Gretel by JLuebbert - Mamoli - Scale 1:54

[JLuebbert]

Greetings folks,

I hope all are well. I started this kit as I felt I needed some more experience before moving forward with my Enterprise build (I intend to give it as a gift to an old friend). I purchased the Gretel a while back because it not only appealed to me but would fit nicely in my cabinet. 

I have to thank Hamilton for the motivation to actually get back into building. As I mentioned, I felt a little paralyzed moving forward with the Enterprise and then one day while lurking through the forums Hamilton mentioned building the Gretel. I reached out to him and he kindly forwarded the pics you see in his new build log. The fire was officially re-lit!

So here we go! 

[JLuebbert]

Here are the obligatory introductory pictures.

[JLuebbert]

I found out right away what others meant with the initial fit - none of the bulkheads fit properly. Not a big deal but not a great way to start. I took a lot of time before I began to plot my course. I loved what Hamilton had done to the interior of his but I didn't want to duplicate it. He had also mentioned that his interior was somewhat dark. It occurred to me that it may help by removing the wall in the cabin and moving to a "great room" concept. Copious amounts of notes and thoughts followed. I added floor supports and moved forward.

Edited February 9, 2016 by JLuebbert

[JLuebbert]

More pics. I'm happy with the progress so far. It has been very eye opening playing this game of chess- always thinking a few moves ahead.

[Elijah]

Very nice! I will follow with interest !

[JLuebbert]

Thanks Elijah! I appreciate it and will welcome any advice along the way. 

[hamilton]

Looks great so far - I like your mods to b/h 5 - a unique approach to adding cabin details - looking forward to seeing what you do with it. By the way - my bulkheads and keel were CNC - I notice that your version has laser-cut parts.....an interesting difference - how have you found the quality of the ply? Mine was very soft, but I wonder if they switched to different materials for a later edition of this kit? 

hamilton

[JLuebbert]

Hi Hamilton,

Thanks for checking in. While the quality seems fine so far I'm having to correct a lot of bad fitting. I've attached a for instance pic below. Fortunately everything is manageable.

[hamilton]

Wow! Someone messed up there!! Nothing a few strips on the edges won't cure, I suppose, but still......more evidence that the only things that truly improve with age are wine and cheese.....and those only to a point....

 

Are you going to set up the cabin roof so that the interior is visible? Either by making it removable or through some other means? I've always regretted not modifying the roof in some way to make the interior details visible.....

hamilton

[JLuebbert]

Hi Hamilton!

I'm planning on scratch building a new door and new window. The plan is to have the door ajar. While I'm thinkng about it, maybe I can figure out how to have the windows open as well. Stay tuned!

[src]

So this is where you disappeared to. Nice start so far, how are things progressing?

Sam

[Nirvana]

Sam, I think he went into the dark cabin and now not able to find the windows.....

[S.Coleman]

A nice build you have. I found it quite interesting how the bulkheads came still in their spurs. I find Mamoli usually shrink wrap them in plastic. Your doin a great job. Good work

[JLuebbert]

Hey gents! Thanks for checking in. (Great to hear from you Sam! I'm still avidly following your Enterprise build.)

 

I've made some progress. I am, however, competing for the title of "SLOWEST. BUILDER. EVER." The kit itself has presented hurdles in wood quality and fit but I'm taking that in stride. This build is all about learning. 

 

As pictured, the cabin interior layout is done. I figured once the hull was in place I may be influenced on how to approach the interior furniture. I am picturing 2 beds, a dining table with bench and chair, a desk w/chair and pictures of some sort (obviously influenced heavily by Hamilton's build). The most important thing will be being able to see everything. I decided early on that I'd open the doors to the cabin. This would mean creating the fancy molding by hand which would look cool but is something I've never done before. This lead me to realize that if I did do that I'd need to redo the 3 windows as well as it would look odd if I used them. I will then have to figure out how to finish off the interior side of the window panes. Speaking of window panes I've been looking at different clear plastics for the glass and nothing is fitting the bill. I think I may end up leaving out the "glass" so as to help visibilty. Any input here would be greatly appreciated!

 

I am almost done with planking the decks. I will move onto the hull next and hopefully by then will have a strong direction for the cabin.

 

Here's a few pics. As always any feedback is greatly appreciated. Cheers!

[Elijah]

Looking good! I don't know about you being the slowest builder, though…

[src]

I agree with Elijah on the not being the slowest. I started my enterprise this week in 2010.

[hamilton]

Looking really nice! For the windows, I used transparency paper - a thick acetate. It's ok, but it has quite a gloss that makes it look kind of weird and I also made the mistake of using CA to install the "windows" on the frames - the CA crystalises on the acetate, which both ruins the effect and makes it impossible to see through....in future I would use epoxy for this purpose to avoid these kinds of results......keep up the great work, regardless of how slow!!

hamilton 

[S.Coleman]

Hey looks great. Everything sanded and smooth. Good work. Their is a product out there called Krystal clear for window panes. It's a liquid and is poured onto the window frames. Comes up great. Good work.

[JLuebbert]

Thanks for the help guys!

