Piet

Isn't that where they branded cows in all the wild west movies? On the butt?

hello Ken......welcome....glad to have you look'in    the main decks {wood areas} are to be a teak color.  a lot of the models I've seen leaned more toward a yellowish tan.   I will like go a bit darker than that.  the wood decks {scale decks,  etc}  are on the yellowish side as well......not too many chose to darken them at all.  I didn't paint her up too much as I recall......painted things here and there and called it good.   I consider this a second chance for me.....Don't think I can do no worse     it'll be fun.........trust me 
 
now I wonder..........how many different brands of Arizona kits were out there when we were kids?  not many I'll bet   

hello bglithero........should be interesting {I hope}      your welcome to follow along.
 
I'm glad they will work OC,  'cuz when I ordered the PE,  I wasn't thinking about the railings.......all I got was the catapults and the cranes,  along with a few other bits.
 
I have a few pictures in the camera still,  of what I did yesterday afternoon........after I mowed my jungle.   to close off last week,  I puttied and sanded the hull bottom,  and did some trimming.   in the hoop-la,  the rudder popped off,  but didn't break the gungeons {luck smiled on me}.   so much for trapping it in it's place    I'll wait till I do the screw shafts,  to put it back on {why tempt fate}.

I think I need a new tube of putty......every time I go to use it,  I have to clear the nozzle {it's old stuff anyway}.  then I cleaned most of the flash from the structure parts..........here you can see what I mean about the assembly issue.

next,  was the cheerful task of drilling out all the port holes.  the ones on the recesses gave me issues.......I have an idea of how to resolve it.

I still have the other side to do.

there.......the rest of the pictures are here.   my tinkering the other day was to drill out the other side portholes.   once that was done........curiosity took over.  I picked a small section,  and commenced to chopping off the railings.   going along the hull edge,  I lightly scored along the railings,  doing this a couple of times.  when I felt I had gone deep enough,  I bent them and broke them off.   a couple of times,  the knife went off line and onto the hull..........oooooopps!  I rubbed the scratch with my finger nail,  and it seemed to disappear {I hope!}.  we'll see how it looks when it gets paint.



you might be able to see what I mean about the recesses....they are a mess     I think I'll try to cover them over with a plate of brass and redrill them........with not so many portholes perhaps.   round injection mold marks can be seen........I had to cut them off because they interfere with the deck.    with that done.............for the reason why I started the log 👉    the stern deck got cemented in place

there's a couple small gaps on the starboard side.........but there it is...my big major development.   I'd cement in place the fore deck section,  but there are a couple of raised doors on the bulkhead,  and I want to remove them,  installing the PE doors before I do.  might as well start right in with the PE     so here it is.........where I'm at at the moment.  it will likely be a little slow for now.......I have a couple of models to clear up first.  it will give me a bit more time to experiment......and if I come up with something......no matter how small.......I will be sure to post it     thanks for look'in in and the positive comments.

Denis, I'll follow along, too. I remember building this one way back when. Did a paint "mix" of blue grays for the decks. Not too good, way too blue.  I think I was 12 or so.

thanks OC........it's no longer there.........what a stupid place!
thanks John.......it won't be exact........but I think I can feel safe in saying that this will be probably one of the few Revell projects out there.   all I've been seeing is Trumpeter,  Banner,  Hobby Boss,  among other 1:350 kit builds.   ModelWarships has an extensive list of finished models.   earlier this evening,  I found another picture of her with the 5 inch guns closed in.........so I feel better about them look'in the way they do.   I'm probably wrong about being one of the few......but I'll be the first here.......and that's pretty cool.
 
anyway........at this point,  I was look'in into the blue paint issue.   I have some doubts about this,  as I really don't view this color being the latest camo color.   painting the turret tops 'bullseye' colors probably wasn't the best idea either.  a short time after Pearl Harbor,  they did away with that form of identification,  and adopted a more subtle approach.   I read somewhere,  that at one point,  the Navy got paint that didn't hold up..... fading,  cracking and peeling was the result.  fading and water reflection may have been a factor in the blue hue.   there was talk about Mediterranean blue.......sea blue,  and I compared it to Model Master Med Blue gray.......or light blue gray.   for an experiment,  I mixed Model Master Gunship Gray,  with Billing's Matt Aircraft Blue.....and came up with this


I can't really use this paint anyway.........the Billing's paint doesn't spray too well in my air brush.  I've decided though,  that I'll mix up a fresh batch using better paint,  going a bit grayer in color.......but not too dark.  with all the variations I've seen........is there really a wrong color?  the tops will be done in Ghost gray........I've got plenty of that   

The 1/350 railings dont look too bad at all - you could get away with those.
 
