1:20 SCALE - SUPERSTRUCTURE PAINTING: ELIZABETH SWANN

 

 

Dig for gold with our A - Z or set sail for HOME

 

 

 

 

APRIL 2024 - Between February and March we increased the diameter of the base cradle and original Jig base and tower locator clearances. Having calculated the diameter of the larger hull tubes, it was a relatively simple matter to cut larger semi-circles in the wooden Jig. But this was very time consuming. In April, having re-sealed the cut wood, we were able to progress to the vessel itself. In this picture you can see we have, sealed, primed and painted the superstructure, onto which the aluminium aft and helm sections will be fixed. Please note that these modifications to the scale model, do not increase the estimated build schedule of the full size craft. Previously, Leo (Youth Lead) had tried his hand at spray painting on the AmphiMax model, before conducting remote controlled trials.

 

 

 

 

Spray painting is a skill that few people master. Nowadays, cars are painted in factories by robots that are programmed by a very skillful human operator.

 

On a smaller scale, good quality paints can be purchased in 500ml cans from many retail outlets, such as Europarts, Halfords, or dedicated refinishing suppliers in 5 litre cans, for 2-pack paints that are applied with a spray gun using a high output compressor.

 

The repair and re-finishing of cars (for example) is a career for many. Welders and panel beaters repair the vehicles, while a specialist spray-painter is brought in to colour up the repaired or newly fitted panels. The same applies to large trucks, boats and even aircraft - that may have custom paint jobs. Although, vinyl wrapping is very popular, where full colour images may be applied to vans for advertising.

 

 

 

 

 

Sealed and primed in acrylic red lead paint. That is typically used for small repairs on the steel bodywork of cars. Normally, primer is fine sanded to ensure adhesion between coats. But if one coat follows another in a short time period, then a chemical bond is stronger than a physical bond.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Several coats of primers and paints later, and this is what the superstructure looked like on the 20th April 2024, air curing. Eventually, the superstructure may be spray painted in 2-Pack white, to match the white deck and wings of the Elizabeth Swann, in preparation for stenciling in gold trim. If we decide to theme as the Queen of the Nile.

 

 

 

 

In all cases masks should be worn. Avoid breathing in particles and ensure good ventilation of workshops and spray booths. We made sure we had through-flow in the workshops and heaters to assist fast drying times between coats. Never consume food or drinks in the area you are painting.

 

 

 

     

 

The folds and returns have to carefully follow the pattern, the bends being that much harder to make over a wide length of metal. Alloy is much easier to form than steel. Though steel is far easier to join with welding. Aluminium welding requires TIG equipment, or a spool-on-gun MIG. The liners of the feeds cables may not be interchangeable, where steel or copper on alloy, produces a contaminated weld. We have plenty of experience in welding and fabrication, having built a sports car chassis from scratch, and repaired our "Miss Ocean" VW surfing wagon, which is to be fitted out internally, to carry the Elizabeth Swann model to shows and open water trials.

 

 

 

 

 

APRIL 24TH - Leo is seen here offering up an aluminium fold, to check for length in relation to the deck, which is covered in solar panels. Leo is interested in boat design and practical metal working skills. In the background you can see a solar catamaran design that was tested a long time ago, in the development of the present trimaran design. We are hoping to have this model ready for another local United Nations event in November. So, we have our work cut out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is very important to measure carefully. We work to a tolerance of around 0.25mm. But in practice, where there are folds, 0.5mm is usually acceptable with a little fettling at the joins. In the background you can see a SWATH design that was tested well before the Elizabeth Swann design hit the drawing board. The submerged twin hull concept proved to have a higher drag than expected, and it was difficult to trim. The radio controlled model had four tanks that could be flooded or pumped out, for trim and ride height adjustment for different sea conditions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are some of the main components of the 1:20 scale Elizabeth Swan technology demonstrator. We applied for part funding for this project from the Dti's TRIG marine technology competition. But, they said they were concerned about cleaning of the panels of salt caking at sea, as applied to ships. We have solved that problem, and were prepared to share that information in return for helping us with development costs. We considered the automatic furling and sun tracking to be an important feature for applications like cargo ships, cruise liners and ferries - not so the UK government. But then, we suppose that most governments around the world are in a pickle. Looking for ways to power ships to meet with the IMO's zero targets for 2100 without much modification of hulls and decks. The target for 2030 is a 40% reduction in GHG emissions. The Elizabeth Swann is a clean-sheet-of-paper design. Not flavour of the month with fleet operators, as well we appreciate. But then progress is sometimes financially painful. In the commercial world it is all about profits. Now, the planet gets a look in, but still has to wait for existing ships to depreciate. We have suggested a scrappage scheme is applied to induce ship operators to change out hulls earlier, as was applied to cars some years ago.

 

 

 

JVH2: Jules Verne Hydrogen Trophy - World Challenge

Dig for treasure with our A - Z or set a course for HOME shipmates

 

1:20 SCALE MODEL - WORKING RADIO CONTROLLED SOLAR & HYDROGEN POWERED SHIP - ELIZABETH SWANN - WITH SOLAR TRACKING BATTERY CHARGE CONTROLLERS AND ELECTRIC POD DRIVES

 

This website is Copyright © 2024 Cleaner Ocean Foundation. The rights of Cleaner Ocean Foundation to be identified as the author of these works have been asserted in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988. This website and the associated Elizabeth Swann artwork and designs are Copyright © 2024 Cleaner Ocean Foundation.