A POSSIBLE CHALLENGE (tongue in cheek)

tankerbuilder

How big does a 950' container-ship turn out to be in HO ,well , she,s over four feet long , in fact closer to five with at least 300 containers on board . Now of course that,s too large . How about an inland waters transfer vessel (normally referred to as , at one time COASTERS)(these average 450 to 570 feet) These move liquid freight from say a deepwater anchorage like #9 in S.F.BAY to SACRAMENTO or STOCKTON ,CA.  Think of the possibilities for a warship. Imagine a 1/87 scale MISSOURI or USS HORNET !  How about a 1/160 ("N' )passenger ship like the greats of forty / fifty years ago ?

 tankerbuilder

You might want to double check your math.  That 950' conatainer ship would be 10' 11" in HO scale.   There are some guys in SE Michigan who build rc models of the various Lakers in HO scale, the models range from 7' to 11.5' long.  Here's a short list of some of their models:
EDMUND FITZGERALD is 8' 4" loa

PAUL R. TREGURTHA is almost 11.5' loa

CLIFFS VICTORY is built in 1:100 scale and is just over 6' loa

The Scale Shipyard produces a fiberglass hull for the IOWA (over 9') and ENTERPRISE (almost 8.5') classes in 1/96 scale, along with various fittings ans weapons.

I built a waterline model of the E.J. Ryerson in 1:500 scale.  I chose that scale because it will go into a diorama of the Duluth ship canal.  I wanted the diorama to be about 3 foot long, and the length of the canal suggested that scale, plus I was able to get PE ladders and railings in that scale, plus people and cars in a scale close enough to that.

The largest Great Lakes Bulk carriers are 1000 feet, and one of these days I'd like to do a thousand footer, so will choose a similar scale for that.

Not such a far fetched scenario...   I have always been intrigued by the early west coast railroads. It usually escapes people that the locomotive "Jupiter" which was present at the Golden Spike ceremony,  had to travel over 15000 miles around Cape Horn on a sailing ship before she ever turned a wheel for the Central Pacific Railroad. I've never had the opportunity to research how sixty-odd CP locomotives were loaded, but it might make an interesting HO or N dockside diorama.

Hey CGBob : sorry about that . I was typing , answering questions from someone talking and all that .You of course are right .It actually works out to 10 foot 11 1/2 inches at the waterline which with bow flare and stern overhang puts,her close to 11 foot 2 inches loa. I fudge here and there to make them fit the layouts of the clients . I have a 400 foot (H.O. scale that is ) and she,s impressive too . By the way I didn,t intend to infer these should be FULL HULL or OPERATIONAL !  I was referring to scratching one that is a waterline model . I have R.C. boats and ships that average out with the largest at 5 1/2 feet . I just like building ships that aren,t found in kits .What got me started was a client that wanted a ship being handled by the TUG that was (I think it,s hard to find now) made by "CORNERSTONE. It could be built with the elevated wheelhouse (For towing railroad barges) or a short wheelhouse for regular tug work . Even though it was made by a rail model supplier and mfgr , I will  say this. Even as a waterline model , it without a doubt  , has to be the BEST tug kit I,ve ever seen . The parts were well made and everything fit the first time . Now if ALL model ships could be like that . Anyway , do you think anyone would be interested in say a transfer tanker or freighter ?      tankerbuilder

The tug was sold by Walthers as a part of their "cornerstone" series.They are hard to find, but there looks to be some out there but not on eBay. Expect to pay north of $ 50.00 tho.

I've often been tempted, but my railroad (1/160) is packed away until I get some of my space back. I've seen some pretty interesting scenarios though, including one where the railroad ferry was mounted on a wheeled cart and an operator pushed it around the layout from port to port.

I live in a former railroad town that had a car float operation over to San Francisco up into the late '60s. They used three flat cars as idlers to spot the loaded cars on the float because it was pretty small. Sante Fe.

Most larger ships I've seen on layouts are either flats or half models, sometimes mounted against a mirror.

If I were to build a ship from scratch I'd probably go with an architectural scale because that's what I'm most familiar with, like 1/8" or 1/16".

The reason  that I found these so fascinating is manyfold.I used to haunt The finest shop in CONCORD , CA. known as "JUST TRAINS" let Me tell you JOAN , the lady that owns this shop is one cool lady,and she knows her train stuff.She showed me train stuff that is perfect in a marine environment . Decals like manholes , and air vents , supercharger vents and such,plus the many train specific stuff that with MINOR mods that will and can be used on ships . I find "CORNERSTONE"products the most interesting as to the overall usefullness in ALL scales.I have used their oil tank farm kits and piping sets and piping and valve sets in all size ship models except 1/350 and 1/700. I am sure "z' scale would fill that gap. I just got the original idea when I was doing paper models . The first ship in train scale I did was to prove that this kind of building could be applied to ships of certainly show quality, just for the beautiful parts you could get to cut down scratchbuild time . There are scenery kits ,people from PREISER and the list goes on . Using the short end of the old plastic "LEGGS" eggs(the old panty hose egg shaped plastic containers) I built a LNG tanker and using hatches from oil tank cars as well as the circular ladders from tank farms It turned out absolutely breathtaking. Everyone wanted one and that,s where the party started . I have built perhaps 25 of them and yet , not one of my clients has asked for a passenger ship . I think that,s the direction I indicated earlier . Well, I changed my plans , I am going to do the "NORMANDIE" in H.O. scale.This will be a challenge to even me. well , wish me luck.      tankerbuilder