OC.

Looks like you've got your work cut out for you on this one...

the decks were soon dry fitted in place.   I see I'm gonna need to clamp the hull togther.

the railings are about 4 mm high.....

comparing a piece of 1:350 railing......I'm not too far off  

http://www.researcheratlarge.com/Ships/BB39/BOGP/
here I found some early plans on the Arizona.   not that I plan to detail below deck,  but they give me insight where doors and hatches are located.

the two smaller AA guns were eliminated very late in her lifetime....likely removed at Puget Sound,  her last major refit.   the small structure I spoke of earlier is nestled between the two structures that support the third level decking.........just a simple square.

the bow....

....and the stern.  I have hatches to cover the stairwells in the main deck.   not sure about the booms.........I will have to look.

Love the position of the logo  - obviously want everyone to see it.
 
OC.

Looks like a real challenge, Popeye!  I'll be interested to see how you go.
 
John

the armor isn't that thick really...........some areas I'm going to be removing anyway.   I have a couple tutorials that I'm going to follow.......one of them is the Trumpeter kit,  and it shows the PE very well.   that will be a huge help     for the hull,  I'm not going to do too much.......I did some of it recently.
    that's what sparked me to start the log.
 
anywaay.........what else.   I've been pick'in at it for the last couple of weeks.......as mentioned,  seeing what I can alter or add.   I've done some edge trimming........I'm sure everyone has trimmed the slight flash lip along these edges,  to sharpen them up.    I wanted to see how tall the railings were from the deck.  I was in the process of finding add ons for her.    a suggestion led me to Tom's Modelworks.   the hull was cemented together.

or course,  I trapped the rudder in it's place,  so it would be movable.   either I get a rudder that flaps around freely and loose........or I get one that sticks.........I had to get the latter.  I had to clear around it so it would move better.   then of course,  the hull was warped........I cemented the bow and stern to line it up,  and then glued the center as I taped it together.   I still ended up with a bit of a gap.

inside the hull,  I took pieces of sprue and bridged the halves together.

your gonna love where they etched the logo..........

What would help a lot visualy would be to do the same as I did - scrape and thin down the thickness of the plastic where the armour shields are around gun placements on the deck areas (on the insides),  I did this on my warspite and it worked quite well.
 
And for armour plates on the hull  - I still sware by thin paper cut into narrow strips and stuck down with pva,  it worked ok on mine as long as the primer seals them in.
 
Just a few ideas for you denis.
 
OC.

thanks OC and those who hit the like button   welcome.........your hopefully going to enjoy what I'm gonna do to this kit     icky mae.....   I just went through some technical difficulties........I just got back on.   dunno what happened?!?!?!?!   
 
we start off with the usual kit contents........this won't take very long    as mentioned,  the kit was produced in 1959........the molds haven't seen any tooling,  since there is a good amount of flash.   the edges and corners are not that crisp either,  so some attention will be paid to that.  when I bought the kit,  I thought that the kit may have been retooled....I was wrong.   the box art remained the same throughout it entire release.......here is the box art fresh out off the starting line.

they put out another scale as well.....1:720,  back in 1969.   a second box update occurred in 2009..........here is the latest one that stole my heart 💘

not too much of a change.......no blueprint seal of approval and they moved the logo.   still inaccurate stuff here......they show a single fixed wing plane,  but in the box,  they supply biplanes.   likely the art.......nothing more.  opening the box.......we see good 'ole gray   

the hull halves have the molded railings.........they will be coming off.   drill out the port holes........maybe the hawse holes for the paravanes as well.

the model measures 17 inches long,  so it's a fairly decent size model.   next are the main deck parts.  paravanes are molded to the #2 barbette top, located on the second level deck.   wish I could do something about them.   I could try and replace them with some from a 1:350 scale kit,  but I think they would be too big scale wise.   I might not be able to get them off intact.   the ten 5" guns that are encased in the superstructure are somewhat inaccurate......not much I can do about it,  so they will have to be as they are.   in quite a few pictures I've seen,  these openings are supposed to look like a pill box,  with the gun sticking out of them.   I believe Trumpeter molded them in this fashion.

