Conversions

Modeling Subjects Ships
1

Hi;

I am sure many of you have seen the Photo article of the “RAG” boat in the issue with the Aggressor Aircraft on the cover of the mag. This is an interesting article about Camo. Now the boat is a different story. Well done. It proves that some things MONOGRAM did were simple but interesting. I have done this one numerous times. NOT as a R.A.G. boat though.

Think about the many shallow draft boats that serve as multiple things to many folks. I have converted them to Inter-Island Mailboats, Grocery Barges, Lobster Boats, Inshore Crabbing Boat, Salvage vessels( Light) and the list goes on! I think the funniest was a floating food truck I built for a friend!

This hull lends itself to many types of conversions, even a Houseboat! My conversion to a Mail-Boat was a Prize winner more than once. Because of the scale It had many working features. The wheel turned the rudder.The side windows of the upper cabn opened and closed. The companionway top and door opened allowing egress and ingress to the lower forward cabin etc. Even the search-light and radar on the roof turned as well as the RDF loop on the same roof.

I had actually seen a boat such a this in Nova Scotia and chose to do my version of it. This hull is a winner. Because of the scale the possibilities are endless. My Prize winner met her demise in the last R.V. trip we took. We were full timers at the time. When We got nailed by a Dump-Truck who had lost his brakes, Destroying the bookshelves on the side of the R.V. is where the boat was at. There was nothing there afterward except Destroyed models, Dragon Figurines( The Wifes) and destroyed Books!

It took 11 long years before I saw some at a model show and glommed up on them. They are ALL in various states of conversion. The Hull lends itself that easily.

2

You could make one as a small pleasure/treasure craft looking for a sunken gallion off Florida.

Lou Costerllo had a P.T. boat as his 80 yacht and sometimes would fish off itis side or stern.

3

these are my conversions.

http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=165105

http://www.shipmodels.info/mws_forum/viewtopic.php?f=59&t=165137

4

As far as real-life conversions go; when I was young and residing in the suburbs outside of Philadelphia, my family used to go to the shore, as they say back east, to Ocean City, New Jersey. Back then there used to be high speed pleasure boats, carrying loads of tourists just offshore along the beaches. They were fast and had a wonderful throaty rumble. I found out later that all of those boats had been 80 foot Elco PT boats in their former life.

Now there’s a conversion for you.

5

Funny You should Mention Them;

I used to use the LINDBERG, AirForce Rescue Boat for those types of conversions. I always thought the Big 80 footer was or would’ve been too unwieldy. See, live and Learn!

I have used the ELCO hulls for Motoryachts though. The only thing was they were the " Trunk Cabin Type of conversion.(like the Grand Banks) A cabin aft with a deck structure with Light-Ports in the sides.

6

For those who don’t know, that RAG boat wasn’t even an American craft, but a French STCAN/FOM, which stands for, Services Technique des Constructions et Armes Navales / France Outre Mer. The FOM part means it was built outside of France. Americans in-country called it a ‘staycan’. These boats were crewed by Vietnamese Navy personnel.