Greek Bireme by bensid54 - FINISHED - RADIO

[captainbob]

Don't know about you, but If I had finally got it working, I'd be doing a happy dance about now.

 

Bob

[bensid54]

Absolutely Bob it was a very satisfying moment but I also have a new video preview of how the oars will look when it's finished. Patrick my good man would you be so kind as to upload this new video for me? Thanks to all of you for your kind comments and Patrick for your assistance.

[Omega1234]

Hey Ben

 

Here ya go! Nice smooth action of those oars, that's for sure!

 

Well done.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

 

 

Edited March 26, 2015 by Omega1234

[bensid54]

Thanks for helping me out Patrick.

[Omega1234]

No probs, Ben. Happy to help!

[bensid54]

Patrick I have another video to post, it will be the last one for a while thanks for your help once again. I set all the oars in place to see how deep they will dip and what is needed to level end for end, properly space them and make sure all oars hit and leave the water at the same time. It should be moving four times faster than what you view in the video.

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Here you go. Looking real sweet.

 

Out of interest, what sort of battery life are you hoping to get? Just curious because I'd imagine each battery and motor would have quite a bit of strain pushing those oars, especially if the breeze is causing a strong wave/current against the direction of the boat?

 

What do you think?

 

Overall, it's really mesmerising watching all those oars in motion!

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

 

Edited March 28, 2015 by Omega1234

[bensid54]

I think with the present battery I would be lucky to get five full minutes, I will likely have to look into a new bigger battery once I get to that point or wire two more small batteries like the one in it to balance the load but keep the battery height down. I intend to reduce the friction as much as possible with lube and fitting parts just a little loose. Thanks again for posting the video for me.

[Omega1234]

Ok. No probs. Looks like just a few minor issues to sort out and then you're done.

 

All the best!

 

Patrick

Edited March 28, 2015 by Omega1234

[Bedford]

I'm no expert but I would say the stroke seems ok.

 

Well done!

[bensid54]

Now to fit it all together and still have it work.

[bensid54]

This is why the oars need to be removable!

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Many, many posts ago I commented that the hull reminded me of a giant centipede. Now, it doesn't take much imagination to imagine chucking some wheels under the hull and flicking the switch to "On". With all those oars as simulated legs, you'd get a good turn of speed around your lounge room floor!

 

Seriously, though, she sure does look brilliant and, you're right, kinda delicate with the oars in place.

 

Won't be long now before launch day, I'm sure.

 

Cheers and all the best!

 

Patrick

[mtaylor]

Looking great with the oars.   I'd be nervous putting any of mine on the floor much less in front of a door.  Looks like it'll be on the water soon.

[bensid54]

I kept my ears open and luckily I have no pets and my only child at home is 26 so I felt fairly safe doing that. Patrick I got a chuckle out of your comment but the oars I don't think would be good anywhere but water. One wrong move while packing the ship to the pond and I could destroy several oars especially with the momentum the finished hull could have. My next step is the final boxing and aligning the oars after that I will finish the removable deck to make the RC part complete then I have to make the sail and finishing touches. I think I will need to make a carrying case for transport but for now I'll carry it to our complex pool for the sea trials, I will be doing a video very soon of the complete oar operation which I think you will both find interesting.

[Bedford]

I might have considered making the power unit a split setup which is removable ie:- take the deck off and disconnect then lift tout the port drive assy including oars and the same with stbd.

 

That would probably ad a little bit of weight but make it easier to transport.

 

Having said that, with what you have I would make a cradle on a large board that the hull can be attached to so then the whole thing could be carried on its side, assuming the mast id capable of being laid down,

 

Either way she is looking good and sea trial are anticipated!

[bensid54]

Well Bedford I do have a means of quick oar removal that I am presently finishing I'll have to post pictures of the progress. Carrying the ship on it's side was something I didn't consider but it does make sense, if I do that then I will have to make the mast removable or fold down against the deck. I will have to build a case specific to this ship because after all this time and work I need to protect it as best I can. I will need to make the case able to double as an assembly and display case. Interesting but the case itself will take a whole new set of ideas so I can use input there.  

[bensid54]

Making the oar fulcrums or oar ports they will be shaped and beefed up with epoxy to improve strength and look.

[bensid54]

Extending the deck sides to better fit the redesigned oar ports.

[bensid54]

The completed half rack and the other half of the rack in the boat that it is fastened to.

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

Looks like you're well on your way to solving your structural and transportation issues.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[Louie da fly]

Ben,

 

I'm very impressed with your model, and particularly impressed with the most recent video of the oars in use.

 

But it seems to me that the galley is backwatering(!) I hope I've got it wrong, but it seems to me that the oars go toward the stern, dip into the water, and then push towards the bow, which would push the galley sternwards.

 

Steven  

Edited April 8, 2015 by Louie da fly

[bensid54]

They did Steven but the oars can independently move forward or backward they can dip in the water starting at the bow or starting at the stern, I will be able to make it travel backwards, forward, wide arcs, small arcs in any direction left or right heading forward or heading backwards. The setup I have will also allow the ship to spin circles in any direction I will post another video once I can demonstrate that, how all this can be achieved is by using the CCPM helicopter mode of my radio system you can actually mix the two channels to facilitate the function I mentioned above. Thanks to both of you for the kind compliments!

[Omega1234]

Hi Ben

 

The functionality you've described above sounds amazing. Please let me know when the video's ready because I'll happily post it for you.

 

No doubt, I'm really looking forward to her maiden voyage.

 

Cheers

 

Patrick

[bensid54]

Thank Patrick I'm looking forward to that too, I will do a dry run before I put it in the water and video that. Right now I'm still finishing the oar ports and once that's done I will video the dry run, operating the controls will be a whole new learning curve for me because it will function like no other RC boat I've had or flying RC for that matter.

[Louie da fly]

That's a relief, Ben. I was afraid I might be in the unenviable position of pointing out something that would mean you had to pull it to bits and start again.

 

The flexibility available to the oar banks is very impressive.

 

Steven

[bensid54]

Thanks Steven it has been a lot of head scratching and pitching out parts that just wouldn't cut it, hopefully it will start looking like the real thing soon. 

[bensid54]

Yesterday I shortened the disc springs to reduce the deflection caused by springs because they were too much for the job they were doing and it did reduce the strain so I let the one side run for a good five minutes. After turning off the power I noticed one of the oar pegs was broken off as you can see in the one picture, so I had a closer look at where it was mounted and around the peg itself was some cracking. After separating the rack halves I noticed one of the rack alignment pins had broken off but the other four were fine, for now. So based on my findings the oar rack pins will not survive in the long run and it was time to break out the engineer hat. The last picture to look at shows the threaded pin replacements, all 44 will need to be turned down to size and cut to length, it should also reduce the oar rack height. The alignment pins will now be steel two for each side each and the Velcro will no longer be used. This is the reason I made the mechanics so easy to get at because I knew it would be a lot of alteration before I got the results I needed. 

[captainbob]

Getting everything to work together is quite an engineering feat, and you're doing a fine job.

 

Bob

[bensid54]

Thanks Bob very kind of you, I have rethought the oar pins replacement and decided to go with #4 tapered wood screws it will be much faster, easier and give the same results.