realistic KABOOMS!

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 4:36 pm

okay guys, theres been some ships in the gallery that are RC and firing!

Myself and others have tried to contact them to figure out how they did it but to no avail. I'm not just talking smoke, you just use talcum powder if you want smoke, i mean KABOOM! you can see fire in the pics!

So, whats everyones suggested strategies for achieving this? I've been told black powder with a hot wire.... but i'm not too sure of that.

Sean Hert · Post by **Sean Hert** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:44 am

1) Black Powder and a model rocket igniter

2) Flash paper and same

3) .22 blanks

4) .22 / .27 caliber power driver rounds

5) Really small, highly trained crews of British Tars....

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 7:48 am

interesting, how would you fire the .22 blanks? would you need a hammer pin or just heat it somehow?

also, anyone know of a way to make it so you can fire multiple shots from the same barrel without reloading?

MichelB · Post by **MichelB** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 7:53 am

Use a spark plug?

PetrOs · Post by **PetrOs** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:57 am

I have seen on some forum they used a pocket .22 revolver with blanks. It was triggered/reloaded by a servo pulling the trigger ;o)

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:36 pm

haha, i dont think i can fit a revolver in my ships.

PetrOs · Post by **PetrOs** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 1:46 pm

hehe
well, they also chopped off the grips

It was a kind of a very large ship, a 1/100 Bismarck or so.

Torpedo · Post by **Torpedo** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 2:59 am

Firing blanks is not that difficult. You make an apparatus with three disks. The first where the amunition is in (like a revolver magazine), the second behind in the middle and the third. Between the 2nd and 3rd are springs which span the bolts. They have a small fin at the end which hold them under span. The holes in the rear disk have also small cuttings, where those fins can slide through. So if you twist the bolts with the fins, they slide in the cuttings and the bolts are released and hammer on the blanks.

Sorry, without drawing and my english it's hard to describe and surely harder to understand. The idea is, that you have spanned bolts which are released by turning the whole drum and releasing the bolts when the fins slide in the cuttings. So you have several shots easily fired with a servo, but have to reload the system on land.

But I warn you. Fire is not the problem. Smoke is and noise! The sound is never comparable with ships artillerie and without smoke you do not see much. Smoke is difficult to archieve, because you don't want to clean your model everytime you fire a broadside!

Here are some long discussions on that topic (in german though):

http://forum-marinearchiv.de/smf/index. ... 021.0.html
http://www.igs-kriegsschiffmodellbau.de ... 20bis..htm

But I prefer just smoke, but haven't found a suitable solution for my 3mm Derfflinger-Main-Guns.

PetrOs · Post by **PetrOs** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 3:37 am

Torpedo, how about vaporizing a small amount of smoke oil by a spark plug, eventually mixed with a tiny amount of a powder coming from new-year-fireworks? Can be "loaded" in something like a micro plastic capsules used in medicine. You get smoke, you get sound, and a flash too.

Also, with 3mm guns, you can chamber them to 5-6 mm inside of the turret, as no projectile is used...

Torpedo · Post by **Torpedo** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 7:32 am

There are several problems which I haven't solved yet:
1. Dirt. You don't want nasty dirt like burnt gunpowder or oil on you model
2. legality. You can't buy any ingredients or you will be considered as terrorist.
3. Handling. The system should operate easily and of course reloaded easily. If you have 24 rounds, you don't want to produce each one time consuming yourself.

There are very few, who solved those problems and I haven't found a proper solution for my Derfflinger yet.

But if anyone has fun in experiencing - please share your results!

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 8:13 am

Torpedo, thats simple!

You'll need C02 tho!

Get a pill-bottle and put it under your guns, fill it 2/3 with Talcum Powder. Drill 2 holes in the lid and put the lid on, slide one tube that the CO2 comes in from down 2/3 of the way so its about half way stuck in the Talcum powder. Attach a second hose at the top of the pill bottle where your other hole is and run it into the gun barrel. The CO2 blows the powder up out the other hose creating a realistic smoke puff.

seaphoto · Post by **seaphoto** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 7:17 pm

Almost everyone I know who has experimented with pyrotechnics on a model has had an injury, to one degree or another. Combining explosives and sometimes glitchy radio control is not the safest thing in the world.

Years ago, I had a Bismarck that used model airplane glow plugs to ignite charges of Pyrodex, a explosive marketed to the black power gun hobby. More of a crack than a boom, but impressive smoke. I made the guns very, very strong to withstand the blast.

The residue got all over the model, and was difficult to clean up - and this was a model that did not even have planked decks at that point.

One safety measure I would strongly recommend is an interlock to prevent the guns from firing unless trained out, that way you can load them safely when trained in. Do not let children anywhere near the model - this will be a good trick, if you can accomplish it, but could prevent a tragedy - a charge can blind someone, or worse, and I'll bet whatever insurance you carry won't cover this.

Be sure to check with local laws before running your model in a public place - clubs have lost good water for less.

Please be careful - if you are not sure what you are doing, try and find someone qualified to work with you before doing this on your own.

Kurt

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 7:22 pm

after listening to all this i'm beginning to think i'll just stick to talcum powder.... however i'm going to experiment with capguns... not sure how well the blast will travel out of a barrel.

Andy G · Post by **Andy G** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 3:05 am

My plan:

These are easily available, produce a bang and a bit of smoke. They're regular sizes. If "a few" were located in a sturdy box (with a mesh before any pipework, to prevent streamers leaving the barrels) and with the trigger strings stuck to a (very low geared) rotating rod...

I'll report back on my findings!

Andy

MichelB · Post by **MichelB** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 6:42 am

Well, heaving the streaming come out of the barrels could be fun too!

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 7:46 am

haha, i can see it now!

someones ship is chasing yours, get a well aimed shot...

"RAZZLE DAZZLE!" POOF! pshshshshshs

"WHAT THE HELL?!" ... if its a well aimed shot you may even jam his props!

But screaming RAZZLE DAZZLE is the key...

Torpedo · Post by **Torpedo** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 8:49 am

Hi Kenny,

your method seems practical. Talkum powder or grey dust or something is harmless. I only have to experience on the CO2 system, which I am not used to. But with tubes it could be practical...

PetrOs · Post by **PetrOs** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 10:15 am

kennylibben wrote:haha, i can see it now!

someones ship is chasing yours, get a well aimed shot...

"RAZZLE DAZZLE!" POOF! pshshshshshs

"WHAT THE HELL?!" ... if its a well aimed shot you may even jam his props!

But screaming RAZZLE DAZZLE is the key...

Well, Kenny, for such a case you better do a minelayer and drop a few mines in his way ;o)

Actually, did anyone ever tried to make 1/72 depth charges working? Like putting in them something which reacts with water emitting a lot of gas? Usually isolated by plastic foil, and pierces before a drop? I want my Snowberry to be able to drop a few DC patterns ;o)

MichelB · Post by **MichelB** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 10:51 am

Ehm... that may involve serious chemical doo-doo. Perhaps liquid nitrogen? Is that available?

Maybe you can ask the DoD. They'll know.

kennylibben · Post by **kennylibben** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 11:26 am

i can get liquid nitrogen ...

...try alka-seltzers.

Torpedo if you need help with the CO2 just let me know, i have experience and so does Sean Hert with it as we both battle.