The Essential Beginners Guide to Live Steam Models:
This guide is a short edited extract from
"The Complete guide to Miniature Steam" which is now available on CDrom or Internet download.
It is written with the beginner in mind and covers many essential principles for sucessful running of miniature steam engines, locomotives, traction engines & steam boats. It is written with the beginner in mind and covers many essential principles for sucessful running of miniature steam engines, locomotives, traction engines & steam boats.
Building a model Steam Launch from scratch or from a kit, using a fibreglass or ABS type of hull
Building your own model steam launch can be a rewarding & sometimes a frustrating experience depending on how you go about it. Most people that I speak to seem to be worried about live steam models in some way or other. If you build the steam boat & install the steam plant correctlty, then the whole process of building & running model steam boats can be very enjoyable.
Here are a few initial tips for beginners: Before you start - choose your model very carefully. It is not a good idea to get into the project completely "out of your depth". One branch of the model steamboat building seems to be the "floating doll's house" type of steam launch, usually 1/12th scale, so that doll's house figures & accessories can be used in the boat. These models if built correctly can be very beautiful things, but they can also be very difficult to build. I don't recommend building a large complex model steam boat to start of with, a model of around 3 feet on length would seem to be a sensible choice. Which type of hull? You have the choice of fibreglass, ABS or plank on frame.
If you are a raw beginner to model boat building, I would not recommend plank on frame, as the build will take a lot longer & can go seriously wrong for the inexperienced. I recommend building a steam launch from a kit, obtained from a well-established manufacturer.
In this section, I will deal with bonding wooden components into fibreglass hulls, although most of the techniques can be applied to ABS hulls too. It is important to be able to bond the internal wooden formers & any other structural supports securely in place. Adhesives required: Cyanoacrylate adhesive ("Cyano" or "Superglue") PVA adhesive (preferably waterproof type) 5-minute Epoxy resin "Milliput" Epoxy Putty
Step#1
Assemble the boat stand first, to support the hull as you work on it. If there is not a boat stand in the kit, then make one before you start. Place the stand on a level surface. It is a good idea to obtain some water pipe lagging from a DIY shop; fitted to the boat stand, this will prevent any scratching of the hull as you work on it. Cut a length of the foam into 4 equal lengths & slit along the pre marked line. Seat the foam padding over the top of the boat stand. Once the boat is finished, the stand can be painted & the foam or other suitable resilient material can be glued in place on the top of the stand.
Step#2
With boat stand temporarily out of the way, place the hull upside down on the bench.
Drilling of the propeller shaft & rudder holes in the hull:
Be very careful here, as a mistake at this stage would be disastrous!
At the stern end of the keel, make a mark with a felt tipped pen, for the position of the hole for the propeller shaft. The position of the hole will be marked on the plan.
Very Important:
Measure twice, cut once! Make sure that the mark is in exactly the right position before drilling the hole. The propeller does not want to either foul the underside of the hull, nor does it want stick out below the level of the keel. Take your time with this & get it right first time. Next, drill a small pilot hole where you placed the felt tip pen mark. Now open it out using the small drill as a cutter, to suit the diameter of the propeller shaft. A large drill bit may grab & crack the hull material, so I find it better to open up the hole gradually with a "Dremel" type hobby drill. Approach the drilling of the rudder hole on the same way. Mark the centre of the rudder mounting area with a felt tipped pen, then drill a pilot hole first in that position. Open this hole out to allow the rudder mounting bush sleeve to fit snugly. Next, place the hull the right way up on the stand that you built earlier.
Step#3
Lining up the main floor ribs: It is very important indeed, to make sure that the floor in the boat is 100% level & parallel to the keel. Do a "dry run" first, to find the positions of the floor ribs in the hull, so that the floor panel will be level & correctly aligned in the middle of the hull. By careful measuring, from the keel to the top of each floor rib, which should have the rib centre line marked on it. If there is no centre line, you need to measure each rib individually & mark the centre line. You will then find the correct positions for the ribs, but if working from a kit, even though the plan tells you to fit the ribs in certain positions, always check the level of the floor ribs very carefully, as any mistakes made at this stage will be very difficult to rectify afterwards.
This next step is critical:
Place the floor ribs in order in the bottom of the boat, but do not glue them in place at this stage. It has been found from experience that glass fibre model boat hulls vary in dimensions slightly so a little adjustment here & there is necessary. Now measure the distance once again as before, from the top of both of the hull sides & make sure that the ribs all sit perfectly level & centrally in the hull. If you fix the floor ribs in the wrong position, then the finished floor will not be level relative to the rest of the hull - this would not be good! You will need a straight piece of wood now, in order to find the correct position of the ribs in the hull so that the floor will sit level in the bottom of the boat. When the correct positions are found, mark the position with your felt tip pen. If the odd rib is a fraction lower, this does not matter too much, because strips of wood can be added on top of any low ribs in order to level the floor. When you are absolutely sure that you have got everything right, mark the position of the ribs in the hull.
Step#4
Fixing the floor ribs in place:
The system that I use seems to work very well. Lightly sand (preferably with fairly coarse sandpaper) the area all around where a former is to be secured to the hull, then apply a little "Cyanoacrylate" (Superglue) to the area. Rub the Cyanoacrylate into the sanded area of the hull with an old dry cloth, but make sure that you do not stick yourself & the cloth to the hull! Fix the ribs in place with "Cyano" adhesive. Let the "Cyano" cure & try your straight edge to verify that all the floor supports are level. Once you are satisfied that all is well, with the first former in position, run some more Cyano along the joint to make a strong bond. Before proceeding further, wait until the Cyano has set thoroughly (If you are in a rush - you can buy spray type Cyano accelerators to speed up the curing of the adhesive). When all your main formers & supports are in place in the hull using this method, use "Milliput" Epoxy Putty rolled into thin lines between two wooden boards, of approximately 1/4 inch diameter, then apply this in the way of a fillet on each side of each former.