...then the superstructure parts........again......molded railings.  I've seen other kits with PE railings,  and I like how they look.   I need to remove flash and pin marks as well.  there is one small structure that is not present on the second level deck {pictures above}.......it locates between the two standing structures on the deck......I will try to add it.   I haven't looked to see how visible it is.....I'll get into that later.   the sea planes are here too....... on the box,  it states that they are Vought O2U biplanes.   I haven't read anything to clarify this........unless they are referring to the SO3C Seamew,  but they were short lived because they were too slow.  the first plane to leave her deck,  was a Nieuport 28C fighter,  back in 1920........she only had one catapult back then........the second catapult added at Norfork, 1933.   this varies because the catapult atop turret #3  had never been fully installed.  

then,  the armament sprue............the single stack in here as well.

the ship's boats and fighting tops {slices} are on the next sprue.   this is another example of the assembly issue.........when they are put together,  you may see what I mean {if I don't figure out something first  

oh dear........much more to cover........and the admiral wants supper.   grill time for me     well.....not much more to show,  except a decal sheet that I will need to add decals for the planes {they are lacking}.....and of course,  the instructions.

here are the cranes and mast parts....as well as the big guns.  the catapults were on the first sprue,  I think.   I have PE for them......the cranes,  and some other detail.   what I see she needs,  I will add from the Hood PE.    should be a hoot!   

no insignias - early American Navy.    I've also been taking notes....... 

OK......well supper time beckons.   there is more.........I will be back in a jiffy   
 
 

Bring it on mate  - im in.
 
OC.

I've been milling over this model long enough........now I went and done it!  assembly has begun.   actually,  it started a couple of weeks ago,  but I was try to get an idea of what I could do,  in dressing her up.   I bought the kit a month or so ago............I remember building this kit in my younger days.  I thought it had a wonky way of assembly back then....and I still think so today    research on this model has been tough.......this particular model ranks lower than the Trumpeter 1:200 kit {and even that is subject to debate}......there are some 1:350 scale kits out there that rank even higher.   info on this kit lacks as well..........after market just scratches the surface with gun barrels and bare bone PE.  I call it that because there are some aspects that are not included in the PE kit.  at first,  I was all set to do a poor review on this kit........but now that I've had a chance to delve into it,  there is a silver lining.   for another model that I'm building,  I purchased the PE set for the HMS Hood,  and some of it can be used on this kit {even though it's a 1:350 set}.   I ordered the PE set for the catapults and cranes.......but I didn't take into consideration that there were no railings in the kit {the price should have given it away}.   after some measuring and comparison.......I can use the hood set for them as well.  the two glaring downsides to this model,  lies in how it assembles,  and how few parts there are in this kit.  this kit has only 133 parts,  compared to the Trumpeter kit,  which has over 1,048 parts.  this doesn't even include the PE or add ons you may want to include.   don't bother looking for a wooden deck for the Revell kit,  because there isn't one.   I can't fathom that.........a kit that's been around since 1959,  and no one has developed a wooden deck for it!   a lot of detail is molded....the railings, various deck fittings,  and anchor chain,  are just to name a few.   but,  with a little imagination,  these issues can be modified and corrected.   how the superstructures are assembled is another stumbling block........the mating joints run through the portholes,  meaning part of the structure walls,  are on both parts of the deck levels.   this will make it harder to add doors and porthole enhancements.   it has been a long time since I've done modifications to a plastic kit......but we'll give it a go.   there are no logs here on MSW.......and there are scant logs anywhere else.   it's my pleasure to be the first  
 
it sounds like i'm being hard on this kit........but don't let it throw ya.   I enjoy an old kit 🔨⛏️⚒️

I tried the steam iron on a few scraps of the same wood that I used for planking the hull. It is about 5 X 1.5 mm. I tried edge banding with the iron dry at first an it did OK. With some effort I was able to get a fair edge bend without the wood cracking but it was a close call. I next turned on the steam and was able to get much better results but I had to hold the plank much longer for it to cool off and hold it's curve. I then used a damp cloth over the wood and got the best results. I again had to hold the plank in position until it cooled for it to hold shape but I was able to form an extreme edge bend over a mandrel former without the wood cracking. I compared the bend with the last planks I laid before I gave up and went to the alternative direction and i could have easily finished the hull using the proper planking method if I had used this method to form the lower planks. It was able to make these bends without burning the wood or tapering the plank as it would have been if it had been the real plank. 

