hof00

4 hours ago, LeoM said:

Oeps, I notice that it is more than 6 months ago since I last posted some progress on my Cutty Sark. Not that I have been working constantly on her, but the brass bulwark caused more scratching behind the ear than I expected. To tell the truth there were more than 526 planks to be laid on the 2nd layer. But having polished the hull the best I could, it is a joy to feel the lines of the hull 😄

And now I will have to start on the 2500+ copper plates 🤔

Hi there,

Looking really good!!

Are you intending to Plank inboard of the Bulwarks?

Cheers....HOF.

Hi Ian,

Looks like your Airbrushing skills are not too bad!! 🙂

So, Wots your next task on your radar?

(BTW I pulled out the Trumpeter version to have a scan of the kit and Mk1 PE. I ordered a Pontos PE upgrade to embellish the MK1 stuff.

I'm not going to "Dive In" just yet but am very tempted....)

Cheers....HOF.

Hi Chap,

Very, very nice!!

Cheers....HOF.

Hi Chap,

Very nice indeed!!

Cheers....HOF.

11 hours ago, gjdale said:

Congratulations on finishing a fine build HOF. Despite the many challenges along the way, you have produced an excellent model - one that you should be rightly proud of.

6 hours ago, VitusBering said:

Very, very nice.

6 hours ago, ccoyle said:

Congratulations! That's a suitably impressive-looking model!

5 hours ago, Kevin said:

very nice indeed, well done, I love, thanks for sharing yr journey with us

5 hours ago, CDW said:

Such a beautiful Bismarck. Wonderful. I admire your tenacity and the finished product. Completely outstanding.

Thank you all very much!!

I reckon that I can do better hence looking at the 1/200 Trumpeter Bismarck.

The only problem is the size of these things.

Making the Cabinets is not the issue, its' where to put them.... 🙂

I think that I should put some effort into the Sanson that is not too, too far away from completion.

Cheers and Regards,

Harry.

3 minutes ago, Knocklouder said:

Congratulations,  looks like a very well put together ship . Cheers  

Thanks for that!!

Appreciated.

Cheers....HOF.

Hmmm,

Might have to get a couple of better photos....🙂

Hi All,

I have decided to call time on the Bismarck and say "Finished."

Final touch-ups completed today and a couple of coats of Satin Clear.

I did not get to deploying Accommodation Ladders, oh well....

Hawse Drums were re-wound with A/L 0.25 Black Thread, much better, Anchor Buoys also re-wound and fitted.

I guess an interesting build for me, my first Ship with "Guns" and a great PE primer having never dabbled in the medium before.

It's not perfect but should pass muster, I guess that's part of building with 1.5 arms!! 🙂

Would I do it again? Definitely!! I'm sort of gearing up to have a good look at my Trumpeter version with MK1 detail PE.

I have issues with some items included in the kit contents but they got resolved o.k.

Many thanks to all that have hit the "Like" thingy, much appreciated.

A few of those I wish to thank for thier input and knowledge, well you know who you are, rvchima, Rod, joe100, Joe and many others that have from time-to-time offered ideas or constructive criticism. 🙂

Last but definitely not least, my lovely lady, for assisting completion for this old Chap with one and a bit working appendages.

So, some photos in no particular order....

I almost forgot to mention, the Color/Camo scheme is for this day in history May 21 1941. (I believe that the Stripes/Stern Wave was removed shortly afterward.)

Cheers....HOF.

3 hours ago, jpalmer1970 said:

Thanks HOF. Yes, i have put some tape on the edge of the deck in an effort to protect it from any wayward swipes during sanding. There is a lot of wood to remove from the keel pieces but the plan is to take it slow and steady and not muck it up! I also plan to joggle the deck planks into the king plank. I am toying with the idea of reducing the deck planks from 3mm to 2mm wide so that it will look a little more like the deck of the real ship but we'll have to see whether I can do that consistently to all of the planks, as it will be very obvious if some of the planks are wider than others.

I guess if you reduce the thickness of the Decking Planks, you'll need to check if your kit provides enough stock.

Have you looked at obtaining 2.0mm wide planks?

