that is armed with torpedos.. that would be interesting.
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savoy6
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Post by savoy6 on Feb 4, 2011 4:43:07 GMT -5
this thread takes me back to when i was about 12 and had a subsciption to "scale ship modeller" magazine...where i first saw these RC combat ships...great stuff...
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Post by hairy apple on Sept 15, 2011 11:52:38 GMT -5
2011 Campain game! Order of battle: Axis: H39 (Super battleship) Dunkirk (French battleship) 5 Pocket Battleships 4 Topedo cruisers 1 Japanese Submarine 2 Transports Allies: 2 Iowa class battlehips 1 British battleship 1 US cruiser 1 Destroyer 3 transports The allies were pretty badly outnumbered. The 3 large battleships went off into the fray and got pounded on pretty hard but returned a lot of damage as well. Danielle ran the SS War Penguin like a camp, making laps around scoring points like crazy. The large slow tanker also was scoring convoy points. Soon into the first battle the US cruiser retired and he ran a transport as well. The USS Johnston attacked anything and everything that came near the allied port. I tried to focas on there convoy ships, I badly damaged one which sunk on it's return voyage. The submaring was acting as a transport as well, I damaged it a number of times but failed to sink it. With all three US heavy battleships fighting hard, they soon ran out of ammo, leaving only one tiny transport and the USS Johnston VS the bulk of the Axis fleet, including the super battleship H39. Basicly, for about 5 minutes I just did high speed figure 8s, out of torpedos and just trying to stay alive until another Allied ship could rejoin the fight. Finally the first half was over. The 2nd half saw a much more reserved Allied attack. We had taken a ton of damage in the first half. I was making torpedo runs as fast as I could reload and relaunch. I cut my reload time down to about a minute. Danielle's transport becuase stuck int he bushes and I ran my batteries dead trying to save her. We were sitting ducks and the Axis fleet closed it for the kill... lucky for us the French battleship grounded as well and the Iowa and New Jersey pounded on it. The axis used one of there time outs to save the stranded battleship, which also allowed us to save our ships. Then the battle turned bad for the Allies.... The tanker became adrift and the axis pouced. The Johnston made repeted torpedo attacks trying to distract the H39 and keep it from sinking the tanker. I failed. The tanker was sunk. Then War Penguin went dead in the water, probally caught up in weeds. The axis pounced again. Again I attacked everything I could and then just circled trying to give them somthing else to shoot at and try to save the War Penguin. I made a good hit on the Dunkirk, only to have it turn into me and ram me... poor little Johnston was rolled under the battleship and sunk on the spot. Then Dani's transport was easy pray and quickly sunk. The battle continued for a few more minutes. It looked pretty hopeless for the allies. In the end, it was very, very close. Much closer then anyone expected. The Axis won, by 3 points... or one hit. Awesome day, sad I made it through the whole day shooting the biggest ships I could find only to be ram sunk in the last two minutes. I 402 Japanese super sub Two Iowa class battleships. Iowa and New Jersey Pocket battleship and Spa Cruiser Luzlow pocket battleship New Jersey Graf Spee (pocket battleship) Uss Oregon City USS Johnston on her way into the fray... Ouch! Nazi Super battleship. H39, largest ship on the pond. Think Bizmark on roids. Johnston has just torpedoed the H39. David vs Golith. Why pocket battleships shouldn't go toe to toe with real battleships... Iowa took a pretty good beating as well.
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HornetWSO
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"We may not have a history, but we have a rendezvous with destiny!"
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Post by HornetWSO on Sept 16, 2011 16:18:41 GMT -5
That's soo cool! I love the Fletcher's! My Grandfather was on the USS Izzard DD589 in WWII. He was in Halsey's Fleet and fought at Leyte, Philippine Sea, and shot star shells over Suribachi at Iwo Jima. Looks like a lot of fun. Would be cool to throw some costal artillery in the fray too.
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Post by hairy apple on Sept 21, 2011 20:05:21 GMT -5
There are some shore batteries that we have... but honestly, they aren't much fun. You have to sit there and wait for someone to come pick a fight with you. With a ship, you can go look for a fight...
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HornetWSO
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Post by HornetWSO on Sept 21, 2011 20:11:02 GMT -5
Would be cool to up the anty, by stacking scale supplies and structures to bombard. Kinda like Guadalcanal and Henderson Field being fired on each night by the IJN. Give the bombarder points for taking out targets while being under counter battery fire. Just some thoughts. I think the whole shebang is totally cool!!
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Post by hairy apple on Sept 26, 2011 15:02:49 GMT -5
Actually, we have little docks with targets and that is exacty why the shore batteries are around. But really, knocking a little wooden building off a floating dock is not nearly as rewarding as blowoing a big hole in the side of someone's pretty model and then watching it's pumps come on and it roll over and sink before it makes it to safety. Seeing a 6 foot long battleship sink is pretty rad... and when you know you've done some of the fatal damage, it's even better.
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HornetWSO
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"We may not have a history, but we have a rendezvous with destiny!"
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Post by HornetWSO on Sept 26, 2011 17:09:02 GMT -5
I don't know anyone in No VA that does this, but I would love to check this out!! I'm just afraid I would get hooked! I need another hobby like a hole in the head!!
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