Haze Gray

Yes, I’m certainly in agreement, there’s nothing out there to suggest one was ever loaded on the Maine. In the photo of the main entering the harbor they are absent clearly. I am am currently printing the stern of the main, should be done around 7pm tonight!

Hi Dan, I most of those pictures also, and I love it when I find a good crisp large format film photo that's been digitized (some from the library of congress are over 100mb!). I'm definitely trying to get things right but (confession time) I'm totally new to fusion 360 so limited skill set - and most of the "plans" out there on the internet for the USS Main, while good when compared to photos are also clear that they are "general arrangements" and deviate from the "as built". I do plan to go back in the future and turn some iterations to get as accurate as possible - As for the Torpedo Boat being on the USS Maine (or not), is actually an interesting topic to me - I have not yet found any photos with the torpedo boat mounted. I've seen websites that mention the Main was not equipped, the second boat was not completed, the first just became a training boat and "most likely ended as scrap". I've not seen any primary source of merit mention the fate of the torpedo boats.....except one. I actually posted that a few days ago up in the thread but the end got cut off so attaching the relevant portion to this post. The Scientific American journal says it was destroyed along with the Maine! (key ominous music) (please don your aluminum foil hats!) Perhaps the little torpedo boat that was built was loaded up on the Maine just prior to the departure to Cuba.... and just maybe it was launched far off from the harbor as an insurance policy - if the Maine came under attack at night the torpedo boat would make for the harbor to try and attack the aggressor (large cruisers and battleships were easy prey for such a torpedo boat - especially in a harbor at night before "torpedo nets" were adopted). Possible that a small torpedo boat which can turn off it's boilers and run slow and silent into the port under remainder steam and pressure and either a) execute a hidden agenda to to torpedo a Spanish ship but mistake the Maine for it's target, or b.) slipped into the port in darkness with plans to be hoisted back on board when a lever, thought to be the one to discharge the air that would launch the torpedo , was in the utterly necessary and lightless stealth of darkness mistakenly the lever that actually launched the torpedo. ha! gets you thinking! Actually the whole reason I'm building these two torp boats is because, at 1/72 scale, they are just big enough for light weight RC gear and propulsion and I hope to be able to launch and recover them!

(message meant for AL actaully...) 3D printing is simple technology in that it lays down a layer of plastic type material at a thickness you specify. There's tweaking that needs to be done but once that's completed you can get reliable prints again and again. poor video but this camera is attached to the bed of my printer and shows the vertical build-up of a part (shroud the turrent spins inside). https://www.youtube.com/embed/baGSAz0jqbQ

Hi Roger, the magazine Marine Modeling International Nov 2013 issue (page 44) had a nice write up of the guy that made the plans (Rene Lefarve or something like that) and a 1/12.5 running steam boat model of the boat. The plans Rene made were available at some point - I was able to find a usable set. I've actually found a pic or two in the US national archives also. Attached a picture of the first torpedo boat that was produced for the USS Maine (as published in the Scientific American Navy boat Special Edition) that Google digitized - I think it was from about the time period of the USS Maine so 1898 or so.

Hello all, Things are moving along quite well in the design and build of the USS Maine. I've been concentrating on the hull and the control mechanisms and preparations for running in the water. I'm just about ready to start printing the hull - but have started with the turrents. Speaking of turrets here's a shot of the internals of the hull showing the servo pockets and a pulley on the turret support that will be used for rotation (along with mock ups of the propulsion and some exterior shots + a pic of a printed turret!

Talos - thank you! - I may (as in probably will) get that book - I did find a russian book that included hull lines for the Martel and had copies of most of the french ministry of defense drawings for carnot, messena, and Bouvet (which I already had) - I started lofting up the hull (see attached pic) I think photographs will be most of what I can use for reference since there's so few drawings of the Martel I've already started on the Charles Martel as I'm about 80% done with the USS Maine (basically print out, fix tolerences, add some details, and then reprint a final model). Basically I couldn't hold off starting the Martel, it is sooo cool! The Messina will come next or maybe the USS Katahdin So many boats I want to do, so little time!

Hello all, I’ve finally tracked down most of the plans I’ve been looking for- I even found some good (enough) drawings for the Charles Martel though im still having more challenges finding hull lines for the Carnot ( even Russian sources dont seem to have them). I’m getting ready to start printing the USS Main hull which will take about a week or so and in the meanwhile I can start on the Charles Martel hull in fusion 360. When I saw this pic of the Charles Martel I was instantly hook on the boat!

So, I apologize about resurrecting this thread from 3 years ago - the Massena and Carnot are two ships that got me hooked on everything that is pre-dreadnaught! Anyways, I’m currently designing the USS Maine in fusion 3D for 3D printing at 1/72 and would like to do the same for the Carnot and Messena, I’ve collected quite a bit of photos and some drawings but haven’t located design details for the hulls. I’d rather not eye-ball things so if anyone knows where I could get that information that would be wonderful! many thanks - Haze Gray

Hello all, I’d like to share a project I’ve been working on for the past month. I chose to start with the USS Maine in 1/72 scale but in truth I’m captivated by just about any pre-dreadnaught design especially some of the tumblehome hulls like the USS Brooklyn and the French Massena, Carnot, etc. Most of the work accomplished thus far has been in the cad program (fusion 360) but I’m just about to start printing parts as I move through and complete the design. I am including the torpedo boats that were meant for the Maine, and hope to eventually figure out a way to launch them while underway.