Radios and put putts!

We knew from the start that the radio control systems where going to be a little costly and it’s only the fact that we only need four that made this project possible. We thought that some kind of a fundraiser might help us on our way and the church very kindly offered to pay the short fall. So last Sunday after the Sunday service we sold home made cakes, I know that, ideally these would have been made by the youth group members them selves but it was easier to ask the Mums! We filled a table with cakes and displayed the part completed boats at one end with some photos of finished Footys so they could see how they should turn out and also told them of our plans for a regatta day.. People were so generous! Can you believe that we raise £140! ($220) People where so keen to support the boys project that they where handing over Tenners! Not only that but we where donated two second hand 27 Mhz systems! One looks unused and is still packed in its polystyrene packaging! I have ordered the other new (40 Mhz) systems and we should have enough money over for a future project!
So a big thank you to all of you!

Over the last few weeks I have been playing with something that might become that next project: Putt putt boats! A vintage steamboat that has no moving parts! Theses used to be a popular tin plate toy before the Second World War but fell out of favour because of the new electric and plastic models. A schoolteacher in the US has devised a method of making a boiler using just an aluminium drink can and two drinking straws! Just as amazing is that it is glued together rather than soldered! The hull is made from an unfolded waxed card fruit juice carton. Fired by a birthday cake candle it chugs along emitting a putt putt sound. Sending out jets of water as the water cycles in and out of the flash steam boiler expanding then condensing making the bottom of it snap in and out acting as a diaphragm. I have scaled the design up a little to a 12”long (Footy) hull made from an empty chocolate tins, it seems to work’ just as well if not better though I’m a bit concerned that the lager boiler flexes a lot and may be prone to springing leaks. Time will tell. I am going to finish it off by making it an oil burner to replace th candle and some super structure including a funnel to make it lake worthy. It should look cute putt putting along out there.