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CDW

NRG Member
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Everything posted by CDW

  1. Wow, all those little gussets are quite an eye test. As you once stated, it is highly critical to acquire the very best fine point tweezers you can get your hands on to do work like this. Just no other way, really. Normal variety tweezers just won't get the job done.
  2. Hey Greg I noticed you and I are both using the Small Shop's black plexi photo etch cutting board. After using the board for a while, it gets full of nicks and scratches from cutting the etch pieces from the frets. Those scratches are raised and sometimes cause the photo etch to get stuck in place rather than sliding around freely on top of the board. By accident, I discovered you can take a single edge razor blade, holding it at about a 45 degree angle to the cutting board use the blade to scrape the board and it takes away all those scratches like magic. Makes it smooth and glass-like again. if you haven't already discovered it yourself, try it on your board and those scratches will be gone.
  3. These are maybe a little easier on the eyes.
  4. Started adding the catwalks. These will extend around the entire perimeter of the flight deck. I'll have to work a little harder/better to get clearer photographs next time. Not sure what I did wrong here, but they sure are fuzzy.
  5. I recently stayed at the Rising Star Casino in Indiana. While there, admired a beautiful scale model of the Rising Star Riverboat. I thought it was one of the finest looking models of that type of boat I had ever seen until I found your build thread. This model is amazing. Would love to see something like this in person.
  6. I took these pictures just to add a flavor for how subtle the photo etch details for the deck will appear after they are painted. It almost makes it seem like a long climb for a short slide, but I will plow on notwithstanding. I think with all the deck PE details, the stencil work and some rigging along with all the aircraft might be okay once all is said and done.
  7. What a great looking model! Cheers.
  8. Ha - there is a mess all around it. If I had a wide angle lens, you could see it. As far as I know, there is no other alternative to the wood deck that came with the Pontos set except to leave it stock and paint it. But my copy of the Pontos deck is rather poor. Have you ever had a balsa model with die cut parts where the parts are not cut through the sheet so you have to either sand one side until the parts are free or re-score everything with an X-Acto knife to free the parts. That's the way this deck is made. The cut outs are not completely cut through and it requires each and every one to be cut free with a blade. What a pain. And then, there are several variations of the Essex class of CV under different names. Apparently, my deck is maybe cut for another version and not the Essex because a couple of key spots like the side elevator are not cut correctly. I'll make the best of it but if anyone else decides to give this build a go, be aware of the wood deck issue. The aft elevator is cut in a completely different place as the stock kit elevator. I just glued my elevator in place and let the deck fall where it may as there would be no satisfactory way to otherwise correct that in my view. In the end, I am probably the only one who even knows unless one is a real micro detail expert. It won't be a glaring error that will be easily noticed.
  9. She's got some paint on the hull and the beginnings of a wooden deck.
  10. Wow, been a long time since I had something like that but remember well how bad it was. And I was in my 30's then. Glad you're feeling better and hope you make a full recovery soon.
  11. You have my sincere condolences, Mark. Hope you get things up and running with the least impact possible on the good ship Visa.
  12. Did you notice in the "what did you receive" topic that some fellow modelers are acquiring those stereo microscopes? That may be just the ticket for these very small PE parts. Normal magnifying lenses just are not quite powerful enough sometimes. Like you, I have so far procrastinated on building all the 20mm single guns for my project. A certain amount of dread in building so many and so small, tedious.
  13. What a thing of beauty this ship. If I could build a model ship like this....I would. But for now, am content just to watch modelers as skilled as you just to learn how. Great work, Mark.
  14. Oh, and by the way, most of the parts seen attached to the hull are not actually glued on at this point. I just have them sitting in place.
  15. As I am working on my model, I like to set things in place to see what it looks like and help keep me motivated to finish. Marching onward, trying to get the last few things attached to the hull before painting it. After it is painted, there are tons of detail that goes into recreating the catwalks that outline the perimeter of the deck, the wooden decking, a myriad of antennae and pieces that get attached to the deck (photo etch). I will have to paint all these parts before attaching them so as not to ruin the wooden deck.
  16. But hey, if you take your model/s to a contest, you can be sure some judge/s will be there with a flashlight looking inside every possible opening to see whether you finished everything inside or not. Been there and done that many times in the past.
  17. I noticed the same thing while I was building my DeAgostini Victory hull. The planks were of very inconsistent quality between the various shipments, sometimes good and sometimes very poor.
  18. Are you really Sherlock Holmes, disguising as Modeler 12? Good observation.
  19. That wheel is a huge favor for the finished look of your model. Great job, Jesse!
  20. Carl For CA, I use this one. It is a medium viscosity glue. I particularly like the cap seal, as it doesn't become clogged so often as many CA glues tend to do. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Gorilla-20-g-Super-Glue-78056/100661959 This is Gator Grip acrylic glue: http://www.gatorsmask.com/gatorglueorder1.html (I edited the link for Gorilla Glue, blue cap)
  21. Thanks for your kind comments OC. I use both CA as well as an acrylic glue called Gator Grip, depending on the particular application at hand. Gator Grip is similar to PVA in its appearance, but it dries to a much thinner, clearer, finish. If I am gluing things that can benefit by the higher strength that CA provides and it will only require a small drop or two to do the job, CA is likely my choice. But, if I need to apply more than just a small drop, or perhaps if the part must be slid into place, I will likely prefer Gator Grip. A good "for instance" is where the photo etch walkways wrap around the bridge. Because those are slid into place and come in contact with the (almost) entire side/s of the bridge, I prefer Gator Grip because it dries thin, very clear, and does not mar the finish of the plastic. After the acrylic glue is applied, I can take a wetted paint brush and use to remove any excess glue, leaving a virtually "clean" finish where the photo etch part attaches to the plastic. In addition, if I glue photo etch doors or portholes to the model, I will also use acrylic glue for the same reasons given above. Attaching the masts to the bridge, I use CA for it's strong hold and because only a small drop is required on each leg.
  22. Okay, the control tower is maybe 90% done. Will add some ladders after the assembly is attached to the deck. Also, need to build and add the 20mm AA guns as well as some search lights. The search lights I ordered from Northstar and am waiting for them to arrive. The kit provided lights are pretty lame, devoid of detail. Make sure not to sneeze or break wind while you're viewing these pictures. The shock wave is very likely to knock off some of these small parts.
  23. Hi Pierre I just switch from one type of modeling to the other. I'll build static models for a few years, then switch back to flying models. Besides, I have too many great model aircraft to build and finish just to quit. Several Proctor models including a Jenny. The 1/5 scale Pica Waco, a 1/5 scale Arizona Models DH-1, a 1/5 scale P-51 Mustang, and many others.
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