A while ago I did a comparison between piping TAB drawings, photos, and the kit, and found that the sail was very out of shape. I 3D printed a significantly larger sail with a flatter top designed by using the drawings, and it seemed to match photos very well.
Hi Vepr,
That's very interesting! Could you please post pictures of the new sail, together with the kit version, pointing out the differences?
And: are the 3D prints of your sail available for sale or otherwise?
Maarten
"I've heard there's a wicked war a-blazing, and the taste of war I know so very well
Even now I see the foreign flag a-raising, their guns on fire as we sail into hell" Roger Whittaker +9/13/2023
I don't have access to my models right now, so I can't show you the difference. All I did was scale piping TAB drawings (that are already on this thread I think) to 1/350 and made a simple model in Inventor which I then printed out. The real sail is longer, taller, and the top is sharper/flatter instead of the almost semi-circular top of the kit sail.
No, I can't offer anything for sale.
Jacob
Under Construction:
1/350 Typhoon
1/350 Skate
1/350 USS Nautilus
1/350 Tang
1/350 November
1/350 Hotel II
1/350 Alfa
1/350 George Washington
1/72 Type VIIC
I might be able to CAD a new sail up, but give me a week or two to look at the plans. I'm also about to start my summer job and dealing with a very sick kitty with cancer, so while I plan on doing these sails, I don't want to commit without clearing my plate off first, so to speak.
Floating Drydock plans ordered. I also have an old BWN Daniel Webster kit in the stash to check anything I cad up against. I seem to vaguely recall that Mike Bishop served aboard the Webster so I tend to think that he would have made "his" boat as accurate as possible. Does that sound accurate or was I imagining things?
Kitty is still with us, thank fully. She has bone cancer but seems stable right now so I might have a tad more time. Given the choice between cad work and a family member, the family member comes first but I will get done what I can, when I can. No ETA on when the plans will arrive.
Okay, the plans are here. I'll start working on the sail tomorrow. They only have little outlines for where the masts go, not actual drawings of the masts themselves. These are among The Floating Drydock's more basic TFW plans (not meant as a knock - I'm sure there was and remains little about these boats that isn't restricted in one form or another when they were drawn), so what are everyones' thoughts about the masts?
Okay, how does this look? I want to get the rough shape down before hitting the details. Also, should the sail have a flat base or a slightly curved base? The plans show a curved base but as I don't have the kit in front of me I thought it best to ask. As soon as the basic shape is deemed accurate by you all, and you guys who served aboard these boats would know best, I'll open a new thread in the Virtual Modeling section of the site. The filet around the top of the sail is also hard to determine in the plans and photos. Is it rounded enough or should it be rounded more? It looks okay to my eyes, but again, best to ask.
Does the side profile look okay? This came straight from the FDD plans. I know that the top needs to be filleted more, but is the side profile acceptable?
Also, should the sail have a flat base or a slightly curved base?
The curve is dependent on the hull: in the Ethan Allen class the sail is located at the curve towards the bow, so the rear is horizontal but the forward edge is some 8-10 inches lower than that. In the Lafayette/Franklin there is hardly any curve at all in my opinion, as the sail is located further aft relative to the bow. Again, if any, there is only a slight curve at the front end, a few inches at most.
In 1/350 it is negligible for the Lafayette/Franklin, but for my Ethan Allen I had to add a sliver of about 0.5mm at the front to avoid a gap. In any case, the front of the sail should be vertical relative to the datum line.
Is the top of the sail to your liking? In my view it seems too angular, and should be more rounded, both in side view and cross section.
"I've heard there's a wicked war a-blazing, and the taste of war I know so very well
Even now I see the foreign flag a-raising, their guns on fire as we sail into hell" Roger Whittaker +9/13/2023
Sorry this has taken so long. Between work and illness, this has been a pretty horrid year. Anyway, back at it. Do the basic shapes look right? That's the big thing. It's amazng how hard it is to get a supposedly simple shape to look right. As soon as you all approve the basic shape and dimensions I'll start adding the planes and bridge.
Hey, one last thing. One are that the plans are unclear on is the flatness of the sail's top. Is it actually flat with fillets there where the sides meet the top, or does the top of the sail actually have a subtle curvature or camber? I've been going back and forth between the plans and the various photos and different angles seem to show slightly different shapes. Can anyone "who was there" confirm the flatness or camber of the top of the sail?
aptivaboy wrote:Hey, one last thing. One are that the plans are unclear on is the flatness of the sail's top. Is it actually flat with fillets there where the sides meet the top, or does the top of the sail actually have a subtle curvature or camber? I've been going back and forth between the plans and the various photos and different angles seem to show slightly different shapes. Can anyone "who was there" confirm the flatness or camber of the top of the sail?
Thanks,
Bob
top of the sail has camber so it curves.
My CO prior to flying to the boomer: Our goals on this patrol is to shoot missiles and torpedoes.
Me: Capt don’t we really want to be like Monty Python and not be seen?
LT you seem to be missing the big picture
Oh
I am new to this thread and am a retired USN submariner (Hospital Corpsman). My first boat was the USS Ethan Allen (SSBN/SSN) 608 back in the early '80s. Anyway, I, too, have looked for a kit of the Allen for decades but have been hopeful that Micro-Mir would release a kit of her. I wrote to them making that recommendation without success, so, I have decided to convert their Lafayette to an Allen. This thread should prove to be most helpful!
I look forward to posting my progress after the kit comes in!
I am new to this thread and am a retired USN submariner (Hospital Corpsman). My first boat was the USS Ethan Allen (SSBN/SSN) 608 back in the early '80s. Anyway, I, too, have looked for a kit of the Allen for decades but have been hopeful that Micro-Mir would release a kit of her. I wrote to them making that recommendation without success, so, I have decided to convert their Lafayette to an Allen. This thread should prove to be most helpful!
I look forward to posting my progress after the kit comes in!
Bill
Hi Bill, Welcome to the group! I did the same conversion, first in error, but thanks to additional info through this thread with corrections. Let me know when you need any help!
Maarten
"I've heard there's a wicked war a-blazing, and the taste of war I know so very well
Even now I see the foreign flag a-raising, their guns on fire as we sail into hell" Roger Whittaker +9/13/2023
Your Allen looks great! My goal is to build her as she appeared when I was onboard, all black. Yours looks like her appearance between 1963 and the early 1970s. Nice approach!
Your Allen looks great! My goal is to build her as she appeared when I was onboard, all black. Yours looks like her appearance between 1963 and the early 1970s. Nice approach!
Bill
Thanks Bill! Yes, I chose that colur scheme to have at least one of my Boomers stand out a little different; black is quite dull as you have a couple of these on your shelf... And of course the most important fact in history of Ethan Allen (the only firing of a life nuke missile - Frigate Bird) was in 1962, so possibly in that colour scheme.
My most important observation as a modeler though is that, while Ethan Allen shares the sleek looks of the Lafayette, the proportions of the ship are quite different, being shorter and the sail closer to the bow.
"I've heard there's a wicked war a-blazing, and the taste of war I know so very well
Even now I see the foreign flag a-raising, their guns on fire as we sail into hell" Roger Whittaker +9/13/2023
I just ordered the Polar Bear Models Soviet Yankee 1. Boris has agreed to custom make the Ethan Allen (SSBN 608) for me as well. Perhaps some of you would like one as well.
