The South West Model Show 2019October 8, 2019A Video by Penny Coombs of the joint Solent Radio Control Model Boat Club and Surface Warship Association Stand at The South West Model Show, Bovington Tank Museum, 28/28 September 2019. SRCMBC/SWA members David McNair-Taylor and John Wills joined SWA members Charles Davis and Ken Winter and Graham and Penny Coombs of the SRCMBC to put on a display of warship and lifeboat models.... Read more...River Class WarshipSeptember 18, 2019Tony Leighton’s model of a River Class warship.... Read more...HMS DiamondSeptember 9, 2019Model of Inter War D class destroyer scratchbuilt at 1/96 scale using a Deans Marine Hull. Model has taken 8 months to build. HMS Diamond was a D-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. The ship spent the bulk of her career on the China Station. She was briefly assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1939 before she was transferred to West Africa for convoy escort duties. Diamond returned to the Mediterranean Fleet in early 1940 where she generally escorted convoys to and from Malta. The ship participated in the Battle of Cape Spartivento in November. Diamond was sunk by German aircraft on 27 April 1941 whilst evacuating Allied troops from Greece. She displaced 1,375 ton. The ship had an overall length of 329 feet (100.3 m), a beam of 33 feet (10.1 m) and a draught of 12 feet 6 inches (3.8 m). She was powered by Parsons geared steam turbines, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 36,000 shaft horsepower (27,000 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph). 17 mph). The ship’s complement was 145 officers and men. The ship mounted four 45-calibre 4.7-inch Mark IX guns in single mounts. For anti-aircraft (AA) defence, Diamond had a single 12-pounder (3-inch (76.2 mm)) gun between her funnels and two 40-millimetre (1.6 in) QF 2-pounder Mark II guns mounted on the side of her bridge. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube mounts for 21-inch torpedoes. One depth charge rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began. Slamat Disaster and Loss On the evening of 26 April 1941 Diamond was in the Argolic Gulf with three light cruisers, three other destroyers and two troopships. The force began evacuating British, Australian and New Zealand troops from Nauplia. The cruisers HMS Calcutta and HMS Orion and destroyers HMS Hotspur and HMS Isis embarked nearly 2,500 troops and, at 03:00 the next morning, Calcutta ordered the evacuation force to sail. One of the troop ships, the Dutch ocean liner Slamat, disobeyed and continued to embark troops. Slamat embarked 500 troops before she eventually obeyed orders at 04:15, and the convoy sailed for Crete. Near the mouth of the Argolic Gulf a Staffel of nine Luftwaffe Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive-bombers from Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 attacked the convoy at either 06:45 or 07:15. Slamat was hit, set afire and began to abandon ship. Calcutta ordered Diamond to go alongside Slamat to rescue survivors while the rest of the convoy continued to try to reach Souda Bay in Crete. At 08:15 Diamond reported that she was still rescuing survivors and still under air attack. By then three destroyers had reinforced the convoy so Calcutta sent one of them, HMS Wryneck, to assist Diamond. Slamat was afire from stem to stern when Diamond fired a torpedo that sank her in a coup de grâce. Diamond reported at 09:25 that she had rescued most of the survivors and was proceeding to Souda Bay. An hour later Wryneck signalled a request for aircraft cover. At about 13:15, an air attack by German Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters and Junkers Ju 88 bombers sank both destroyers within minutes. Wryneck launched her whaler, and each destroyer launched her three Carley floats. Survivors in the whaler set off east past Cape Maleas, towing two Carley floats and their occupants. In the evening the wind increased, causing the floats to strike the boat, so Waldron reluctantly cast them adrift. After 1900 hrs on 27 April the Vice Admiral, Light Forces, Henry Pridham-Wippell, became concerned that Diamond had not returned to Souda Bay and was not answering radio signals. Wryneck had been ordered to keep radio silence so no attempt was made to radio her. Pridham-Wippell sent the destroyer HMS Griffin to the position where Slamat had been lost. She found 14 survivors in two Carley floats that night, more