Piet

Thank you kevin,  very kind words.
 
OC.

really nice work OC, i have been fairly quiet on the forums, but still here watching the progress

Thank you so much,  its getting there - bit by bit.
 
OC/

Piet,
Yes both BJB and Silpak have some great stuff. I happen to prefer BJB as their technical help is superior in my opinion. Cant wait to see how you handle the white froth.
For the record those tints will break down in polyester without affecting cure. I had to know.
 
Sam

holy cow Piet........the sea came out looking great!   and you even managed to paint the deck a darker color.........my good man,   I am impressed!     check your gun barrels though......a couple of them looked a bit tweaked.   awaiting to see the white froth and water details.   congratz piet.......it worked very nicely!

Thank you Carl for the input and yes, that's one of my tests I'll be doing. I bought some lighter blue acrylic artist paint and white at HobbyLobby.  Have had no time to devote on the trials, maybe tomorrow.
 
Good to see you here Sam and also my thanks for your input and generous offer.  I visited the website you provided the URL to, impressive stuff.  Kinda late in the game at this point though for the sea.  Now I wish I had known the existence of the BJB store but I have it bookmarked.  In addition to the acrylic paints I also bought a special white "stuff" for sea foam accents. Perhaps the same as acrylic white but hey, at this point I'll try anything that may give me the desired results.  Thanks for the complement in the sea Sam and yes, as already mentioned before in this log, it's also my first time using polyester.  So far I'm quite happy with the way it came out, just a tad too dark but then again with the tropical sun out in the early afternoon hours seawater does tend to be rather dark when looking down on it.  I'll keep you in mind for my next diorama, that 1:3000 scale Young America, maybe 2 table spoons for the sea
BTW, I peeked at your Enterprise build, impressive work Sam and blessings with your wedding.
 
I did manage to make a new antenna assembly and installed it to "Java" this afternoon.  Tomorrow I'll do some paint touch-ups on the hull where some of the poly sea stuff found its way to.  After that I'll start with the testing of the waves.
 
Cheers,
 

Great looking sail Nils!
 
Cheers,

Beautiful work Doris.
 
Cheers,

Those ratlines look magnificent JesseLee, masterfully done.
 
Cheers,

Yep, I begin to see it Patrick, she'll be a beauty!
 
 

Great looking sail Nils!
 
Cheers,

Looking really nice OC.
 
