Russian Novgorod.

[785boats]

Any of you guys that know me & have seen some of my builds, know that I like boats that are a bit different. Well here's the most different boat that I have ever seen. Especially for a warship.
So of course, even though I have other unfinished models lying around, I had to make a start on this one. A round Russian gunship from 1873, the Novgorod. That's right...a round gunship

https://www.google.com/search?q=russ...LqeBuQYKiTshLM

What really sparked my interest was a little 1:200 scale kit I saw on ebay. only 150mm ( 6" ) in diamater, but complete with motors props & drive shafts.
I bought the kit with the intent to use it, along with photos & line drawings on the web, to scale up some plans to 1:48 scale which ends up being 640mm in diameter.

The kit arrived the other day so I've taken some measurements and started work on it last night.
The lazer etched wooden decking and the etched brass railings are exquisite.

So I made a start on it last night. I cut a disk for the bottom of the hull from some old scrap 1/16" ply veneer.
Then strengthened it with some 1/4" sq bass wood.

When the hull is all planked, I'll add another disk on top to both strengthen it and to have a base to mount all the gear on to.
I've cut out a template for the ribs. Just need to make the other 15 of them now.

I'm going to notch them out for some 1/8" stringers to run around the hull and then just do some vertical planking over them with some 1/16" ply. Probably 3 stringers on the curve and one around the top where the deck is should do it.

This is going to be the strangest boat I've ever built. It won't be a quick build but it will be interesting.
Cheers.

The hull, deck, brass etchings and the lazer etched wooden decking.
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The bits 'n pieces including motors & drive shafts etc.
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Adding the bass sticks to the bottom of the hull.
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All finished.
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The rib template clamped into position for a look see.
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[785boats]

After spending a bit of time this afternoon with the fret saw, I managed to cut out and notch all the ribs.
A bit of medium CA glue & they are now all in place.
I'll have to take a drive tomorrow to our local hobby store, to get some 1/8" sq basswood stringers. That's going to cost a pretty penny. I hope they have some.

Ribs all in place.
IMAG0071.jpg

[srislash]

What an interesting concept. Go man go!!

[Fluid]

Additional information...

https://youtu.be/R5AUGq4Voeg

.

[785boats]

What an interesting concept. Go man go!!

Sure is interesting.

Jay.
Thanks for that link. I had seen it before, but just fast forwarded it to check out the drawings & images.
But now, thanks to you, I actually played the whole thing and absorbed the history & the details.
Now that I've actually started the build, I'll be reading up a bit more on the history & workings of these boats.

[785boats]

The hobbyshop had no 1/8"sq bass or spruce, so I had to settle for some 1.5mm x 6mm planks. I needed to split them in half & laminate two around the ribs.

For the deck level & the next one down I just widened the notches in the ribs & used the 6mm wide planks.
They were easy as the ribs are nearly vertical at those points.
But on the curved sections of the ribs, the strips need to bend up as well as around the hull. The planks didn't want to do that, So I had to halve them to 3mm to get the bend in them.

Here's a couple of pics. Wifey thinks I'm building a UFO.

Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year to all.

The top two stringers with the 6mm wine planks laminated.
IMAG0075.jpg

The first of the 3mm wide stringers laminated.
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Overlapping the joints on a curve between the ribs keeps a nicer curve, rather than joining them on a rib, which leaves a distinct angle because of the tension in the wood.
IMAG0076.jpg

[JestDanny]

Your wifey is right, kind of lol ! UFO = Unidentified Floating Object? very interesting indeed.

[785boats]

I like that description JestDanny.
Yes, interesting indeed.
Not very successful, but interesting.

[fweasel]

Should be able to get that thing on plane with 6S
Interesting build for sure. I've never seen a circular ship before.

[785boats]

Controlling the 6 motors would be the fun part when up on the plane
From what l've read, the thing just used to plough through the waves, and was very hard to control. The rudder was useless & they had to forward & reverse the engines like tank steering. Must have been fun with steam engines.
Cheers.

[785boats]

Well I've made it back home on Friday night from my holiday down to Tasmania. It was great to see the family again.
So yesterday I cut and glued a few planks onto the framework.
They were cut to 15mm at one end and 13mm at the other. Then they needed to be sanded a bit narrower at the smaller end leaving a bowed edge, from about the center of the planks, so that the sides married to each other as they curved around the 90 degree bend.
I also cut them such that the grain of the outside layers of the ply was across the plank, to make them easier to bend around the framework with a lot less tension on them.
I just used thick CA glue to fix them in place. Still picking the dried glue off my finger tips.
To try and make sure that the rim stayed circular, I did two panels opposite each other first. Then a pair at 90 degrees to those two. Then repeated the process for the next 4 panels.
It worked because the rim is still circular.
Here are a few pics.

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[785boats]

I finished the planking over the last few evenings.
The drive shafts, props, & the motors/gearboxes have arrived too.
The props were the closest I could find that looked like the original shape. But man they need some serious balancing. Even spinning the shaft in my hand, with a quick twist of the shaft, sets up some serious wobble
The motor/gearboxes will only be spinning at around 340 rpm but 6 of them all vibrating at once won't be good.

The motors.
https://www.banggood.com/Chihai-DC-7...e=CN&ID=513819

The props.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/4mm-Shaf...53.m2749.l2649

The shafts.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/4mm-Driv...53.m2749.l2648

The finished hull.
m_IMAG0091.jpg


The finished hull with the drives sitting roughly in place.
And yes... I will make sure that the props go on the outside of the hull
m_IMAG0093.jpg

[Jesse J]

Ha, I showed my Italian wife and she asked if it was a Parmesan cheese wheel!
Yes definitely put props on the outside. Gear box, or are those six motors?
Ready to see what happens on the other side.

[785boats]

I see her point. If only. Yum!!

cheese-wheel-branded1.jpg

Those are 6 motors and gearboxes combined.

[785boats]

A little bit more done on the hull today, It's our 'Australia Day' holiday today, so a bit of free time from work.
I've added a deck ring for the main deck to fit against.
Also did a bit of filling and sanding.
Should get the epoxy glass work done later on today I hope.

Cheers.

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