floats and another four survivors in the morning, and took the survivors to Crete. Survivors in Wryneck’s whaler reached Crete in three stages. On 28 April they aimed for the island of Milos in the Aegean Sea, but were too exhausted so they landed at Ananes Rock, about 13 nautical miles (24 km) southeast of Milos. There they met a caïque full of Greek refugees and British soldiers evacuated from Piraeus, who were sheltering by day and sailing only by night to avoid detection. In the evening everyone left Ananes and headed south for Crete, with most people in the caïque and five being towed in the whaler. On 29 April the caïque sighted a small landing craft that had left Porto Rafti near Athens. She took aboard everyone from the caïque and whaler, and the next day they reached Souda Bay. [Other models of David McNair-Taylor] [other Warship Models]... Read more...SmaragdAugust 19, 2019The original Robbe kit of Smaragd was previewed by Marine Modelling in April 1993, and also featured a limited edition, commissioned by International Paint, who arranged for Alpha Graphics of Liss to supply the special graphics for 100 models. Generally the model is seen today with the name in large letters on its yellow hull and the deck covered with patches. This model was purchased in May 2019 ( 2nd hand), incomplete, and in a very poor condition. The sailing qualities of Smaragd are well known, so the vision was a smart rebuild. Removing the old paint and generally tidying up the model was my province before handing over to the expert, Nigel James, to complete the refurbishment. The finished model, having been “Nigelised” was handed over and relaunched at Setley Pond on 8th August 2019. A reasonably gentle southerly wind was ideal for the trial sailing, with the yacht performing perfectly, which delighted the new owner. [Other models of John Cooper] [other Cruising Yacht Models]... Read more...HMS HoodAugust 13, 2019Navy Day on 12th May 2019 was a glorious sunny day with only a light breeze and seemed a fitting occasion to try out the new Trumpeter 200th Scale HMS Hood. Built by Devonport Models, this superb kit makes a beautiful sailing model in these near perfect conditions. [Other models of John Wills] [other Warship Models]... Read more...Peggy Tragedy – All Hands LostApril 28, 2019It is with great sadness that I report the tragic loss with all hands of the Thames sailing barge ‘Peggy’whilst on passage across the stormy waters at Setley on Thursday 25th April 2019. She put up a valiant fight but she was on her limits when a sudden blast caught her and laid her on her beam ends. Unable to shed the weight of water from her decks she went to the bottom under full sail. However, I did have time to take a couple of mental bearings using the racing buoys as reference points as well as a point on shore. I returned the following afternoon with a rubber dinghy, a 10 foot boat hook, a homemade grapnel from 3 wire coat hangers and a willing neighbor. After about 25 minutes rowing against a troublesome wind we found her right where I thought she would be. On reaching the shore and a quick inspection of the vessel I found minimal damage which can be put right in a couple of hours, I am a very lucky and happy man. I would like to say a big thank you to Nigel, who at the time of the sinking offered encouragement and the use of a 10 foot boat hook. Also to Jim who came all the way from Bournemouth to assist with the recovery by shouting out encouraging tips from the shore like ‘put your bloody back into it’. Thanks also to Pat and Oliver Chapman who photographed the whole event. I am proud to be a member of such a helpful group of people, thanks to all of you.... Read more...USS North CarolinaApril 17, 2019USS North Carolina (BB-55) is a World War II Battleship; now a Battleship Memorial in Wilmington, North Carolina. Model: model: Athanasios Kanias. [Other models of Thanasis Kanias] [other Warship Models]... Read more...Lifeboat Display, Highcliffe 2019March 26, 2019A video by Penny Coombs of the display of model lifeboats at the 2019 Highcliffe Charity Exhibition of the Solent Radio Control Model Boat Club held at the Highcliffe Sports and Social Club on 23rd March 2019. [click to view a report on the Show]... Read more...Maiden Voyage of the Vela (one metre)March 17, 2019Although it was a bit breezy I finally managed to get my “Vela” one metre yacht onto the Pond. Not ideal conditions but still looks good and sails well.... Read more...