(M<y experience with A/L stuff is that they usually provide more than enough material, not so with my PD Kit.... 🙂)

Yup, Joggling will look really good, I did this on mine with a bit of trial/error.

The Mahogany for the King Plank/Coamings/Etc was very brittle in my kit with the only way to prevent wastage was to use a very fine saw blade across grain.

Looking forward to your "Fairing" work.

Cheers and Regards,

Harry.

15 hours ago, jpalmer1970 said:

 

Today’s task was to fit the keel stiffeners, parts 18-28, on either side of the false keel. The written instructions merely indicate that these need to be glued either side of the keel but as @BobG pointed out in his log there is more to this than the instructions suggest. A careful look at the plans indicates that whilst the forward two pairs of stiffener pieces (18-19) and the rear four pairs of stiffener pieces (25-28) are sited flush with the bottom of the keel, the five middle pairs of stiffeners are actually located 1mm up from the base of the keel. I found a scrap of plank 1mm thick and used this as a shim to correctly gauge the positioning of these parts when gluing them into place.

 

The next step in the instructions is to glue on the plywood deck and then frame the steerman’s hatch or cockpit. The cockpit floor and sides are planked with mahogany later in the build but it seemed to me that it would be easier to plank the floor of the cockpit now before the plywood deck was glued onto the frames. There are a variety of mahogany strips included with the kit and the instructions suggest using the 1x5mm sized strip for this. However, I was not very keen on using these as the strips in my kit are very mottled and the grain pattern is quite prominent. This strip is also later to be used for the framing of the deck hatches and I would prefer to have something different. I had previously purchased some 1x6mm mahogany strip and this is much less mottled and altogether a nicer piece of wood. However, being 6mm wide it is wider than the kit suggestion and so I decided to trim my strip down to two 3mm wide pieces. I then used this to plank the floor of the cockpit – I think the 3mm wide planks give a much better scale effect that the 5mm wide kit suggestion.

 

After planking the cockpit floor I then gave the top of the false keel a quick run over with a sanding block just to make sure the plywood deck would sit nicely across all of the frames. I used PVA glue on the frames and false keel and set the deck in place, securing it with elastic bands and small weights to ensure a good solid fit across all of the frames.

 

Finally, the walls of the cockpit were glued into place. All is now ready for fairing of the frames.

It may be a short while before I get the fairing completed as I can really only do this outside, which means I am limited to whatever spare time I can find at the weekends to work on it, but hopefully it will be done in the next couple of weeks. In the meantime I may be able to start on some other sub assemblies or having a trial go at the best way to approach the decking.

Hi There,

looking good!!

Fairing the Bulkheads took me quite a while primarily due to the "Doublers."

Take your time and try not to take anything off the False Deck!! 🙂

Decking you'll find interesting I am sure, just have a think about the steps necessary and the sequence.

Are you planning to "Joggle" the Deck planks?

Cheers....HOF.

Sorry Ian,

That should have read $25.00 not $2500!!  🙂

(Corrected the above.)

Cheers....HOF.

21 hours ago, Ian B said:

Been looking on line for deck masks for the swastikas..can't find anything in 1/200 .saw one but no stock. Any suggestions?

 

I might have to do a tricky masking job...just want to be lazy 😂

Hi Chap,

If you want to do Decals, I got mine from Custom Hobby Decals in "The West Island", (Australia 🙂)

From memory, about NZD $25.00

KMS Bismarck German WWII Battleship – 1/100 1/200 1/350 1/570 1/700 1/1000 1/1200 1/2400 – Water Decal – Custom Hobby Decals

There is a Red Background option available but best to drop them an E-Mail if you require that.

The advantage here is that you get all the Pennants/Arado Stuff as well.

Cheers....HOF.

8 hours ago, Knocklouder said:

Good luck on your journey, hope it works out for you .   

Ditto!!🙂

Nice!! 🙂

Brings back some memories. 

Happy to try and lend a hand if needed.

I'll follow along. also.

Cheers....HOF.

Hi Ian,

I used Vallejo Light Grey 71.050 and Sea Grey71.049 (I don't know if they are 100% historically correct)

Baltic Stripes are Black and White.

One person who could most definitively answer is @Joe100

I guess you could have a test "Off-Ship" with a selection first.

