hof00

The hard edge camo is done. I sprayed the brown violet over the masked dark green areas and got a sharp result. I used a dedicated masking set, made by LF Models. The masks are made from vinyl and It took some effort to lay them down perfectly, to have no color running under it. The manual is a bit vague in places, relatively small and some codes were printed blue on green, hard to read. Definitely an area for improvement. I always remove my masks rapidly after application, before the color is properly hardened through. Luckily on first inspection, I couldn't make out severe mistakes. After proper drying, I will have a closer look.
 

 

 
Cheers Rob

The Corel Corsaro II is was an adoption from a fellow modeler, who decided to offer it for someone to finish it. So I adopted her with the anticipation of finishing her and hopefully turn her into a grand lady of the sea. Stay tuned for periodic updates. I'm finishing up on the USS Missouri adoption and will make the Corsaro my next project.
 
I have a great starting point here to finish her up. Most orphans I adopt are not nearly of this quality, I usually have to rip it apart and start over, but this is from a master modeler, so I expected no less.

So the hangar added. 

Superstructure. There are some gaps!!!!! 
 
this is in 8 pieces, at an angle on each. 

Ahoy @Kelp!
 
I appreciate your continued interest and look forward to seeing your efforts down the line...  Happy to assist in any way I can.
 
Here are some quick looks at fiber optic filament inserted in a port:
 

 
You see the filament intentionally poking out to get a sense of the fit.

 
Here it is pushed flush to the exterior.  I haven't treated the end at all... I'll likely need to buff the ends before final fit to get the best look.
 
I agree with your concern that acetate set behind the drilled out ports will not have the right effect given the thickness of the hull.  You could come back and fill in the space with clear canopy glue or some clear resin (hardened with UV flashlight) but that would seem to be many more units of effort than using filament.  Probably more expensive too.  I'd have to recommend the filament route... Just be careful to size the drilled out ports in relation to the filament and not in relation to the historically accurate scale diameter.
 
I purchased my filament online at a very reasonable overall cost.  I have 10 foot lengths each of 1.0mm, 1.5mm, 2.0mm. 2.5mm and 3.0mm with a total cost (incl. shipping) of around $20 US.
 

 
Filling the ports is a long ways away for me... Many steps remaining before I even smear any paint on the hull.
 
Cheers
Evan

Small update - last set of pics above were premature. Fo'c'sle and poop deck are mostly done. Anchors and bowsprit stays and martingales installed.
 

 

Hello all, I've made some progress on the main deck, firstly scoring and cutting out all the slots that will eventually provide supports to the hull side and upper deck support columns.  I glued this onto the hull spine and formers and left to dry.  I have decided to leave the stern lower formers until I temporarily separate the model from the building base later on, I didn't like the look of how they were glued on the other build log, they look very fragile and I'm not sure how I would glue them with enough strength.  I am planning to add them once I'm at the stage of forming the stern, add the formers to the underside of the main deck, making sure they align and let them dry before forming the stern around them.  Time will tell whether this is a "Cunning/Baldrick" plan... 
 
In the meantime the main deck needs a few details adding.  So I have formed and glued on the cargo hatch, latrines, Engine room entrance.  I cut out and pre-painted the cut edges of the optional doors before adding to these parts.  Next up, working aft, will be the addition of the Engine room, Saloon & stairs to complete this section of the instructions.
 
Thanks for the like and dropping by.

I've been dry-fitting the sides of the hanger deck.  Absolutely necessary as the little locating tabs and other small areas need to be trimmed to get the pieces to sit tight to the deck.  Also helpful to planning which side doors to leave open and sequence for painting.

Time and motivation are a bit sparse in the moment, but I managed to apply some color onto the Arado. After re-spraying the gloss black of the canopy after sanding, the whole canopy section was masked.
The underside of the plane received a coat of RLM 76, followed by a very long masking session, a job, I really don't like.
 

 
This was followed by a coat of RLM 82 Dunkelgrün (dark green) I decided against pre shading, because of the double coating in the RLM 81 Braunviolett areas. All camo colors are from AK's Real Color range and spray very fine and smooth with the added Mr. Leveling thinner. After drying, I will apply the camo masks, which are pre-cut luckily.
 

