RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
Leaky engine room has been a showstopper - - twice ! Found out one propshaft seal had actually been stuck to and spinning with the shaft instead of staying mounted to the bulkhead stopping water.
Posted on: 10/10/2009 1:38 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9161020

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
Scheduling sea trials has been a bear. I did manage to get Sea Trial 2, found some propshaft problems I addressed. Then Sea Trial 3 was an utter failure for diving control- - but using a spare tx I found my dive transmitter had crapped out, it wasn't an onboard issue. So I've made a little progress (including transmitter replacement ! )
Posted on: 9/18/2009 9:01 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9105266

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
Now it's a Titan rocket ! No actually I reappropriated the housing of our defunct kiddie-pool pump to serve as my transit "boot" (and the conningtower fairwater is detachable). Trying to protect prop shafts, rudder, planes, and "prop guards". Ironic that I'm trying to protect something callled guards, but they aren't functional on this scale - - no lake-mines to hit and I doubt they would help against the real toysub menace, water weeds.
Posted on: 9/18/2009 9:00 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9074998

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
These photos were taken in June. Here's my gutted fish. [:D] Bow-to-stern, the modules are: Forward tank Battery box Diving-control box After tank Engine room The forward tank is a clear condiment container my wife was about to throw away. You can see the co2 blow line (some aquarium pipe and a tee connector that pokes into the tank, sealed with silicone caulk) and the vent "chimney" but it doesn't have its solenoid yet in the photo. Battery box - - it's two end caps, and a short section of pipe; I couldn't afford clear pvc for all modules, so I sawed off the dome on one battery-box cap and cut a circle from Lexan, then sealed it to the battery box - - so I've got a window when I check for leakage, and if I see water I don't let the batteries sit in it. Diving control - - the expensive stuff's in there, so it got the clear pvc I had: I don't want to not know about water leaks. Aft tank - - It has a window (aft) like the battery box so I could check water level, when I was trying to hit on the right recipe for a homemade vent valve. Engine room - - not that you can see, but the two motors scavenged from toy r/c cars are on their own circuit - - the receiver board, itself on 4.8 volts, triggers the relay, which closes the 9.6 volt circuit to the motors. Actually I think I may have to patch a resistor into the circuit to slow the boat down - - but as you can see the relay gives the freedom to make that choice; if I want to go fast one day I can run with no resistor, but if I want to conserve battery I can just patch one in on blade connectors. The resistor doesn't even have to go inside the wtc. Rudder motor - - just aft of the propshaft u-joints. It's a throwaway motor I got from the r/c cars whose brains I stole for the sub [:)] Sometimes these rudder motors I run "in the wet" freeze up, but not before I get lots of scale miles out of them - - and then, I replace them with another motor from the stockpile. Motors run in the wet get water inside so they have to fight internal resistance - -but that's OK for rudder pushers. Not so for drive motors, which I tend to want to run continuously: I put them in the dry space. I find the round pvc end caps I get from Home Depot seal onto the tubes without assistance from grease or any other material. Other kinds and shapes of caps I've tried do not seal without sealant. Man I hope this stuff works this weekend.
Posted on: 9/6/2009 11:20 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9068635

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
Thanks ! You wouldn't think it was true with one's own design. And even after getting past big gotchas like that, the designer still has to learn the quirks of driving the boat [8|]
Posted on: 9/6/2009 10:43 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9074961

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
>Whenever I do sea trials, though, the rule is that at least one thing's got to go grievously wrong. . . first trial tends to be short ! True to form, I smacked into the learning curve running my boat. I hadn't been practicing co2 cartridge replacement lately: When I replace a cartridge, I forgot this can stress wires and pop out plugs I have to check; I couldn't even surface - -because I forgot to reattach the blow tubes [:-]. Then I cut short the trial to flee a thunderstorm. This run was a failure, but I've got the sub ready to go out again.
Posted on: 9/6/2009 8:19 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9074607

RE: 2.4gHz + rc submarines = ??
Just that lower frequencies penetrate water better than higher frequencies.
Posted on: 9/5/2009 1:19 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9071736

