USS CAIRO by Gerhardvienna - RADIO - live steam

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi popeye

 

Indeed this wil be a large one. But I will need a lot of the space inside for all the mechanics and RC parts. If you make a life steam model, there is so much more to be placed than in an "only" electric driven boat.

 

Today the next few frames were set to the keels, frame No. 98 marks the front end of the machinery pit, see the photos.

 

Frames 85 to 97, the vertical wooden stripes mark the sidewalls for the machinery pit.

 

Frame No. 98 marks the front end of machinery pit

 

Frame 98 set to the keels

 

Frames No 85 to 102 set to keels. The "X" - marked parts will be cut out of the frames after planking the hull. In this part of the hull the gas tank will have its seat.

 

 

Regards, and many thanks for watching and your kind likes!

Gerhard

[dgbot]

This the first I have heard of a boat with 3 keels.  Interesting.

David 

[cog]

Gerhard,

 

I went through your log from the beginning ... very impressive ... you really have your work cut out (pun intended) for you ... she's not only BIG, but will most probably be very heavy with what you are planning. So far beautiful work and perseverance!

 

Cheers

[Gerhardvienna]

This the first I have heard of a boat with 3 keels.  Interesting.

David 

 

Hi David

The three keels were necessary, the centered paddlewheel did not allow to make the center keel at full length. It runs from the bow back to frame No. 50, the side keels run from Frame 105 to the stern. This is good to see in bob Hill`s plans which I use for my build.

 

 

 

Gerhard,

 

I went through your log from the beginning ... very impressive ... you really have your work cut out (pun intended) for you ... she's not only BIG, but will most probably be very heavy with what you are planning. So far beautiful work and perseverance!

 

Cheers

 

Hi Carl

 

Thank you! She hopefully will not be too haevy, most of the engine will be made from aluminium as far as possible. Most of the casematte will be made from balsa wood, the pit for engine and gas tank will be made from 2mm plywood. Planks are planned from 2 x 6 mm pine, the deck will consist of 1 mm plywood and 1x 5 mm wood stripes, maybe peawood.

A bit of endurance is important for doing the same things all days long, now that the frames are ready for assembling work flows a little better. 

 

Today the last frames at the bow were set to the keels, not so much work at this stage, next days the frames to the stern will be mounted.

 

Thank you all again for your interest and so many likes

 

Regards

Gerhard

 

[cog]

Gerhard,

 

When I look at those pictures, you must feel 'framed' ... On those last (or first) three frames, do you have enough body and length to shape them to follow the hull's line?

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Carl

 

Absolutley! The frames at the bow are enough, 10 frames at the stern and 10 in the mid section will be good to work with. For a usual hull I use one frame around each 10 cm, at bended parts every 5cm, so there are a lot more at the Cairo hull. The bow and stern will be made from solid wood blocks, and grinded to final shape, I`ve made that on former hulls too, it works fine. If it is necessary, I can fill smaller portions of wood to the blocks, the result will be a good surface for planking. More about this work will come later, as always with lots of pics (IF I dont forget that! ). The blocks will be glued to the hull, when the inner pits are set in, they will give some extra stability to it.

Thank you & all others for your interest!

 

Regards

Gerhard

[cog]

Gerhard,

 

That's not what I meant. I meant the fairing of the frames, rounding them to the hull's curvature. When I look at the drawing underneath, they seem to be a bit 'short'(?)

[Gerhardvienna]

Gerhard,

 

.................... they seem to be a bit 'short'(?)

 

 

Hi Carl

 

This comes from the angle the pics are taken. All of the frames end up with the inner line of the hull.

 

Regards

Gerhard

[cog]

Ah, that's clear, Gerhard. As the proverb goes: Better safe than sorry!!

 

Cheers

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Carl

 

You`r so right ! I made that mistake on a former project, was only 2mm, but I built the complete hull new then! But it was only 12 frames, and a lot of balsa wood stripes, so this was not too expensive . Such a mistake with the Cairo would be much more intense in costs and time..............

 

Regards

Gerhard

[cog]

Evening Gerhard,

 

Well, that means you'll hear me when I see something ... besides the likes and my admiration of course

 

Cheers

[Gerhardvienna]

Evening Gerhard,

 

Well, that means you'll hear me when I see something ... besides the likes and my admiration of course

 

Cheers

 

Hi Carl

 

Thank you!

When it comes to good tips, hints or critics, I always try to listen. Every tip of making things better may help!

 

Btw. I`m still searching for a good drawing of the engine, the original drawings are not that good for rebuilding. I know about the "Ageless Engines" plans, this engine is much too large, and the E.T. Westbury engine from which I do have the plans. But this engine does not look like the original, so it is not what I expect for "my" Cairo. Most important will be the function of the valves and the cam, and how can I make it a reversal engine.

