Richmond

Thanks Slog nice update and video. I really like the look of the Tamiya LP's, its getting great reviews from a lot of modellers - I think I should start swapping them out - however I note not all XF colours are available in LP. I think with my extra week of AL (sorry not rubbing it in ) I may jump slightly ahead but then work takes me off to the Gold Coast again for 3 weeks. To get here has taken a lot longer than I expected. My only concern thus far is will the temporary ply base board impeding the build - I like to lay models on their side when working on hull and my board is 290 wide and probably heavier than your board - Ill have to devise some sort of soft rest. Maybe I will swap out to an MDF and not go as wide as did with my ply?

HI James - I did this on someone else's log and it took ages - and was wondering at the time whether there was a possibility to print (to pdf) the complete log with 'one click' - seeing you response I am assuming that is not possible. Richmond.

Nice post such clean work , nice video as well Richmond

Thanks for commenting Slog Thanks re the styrene to lower deck - I was a bit ashamed to post that photo but glad I did now - like you it was just airbrush practice - I was watching a video last night and they said black prime is good for white - maybe will try that next time before I blow any white. Apparently the Tamiya LP version is better to work with then either of the Tamiya or Mr Colour flats. Re Pedestals sorry forgot to mention this was your idea - I have since edited my post - I couldn't get the pedestals as neat and tidy as yours but no one will see them May need to do some clean up around the portholes but I really like the idea of using clear coat in lieu of glue on these small flat parts. At least I can clean up the clear coat I wouldn't be able to do this with CA Yes the tool is the Vallejo pick up tool I find it easier to use then the wax pencils - I don't get much traction with the pencils it may be the humid climate or perhaps I am not using them properly Looking forward to your update.

Week 3 (01/01/23) - 22 Hours (Total Build Time 38 Hours) Hull & Rudder Hull halves glued together and seams filled with mixture of Mr Surfacer 500 / Sprue Glue / Plasticard strip - then dry and wet sanded with 400 and 1000 grits - hull seam was primed with Mr Surfacer 1500 black to check for remaining gaps. Still have work to do in this area. Bilge Keels Both bilge keels fitted and gaps filled with Mr Surfacer 500 /Sprue Glue and sanded - I am struggling to keep these attached as I rest hull in my lap working on other hull 'furniture' perhaps should have reconsidered build sequence. Propeller Shafts Propeller shafts assembled and cleaned up - the fit was terrible and needed a lot of fill and sand - I then primed with Mr Surface 1500 black to check for inconsistencies. I will nopt glue to hull unbtil I am 100% happy with hull finishes. Lower Deck Lower deck prepared and painted - this is probably a total waste of time and little care and attention was taken as you can see from the finishes. Anyway you would need some form of endoscope to see it on the finished model. As always I struggled with white paint application for the walls and in the end covered in white styrene sheet. The green colour of the floor is a weak attempt to match the 'historical' photographs with the greens and yellows I had on my shelf which were mixed 50/50 and blown through airbrush. 6 Inch Guns (Casemates) The original prime of the guns turned out be a disaster probably due to handling of the guns before drying and or laying on the Primer R too thick with a brush. I stripped back the guns and re-primed the barrels with a 50/50 mix of Mr Primer R /Mr CLT blown through airbrush and paid careful attention to its drying state - hopefully this works out better. Pedestals Prepared nuts for pedestal bases based on a idea given to me by Slog - mine consist of 1.5 mm card (as opposed to Slogs 2 mm) x 20 30 mm with opening cut out to the shape of the nut - the nut was then epoxied into the card - these will be glued into the internal based of the hull Reinstate Seams Commenced reinstatement of seam lines to various parts of upper hull which were removed during sanding operations - stretched sprue was used for the seams once correct thickness was manufactured Its a case of trial and error any sprue attached which I am not happy with can be scratched off - once I am happy with alignment I will lightly sand to blend in. Portholes Commenced working on the hull portholes - there are 116 portholes to be installed 48 standard and 68 barred portholes. The barred portholes are bent into shape which is a simple operation. I selected a clear coat to affix the portholes which will be sealed in with an initial light prime (and later the final paint layers). Pontos make no reference to hull portholes in their instructions however they have supplied 320 portholes for the kit. I will remove any overspill of the clear coat by scratching with a tooth pick being careful not to dislodge the porthole. If I had my time again I may have tried the relieving the portholes as per Slog and Jeff59 they do look much better however I never really had the confidence to do it. Note all my PE Sprues are stored in a A5 booklet with plastic pockets (recommend by Slog) which I then backed with black card which makes the Srues 'pop'. Richmond

If I had my time again I would pick a POB ship rather than POF I believe it would be much easier to hone planking skills on POB then on a POF. But that's just me.

