Scale

History.

Othonia, originally named Sct. Knud, was new ship (no. 192) from Frederikshavn Shipyard and Floating Dock A/S. She was ordered by the Harbour Commissioners of Odense Harbour on the 6 June 1930 as a combined Icebreaker an Harbour Tug. She was launched and named on the 5 November 1930. Sct. Knud was finished at the shipyard on 9 January 1931 and sailed directly to Odense after a maiden voyage with Captain F. Nielsen at the wheel where she served almost 29 years on Odense canal and harbour.

Constructed of Steel, she measured 86' (26.2m) in length, 25' (7.62m) in beam and 12' (3.66m) in draft. She was powered by a triple expansion engine fired by a single coal fired scotch boiler delivering steam at 200lbs per square inch.

Sct. Knud was sold in December 1959 to iron dealer H.E.Hansen in Odense where she was renamed Othonia. She was then resold to the Fowey Harbour Commissioners were she got the name St. Canute . The ship sides were painted green, the chimney white / black with a red line and a white lily. Here she was put to work on general harbour duties assisting the large china clay vessels in and out of harbour until 1969. Reliability issues forced Fowney to consider scrapping her but she was rescued by Exeter Maritime museum. She arrived at the museum and put on display.

In 1999 the ship was bought by Christer Strandel from Stocka in Sweden, and the ship was renamed " Stockvik ". In May of 1999 the ship sailed from England to Terneuzen in Holland where some repairs were made.

In April 2000, she continued her voyage to Stocka, with a stop in Svendborg in Denmark were she arrived on the 25 of April at 0900 am. The ship stayed for a couple of weeks in Svendborg were it was made possible for people to visit the ship an have a look around before she continued on her journey to Stockholm.

On the 28 of July S/S Stockvik sailed from Stockholm on course for Stocka where she arrived on 1 August 2000.

Chister Strandel wants to restore the ship.

The model.

My model of Othonia is 25 years old. She has been used on and off ever since construction and has seen many changes in power plant.

Othonia was entirely scratch built, working to 1/2" to 1' from actual builders plans and photos taken when she was on display at the Exeter maritime museum. The hull is fibre glass made on the 'one off principle' (a block of expanded foam carved and covered with fibre glass matting and resin, the foam inside being removed after the curing process had finished.

The superstructure is mainly ply of various thickness plus there is quite a lot of metal in the construction, bulwarks are aluminum, openings and flanges are brass. Deck fittings are also made of brass.

The decks are individually planked as is all woodwork around the wheelhouse. The weight of all the metalwork was never a consideration, as ballast is still needed to bring her down to the waterline. She weighs in at 18Kg.

Although primarily intended for steam power (vents are working and internal water tanks are in situ) I must admit I chickened out and opted for clean electrical power in the finished model. Power is obtained from a 12 volt, 12 amp battery which gives an all day duration. The motor is a Hectoperm. I have had to turn down the E.S.C. as power to the 3 1/2" x 4 blade prop is excessive.

Many of the functions are controlled by radio including engine sounds, fog horn whistle and lights. Smoke comes out of the funnel and, as a novelty, the man with the hosepipe turns and will squirt water on command. She is pretty full of gadgets inside. I have had to adopt a layer system to get it all in.

It is so complicated I tend to forget how it all works and that becomes a source of amusement to fellow club members. I have to get out the Othonia's working manual and go through a check list. In times of panic I just flick a switch on the transmitter and all functions turn off. Also, she seems to be getting heavier as I get older... strange?

Considering her great age, she still performs very well. The man with the hosepipe and the different sounds are very popular with children of all ages. Although I have other boats to sail, every so often I take Othonia out and put her through her paces. Maintenance and upkeep are getting behind so a refit and update are planned.

Billing do a kit version of Othonia (Canute). It is very much smaller than my version. As my version is at least 25 years old, I would like to think that someone at Billings' saw my Othonia and decided to kit it. Hmm... I wonder?

