This Jay Edwards' USS North Carolina, which used to be my old USS North Carolina, as battled in the 1996/1997 seasons. My major premise when building this ship was simplicity and ease of maintenance, and as a result, I didn't use too much of the "fancy" stuff. Also, the hull had a few limitations of its own which resulted in a few design compromises that I didn't particularly like, but which worked out all right in the end. With simplicity being my goal, I kept the KISS principle in mind at all times, as you will see here.

USS North Carolina - Batteries

This picture shows clearly the battery arrangement of my North Carolina. The batteries were 6V 11AH cells which stood on end with the CO2 regulator between them. (The bottle laid in the water channel...) I don't really recommend this arrangment because it can adversely impact stability, but got away with it. Notice that the batteries rest on the bottom of the hull, and slipped securely into a prebuilt mount so that they wouldn't shift. Likewise, there was a cradle for the neck of the CO2 bottle. The other end of the bottle laid snugly in the water channel. Note the relatively short runs of 14 ga. race car wire into the radio box.

USS North Carolina - Bow

This picture shows the bow area of the North Carolina to advantage. Important features here are the ramp which extends from the end of the water channel (at the bow solenoids) to the extreme bow, where it reaches a height of 1" below the waterline. This is designed to force the water back, and down into the channel, towards the stern so that the ship won't sink by the bow. The bow solenoids are connected to a copper manifold, with 5/32" hoses and quick connects. The hose runs to the sidemounts are very short, to maximize power and speed. The brace is to help keep the hull from warping. The boxes of lead shot are, well, I hate to admit it, ballast. It turned out that the ship was bow light, and in the Spring of 1996, I didn't have the time to figure out how to ballast it with more battery power in any useful way. If I had to do it again, I'd use a 36AH block, and make it fit somewhere...

USS North Carolina - Bow, Part 2

This picture shows a closeup of the bow manifold. Yes, the mount is rather hokey, but it worked, and kept the solenoids from flopping around. The quick connects were soldered to the manifold (that particular brand of fitting was designed so that you could take the vulnerable parts out), as were barb fittings which I then screwed the solenoids to. One hose leads to the CO2 regulator, and the other hose leads to the stern manifold. I like using manifolds wherever possible, because the provide volume for the gun, and also cut down on the number of hoses (read potential leaks) in the ship!

USS North Carolina - Drive

This picture is a close up of the drive system area. The gearboxes are the old style Traxxas boxes, with aluminum stiffeners/heat sinks applied to the back in an "L" shape, so that about 1/2" of the bracket rests along the bottom of the hull for water cooling. The pump is built to my standard design which I've used since 1992. Note that within the tight confines, the angled pump outlet fits rather nicely... The micro switches are test switches for tweaking the triple stern guns. The switch on the back of the radio box is the main power on/off switch. Actually, it only turns the radio/motors on and off, the pump doesn't go through that circuit. Which is why it gets the heavy gauge wire, while the motors and solenoids get the smaller stuff. That big stuff gets inconvenient to work with after a while...

USS North Carolina - Drive Part 2

This picture offers a more complete view of the area, with some of the radio box details, and the stern gun solenoids. Again, note the short hose runs. Also, note the (relatively) straight magazines on the stern guns...

USS North Carolina - Midships

This picture shows the radio box, and how it fits into the equation, with the stern deck section in place. I think you can see why my radio switch was off-center, eh? Inside the radio box, the micro servos were used for the guns, and standard servos for the rest. The water channeling continued under the radio box and all the way back to the gearboxes.

USS North Carolina - Rudders

This picture shows the rather cheesy pushrod arrangement I used for the rudder control. I did this because the rudder posts were too clunky and uneven for a decent gear arrangement, and because I felt too lazy to fix it. That said, notice that I used fuel line to ensure that the quick connects didn't pop off, and had a stout and secure servo mount to protect the waterproofed servo from bb damage. Also note the rather complex stern manifold. Yours doesn't necessarily have to be so complex, but I really do recommend having some kind of gas manifold, because it really helps your gun performance.

USS North Carolina - Sidemounts

This picture shows the sidemounts of the North Carolina to advantage. I opted (in the end) for moderate down angle on both guns, and about a 70 degree angle off the bow. I highly recommend this sort of arrangement, because it gives you a bit of reach for pursuing the fleeing enemy. However, don't take it too far, because your guns can become useless if you get too silly with forward angle and longer range.

USS North Carolina - Stern

This picture shows off the stern setup of the North Carolina. Yes, the rudders are a bit crooked (I mentioned that earlier....) They are also 3/8" thick and roughly airfoil shaped. The props are 1.75" Exact Miniatures props. The Dumas equivalent will probably suffice, but will be more expensive. (Dumas has cast bronze "scale" props you can buy for about $15 each, I think...) The drag props are tin "Bob" specials. Don't ask...

USS North Carolina - Stern Guns

This shot shows off the stern guns of the North Carolina. Note the rigid mount on the barrels, and the mount on the magazines to keep them from flopping around. In case you're wondering, yes, the guns are homemade. Also note the short hose runs (again), and the spiral wrap to protect the magazines. I would say the most important point of this picture is the barrel mount for the triples. Accuracy is crucial to effective battling.

USS North Carolina - Stern Guns Part 2

This shot shows the barrel mount even better. Keep in mind that this is a rather cheesy design, which I did with some 1/4" plywood and my drill press. There are better ways to do it, but if all else fails, a simple chunk of plywood with holes drilled in it will suffice.

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