Brede Lifeboat

This is my latest project -  a Brede Class Lifeboat from Mountfleet Models. Fibre glass hull and superstructure and a pretty comprehensive kit of parts including moulded window frames. It is only just over 50 cms long which is why I selected it. Most of the Lifeboat kits are much bigger. It is the most expensive kit I have ever bought, so it had better turn out well.  

The hull and superstructure are nicely moulded with no blemishes, BUT there is a lot of flash.



I had a little go at removing some of this, and was soon through the gel coat, so will have to be careful.

The first real job is making a stand, and ordering some motors. I had thought of using brushless, but it is twin prop which makes that option quite expensive, so I think I will go with 385's on a single Mtroniks ESC with a single 7.4 volt LiPo for power.

The manual warns that access is limited after the deck is fitted, so careful planning of the motor and servo installation is required

I think this will be a slow build - I'm finding it quite hard to get interested in anything at present.

Barrie

I love lifeboats my tastes run to the older types but I'll be watching this one.
You have my sympathies I'm monumentally bored with everything at the moment.

The stand is made - a bit crude due to lack of more suitable materials, but it will suffice for building. Not quite as rough as it appears in the photo - the ends have now been screwed I have also removed all the flash from the hull. I have also sanded down the top edge of the hull. I am always slightly nervous about doing this as its not always obvious where the line is. I think I got it right  I have also washed the hull to get rid of any release agent.
My motors arrived this morning - only ordered from Component Shop yesterday.  The kit includes two nice brass propellers - I need to check if they are the same 'hand'. In fact after buying the electrics I don't think I will need to buy anything else apart from paint.



You will notice that this is a very lightweight hull - not much glass cloth I think.

Barrie

My Christmas present was from mountfleet I agree the hulls are a bit slimline.

I have stuck the templates to the sheet of liteply ready for cutting out - no die or laser cutting here



Next I worked on the A frames to make them fit the prop shafts. Drilled the holes for the rudders and prop shafts, then opened out the shaft holes. The position of the first A frame was marked and pilot holes drilled before opening up with a file. The centre of the shafts is not in line with the rudders! The first side has been tacked in place with super glue. Once the second side is ready, I will fix everything with P40.



The props are handed

Barrie

Today I fitted the other prop shaft and rudder. After they were tacked in place with CA, I mixed up some P40 to secure them on the inside. A small amount of filler required on the outside.



I hope that the port shaft is NOT aligned as it appears in that photo. If it is, it will have to be re-made
After fitting the propshaft I had to modify the rear part of the stand to allow for the shafts



Next job is to cut out the formers and glue in the bearers for the deck. These are balsa and will probably need steaming.

Barrie

The rudders are supposed to be offset to the outside of the line of the shafts.

This was to allow the shafts on the full size boat to be removed without having to dismantle the rudder systems as well.


Mike

Thanks Mike - I knew that the offset was deliberate. Didn't want anyone to think I had got it wrong

Barrie

So - I didn't start to fix the deck bearers. I realised I needed to install the motors, servo and rudders before I restricted access.  This was going well until I damaged to second coupling New ones have been ordered. Next up is to work out the linkage for the rudders. I am a little concerned as I don't think I will have access to the tillers once the deck is on. The pencil line indicates the edge of the rear deck.

Hopefully going sailing tomorrow, so time to think about how to solve this problem.

Barrie

The basic linkage for the rudders is installed. I was going to use a mini servo but I'm not sure it will be strong enough. I do have this old Acoms standard one, but mounting it will be a problem, so I have ordered a metal geared mini version. When I get it, I'll decide which to use

I am still concerned about access to the tillers when the deck is on. I have replaced some slot headed brass screws in them with steel grub screws which should be a bit more positive if I have to access them from the hatch. I am considering adding two small hatches over the tiller heads. There is a resin moulding which should cover one, and a life-raft or box at the other side.

I will work on the deck bearers until my servo arrives.

