thibaultron

Dealing with fit, finish, and accuracy problems for injection-molded plastic kits has been a characteristic of these kits for decades. Plastic modelers long ago resigned themselves to being "modelers" rather than "kit assemblers". This means correcting the many and manifold flaws in the models as the good doctor has expertly shown above. Often this borders on scratch-building. Witness the plethora of aftermarket accessories in resin, plastic, photoetch, metal, & 3D-printing from suppliers such as Evergreen Scale Models, K & S Metals, Albion tubing, Gold Medal Models, Eduard, and so on ad infinitum. Well done, Doc.

????    🤔
 
Perhaps you could download the pdf manual for the ESC from the seller?
 
Or else wait for it to arrive, presumably with at least some instructions.

Bruce, that's the servo reversing function. It allows you to, on a per-channel basis, reverse the direction a servo will rotate with a given signal from the transmitter. For example, if you found that your rudder turned left when you turned the transmitter wheel right, instead of changing the physical linkage from servo to rudder you can just servo-reverse that channel.
 
I had a look at the manual for your FS-GT3B and here are a few things to note:
 
Pg 7 - in Chinglish they seem to tell you to have the receiver antenna oriented vertically, not lying along the boat's keel.
 
Pg 21 - ABS brake function: you don't want it for a boat so turn it to OFF.
 
Pg 23  -shows how fwd/reverse is controlled by the trigger which can be pulled OR pushed. Now I understand; I assumed the trigger could only be pulled like on a firearm or a slot-car racing set. If the motors go backward when you want forward, you can servo-reverse the throttle channel instead of swapping physical wires.
 
It's a pretty terse manual but that's common in RC where prior knowledge is assumed.
 
You need to read the ESC manual to find out to properly set it up for fwd/off/rev control at power-up. By the way, what's the model number of the new ESC? I'd like to look through its manual too, to be able to help you.
 
 

James:
If there are any plastic parts in one of these kits (present and previous), please do not use that type of oil. It can attack the plastic parts, over time! Use an oil designed for the model railroad hobby. These are plastic safe. Labelle makes oils and grease for the plastic loco parts.
 
Four valves per cylinder has been quite common for automotive engines, for a long time. Gives better flow, for the new pollution standards, and more power for the engine.

If the wiring in the boat has a problem, then you are right back at the start. That is why I am recommending assembling the equipment outside the boat to begin with. I think the receiver only needs 6 volts. You can wire up a cheap battery pack to run it during testing.

I am just learning this throttle but I believe this explains how to reverse.

OK. To augment my knowledge, how does one put the boat into reverse with these land sets?  🤔

Here is the diagram for hooking up the new transmitter/receiver I have.  I think I could just connect the components like this and it should work.

My new transmitter is bound to the receiver from the factory.  They say you don't need to bind it.  My new ESC will be here on Fri.  I don't see why I don't just swap out my old ESC and receiver with the new ones and it should work.  The land transmitter is for cars or boats.  The wheel on the side controls the rudders and the trigger controls boat speed. The other buttons and etc are for trim.

The servo gets power from the receiver.  The receiver gets power from the ESC.  The ESC gets power from the batteries.  I don't get how you get power to a servo outside the boat.

I was thinking the same thing. But there are plenty on Amazon. 

If it was me, I would step one power the receiver from some other 6V battery if I could (you can buy servo cable extensions and cut one connector off to connect the red and black wires to battery) and test that the Tx and Rx bind according to whatever LED flashes the receiver should display. Then plug in your rudder servo and see that it works. Power on and off several times to ensure the binding holds and see that the rudder servo behaves as you turn it.
 
You really shouldn't have to do the above; this brand new stuff should all work.
 
Now you know that the RC set and servo work properly. Then remove the external battery and plug in the ESC to the receiver with your 12V battery packs connected. Turn the ESC on and manipulate your throttle according to whatever ESC start-up sequence the manual specifies (which calibrates it for min/max throttle). I'm not familiar with that "land" type transmitter you have; for an aircraft transmitter used with a boat one usually powers up with the throttle stick in the centre (for "off") perhaps waits for the ESC to beep, then moves the stick to "full ahead" (wait for the beep if applicable) then moves the stick to "full reverse" and you're done. For your land transmitter I presume the trigger is just "min to max" and direction is specified by a separate switch? Or is this "brake/reverse" function I've seen mentioned something the trigger can do? I don't know. You need to consult the manuals.
 