 
Cheers Rob

Amazing work Chris.  You've gotten really good at these card models.

First step in making the wings was adding the remaining internal frames.
 

 
Each skin is a single piece, shaped, folded, and glued with the help of a joiner strip.
 

 
Each wing structure is then slipped into its finished sheath. No fillets have been added yet.
 

 
That's it for now.

Well I finally cooled down from my disappointment at crashing my, almost complete, model. I used this time to embark in another project which I will be logging soon.
As I have shown before, the breakage included the connecting pieces between the frame and the front fork. Rebuilding these parts seemed an easy job and I decided to use some styrene strip that I had left from the Mimi project. I needed 4 pieces that had to be exactly equal since they formed the parallelogram that allows the movement of the front fork with respect to the frame.
In order to make four similar pieces I decided to glue four strips and work the drilling and shaping in unison. I would use Elmers glue and, when the fabrication was completed, I would de-glue the strips with alcohol. Great idea, Ras.
This was the test of the process.

Then I dipped the bunch in the de-gluing liquid.

The next day I removed the bunch from the liquid and ...... Horror again. I had a melting goo instead of four nice separate strips. A little investigation resulted in finding that I had used acetone instead of alcohol. Another senior moment.
Then I reconsidered the problem and decided that metal would be a better material for this stress are in the bike. Using the the same idea of fabrication in unison I could use superglue to bind them during the drilling and shaping and then use the acetone to separate the pieces. Great!
I measured the connector and cut four pieces of brass strip 6X2 mm.

As planed, I glued with CA and let them in the vise overnight.

Then with a file I brought the bundle to size marked the holes and starting the drilling of the two holes. Now, guess what........ Horror again. The heat of the drill unglued the strips and ruined the job. I then started again with a new set of strips and this time I clamped them together during the drilling.

And yes, finally, success:
Now I will shape them using my hand tools. The saga continues, next comes the handlebar and the bottle of champagne.
 
 
 
 

VitusBering, that is a very good question and the answer is yes/no. Let me explain, (No) I am not planning on having any capability to replace a LED. But, (Yes) 1) I am taking steps to protect the LEDs by making sure they all are matched with resisters to protect from overloading the LED, 2) I am running less voltage and thus leas than the maximum current so LED is not likely to fail, and 3) I am using voltage regulators that relatively slowly go from zero to maximum set voltage so as to not shock the LED.
 
Basically, I should get 30+ years or more out of the lighting based on how often I will actually have the display on. If a LED goes out, I can evaluate based on location if it’s even worth it to fix. For example, the night up lighting is important for the look of the ship (the green, white, red look of the Italian flag) and those are easy to access and replace. The LEDs inside the structures or in the hull, I doubt if anyone besides me will notice.

Daniel, have you made any provision (or plan to do so) for access to the LEDs after the model is finished?
 
I know the LEDs have a very long life expectancy but they have been known to fail.
 
In my own very rudimentary lighting scheme I have (so far) tried to maintain access (the deckhouse roofs are not glued in, same for the nav lighting mounts) but it is becoming more difficult. I am not sure it is worth the hassle.

Thanks for the comments Harry - coamings is indeed the word I wasn't able to think of. To be honest I haven't really looked at the deck fittings yet so I yet to see how closely I stick to the instructions or not. Thanks also for the video - amazing how much it is able to heel over, even just for what appears to be a leisurely cruise around the harbour!

If you haven't already seen the PD videos, here's one for a cold winters' viewing....🙂
 
Pen Duick - Les Tonnerres de Brest et Temps Fête sur Douarnenez 2012 - Bing video
 
Unfortunately, the others I had as "Favorites" seem to have been removed.

Very nice work indeed!!
I think that the stuff around the Cockpit - "Coaming" - maybe?
(Are you planning on Rounded corners on this structure?)
 
Cheers....HOF.

