king derelict

Simply beautiful. alan

I lost all of the day yesterday dealing with one tiny part and got very close to binning the whole thing. There is a support structure for the mast that sits towards the top of the tripod. There is a five part photo etch assembly or a plastic piece. I built up the PE item but utterly failed to get it into position. There was just not enough room between the tripod legs. During the struggles I damaged the PE railings on the tops deck and broke apart the tripod legs. I decided that the only way forward was to lower the position of the support to get more space between the legs. This meant making some cuts in the forward leg to receive the support. I did this and tried to assemble the support in its new place. As a final insult, during the last attempt of the evening the PE support pinged off the tweezers and disappeared. I spent an hour searching with no success and decided that the plastic part would be easier to modify anyway and it’s really not too bad looking but I was seriously considering giving up the whole build thinking it was just beyond my skill level. This morning I thought I would try one last time and curiously the first thing I saw when I sat down was a glint of brass and the PE support was sat on the cutting mat in plain view. I have no idea what dimension it spent the night in. However I had pretty much committed to the plastic bit so I filed it down to accept the pylon and placed it in the lower place and everything fell together. So, the build continues. The ships boats have been given the first coat of light gray and a few small pieces have been added to the forward structure, the damaged railings have also been repaired. Thanks for looking in and for the likes and comments alan

The chipping adds interest and remains subtle. Looks great alan

Wonderful details, the funnel is magnificent. Congratulations alan

Well, we have a funnel now and the B turret is dry fitted for morale purposes. The pylons are fixed in place and went remarkably easily. The funnel was a major exercise. Flyhawk were very restrained in not wrapping it in fiddly PE, the problem was the fit. That long diagonal ladder at the back of the forward superstructure interferes with the funnel and I could not see a way to make any space so, after several attempts I had to settle for the ladder getting deformed. I think this may all be my fault, I think I have the upper bridge structure a little too far aft and that results in the foul. However I was correct, the ladder is almost completely hidden by the funnel. A ladder and a few bits of minor PE finished up the day. I think it’s time to start working on the ships boats and the aft funnel I have three ladders left so I hope the aft superstructure is not too populated with them. Thanks for looking in, the likes and kind comments. alan

Thank you very much OC. This is one of the more complex builds that I’ve attempted and I am on my limits. alan

This will be a great build. I’m looking forward to seeing it come together. I saw one at the Berlin Luftwaffe museum last year. It really does have a presence. alan

Another day in tiny world with apparently not much to show for it. Ladders and railings mostly. The Flyhawk PE instructions don’t show where the ladders go and luckily I reread the general kit instructions and realized that I needed to add several to the bridge decks. Unfortunately it was a bit late in places and adding the ladders was ticklish to say the least one ladder drops from the second highest deck through a hole in the deck. On the deck below three ladders drop through the deck. The center one used up an hour or more because it had to be fed upwards from the deck below with very poor sight lines. Gently insert, drop, retrieve and repeat with the occasional variation of the ladder dropping and needing the flashlight and hands and knees treatment. I eventually got it in and now realize that the long ladder masks it completely. I suspect a lot of the will be obscured when the funnel is in place but think of the benefit to my soul. I think I’m ready to fit the pylons and then move aft. Thanks for looking in and for the likes and kind comments. alan

Thank you Andrew. I need something solid to rest on when adding the railings and ladders. The pill containers are great for providing a solid handhold and keeping paws off the model but they also give me a brace when adding the delicate stuff. alan

Thank you very much Per. Some of the parts are minuscule and definitely tax me. This kit is very much on the edge of my limitations. But it’s fun! alan

Congratulations Andrew. You’ve created a beautiful Lysander. The open cockpits, and deployed slats and flaps really show it off nicely. alan

Super work Phil. The railings really make the model and are a tribute to your patience and neatness of work alan