Barrie

Its interesting how different photo angles can deceive. If you look at the previous photo the starboard motor looks to be pretty well aligned. In this photo it looks to be badly out of line
I hope it is just the photo angle

How did the sailing go?
Even access that needs a gynaecologist is important as you never know what's going to happen.

Hi SWAB,

Sailing was a disaster  I took three new boats and none of them would work  It was so cold that I really couldn't be bothered to try and fix them at the lake. Turns out it was a silly mistake. My Tx has 20 memories, also the system has two modulation schemes. When I set them up I used some spare slots in the Tx. Some time later I decided to re-organise the slots and delete those for models I no longer have, substituting the new models. BUT I forget to change the modulation scheme
At least the car got a reasonable run rather than just a few local miles

Some more progress on the Brede - the bearers for the deck have been fitted. Only the front 'T' beams are fixed - the rest will wait until the servo is installed. Looking at the other cross beams I think the instructions were wrong. They said to fit the deck edge bearers first, but the beams are designed to fit to the hull.



My couplings arrived this morning, so tomorrow I will fit those.

I think if I cut two hatches in the rear deck I will be able to manoeuvre the tillers onto the rudder shaft if necessary. The hatches can disguised by the fittings.

Barrie

Where do you sail then? last week at Bournville was a disaster I took my yacht out (Graupner True Blue)and it was too windy for it I spent most of the time heeled right over and unsteerable as it's a fair weather yacht not a professional type. The frames look good by the way!

We have two lakes - one in Cambridge and the one I went to near St Neots. That's quite a long trek for me. It was quite windy yesterday - I'm not sure how the models would have got on as they are quite small. I may try Cambridge tomorrow if the weather is OK - that lake should be more shielded, and is nearer.

Barrie

I didn't get to Cambridge - full of cold

My new couplings did arrive. so I fitted them instead.  



Now waiting for the new servo, although I have started to make a template for the deck, so could finish that and cut out the deck. I also need to look at some resin moulded rubbing strakes. There is so much flash on them it difficult to see what shape they should be

Barrie

The servo arrived. It was described as a mini metal geared servo - its actually a full size metal geared servo  I have made a shelf to mount it on, and sorted out the linkages. I plan to mount the receiver on the shelf, and the remainder of the electrics on a board forward of the motors. I am really going for as neat an installation as possible.



Quite a bit of the wiring will be out of sight

Barrie

I'm a bit stuck waiting for wire. I don't have the correct gauge so have had to order it. I decided to try and fit the remaining framing for the deck, and have come across a problem



The hull is not symmetrical I've checked the forward frames and they are 'square', but there is 5mm difference between the two sides of the rear beam to the stern moulding  I don't see that there is anything I can do about it. The opening for the cabin is square, so I will just have to adjust the rear deck.

You will notice the side beams are bowed - ideally I would remake in 3mm liteply but don't have any, so have added a stiffener.



Barrie

A slight problem  I fixed the batten to the wrong side of one beam  So I cut another one, and surprise! - I found some 3mm liteply
I had trouble lining everything up, but I think I have now got it square and all glued in place.



I then checked my deck template, and cut out the deck from ply. It took quite a bit of trimming to get it to fit. Marking the opening was done by measuring - and I made a slight error at the stern, but it can be rectified. The long edges of the hatch opening still need trimming. I will not glue the deck down until I have finished wiring up.



Barrie

hi barrie,

glad to see you finally go for a lifeboat. the brede is a nice boat. i built mine from all card many years ago from glyn guest book small radio control boats the drawings are not to scale, but you would have enjoyed building as its only 15 inches long . it sails brilliant in my garden pond. also have you seen the build of it in model boats sept 2002 from k and s models, very good detail if you would like a scan let me know.






david

David

Good to hear from you! I've been waiting for a small enough lifeboat so I could build one. I did actually build one some time ago, but sold it - that was a Tyne Class, I think from a David Metcalfe kit, but I'm not sure.
This is actually the K&S models version, but now being sold by Mountfleet Models, so a scan of the article would be very useful.

Best wishes,

Barrie

The hatch opening has been trimmed and I have cut two access hatches in the stern to give me a chance of accessing the tillers in case of need. They are not in the ideal location but should at least allow me to see what is happening.



and here is how they will appear under the mouldings



I then turned my attention to the spray rails which are supplied as resin mouldings.



This is how they were delivered. The instructions state that you sand off the excess flash  There is actually more flash than actual spray rail  

This is almost how they will look after they have been trimmed.



The lower one still needs work, the upper one hasn't been started. These must win the prize for the most wasteful resin mouldings ever.

My new wires arrived today so that's the next job.

Barrie

hi barrie, 
just sent you the scans of the brede  on the email i have used before when sending scans.  i also built the tyne from model boats magazine from scratch  from hull upwards, but will not let it go i like it so much



david

David, you could be right - maybe my Tyne was scratch build

I started on the wiring this morning but didn't quite finish it as I was late starting after a plant shopping expedition.



Just the neutral from the motors to the ESC to add, and the signal wires to route and fix. I will give the servo shelf a coat of resin first so I can use sticky Velcro to fix the Rx. I haven't fixed the forward tray as I was leaving it in case I needed to add ballast below it. However, It wont come out easily with all the wiring, and reading the article in MB that Davidjt sent me, there could be an issue with weight so ballast is unlikely to be required. I'll fix it down as soon as I finish the wiring.

Barrie

Have you considered using brushless motors or are you not a fan?

That was my intention until I costed it. It would have been more than double, even buying cheap from China. With brushless you can't run two motors from one ESC.
I have brushless in one of my models, and if I build anymore single screw then I will probably go brushless.

Barrie

At last - after mine and my wife's highly satisfactory brush with the NHS - I managed to put in an hour on Brede

I have now finished the installation of the electrics except for some tidying up once the lid is on.



I also had another look at the spray rails and was horrified at the amount of resin still to remove.



The deck is ready to glue down - I am trying to decide what glue to use. I am thinking of using aliphatic on the framework, but slow set epoxy round the edge. Watch this space

Barrie

The deck is down - waiting for the glue to dry. In the end I didn't have enough epoxy for the whole of the edge, so had to use aliphatic for the middle section.
Next job is to add coamings to the hatch, and fill and sand the edges.

Barrie

The deck is stuck The coamings have been added, and when the glue is dry I can fill and sand the deck edges.



I applied a sanding drum in my Dremel to the first spray rail, and used a coping saw on the second to remove the bulk of the waste. Both need additional sanding to fit them to the hull.

Barrie

I'm looking at Old Rhyl lifeboat photos taken by my Dad, starting to think I need a bigger shed.
Are you going to go full on lifeboat detailing fanatic on this?

Swab wrote:

Are you going to go full on lifeboat detailing fanatic on this?

No - the kit includes quite a bit of detail and I won't be adding any except perhaps some crew if I can find some at a reasonable price.

Barrie

Checking that the cabin will fit over the coamings, I found out that it is much bigger than them



Width ways it was the same. I added another layer of 2mm liteply to the sides, extending it forward to accommodate the length, and it now fits. The cabin is very flimsy, and will I think need some strengthening. I can't see that it will be safe as it stands. Either stiffening or some fixing will be required before I will trust it on the water

I have filled the edges and sanded the whole deck - its now ready for sealing, probably with Ezekote. I have also done some more sanding of the spray rails. Ready for trying on the hull.



Barrie

Yesterday I gave the deck a couple of coats of Ezekote resin. Today I added two more - it should now be ready for painting after a light sand.



Next job were the spray rails. These actually went on rather better than I expected I anchored the bow end with masking tape, then dribbled thin CA into the joint from the top. Once held, I added more CA from the underside. Here's the first one.



and both now fixed.