Hello all, after completing the Derfflinger I decided that wasn’t torture enough; this begins the build log of the Flyhawk 1:700 HMS Hood with the deluxe detail set. 
 
First and foremost, I intend to adhere to the “recent“ findings that she was indeed finished with a grey anti-fouling paint job below the waterline, with this we can assume she most likely had a similar colour in 1941. For this, I will use XF 82, and 66 for the superstructure/upper hull. 


 
I have begun by attaching the hull, which seemed to go on quite nicely, I will have to do some priming to see if things need to be filled.


 
Next, starting with the deck detail (feeling like I’m in over my head here), slicing off small deck detail only to attach smaller photo etch parts! This will truly be a test of patience and I do look forward to it.
 

 
Does anyone think I can finish this by September? I hope I do, but now truly understanding the kit’s complexity - will be a grind.
 
 

If you haven't already seen the PD videos, here's one for a cold winters' viewing....🙂
 
Pen Duick - Les Tonnerres de Brest et Temps Fête sur Douarnenez 2012 - Bing video
 
Unfortunately, the others I had as "Favorites" seem to have been removed.

A bit more progress. I needed to take a slight detour and make the rudder so that I could confirm the positioning of the vertical stabilizer skin. Unlike many kits, the rudder has no internal framing.
 

 
And then the vertical stabilizer was skinned.
 

 
And that's it for the moment. Next up will be the wings' internal framing, but first I need to take a break and watch the Champions League final (I'm strictly a neutral for this match).

Thanks again for all the encouraging comments and the "likes".

Detailing the Diorama Scenes
The next task was to add the ballast to the rail tracks. I quickly discovered why most modellers will add the ballast before laying the tracks – it would have been much easier that way! Nevertheless, it didn’t prove to be too difficult. Once the ballast was down, I was able to start adding a secondary layer to the base, including the suggestion of some grass along the outer fence line. (The fence will be added in much later, but for the moment the holes for the fence posts are plugged with some scraps). The loading docks for the main building were also glued in place at this stage. In the picture below, one of the docks is being weighted down while the glue dries.
 

 
The next task was to create the Steam Box scene. In addition to the placement of the steam box, boiler and hand cart, I added a pile of sawdust that has been created from the blower under the saw table. As this is great fuel for the boiler furnace, a shovel can be seen in the saw dust pile. Several scraps of wood are also scattered about under the steam box.
 

 
It was then time to place some previously prepared castings around the Upper Yard shed. I struggled with this at first but eventually managed to refine my technique to get the castings embedded in the ground. Here is a series of shots from all four sides of the Upper Yard Shed.
 

 

 

 

 
The Saw Shed itself was enhanced by the addition of some freshly delivered lumber that has just been unloaded from the rail siding and stacked, ready for processing.
 

 
The back of the Saw Shed received a few castings, as well as a little shrubbery.
 

 
The opposite end of the Saw Shed received a few scraps of lumber off-cuts after processing in the shed.
 

 
In the above picture and the next, you can also see the beginnings of the entry road, which includes creating a crossing for the rail line. There is more work to be done on this.
 

 
The Derrick Dock will be the next to receive some detailing before the main buildings are placed and the details added around it. Still a long way to go, but I’m fairly happy with progress thus far.

Planking the deck of the Pen Duick continues…..

I have found that the key to making the cuts for the joggles is just to go very very slowly taking a small piece out at a time until you have removed the right amount of material. So far the mahogany king plank has been nice and co-operative with no wayward splits or shards breaking off. I did manage to scratch a couple of the planks near the bow with the point of the scalpel but I believe this will be able to be rectified when time comes to sand/scrape the deck once it has all been planked.
 
There is one thing that I am now doing differently compared to when I began. Initially I was marking the entire edge of each plank with the pencil to simulate the caulking prior to it being glued and fixed to the deck. However, it soon became apparent that this method led to a few dirty graphite fingerprints on the nice deck and so I quicky changed to only adding the pencil marks to the edges of the planks after they had been glued to the deck – ie immediately before the next plank was just about to be stuck down. Running a pencil along the edge of each plank just gives a very thin pencil line right on the top edge of the plank which is ideal for the appearance of the caulking. There is then far less graphite to smudge and make a mess with, especially if I have been a bit too enthusiastic with the amount of glue used.

