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sjanicki

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  1. sjanicki
    Installed cleats for the flagstaffs as well as for the cutter davits. I used brass cleats, used CA glue to mount them, and then painted the flat black. I aslo rigged the cutters. The blocks I painted brown and glued to the cutters with CA glue and then ran the line and terminating the line at the cleats on the deck. Furthermore, I darkened the color of the deck grates a bit. Overall it’s getting very close! Next up is a clear coat to cover the various little blemishes. I have ave also ordered a display case that will house both the USS Monitor and CSS Virginia together which should make for a nice display.
  2. sjanicki
    I took @MrBlueJacket‘s advice about using CA glue to attach the covers for the cutters to great success. Up next is installing some cleats for the flag staffs and cutter davits. Getting close!
  3. sjanicki
    Made a little bit of progress on the Virginia this weekend on the rigging and railings. I used the kit supplied thread and museum wax. I paid special attention to keep the direction of my threads consistent on both sides for the railing and am pretty satisfied with the result.
  4. sjanicki
    Hi @MrBlueJacket, Thanks for the sugggestion - I’ll try that this weekend. The model is turning out great btw! Stanley
  5. sjanicki
    So I mounted the anchors and their chains as well as the chains for the rudder assembly. I used thread covered in conservators wax and made a number of turns with it to tie the chain to the anchor. I also painted the cutters and cut the fabric tops for them. I tried utilizing my initial idea of ironing and sewing the edges but it wasn’t working out well. I would welcome any feedback people have on the best way to attach the fabric tops to the cutters.
  6. sjanicki
    Mounted the forward bullwarks as well as touched up a few scuff marks on the paint. I know it’s a small update but I find that making a tiny bit of progress every night keeps me moving forwards.
  7. sjanicki
    Mounted the various deck fittings after painting them. I also painted the screw a brass color. Furthermore, I painted and dry fit the bulwarks. It’s really coming together!
  8. sjanicki
    Does anyone have a historical engraving or historical mention of cutters on the USS Monitor? If so, how they were installed? I have seen a number of other models that include cutters in various configurations but I don’t want to add them to my model if they aren’t historically accurate.
  9. sjanicki
    Cleaned up the remaining deck fittings and began priming them. I’ll paint the deck fittings black and the cutters white. On a more technical note: The kit comes with a bit of fabric that is meant as a tonneau cover for the cutters. What is the best method for securing this to the boats while maintaining a tight fit? I have some ideas but I wanted to solicit people’s thoughts. Also, the March 2006 National Geographic has a phenomenal article on the battle of Hampton Roads and is a great read for anyone interested. Of note is the nice cutaway diagram of both the Monitor and Virginia to scale. Though I suspect they may have taken some small artistic license.
  10. sjanicki
    Thanks @Wallace! I applied another coat of paint and then took off the tape and no leaks! Now on to the bulwarks, cutters, and deck details. On another note, I repainted the Monitor at the same time and I am super happy with how well they match.
  11. sjanicki
    @MrBlueJacket It's actually the one I worked on earlier in the year. Since I hand brushed it I decided to do some re-work and sand off a bit of paint and airbrush it so they two ships would have identical paint jobs. They will go together in a display case so I would like them to match as much as possible.
  12. sjanicki
    Got the first coat of crimson paint on and it’s looking great! Will probably do another coat or two and then take the tape off and hope for no leaks!
  13. sjanicki
    @MrBlueJacket Thanks for the suggestion! I'll ad another couple passes of tape to be sure I don't accidentally airbrush the casement of the Virginia red. I may pick up some wider blue tape as well.
  14. sjanicki
    So after continuing work on the CSS Virginia I am much more satisfied with the quality of my paint work when utilizing an airbrush (I hand brushed the Monitor). So I decided to sand off a layer of paint and re-paint with an airbrush. I’ll need to continue airbrushing the Virginia so I don’t think it will take long.
  15. sjanicki
    Started masking the waterline as well. I decided to mount the bulwarks after painting the waterline because the waterline passes through them. I used Tamyia tape followed by generic blue masking tape. I’ll try and actually airbrush the red later this week. I bought some brass colored paint for the screw as well which should look awesome.
  16. sjanicki
    Airbrushed a coat of flat black on the entire model as the instructions suggest. I also did a bit of prep work on the anchors, bulwarks, and cutters in preparation for painting.