Cheers,

Hello everyone,
 
Let's start with the specs of this ship, followed by her overall history and the final few days in the campaign.  I'll also attach a photo of the captain. There is semi comical story attached to my father's association with Captain van Straelen. I hope to share it with at the right moment.  Ah yes, memories.
Class overview
Name:
Java class
Builders:
Koninklijke Maatschappij de Schelde, Flushing - Java
Nederlandse Scheepsbouw Maatschappij, Amsterdam - Sumatra
Wilton-Fijenoord, Schiedam (cancelled) - Celebus
Operators:
 Royal Netherlands Navy
Preceded by:
Holland class
Succeeded by:
De Ruyter
Planned:
3
Completed:
2
Lost:
2
General characteristics
Type:
Light cruiser
Displacement:
6670 tons standard
8087 tons full load
Length:
155.3 m (509 ft 6 in)
Beam:
16 m (52 ft 6 in)
Draught:
6.22 m (20 ft 5 in)
Propulsion:
3 Parsons geared steam turbines
8 Schultz-Thornycroft boilers
3 shafts
73,000 shp (54,000 kW)
Speed:
31 knots
Range:
4,340 nmi (8,040 km; 4,990 mi) at 11 or 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement:
526
Armament:
10 × Bofors 150 mm guns
8 (Java) or 6 (Sumatra) x Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns
8 × Browning .50 machine guns
Armour:
7.5 cm (3.0 in) belt
2,5 to 5 cm (2.0 in) deck
12.5 cm (4.9 in) conning tower
10 cm (3.9 in) shields
Aircraft carried:
2 Fokker C.XI-W floatplanes
All float planes were left ashore because admiral Doorman was afraid of the volatile aviation fuel during battle conditions.
In 1937, Java was modernized at the Naval Dockyard in Den Helder, Holland. The modifications include adding an AA-battery of 4 double Bofors 40 mm-guns, replacing the fire control system with a new Hazemeyer set and shortening the masts.
Java could also carry 10-12 ASW depth charges, 36 mines, split – with one third below deck in the ammo compartment and the rest on the aft deck on narrow tracks. She had one smoke machine and no torpedoes.
May 31 1916
Hr Ms. Java is laid down at Koninklijke Mij "De Schelde", Vlissingen [Piet's note: this was also the date of the Battle at Jutland]
August 9 1921
Java is launched [Piet's note: already obsolete]
May 1 1925
Java is completed after countless delays, such as strikes by the dockyardworkers, shortages of materials and modifications to the original design.
December 4 1928
Fleet revue at Yokohama to celebrate the coronation of Japan's emperor.
May 20 1937
Fleetrevue at Spithead
1937
The Java is modernized at the Naval Dockyard in Den Helder, Holland. The modifications include adding an AA-battery of 4 double Bofors 40 mm-guns, replacing the fire control system with a new Hazemeyer set and shortening the masts.
January 3 1938
Java is commissioned with her new "look". She was sent to Gibraltar Strait to escort Dutch ships shortly after.
May 4 1938
Java leaves for the Dutch Indies via Suez.
April 1940
The cruisers Java and De Ruyter, the supplyship Zuiderkruis and two divisions of submarines are on stand-by in the Java sea after rumours about a Japanese fleetconcentration near Formosa.
April 27 1940
Commander, later Captain, Ph.B.M. van Straelen assumes command.
May 10 1940
Germany attacks Holland in the early morning. This means for the the NEI, that all German merchant ships were to be captured as soon as possible. A boarding party of the Java succesfully captures the Hapag-freighters Bitterfeld (7659 gt), Wuppertal (6737 gt) and Rheinland (6622 gt) in Padang.
January 18 1941
The Java makes here first convoy trip from the Ajoe archipelago with the merchants Brastagi ( 9247 tons gross weight), Kota Nopan (7332 gross tons ) , Kota Baroe (7281 gt) and Kota Tjandi (7295 gt). The convoy was dissolved on January 23 in position 03.00 South, 161.25 East.[Piet's note: Adjudant Petrus W. van Warmerdam became part of the crew on the first of this month]
March 1941
A refit is hastily broken off after the news the panzerschiff Admiral Scheer was operating in the Indian Ocean. Despite search efforts by both ships and aircraft, nothing was found.
April 23 1941
Java leaves Suva with two merchants, bound for Brisbane, Australia
July 1941
Java makes rendez-vous in Torres Strait with the passengership Jagersfontein (10083 gt), which has a contingent of American aviators on board, which later become known as the famous "Flying Tigers". She escorts the ship to Java.
November 1941
The Java is on escort duty between Suva and Soerabaja.
December 8 1941
The Netherlands declares war on Japan after the attack on the American base Pearl Harbor. The Java was at this time enroute to Singapore where she was to operate under command of the British Admiral Layton. The Java is part of most convoys bound for Singapore until early February, but also makes a trip to the Cocos Islands to find out if it was still free of Japanese troops.
December 12 1941
Java departs Singapore to rendez-vous with convoy SM 1 (3 British, 1 Greek and 2 American ships). She escorts it from December 13 to December 15, together with the Dutch destroyer Evertsen, the Australian armed merchant cruiser Kanimbla, and the British destroyers HMS Encounter, Stronghold and Tenedos
December 31 1941
The Java is part of the escort for convoy BM 9B, but has to break off because of propellor damage.
January 18 1942
The cruiser Java and the destroyers Evertsen and Van Nes make rendez-vous with convoy MS-2, which consisted of the large liner Aquitania with HMAS Canberra as ocean escort. This ship has about 3500 men aboard bound for Singapore. The convoy arrives in Ratai Bay on Sumatra where the troops transfer to six smaller Dutch KPM-steamers and one small British ship. This convoy then leaves for Singapore (now designated MS 2A) where it arrives safely on January 24. The Java is also part of this convoy.