The ESC should now supply 6V to the receiver. The cable connecting the ESC and receiver carries the throttle signal to the receiver and also supplies the 6V to it. Test that the rudder servo still works. If not, unplug it and put two small wires into the receiver's rudder connector and measure the voltage across the 6V/GND pins. If it does then connect the motors to the ESC and test. Again if there are problems phone BIg Rich and he'll talk you through it.
 
I wish I could drive over and help.  Good luck!
 
 

Hi Ron,
 
all parts are metal in these kits, except for the clear windows on the turbofan. 
 
Jim 

James:
If there are any plastic parts in one of these kits (present and previous), please do not use that type of oil. It can attack the plastic parts, over time! Use an oil designed for the model railroad hobby. These are plastic safe. Labelle makes oils and grease for the plastic loco parts.
 
Four valves per cylinder has been quite common for automotive engines, for a long time. Gives better flow, for the new pollution standards, and more power for the engine.

Not too sure. Definitely looks racy in those anodised colours!
 
Ok, on with the build. 
 
As I mentioned in the first post, I needed to use some oil as the kit didn't supply any. This is what I bought for all of these engine kits, and I apply it with a cotton bud.
 

 
The first thing to build are the eight pistons. This is simply a case of inserting a pin through the piston head, trapping the piston rod. The pin is held in place with a circlip on either side. All of these are of course lubricated.


 
 
We are already onto heavy metal with the use of this crankcase and crankshaft. With some lube, this sits into place within the crankcase and is held in place by a series of saddles that are bolted in situ.



 
 
The piston chambers are now wiped with a little oil and the cylinders installed. These bolt to the crankshaft in pairs, with the kink in each of them offset so they don't foul each other when in operation.

 
 
The crankshaft is now rotated to make sure everything is absolutely free. 

 
 
More gold anodised parts are now used, with the cylinder heads and the spark plugs. Two of these units are to be built.

 
 
Next up are the valves. These consist of the valves which are lubes and inserted into the block from below. On the top, a sleeve is dropped into position, followed by a spring and lastly the valve head. All of these are checked that they are free to move.


 
The cam seat is now bolted to the top of each of these units. 

 
And then the camshafts are seated in their correct orientation and then fitted with saddles and some lube.

 
 
Timing gears are now fitted to these units. One of the units has extenders added to the camshafts so the chains can run at different levels so they won't foul each other. 

 
 
Exhaust pipes and manifolds are now added. In retrospect, I'd have added these later as they got in the way a little when I was moving the engine around. They frequently had to be realigned. 

 
 
 
The sump is bolted to the lower crankcase, and onto that are fitted the engine feet.

 
 
Now, the cylinder heads can finally be mated to the crankcase. A real sense of the size and weight of this thing becomes clear.

 
 
Lastly, for this update, the rear and front end covers. 


 
...to be continued

Never experienced tipping or whatsoever...rolling yes  

I am surprised that they are allowed to sell this still. I thought stools/chairs with three or four casters don't get a CE certificat anymore due to the risk of them tipping over and rolling away under your butt ... chairs have to have five casters these days.

It's from a Dutch company called: "HBM Machines". Not sure if they ship internationally, but maybe they do.
 
https://www.hbm-machines.com/nl/p/hbm-professionele-werkplaatsstoel-werkstoel-met-gasveer-model-3

Ordered my kit. It has a long lead time end of July to end of August. Ordered the Torpedo loading crew figures also. Shorter lead time, about 2 weeks.

Ordered my kit. It has a long lead time end of July to end of August. Ordered the Torpedo loading crew figures also. Shorter lead time, about 2 weeks.

As mentioned in my previous post, the deck beams are not thought out well.  They are very flimsy pieces of plastic less than 1/8” thick after sanding down for the wood veneer.  There are tiny tabs on both sides of the beams which insert into notches in the hull.  The idea is to flex the beams to insert them into the notches.  When I attempted this, something very disconcerting occurred; the two hull halves separated.  I sanded the joint line and glued the halves together again.  The next day, the joint was still not solid.  I took some scrap pieces of sprue, sanded them flat and tried to cement them together.  I could break the joint.  I then looked at the hatches and pillars.  A tiny bit of pressure and the glue lines separated.  I don’t know if it was the cement or the composition of the plastic that was causing the problem but from this point onwards, everything was glued with medium viscosity CA.

The deck was installed next.  It slides into the hull from the open aft end.  There is no glue involved.  The deck is theoretically held in place by the inner bulwarks.  I was not comfortable with this concept and glued the deck to the aft deck beam after it had been slid into the hull.  After the finish was applied, the diagonal striations in the deck became even more apparent.  For someone building this model, I would suggest a hand-laid deck from thin veneer.  Apply the planking to the deck before inserting the deck into the hull.

