hat
steam will cease to be generated. With the safety-valve the model boat
builder need have little fear of an explosion. Nevertheless the
foregoing directions should be carefully adhered to.

CHAPTER V

AN ELECTRIC LAUNCH

THE little electric launch to be described is of very simple
construction, and when finished it will provide the builder with a very
shipshape little model from which he will be able to derive a good deal
of pleasure. It has a speed of from 2-1/2 to 3 miles an hour when
equipped with dry batteries or storage batteries. The hull is of the
Sharpie type, and this offers very little trouble in cutting out and
assembling.

The general appearance of the boat and hull will be gathered from the
drawings. The pieces necessary to assemble the hull are shown in Fig.
58. Only five pieces are necessary: two side pieces, a stern piece, a
bow piece, and a bottom piece. The length of the boat over all is 40
inches with a 7-inch beam. The widest part of the boat is 1 foot 10
inches from the bow.

After the pieces that form the hull are cut they are thoroughly
sandpapered to produce a smooth surface. The heavy imperfections in the
wood can be taken out with coarse paper, and the finishing can be done
with a finer paper. It is understood that sandpapering should always be
done with the grain, never across the grain. The sides of the boat are
cut about 1/4 inch thick, but they are planed thinner in places where
the bend is most pronounced. The side pieces are 2-3/4 inches deep at
the stern and 2-1/4 inches at the stern. There is a gradual curve from
the bow to the stern, which is more marked toward the head.

The stern piece is thicker than the side pieces, being made of 1/2-inch
wood. It is cut to the shape shown at Fig. 58, and beveled along the
bottom edge to enable it to be fixed on the slant. The bow piece is a
triangle 2-3/4 inches in length.

After the parts are thoroughly finished with sandpaper the stern piece
is fixed in position. In making all the joints on the boat the builder
should see that plenty of fairly thick paint is run in while the joint
is being screwed up. This will help greatly in making the boat
water-tight. Plenty of 3/4-inch brass wood-screws are used in assembling
the hull. All the holes for the wood-screws should be countersunk so
that the heads will come flush with the surface of the hull. Now one of
the sides should be screwed to the stern piece, at the same time bending