Chapter Two - Ship Construction

  1. Period, Reference, Source and Scale

    1. Period
      1. Only ships that were laid down between January 1, 1900 and January 1, 1946 may be used, except sailing ships which are not authorized
      2. Only ship designs that construction was actually started on prior to Jan 1, 1946 can be built. Designs that were only "considered" but never implemented are not allowed. This means that the design must be one of the following
        1. It is the design that was used when construction started
        2. It is the design of the ship as it was completed
        3. It is the design of ship after modifications that were started prior to Jan 1, 1946

    2. Ships of a Class
      1. All ships of the same class may have the technical specifications of the most desirable ship of the same class
      2. Ship can not be built by pulling the best components of any and all ships in that class. One ship must be chosen and all characteristics are based on that ship

    3. Reference Source
      1. Conway’s All the Worlds Fighting Ships 1906-1921 and Conway’s All the Worlds Fighting Ships 1922-1946 (two books) shall be the only authorized reference sources for ships
      2. If a person wants to build a ship not listed in the authorized reference resources this may be acceptable provided plans and specifications can be verified by at least two other reputable sources. The Technical Officer and the Commanding Officer must agree on the suitability of the vessel for before it can be authorized
      3. Under certain circumstances defined in defined in these rules the club officers are authorized to approve waivers to the authorized references

    4. Scale
      1. All ships must be built to a scale of 1:144 (one inch equals twelve feet)
      2. Ships are allowed a +/- 5% tolerance is allowed for honest building errors in addition to any changes to a ships dimensions allowed elsewhere in these rules

    5. Modifications
      1. Modifications which are determined to give a ship an unfair advantage will not be allowed and shall not be approved for waiver

  2. Hull Construction

    1. Penetrable Area
      1. Penetrable areas are defined as all points below the main deck and cap-rail to a point one inch below the waterline
        1. The area protected by the frames (ribs) as defined in this chapter is exempt from this specification
      2. Hull may be solid from the first frame forward and the last frame aft. These frames are typically 2" or less inward from the ends of the hull
      3. Only lightweight six-pound density balsa wood may be used on areas defined as penetrable
      4. The exterior of the hull may be covered with a single layer of lightweight one mil thick silkspan in addition to a thin layer of the approved paints
        1. The interior of the balsa sheeting must remain untreated
        2. Silkspan patches to holes in the hull must be applied to the exterior of the ship. These patches may not be wider than twice the diameter of the hole being patched, or half an inch, whichever is narrowest
      5. The thickness of the hull will be based on actual armor thickness at the thickest part of a given ships armor belt as listed here
        Armor Thickness of Ship Maximum Balsa Thickness
        0.00" to 6.99" 1/16"
        7.00" to 11.9" 3/32"
        12.0" and above 1/8"
    2. Deck and Cap Rail
      1. Ships with at least one inch of penetrable freeboard the maximum combined thickness of the deck and cap-rail shall not exceed half of an inch
      2. Ships with less than one inch of penetrable freeboard the maximum combined thickness of the deck and cap-rail shall not exceed three-eighths of an inch
      3. On boats with a high bow the deck and cap-rail may be constructed so the bow is up to 3/8 inch lower than shown of the plans to allow guns to fire over the bow

    3. Frames (Ribs)
      1. Frames (ribs) may be no thicker than 3/8 inch, and on the bottom most interior surface of the boat may be no higher than 1 inch above the bottom
      2. Frames (ribs) must be spaced at least one inch apart, on center, for every 1/8" of frame thickness, rounded up. For example
        1/16 inch thick = frames must be at least 1 inch apart,
        1/8 inch thick = frames must be at least 1 inch apart,
        9/64 inch thick = frames must be at least 2 inches apart,
        1/4 inch thick = frames must be at least 2 inches apart,
        17/64 inch thick = frames must be at least 3 inches apart,
        3/8 inch thick = frames must be at least 3 inches apart
      3. To increase the displacement and allow installation of hardware, frames (ribs) may be 3/8 inch higher than specified on boat plans for boats less than 15,000 tons displacement, heavy load. The water line shall be at the same placement and the free board shall be the same area as shown on the plans
      4. On boats with a high bow the frame may be constructed so the bow is 3/8 inch lower than shown on the plans to allow guns to fire over the bow

