dumas Hydro Question

[jacp@gate.net]

First time wood boat builder, but 40 years of model building means I know when to ask for advice. Been on the computer for a week now and this seems to be the best place for help. I'm building a static scale mahogany hydro, using Thriftway Too as a base. What do you recommend for gluing. Zap? Is it better than those "old" wood glues? Will it frost up on me? How about the finish? I have access to a full blown restoration/racing/ bodyshop. So if current 2-part paints are better then should I use them?. Any good Allison/merlin engines out there in the approximate scale of the old dumas kit? Thanks for any insight you might have.

[eddieh]

JAcp, are you planking this, or doing sheet mahogony, well it doesn't really matter, use thin zap, and accelerator, it might frost a little but your going to finish sand anyway, I do a lot of mahogony boats and I always use zap, no problems yet, as for finishing see this thread http://www.rumrunnerracing.com/feforums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2583, I highly recommend using automotive lacquer (still comes in spray cans) especially over the mahogony, ensure that all your sanding marks are gone, because a good finish just magnifies mistakes, it will turn out like glass, and is very effective over dry transfer and decals,,,, good luck and welcome to the board, cheers eddie

[Garry Finlay]

Love that old boat. I remember seeing it race in Seattle when I was a kid. The Dumas Thriftway Too kit is now a collector's item. I’d trace the outlines of the bulkheads stringers and outside sheeting onto 3/32” balsa, and build a boat from that. You may even find a nice piece of mahogany veneer to laminate on top of the deck so you could still have the original kit and a nice bright classic finish on your masterpiece.

Go ahead and use super glue, look around for the stuff specifically for wood models (medium or thick is easier to work with). If you aren’t going to run this, then you can put any good wood finish on and not have to worry about weight. I have used clear Formula-U on top of mahogany, it looks great.

I have a 1/16th scale CAD file of the Rolls Merlin V-12. It is for the basic shape with not too much detail. But you could have a 3D rapid prototype model built from this from one of the bureau services or try Zcorp. E-mail me and I can attach an STL file of this engine in a reply. You could take it from there.


Garry Finlay
gsfinlay@teleport.com