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Building Ships in RailRoad Scales .

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  • Member since
    June 2014
  • From: New Braunfels , Texas
Building Ships in RailRoad Scales .
Posted by Tanker - Builder on Monday, February 25, 2019 2:45 PM

 I saay :

      Those of you who like to scratch build . Have you ever tried waterline rail Road scale ships ? The sheer sizes of some will surprise the daylights out of you . Here's a good example12' is 87 foot in H.O. So a simple 500' , 0r 600' freighter is going to be 5'or6' or longer .The Titanic in that scale will be close to eight foot long ! If you want to , you can do something in "N" scale which is 1/160 scale  . I have found that a ship of size there can be still formidable to build .

     I try to keep the ships and boats on the small side .Harbor Cruise boats and Tugs are perfect .There is a Tugboat in H.O. that's about eleven inches and gives you the option of Super detailing the heck out of it .Plus it supplies the instructions for constructing tall wheel-house ( Rail Barges) and short house versions . The oportunity for the detail freak is unlimited as is the folks to crew one of these vessels with .

     One vignet I did had two of The KIBRI brand boats at a pier .One nicely painted and decorated for Harbor Cruises and the other being prepped for the same job with crew chipping , painting and doing mechanical repairs and rigging the canopy frame on the after-deck . Folks loved them and the manager of the store where they resided took a wood shop building , built a slip next to the dock where my boats were and gave it a company name and The legend " Best Bottoms on the Bay "  for Dragonstar Marine ( my actual company name was Dragonstar ! )

 Now , It may be a challenge but we know folks who do large 1/350 warships .How about a little larger and Civilian ? Just Askin . T.B.

   

  • Member since
    September 2012
Posted by GMorrison on Monday, February 25, 2019 3:27 PM

Tanker - Builder

Here's a good example12' is 87 foot in H.O.

I think you mean 12 inches, not feet.

I have the Model Shipways steam tug kit in HO. 

Great scale for "stuff" and figures, but it is a little biggish.

I always thought that the Walthers Laker Ore Carrier was pretty cool. you can get inserts to make the hull as long as you want.

 Modeling is an excuse to buy books.

 

  • Member since
    December 2002
  • From: Derry, New Hampshire, USA
Posted by rcboater on Monday, February 25, 2019 8:40 PM

I have a spare Revell 1/96 Cutty Sark hull. (no decks, just the hull.)  The dimensions of that one are almost spot-on for a scrathbuilt US Revenue Cutter Harriet Lane, in 1/88 scale, which is really HO scale after a small rounding error!

Not a RR scale, but close- 1/96 is popular for RC scale ships. Whenever I see an interesting subject, I’m thinking about what it would be in 1/96, and HO is only about 13% bigger, so I have a good idea of how big they’d be!

As I was telling my buddies the other day—  If I ever become “Czar of All Modeling”, I will do the following:

- replace 1/72, HO, and 1/96 scales with 1/100.

- replace 1/144 and N scales with 1/150.

- 1/43, 1/48, and O scale  are replaced by 1/50.

-Bill

 

Webmaster, Marine Modelers Club of New England

www.marinemodelers.org

 

  • Member since
    June 2014
  • From: New Braunfels , Texas
Posted by Tanker - Builder on Tuesday, February 26, 2019 7:00 AM

" G " 

 Hey you got sharper eyes than me and I wrote the thing .Thank You Sir ! Yeah that ore Carrier was cool ! The Revell Moor-Mc-Cormack Brasil ( Brazil-Argentina )would look great on an N scale layout . Nice little cruise Ship ! 

  • Member since
    June 2014
  • From: New Braunfels , Texas
Posted by Tanker - Builder on Tuesday, February 26, 2019 7:14 AM

Hi , RC Boater ;

 Well ,that's a great idea . Now for your edification . I was a member or the " Golden Gate Model Yacht Club " and we ran everything from sail to steam and of course electrics .No Gas allowed due to an accident one summer .

 My Electric Tug with a Lionel smoke generator and fully detailed wheelhouse and lighting weighed twenty pounds ready to go and was five and a half foot long . I also sailed 1/32 electrics to prove a point to the staff for the youngsters who built plastic -motorized kits .Won the day !

     Did you know a 1/32 scale ( LINDBERG ) LCVP can act as a tug for a All Metal ! !  steam powered Liner almost nine foot long ? His boiler broke and he was dead in the water .Our recovery Pram was getting a new bottom and fishing gear wasn't allowed ( Park Rules ) I took my teensy boat ( next to that ship ) and tucked in by his rudder and brought him to shore ( Thank Goodness it was a still day , wind wise) . I burned up the motor but saved a work of art !

 After that the official ruling was that smaller craft could run as long as they showed proper sailing courtesy to the larger vessels .Worked Great .( Don't know if they're still around either ! ) T.B.

  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: Twin Cities of Minnesota
Posted by Don Stauffer on Tuesday, February 26, 2019 8:38 AM

GMorrison

 

 
Tanker - Builder

Here's a good example12' is 87 foot in H.O.

 

 

I think you mean 12 inches, not feet.

 

I have the Model Shipways steam tug kit in HO. 

Great scale for "stuff" and figures, but it is a little biggish.

I always thought that the Walthers Laker Ore Carrier was pretty cool. you can get inserts to make the hull as long as you want.

 

Ah yes, I have that MS tug in my stash.  I thought about building that Walthers bulk carrier, but I'd want it either 400 or 600 foot, no place to display it. 

I am contemplating an N-scale railroad ferry. It would be a convenient size and I could populate it with off the shelf freight cars.  I have planform drawing for it and several pictures.

 

Don Stauffer in Minnesota

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