    4. Penetrable Areas Forward and Aft of Ribs
      1. Non-penetrable hull areas are allowed in the bow and stern. These areas may be made of any material provided the combined length of these two sections does not violate the rules and provided the ship does not have an unfair advantage as determined by the Technical Officers
      2. As much of the length of the ship shall be made penetrable as is possible given the ship design and available plans. It is the Technical Officer's decision what is possible but the following limits always apply to what the TO may allow
        1. Other as described above for ribs any impenetrable areas of the hull must be at the extreme ends of the hull, before the first window or after the last
        2. Under no circumstance can either impenetrable area be large enough, or maximized to constitute an unfair combat advantage, by providing a nearly impenetrable cross section across bow or stern
        3. A waiver is not needed if the combined lengths of the impenetrable areas at the bow and stern is not more than 10% of the length of the ship at the waterline
        4. If the combined lengths of the impenetrable areas at the bow and stern is more than 10%, but not more than 15% of the length of the ship at the waterline the ship can be waivered if the TO feels that every effort was made to minimize the penitrable areas at the bow and stern. However, under no circumstance can the combined lengths of the impenetrable areas at the bow and stern be more than 15% of the length of the ship at the waterline. Waivers will not be given for ships violating this point

    5. Allowances to Reward Scale Detail
      1. Armor Plate
        1. To give the effect of armor plate on ships that had such, a horizontal stringer made of any material 1/8 inch high and flush with the outboard side of the frames(ribs) may be installed
        2. This will provide additional non-penetrable area of 1/8 inch around the horizontal perimeter of the armor plate and shall not be interpreted to further increase the non-penetrable area
        3. The stringer may not be within half an inch of the waterline. If the scale location of the armor plate is within half an inch of the water line than the horizontal stringer may not be added to the model
      2. Hull Crenellations
        1. Many ships had pronounced hull crenellations along the edge of the deck (usually for secondaries). If there is not at least 1/4" between bottom edge of these crenellations and the bottom of the caprail, then these crenellations need not be made penetrable
      3. A model may not have both in-penetrable hull crenellations and a non-penetrable stringer for an armor plate

  3. Superstructure

    1. The superstructure may be made of any material and must resemble the profile of the real ship, from all directions

  4. All Ships Must Sink

    1. The finished ship must be capable of sinking below the waters surface
      1. No means of delaying, or slowing down the sinking of any ship is allowed other than pumps complying with Chapter Two, Section Nine

    2. Ships may be constructed of a neutral buoyancy design which prevents the ship from sinking to the bottom of the pond
      1. This must be accomplished within the design of the superstructure. No buoyancy may be added to the hull, or interior of the hull of the ship to retard it from sinking and the deck itself may not be made buoyant
      2. The superstructure or a portion thereof may remain above the water surface allowing ease in recovery of the vessel
      3. 95% of the ship must sink below the waters surface

  5. Recovery Device

    1. All ships must have a recovery device in the form of a float with line securely attached to the ship and float
      1. The float shall break free of the ship as the ship sinks and the line shall deploy
      2. The line shall be of sufficient length to allow the float to reach the surface of the water when the ship is on the bottom, marking the location of the ship and allowing recovery of the ship from the waters surface

  6. Blast Shields

    1. These are devices to prevent rounds from passing through both sides of a ship's hull, or from damaging internal hardware
      1. Blast shields may be made of any material and must be mounted no closer than 5/16 inch away from the hull skin of the boat on the interior of the boat
      2. Rounds must be free to penetrate the hull, strike the blast shield and fall away from the hole towards the bottom of the boat
      3. The blast shield may not impede water flow in any way, or allow rounds (balls) to impede water flow
      4. The blast shield may NOT be sealed to any water-channeling device in such a manner as to prevent the water from reaching the bottom of the hull

  7. Watertight Compartments

    1. Electrical and electronic gear that would become damaged by water immersion may be protected by placing it in watertight compartments
      1. These compartments may not be larger than is needed to contain the gear that is being protected
      2. These compartments may not increase the buoyancy to the ship at any time
      3. These compartments may not subdivide the hull or impede the flow of water through the hull

  8. Water Channeling

    1. Water channeling to direct water towards the pump is approved
      1. Channeling shall be no higher than 1/2 inch above the bottom most interior surface of the hull and must allow water to run over and flow into the rest of the ship when there is more than 1/2" of water on the bottom of the hull
      2. Blast shields shall not be sealed to the water channeling

  9. Pumps and Pumping Capacity

    1. All ships may have one or more bilge pumps, but the combined pumping capacity shall not exceed the rates defined here
      Category Displacement Gallons / Hour
      0 Under 13,499 30
      1 13,500 to 24,999 45
      2 25,000 to 34,999 60
      3 35,000 to 47,999 75
      4 48,000 to 64,999 90
      5 Over 65,000 105

    2. The pumping capacity of all unarmed convoy ships, liners, cargo ships or oilers shall not exceed category zero, regardless of the ship’s displacement

    3. The pumping capacity of all armed convoy ships, liners, cargo ships, oilers or raiders shall not exceed category one, regardless of the ship’s displacement

