gsdpic

I agree that the color of the wood in the case is too similar to the color of the ship. It looks like a beautiful model but the hull gets lost a bit. Do either of these very, very quick and dirty (and sloppy) photoshop edits help? The first two I just changed the color/lightness of the base and the third I attempted to use the new "generative fill" tools to put gravel on the base, but I had trouble getting it to generate gravel as small as I wanted.

I am both a little disappointed but also excited to see what alternative you have in mind. I did the traditional blue with white stripes on mine though when done I decided my stripes were a little too wide. I defined them with 10mm wide Tamiya tape but they should have been more like 8 or 9 mm. Looking good so far; interesting treatment on the engine block.

It is still a bit difficult to understand what the problem is. If you are referring to gluing the frames to the base piece, there are various ways to get them square and vertical. Some people have metal blocks or metal squares that are perfectly rectangular that they clamp the frames too, others use lego blocks as their reference for 90 degrees. I built this kit many years ago before I discovered MSW. I do recall that the laser cut plank fit was not exact. In my case, the ends extended past the stem or stern a bit, at least in some cases, and they were trimmed and sanded after the hull was built. Also, I recall it being easy to get confused about which end of the plank was the bow end and which was the stern end, which also affected the fit. There are a few other build logs for this kit that you might want to search for and take a look at to see if any of them provide clarity for you. You'll see that some others struggled a bit with the planking as well.

I am certainly no expert, but this hull shape appears to be a bit similar to the hull shape of the coast guard cutter that I was just looking at the build log for, by @drobinson02199. You might be able to "plank" at least parts of the hull with large flat sheets of either plywood or styrene instead of individual small planks. I think John/Jim Lad was suggesting a similar approach when he mentioned using ply. The build log, linked below, might give you some ideas for how to construct your hull. Note that kit was designed to allow RC operation and that probably dictated the open frames to allow room for the RC equipment but it may be easier to use solid bulkheads and the large false keel/backbone as you did with your prototype. This looks like an interesting project of an attractive boat, and it has a bit of extra personal meaning for you. Good luck!

Sweet, I look forward to following this. I recently built the Revell 289 Cobra race car model. It was a bit of a mish-mash. The chassis/suspension seemed to represent a 289 (i.e. transverse leaf springs) but the body was a 427 body....there was even a "427" logo molded into the front fender. The model as a whole was rather challenging. Based on the info at scalemates, it does not seem that my Revell model is related to this Fujimi one (though Revell did sell a version of this model). So, it will be interesting to see how it goes together.

To a great extent, I think that is a limit of focus stacking. Imagine (oh, wait, you don't have to imagine, there are pictures below) an object, say a strip of basswood, sticking up in front of a piece of graph paper. It should be enough to take two photos, one focused on the stick and one on the paper, to do a focus stack. But when focused on the paper, the stick becomes a blurry smudge that is larger than it is when it is in focus. So the bits of graph paper that are immediately next to the image of the focused stick are at least partially obscured in the graph paper image. So, when the focus stack is done, there are parts of the graph paper that are not clear and unobscured in either image. I did the below experiment, all images taken with a 180mm macro lens about 5 to 6 feet from the objects, at f/3.5). The stick and graph paper were about 12 inches apart. Note that at 6 feet, f/3.5 180mm, the actual depth of field is less than one inch. First, the two source files, focused on the stick and on the graph paper. Now, the results with photoshop (the current 25.0 release). You can see it struggled. It is possible that I did not quite nail the focus on the stick but I thought it should have been close enough. Photoshop just creates a mask to combine the two images so everything here is from one image or the other with no blending. It missed much of the image focused on the stick, and you can see the places where it got the focused stick, the blue lines of the graph paper fade out near the stick, due to the blurry smudge in the graph paper image. Here's the results from Helicon Focus 8.2.2 (also current version). You can see it did a much, much better job, but the graph paper lines still fade out next to the stick. Interestingly, you can also see through the stick to the graph paper lines behind it to some extent, much like in the source image that was focused on the graph paper. I might have to try again with better focus on the stick to see if that helps photoshop any.

Nice! As every one else has already said, really well done.

Excellent job painting/weathering the barrels!

