- Jamaica -

HMS Jamaica - Rick

2.5 units, 22 seconds, British Light Cruiser, Launched 1940

The Jamaica (Figi-class) is a highly respected cruiser within our hobby. Conventionally set up with two twin 50 round stern guns and a ½ unit pump, this 22 second ship is light and will accelerate well. As with all of the class 2 cruisers turning can be challenging however, Rick gets this thing to turn very well. It’s step deck allows for low to the water stern guns. Given that it is relatively light and low to the water, it can be unforgiving in terms of general survivability and ease of building, I would consider it a somewhat advanced build but in general is a great cruiser and can be good for advanced beginners as well. These pictures are from the fall of 2023, Rick has made various upgrades to this ship as he has battled it over the years. You may spot several weight saving techniques in this build.

The bow of the ship is fairly empty, many captains will not make the most forward deck removable. He has the CO2 bottle under the forward step section. You can see the radio receiver (waterproofed) under the cross brace. The bow most turret is a float that will detach if he sinks allowing him to find the ship. With an average score of 0-0-0, he doesn’t sink often. There is some lead next to the bottle.

The battery sits in a tray he made, the Lithium Polymer batteries are very light, this is 8Ah. You can see additional lead behind the battery. The solenoids are next followed by the pump then drive motors. Direct drive with dog bone (dumas) is one of the most common and reliable ways to drive the props on a cruiser. The gun magazines load with the stern most section of deck left in place. The gray internal armor is shower pan liner.

The stern turret in this ship is fairly far back, this makes trimming the height of the guns and angle of depression if desired easy as you don’t have much deck to clear, but the underside of the guns themselves can get in the way of the rudder equipment.

Rick has various latches and screws to keep the deck down. His barrel holders are a bit bulky but highly functional. It seems like they are easy to ignore aesthetically when the top side is painted in camo.

The rudder is driven via chain by a water proof servo. ESC for motor control sits in the stern as well. I prefer direct gear-to-tear mesh over chain drive. The black foam is to displace water forward towards the pump. His guns have a high flow feed in, it can be tricky to get the larger hose to feed into the bottom of the nut laterally like this without destroying the threads but it does save space compared to feeding it vertically into the direct bottom of the nut. His deck has some foam to act as a water seal, you can see the insets for his deck screws within the subdeck.

Measurements.

Measurements.

CO2 bottle, two 1/8 inch hoses go to the solenoids from just off regulator. Receiver is under the cross brace.

CO2 bottle holder sits in a shallow water channel. There is lead on either side of the bottle.

Rudder and prop locations.

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