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
>I'd be interested in seeing some photos of your WTC since I, too, plan to do this one on the cheap. Glad to, I'll try to post some pretty soon. My boat's ready for sea trials, if I can just get some lake time now. Whenever I do sea trials, though, the rule is that at least one thing's got to go grievously wrong. . . first trial tends to be short !
Posted on: 9/3/2009 11:30 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9067178

RE: Trumpeter Sea Wolf
That was fun. I was wondering what the bicyclist was going to think, but he veered away. RVA, your system's also great. Where does one get a geared pump in 1/144 Seawolf size, though? In what kinds of jobs are they commonplace ?
Posted on: 8/15/2009 10:50 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9019347

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
That is some breathtaking detail at IBS. IBS's step sails are way cool, thanks for the link. Can't believe somebody did up the Lizardfish - - I've always favored those obscure Manitowoc names, Kraken and Icefish etc. I've homebuilt my wtc's. I have two circuit boards from Wal-Mart r/c toys, four channels altogether. Two frequencies, so I've separated the receivers as modules: 2-channel diving control and 2-channel engine room, and I'm crossing my fingers the 27mhz and 49mhz receivers won't noticeably influence each other - - I have an antenna forward and an antenna aft. Then there's the battery box, and one ballast tank forward and one aft. No working diving planes, just the forward tank that doubles as the fleetboat "bow buoyancy" tank- - it'll go through a lot of co2, but I wanted to play with co2.
Posted on: 8/15/2009 10:43 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9018505

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
If you get the Revell Gato, take care when placing on the "bilge keels" (fins at the bottom of the hull that keep the round-bottomed hull from rolling). The pins are just *slightly offset* forward-aft, I guess the fins only are supposed to fit one way against hull curvature even though they seem flexible themselves. If a little bit of the mating slot is visible forward or aft of the fin, the fin's backwards; don't force it or you'll break a pin, the pins aren't stout.
Posted on: 8/12/2009 8:40 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9011742

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
This sub is on such a scale, the deck cleats can be * functional * . When I first tried a water session with the Gato, I didn't have a worthwhile catch under the end of the turtleback - - so I opted instead for a rubber band. Cinched it tight with a couple extra loops around the deck cleats: instant hull catch.
Posted on: 8/4/2009 9:40 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8990615

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
I put my Gato through some stationary dive (and surfacing) cycles this weekend (stationary is all my son's kiddie pool allows for this 4-footer). Not great, but getting sailable. One thing I probably should do is put capacitors in my relay circuits (yeah, I know - - relays in r/c stuff, you'd think that's horrible RF noise. But I've used them before and found them pretty versatile - -my two-channel SSN-21, I could control so far away that I could barely make out the conning tower ! ). Anyway, in the kiddie-pool tests I see I made a mistake in design: shared the same battery between the relays' primary circuit and secondary, while the secondary has less load. In other words, when I engage the relay, the secondary circuit becomes a short, so the relay cuts out momentarily and my drive motor or ballast-tank vent quits ! The cycle repeats every second or so. Ha ha. Stupid relay tricks. That'll ruin my relays if I don't stop it. Gonna put capacitors on the primaries so they'll quit doing that. Still fun playing with my new toy though - - has tanks forward and aft, so I was tipping the bow and then shooting co2 into the forward tank, watching it lurch back off the bottom.
Posted on: 8/2/2009 2:31 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8983900

RE: AKULA for Singapore navy
Recirculating Compressed Air Ballast System It's one of the systems outlined [link=http://www.frontiernet.net/~bwelch/ballast.htm]here [/link]
Posted on: 6/26/2009 1:12 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8883005

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
Awesome to have an old Navy sub so close by. When I was a teenager I got to visit USS Batfish SS-310 in Oklahoma a few times, and did an overnight in the middle of winter. Fellow Boy Scouts always appreciate it when you crawl up the ladder into one of the hatch trunks until you've been forgotten, then yell YAHHH ! down at passerby. Batfish is completely out of the water so you can appreciate the size of the hull. I never could bring myself to go past about the third rung on the persicope shears that led up to the lookout posts - -even at bridge level, one errant look and you'd see it's about 30 feet down.
Posted on: 6/19/2009 1:09 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8864882