 
The inner bulwarks were installed next.  They were painted before installation and include a waterway molded into them.  This is what holds the deck onto the beams. 

 
It is now time to start the outer hull painting.  I apologize for the poor paint job.  I had difficulty with the brush applications.  Later on, I used an airbrush for the body of the hull and it became apparent that the paint was designed for airbrush application, not brush.  Lesson to be learned is if one is dealing with an unfamiliar product, experiment using it in a place where it will not be seen (inside the hull before it is glued together, for example) before applying it to the outer hull.  After the painting was completed the bulwarks were installed.  The kit came with a laser engraved basswood base, as seen in the next picture.  The slot for the keel is too wide and the outline of the base does not conform to the shape of the hull.  I would suggest using the outer pieces but make new cross-pieces that fit the shape of the model.

The lower transom is installed next.  It was not a good fit and required a significant amount of sanding and filling.

 

Well, well, well, she excels in plastic as much as she does in wood. Excellent!

If you have not read my kit review, take a look at it before you begin.  https://modelshipworld.com/topic/36826-utrecht-172-by-hismodel/
The first (and most important) step in any build is to read the instructions and understand what they are trying to say.  Reading the instructions was easy…there is very little written.  It is essentially all drawings and computer-generated graphics.  Most of it made sense and I figured that the confusing areas would make themselves obvious further into the build.  I have not built a plastic kit in many years.  Construction sequences are different in a plastic model versus wood.  They are certainly neater to build.  No sawdust!  I need to apologize ahead of time for some sloppy painting.  My goal was to review the kit, not make this my magnum opus.
Since everything gets painted prior to installation, I needed to buy paint and glue.  I was told that many plastic modelers swear by Tamiya Extra Thin (the green label) and bought a bottle.  There is a paint chart in the manual listing the names and numbers of four suppliers as well as the RAL equivalents.  RAL is a system used in Europe for color standards.  It started in 1927 and is administered by the German RAL Institute.   I noticed a few problems.  The RAL equivalents were different than some of the paint colors.  Some of the item numbers did not exist.  The yellow specified was bright yellow, whereas the replica ship’s yellow is more muted, closer to mustard.  Even thought I am building OOTB, I could not stand the bright yellow and used Tamiya XF15, flesh, which closely approximates the replica.  Since I knew I would be blending paint, I stayed with a single manufacturer, Tamiya.
 
The first thing to be done is drill numerous holes for eventual insertion of ringbolts, cleats and belaying pins.  Larger holes were drilled for the scuppers.  The drill size is specified on the plans but in several cases, these are larger than necessary.  I drilled all the holes initially with a #77 bit, enlarging them as required.  Drilling plastic is much different from drilling wood.  The bits do not like to bite and the holes need to be drilled by hand to prevent melting the plastic.  After all the holes were drilled, the two hull halves were glued together.  I do not know what the fit-tolerance is for plastic kits.  There were several areas along the seam line that needed to be filled because of gaps.
 
Part 3 of the instructions is called Components Assembly.  It shows drawings of the various parts and their color.  The nineteen pieces window glass are noted as part “TF”, transparent foil but this was not provided in the kit.  I decided to use Saran Wrap.  I started by assembling and painting the two hatches and two pillars, even though they would not be installed for while.  The construction was straight forward.


There are a lot of things in this kit which were well thought out.  Other things…not so much.  One example of this is the deck.  This is the Premium version, which comes with a wood veneer to place over the plastic deck.  This increases the thickness of the deck, requiring the deck beams to be thinned by the thickness of the veneer.  The deck beams already are thin and bendable.  Decreasing their thickness made them even more flexible.  For anyone building this kit, I recommend either strengthening the plastic beams or replacing them with wood.   Here, the mounting pads for the hatches and pillars have been painted red. 

The veneer has been glued onto the plastic deck.  Because they are dissimilar materials, I used CA.  My plan was to apply Watco’s Danish Wood Oil so any bleed-through from the glue would go away.  You can see the coarse grain of the wood in addition to the diagonal saw marks.  I was afraid to sand the deck because the scribing for planks was very shallow.  The deck structures have been placed onto the deck temporarily.


 

Toni, you are amazing - taking on one project after another.
Mentioning projects, I should go back to mine.......🙃

I hope to have the build log started shortly.  Until then, this is the completed model.