  10. Rudders

    1. Rudders may be made of any material and may be up to 25% larger in surface area than on the real ship. Rudders must be the same shape and installed in the same position as on the real ship, but all rudders need not be installed or operational
    2. Convoy vessels and Raiders converted from transports may have rudders twice the area as shown on the plans

  11. Propellers and Screws

    1. Propellers
      1. Boats may have up to the same number of propellers as the real ship
      2. All propellers need not be installed
      3. Propellers that are installed must be in the same position as on the real ship
      4. Propellers may be up to 50% larger in area than would be correct for scale
    2. Bow thrusters
      1. Bow thrusters may be used only if the real ship was so equipped

  12. Propulsion and Speed

    1. All ships have a maximum scale speed which is based on the type and maximum speed of the ship being modeled
      1. The scale speed of warships is either the maximum speed of the original ship in knots, or twenty-four knots, whichever is faster
      2. The scale speed of non-warships is either the maximum speed of the original ship in knots, or twenty-two knots, whichever is faster
      3. "Trials Speeds" are not authorized

    2. The maximum speed of the model ship is determined by timing how long it takes for the ship to travel one-hundred feet (100’) in a strait line at full throttle. The time it takes for the ship to travel the distance can be no less than the time (in seconds) listed here for each scale speed
      Scale Time Scale Time Scale Time Scale Time
      22 51.1 30 37.5 38 29.6 46 24.5
      23 48.9 31 36.3 39 28.9 47 24.0
      24 46.9 32 35.2 40 28.1 48 23.4
      25 45.0 33 34.1 41 27.4 49 23.0
      26 43.3 34 33.1 42 26.8 50 22.5
      27 41.7 35 32.1 43 26.2 51 22.1
      28 40.2 36 31.3 44 25.6
      29 38.8 37 30.4 45 25.0

    3. Only electric motors may be used in conjunctions with factory sealed batteries

    4. Motors or throttles may not be set to increase power in a turn to improve the maneuverability of a ship, or to increase power during acceleration or deceleration to improve the starting and stopping characteristics of a ship

    5. Modifying the profile of the bow or shape of the hull to increase drag as a means of slowing down the ship is not allowed

  13. Waterline and Boots

    1. All ships shall float at scale waterline as shown on the ship plans

    2. Boot toppings shall be in scale position as shown on ship plans, must be 1/4 inch wide and may be painted or striped with one layer of hobby pin stripe tape

    3. Aircraft carriers are inherently top heavy, so to achieve a stable balance the waterline of aircraft carriers may be raised one half of an inch provided that at least 1 inch of penetrable free board remains above the waterline. This will reduce the freeboard and increasing the displacement of the ship

  14. Lamination, Paints, Fillers, Wood Hardeners

    1. Lamination
      1. Lamination is not permitted in penetrable areas
      2. Holes in penetrable areas may be plugged, or hull sections replaced, or holes may be covered with one layer of light weight silk span
      3. The silk span may not exceed more than 3/8 inch beyond the size of the hole being repaired and may not overlap areas of previous repairs. This means that multiple layers of silk span can not be allowed to build up on the hull, increasing the thickness of the hull as multiple repairs are made

    2. Paints
      1. Only model dope, lacquer based paints, water based paints or acrylic enamel paints may be used on penetrable areas and epoxy, oil based, or house type latex paints may not be used
      2. No paint shall be used on penetrable areas that increases the hardness, strength, or elasticity of the balsa wood

    3. Fillers and Hardeners
      1. Water based wood fillers may be used, but such fillers shall not add strength or thickness of the balsa wood of penetrable areas. Lightweight wall spackle works well as a filler and is easy to sand
      2. Wood hardener materials such as penetrating liquids may not be used on the wood covering the penetrable areas of the hull

  15. External Hull Modifications (Keels, stabilizers, etc.)

    1. Any modifications not present on the ships plans or not of scale must be submitted for a waiver

  16. Radio Control Devices

    1. Conventional R/C Radios
      1. Each ship can have one channel reserved for it
      2. Channels are reserved first-come first-serve
      3. If the ship for which a channel is reserved is not present than another ship may use that channel with the approval of the CO (or XO in the CO's absence)
      4. If the ship does not participate in a club event for one year then the channel is considered available for other ships to reserve

    2. Custom Control Devices
      Do to the difficulty in regulating such devices it is left to the builders to regulate themselves. The following restrictions always apply
      1. If custom devices are to be used then the owner must demonstrate, to the satisfaction of all participating captains, that the device(s) does not conflict with any other control devices
      2. If two or more custom control devices interfere with each other then none of the devices can be used until the conflict is resolved
      3. If any custom control device interferes with any convention R/C radio then the custom control device may not be used until it is changed to not interfere with any convention radio