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The Skirt

The Patterns

The skirt patterns were downloaded from Mark's site but they need expanding before they can be used.

I used Corel Draw's real world dimensions to expand the patterns to the correct size for the model.

Please note the following update on the patterns- Jan 2004)

Users have reported problems with the dimensions when printed out from the PDF file. I have found that the PDF file has lost the overlap I had originally set up to enable the printouts to be made into the correct patterns. I cannot cure this problem so have recreated the patterns in a different format before passing to the PDF creator.

The following photos show the sequence to joining the patterns. P1 is the same except there are four pieces instead of two.

Please also note that as the patterns are blown up from Marks originals on his site the grid of 10mm is not consistent across the pattern. I have maintained the aspect ratio of the originals. This means that the patterns are slightly undersize giving a length of 380mm instead of 387mm. I assume this is due to the graphic compression used on the originals. This does not prevent the skirt from working but the centre section which Mark sizes as 600 x 387m should be checked by measurement on your  machine after temporary fitting of the front and rear skirt sections. If you want to make the patterns as close to Marks as possible then add 3mm to each side and 7mm to the top and bottom of each pattern when cutting. These additions should be corrected for your own patterns by measurement before trimming. The following sizes should help.

P1= 312mm wide x 387mm long     P2= 113mm wide x 387mm long

P3a= 136mm wide x 387mm long    P3b= 136mm wide x 387m long

The Full size patterns can be printed from the following PDf file.

Full size skirt patterns(download PDF file) (310Kb)

(The text and above photos are included in the PDF file for reference)

      When the file is displayed, you will need Acrobat reader, print out the pages. You will get 10x A4 pages which need trimming and pasting together to give the patterns. Take care in matching up the pages, the coloured borders and green cross enable this. Use the coloured borders to identify the correct matches.

I copied enough patterns so that I could lay out all the patterns required before cutting any skirt material. This way I could make the best use of the material.

Skirt Material

The material I used is a rubberised nylon material used for tent making. It is light and very strong, the skirt is still going without holes after 12 months use on land and water. No water has ever entered the interior of the skirt chamber during this time.

Gluing the skirt sections

Construction of the skirt is achieved by gluing the edge of each pattern together using approx 5mm of material at the edges. I cut a Fablon template to match the curved edge of the templates and use this as a guide to prevent the glue from spreading out across the material when the two edges are pressed together. The skirt was assembled as four separate corner sections. The seams were then machine stitched through the glued area. If this is done while the glue is still tacky then a water proof stitch will be made. The front and rear centres were then added and stitched followed by the long side sections. Take care with these to prevent a twist in the skirt, it is easily done. Use a strong thread and fine stitch on the machine when sewing.

Skirt mounting

The skirt was originally mounted using a bolted wood clamp method, this was later changed to self adhesive tape without any problems. The skirt can be removed and replaced after inspection without changing the tape.

To fit the skirt place the double sided tape all round the outer edge of the model then start attaching the skirt by fixing the front straight edge first, then the first corner on one side and then the other corner. Do not attach any of the side material yet. Attach the rear straight edge and corners just as the front. Lastly attach the side edges before attaching the lower skirt edge using waterproof tape. Again attach the front and back sections first followed by the sides. Any excess, there should be very little, should be gathered in at the corners. I then fitted a door stop rubber foot to each corner to prevent damage to the model when settling on hard ground but also to add strength to the skirt attachment at the corners as this is where it all comes undone first.

I found a problem when blowing up the skirt for the first time in that the skirt at the front and back of the model did not correctly match the floor contact of the sides. Mark's dimensions for the outer deck edge at the sides do not match the dimensions for the front and rear equivalent deck edges. The skirt lower fitting at the front and back needs to be moved in towards the center of the model by 30mm to correct this problem. This gives an even skirt shape around the model and prevents the air loss I had when first running up the model.