By Timothy J. Blackman, Albany, N.Y.
My interest in submarines goes way back to my school days when I discovered in History class that in the US submarine fleet in World War II, which then comprised about 2% of the US Navy, destroyed over 50% of the Imperial Japanese Navy and their Merchant Marine. This so intrigued me that I continue researching the history, construction, and tactics of combat submarines to this day.
My first model submarine was a scale plastic kit of the USS George Washington SSBN. Other submarine kits followed like the Nautilus, my coveted Skipjack SSN and a Polaris sub. After a short career in the US military, I picked up where I left off, this time collecting and reading novels about submarines and seeing as many scale model shows as I could. One of my all time favorite authors is Tom Clancy, who wrote The Hunt For Red October and Red Storm Rising. He truly has the capability to put you in the middle of the action with his novels.
Back in the Fall of 98 I ran across an article in the November 98 issue of Scale R/C that was about a father and son that built a scale R/C model of a Japanese Kaiten suicide submarine. I was impressed at how easy the hull construction was using wood and PVC tubing and decided to build my first R/C submarine. After deciding that I would build a Los Angeles Class Attack Submarine, the USS Albany (SSN 753), I began to research the Internet on model submarine technology. I acquired several books, one of which is entitled Model Submarine Technology by Norbert Bruggen. This book is packed full of good ideas and I saw it as a common sense approach to Model Submarines. I drew my own plans from book drawings and sources on the net and read everything I could get my hands on.
| While compiling my research and changing the
design several times, it became evident that this was going
to be a big project. I contacted Skip Assay of SubTech for
his assistance and received a lot of his help. I talked to him
for about 30 minutes and received a crash course in model
submarine technology. Skip’s help was invaluable in the
construction of my sub. He has just about everything the
model submariner needs to outfit his boat and also has a
nice ARS (Almost Ready to Submerge) 1/60th scale kit
of the USS Albacore.
Having most of my research done I started the process of procuring parts and beginning the early phases of construction. The main hull was easy, a scale length of 4 - inch ID PVC tube. The bow was turned of a single piece of pine on my Dad's wood lathe. | 
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The Stern section
was a bit more difficult. Having decided earlier that I
wanted it to look as scale as possible I dismissed the idea
of having any protruding pushrods outside the main hull.
I decided to glue up circular sections of pine wood in a
cone shape with a 2-3 inch center removed and turn that to
the final hull shape. With all the shaping and sanding done
I proceeded to cover the wood sections with layers of
fiberglass resin.
For the control surfaces I contacted Lee Upshaw , owner of The Scale Shipyard in Seattle, WA and he agreed to sell me the scale 1/96 bow and stern planes and rudder. My dream of having my first R/C sub was nearing completion! |
It was about this time I found a reference on the net to something called Model Warship Combat. It intrigued me enough to start researching exactly what it was. What it was is exactly as I had hoped. They built and battled scale model R/C warships of the WW I and WW II era which mounted real, honest-to-God, low-powered CO2 BB cannons on them. While there is a whole fraternity of Model Warship Combat Clubs out there, I decided to focus on one in particular, The International Radio Controlled Warship Combat Club (IR/CWCC). The IR/CWCC is the oldest Model Warship Combat club in existence today and has been the main influence in the forming of other combat clubs.
| Now, I
don't want you to think that this is kids stuff, these guys
have organized themselves into about a dozen or so groups
with the
Maryland Attack Group (MAG)
being the biggest in the IR/CWCC. Members from each group
attend Regional and National competitions about three or
four times a year. As luck would have it the Spring
Regional was taking place in June of '99. With bags
packed and video camera in hand I proceeded South to
Forest Hill, Maryland to witness the event. After
observing for a while I concluded that I must get involved
in this hobby.
Having returned to New York I began looking for a closer group to play with. I discovered that the only combat group near me was hundreds of miles away. So, taking the initiative, I formed my own combat group and called it the Eleventh Naval Combat Fleet (ENCF). | 
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I started work on a USS West Virginia battleship and called on Steve Milholland, the owner of Swampworks Mfg. to help in the fitting out of the West Virginia. I purchased the running gear, CO2 cannons and bilge pump from Steve all which saved me countless hours of construction. While work was proceeding on the USS West Virginia I read something on the net about Submarines in Model Warship Combat. In other, larger scale combat clubs the submarines seemed like the perfect weapon platform of choice. It did seem at first the idea of shooting your enemy and diving away was not sporting. That feeling quickly subsided. I thought it sure beats the heck out of having to wade out to get your sunken Cruiser.
When I asked the IR/CWCC membership how model submarines were regarded in our hobby I was met with a wall of animosity. "Those things won't work" I was told. Some others added "We had some once,(laughing) but they never came back!" Some were even nice about it and said "They just aren't competitive in our scale". Myself being new to Model Warship Combat, I thought this might be true given that the U.S Gato class subs would measure in at under 26 inches and have a beam of 2.25 inches. So dashed my hopes for a combat sub.
Enter a new party, Glenn Goetzinger. Recently hailed as the true father of Model Warship Combat, Glenn is an innovative thinker and has an extensive background in submersible technology and miniature robotics, sponsored by our own U.S. Navy. Glenn has recently shared his views on the Combat Mail Group and helped rekindle the hopes of future Combat Sub Captains everywhere. The talk lately on the Combat Mail Group has recently turned to Combat Subs, some pro and con. Currently the rules of the IR/CWCC allow subs but there is much controversy on their design and role in the hobby. There is not a lot of rules common to submarine construction, however the rules are specific in the hull construction of surface warships. The rules state that all ships are only allowed to fire BB's of .177 caliber, subs included. Another is that subs can only have one cannon with fifty BB's fired semi auto or 15 BB's if spurted (read full auto!) Although I have never participated in a battle competition it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see what 15 BB's will do to a ship with 1/32" balsa for a hull!