Thank you all again for your interest,

 

Regards

Gerhard

 

PS.: No new photos for today, just the same old story of setting frames to the keels ...................

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi again, and thank you all for your interest and likes!

 

Some more new pics today............

The last days I set some more frames to the keels, and made some reminders for me as marks to different frames, where and how wide to cut them. Just 8 more to glue to the keels, and that part of work is done

Overview of the now set frames

 

Frames with "reminders"

 

A look from stern to bow......

 

NOW I`m going to watch the Indy 500............

 

Best regards
Gerhard

 

 

[Canute]

Gerhard, nice work with your frames. Smart to make those notes on them, too.

 

And how'd you like the race?

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Ken

 

This notes on the frames are a good thing not to forget what to do and where. Especially when there are so many almost identical frames this helps a lot.

 

The race? I was a little disappointed from JPM`s early accident, maybe he had a bit of power overstering. Many cautions, , and a rookie winner who had earned it! Good entertainment, thankfully no one was harmed! I`m watching the whole season, like the Indy`s more than formula one! From Saturday to Sunday also the Nürburgring 24 houres race was on TV, with a 1 to 4 win for Mercedes, great race too!

 

Regards

Gerhard

[popeye the sailor]

nice progress........looking real good  

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Denis

 

Thank you!

 

All frames are set now, the next days will be a break in building models for my home renovation. Made just two more pics from the state today, next steps will be the outside planking, before I can start with all the internal boxes for engine and tank room.

 

 

Thank you all for your interest and nice likes again.....

Best regards

Gerhard

[cog]

Looking 'spiffy' ready for the next phase ... A job well done. Looking forward to the planking bit ...

 

Good luck with the renovation activities! Don't get injured, we want more posts ........

 

Cheers

[Gerhardvienna]

Looking 'spiffy' ready for the next phase ... A job well done. Looking forward to the planking bit ...

 

Good luck with the renovation activities! Don't get injured, we want more posts ........

 

Cheers

 

Hi Carl

 

I wont get injured as I hope! But renovation must go on, new floor is layed, new workbench is set, but there is much more to do, before I can use all my tools and machinery. The old bench had only 1,6 meters of length, the new has 2 meters, so there will be space for a good milling machine then. Without that machin I cannot build good steam engines, so it`s a must!

Beneath the Cairo i`m thinking about building a Baby Bootlegger too, so busy days will come, and maybe some more posts.....

 

Regards

Gerhard

[Mirabell61]

Hi Gerhard,

 

good progress there, perhaps I`ve overread it, in case you explained somwhere already......, I`m wondering if there is a reason why you fit the large number of frames. Do you plan to make some outcuts on the outer skin, in order to make the frames visable ?

Very precise work indeed   

 

 

Nils

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Gerhard,

 

 Do you plan to make some outcuts on the outer skin, in order to make the frames visable ?

Very precise work indeed   

 

Nils

 

 

Hi Nils

 

Thank you!

Would be a bad idea, making cutouts into the hull for a floating model

I will need this frames to make a real tough fit for the gas tank, and the bended planks are a bit hard to do exactly, when there are less frames too. This way I will get enough stability to the hull, and get the right bendings to the planks a the bow. At the stern are less bended planks to make, so there I set only every second frame from the original plans, in the mid sector are not so many frames to set. There will be the engine- and gastank "boxes" set in, so it will be all solid.

I will continue in a few days (as I hope), all will be better to explain then......

 

Regards

Gerhard

[Mirabell61]

Hi Nils

 

Thank you!

Would be a bad idea, making cutouts into the hull for a floating model

I will need this frames to make a real tough fit for the gas tank, and the bended planks are a bit hard to do exactly, when there are less frames too. This way I will get enough stability to the hull, and get the right bendings to the planks a the bow. At the stern are less bended planks to make, so there I set only every second frame from the original plans, in the mid sector are not so many frames to set. There will be the engine- and gastank "boxes" set in, so it will be all solid.

I will continue in a few days (as I hope), all will be better to explain then......

 

Regards

Gerhard

 

 

Sorry for that question Gerhard,

 

I forgot that you`re planing a live steam vessel, of course no outcuts !

and the frames will be as much as necessary...

 

Nils

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Nils

 

Dont worry (be happy )

It was a lot of frames to build, maybe I`ve made a bit too many. But I wanted as much as possible frames for the most "endangered" parts, the gas tank must have an extremley stable seat. The engine will have its own seat from solid wood, so there was no need for more frames. All in all I`ve made frames from 30 meters of 5 x 5 mm pine wood! And some stability parts from 5 x 10 mm pine, the keels included I used 6 meters from that!

