Made a start on the Cruciform Bollards, made using brass tubing, which passes through the deck into a wooden block which is cemented to the underside of deck for added strength should I ever want to use the bollard for towing. I just need to fill the gaps & add some end caps on the tubes & then sand/prime & then cement in place on the deck.

added some foot grips to the bow using some styrene strips & finished off the inner edge of bulwarks, next job is the fitments for deck such as samson posts/bollards etc! Once i have all the pieces in place i will then be priming the deck ready to paint!

Thanks JB, its getting there...slowly!

Very nice so far, wheelhouse looks great👍👍

JB

few more pics..

Hi guys!,

Bit of an (overdue!) update...

CABIN:
So i made the cabin, which i remade as I wasnt happy with first attempt, the new version much better, next step is to add a door which will be able to be opened/closed, eventually I will add detailed interior with lighting, for now im just working on the hinges!

BULWARK SUPPORTS/RAIL
Finally completed all the bulwark supports, Ive also added a rail (pics to follow).

REAR HATCH/COVER/BENCH
The rear hatch cover is the access point for the rudder controls. I made the hatch & cover using ply & for the bench I used some planking, I decided to make the bench in 3 separate pieces to allow it to be removed with ease for access to hatch. I just need to finish trimming the bench & give a good sanding!


PORT HOLES
These port holes will be used on the front cabin & were made using a rubber grommet which I sliced in half then fixed a copper washer to the topside, i just need to add some clear perspex for the glass.

Ive also made the Freeports for the deck along with the rope/anchor holes etc, pics to follow.

Made a start on the front cabin..

hi guys!

Thanks for comments 😊

in regards to questions below:

The rudder can be removed, yup, the decks on TIDs are indeed steel, but i wanted to do mine with planking as i wanted to be posh! (just kidding!) But I've decided to no longer plank the deck, I tried to make a start but soon realised this was going to be a VERY difficult & long task, main reason is due to the bulwark being in the way, usually when adding planking to a deck its done before adding the bulwark so you can get a very neat fit around the edging, but with the hull i have this was not an option as the bulwark is part of the main mould. So i decided to pass as i didn't want to make a mess of it.

My TID will not be modelled on any particular TID, i decided before the build that i was going to make it "my own" ..im still deciding on a name for her! The colour scheme for the hull will be Red (bottom), Dark Green (middle) & black (top), the stack & deck will be the same colour green as used on the hull & the wheelhouse will be the standard ivory colour.

I've spent the last few days prepping the deck (Filling / Sanding... LOTS of sanding!) to get a smooth finish prior to spraying. I also trimmed the bottom of the superstructure so it sits flush on deck. I also finished the rest of bulwarks supports, just need to add front plate to each one now!

Few more pics of the Superstructure placed on deck, the stack isn't fixed yet as I'm still finishing it off & the bulwark supports I'm also finishing off with the front plate on each one before i fix them to the deck. I'm planning to spray the deck/inner bulwark at weekend providing i manage to get all the supports finished & fixed! 😊

Well that is none too shabby looking. She will be a solid beast. I hope you've a strong back and a large vehicle. You are certainly coming along nice.

Hi Tizdaz
are you basing your model on a particular TID tug?
dave976

Hi Tizdaz, Nice bit of work there with the bulwark supports,👍 you say your going to plank the decks, are you sure that they weren't steel decks? on my Tid they were, love to see a picture of one with planked decks.😊

Cheers, Pete

Hi Tizdaz,
Nice work on the skeg and rudder. Is the rudder removable?

Cheers,
Stephen.

Yes, I'll bet that was time-consuming, a nice neat job standing like two rows soldiers. Keep up the good work it's progressing nicely.

Looks good. Looking at your pictures will the planking go to the bulwarks if so would it be better to install the supports after the decking is done.
Rick

Deck Filled, made a start on the Bulwark supports which are made using 3mm ply, these are VERY time consuming as each one is slightly different so cant use a template! 😊

once i have finished these I will be making a start on planking the deck, im using 2mm x 10mm Walnut strips which will im going to stain/varnish with French Oak colour to match the Wheelhouse.

sure post them 😊

She's looking good, I have a Tid Tug too, Mine uses a car blower motor to power the prop. I can add some photos of mine if you want a model to reference.