January 26 1942
A report came in about a Japanese concentration of ships off western Borneo, near the Api passage. Admiral Helfrich orders the cruisers Java and Tromp with destroyers Banckert and Piet Hein to intercept and destroy this convoy. Later reports show the "convoy" consists of one freighter and numerous very small vessels, after which the Dutch ships retreat.
January 31 1942
Java joins the the escort for convoy DM 2, which arrives in Singapore on February 5. Java had already detached itself on February 4 due to fuel shortage. She becomes part of the Combined Striking Force on February 3, probably.
February 13 1942
Java joins the Eastern Striking Force (cruisers De Ruyter and Tromp under Rear-Admiral Doorman) in the afternoon while it passed through Sunda Strait. This force is enroute to intercept a Japanese convoy bound for the important port Palembang on North-Sumatra. Doorman decides to wait for destroyers to assist him and he plots a course for Oosthaven on Sumatra. On arrival, the heavy cruiser HMS Exeter and the light cruiser HMAS Hobart join him. The destroyers arrive the next day.
February 14 1942
The fleet leaves Oosthaven in the afternoon for the Gaspar Straits with the following strength: cruisers De Ruyter, Tromp, Java, HMS Exeter and HMAS Hobart along with the Dutch destroyers Van Ghent, Kortenaer, Piet Hein and Banckert and the American Barker, Stewart, Bulmer, John D. Edwards, Pillsbury and Parrott. The ships head for an area notorious for navigational hazards.
February 15 1942
At about 0430 hours in the morning, the destroyer Van Ghent hits the Bamidjo reef in Stolze Strait. Doorman had ordered a relatively dangerous formation with the four Dutch destroyers steaming alongside eachother. Banckert and the American destroyers could barely miss the reef. After leaving Stolze Strait at about 0800 hours, the fleet sets a western course about 45 minutes later. Unfortunately, they are spotted by a Japanese plane at 0920 hours (a catapultplane from the Japanese heavy cruiser Chokai) and a few hours later, the first aircraft attack. It were seven "Kate"-torpedobombers from the carrier Ryujo, this time not armed with torpedoes but with bombs. None of the ships was hit. They were later reinforced by numerous other aircraft, but no ships sustain "real" damage, although the Barker and Bulmer are pretty beaten up. [Piet's note: My father told us about this attack where the captain looked up with his binoculars and when he saw the bombs released he ordered a change of course. I will post a picture of the Java under attack, taken by the Hobart]
February 16 1942
The Striking force enters Tandjong Priok ( Batavia ) at 0830 except for the Java and destroyers, which have a smaller oil capacity. These ships refuel in Ratai Bay on Sumatra from the Dutch tanker Tan 1. Doorman leaves in the night for Tjilatjap.
February 17 1942
Arrival in Tjilatjap
February 18 1942
Departure from Tjiltjap in the evening for an attack on the Bali landingforces. She's accompanied by the cruiser Java and the destroyers Kortenaer, Piet Hein, Ford en Pope. The first ships leave the harbor safely, but Kortenaer is not so fortunate. She stranded on a sandbar and has to wait for the tide. A second force leaves Soerabaja later this day.
February 19 1942
Nightaction off Bali. Read more about the Battle of Badungstrait here. The Java was hit by one 4.7-inch shell during this engagement, which wounded two men and did some minor damage.
February 20 1942
Arrival in Soerabaja
February 25 1942
The Striking force (De Ruyter, Java, Houston and 7 destroyers) goes to sea in the evening to make a sweep off the Madoera coast. No ships are sighted, the ships arrive in Soerabaja on the 26th.
February 26 1942
Nightsweep in the Java sea with the Striking Force. The ships are attacked by aircraft at 0900 in the morning of the 27th and Jupiter is missed by light bombs, but didn't sustain any damage. Arrival in Soerabaja on the 27th. [Piet's note: In the morning of the 27th my father came home to say goodby.  That was the last time I saw him.]
February 27 1942
Doorman leaves port in the evening of the 27th to intercept several convoys heading for Java. Unfortunately, he was spotted and engaged by the Japanese covering force, consisting of 2 heavy cruisers (Nachi and Haguro), 2 light cruisers and 14 destroyers. The effectiveness of the CSF was hampered by difficulties in communication. In addition, the Japanese had a 2 to 1 advantage in 8"-guns. The Java was hit by a Japanese "Long Lance" torpedo from the Nachi at about 23.32 hours near the aft ammunitionstack, which exploded. The AA-deck with the 40 mm-guns caught fire and the stern broke off near the longroom, causing flooding in the aft engineroom and a heavy list to port. All electrical equipment shut down and the only thing the crew could do, was to abandon ship as soon as possible. No boats could be lowered without electricity, so all possible livesavers were thrown overboard, such as rafts, bamboosticks etc. The Java sank in about fifteen minutes, taking 512 crewmembers (including Captain Ph.B.M. van Straelen) with her. She sank in position 06.00 S, 112.05 E.
December 1, 2002
A diver expedition on board the motor vessel Empress which initially set out to find HMS Exeter, find the wrecks of the light cruisers Java and De Ruyter. The wreck of Java lies at a depth of 69 metres on her starboard side.
 