History. Othonia, originally named Sct. Knud, was new ship (no. 192) from Frederikshavn Shipyard and Floating Dock A/S. She was ordered by the Harbour Commissioners of Odense Harbour on the 6 June 1930 as a combined Icebreaker an Harbour Tug. She was launched and named on the 5 November 1930. Sct. Knud was finished at the shipyard on 9 January 1931 and sailed directly to Odense after a maiden voyage with Captain F. Nielsen at the wheel where she served almost 29 years on Odense canal and harbour. Constructed of Steel, she measured 86' (26.2m) in length, 25' (7.62m) in beam and 12' (3.66m) in draft. She was powered by a triple expansion engine fired by a single coal fired scotch boiler delivering steam at 200lbs per square inch. Sct. Knud was sold in December 1959 to iron dealer H.E.Hansen in Odense where she was renamed Othonia. She was then resold to the Fowey Harbour Commissioners were she got the name St. Canute . The ship sides were painted green, the chimney white / black with a red line and a white lily. Here she was put to work on general harbour duties assisting the large china clay vessels in and out of harbour until 1969. Reliability issues forced Fowney to consider scrapping her but she was rescued by Exeter Maritime museum. She arrived at the museum and put on display. In 1999 the ship was bought by Christer Strandel from Stocka in Sweden, and the ship was renamed " Stockvik ". In May of 1999 the ship sailed from England to Terneuzen in Holland where some repairs were made. In April 2000, she continued her voyage to Stocka, with a stop in Svendborg in Denmark were she arrived on the 25 of April at 0900 am. The ship stayed for a couple of weeks in Svendborg were it was made possible for people to visit the ship an have a look around before she continued on her journey to Stockholm. On the 28 of July S/S Stockvik sailed from Stockholm on course for Stocka where she arrived on 1 August 2000. Chister Strandel wants to restore the ship.
	The model. My model of Othonia is 25 years old. She has been used on and off ever since construction and has seen many changes in power plant. Othonia was entirely scratch built, working to 1/2" to 1' from actual builders plans and photos taken when she was on display at the Exeter maritime museum. The hull is fibre glass made on the 'one off principle' (a block of expanded foam carved and covered with fibre glass matting and resin, the foam inside being removed after the curing process had finished. The superstructure is mainly ply of various thickness plus there is quite a lot of metal in the construction, bulwarks are aluminum, openings and flanges are brass. Deck fittings are also made of brass.
	The decks are individually planked as is all woodwork around the wheelhouse. The weight of all the metalwork was never a consideration, as ballast is still needed to bring her down to the waterline. She weighs in at 18Kg. Although primarily intended for steam power (vents are working and internal water tanks are in situ) I must admit I chickened out and opted for clean electrical power in the finished model. Power is obtained from a 12 volt, 12 amp battery which gives an all day duration. The motor is a Hectoperm. I have had to turn down the E.S.C. as power to the 3 1/2" x 4 blade prop is excessive. Many of the functions are controlled by radio including engine sounds, fog horn whistle and lights. Smoke comes out of the funnel and, as a novelty, the man with the hosepipe turns and will squirt water on command. She is pretty full of gadgets inside. I have had to adopt a layer system to get it all in.
	It is so complicated I tend to forget how it all works and that becomes a source of amusement to fellow club members. I have to get out the Othonia's working manual and go through a check list. In times of panic I just flick a switch on the transmitter and all functions turn off. Also, she seems to be getting heavier as I get older... strange? Considering her great age, she still performs very well. The man with the hosepipe and the different sounds are very popular with children of all ages. Although I have other boats to sail, every so often I take Othonia out and put her through her paces. Maintenance and upkeep are getting behind so a refit and update are planned. Billing do a kit version of Othonia (Canute). It is very much smaller than my version. As my version is at least 25 years old, I would like to think that someone at Billings' saw my Othonia and decided to kit it. Hmm... I wonder?