 

Regards

Gerhard

[Mirabell61]

Hi Gerhard,

 

a RC controlled live steam vessel is always something special. I remember when my river tug model was taken to the lake, and there was always an interested audience around. As boiler, oiler, and engine were all mounted to a common baseplate that could be taken out of the hull, the boiler was filled with destilled water and fired up with a different extern larger torch, til I had 3 bar on the gauge, then the complete baseplate was set into the model, connecting the driveshaft coupling, and the servo gear to the stearing slide valve. The burner and the inboard (oneway) gasbottle then took over the firing job. There was that typical steamdrive smell in the air, when she ploughed through the water, the sound of the burner from inside the ship, and the sound of the wake at aft, when the 80mm prop started to propell her along. The engine itself was running silent....

 

Nils

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Nils

 

This will be my first life steam boat, I will have to learn that all. The engine should sound like an original one, the stroke will be 36mm and bore 12 mm, close to the original engine in measure. I wil try, to make even the boilers close to original in look and volume, the closer I can get the happier I am . For calculation of engine and boilers there was a good tool in the "Segelschiffmodellbau" forum, works good and gives good infos for the size of boilers fitting to the wanted engine. I could send that to you by PM, if you want it!

 

Regards

Gerhard 

[Mirabell61]

Hi Nils

 

This will be my first life steam boat, I will have to learn that all. The engine should sound like an original one, the stroke will be 36mm and bore 12 mm, close to the original engine in measure. I wil try, to make even the boilers close to original in look and volume, the closer I can get the happier I am . For calculation of engine and boilers there was a good tool in the "Segelschiffmodellbau" forum, works good and gives good infos for the size of boilers fitting to the wanted engine. I could send that to you by PM, if you want it!

 

Regards

Gerhard 

 Hi Gerhard,

I may refer to your offer, if I were to build a steam driven boat again.....

A very interesting project you have under work....

 

What I think should be concidered is, if it will be an expansion type (steam injection, letting the piston be driven by expanding steam), or the full flow type, which works more or less like a "compressed air" driven steamflow, as if it were a turbine. That would have a higher consumption of steam, and require a very efficient boiler to mantain the required steam pressure. Never forget to install a blow off, overflow valve !

 

When I designed my 6 cylinder engine it was operating with full flow mode, and the size of the boiler was limited to the geometry of the ship`s available boiler room. Besides that the collected "wet" steam from the boiler`s upper steam-dome was led through the firering tube in a coil again and sowith was superheated before entering the engine. It worked like compressed air, and the boiler was capable of delivering about 2 - 3 bar constantly, when using a built in burner torch fired with Butan cigarette-lighter gas. Also the ship needs sufficient openings to allow air to enter for the burner, so it won`nt exhaust the flame in lack of ambient fresh air. Also very important is to return the RC controlled ship to the pier standpoint before the boilerwater reaches minimum level, otherwise you may get unreparable boiler damage

 

Nils

Edited June 2, 2016 by Mirabell61

[Gerhardvienna]

Hi Nils again

 

It will be a full flow engine type, slowly I discover the secrets of the valve steering with the cams, not sure if I will use two or only one cam per cylinder. The original engine had two cams, so I will try to make it that way, if it is possible. The boilers will have all safety issues and will be collected with a feeding pump. The boilers without  a pump will have only 110ccm of volume, so a feeding pump is necessary. Steam will be collected in a steam drum and goes from there through the engine to the pre-heater for the feeding water. A steam oiler will be included as well, gas will be regulated automatically by a pressure valve. The pressure gauge will be located under the steering house, a lot of work to make all that things, and to make them work properly!

 

Regards

Gerhard

[Mirabell61]

Gerhard,

 

go for it, it sounds great, and all the best for your ambitious project....

 

Nils

[Gerhardvienna]

Gerhard,

 

go for it, it sounds great, and all the best for your ambitious project....

 

Nils

 

 

Hi Nils

 

Thank you again, will be a long way to go............

But I`m willing!

 

Regards

Gerhard

[captainbob]

Hi Nils again

 

It will be a full flow engine type, slowly I discover the secrets of the valve steering with the cams, not sure if I will use two or only one cam per cylinder. The original engine had two cams, so I will try to make it that way, if it is possible. The boilers will have all safety issues and will be collected with a feeding pump. The boilers without  a pump will have only 110ccm of volume, so a feeding pump is necessary. Steam will be collected in a steam drum and goes from there through the engine to the pre-heater for the feeding water. A steam oiler will be included as well, gas will be regulated automatically by a pressure valve. The pressure gauge will be located under the steering house, a lot of work to make all that things, and to make them work properly!

 

Regards

Gerhard

 

That sounds like a fine working system.  It will be fun watching it all go together.

 

Bob