APPENDIX II
CONTACT REPORTS BEFORE AND DURING THE BATTLE OF JAVA SEA
(Times are -7½)
FEBRUARY 26th:
1.
1150:
30 transports, 2 cruisers, 4 destroyers. Position: lat. 04°50' S., long. 114°20' E. (near Arends Islands), course 245°, speed 10 knots. (This was sent to Admiral Doorman at 1250.)
2.
1440:
2 Isuzu class cruisers, 2 destroyers. Position: lat. 06°25' S., long. 117°13' E., course 315°, speed 10-20 knots. (Admiral Helfrich sent this report to Admiral Doorman at 1445.)
3.
1700:
Dutch reconnaissance plane attacked by 2 cruiser catapult planes at lat. 06°05' S., long. 113°15' E., and lat. 05°40' S., long. 113°05' E. (Plane reports upon return at 1900; report forwarded to Admiral Doorman at once.)
4.
1830:
U. S. Army bombers bomb Japanese convoy, course unknown. Position: lat. 05°30' S., long. 113°00' E. (northeast of Bawean). (This report was received at Soerabaja at 2220, after which it was forwarded to Admiral Doorman, who complained of the delay of 6-8 hours in forwarding of reports.)
FEBRUARY 27th:
5.
0255:
Admiral Doorman received the following amplification of No.4: Convoy lat. 05°30' S., 113°00' E., 18 or more ships, 1 possible aircraft carrier or battleship. Six fighter planes protecting convoy reported by Dutch Navy plane at 1440/26.
6.
0510:
Report of Dutch reconnaissance plane after landing broadcast to all Allied warships.
 
(a)
2030/26 1 heavy transport, lat. 05°20' S., long. 113°38' E.
 
(b)
2230/26 2 destroyers, lat. 05°12' S., long. 112°20' E.
 
(c)
0005/27 2 transports, lat. 05°28' S., long. 112°24' E.
 