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
I took a look at Requin's site. Surprised me right off: that North Atlantic sail, with a knife-shaped prow . . . isn't that combination pretty unusual ? Cool choice to model ! http://www.geocities.com/uss_requin/index.html
Posted on: 6/17/2009 6:38 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8860199

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
Nice to know Revell put out that supplement. The bow looked about as bad as I saw in the first Gato kit I had - - "not severe," they say.
Posted on: 6/16/2009 1:16 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8856651

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
>Aside from wanting to spare them the indelicate touch of my 6-year-old, I figured I'd break them off myself half the times I opened er up to charge batteries. MAN I am glad I chose not to mount the safety rails. I haven't even launched, and they would be snapped already. I'm always into that hull installing stuff. Same goes for propeller guards. But I'll put those on after sea trials. They're a signature Gato item. [8D]
Posted on: 6/13/2009 12:32 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8848246

RE: AKULA for Singapore navy
Beautiful ! Must be heavy - - the bolt in the stand looks to have a comfortable bow. About 20 pounds dry maybe ? What kind of diving system ?
Posted on: 6/11/2009 1:53 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8844287

RE: Lost Or Recovered Sub Tales
That compression sounds like a subtle trap (I've always built with pvc and the walls don't flex, though compression can still happen : if my cylinder leaks at a shallow depth, it should admit more water in a deeper dive as the inside air compresses). Not to mention...weeds, the nemesis of the r/c submariner !
Posted on: 6/8/2009 10:53 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8835172

RE: r c sub irony
Well, they do sell subs you can climb into...seems like more companies are selling submersibles every year. Kinda expensive to insure though ! Nuke, I've never had contact with SubCommitte except online. Nice to know I'm not the only one who's had this experience. When the sub's sailing it might as well be rigged for silent running, nobody notices. . . it's like my humble Home Depot project is actually on patrol. Then when I have to pull it out (leaking, weed-snared prop, etc and I'm kind of embarrassed) suddenly it's a press conference !
Posted on: 6/8/2009 1:07 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8834412

r c sub irony
When I'm driving the sub, joggers zip past. They may look out over the water, but there may not be much to see - -a conning tower about the size of a big turtle's head, often winking out of sight when they look. Even walking pedestrians rarely ask any questions when there's little to see - -the most common question when the sub is running is, "Catchin' anything ?" (because I'm waving the long tx antenna like a fishing pole) But the minute anything goes wrong, and I've pulled the sub out dripping wet - - "Is that a SUBMARINE?" (I can't believe this is the most common question when the sub's broken. Excuse me, are those Bugle Boy jeans?) "Does it DIVE?" (sorry, not right now) "How deep will it go ?" (all the way to the bottom, if I hadn't pulled it out just now !)
Posted on: 6/5/2009 10:58 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8817467

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
I've elected to ditch my main-deck safety rails, though. Aside from wanting to spare them the indelicate touch of my 6-year-old, I figured I'd break them off myself half the times I opened er up to charge batteries. I heard safety-rails on the main deck on a deployed Gato were an early-war thing, the practice abandoned later. The recently-found wreck of Grunion, an early-war loss, was found with safety rails up. I don't know about the cigarette-deck railings though - -they look more static, like they don't come down to be stowed. It's hard to get photo evidence that I'm sure was taken in combat - - usually it's aviators being plucked out of the water, and those photos tend to only show the bow. The other Gato footage I find is just about always photos from builder's photos (sea trials after launch or overhal/refit), photos from training exercises, or unknown. Who was ever photographing, next to a Gato actually on patrol, even when fleet boats adopted wolfpacking ?
Posted on: 5/17/2009 10:33 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8775814