 
So far I have only very roughly cut out the six deck slots near the stern into which the cockpit deck beams (not quite sure what those parts are actually called?) are fixed. I think it will be easier to get these to the required dimensions when that part of the cockpit framing is being installed.
 
A few more sessions should hopefully see the deck completed. 

Degausing cables completed.  Used .020 on one side and .025 on the other.  The .020 does not "fill" the full width of the PE simulation of the cables, while the .025 does.  The diameter of the .020 looks to be more scale-like.  The added stiffness of the .025 made for an easier attachment of the first cable in a run to the PE brass, but the subsequent "cables" are equally easy to apply.  Having the PE brass made a very useful guide for placement of the cables, and it looks a little like bracketing for the cables.
The lack of a "step-by-step" assembly manual means one is left to one's own devices on assembly sequence.  It's a Rubik's cube kind of thing, for me; as one is juggling how big to go on subassemblies before painting.  At the moment, I'm attaching all the smaller plastic pieces to the larger pieces and deferring to later for the PE details.  The hanger deck is like the first deck of a battleship, except that parts of the hull extend upwards in front of the internals of the hanger deck blocking a later painting; so these parts will have to be painted (along with internal sides of the hanger deck) before assembling the internals.  If this is done after painting, it means using CA glue and not plastic cement for attachment.  Also complicating things are roll-up doors that can be modeled open or closed.  If open, it will give a view to aircraft stowed on the hanger deck if one peers thru the doors.  Decisions, decisions.

U-505
 
A slight diversion…
 
I’ve been very interested in a future project to build a submarine kit – specifically WWII era Gato or UBoat of some sort…
 
I recently visited Chicago to attend a nephew’s graduation and was able to check off another bucket list item – visiting U-505 in the Science Museum.
 
It did not disappoint. 

For those not familiar with U 505, she was captured late in the war by a US Navy task force that was specially trained to board a U-boat after forcing it to the surface.  Dan Gallery was in command, and he wrote a very entertaining book about the effort that I read way back in middle school.  
 
The museum does a terrific job of presenting the story of her capture and highlighting the many contributions made by the combined team to pull it off.  However, they do leave out much that is interesting about U-505 and the overall operation that you can dig up with online searches.
 
A previous commander, for example, cracked under the tension of an extended depth charge barrage and pulled out a pistol and killed himself in front of the crew.
 
U-505 survived a low-level bombing and sailed across the Atlantic entirely on the surface and was probably the most damaged German submarine ever to return to port.
 
Most of the internal spaces had been gutted before the boat reached Chicago.  German companies donated most of the gauges, harnesses, etc., needed to restore the interior.

Dan Gallery himself was nearly court-martialed by Fleet Admiral Ernest King for his efforts.  King was angry that the sub was not scuttled after removing everything valuable. The key goal of the project was to capture the critical naval codes and Enigma equipment (along with useful manuals about torpedo technology, etc.) before the boat could sink.  An enterprising sailor managed to put the lid back on the main scuttle to prevent further flooding and the German crew otherwise neglected to arm explosive charges when they abandoned ship.  

The captured submarine was a dangerous liability… If another U-Boat spotted her being towed to a friendly port the jig would be up and the German navy may well have revamped all their codes and reconfigured the Enigmas – ruining a key advantage that the allies already had in place at that period of the war. 
 
Gallery managed to calm Admiral King down and issued a proclamation to his task force reminding them all to keep quiet or suffer severe consequences.  The captured U-Boat crew was sequestered and denied communication back to their homeland in violation of the Geneva convention.

Be sure to plan to visit this incredible artifact if you’re ever near Chicago.

 
Cheers,
Evan
 

Final photos
 
Thanks to all for following along, for all your helpful comments and facts, for your likes and in general all the fellowship we enjoy while sharing these little projects.
It's time now to close this one out and head off to another fun-filled adventure....the Vincent Black Shadow to be specific.