(d)
0020/27 1 transport, lat. 05°42' S., long. 113°00' E.
--87--
7.(a)
1340:
20 ships, unknown number of destroyers. position: lat. 04°45' S., long. 112°15' E., course 180°.
   (b)
1345:
One cruiser. Position: lat. 04°04' 5., long. 111°07' E., course 220°.
   (c)
1350:
Great fleet with 2 cruisers, 6 destroyers, 25 transports. Position: 20 miles west of Bawean, course south (Cf. report No. 10). (These reports sent to Admiral Doorman at 1445 and (c) causes him to go out for Battle of Java Sea.)
8.
1555:
3 cruisers, 5 transports. Position: lat. 06°50' S.,77 long. 112°10' E., course 190°. (This report was sent to Admiral Doorman at once.)
9.(a)
1630:
5 large ships, several small. Position: lat. 06°20' 5., long. 115° 30' E., course 315° (bombed by Allied planes).
   (b)
1757:
35 ships, including 1 cruiser, 4 destroyers. Position: lat. 05°I0' S., long. 111°35' E., course 170°. (These reports forwarded to Admiral Doorman at 1805.)
 
1830:
Admiral Doorman reports that the enemy is retreating and asks position of the convoy.
10.
1700:
45 transports, 3 cruisers, 12 destroyers. Position: 20 miles west of Bawean (Cf. report No. 7c). Bombed by U. S. Army bombers. (This news received unofficially at Soerabaja at 1930 and relayed to Admiral Doorman. Official report not received at Soerabaja till 2125.)
 
1850:
U. S. PBY-5 (PatWing 10) leaves Soerabaja to shadow enemy convoy.
11.
1955:
3 cruisers and 8 destroyers. Position: 30 miles southwest of Bawean, course north. (Seen by American PBY. Pilot believes this is our striking force and sends no report.)
12.
2235:
28 ships in two groups of 16 and 12, 1 cruiser, 1 destroyer, courses 300° and 330°. Position: lat. 06°07' S., long. 112°05' E. (This report was received at Soerabaja at 2352 and forwarded to Admiral Doorman. The De Ruyter almost certainly sank before he received it.)
 
2300:
Dutch Catalina Y-67 takes off. Its pilot received with his instructions a list of the above contacts and two not listed above:
13.
1800-0227:
4 cruisers and 4 destroyers. Position: lat. 05°40' S., long. 111°35' E.
14.
2100-0227:
9 destroyers: Position: lat. 06°20' 5., long. 111°50' E. (These were at the time thought to be our own, but this seems unlikely.)
--88--
 
FEBRUARY 28th:
15.
0130:
2 cruisers, 4 destroyers about 25 miles distant from the convoy on course toward it. (U. S. PBY pilot at first believed this was our striking force and did not report the contact till 0150.)
 
0212:
U.S. PBY-5 turns back to Soerabaja.
16.
0200:
Convoy position: lat. 05°40' S., long. 111°40' E.78
17.
0335:
Report forwarded from Soerabaja (a composite of the reports of PBY-5 and Y-67): Convoy of 39 transports in two columns 1,500 yards apart, course north, speed 10. Three destroyers in column right flank, 1 cruiser and 2 destroyers in column left flank. Two cruisers and 6 destroyers moving toward convoy at high speed. Position as of 0212, lat. 05°56' S., long. 112°46' E.
18.
1430:
Convoy position: lat. 05°55' S., long. 112°05' E. (Report of Dutch Y-60.)
19.
1552:
Convoy 60 ships. Position: lat. 06°15' 5., long. 112°15' E., course 90°, speed 10. (Report of Dutch Y-60.)
--89--
Table of Contents * Previous Chapter (Appendix 1)
Footnotes
78 This longitude may be an error for 112°40' E. Cf. report No.17. (Report of Dutch Y-60.)
Last updated: June 14, 2002
Transcribed and formatted by Jerry Holden for the HyperWar Foundation
 
Ktz. P.B.M. van Straelen, commander of HR. Ms. Java before and during the Java Sea campaign.

When the fleet arrived in Soerabaja the evening of February 26 my father got permission to go home in the morning of the 27th for a goodby. That was the last time I saw him. That image is still engraved in my mind - he was dressed in his his dress uniform, with his saber strapped to his side as well as a side arm. As he walked out of the house to catch the steam tram back to the harbor he took me aside and we had a man to man talk. He knew that he was not coming back, the odds were just too great. He ordered me to never divulge anything of our conversation to my mother and sister.
 
