Lights! Sound! Smoke!

I really wanted this build to stand out from the rest so I thought I would add a few things that would do just that. The first was - lights. I studied the plans and the hundreds of screen grabs from the movie and decided to add lights in a number of places. I chose to light the cabin, navigation lights, a spot light and a light atop the mast. I wanted to keep everything with the boat self contained so I made sure when I purchased the lights they could be run off a 9volt battery. This wasn't a problem as many miniature lights are in that range. I ran the wiring towards the back of the boat where there was a hatch. The hatch was designed to be access to the R/C equipment but my build isn't R/C so it was the perfect place for my switch and battery box. In order to make the hatch removable I mounted a couple of magnets to it.

The lights alone really help bring the boat to life but it wasn't enough for me - I wanted more. The smoke stack is so prominent on the deck that I thought it would be neat to have it functional. I figured this wouldn't be too hard to do since most model railroads can accomplish this. I remembered seeing a small smoke unit in the Micro Mark catalog and after taking a look at it I was sure it would be just the right size.

I only had one small problem - it needed at least 12volts to function. This meant I would have to have it run off a DC Transformer. Glancing over the reference photos I noticed a round plate on the back of the transom and it gave me an idea - it was the perfect place to hide a transformer jack!

I was able to mount the smoke unit under the deck and then I soldered together some brass tubing to recreate the stack.

Now, I could have stopped there but I just wasn't ready to. I had to have - sound! My first thought was to rip the guts out of one of those recordable greeting cards but I came across something better. I found a small electronic board that can record and playback two 20 second clips and the best part - it was cheap! Only $8.00!

I was able to get it from a place called Electronics123, they have a bunch of cheap electronic boards and accessories. If you have the time check out their site. For the speaker I mounted it out of sight inside the cabin and then mounted the board in the hatch. For one of the clips I chose to include the sound of the engine and for the other I felt there was nothing more fitting than Roy Scheider saying, "You're gonna need a bigger boat."

Happy Thanksgiving!

Okay, I'm a little late and progress has been a bit slow over the holiday. Unfortunately, the progress brought me one step back and not forward. The front of the boat was looking off and so I had to completely reshape it. Also, the putty I had used cracked and need to be replaced. It was something that I wasn't able to see until I sprayed a coat of primer on it. After replacing the offending piece with 1/32" plywood I coated it with red glazing putty and sanded that to shape.

I was then able to add some small details to the hull that I noticed looking at my reference photos. I'm not sure what their purpose may be but they add to the "reality".

Primer/Filler/Sand - Repeat!

I had to go out of town for a week so it's been awhile since my last update. There's been a bit of progress as far as the hull goes. After the planks were all in place and roughly sanded I coated the outside of the hull with "Aero Gloss - Sanding Sealer". The fumes from this stuff can take down an elephant so ALWAYS wear a mask and use good ventilation. I apply it liberaly and then leave it to dry which is only a few minutes. I then go at it with 120grit sandpaper and then another coat of sanding sealer. I wound up with about four coats of sealer on it which really helps strengthen the balsa wood. If you take your time sanding you can make the finish as smooth as glass.

Now it was time for some primer. I like to spray the surface with primer at this point which really brings out all the flaws.

Sometimes you can fix them with a little more sanding but the areas that need more work call for some filler. I like to use Red Auto Body Glazing Putty. You can buy a huge tube of this stuff and it lasts forever.

After you sand down the primer be sure to go over it with a fine wet/dry paper like 400grit and wet sand it. You can get a really nice finish wet sanding the auto body filler.

Walk to Plank!

After all the ribs where in place it was time to cover the hull. I picked up a few sheets of 1/8" balsa wood and ripped them into 3/4" strips on the table saw. It takes time to keep everything straight and even, but it saves you time in the end. When all the planks were in place I went at it with sand paper. I started with a heavy paper, I think it was 60 grit in order to rough out the shape. Using 1/8" think balsa allows some room to smooth the surface even if the planks are a little uneven.

What in the world is a "Transom"?

...or a "chine" or a "keel"???? I had no idea when I first started this project. And after a long trial and error period I now know what they all mean.

I blame this whole project on a friend of mine that innocently mentioned to me that he'd never seen a model of the Orca. We talked about it for a bit and after ten minutes he said "so you're going to build it aren't you"? He knows me too well, there was no way I was going to walk away from the idea of building the infamous Orca.

Like I mentioned before my knowledge of boat building was next to nothing and having never tried it I was a little hesitant. I made some calculations off of the limited number of pictures, the movie and searching the Internet and drew up some crude plans. I decided to move forward and try forming the hull. I completed a hull which wasn't bad from a construction view, but it wasn't the Orca.

I then happened upon a website that was selling a set of plans that someone created for an R/C version of the boat. The plans are by a guy named, Pat Tritle and he did a decent job of capturing the feel of the Orca. I went ahead and ordered the plans and went back to the beginning. I abandoned the original hull I built which wasn't a waste but a great learning experience. After looking over the plans I decided to start by cutting out the main parts of the hull from poster board and test fit everything together. This may have been overkill since I was working off a set of plans, but not having done this before it helped me see the process clearer.

Dun...Dun...

Ahoy!, Arrrrr!, Aye Mate-y! Okay, so my only knowledge of the sea is from pirate movies and...Jaws. The latter is the influence for my next project - The Orca. So stay tuned for the online build of my first scratch built model boat. Unfortunately, I know nothing about boats so this is going to be interesting.

Y-Wing Beauty Shots

I think they speak for themselves...enjoy.

White

Well, not quite white. After the primer was left to dry for a day I moved on to the paint. I used Floquil paints again and the more I use them the more I like them. The only downside if the smell, so make sure you use proper ventilation and wear a good mask if you try these paints. Anyway, back to the not quite white. I mixed white paint with a hint of gray in it so that the white isn't so bright. It gives it a nice subdued color for the base. After the white was left to dry I sprayed a coat of Testor's Dullcoat over it before I moved on to weathering with pastels.

Primer

Is Primer a scratchbuilder's best friend or worst enemy? Well, it can be both depending on how good of a job you did before you sprayed it. When you spray that first coat of primer all those bits and pieces that you glued together finally congeal and become one creation. And that is what should happen! But if you cut corners and rush through your build the primer will shine a spotlight on every defect and magnify it a thousand times. So, the lesson is to take your time and get it right otherwise you will be just setting yourself up for disappointment. More than likely it took you months to get to this point so why rush it now when you're in the home stretch? But, if you do come across any problems this is the time to fix them. So, go back and fill, sand, wet sand, and prime again until it's perfect.

The best part of the Y-Wing - all those greeblies!