I keep seeing this topic pop up from time to time. Perhaps the question would have been better asked with a link to the actual product. I've seen such a thing at Micro-mark, so here's the link: https://www.micromark.com/Micro-Mark-Self-Contained-Portable-Broad-Spray-Airbrush That one is slightly different from the one pictured above. The Micromark unit has a "MAC" valve and a slightly more ergonomic looking air tank. I've not used one, but to answer some of the questions above, based on my understanding of the description and video that micromark has... - The airbrush part is just a standard air brush that can be detached and used with a normal compressor. The unique part is the integrated tank/battery powered compressor. The air brush is likely a Chinese made imitation of one of the standard types which can be had for 40 bucks or less. The one with the micromark kit looks a lot like the Neoeco NCT SJ81 (https://neoeco-airbrush.com/products/neoeco-nct-sj81-gravity-feed-dual-action-airbrush). Neoeco is an OEM for a lot of places that resell airbrushes. I have suspected they are the ones who make one of the other airbrushes that micromark sells though that is just a guess. - The part you hold has a small tank, battery and compressor. One battery charge lasts approximately 40 minutes according to the page. Since it has a small tank that should keep the pressure relatively stable until the battery expires. I have four concerns about it. 1. The same concern that wefalck has....it seems like it would be awkward to hold and use especially if attempting some detail work. 2. It does not appear to have a method to adjust the air pressure or even a method to indicate what the current pressure is. I am no airbrush expert and have only used one in the last few years (mostly on plastic cars) and even I frequently adjust the air pressure based mostly on the type of paint used, so this seems like a big issue. 3. It seems a bit like a solution in need of a problem, at least for model building. How often do you really want the air brush to be portable so you can use it anywhere in the room? For me the answer is never, so it is not an issue to be tied to a compressor. 4. It has no moisture trap....the micromark page acknowledges this and says one could be put between the tank and the airbrush though that would likely make it even more awkward to hold.

Looks like a handsome tug. Do you plan to do RC or just a static model?

The instructions are just a few PDF files on the DVD in my experience (with the Sopwith Camel). If you have no computer with DVD, the PDF files can be downloaded from the AL web site. Having said that, it is still a little bit of a pain to use that vs a paper manual though I certainly understand why they went that route.

Thanks to everyone for the comments and likes/wows. @kgstakes the "wear" on the tires was mostly my marginally successful effort to remove the mold line running the circumference of the tires in the middle. Being an old kit, the tires felt a little squishy and fragile so I did not want to push it too far. When cleaning up, I also found one part that did not make it on to the model. Not sure if I can retrofit it now. The shift rod to control the transmission is shown in step 35 with a note saying not to actually put it in place until step 43. Of course by the time I got to step 43 I forgot about it. Not clear if I can get it in place now with the model complete. Oh well. I am also still undecided about the hand painted lotus logo at the front of the nose. There was a small, molded in raised circle there but no decal provided for it. Looking on the web, the car seemed to either have a lotus logo there or a gold "JPS" logo. I chose to try to replicate the yellow and green lotus logo but I sometimes think it looks a bit out of place. I guess I'll leave it but I've been tempted to try to change it at the risk of screwing it up.

I am now declaring this one complete. For the first time for a plastic car model, I feel like I should get/make a case for this one. Thanks to everyone for following along, hitting the like button, providing comments and suggestions, I appreciate it. Below are pictures of the finished model. This model is quite large....almost too big for my homemade macro photo booth which is basically a cube of 18 inch PVC pipes. In a few cases I used (for the first time) the Photoshop "generative fill" to fill in corners and edges of the white background where the real thing was not large enough, revealing the wall behind it. That's kind of like using a sledgehammer on a fly I think. I also had to switch away from my 180mm macro lens for the overall shots because I could not get far enough from the model to include the whole thing in the frame.

Thanks as always for the likes and wows and comments. I appreciate it. I am done except for attaching the oil lines to the oil cooler (seen here draped over the rear tire) and doing the rest of the flat black paint on the clear part. I did just a small section and it is an improvement, so I'll do the rest more carefully. As for the oil lines, I want to let the glue holding the wing cure a bit more, as that is a rather large piece hung off the back with four fairly small attachment points. So tomorrow I'll wrap that up and then do a more extensive photo shoot. But for now here is one teaser picture. Under the car, you may also see a little bit of one of two clear plastic disks on the underside of the car, supporting some of the weight of the model. I guess they did not trust the suspension pieces to hold the car indefinitely. Probably a good thing. I am also debating gluing the air induction scoop or not. The instructions indicate to glue it but it will cover up some of the engine. But if you don't glue it, the slightest bump will knock it off. The front cowl and the upper part of the cockpit both snap on and will be ok unglued. The cockpit part was a bit warped, and still is a tiny bit, so I thought I might have to glue it down as well. But I think it is close enough that it will stay on without the seams/gaps being too unsightly.

Thanks, though I think the tach is the large central gauge. Can't really see it in this photo, but the main needle on that gauge is in the 4 o'clock position at 0, and 10, 11, 12 thousand RPM are straight up, just as you describe. So that one is the correct orientation. The gauges to the left are something more minor like oil pressure or temperature or something. Oh well. Thank you. Really glad that the metallic gold decals still worked ok. I learned that this iteration of lotus was the only one that actually had metallic gold....the lotus 78 and 79 that had similar "John Player Special" livery actually just used a non-metallic yellowish tan color. Furthermore, I learned that at least some of the third party decals available for this car are also non-metallic.

Thanks. You and anyone else certainly may provide suggestions. And this sounds like a good one. I'll have to try it out. I definitely agree that the thin clear part sort of spoils the whole look of the model, so any improvement will be welcome.