Lost Or Recovered Sub Tales
My tally for 2009 (all the same sub): Gasket leaked - 1 recovery (sunk, knee-high water at edge of pond, February - cold) Rudder needing adjustment plus moderate convection current - 1 recovery (sub floating, waded chest-high to middle of vast retention pond) Deep-sea weed - 1 recovery (sub caught 4 feet down, rudder wrapped, in well-kept little pond with fountain) Bright, flashing deck lights sure are helpful to mark a disabled sub after dark.
Posted on: 4/12/2009 1:14 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8673755

RE: Large plastic kit of a US Gato Class sub?
David Merriman sings high praises of the 1/72 Revell Gato, considering it made for easy r/c conversion. For one, lots of nice thick styrene down in the hull, but lighter topside for folks who might actually want to put it in the water. [link=http://vabiz.com/d&e/articles.html]D & E build articles including a set on the Gato[/link] I had to return my Gato kit, which I'd gotten on clearance: The hull was so deeply bowed along the keel that the gap was even wider than the length of the fastening pins! I exchanged it for same; the new one also has warp because the hull is such a long styrene piece, but this one's well in the acceptable range I think. I would check for warp out-of-the-box on that long hull though.
Posted on: 4/12/2009 1:03 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8672607

RE: 78" gato class ss212
What a monster ! I love it
Posted on: 4/11/2009 3:15 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8671045

RE: ballast tank help needed
A compressor is the ultimate - - it's what they use on the "live" scale boats and most static divers don't go that far. There are lots of ways to build a static-dive system. [link=http://www.heiszwolf.com/subs/tech/tech01.html]Whitepaper on ballast-system types[/link] I built a very cheap ballast system, an add-on ballast tank module - -but my sub's not a static diver (a "vented" ballast-tank system doesn't let you restore positive buoyancy, so I don't have the option of letting my boat go negative, which would offer the fine ballast control of a static diver). My ballast-tank diver is actually a dynamic diver with a little extra control. It's more fun to drive than other dynamic divers I've had, though. If you want to see this really cheap ballast tank, see the "two-channel sub" thread. I made this tank from an ointment/hair-product-type jar, some aquarium pipe ($2 USD for 20 feet) and a tee, and an automotive pump. Its limitations are that it can't clear the tank when the end of the "snorkel" is underwater; but with a dynamic diver, you can just stop or slow the sub and it surfaces. [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8625872]cheap[/link]
Posted on: 4/8/2009 8:40 AM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8659569

RE: Two-channel sub
[link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNBgk9JDqjs]Crunchy's sub - - control panel[/link] Not sure where that squawk came from as I turned the rudder - - never heard it before! When I reviewed the video I thought the noise came from my wife. We'd sure been laughing about something. [link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRzCez4ytOM]Quick dive, turnaround[/link] Sorry so brief [link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_Xcv4d6VnQ]Another pass[/link] Same path. Too much "roostertail," I need to shift some weight aft. [link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAwB_wAo-Uc]A little more range[/link] Suggesting that range is decent with this toy r/c setup. My son's not driving it here but he's walking closer, I think that's how far we sent it out before he wanted to catch up.
Posted on: 3/30/2009 10:43 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8628157

RE: Two-channel sub
I thought about camo'ing it...but it was too neat to watch the bubbles moving in the clear aquarium pipe [:)] ! I may end up doing that though.
Posted on: 3/28/2009 7:40 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8626734

RE: Two-channel sub
Thanks all! Glad to oblige. Sorry I haven't taken any run photos, but here are some drydock shots. The green thing is of course my ballast tank, with the windshield-washer pump sealed onto it. The "snorkel" terminates above the sub's sail so the pump can draw air in when at or near the surface. Its other function is during flood, since without some kind of opening opposite the flood hole, water wouldn't enter. My rudder "servo" (hiding under the plugs next to the prop shaft in the stern-gear photo) is a motor from an r/c car. I'm just running this little cheapie in the wet, if it breaks I've got a half-dozen others. The rudder arm I made from sheet plastic (maybe from the same car). Power source is 8 AA cells.
Posted on: 3/28/2009 2:17 PM by Author "CrunchyFrog" in the forum "RC Submarines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=8625872