Please folks, don't feel sorry, this is part of life. The good thing is that it formed my own character to what I have become and for that I am very grateful.
 
Cheers,

Thank you Carl for the input and yes, that's one of my tests I'll be doing. I bought some lighter blue acrylic artist paint and white at HobbyLobby.  Have had no time to devote on the trials, maybe tomorrow.
 
Good to see you here Sam and also my thanks for your input and generous offer.  I visited the website you provided the URL to, impressive stuff.  Kinda late in the game at this point though for the sea.  Now I wish I had known the existence of the BJB store but I have it bookmarked.  In addition to the acrylic paints I also bought a special white "stuff" for sea foam accents. Perhaps the same as acrylic white but hey, at this point I'll try anything that may give me the desired results.  Thanks for the complement in the sea Sam and yes, as already mentioned before in this log, it's also my first time using polyester.  So far I'm quite happy with the way it came out, just a tad too dark but then again with the tropical sun out in the early afternoon hours seawater does tend to be rather dark when looking down on it.  I'll keep you in mind for my next diorama, that 1:3000 scale Young America, maybe 2 table spoons for the sea
BTW, I peeked at your Enterprise build, impressive work Sam and blessings with your wedding.
 
I did manage to make a new antenna assembly and installed it to "Java" this afternoon.  Tomorrow I'll do some paint touch-ups on the hull where some of the poly sea stuff found its way to.  After that I'll start with the testing of the waves.
 
Cheers,
 

Thank you everyone for your very kind words, its very much appreciated. 
I would have liked the "sea" a little lighter blue but it is what it is.  It's primarily due to the cobalt blue under-painting.  I purposely didn't mix a lot of blue coloring in the first layer of the "sea" to keep it more transparent. The second and final layer was just slightly darker and is hiding the lower hull quite well.
 
Yes, Jan, your admonition is well taken, because at a 16 mile per hour wind there is not much of a chop, plus the fact that at this scale wave height is hardly measurable.  Let's say that we have 2 feet waves that calculates out to 1.7 mm and with 3 feet waves it shows at a but over 3 mm.  So, if I can muster it, I'll try to give the "sea" just a little more life with some random placed waves. 
 
I think that the froth action around the model will draw the attention more then waves. How to achieve that is also a concern.  The stuff I bought for that purpose is clear end the blue "sea" will certainly shine through it, which I don't want.  Frothy water is opaque and whitish looking.  I'll have to experiment with how to achieve that.  Perhaps tinting the "sea" in those areas white with an acrylic white wash that may give me the desired effect. 
 
Well, this morning I took the time to cement "Java" into the "sea."  I then mixed some more blue tinted polyester and poured it into the gaps around the ship to fill it up.  In doing this I inadvertently hit the port side antenna wires that broke off from the aft mast.  So, I'll have to make a new one.  I also put some of the blue poly on the lower part of the hull but that can be painted over. Fortunately there is a lot of frothy sea action there anyhow.  
Right now all this new poly is curing and I'll have to wait adding the wave making poly.  First though I have buy some acrylic paints for just in case and fix the antenna.
I'll wait with taking pictures after I have modeled the bow wave and some of the frothy stuff, oh yeah, testing first.  No sense in making more pics, nothing has changed that's different, so I better safe some pixels 
 
Cheers,
 

Oh, I understand Lou. We did the same with a few others on the forum - I remember Sjors we did it to, more pictures Sjors.
I finally managed to copy the pics I send via e-mail to myself to my desktop. My cellphone also managed to upload the pics to DropBox, which took a lot of time. In any case, I have all the pics now and just need to transfer them to my "Java" folder.
 
Here is the test piece I made that made me decide to go ahead and pour the sea.  The surface became automatically rough without any help on my part.  The only problem I found is that it climbs up on the verticals.  This should not be a problem with the actual pour because I'll have the model wrapped in cling film.


A closeup of the stern during the second pour. The surface was still as smooth as glass when wet, the cling wrap is reflected in it. This caused me some concern with the process of making waves but it worked out okay as you'll see when it's cured.
 

Bow view during the second pour, here you can really see how shiny and smooth the whet surface is. Oh yeah, I had to constantly pull the cling wrap up and out of the poly.
 

Here we see the cured sea and the development of surface roughness. I did scrape the indications for the bow wave into it.
 

I took the diorama outside in the shade to let the defused light shine through the poly, I'm rather pleased with the effect even though the sea appears a little dark.But I hope to dress it up with the added waves in lighter colors and some white.
 

This shows the sea after the cure with the "Java" pulled out. It almost look like the side scan of the sea floor after the salvagers lifted her out.
 

Here I placed "Java" back into the hole. The tapes on the sides are markers where I have to remove some of the sea alongside the hull.  Photos of "java" at full speed show a long dip around the midsection of the hull and somewhat higher at the stern with somewhat of a rooster tail from the propellers.. A bonus is that the poly raised slightly above the sides.

Another shot of "Java" steaming South at 29 knots with her starboard cannons in action against the JIN.
 
Hope youns like it, it sure looks promising to me, keep fingers crossed.
 
Cheers,

Thank you Lou and Jan for dropping in.  I'm still sorting out the photo problem, it looks promising for a download but not tonight.
The eye procedure is postponed and set for May 17 for the right eye and May 24 for the left eye. Right now I'm heavily dependent on my optiviser over a 2.5X reading glasses. 
Just been extremely busy with other things and seem to have only one hour in the late evening to log on MSW
 
Cheers,
 
 

Thanks for the wake-up calls fellows.  Yes, it's about 6 hours difference between youns and ussens so I'm half an hour away from beddy time - again
I have an eye doctor appointment tomorrow morning, he is going to blow the "moss' from my right eye lens, with laser power.  It's called "YAG capsulotomy.  That seems to be a standard problem after cataract surgery. It's really been bothersome, the right eye looks through a fog and the left eye is trying to compensate, causing some confusion.  Not that that's so remarkable, I'm a rather confused old fart anyhow   Yeah, it's been very noticeable doing this small scale work.
 
Okay, for some reason by new cell phone seems to have a problem downloading my photos to the DropBox storage app and consequently I can't download it to my confuser. I am now in the progress of e-mailing the pics to myself, even that is taking its own sweet time. Hopefully I have the pics tomorrow to show all youns what I have been doing.
 
Yup, I poured the sea and it worked pretty good. I am glad that I used the cling wrap around the ship though. I had to deepen the groove another 16th of an inch to lower the ship some more. I'm happy with the results so far.
Next comes the removal of some sea around the hull where it makes a dip and when that's done to my satisfaction I'll go ahead and cement the hull in place and pour some poly around it and then form the waves.
 
Cheers,

Thank you friends for looking in and your concerns and suggestions.  So very true, it's a big step into the unknown, for me at least. I understand there are several ways to depict a sea and picking the right one is a toss up.  Actually, no matter what material is used it's still a rendering and not the real thing so we must use what may possibly give me the most realistic effect. I don't mind working with polymers or epoxies, have done that when I part owned an aircraft repair facility.  One builder on the NRG  showed his method by using clear caulking compound that one may use to seal bathtubs with.  He first painted the bottom blue and then proceeded to lay in the caulking compound. When it started to set he dabbed waves into it and let the blue under-paint give the effect of a blue sea.  The photos made it look really good. 
 
In the meantime I have made a small mock up and think I should just go ahead and use the polymer stuff.  I will however follow Lou's suggestion to use cling wrap around the model and place it that way into the groove I had made for it.  That way I can still lift it out and forget the diorama idea (after having spend $100 on it  )  Lifting it out gives me another advantages - to be able to remove some of the polymer around the hull where the water makes a dip. The third benefit is that I can raise the model about 1 mm higher. if needed for the effect i am looking for..
And Jan, I have left the props off the model and even the rudder could have been left off because it won't be visible.
From what Jan mentioned that people have been painting the sea with acrylic paints anyway.  That's what I will most likely wind up doing.
 
So then, having said all that, I have talked myself into going ahead with it.  The first pour will be 3 mm thick with a blue tinted layer. This will be tucked along the sides and somewhat under the hull - that's wrapped in cling wrap. This layer must gel up to the sticky state before pouring the next 3 mm layer, also tinted in blue. These two layers must completely cure before the "wave making" compound can be put in top. According to the directions it's more like sculpting procedure using water-wet pop sickle sticks and paint brushes.
The paint colors I may need are thee colors of blue, one yellow in case i want to tint a breaking wave with green and some very light grey or white. The light grey is to simulate the reflection of the hull, may look better then stark white.
 
After I'm happy with the results I can then lift the model out, remove the cling wrap, replace the model and finish with some more poly around the hull and sculpting the water around it.  That to me may be the most difficult part.
 
No time to show the mock up tonight, it's my bed time and you know that's very important for old men, they need plenty of sleep  
 
Cheers,

Thank you Lou, Mark and Denis for your good advice.  Yes, that has crossed my mind as well but there is that famous saying "boldly go where no one has gone before," or something like it.
No, seriously though, I will pour some that expensive stuff out into a wooden mock-up and see what happens.  Yes, it can get warm, depending on the thickness of the layer. I plan to have 2 layers of 3 mm each, which will not produce much heat, also depending how much activator/hardener I use.  The coloring stuff also reduces the heat generated by reducing the cure time.  This does't mean I will just go ahead and start pouring this stuff.
Yes, it also shrinks a little but the gap (if any) will be filled with that other stuff to make the "white water" along the ship's side and screw foam.  
To be really on the side of caution I could "grease" the hull with Vaseline and lift it out of the mold if it doesn't work to my satisfaction.  Then, when it looks like it's a go, I can replace the ship in the void and finish the surrounding sea with that wave making stuff.
 
So all in all, I'm looking at 2 thin layers with a third on top sculpting the actual surface of the sea.  I'm sure that I will need to do the final coloring with artist paints, which is not a big problem for me.  Being a self taught artist I have made paintings in oil, acrylic, tempera and colored pencils. For this project the acrylic paints would be the right choice.  I think I can produce a more believable sea surface then only relying on the polymer coloring.
 
Does it sound like I'm talking myself diving off the high board?  Hmmm, no, I'll be first playing with it and see what falls out.  So, I'll make a small wooden tray and do a small pour into it, let it cure and then use some of that wave making stuff.  Nothing but fun, eh what?  Don't stay awake on my account though
 
On another note, I send a few pics of "Java" with her decks painted in dark grey to Boris.  He send me a message back with PERFECT in capitol letters.  Makes me feel good.  
 
Cheers,

Ah, finally caught up with you OC.  Very nice work, impressive.
 
Cheers,

Looks like you got the situation in hand Lou. Don't you love this tweaking here and there?
 
Cheers,

Hey Lou, #8 bulkhead doesn't seem too big a problem. There are two ways to tackle that. One, and possibly the easiest is widen the slot towards the discrepancy side and back fill the slot. The second one is to cut new bulkhead profiles and glue them to the errant side of the bulkhead, then fare it.  You most likely figured that out already but just in case.
 
Yeah, Mystic Seaport is rather busy and I'm glad they responded. They are helpful folks and like to help as much as they can.
I'm sure you'll get to the shape of your hull as envision it
 
Cheers,

Looks like you got it pretty well under control Lou - so far.
In my humble opinion I find kit building a lot more difficult then scratch, especially when bashing the kits as you do. The pore power to you my friend.
 
Cheers,

Those ratlines look magnificent JesseLee, masterfully done.
 
Cheers,