Well, the plan to work downwards with the superstructure came to an end as the railings and details filled out the work so far and left it with very few places to hold the assembly. So I built up the lower sections of the forward structure and added the bridge platforms already detailed. A nice morale boost too. Now there are more railings and ladders to add to the lower section. The bridge pylons are just a dry fit to see if everything lines up. It’s not perfect but it will work I think. Once those are fitted there is some highly fragile and complicated stuff to go on top. Thanks for looking in, for the likes and comments. alan

Thanks Ken. A bit more of a learning experience than I expected. alan

Thank you Patrick. I’ll remember your tips for the King Tiger. alan

Many thanks OC. I’m not happy with the tracks but the hull turned out the way I was hoping for. Flyhawk do include some crazy small parts for an already small model. alan

Looking very nice Andrew alan

With the problems with the tracks behind me progress has been steady. The last serious photo etch was the baskets for the jerrycans. They were actually fairly easy to make using a folder and the cans fitted without causing any distortion. The tool kit was painted and added. The saw didn’t actually seem to be needed. I wanted to show the tank as the winter warms up, the white camouflage is deteriorating and the tank is plowing through mud. I used powdered ceramic bricks from my Aedes Ares Loarre Castle model, mixed with some white glue, water and brown acrylic paint. This was then applied with a stiff brush and cleaned up with cotton buds where I had got too enthusiastic. I may have been too liberal with the effect but I think it works and it does cover some of the issues with the track assembly. I think this is finished and it’s time to go back to HMS Iron Duke and some serious PE. Thanks for looking in, the likes and comments. alan

Thank you very much Patrick That is a great suggestion and I will use it when I build the King Tiger which has the same tracks although the links are wider and better defined. Alan

Picking this back up again at last. I started working down from the top of the bridge structure adding the photo etch railings and details while access is still easy. It doesn’t look much but this was an afternoon’s work which did include losing and finding tiny bits of railings The Mig Ultra glue is getting a bit clumpy as I reach the bottom of the bottle possibly from repeated dilution to keep the consistency thin. Time for a new bottle. Hopefully I’ll be making some progress again. Thanks for looking in and for the likes and comments. Alan

Congratulations on your recovery Dave. Great to see the Halberstadt finished. You did a great job, it looks beautiful. alan

A beautiful model Craig. The paint finish is spectacular and the details are superb. In several of the photos it looks completely real. congratulations alan

Yes, sorry Rob, that was my poor phrasing. I meant it’s the book I’m currently reading. I started rereading the series last month and I’m now on If The Dead Rise Not (set around Cuba). I enjoyed them first time round and find them better now, probably because I read slower and absorb the details

The building of the tracks was as frustrating as I expected and the build very nearly came to an as a result. I spent every day of the last week trying to get the individual links assembled. The links are small and don’t have any features that align the subsequent link and the width of the drive wheels and sprockets are almost too wide so setting the links on the rims is a challenge. Oh, and the teeth in the sprockets are too fine for the part of the track that engages. I tried making up sections of three or four pieces glued onto a small piece of tape and them forming them around the wheels. I think the concept might have been good but the links came off the tape at the slightest provocation so I went back to adding each link individually. Then I found that adjusting the next link invariably disturbed the previous link and it all had to be done over again. Eventually I resigned myself to adding two at each end and then going off for a cup of tea, a fig roll and a chapter of the current Bernie Gunther novel. The results could be better in places but I think this is a reasonable compromise with my sanity. The tracks have been dry brushed with dark steel and a black oil wash has been applied to the tracks and the lower hull. And suddenly thinks could leap forward. I added the upper hull and then the turret. The turret is a very stiff fit and I don’t want to try to add it once all the fiddle PE is on. additional frontal armor is added and several of the lockers. ive tried to bring out some of the brown oxide primer by lightly sanding wear spots and I also used a fiberglass pen / eraser. So far I think it works but I may need to work on it further. Well, it’s great to be away from those track pieces, suddenly the kit is fun again. Thanks for looking in, for the likes and theencouraging comments Alan

Thank you very much Patrick. This time Ive gone with an initial brown oxide base and then dry brushed some dark steel over it followed by a black oil wash. Dirt to follow at some point. alan