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Lew's Model Boats - Springer #2
Updated: April 5, 2026
About
Springer #2, the “Mr. Bill E. Bonze” was started on November 28, 2020 and completed on February 11, 2021. It has a comical theme using the basic Springer Class hull with a combination small river passenger steamboat manned by a skeleton crew. By measuring the skeleton figures it was determined that the scale of the boat would be about 1/24. Springer # 2 originated from a Zippkits “Tugster” kit. Everything from the deck on up was changed. Only the hull, shaft, propeller, and rudder were from the original kit, and even at that, some of it was modified.
Building Springer #2
The photo to the right shows the hull inside with reinforcing built into the corners and around the perimeter where the deck will be glued down. Notice that the plate used for holding the RC gear is removable and has holes in it which will be used to hold the receiver and speed control in place by using plastic ties. The deck has not been added at this poit. It was cemented in place shortly after this photo was taken.
The photos below show the deck in place with the water barrier ("coaming") visible in the left photo. The right photo shows the beginnings of the two piece superstructure. The superstructure consists of two sub-assemblies, the main structure (lower left) and the hatch/crane (lower right) which is located forward of the main structure. To remove the structures to access the inside of the hull, the main structure must be removed first. The main structure can be broken down further into three pieces: The cabin, the pilot house, and the stack. This is done by removing the screws inside the cabin. The pilot house roof and also be lifted off for access to the inside.
The photo below shows the interior of the boat (minus any ballast). The RC receiver is a Flysky FS-iA6B 6 channel unit. The speed controller (ESC) is a Hobbywing 1060 brushed unit. The servo (for the rudder) is a Futaba S3003 unit. The battery pack was originally a 7.2V, 3000mah Nimh set, but is now a 7.4V Li-ion battery. In early 2026 the hull was packed with floatation as with the tall superstructure the boat will lean in anything other that a light wind.
Finished Model
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