X craft build

Whilst waiting for the bits to arrive for the Skipjack, and trying to avoid the decorators ( just one more day of decorators, then one day of carpet fitters to come yet) I thought I'd make the most of a good day (hands and fingers cooperating) and make a start on my Models By Design X craft kit. I haven't done anything to the actual boat yet, but I've started (and practically finished) the cylinder for it. It's going to be a dynamic dive boat, so the installation was pretty simple...just two servos, esc, rx and the motor.





Tomorrow I'll finish off the wiring and connecting the various radio bits, and make up the battery tray to hold the 9.6v 2200a/h sub C Nimh pack, and apart from the end caps ( a friend is making those ) that's the cylinder more or less done.

Just finished making the stub shaft and the watertight stuffing box. The stuffing box is a SubTec SBS2, which is glued through the rear end cap, then another coupling takes it to the main prop shaft. There will be a 4mm styrene support just to the stern side of the coupling.

And the MicroGyros leveller installed.

don't you ever rest mate looking good

Just making the most of the good days, mate...you never know what tomorrow may throw at me.

Oh, the joys of drilling and filing flood slots in fibreglass hulls...luckily there's not many slots on an X craft, but there's hundreds of 1/16" holes.


(and yes, Andy, I did wear my face mask...)

good boy thats what i like to here

Thanks son...told you I'd be a good boy, didn't I?

No signs of the parts for the Skipjack as yet, but the end caps have arrived from Donald in Hong Kong for the X craft, so this morning's task was to drill the hole for the SubTec stuffing box in one cap. It went reasonably well, despite sore wrists, so I'll have a go at drilling the holes for the rudder and vane linkages next.

Cracked on a little bit this morning, installed the Velcro strips to secure the cylinder, and fitted the propshaft. I need to shorten the stub shaft to allow me to move the cylinder back a bit, and make the final adjustments to the cylinder's final position in the hull.

HI RICHARD,


How do you finish them so fast for me is an enigma!!!.
YOU have more energy and gain  then a 25 year old guy.For ME YOU are a LIVING EXAMPLE about PASSION for MODELING.THANK YOU for That TOO!.

What battery do You intend to use?.

Oh Marius, thank you...but there's a long way to go yet, I'm afraid. The battery is a 9.6v, 2500a/h pack of AA sized nImH cells which will sit in the keel, under the cylinder.

Here's the cylinder in its proper position...stub shaft and prop shaft shortened, everything fits better now. And that's it for today...my hands are telling me I've done enough.

I ordered a custom built, fully marinised battery pack (9.6v, 2500a/h, AA sized cells, with special long leads) from the Component Shop, and it duly arrived this morning...it fits perfectly in the keel, under the cylinder, despite the postal services trying to bend it into a U shape!

And so it begins...the worst part. Drilling a myriad of holes and the opening up of the flood slots. I managed to drill fifteen holes before my right wrist declared 'enough'...it's going to be a long job.

The holes were too small, so I decided to open them out to 1/8"...shouldn't have done that. Practically every one I did splintered the gel coat...I was not impressed. Luckily, I had plenty of those brass servo mounting bushes, which fitted a treat...not exactly scale, I know, but by the time they are painted they will hardly show, and it's better than having cracked gel coat on show for all to see...and easier than trying to fill the holes and start again.

looks good to me mate give yourself a pat on the back

Thanks Andy, but I'm not happy with it...I'm going to try inserting some short lengths of styrene tube and sanding it level with the deck, otherwise it means I'm going to have to use those brass inserts in every hole.

thats what i did on the LA that i'm building at the moment put some of that filler on it mate and you'll be fine

Ah, the "special" filler that you got me...that would be ideal, mate. As they say...watch this space.

I had planned to make a start on opening out the flood slots today, but my hands just refused to cooperate with the file, so I had to content myself with just drilling a few more small holes and making the rear locker.

Just had a look at the dive vane supports as they come with the kit...more of Andy's very special filler needed!

Yesterday I noticed a strange thing about the X craft kit...on this one,  the two hatches are different sizes. On X 24 in the Sub Museum, both are the same size. On some models I've seen, both the hatches are the same...on some they are two different sizes. My first one, an original early Darnell kit, had two different sized hatches...Andrew Douglas's boat, which I believe was the next one out of JD's moulds, the two hatches are the same size. And on some boats the hatches are in different postions too. I'd never noticed the  differences before...strange, or what?



My first X craft, X22.



Andrew Douglas's boat.



Paul Cook's X7'



And these are the ones supplied with my kit.

Most peculiar..

The saga of the X craft hatch positions rumbles on...having spoken to a few people far more knowledgeable than I on the subject, it would seem that due to the fact that so many shipyards were involved in the building of these boats, that differences did occur, not only with the hatch positions, but various different things, mainly the placement of external items.

Therefore, I claim "modellers licence" with mine, the whole boat is so far out of scale anyway that hatch positions won't really matter, as long as it resembles an X craft from forty paces, then I'll be happy.

I spoke to Andy (tattooed) and he's very kindly offered to make me a new alloy rim and a clear lid for the radio box...thanks ever so much, mate.

you don't have to thank me Rich it's always a pleasure to help a mate