Thanks Orlin
On this model painting is a requirement rather than an option as there is so little known about the Providence that almost 50% of the authenticity that makes her THE "Providence" is the colors. Thankfully I won't have to copper the hull. One researcher suggested that the reason she was so fast was that she had a copper bottom but I pretty much discounted it as there is virtually no supporting evidence.
 
Works for me John. Mosquito's bite A LOT more people than Grizzlies do! Besides we don't have Grizzlies here in the PNW. At least none that anyone has found. But then they can't find the Sasquatch either.
 
There won't be a second planking below the wales. Above the wales is a plywood piece that will have to wait until the deck is planked, and it will be planked both inside and out.   

Lou,
 
You are good to go, looks great second layer will fall into place. Looks like very little filler. On my first planked model I used so much filler it was bow heavy and had a 30 degree list to starboard.
 
Kudos nothing wrong with the planking, she has eye appeal very pleasing lines. Kudos
 
Mosquitos are attracted by perspiration, after shave and perfume. I am a sweat hog, people want me in their area and see me as the human bug zapper (misnomer) I am the one getting zapped. This morning I retrieved the paper 20 foot walk from the front door returned and lathered on the hydrocortisone cream got hit approx. 15 zaps. I'll keep skeeters you can have grizzlies.

Just seen your planking posts.   If you intend to paint the hull you have no problems.
If I am planking a "problem" hull I really concentrate on tapering the planks
above the waterline and then apply coppering or lots of white stuff below.
Not a masterpiece finish but it works for me and,  most period hulls had
underwater protection applied.
Keep up the good work.
 
Orlin

I know what you mean Sam.
 
The first time I took my wife back packing there really was very little in the way of "Ultra light" gear. After I packed up the gear I needed for the two of us for two days my pack weighed over 70 pounds! While I was much younger than I am now I had not carried that kind of weight since I was in basic training in the Army! I made it but my legs were shot, and my shoulders were almost raw. A mosquito could have landed on the pack and I would have collapsed from the extra weight. I took the pack off and for the next hour I felt like I was walking on the moon! With the gear I have now days I can do the same thing and my pack is not even 30 pounds at the trail head!
 
I will try and get time to try out the iron as an edge plank bender, possibly Sunday, I'm booked up tomorrow with an event, followed by a bunch of honey-do's. Monday at the latest. 

Lou, keep us posted on your steam iron idea. What mark was referring to is called Kerf Cutting.
 
All this talk of mosquitoes reminds me of a back packing trip in the Tetons a bunch of years ago. They were so thick they drove us out. Well that and the multiple snow fields we had to cross to get over the crest and we had no snow axes for arrest if we fell. One of the transverses was across a hill on a 60º or so slope and 2-300 yards across on a very narrow path. It was a very long slide ending in a small pond surrounded by snow. The next morning when we went to head back instead of risking it I discovered the mosquitoes had got me all across my shoulders where the straps sat. Two days of torture.
Sam

Hi Mark
I have used that method in stuff where I wanted to create a radius for a cabin wall or stuff like that. Works pretty well on plastic also.
 
My tighter bends in the wood strips, were not the edge bending needed at the bow, but were at the stern, where the wood needed to bend very quickly to meet the counter. On those bends I used an old pencil style 25W soldering iron and the bends were very easy to achieve. The only problem was that I had to move the iron fast or it would scorch the wood. This happened a couple of times anyway but some scraping with a thin blade took it off.
 
I tried the iron on the last couple of planks that needed edge bending on the bow but it twas too hard to control. I may have been able to use a hair curler like some people say they use, or possibly the Model Expo plank bender with the larger head but I don't own either so I finally chose the alternative method saving that particular battle for later.
 
Later, after switching to the alternative planking method, I though about a small portable steam iron I own and that it may make a very effective edge bending tool. It's of course flat, produces steam, and the heat is adjustable. I may just give it a try on an extra plank just for future reference.

Not to my knowledge, but I'm not an entomologist. We do have our fair share of crawly, bittie, itchy, stingy critters so there is a possibility that one of them is red. 

Lou,
An old trick on tight bends with thicker wood... lightly cut some dados (I think that's the right word) into the wood strips.  The closer the cuts, the tighter you can bend it but you'll still need to soak and/or apply heat. You'll have to play a bit to find out the depth of the cut also. 
 
The plank benders some places sell don't cut the wood, they crush it so it really doesn't work as well.

Are there red bugs out west? Here in Florida, if you lay down in the woods near any pine straw, you will get a case of itchy red bugs that will drive you nuts, scratching and scratching. Man, those things are WAY worse than mosquitoes.