LewsModelBoats.org
is not a commercial web site. Lew is a scale model builder/hobbiest (model boats and more). Views on this web site are opinions of the
author and not driven by any commercial entity. Opinions are welcome - by mailing Lew (see contacts). Copyright 2021 Lew's Model
Boats. Disclosure: Lews Model Boats and this site do not have any financial ties to any company, political
affiliation nor any other subsidy and has no gains from these and any other person(s). Lews Model Boats and
this site is purely for the enjoyment of its members and others who enjoy this hobby.
(Select the Photo below to see more information on that item or topic.) |
Trawler Elena
The Artesania Latina "Hellen"
kit - now named the "Elena" was completed on
May 19, 2013. A number of details were added to
the photos to show the boat and crew at work.
After reviewing actual photos of like sized British
trawlers, I noticed that many were kept quite neat and
clean, hence the model is also neat and clean with no
"weathering."
Initial construction
The trawler "Elena" is built from an
Artesania Latina "Hellen" kit . The kit was purchased from
the original owner in July 2012. I "de-constructed" the partially
built model as I did not like the work that was done. I had
to cut the deck open to remove the dead battery that was too
big to fit the the opening. I then decided to strip the
inside and rebuild everything except the hull frame, molded
hull, and main deck.Photo, right, shows the model as purchased. It was quite a mess!. The deck between the openings was removed to gain access to the inside of the hull. The battery, radio, servos, speaker, motor, speed controller, and sound module were all removed. The hull had to be smoothed, filled, and sanded.
So far, the hull has been re-worked and new bulwarks
are being added. New mounting plates for the radio,
motor, and batteries have been made. The large fish
hatch, forward skylight, winch, and forward deck access has
been completed. The wheelhouse is about 70% complete.
The wheelhouse will have an operating door and completely
detailed inside. I expect to have operational
lighting.In the photo at the left, you can see winch is mounted on the removable section between the two previous deck openings. This gives a larger, single opening for access to the inside of the hull. Another item is the false ladder (steps) to the engine room. This goes down two steps and the lower part is painted black to simulate darkness blackening out the lower level.
New construction beginsAs I like to build my models in modules (for ease of making modifications and repairs), I completed several items. The most complicated module is that of the wheel house. I made a completely detailed interior, including maps, 1950's era radio, dials, etc. Of course, I added the "captain" at the wheel.
The wheel house is lit inside by two overhead lamps and outside there are the functioning navigation lights, and a spotlight (added). The swivel-out side lights (for night fishing) are also functional.
The life raft module has marking on it as well as hold down straps. The port (left) side opens and closes manually, giving a view of the detailed interior. The boat's captain is at the wheel, with a full set of gauges and a short wave radio nearby. Plenty of charts are under the dash console. The wheelhouse was finished on October 24, 2012.
The crew was made being made using the
1/20 Tamiya pit crew. Three of the seven figures in
the kit were used, one in the wheel house and two handling
the net. One had to be modified to have long pants.
Like many figures, they have to be extensively modified, in
this case to be fishermen. Finding decent figures in this
scale is very difficult.
The photo below shows the installation of the mast rigging, diverting considerable from the kit's instructions. Cast metal blocks (pulleys) were used extensively on the model.
The aft sail was shown in place as many of the original photos had this sail up, probably to help keep the trawler on a fixed course.
Photos of British trawlers of the same size and period were used as a reference. The model stage at the right is nearing basic completion which will be followed by the additional details.
Finished Photos
The model was finished on May 19, 2013
and has sailed twice as of this posting. The first
time in the water the Dumas motor died and locked,
probably a bushing broke. The motor was replaced
with a monster truck motor of the same case size which
allowed the same mouting plate to be used. It
turned out that the new motor was considerable too fast
so after the Mtroniks ESC was programmed, the "servo"
adjustment was brought down to where the high speed is
an emergency speed. About two-thirds throttle is
about right for the normal top speed.