Hamilton- I used to build plastic models and found that a little Future Floor Wax clears up clear plastic that has "frosted."

Updates to come, my friends! I hope all is well with everyone.

[JLuebbert]

Hello all-

I'm sticking with the moniker "Slowest Builder Ever." You can call me SBE for short.

I have worked on the Gretel on and off over the last year and I've noticed that whenever I hit a snag it really slows me down. The kit has been challenging with fit issues. Having said that I feel that if I had more experience I'd foresee many of the issues and would have been able to get ahead of problem areas.

Attached are photos on my progress since I last checked in.

 

[JLuebbert]

The second batch of pics shows two issues I'm currently trying to figure out. Hamilton mentioned that he did all that work and found he had a hard time seeing inside the cabin. It's too late to install a light so I figure I'll keep a small flashlight next to the completed model for better interior views. I have decided to use the metal decorations for the windows but I'll skip trying to simulate glass. I'm still considering scratch building the door so I can keep it ajar, letting in more light. I've seen checkered floor designs on other ship interiors. I'm going to check out what impact a black and white checkered pattern would have in brightening things up.

The other current issue is running my second layer of planking. There's quite a "swoop" at the stern. Any thoughts or input would be very welcomed!

[Nirvana]

If I recalling it right of reading the instructions (long time ago) the "false deck" should had been installed prior the bulwalks..

I could be wrong, need to find the instructions.

Edit: However, nice progress and secondly you are not working slowly, you are paying attention to details! And getting family business in-between.

Edited February 10, 2017 by Nirvana

[src]

J. coming along. Dont worry too much about how long it takes, just enjoy the ride.

 

As far as the black and white floor, that should lighten things up a bit. You might be able to lighten it up more by using a dark gray instead of black. My guess is it would still look black since it's in shadow but wont absorb as much light as full black. Will it make a visible difference?? Dont really know, the only way would be to experiment. Just my two and a half cents of mindless brain activity there....

Sam

[JLuebbert]

Hi! Once again it's been awhile. I've slowly been making progress. I'm still looking at myself hard in the mirror asking "Why are you doing this? People will need a flashlight to be able to see the interior." Regardless, it's been a lot of fun and I don't regret it.

I'm also starting my second planking and feel I've hit a speed bump. The planks have a mind of their own in sweeping up. I've poured over tutorial after tutorial and am at a loss on how to apply kit supplied planks properly. Any input would be appreciated.

Take care all.

[JLuebbert]

Greetings! Soooo my little build was on a... 14 month... time out. It simply wasn't cooperating with me!

I've been wrapping my mind around the issues I'd been having every few days and it finally hit....just move on. It won't be perfect but it will be done! I can't begin to tell you how liberating that was! I finished the planking and started on the trim and other areas. I just spray painted the metal parts black and will be dry brushing them gold. I felt from the beginning that I'd need to address the bright faux gold. 

So here she is so far. I will be back soon. 😁

[JLuebbert]

Greetings! Soooo my little build was on a... 14 month... time out. It simply wasn't cooperating with me!

I've been wrapping my mind around the issues I'd been having every few days and it finally hit....just move on. It won't be perfect but it will be done! I can't begin to tell you how liberating that was! I finished the planking and started on the trim and other areas. I just spray painted the metal parts black and will be dry brushing them gold. I felt from the beginning that I'd need to address the bright faux gold. 

So here she is so far. I will be back soon. 😁

[JLuebbert]

Progress report-

The Gretel is varnished and the interior painted with a light blue to brighten it up. Yeah. That didn't work. It's still small and dark.  C'est la vie! Onward and upward!

I also painted the metal fittings. They look much better. I am curious if I should brighten them up. Thoughts?

[src]

J,

Getting caught up. Looking good.

Sam

[hamilton]

Wow - she looks really smart! Even those metal parts, which I could never make look that good, are looking nice - I like the treatment you've given them and the cabin details fit perfectly. I seem to remember diluting some burnt umber acrylic and kind of dipping the metal parts in it, letting it dry and then burnishing them. Not the most effective weathering but it didn't turn out too badly - but to be honest I think the parts look good as you have them.

hamilton

[JLuebbert]

Hey Sam and Hamilton,

Thanks for the feedback! I hope you two and everyone had a great holiday season and New Years. The build is still progressing although I can't believe all the kit issues. They can be very discouraging at times and really slow me down.

I enclosed all the hard work on the interior. At least I have photographic proof I did a thing! I've also glued on the window "bling." 

Most recently I've been trying to add the rudder. Sounds easy enough, right? The first thing I stumbled upon was the notches not lining up or being relatively close in size (see pic). The second issue was that the hardware to connect the rudder to the boat doesn't match the instructions! I found the third issue when I was dry fitting the rudder only to find the decorative stern piece won't fit over the supplied rudder handle. I had to snip off part of the handle. The bling won't be exactly flush but I can live with it.

Ridiculous really but in the end a good learning lesson on dry fitting EVERYTHING. I've also found that not all mold lines are created equal as the stern piece is fighting me every square mm.

 

 

 

Edited January 6, 2020 by JLuebbert