How To Build A Perfect Scale Model Of The 'Orca', The Boat From JAWS
My name is Alexandre Ramon, I live in a small French village a few dozen kilometers from Paris. I am a member of a ship model club, the MCBM (Model Club du Bassin de la Muette) in Elancourt.
I present to you a model that I made in a few months. This article can be useful to you if you decide to make this model.
It was while watching the movie Jaws for the umpteenth time that the idea of directing it came to me. This new challenge could only materialize through the acquisition of the plans.
PLAN SEARCH
Finding them quickly on an e-commerce site, I hasten to order them with some excitement. A few days later, they arrive in my mailbox, by examining them, I realize that they are of good quality but nevertheless contain some errors. Indeed, some parts are approximate and of bad proportions, they will have to be readjusted during the tracing but nothing insurmountable.
The reproduction measures 35 inches in 1/14 scale, or 89 cm long, too small for me who has taken to building models in 1/10 scale. However, the decision is made to make this model at 1/9.
Why the 1/9th will you ask me?
Quite simply because after finding the main characters of the film on a specialized figurines site. Captain Quint and Matt Hooper who are very good bills are obtained quite easily, on the other hand for their companion, Chief Brody the task looks more difficult, since it is still not marketed.
Now lets move on to the characteristics of the boat and its construction,
CONSTRUCTION
From the bowsprit to the stern, the boat is 1.50 m long and 44 cm wide and has a mast 1.30 m high. Its weight is 21 kg in running order.
The delphiniere
For more rigidity, it was necessary to increase the thickness of the delphiniere by cutting 7 mm strips. The shaping of the railing is made with solid 3 mm steel round.
The barrels were made using a 3D printer, then 2 coats of black and yellow paint were applied.
Second, there was a meticulous sanding with very fine sandpaper to give them that worn effect. To finish, 2 coats of colorless matte varnish covered them.
The shark’s jaw
The shark jaw on the front of the high cockpit was also made with the printer.
The mast
The mast was made using a 14 mm diameter pine dowel to lower the center of gravity and lighten the model. The rungs are in brass and the lookout in copper. The 12 V micro bulbs helped me with the mast lights and the signal lights.
Motorization
Propulsion is via a Marchal 12V wiper motor. It is powered at 6 and 12V by 2 lead-acid batteries of 6v 12ah in series which serve as ballast. The propeller is a 70mm 3-blade.
Shell
The cutting of the keel was made with 18 mm plywood scraps, in 4 pieces. The frames were made with 10 mm plywood and perforated to facilitate the passage of electrical cables. For the assembly of the exhaust line, a copper tube is inserted into a beech round which has been previously drilled in its center. The collars to support the pot have been designed in aluminium. The whole was painted and aged.
The bridge
The bridge is made of 3 mm plywood and completely removable in order to be able to access the electromechanical for possible maintenance. In order to represent the caulking between the wooden slats, lines were simply engraved using a scriber. Once varnished in dark oak the illusion is perfect.
The cabin and the cockpit
For the construction of the cabin, the exterior and interior walls were cut from 3-ply 1 mm plywood.
The fittings
The buoys were cut out of fir, then erected and bored on a lathe to obtain the desired diameter, then came the installation of the self-adhesive lettering and the application of a colorless matte varnish. The traffic lights were also machined by me. Let’s move on to the cabin and deck layout.
Cabin and deck layout
The almost non-existent documentation increased the difficulty. Not wanting to be approximate but to be the most precise and faithful to the objects used in the film, I created my own database by capturing dozens of images of it. It was the only way to get as close as possible to reality. Thus each of the objects reproduced are a strict copy of those found in the film, including for the brands that correspond to those existing at the time, whether for fire extinguishers, diving bottles, the kit of first aid, beer cans, tin cans, safety instructions, the international code of maritime floating signals, radars and sonars etc.
A piece of foam resized to the size of the bench and wrapped in a burgundy vinyl fabric, allowed me to create the cushions. Some small nails with round heads and covered with this textile form the buttons.
The table top was not a problem, on the other hand, for the legs having only one photographic archive and unfortunately very blurred. So I had to copy what my eye saw. The result is quite satisfactory.
By documenting myself on the combat seats for big game fishing and having the size of my character, the copy was not too complicated.
The ladder is made of 4 mm steel.
Fishing gear
Having no dimension regarding the shark cage, I went to an online collective encyclopedia site to find the height of the actor who plays the role of Mat Hooper. Once it was recovered, I was able to determine the proportions of the cage using my photo library and design it.
As for all my constructions I could not do without putting some radio controlled animations, so the bars and the gear levers of the upper and lower parts are functional thanks to mini servos coupled in parallel to the speed controller and the rudder.
12 V micro bulbs are also fitted to the deck spotlight and the interior of the cabin.
Staging
In order to reproduce some striking scenes of the film, it was essential that a monstrous creature coming from the abyss comes to pursue the reduced model. To give life to this carcharodon carcharias, my choice turned to a 41 cm long rubber figurine that can be found quite easily on an online sales site.
The latter dives or rises to the surface using a radio-controlled winch.
For the sound animation, the model is equipped with an MP3 and WAV player module with a 12V stereo amplifier, 2 x 10 watt speakers. This equipment allows me to play 5 different sounds or music. There are some cult lines and especially the music from the film.
The patina
Very fine steel wool type triple 0 is immersed in water. After a few weeks it oxidizes and becomes rusty powder. These particles are mixed with colorless matte varnish. The final step to reveal the traces of aging is to apply this mixture to the new paint and wipe off immediately with a soft cloth.
To conclude, I had fun building this model, but a new model was already growing in my head, I wanted to stay in the world of cinema and it is the Amity Police of the Jaws II.
Words, images and video by Alexandre Ramon
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