mtdoramike

Looks like you are on a good start on the Biz. You got a smoking deal on it for sure. I'll be following along to see your progress.

Looks like you are on a good start on the Biz. You got a smoking deal on it for sure. I'll be following along to see your progress.

Greetings everyone this is a separate forum of my build of the Trumpeter bismarck!!! 
My old one didn't turn out well since it was my first model I gota amazing deal for this set being 200aud it still yet to arrive but at the moment here's what I got
Thanks for reading😃

Thanks, Alan!

Beakhead railings are also done in the same manner, albeit applying more wider width. Also, the curves are not achieved through bending, but cut in the shape (following the contours of the beakhead itself) and laminated together. I would still prefer bending a proper hardwood strip - which I do not have at my disposal at the moment unfortunately. 

Lastly, the ladders are made and fixed at the entrance to the grating.

1st planking below the waterline wale begins.

Made some room and preparations for the whipstaff installations in the stern area. 

I will not be displaying the USS Missouri when it's complete. My goal is to find it a good home with someone who would appreciate it and hopefully run it in their local watering hole, which will put the display burden on them. I try not to have buyers remorse and just try and make do with what I'm presented with, but it can be a might disconcerning at times.

I love building complicated kits and if all the aftermarket detail bits are added, the Nichimo is nothing if it is not complicated.  I also like puzzling out data gaps and ambiguities in the "plans"(not).  Obviously, I'm not at the scratch-building level of modeling. I expected the shortcomings of this kit when I started it.  I did not expect that a much better kit at a cheaper overall price would appear in 1:200 scale, so that is my source of buyer's remorse.  After almost 50 years with no new Yamato offerings in 1:200, I was not expecting a new one.  Yes, I'm having fun; but if I can provide an OPINION that may be helpful to other's decision-making, I'm happy to do it.  YMMV.
 
I started my Battleship build with the Amati Bismarck, because it looked like a fun thing to do and it was BIG allowing a lot of detail. Then, my thinking evolved to doing the "set" I describe in my Yamato build log.  If I had it all to do over, I think I would have gone for 1:350 scale for the set.  Seems like there is a better choice of kits in that scale and there would certainly be more room on the wall for four 1:350 ships than 1:200.  The 1:350 build log of the Tamiya Yamato by RGL certainly shows that there is plenty of detail in 1:350 scale.

Well your review indicates you are loving this kit and having loads of fun building it.

Well your review indicates you are loving this kit and having loads of fun building it.

Looking at the information posted by Yves and comparing it to my experience, so far, with the Nichimo kit; I offer my observations to anyone deciding between the two.
If I don't specify which model, I am referring to the Nichimo:
1.  The hull and deck castings are Styrene plastic and all the detail plastic parts are ABS plastic.  One needs a special cement for ABS (Plastruct).
2.  The hull plating details are vastly inferior to the MRC kit.
3.  The hull desperately needs the interior reinforcing that the MRC kit provides.  After assembling the hull and decks, I had to add (belatedly) interior reinforcement in the mid-ships area to bring the deck up to "level" to allow the superstructure to sit on the deck properly.
4.  The plastic decks are child-like and you will need to purchase an aftermarket wood deck.  Parts of the wooden decks from scaledecks.com do not line up with cast-in protrusions in the Nichimo decks requiring alterations to one or the other. This wood deck is an extra cost of almost $100, depending on your source.
5.  The instructions are "scanty", at best.  For instance, line drawings of fully assembled deck modules are provided, but not step-by step drawings.  You have to pick out each part, locate it on the plastic sprue and puzzle out the best fit.  It's doable, but subject to error.  A lot of space is devoted to motorization of the guns and other bits.
6.  The ABS plastic detail parts, like radar antennas, cranes, dollies, etc are crude at best.  If you are a serious modeler, you will need to throw all this away and purchase the PE detail parts from Nichimo, Toms River and Gold Medal Models at an extra cost of at least $300.
7.  The main gun turrets are designed for motorization and compromises have been made to accommodate the "ability" to rotate and elevate the gun barrels.  As a consequence, you can purchase after market metal gun barrels for the MRC kit, but you are stuck with Nichimo's toy-like offering.
8.  Original versions of the Nichimo kit were manufactured almost 50 years ago and I'm sure that many kits now found on resale sites date from that era.  My hull seems to be brittle and modern kits rarely use ABS plastic.  Also, has the grade of styrene plastic used in models improved in 50 years?
 
I'm only at the hull closure stage, now; but I have used time waiting for cement to set to pre-assemble parts of the superstructure.  Check out my build log for more information as I do not expect to make further contributions to this thread.
 
I'll offer the following generalization.  The Nichimo kit is well-served as a "stand-off" motorized model for deployment on water.  It is NOT a display-quality static model.  With the addition of $300 to $400 of detail parts, it can be one; but the added hull detail (and probably more modern plastics) of the MRC kit makes it a better choice if a display model is your desire.

You think?

You think?

A few pictures from a French Forum, showing the YAMATO in 1/100 scale, basically 8 times bigger than the Trumpeter model: 
 

 
The gentleman who built the Yamato, also built a few other battleships, all in 1/100 scale: 
 

 
Yves

I got the hull painted and put the decal on the transom. I still have to seal the decal though. 

Lester:  
 
The replies forthcoming may not seem kind, but they will be honest and come from people, more knowledgeable than me, who know from what they speak.  
 
To begin with my two cents worth: The model is pleasant to look at, but it is unrepresentative of any historical vessel.  It resides in the category of 'dust catcher'.  Your work to restore it may give you pleasure, but no amount of work will elevate the model from that category.

I happen to be reading the paper this morning and came across an article about the very style of boat the Miss Chloe is, and there are a few of them actually being used to offer boat rides on a lake not so near me. There are a few differences to these compared to Miss Chloe, like the rounded stern/transom and the canopy extending all they way up to the cabin. I'm going to have to take a little trip over there to take a ride on one of them. I actually like the rounded transom better than the squared one on the Chloe, but we'll see how she turns out, I can always make another one with a round transom.  

This will be a build of a pleasure/river/lake boat, which was designed by Pat Tritle of the Miss Chloe. I will be working off of a set of plans that I obtained from P. Tritle. She will be roughly 26-27" in length and Beam will be about 7.5". I put in an order for the wood needed to build the Chloe from National Balsa. I started off by cutting out all of the frames and various parts from the plan sheet and gluing them to card stock type heavy paper in order to make templates for current and future use. I then tacked up the working plans and will stare at them for a few days in order to get prepared for the build. 
 
Disclaimer: I may decide to make some changes here and there, so don't expect a straight from the plans type of build. You may be dissapointed.

I got the hull painted and put the decal on the transom. I still have to seal the decal though. 

I got the hull painted and put the decal on the transom. I still have to seal the decal though. 

Thye Mamoli 1/90 scale Victory retails new for around $800.00. The rulke of thumb is usually 50% of retail on resale of kits. But it really comes down to what you want and what someone is willing to pay for it. If it's an out of production kit and someone just has to have it, the sky is the limit. I have seen this kit go for $250.00-$300.00 on Ebay. I know this is probably not the news you wanted to hear. 

Thye Mamoli 1/90 scale Victory retails new for around $800.00. The rulke of thumb is usually 50% of retail on resale of kits. But it really comes down to what you want and what someone is willing to pay for it. If it's an out of production kit and someone just has to have it, the sky is the limit. I have seen this kit go for $250.00-$300.00 on Ebay. I know this is probably not the news you wanted to hear.