While chasing a rabbit down a hole on the thing we call the inter-nets I ran across a true toy for boys of all ages; Model Warship Combat. The idea is to spend hard earned money and burn precious free time building a radio controlled (r/c) model warship armed with BB gun cannons and then fight your boat against others in hopes that you’ll sink a few other ships before yours winds up on the bottom of a local lake. Sound interesting? Well, it did to me.
After far too many hours spent on the ‘net researching the hobby I decided to visit a battle held by a local club. A weekend trip to the Savannah, GA, area left me hooked. I just HAD to build and battle a ship.
Fortunately there was an active online community of hobbyist eager to share their advice and so with a little knowledge and brash arrogance I ordered a kit from Battler’s Connection. My first ship is a WWI era Dreadnaught, the SMS Von Der Tann (VDT). This ship was recommended as a good beginner ship for battling but the company did give me fair warning that “intermediate” building skills were required. For some reason I thought I was imminently qualified for an “intermediate” build considering I have absolutely no modeling, r/c, nor woodworking skills. Why, yes, I am often predisposed to impulsive acts. Why do you ask?
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- Battle!
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- Repair!
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- Damn the torpedos….
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- Fire!
I placed my order in late January ’09 and within a few weeks a large package arrived at my office. Unpacking the box at home I was immediately overwhelmed with what I’d gotten myself into. How the HELL am I going to build this damn thing? Oh well, while I have no experience in any of the required skills I do possess one vital attribute; I have ample experience in getting myself in over my head and swimming out of troubled waters. Looks like this job is gonna require ALL of my skills in that area!
I can’t promise frequent updates as my work schedule is quite hectic this time of year. However, I will be sure to document my build as it progresses an keep a log here. My hope is to provide a record for myself of what I screw up on this build and, hopefully, provide future recruits to the hobby with some help and hints along the way.
- Herr Bauers