I have been working on a lot of little details, but I am getting close to wrapping up this project. I might even complete it today, we'll see. I believe that all that remains are the seat belts, attaching the rear wing/oil tank including attaching 3 oil lines, and attaching the wheels. Below are pictures of some of the details. Unidentified important bits between the seat and engine. I thought about adding more lines between these bits and the engine but really should have done it before attaching the roll bar. And I should have done a better job with the mold lines on the roll bar Dashboard front and back. Yes, I purchased some tiny turned metal toggle switches to replace the molded in ones. And again, I could have created more wires to the back of the dashboard for those switches, but did not. I put two on there but they are not really visible in the pictures, behind the hoses that go to the gauges. Oh, and I realized too late that the left dashboard instrument decal is on upside down. 🙃 Main cockpit upper cowl. Wheel and tire with hand painted Firestone logo on the tire. I should get some better quality tiny brushes for such work, though it looks ok. Oh, I forgot I also bought some tiny valve stems and have not put those on the wheels yet.

A lot of good progress. The "Mr. Dissolved Putty" looks interesting, I had not heard of that though I've recently used some of the Mr Color paints for the first time and liked them. I've used the Tamiya putty in a tube but it can be difficult to apply smoothly and is often required in places that are difficult to sand well. It sounds like this stuff might be a better solution.

Bit of a milestone today as I joined the front suspension assembly and the drivetrain/rear suspension to the tub. I still have some coolant pipes and hoses to join the radiators to the engine and then some oil hoses to join the engine to the oil tank and cooler which also serves as the base of the rear wing. In the cockpit area, I need to do the dashboard and a few other bits including roll bar between the cockpit and engine, and then attach the rear wing, front cowl, and wheels and I am done.

That's funny about the shipping to the Canary Islands taking almost as long. The Spot Model web site said it would be 10 to 30 days for delivery to the US, and it was at the very low end of that range. On the older version of the kit like I have, the only seat belts supplied by Tamiya are molded into the supplied driver figurine, which I plan to not use. They did not provide any seat belts to use if you are leaving the driver out. I found some other 1/12th scale seat belts by another brand but they did not look as good as the MFH ones.

Welcome to MSW. Is that different from the stage coach that is listed on the Artesania Latina website? If that is the one, they have downloadable instructions there: https://artesanialatina.net/en/heritage/3469-stage-coach-1848-wooden-model-heritage-collection-8421426203400.html

Thanks guys for the comments, and to others for the likes. One other quick note today...I like the seat belts from Model Factory Hiro (like docrob used on the Renault) and could not find a US supplier. So, I ordered some of them and a few other things that seem difficult to source in the US from Spot Model in Spain. I ordered them on September 15th and they arrived by US mail today. So that was not too bad at all. I've also started doing the clear coat of the main body parts. Have a few more coats to do, not sure how many. Today I did one light mist coat mainly over the decals, then one heavier coat. I'll likely do at least a couple more tomorrow and see what I think from there.

As always, thanks for the comments, the likes/wows, and for just looking in and taking a peek at what I am doing. I've now finished the whole engine and gear box and joined them together. Above and beyond what is in the kit, I added some "wiring harness" and the rear brake lines over the gear box. If you look closely, you might also see a few of the photo etched "hose clamps" that I bought. I like them, but they are a real pain. Of course they come flat, so have to be wrapped around the "hose", but they are a bit springy so they resist being glued down, even with CA. And of course I glued some of them to a flat black painted surface and the CA just lifted the paint. Others were glued to the rubber hose provided in the kit but the CA also did not seem to work well there either. The exhaust was a bit of an issue too. It was tough to get the four individual pipes joined together correctly and glued into the cylinder head. Then when I put the gear box and engine together, the end of the exhaust pointed right at one of the suspension members so I had to squeeze it in some to get the exhaust through the suspension, which loosened the other end of the exhaust where it was glued to the cylinder head. Oh, I tried something on the exhaust as well. The pipe is painted with Alclad Chrome, then I put a bit of clear yellow and clear blue on it to represent the heat discoloration. When I attach this unit to the tub, there will be a couple more connections and hoses added, as well as some hoses from the engine to the oil tank and cooler which also serves as the support for the rear wing. I also have some work to do on the dashboard, but otherwise there are not too many remaining parts. I still need to work on clear coat on all the body pieces.

Looking good! On the prior pictures of the chassis...maybe there is a white balance problem or something, but the "light gull grey" looks rather green. I thought I'd clicked into a build log for an army truck. I assume the first picture of post #25 is much closer to the true color.

I believe that it is still undecided exactly where she will ultimately end up, but as I understand there is some funding from the Texas government that requires the ultimate location to be somewhere on that upper/eastern Texas coast, around Galveston or in the bays or channels leading up toward Houston. To me, seems to make sense to put her back where she was near the San Jacinto monument, though I guess she'd get a lot more visitors if she was in Galveston.