"Scale Effect" probably needs to be factored in?

Are you going the "Full Monty" Baltic Stripes?

Cheers....HOF.

6 hours ago, CDW said:

Generally speaking, I find acrylic paints peel more easily when masking over them than lacquers. With any plastic model, it's good practice to first wash the plastic in a mild dish detergent before assembling and then wipe it all down with alcohol before painting to remove any oils from handling it but no, I don't think there is anything inherent in Trumpeter plastic that resists paint. 

2 hours ago, AlanDavison said:

Always best to prime before applying top coat as it (a) shows any imperfections in surface finish which can be remedied and (b) gives a good foundation for your top coat. There are lots of surface primers out there mostly in spray rattle cans.

Many thanks Gentlemen,

I have taken your advice very firmly on-board!! 🙂

Cheers and Regards,

Harry.

Hi Chap,

I am quite happy with Vallejo Matt.

Wot's your experience with that?

Cheers.... HOF.

Hi All,

Just a question that came to mind after viewing "Channell's" Trumpeter Bismarck log.

In that log there were a few comments regarding paint adhering, (Or not), to the plastic that Trumpeter kits are made of.

Does anyone have experience of the above?

Cheers and Regards,

Harry.

10 hours ago, Ian B said:

Thanks @hof00---As I type this I am sat here installing the PE below the water line (fits really nice) and fitting the rope runners on the bow.  The plastic parts for this are very poorly moulded, needed some filling and cleaning before they can be fitted. The propeller shafts are ready to install. So doing all the nice bits  

Agree, The "Sea Chest" grills go on very nicely.

The Plastic parts leave allot to be desired, my father would have said "By guess and by God. 🙂"

The Propeller Shaft Housings, interesting. I had a Paper template/s to position these. One I had carefully shaped the mating surface to match the Hull, i decided to "Key" the Hull and prepped the Housings with a Brass pin, (1.5mm), at each end of the Housing. This gave me correct positioning once I put some thick CA on and pushed the parts together. (Well, that was my madness to the method.... 🙂)

Have fun with whatever method you use, it'll be good to see the results!!

Cheers and Regards,

Harry.

4 hours ago, Ian B said:

@hof00 good advise ,thanks 👍👍

Hi Ian,

One other thing comes to mind, when you gat to it that is, My instructions advised to mount the Bow and Stern Flagstaffs prior to installing the Main Railing.

I did not find this was a good procedure, The Bow Flagstaff got a real beating due to fiddling with the Railings, I was lucky that I could rescue the Bow Flagstaff and did not mount the Stern one until the Railing was complete.

(This did not preclude drilling holes for the Flagstaff installation.)

Anyway, just a small detail that may save frustration....

Cheers....HOF.

Hi Ian,

That is looking pretty damn sharp!! 🙂

Cheers.... HOF.

8 hours ago, VitusBering said:

On my dear departed Cutty Sark I installed the brass stanchions with their holes aligned in the angle of the through cable (thread, in my case).
I used a map pin through one of the holes to align the stanchion at the proper angle as they were set in place.

I agree with Harry about monofilament, that stuff is awful.

Thanks Chap.

Yup, the Monofilament is and was awful but eventually had its' day.... 🙂

Cheers....HOF.

Thanks Gentlemen,

Appreciated. 🙂

Ian, have a look at the Stanchions that you were provided and "Guage" the holes. My Stanchion holes were 0.3mm, 0.4mm would be better.

I'm thinking the "Prod" version may have a larger hole to facilitate threading the awful Mono-Filament stuff.

Even so, it was beyond me how you'd thread the Stanchions in-situ, 1: With ought kinking the stuff, drawing it through and 2: If the Stanchions holes are not in-line, the thread won't go through either. 

My Stanchion spacing was not to the kit specs either, there should have been about 146 on either side, mine ended up 135 inc. the Boe in front of the Hawse holes.

Another issue I had, was painting my Stanchions thus having to drill out all the Stanchion holes. 🙂

@rvchima, (Rod), advised that he Blackened his Stanchions, very wise!! You could always PM Rod for extra insight here.

All in all, the Railing helps immensely to just "Finish" things nicely.