Then I turned my attention to the cabin. This is considerably oversized



The pencil line marks the approximate cut line - the finished line will be above that

I started try to cut it with a metal saw blade in my Dremel, but the battery was almost flat and it wouldn't cut. I'll try again once its recharged.

Barrie

I returned to cutting the cabin this morning only to hit a major obstacle. The battery of my Dremel has failed  It will no longer take a charge. Looking for a replacement they don't seem to exist - or at least not at a sensible price. Dremel still show them on their web site, but I haven't found a UK stockist charging less than £125 I will continue to look, but in the interim I have ordered a Parkside battery tool for £27.99 - about what I expected the battery to cost. I believe these are what LIDL sell, and have seen good reports of them on the Mayhem Forum.

I did manage a little work this morning - the toe strips have been fitted to one side of the hull. These are not shown on the drawing, and so the positions are estimated from photos I can continue with the other side and also mark the railing positions at the stern while I wait for my new drill.



Barrie

My drill arrived yesterday - very sturdy. It takes the chuck from my Dremel, so all attachments will fit
The first use was to finish trimming the cabin moulding. I used a steel saw blade and it went very well. Its a little difficult to be accurate with this blade, so I left a good margin.
This left a lot of sanding. I discovered that the extra wood I added to the coaming was not necessary . The moulding is the correct size when the excess material is removed. I did have problem wit the uneven interior surface of the moulding which was stopping it sitting down cleanly.
This was a very bad moulding - lots of flash, some of in extremely awkward places to level. In fact I think it would have been considerably easier to build the cabin from styrene



I finished fitting the toe strips round the deck edge, and then used the template supplied to drill the holes for the stern railings. Unfortunately the template w the wrong size -some of the holes were over the edge of the deck    A quick check on the drawing and and the template was reduced by 1 cm, and the holes drilled. I am now ready to strt making the railings whilst also working on the cabin. Windows to cut out and trimmings to apply. There is supposed to be a strip round the bottom of the cabin, and one over the top.



The bottom edge of the cabin still requires some work

Barrie

The trim has been fitted to the bottom of the cabin, and the rope locker attached to the front. The corners need filling and sanding.



I am finding it difficult to get enthusiastic about this model The instructions are very sketchy, which would be OK if there was a decent plan, but lots of the detail is not shown on the plan Also there are lots of metal fittings, most of them with no indication of their use. All the resin fittings require lots of work - far too much resin which has to be sanded off.
I've just received some solder paste I ordered which I am going to try to use for soldering the railings, at least the top layer. This is supposed to have a melting point of 183C. I also have some 70C solder which I will use for the lower rail. This is a case in point re the plan. Only one rail is shown

Barrie

If the fun has gone out of it leave it for a while or pass it on to someone else loss of interest can ruin a build, you have me worried next but one build is from Mountfleet.

Swab

This is not one of the original Mountfleet kits. Hopefully yours will still have decent instructions and drawings. The quality of the white metal looks to be OK.
I have been offered a copy of the RNLI Brede plans so that may help.
My current intention is to try out the solder paste and hopefully make up the railings. That will take me until the end of June, I then have two holidays in July and August and I will probably leave Brede until I return from both. Its not only model building that is proving a bit of a struggle - I definitely need a change of scenery.

Barrie

I've worked through the whole of the Covid crisis if you've been stuck in throughout i can only sympathise. In the scale model side of my hobbies they tell you to put it aside and have a break . Where you off to anyway?

We've not been totally isolated, but obviously life has not been normal. Over the last few months it has been increasingly difficult to motivate myself to do anything other than read, not helped by the cold and wet weather. We have a couple of UK cruises booked so at least it will be a change of scenery, food and people. I will continue to make small additions to Brede, but save the major effort for the autumn.