Stack pretty much complete, just need to do the top plate for it & then paint it 😊

Also added some shelving at bottom of the hull either side for my ballast tubs to sit.

Im hoping to get the deck filled & sealed over the weekend 😊

Thanks Mike 😊

Hei Tizdaz!
Detail work "par excellence" !!
Congratulations
Greets Michel-Cl.

so ive now completed fixing the deck in place & added the coaming, also finished the new stack as my old one i made was slightly too large! And my new crimp tool arrived for ferrule connectors 😊

Next is to fill the deck using Body Filler& then UPOL Dolphin Glaze to finish off ready for spraying 😊

Thanks Rick 😊

To be honest it's not as daunting as it seems, as long you have basic knowledge of electrics you can find many tutorials online with most modules, the BEIER sound module I purchased which control the lighting/sound/switch etc is a complex module & it does take a little getting used in terms of the software, but there support forum is VERY helpful and answer questions same day usually 😊

The black arts.I'm envious of all who have the knowledge and skill in building electronic boards to run multiple operations in their boats. Building the box to hold and protect the electronics is a bonus. Looks good. Well done.
Rick

Impresive👍

Thanks for comments guys, im enjoying the build even though its taking a while! but hopefully be done for summer!

Hi Tizdaz.
Many congratulations on this one.
Great build blog from you.
Exceptional electrical work,very impressive.
Will be following this one.
Glad your on board.
Regards Bill.

Hi Tizdaz,
Welcome to the site.
You have made an awesome start to this build and considering this is your first RC boat a really fantastic and neat layout in your electronics box.

Great stuff keep it coming.

Martin555.

no words . .better is >>> 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Greets Michel-Cl.

ELECTRIC BOARD / BOX:

Finally completed my Electrics box!

I decided I wanted to put all my electrics into a box to offer protection. So i made this box using bits of ply & Perspex, I also decided to fit a 12v fan to the case to help keep the temperature inside the case low. The fan is connected to the Beier USM-RC2 module & I have programmed the module so the case fan operates at 60% & it will also automatically switch off if there has been no signal from the TX after 1 min. It will automatically turn on again as soon as there is a signal again from the TX (Such as forward on throttle)

VIDEOS:
First Water Trials:
This was my first (& to date, the only!!) wet test. It went well, needs much more ballast but this test was make sure everything worked as should & hull was watertight, which it was 😃

http://www.tizdaz.co.uk/forum/vids/TIDwaterTestNbrighton.mp4

RUDDER:
I cut out a rough shape of the rudder from 2mm Brass Sheet, I then filed down the rudder to the exact shape I wanted & sanded the rest of the rudder down to give it a smooth surface. For the rudder shaft I used a prop shaft which I cut down to size. I silver soldered the shaft to the rudder, then filed it down for a smooth finish & then I covered the joint using JB Marine Weld to reinforce & waterproof the joint.

From some thin brass sheet I then cut 3 strips out & then shaped them to wrap around the rudder shaft & onto the rudder, I fixed these in place using JB Marine Weld, these strips will help make the rudder more sturdy & rigid. I then cut the heads off some small button head bolts & fixed them onto the brass strips either side using JB Marine Weld to give the effect of rivets.

I used a prop shaft sleeve cut to size with a bearing either end & packed it with grease for the hull rudder housing which I fixed in place so the top of the housing was above the water level to prevent any water coming through it into the hull. I used U-POL P40 Body Filler to fix it in place & I made a bracket out of wood for the servo & fixed the wood in place again using U-POL P40 Body Filler, I fastened the servo to the wooden bracket using a nut & bolt on each of the 4 servo mounting holes. I also fit a lower bearing to the strut for the bottom of the rudder shaft to slot into to give smooth operation of the rudder. The rudder shaft is connected to the servo using 2x Double Servo arms & linkages as seen in the photos.