  17. sjanicki
    Spent a bit of time on the Virginia this evening. The davits and blocks I order arrived so I wasted no time in installing the davits. They look really good! I also installed the stack support eye hooks as well as glued down the stack. I also installed the propellor and rudder. I used one of the straight sewing needles cut in half to mount the prop. Once the various parts were mounted I took another pass with the airbrush and primer. This is my first model to use an airbrush on and am very happy with how it's turning out. Next up is a coat of black paint and then some work on the remaining fittings as well as cutters. I left off all the fittings that will be black on red in the final model (I plan on placing them after the model is painted).
  18. sjanicki
    Mounted the cutter chocks as well as finished the wooden base for the stack. Still need to install the eye hooks on the stack for the stack support rigging. I dry fit the cutter for reference. I decided to order some blocks as well as davits to add further details to the cutters. Should look great once they are installed! Up next are cutting the forward bulwarks and installing the various chain roller guides, and mooring cleats. After that I will likely apply another coat of primer and then begin painting. On a historical note, the plans refer to the taller pins on the centerline of the model as "awning stanchions". Does this mean that there was sometimes an awning installed (sort of like a tent)? I remember seeing a graphic of the Virginia (or another casement ironclad) with such an awning but cannot seem to remember where. Would this be a historically accurate addition? I think it would be a unique addition to the kit as I haven't seen that detail on another model of the Virginia. Overall I am extremely happy with the kit as well as my progress on it (especially because I am such a beginner in the hobby).
  19. sjanicki
    Installed the air vents and galley stack as well as removed the tall stanchions with the eye loops and replaced them with similar but longer nails to the lower stanchions. I used strait sewing needles for the nails as they matched what was included in the kit. I also drilled holes for where the anchor chains and rudder chains go through the casement. I also cut a round plate of wood to help mount the stack.
  20. sjanicki
    Spent an extra couple minutes after dinner and installed the taller stanchions as well as the stack support eye hooks. Also, added the striping tape where the rudder mounts to match the rudder itself.
  21. sjanicki
    So I finally made some more visible progress after my mistake with the cannon ports. After a quick coat of primer I installed the cannon port covers on the for and aft sections of the casement as well as the striping tape. I then began installing the railing stanchions. First I marked them one at a time with a geometry compass and then drilled a small pilot hole for the nail. I then nailed them all in and gauged the proper depth utilizing the compass as well. Super happy with how its going now that I am back on track!
  22. sjanicki
    After a number of iterations of puttying and sanding the old cannon ports I finally got them to a state where I could cut new ones. I also labeled the template (so I didn't repeat my mistake 😜). Instead of an exacto knife and chisel this time I used successive passes with different size drill bits. This allowed for the internal step that the plans suggest as well as the oval holes. The drill bit being parallel with the decking made for the oval hole because of the sloped casement. This drilling method was WAY faster than the chisel I used the first time.
  23. sjanicki
    Didn't have much time tonight but removed the cannons and cannon covers and then put some putty in the holes. I am glad I can cover up these mistakes so easily. Hopefully I'll be back to making progress again by the end of the weekend. Also, I should be happy about this little mishap because I can try a different method this time on cutting the gun ports. I used an exacto knife and a chisel last time. Is there a better method people would suggest?
  24. sjanicki
    Had to travel this week for work and while waiting for my flight I was examining these pictures and realized I cut all of the gun ports with the template upside down. So I’ll have a bunch of re-work to look forward to this weekend. In retrospect I shouldn’t have just used the template blindly but verified the ports to the plans before cutting them all. Well I guess you learn the most from your mistakes 😜
  25. sjanicki
    Spent some time today taking advantage of the nice weather to be able to make progressive passes of puttying, sanding, and priming. I don't have a formal paint booth so the priming needs to be done outside. As the weather gets worse I'll probably need to get some form of paint booth setup - I welcome suggestions people have. Unfortunately I over sanded a bit on the bow so it took a bit of time to re-work but I think the end result isn't bad. After a number of passes I think the hull looks fair and smooth enough. Once the hull was ready, I mounted the cannons, cannon port covers, pilot house, and grates. I also added the striping tape to the stack as the instructions suggest.

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