When to paint

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Jason - 12 Sep 2003 13:55 GMT

I just bought a Blue Devil (RC Ship) kit. I am trying to decide when
to paint it.. do you paint the decks and hull BEFORE beginning
construction or is it easier to do after?

First model here.. so I am a little lost.

Thanks for your input.

Jason the Newbie

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Jason - 12 Sep 2003 16:20 GMT

I forgot to mention..

this is a plastic kit.

Jason

>I just bought a Blue Devil (RC Ship) kit. I am trying to decide when
>to paint it.. do you paint the decks and hull BEFORE beginning
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
>
>Jason the Newbie

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Fly Higher - 12 Sep 2003 22:00 GMT

Jason,

This depends on a lot of things. They color scheme you plan to use, the
type of paint (spray, brush on, airbrush etc) and the specific parts
involved. Example!

Say you want to do the hull and super structure in basic grey with the deck
being wood tan. And you're going to spray from a can. I'd do the deck and
hull before assembling them. Then I'd assemble the super structure and
paint those parts before gluing them onto the deck. The 5 inch gun turrets
can be done before or after assembly. Though I prefer after for these since
you can easily eliminate the seems of the turret parts and the barrel is
then easy to do with a small brush.

So what you're going to have to do is sit back and plan it out. Different
styles for different parts and situations. But I always try to spray, can
or airbrush as many parts as possible.

BTW, this kit makes a pretty decent R/C project with some minor mods. And
HO scale railroad figures are just about perfect for it. You can use
mailmen, police and construction workers to fill out various uniforms on
deck.

Good luck! And let us know how it comes out.

F. H.

> I forgot to mention..
>
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> >
> >Jason the Newbie

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William - 14 Sep 2003 00:52 GMT

[...]

> BTW, this kit [Blue Devil Destroyer] makes a pretty decent R/C project
> with some minor mods.

Especially these days with micro servos, receivers and ESC units. When
I built one umpteen years ago, cramming a receiver and just one servo
into it was a challenge, esp. since raising the CG makes it roll pretty
badly. (Even with micro stuff, bolting a small lead false keel to the bottom
might not hurt if you're heading for water more turbulent than a swimming
pool.)

With micro servos so small and cheap, it'd be a waste not to hook
one to the gun turrets. (Are they still linked together like in the olden
days?) -Wm

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Fly Higher - 14 Sep 2003 12:58 GMT

Shucks! With todays micro gear, hook a servo to each turret! :)

When I did mine it was some 23 years ago, I used a Kraft radio then, KPS-14
servo for rudders. Two Radio Shack motors RTV'd into position and geared
down to the prop shafts. The props were not the kit provided ones but came
from a hobby shop in the area.

Vantec (sp or was it Vortec?) speed control covered several square inches of
the bottom. A one Amp (1000ma) receiver battery powered the motors. Believe
it or not, I got about two hours run time off that pack. Another, standard
250ma pack took care of the reciever itself. And to top it all off, I stuck
a pair of 6 volt model railroad smoke generators in the stacks on their own
battery (yep, up to three packs in this sucker now). Not much run time with
those but looked great when they did run.

With all this, it sat a little lower in the water than it should but, not
too much. Still looked good and ran and handled well. I estimate it would
do about double scale speed and when I slapped full reverse to it, the two
screws would lift the stern out of the water and walk it sideways several
inches. Not scale but a neat thing to do now and then.:)

Alas, I no longer have it. It succumed to the ravages of an ex-wife many
years ago. Maybe someday I'll build another one. But for now, I'm having
too much fun with sail!

F. H.

> [...]
> >
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> one to the gun turrets. (Are they still linked together like in the olden
> days?) -Wm

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William - 15 Sep 2003 01:41 GMT

> Shucks! With todays micro gear, hook a servo to each turret! :)
>
> When I did mine it was some 23 years ago, I used a Kraft radio then, KPS-14
> servo for rudders. Two Radio Shack motors RTV'd into position and geared
> down to the prop shafts. The props were not the kit provided ones but came
> from a hobby shop in the area.

Mine would have been closer to 30 years back. My recollection is that I
used a Heathkit servo (huge - had both rotary and linear output which
was kinda neat) and receiver (also not small).

Ironically, as gear has gotten smaller, my taste has shifted to larger
hulls.
I'm toying with plans for a U.S.S Olympia cruiser in 1/48th scale these
days. (Also toying with how to get it to the pond - the last time I built
something that big, I had a minivan.) Miniaturization will, though, let
me put a TV camera on the bridge, along with a transmitter. -Wm

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Jason - 15 Sep 2003 01:28 GMT

I see your point. I've been working on the ship for several days. As
I proceed, I see how it might have been smart to paint some of the
decks (the deck or "floor" portion of some of the structures) before
adding light fixtures, rails, etc. But alas, first model and its my
learning experience.

What I am hoping to do is the simplest paint job possible, while still
looking ok. I've seen a couple online that were just gray from the
deck up.. pretty much all the same color save a couple fixtures.

Then the book was black and the bottom of the hull darker gray. Since
this is my first time, I don't want to put too much into painting,
since I am still learning the crafting side and have yet to learn how
to add motors and RC.

Any suggestions for painting from here would be greatly appreciated.

Also, does anyone know a link or book or something to learn how to
wire in the motors, batteries, etc? The docs with the ship are for
one motor, I am installing duals... and either one or two battery
packs, plus of course the ESC. I have no idea how everything is
connected.

As far as micro servos... are these something you buy after the radio?
The radio I was looking at is a cheapie 2channel with 2 servos. It's
like $50. Im not familiar with micro servos.

Thanks for the input guys.

Jason

>Jason,
>
[quoted text clipped - 38 lines]
>> >
>> >Jason the Newbie

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William - 15 Sep 2003 03:50 GMT

> As far as micro servos... are these something you buy after the radio?
> The radio I was looking at is a cheapie 2channel with 2 servos. It's
> like $50. Im not familiar with micro servos.

You can buy them after for most radios. Check with the hobby shop
to see what they've got and if they will match your proposed radio.
You might have to replace the plugs on them if you can't find an
exact match, but electrically they're probably OK. Off the top of
my head, I think you can pick up the cheaper brand (or non-brand)
micro servos for $20-25 each. Haven't shopped recently. How micro
you need is a good question. The smallest will definitely fit, but a size
or two up will probably be OK too. Figure out where you think it
should go, measure the space, allowing for the swing of the control
arm and routing the pushrod to the rudder, then take those
measurements and a ruler to the hobby shop. (Or you can look up
various servo dimensions on line if you want.)

You can also buy radios already set up with micro servos, but
make sure you're getting one for surface use, not aircraft. (It's
a legal thing, as well as a good idea; certain frequencies for
certain uses.) Since the advent of small scale RC cars there're
some pretty good deals out there. (If your hobby shop only
carries sets for aircraft, you can ask if they can order a surface
legal version for you.) Fortunately, in two and three channel
set ups, there's usually a better selection in stock then there
would be in the six or eight channel sets.

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Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Water Models / September 2003

When to paint