Tim Beckett's USS North Carolina was built, and made it's combat debut in 1997. If it looks somewhat familiar, it's because it's a twin of my new USS North Carolina. These pictures were taken in the fall of 1997, and the ship has been greatly improved since then, but here we can still see many of the essential details.

USS Washington - Bow

This picture shows the bow of Tim's Washington. Tim's sidemount arrangement isn't quite as good (too much bow angle), but his CO2 bottle mounting and manifolds are of interest, as is the water channeling built into his hull. (As well as the very, very nice hull construction!) The bottle is so far forward in his ship because it has a 36 AH block in it too.

USS Washington - Drive

This picture shows the drive system in Tim's ship, as well as the pump. The pump design is very similar to the one I've been using. The gearboxes do not appear to have the aluminum reinforcement yet, but I still recommend it to prevent problems with overheating and melting gearboxes. Tim's wiring and manifold is a bit less neat, but it looks like it should do the job. Again, note the great hull construction, water channel, etc. Also note the location for the battery to the right...

USS Washington - Gears

Here we see the geared rudder system in the Washington. Tim used 48 pitch gears, which is perhaps a bit crazy, and a pushrod system, which isn't entirely necessary, but he did get gears in the stern. And they worked well, as anyone who watched his ship turn would agree. Also, you can see a better look of the stern gun manifold.

USS Washington - Guns

Tim was using another version of the gun design I've been using, albeit with rather long hoses. His magazines were also fixed, as were his barrels (via a piece of plywood at the end of the barrels, with holes drilled in it). Not necessarily elegant, but serviceable.

USS Washington - Midships

This picture gives you more of an overview of the ship, with the radio box in view as well as the location of the battery and other stuff. I like it... Not perfect, but for a rookie ship, one of the best I've ever seen!

USS Washington - Radio Box

Here we see the radio box of the Washington. Tim mounted his test switches on the box itself, instead of next to the guns. This has the advantage of putting all that mess in one place. However, it also means that you have a pair of wires for each solenoid going to the bow and stern. It's a trade off...

USS Washington - Stern

And now I leave you with the stern of Tim's Washington. The plywood barrel mount is visible here, as are the rather large and thick rudders. Tim's ship had 1.5" props, and while it might have lacked a little acceleration, it turned like a champ. The drag props are a bit crude, but they'll do in a pinch...

That's all for now, folks - hope you've enjoyed the ride!

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