Barrie

The band around the cabin has been fitted and also the door. I have also marked out the window openings. I have to decide whether I am going to glaze the windows or just paint them black. If I decide to glaze them I will cut square openings 1mm bigger all round so that the frames will cover the join.

I need to stiffen the cabin sides somehow. At the moment they bow out. I am thinking that if I cut the window openings I could mark the top of the coamings and fit a bearer to that line. I could then incorporate magnets to hold the cabin firmly in place.

Barrie

I'd cut them out and do a basic interior you can hide bracings that way as structural panels.

First job this morning was to drill holes in some white metal studs which I think are intended as bases for the railings. If I'm correct, there aren't enough of them . Drilling white metal is not my favourite operation, but with a bit of patience and some light oil, I only damaged one of them



Next I started cutting out the windows using a steel saw blade in my drill. This went well until the drill stopped - I'm not sure if it was overheating, or the battery was down. I put the battery back on charge and the drill works again, so I will finish of the windows next session.



Finally I added some bracing to the cabin sides . I will eventually incorporate some magnets to help hold down the cabin.



A good friend of mine from Wales has sent me a copy of the RNLI original layout for the Brede class. This will help me put all the little bits in the correct place. Looking at this though, there are still bits included in the kit that I can't see on the plans  I will have to contact Mountfleet about them.

I am hoping to go sailing tomorrow - I have been saying this twice a week for a while now. Tomorrow I must make a final effort and go

Barrie

I finished cutting the windows. Some of them require some final adjustments.  Once that is done I think the cabin is ready for painting. There are lots of fittings, but they need the cabin painting first.
There are only 12 of those studs I drilled for the railings. I need about double that, so have ordered some brass eyelets with a 1.5mm hole which is about right for the brass wire.

Barrie

Good bit of progress did you go sailing? I took my yacht out not a breath of wind till I got back home!

Yes - a reasonably successful day sailing. A bit of ballast adjustment needed on the two tugs, but the Pilot boat's coupling couldn't handle the torque from the brushless motor so needs to be changed. It may be easier to switch to brushed - I'll have to see.
There was no wind in Cambridge either - the yachts were just floating around.

Barrie

Not a lot to show for the last two days work, but all the window openings have been cleaned up and made the 'correct' size.
I have started on the stern railings. If it doesn't get too hot in the workshop I may be able to start soldering tomorrow.



Barrie

First uprights of the stern rails soldered in place. Its quite tricky keeping them upright whilst soldering. I started with an iron, but found it easier with a small torch - the solder paste means at least I don't need an extra hand I suspect these are the easy ones - there is a second rail to be added, plus 'baskets' for the fenders.

Before I started on this I fitted a new coupling to my Pilot Boat that failed on Sunday. I ordered a rigid brass coupling, but could only get 2mm x 2mm and I needed 2 x 3 so I drilled out one end.

Barrie

Ah the joys of modelling eh Barrie , been reading your post and sympathising with you as you met each problems .

Ref rails let me know what size your using and the bases as I might be able to help from my slop chest .....you know where I am and can give them you on a Sunday if needed 

Thanks for the offer Ivor. I think I have solved the problem - I will know when my package arrives later this week. They are not needed for a while yet.

Barrie

Yesterday I completed the stern railings and thought I had got the second row out of line on the port side. Today I had another look and made a rough jig to check it out and I find that it is OK  So that saves a lot of hassle trying to un-solder and re-solder.
I used my solder paste and small blow torch and it went reasonably smoothly. I just need to clean up the excess solder where I was too generous with the paste
I still have to make and fix the basket for the fenders. There are also cages to make for the exhausts. The kit contains pre-bent wire for these.
There are another set of railings on the cabin sides which extend forward. They can be made flat so should be a little easier.
My eyelets came today. They are supposed to be 1.5mm internal bore, but my 1.4mm wire wont go in  They will need drilling out.



I think that I am now in a position to start painting the hull. I don't have the paint yet, but I can give it a coat of primer while the weather holds.

Barrie