David Stokes

The model of the frigate was made some years ago when I was out of work, they ran a series on TV
called 'Modellers World', so my wife sent off for the book and set of drawings for this frigate, they also
did one for a free sailing yacht...which wasn't much to look at. Also a simple glider...the frigate was by
far the better model anyway but at least the series did deal with various abilities in the way of making
models. It has a milliperm motor in it with a electronic speed controller which I designed myself from
a basic drawing, it runs on 4 nicads I think they are called sub C size...anyway it goes very well.

The photo (left) is of the inside of Electron conversion, the foam is
just to fill in inside the hull in case it tries to fill up with water...
Sorry there isn't any numbers on the frigate, I made some using a
computer program on a zx spectrum at the time but failed to get
around to sticking them on
I suppose you know already that the lower the keel, the more
leverage it has hence the less weight you need on it..(so long as
you have enough depth of lake!).

The yacht Electron Build
One pic shows the boat with the balsa skin attached to the area where I have tapered it towards
the transom, and the bits I had cut off then another view of the balsa surgery. A pic of it sanded,
then one of the gap in the deck, then where it has been filled in.
I might round off the transom a little just to take off the sharp corners...
One other thing, I might fit a small motor, then it can be a motor yacht..:-) I will of course have to fill
in the hole where the stern tube was to go and make another one as it will have to be much
steeper and a bit further back....anyway we'll see. Got some more jobs in the garden tomorrow but
I'll still manage some time in the shed..:-)

I liked the vid of the submarine especially when you see it go under the water with the camera still rolling..:-)
and the vid of the boat that went off "free sailing" I had something similar happen to me on Roadford, only my
boat sank because the force of the wind was such it pushed the boat over and cracked the deck, when I let
the sails out it came back up but carried on yet didn't respond to the rudder...so as it got further and further
away it then began to sink from view as it went down....this lake is by no means shallow, so little chance of
recovery....the only saving grace for me is that I didn't build it. I thought at the worst I was going to have to go
around to the other side of the lake which would have been a car ride but I didn't have to bother about that....:-)
Anyway there you are..:-) (reminds me of my tanker that I lost)
Mind how you go..."ring 5 and go sideways"...Bye, David.

Heres a bit of Griff on Proton

Proton is a fast electric model, I made the out-drive unit as they didn't have one in stock, but I bought the coupling, the propeller
is what they call a surface piercing propeller. Geared drive again home made. The gears are by Graupner and it can use
different ratios without having to move the motor, just change the gears. Ratios of 2.2.5and 3-1. I think I have Proton running on
2.5 to one. It runs for about 7/8 minutes on 6 cells. The motor is a 17 turn Yokomoto motor. The model is designed by Glynn
Guest or Madel boat magazine...all balsa, tissue and dope then paint, undercoats rubbed down and then top coats etc.. Film
was taken on a lake in Wales around 2001? My wife was the camera operator...:-) We had just got going that morning and
suddenly came across this lake with a large lay by right next to it...so that was it...out with the boat and into the water...when I first
got on there it was as flat as a pancake..but as soon as I started running the boat it roughed up a bit, but not to worry Proton
went through it without any problems.
When I get a bit more done on this boat I'm working on I'll send you a couple of pics....:-)
Actually I've been away from boat modelling for a few months messing about with old computers, but I have got that out of my
system now so I'm getting back into boat building :-)
Back to work tomorrow so that will slow down my progress a little..LOL
Best Wishes, David.

Click the following links for David's Video Clips
Frigate Clip

Proton Clip

Hello Jason,
At the moment I'm on holidays till Tuesday, just had 2 weeks off, only got till October then I retire,
then I can get stuck into building stuff, as long as I don't get too many other jobs to do like cutting
the grass, and other household things..:-) I've got quite as list of things that need doing, so I wont
be stuck for something to do, not that I ever was but some people are stuck once they retire...

I've added a couple of pics of my earlier conversion, this was another fast electric by glyn guest, its
about 2' 3" length and 6" beam. I am thinking about altering the hull at the rear end to bring it up so
as to give a better shape...I think they call it the rocker the way it curves upwards towards the stern.
I've sailed this model and found it a bit nose heavy so I removed one of the lumps of lead on the
keel and filled the space with a piece of foam so that the other lumps wouldn't move forward, they
are on a tube running from the bottom of the keel, again it seems that the weight needs to be
more aft than for'ard to use a nautical term. But at the time I found I could make it go pretty well
where I wanted it to go, I may have mentioned before that I don't really know much if anything about
building model yachts so its more or less a case of suck it and see...or try and then alter if it
doesn't work? (me too)