CSS Selma gunboat, 1/250 scale
 

Another half started project from my old computer!
This is a long and skinny gunboat. Originally the Florida, a civilian transport boat before the war, she was acquired by the South in 1861. She was cut down considerably and "Hog braced" with timber frames, and had the mid section of her deck covered with 3/8 inch boiler plate to help protect the boilers and engine. Se was painted a blackish color and armed with four large guns, three smooth bore shell guns and a long rage rifle. I have but one picture to work with, but I think I am close to the look of the vessel. She was captured after a stubborn fight at Mobile Bay, then put to work by the Union.

CSS SELMA ex Florida
 

Hi Corey, will this drawing help? In addition to the deck armour she also had 2" plate on a thick internal "citadel" around the engines and boilers.
Also she was notable for the "modern" centreline ordnance layout.

I'll look forward to buying and building this vessel !

by the way, her weatherdeck was extended around the paddle boxes, you will have to modify your plan a bit - sorry.

Awesome! I love the center line guns! on a ship with such a narrow hull this would have worked great. Yes, I will redesign but this helps a lot! Actually, with all the right angles she is a simple ship to design/redesign in sketchup. thanks again for your help!
CT

For those big beams over the superstructure, making them from balsa would be the way to go, right?

I will have the paper parts for those in the finished kit but yes, I would consider using wood for those parts.

CT

Another way to make the beams would be layered card cut to shape. I'm not entirely sure but I think her guns were mounted on centre pivot carriages turning in arcs on the deck, as in the big gun mounts on US sloops like Kearsage. Perhaps someone out there can confirm that.

The pivots would have been the way to go with such large guns. It easily would have given this boat a powerful four gun broadside or allow it to "tack" into a frontal charge with a two or possibly even a three gun attack! A typical truck mounted gun could have been manhandle in the same way but would have been slow to respond to changing battle conditions. I think with such a centerline armorment it would of had to have been pivots of some kind.

Here is my second attempt. I need to add the wheels, as well as the deck fittings.

This one looks very "modern" by comparison to the others you've designed.
I could as easily imagine this vessel on a river in China in 1900 as I can visualise her during the ACW.

Certainly a very interesting vessel to see evolve into a kit. :)
Congratulations on your fine work.

Kind and Respectful Regards, Uyraell.