(I still dislike immensely the Mono-Filament stuff provided, it did eventually have a use.... 🙂)

Cheers and Regards,

Harry.

1 hour ago, aliluke said:

Hi Richard

I'm a late comer to your log. Your model of Wahine is extraordinary - in scale, research, detail and results. I can't offer anything to you on how you do this - way beyond my modeling skills!

 

I was eight years old when the Wahine Storm struck. I remember it vividly from our home in the northern suburbs, watching trees flying through the air on the ridges of Mt Kaukau and listening to pine cones slamming into and smashing our tile roof. Two days later we went down to Fort Dorset to look at the wreck. I was excited about that but when we got there I remember the actual terror of seeing Wahine lying on her side so very close to shore. I was shaken.

 

I had never been on Wahine but, as a younger boy, had done several trips with my mum and brother on T.E.V Maori - Wellington - Lyttleton - Wellington. We'd always got E Deck as it was on the waterline and much cheaper for the swishing noise of water keeping you awake. I loved that. Maori was also a very beautiful ship. My grandmother was booked for the 10 April crossing on Wahine but had to cancel for reasons that I forget. I doubt she would have survived that. She came up to Wellington on Wahine's replacement, Rangatira, for a while afterwards until air travel killed the route for good. I have crossed Cook Strait many, many times. Starting in Aramoana and then Awanui and lately in their new fleet plus on Bluebridge. The earlier trips on Aramoana/Aranui where often epic as safety was less of a concern then than it is now. I've crossed in monster seas on Aramoana where the propellers came out of the water as the ship dived into a trough. Luckily I am immune from seasickness and the rougher it got the better it was for me and that holds true even now.

 

The Wahine Storm was not cyclonic. It was a collision of two fronts from the north and south that caught the meteorologists completely off-guard. I read a few years ago that even with current computer modelling, the way this storm behaved could not have been predicted by computers. Wind speeds hit 135mph but it wasn't a cyclone.

 

I'm sure you know of Dan Flannery's diorama of the Wahine capsize which is displayed in The Wellington Museum. https://www.shipsnostalgia.com/media/wahine-model.138970/ I am fortunate to own one of his dioramas in a case - a Norwegian whaler with a surfacing whale alongside - that I picked up on Trademe for a pathetically cheap price. His models were/are incredible.

 

Anyway, that diverts from your project which I'll now follow. The size of your model is amazing!

 

Cheers

A

Yup,

I was eight also living in Eastbourne.

The wind was really something!!

I heard also at the time that it was two storms colliding but called the Storm "Cyclone Giselle."

(Please correct me if I am in error.)

Cheers....HOF.

Hi All,.

It's been a while since I last posted but time for an update....

Main Deck perimeter Railing complete.

I procrastinated for quite some time about this.

Supplied Stanchions used eventually and the  dreaded Mono-Filament material. 

As much as I tried to thread Stanchions, (After a few test-fitted), it was almost impossible!! I had a breath and decided to dill out all of the Stanchion holes with a 0.3mm drill, I had pre painted these also.

So, I don't know if the Amati production kit has holes of greater than 0.3mm. Rod, (rvchima), threaded his Stanchions in-situ with no issues, he said the task was easy. (That was the inference anyway.)

I decided to drill all the holes around the Deck with a default of 9.5mm, there were a few exceptions.

So 62 to Midships and 66 to the Stern, the Stanchions were threaded on to the Mono-Filament, three threads, top, middle bottom and then plugged into the holes drilled.

The join, Midships required a bit of fast thinking, I drilled out a couple of Stanchions to 0.45mm to accept the threads from the Bow and threads from the Stern sections of railing, a touch of CA an done. (I'll attach some photos of these.

It took some time but not as much time as trying to thread Stanchions in-situ.

And yes, I received the Eduard PE Chain Link Railing, nice but not suitable for this beastie. 🙂

Not much left to do:

• Paint Touch-ups
• Stern Flagstaff
• Anchor Buoys
• Accommodation Ladders (Probably)

I should also mention that my good lady helped me in no small way with the Railing. (I still have limited use of my right arm.... ☹️

Cheers....HOF.

Photos: