ccoyle

It truly warms the cockles of my heart to see two of my favorite things -- paper and pre-Dreadnoughts -- coming together so beautifully!

But you got your build log title right on the first try, and that's important -- at least to those of us that have to edit the titles!

We need to have our tech guys turn off the 'numeral 8 - end parenthesis' emoji keystroke combo.

Welcome aboard! Hope you will share your progress with us here. Cheers!

Over the years, a goodly number of new members have cut their teeth on the AL Swift kit. More recently, the MS longboat kit has been very popular. You'll find numerous examples of both kits in the gallery and build log sections.

Thetis Down: The Slow Death of a Submarine Tony Booth Barnsley, UK: Pen and Sword Maritime, 2008 15.4 x 23.3 cm format, paperback, 220 pages 36 B&W illustrations, appendix, bibliography, index MSRP £14.99 ISBN: 978 1 52676 660 1 One aspect of being enthusiastic about history in general and naval history in particular is that there exists a seemingly endless list of people and events of whom one has never previously heard. With apologies to our UK members, the accidental sinking of HMS Thetis in 1939 was for me one such subject. It's difficult to review a book like Thetis Down without giving away too many plot spoilers, but I will try. The essentials of the incident are these: HMS Thetis was a T-Class submarine launched in the spring of 1939. On 1 June she departed Liverpool for her diving trials with 103 souls aboard; 99 of them would not return alive. It remains to this day the worst submarine disaster in Royal Navy history. Interesting side note: Thetis actually sank twice, in the latter instance with all hands -- but I'll leave it to you to read the hows and whys of that for yourselves. Thetis Down is a narrative by parts. Roughly the first 40% of the book chronicles the events of the sinking and the various attempts made to rescue the crew. Those attempts took the better part of two days. Thanks to the fact that Thetis sank in relatively shallow water, four people were able to evacuate her via an escape chamber. Why only four? Of course, you'll need to read the book to find that out. Because those four escaped, and more particularly because of who those four were, we are given a fair amount of information regarding events inside the boat on that fateful day. It's a very moving story, especially because 103 is nearly double the normal complement of a T-Class boat. Why were so many people aboard? Again -- read the book to find out! This much I will divulge -- when the contributing factors of the accident are divulged, it really says something striking about just how technologically and mentally demanding the task of operating a submarine is, and how terribly unforgiving the slightest neglect of any aspect of that operation can be. The rest of the book is about evenly split between an account of salvaging the boat and a description of the various tribunals and legal proceedings that followed. Tony Booth does an excellent job both of researching these events and elucidating them in his book. I only wish that my personal interest in the scope of these latter subjects was equal to his effort in setting them to paper. For me, the high point of the book is naturally the drama of the sinking and attempted rescue. That portion of the book is a real page turner. The salvage I also found fairly interesting because of its particularly macabre nature. The legal wranglings though? Meh -- not so much. That's not Mr. Booth's fault by any means -- it's just that I'm not a fan of courtroom dealings, regardless of how pertinent they might be to the subject. Other folks may find this portion absorbing. It's not hard to see how the sinking of Thetis might not loom large in the memory of those of us on this side of the pond. After all, it was a British boat, and events on the world's stage a mere three months later made the loss of a single submarine pale in significance. Interestingly, though, Thetis played a part in those later events, both in action at sea and in changes to submarine design and operation put into effect as a result of scrutinizing her tragic accident. But I won't divulge too much about those -- if you are a fan of all things "silent service," I can definitely recommend this as a book to add to your library. Lastly, the story of HMS Thetis may not be entirely over -- Booth informs the reader that there still exist to this day sealed records related to the accident. So perhaps at some future date Mr. Booth will need to issue a revised and updated edition of his work. Stay tuned! CDC

Krylon. One can lasts for many projects.

#2 on your glue list is contact cement in English. The only thing I don't like about using it is that it pretty much sets on contact, so parts can't be repositioned. I also spray my parts sheets with matte clear varnish.

Welcome! To answer your question: yes, you can certainly do it that way, and many modelers do (I have). In fact, I don't think that the method you describe first is actually all that common, except maybe within the kit designs of particular companies. When attaching the false keel prior to planking, it is helpful to cut a rabbet into the profile former. Use the search function to find topics with rabbet in the title to find help on that subject. Cheers!

Well done, Chris. Having an upgraded wood option (e.g. pear) is something I think kit builders have long yearned for.

Me, too! But I can never eat a whole one by myself. 😝 (Full disclosure: I actually really like cats, but I've never been able to own one because I am highly allergic to them.)

This is called spiral binding or wire binding, and it is particularly used in just such instances when something needs to be capable of being opened and laid flat. There -- now your English is far better than my German (much less Swedish, of which I know practically nothing) can ever hope to be. 😉

Wow! That looks like a fabulous kit!

A merry Christmas indeed! I look forward to watching your project come together. Cheers!

Received my selection of books yesterday, all in good condition. Frank doesn't mess around when it comes to getting stuff shipped promptly!

Welcome and thanks for joining in! The Mercury is a beautiful kit subject, as is Pegasus. And, as you probably already know, we are very fortunate to have the designer of both kits, Chris Watton, as a regular contributor here, sharing updates on his new designs coming from Vanguard Models. look forward to seeing your work! BTW, sharing photos is not difficult. Use the "choose files" link in the bar at the bottom of the reply window. Click on the files you want to upload. Each one will appear as a preview. When you're ready to add one to your post, simply click the "+" on the preview photo, and the pic will be inserted into your post. Cheers!

If you're not particularly into metal work, iron work can often be simulated quite nicely by using strips of of black card stock. Bolt heads can be simulated by daubs of white glue applied with a toothpick.

Welcome aboard! You have so many interests to dabble in, I wonder that you have time for work! I look forward to seeing your projects. Cheers!

Ist planking is simply to provide an underlayment for 2nd planking. Most kits utilize the 2-planking method, though some don't. In kits that do, getting the correct hull dimensions is contingent upon using both layers. "Limewood" is the European term for basswood, which you can get at most any hobby shop if you run short. Gaps in the 1st planking can be filled with wood filler and sanded before you start the 2nd layer. Cradles are a matter of preference. I always planked hulls while holding them in my lap. Some modelers use keel clamps or building boards; try whatever you think you'd like best.

Děkujeme, že jste si udělali čas na sdílení vašich fotografií s námi. Jsou velmi ceněny. Cheers!

Welcome! Sounds like a fantastic project.

Welcome, Harv. The nice thing about that kit is that it is a relatively easy hull form to plank and is also in a large scale -- makes fiddly bits easier to work with. Cheers!

I do not envy you the task of trying to find homes for over 90 models. I agree with what the previous replies have stated. These are well-built models, but they appear to all be built from kits. The one in the first photo also appears to have a thick layer of dust, which means it would need a good cleaning in order to have the best chance of catching someone's eye. Follow up on the suggestions regarding craft fairs and donations; also think about antique or consignment shops. A local modeling club might be able to help you with the job.

Very handsomely done!

Welcome, Dean! (That's my middle name, BTW.) I never did RC planes, but I did build a few balsa-and-tissue examples once upon a time. The early ones all came to some sad end, e.g. crashing into a mail box. Eventually I started building them sans rubber band motors to eliminate the temptation to take them outside and wreck them, er, I mean fly them. Cheers!