SC-1 Class SubChaser (SC-93) by Azzoun - Dumas - 1:35

[Azzoun]

Hello!  I decided to start a buildlog on a model that I've been working with off and on since the summer of 2022, the Dumas SC-1 Class SubChaser.   Fate brought me the kit from the passing of one of our Philadelphia Ship Model Society ("PSMS") members, Jim MacIntyre, who started this kit and was doing a fine job to get the hull assembled.  He had installed the main propellor shaft and strut, and epoxied the interior of the hull.  This kit is a "club project" for the PSMS which had somewhat fizzled out but I wanted to revitalize it.  At the time of adoption,  one SubChaser had been completed and four others were in various stages of completion, mostly similar to the state at which I received this one.   This is my first attempt at building a remote control scale boat model.   The Dumas kit itself is fairly basic and I've already replaced or will be replacing many of the provided fittings however the instructions have been helpful and are well done.   Thanks to various websites like Subchaser.org and various books that provide a fair amount of information on these ships.   

 

Subchasers were a hastily built craft in order to deal with "German U-Boat Problem" that was devastating shipping during WWI.  The SC-1 SubChaser's primary weapons were depth charges either launched from a "Y" gun or released from racks and a 3" Poole gun mounted on the forward deck.   They were equipped with a couple variations of listening devices and operated in squadrons of three that would work closely together to triangulate a submarine's location.   Subchasers only succeeded in sinking two submarines however they were highly successful in creating blockades against submarine passage.    Over 400 SubChasers were contracted to various shipyards across America and thus there are some variations in their construction depending on the manufacturer.   SCs were 110' long but very narrow in the beam and according to accounts, were a very "wet" boat which wasn't happy unless it was constantly burying the gunnels into the surf.   They were powered by three 220hp Standard Motor gasoline engines that could be started and stopped quickly utilizing compressed air.   Their crew consisted of 4 officers and 20 men whose skippers were often young, upper class officers with experience in yachting.   

 

Several Subchasers were built in my home state, New Jersey, and combined with a book written specifically on the accounts of SC-93, "Hunters of the Steel Sharks", I've chosen that boat as my subject.  Included below are photos of the book, the status of the model when acquired, my model next to models from other PSMS Club members, and some historical photos (courtesy of Subchaser.org).   I found trying to find resources on building scale remote control ship models to be challenging to find best practice.  Hopefully this buildlog can be a help!  All the best, Joshua 

  

Edited October 1 by Azzoun

[hollowneck]

Nice! Looking forward to following this log. Another interesting fact about the vessels is that the hulls were made of wood.

[Jim Lad]

Interesting looking little ships, Joshua.

 

John

[Azzoun]

The best part of being in a ship modeling club like PSMS is the help that is readily offered by all the members.  In this case, the SubChaser kit was only designed for one propellor however that did not stop member, Fred Signor, from designing a jig which allowed him to align the outer propellor shafts.   Fred is an expert machinist and he builds models with the level of care demanded from this profession.   It was a huge benefit that he offered his completed work and experience to expedite our efforts in presenting our SubChaser models with greater historical accuracy.    Attached below are a historical photo from the Subchaser.org, a snap of the process of drilling, and the finished effort.   I've uploaded a short video of the tech session where we drilled the shaft holes and the fun we had doing it, the link immediately below!  One has to wonder, how many ship modelers does it take to drill a propellor shaft?  Enjoy, Joshua 

 

https://youtu.be/2hompjvZmZk

Edited October 2 by Azzoun

[ddp]

according to the C & R drawings used by the US Navy that i have saved on my computer, either your outboard shafts are to far back or the center shaft is to far forward tho i think it is the outboard shafts.

[Azzoun]

24 minutes ago, ddp said:

according to the C & R drawings used by the US Navy that i have saved on my computer, either your outboard shafts are to far back or the center shaft is to far forward tho i think it is the outboard shafts.

It's your perspective - I can show you photos later that they line up better than you think .  

[ddp]

ok.

[Azzoun]

The next step for me in this build and I acknowledge, seems a bit out of order to drilling the hull but alas, I then coated the outer hull with a layer of fiberglass.   The first attempt at this was a fail because didn’t adhere to the hull.   I only coated the outside of the fiber mesh material with the Bondo resin and it mostly didn’t soak through to adhere to the hull.   I was able to peal it away with minimal damage and start over.  In the second attempt, I coated the hull, then applied the mesh, and coated again over top.   Once cured, I obtained some Bondo two-part paste (Grey) and gave the whole hull a coat.    Once that Bondo paste was cured and sanded, I used Bondo putty in a squeeze tube for the finer details (red).   Eventually, this was the result.   My next entry, I’ll discuss installing prop shafts and construction of the struts.  Talk again soon, Joshua

 

Edited October 18 by Azzoun

[schooner]

This is a very interesting build log - particularly for someone who has not worked with fiberglass.

Quick question - after applying the gray Bondo did you have any trouble avoiding sanding through the glass layer while smoothing the hull?

 

I really like that you are going thru all the work of making this a 3-prop - should be a fast one on the water.

Edited October 18 by schooner

[Azzoun]

3 hours ago, schooner said:

This is a very interesting build log - particularly for someone who has not worked with fiberglass.

Quick question - after applying the gray Bondo did you have any trouble avoiding sanding through the glass layer while smoothing the hull?

 

I really like that you are going thru all the work of making this a 3-prop - should be a fast one on the water.

Thank you for the complements.   There are a few places where the fiberglass may have some raised sections which will be sanded through, some are unavoidable.   The main purpose of the fiberglass is to give the hull durability and rigidity.   The interior epoxy coating and all the subsequent layers of paste bondo and paint will keep the hull waterproof even if the fiberglass was sanded through in a few places.   The objective is to keep it mostly intact where you can.  Hope that helps.  

Joshua 

Edited October 18 by Azzoun

[schooner]

Thanks, that's what I needed to know.