This leads me and all other prospective sub drivers to the next problem of building and operating subs, watertight integrity. Current IR/CWCC construction rules say that the first two inches of hull from the bow and one inch from the stern may be impenetrable material. The kicker is that "The total hull length that can be solid material shall not exceed 15% of the total overall length of the hull." This includes the Bow and Stern sections and all ribs in between. The rest of the hull must be covered with 1/32" balsa with a thin covering of silkspan and model airplane dope to help keep the thin balsa from splintering. A question for you math types out there. How much pressure (psi) is there at a depth of two feet? That's about the scale depth that most of the combat subs will operate and will the 1/32 balsa covered with thin silkspan resist the pressure even for a short time? The span between the ribs that the balsa covers can be no less that one inch on center and there won't be that many ribs, believe me. One of the rules on construction states that "there shall be no watertight compartments in the hull which would preclude the ship from sinking". As I have found out, the ballast tanks are considered a component and not necessarily a part of the hull. The other rule states that all ships must have a minimum of 1/2" freeboard on the hull.
This will be a difficult problem for submarines in this scale. At the present time I am planning on building a French Surcouf submarine. This submarine was built in the 1930's and classified as a "cruiser submarine". It mounted two eight inch naval guns in a forward firing turret and was over 4000 tons submerged displacement, which is a lot for a sub! I bought the Surcouf as a fiberglass hull in three parts, upper and lower hull halves and the conning tower. Since the scale for our hobby is 1/144th, the sub has a length of 30" and a beam of 2.75", not a lot of room I am told to put in all the associated equipment needed for a combat sub. Since I am relatively new to both the R/C Submarine and Model Warship Combat hobby, I am drawing my experience from other sources such as other hobbyists, magazines etc. Much of what I have learned about model subs has been from this publication and the members involved in the SubCommittee.
| In order to fit everything into the hull and comply with the many construction rules of the hobby, I plan to build it as a dry hull design with only the micro-receiver and electronics in a watertight compartment with the motor and servos in the dry section of the hull. I can waterproof the servos with some plasti-dip and o-rings but if the sub goes deep six I am sure they will need replacing. No one said Model Warship Combat is easy or cheap! The hull halves will have to serve as the main sealing point. I plan to epoxy two pieces of 3/16" plexiglass on each hull half and seal the halves together with silicone or some other fast drying sealant. A few threaded brass alignment pins with nuts will secure the two together. Right now I plan on using a standard ballast tank system and because of the relatively small scale I have to manufacture my own ballast tank flood valve and ballast pump to remove the water. The valve is servo operated and will allow me to shut off the flow of water into the free flooding ballast tank. Since I have to incorporate a CO2 system into the sub for the BB cannon, |
I also plan to use a second Clippard mini-valve for an emergency ballast blow valve. While designing the sub I thought about it’s inevitable deployment in combat. Since I certainly didn’t want it to sink prematurely by gunfire I wanted to find a way to keep it to at least periscope depth and safe from hostile fire. I decided that the automatic leveler available from SubTech may be the answer to my problem. When asking other sub captains, they said it was "a very wise investment." I am told that this device, when hooked up between the receiver and stern planes servo will reduce the subs tendency to porpoise and keep it on a level keel. Since space is at a premium in this sub I plan to use the new Nickel Metal Hydride Batteries (NiMH) to power the motors and mini- receiver. The main reason for building a combat sub is to send it into combat. While the real Surcouf sub mounted two eight-inch naval guns, mine is limited to one CO2 powered BB cannon firing a maximum of fifteen .177 cal. BB's. These cannons have been privately manufactured successfully for years so I will attempt my hand at a design to fit my sub. The cannons are very reliable when built correctly but most are fired without ever being submerged. Alas, another technical problem. Some extensive testing will have to be done to ensure the cannon will fire once it has surfaced from the depths.
Another problem once all the technical problems are half-way solved, is how to deploy the subs in combat. Given the fact that they can only mount one cannon, going against several cruisers and battleships I think would be suicide. Looking at past history, subs traditionally attacked warships when conditions were favorable and dived to escape the eventual onslaught of the ASW escorts. The same could be done here to a different degree. All model warships in this hobby are vulnerable during a five-minute period at the end of their combat sortie. During this time they can run but may not fire on any pursuing warships. With proper planning I'll just bet that a sub (or two) could get in a couple of good hits during this time. What do you think? Some other members have the larger subs like the US Argonaut/Narwhal Class and the Japanese I-400 as their combat sub of choice already in the planning stages.
I am well aware that all sort of other technical problems await me in the design of my combat sub but I plan to tackle each problem as I come to it. The most important thing to remember in any project is to keep a positive attitude. I'll try to keep everyone apprized of the progress of my combat sub in future issues. Thanks to advent of sub-micro servos, micro-receivers, auto levelers, depth regulators and Nickel Metal Hydride Batteries (NiMH), I think a combat sub of the IR/CWCC could become a reality and make its debut at the 2000 Spring Regional. Come find out!
To contact the Eleventh Naval Combat Fleet (ENCF) send an e-mail to: Warfleet11@aol.com
To contact Glenn Goetzinger at The Eastern Shipyard http://24.4.136.66/boats/
To contact Skip Asay at SubTech go to: http://www.rcboats.com
To contact Lee Upshaw at The Scale Shipyard go to: http://members.aol.com/seapics/SSY/SSYMain.htm