Also a quick vid showing a dry test of the rudder in action.

PROP & SHAFT:
I have a custom hand made Brass 4 bladed 4.5" prop, which I have to say is a piece of art & really impressed with the craftsmanship. The Propshaft is 8mm made of Stainless steel which sits inside a 12.5mm Brass Tube with bearings either end and also has an oiler to help make packing the grease inside simple, it's coupled to the motor using a reinforced safety coupling.

First thing I did was use some 8mm wooden dowel along with a cardboard cutout of the prop & rudder so I could get the measurements for the shaft length ready to cut. The next step was to couple the shaft to the motor using the coupling.

At this point I securely fit a bracket to the shaft tube using JB Marine Weld & made a small box area in the hull underneath it where the bottom of the bracket sat, this box was then filled with U-POL P40 Body Filler. Once this set I then added a layer of Gorilla 2-Part Epoxy Resin to seal it & this secured the bracket in place. I also used U-POL P40 Body Filler to seal the hole where the shaft enters the hull & again I used Gorilla 2-Part Epoxy Resin to seal it.

PORT HOLES:
I made the portholes which will be fitted to the superstructure using Brass & Copper rings, I then fixed some miniature brass nuts in place to replicate the fasteners using Gorilla Superglue Gel & I used frosted acrylic sheet to simulate the glass. To finish them off I just need to add handles at the 6 o'clock position which I will fabricate using thin brass rod. Each porthole measures around 30mm diameter.

Motor & MOUNT:
The smaller motor in pic was one i originally bought which is 12v but then I decided to go for a more powerful (24v) larger motor which has an RPM of around 3800 which is perfect for a tug so no gearing was needed.

I hand made the mount using Aluminium sheet & square brass rods which was fixed to a ply base fixed in place to the hull using P38.

Strut, Keel & skeg:
One of the trickiest parts of my build so far was this! Needless to say that the Strut/skeg has to be pretty much perfectly straight as this where the prop shaft runs through to the hull & the rudder attaches to, so if these are not aligned pretty much perfectly straight it will have a huge impact on the Stability/handling & manoeuvrability of the model when on the water. So I had to get it 100% right first time (no pressure!). The tip is here, check, double check, triple check before fixing anything permanently into place.

First off was to make the Strut which I used some brass flat bar which was 10mm x 3mm. I bent this into shape then I attached the Rudder Outer Shaft to it using solder. I then used some Evo-Stik 2 Part Epoxy Putty that sets rock solid quickly to reinforce the joints & to mould the shape of the rudder area. Next step I used some 9mm ply to make the Skeg, I attached this in place using screws that passed through a block of wood inside the hull which was fixed in place using U-POL P40 Body Filler & also used screws from the underside of the strut. This held the skeg firmly in place, so I then covered the entire surface of the skeg using some JB Marine Weld 2-Part Epoxy which is also waterproof to further reinforce it & give a smooth finish ready for painting.

I then made some brass brackets out of thin sheet copper & fixed these on the skeg joining the top & bottom pieces of the skeg together with the prop shaft in the middle. Again this helps to reinforce the prop shaft/skeg. I then cut off the heads of small button bolts & fixed them onto the brackets to give the appearance of rivets.

Hull:
First step was to give the inside of the hull a sand to give it a smooth finish. I then fit the deck beams, braces & frames together using U-POL P40 Body Filler. I then used some Gorilla 2-Part Epoxy to cover the joint to reinforce it I then used some sheet ply for the base of hull which was fixed in place using U-POL P40 Body Filler, this is where the batteries & ballast will be sitting so it needed to be strong.

I clamped some small pieces of 4mm ply to beams, this made sure that the beams stayed level while bonding them to the hull.

For the motor base I used some ply & then bolted the motor mount to it which held it securely in place. I used a spirit level to be sure that the motor was inline with the shaft for smooth operation. I then sealed around all the edges of the base using U-POL Easy 1 Body Filler.

Deck: