StarDestroyer.Net BBS

This all started as one of those "wouldn't it be cool if..." conversations in the pub. Basically, how feasible would it be to construct a remote control aircraft carrier large enough to launch and recover remote control aircraft? A bloke at my local model boat show has a 1:72 RC USS Ronald Reagan (complete with Airfix air group) which is quite impressive but I think it would need to be bigger.

I suspect it would have to be a WW2 carrier design since prop-driven RC planes are a lot easier than model jets and you don't need catapaults.

The other idea was a similar-scaled dreadnought, using CO2 powered BB pistol barrels as the main battery. The idea being you can have two such ships and fight a simulated duel, complete with smoke charges and so on to simulate damage.

Are either of these ideas feasible or should it remain a drunken idea?

You would have to build it the size of a (small) speedboat. So doable but thousands to tens of thousands of dollars depending on how much scrap/junk material you use and how accurate its supposed to be. There are existing groups that do R/C battleship combat, they use balsa hull sides and actually sink the ships with the BB guns (all important parts are waterproofed, float is used for recovery). Don't think that would scale practically to speedboat size.

I thought the carrier would have to be big. I didn't realise the battleship idea was actually done, that's pretty sweet.

Oh well, I guess the supersize carrier will have to wait until a) I win the lottery and b) I find a bunch of model makers to do it justice.

what about using the new helicopter drone toys coming out? It'll still be a LONG model, but in terms of width, height and displacement it might be more manageable.
As for what to make it out of - polysterene block, attach exterior panels.

So build a helicopter carrier instead? Interesting idea.

Eternal_Freedom wrote:So build a helicopter carrier instead? Interesting idea.

You could do a Iwo Jima class or similar. Be a bit over 8 feet long at 1/72 scale, which still is fairly large...

That sounds about the size I was considering. And at 1:72 it would be "small" enough that you could get it into a van (or a car if you built it in sections).