Here is the boxart https://www.scalemates.com/kits/shipyard-nr10-hms-bellona-1761--1391274 Its still on sale in some places - if you Google search

Thanks Slog - didn't think off that - I would still burn off, but now only once I have removed the old glue, in case the smooth surface is key to the glue's longevity Richmond

Hi Ken - yes that's all I do - It's a tip I picked up on Youtube. When it gets too much I light the candle to 'burn' it off (whilst leaving the room!) For application, I used a cocktail stick in this instance, however I am more more inclined to use a looper when I need more accuracy or when using extra thin. Richmond

Thanks Slog Yes the turned brass is beautiful. Probably could have done a better job of getting the guns flush with the turret but I don't think its noticeable once they are placed I brush painted the Primer-R - apparently it self levels. You are meant leave it a day to dry before you do the main prime. I may have handled a few when they were not set - however I can always sand back and start again. Anyway jury still out for now, I'll keep you posted. Yes I use the tea-candle for the CA - I think it was sitting in there for more than hour and was still usable. Storing the CA in the freezer has been a game changer for me. Its been in there for over year now. I will probably only ever buy scale model extra thin and just get the thicker CA's from Bunnings. To me epoxy seems over the top for these smaller lighter guns but time will tell Richmond

Week 2 (18/12/22) - 12 Hours (Total Build Time 16 Hours) Portholes All portholes were drilled out with a 1.5 mm drill and Tamiya pinvise. I note Slog will be relieving his portholes for realism and I did consider this and then put it in the too hard basket. Apologies for some reason MSW is doing strange things to the photos it put this one upside down (I will repair when I work out what is going on) Ladder Steps/Step Irons (Pontos) Step Irons are provided in the Pontos set, for some strange reason they only provide step irons for the bow and stern and miss the middle steps entirely. First Pontos require us to remove the existing detail and then affix some templates to align the holes. First I first marked the removal areas with red pen I first removed the detail with a sharp knife and the sanded down and filled any gouges with Mr Surfacer and the sanded again Next I affixed the templates with sellotape and drilled with a Tamiya pin vise and 0.4 drill bit. During this sanding operation I have removed seam lines which I will reinstate with styrene before I attach the step irons 6 Inch Guns Pontos provide metal barrels for the 6" casemates which are beautifully turned. Here is a comparison between the parts First I removed the exiting barrels, I then drilled 1mm hole and cleaned up the part 6" guns dry fitted I then affixed the turned brass with some off the shelf CA and then primed with the barrels with Mr Metal Primer R Richmond

Thanks Slog - I really enjoyed the Video. I am not sure I have the confidence to relieve the portholes. I may do a test on some thick styrene and see how I go. Strange as to why Pontos did not do all the steps.

Thanks for the nice comment Slog. I removed that injector pin mark, much better, thanks. Its a Duratech TS1564 electronically controlled soldering station which I purchased from Jaycar sometime back https://www.jaycar.com.au/48w-temperature-controlled-soldering-station/p/TS1564

Week 1 (11/12/22) - 4 Hours (Total Build Time 4 Hours) A very quick early morning (in Australia) post including: a dry fitting of the Mikasa's hull and decks a modelling perspective 1/350 Tirpitz a modelling /real life perspective 1/200 Bismarck Step 2 - Instructions Step 2/1 - the 15 cm/40 Type 41 (Model 1908) casemates https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QF_6-inch_naval_gun#Japanese_naval_service Step 2/2 - seam lines and sprue attachments Sprue labelling Please note I am developing my photography skills and hopefully these will improve as the build progresses 1 - Dry Fit Here is the dry fit using Tamiya 10 mm tape - my only concern (bear in mind I haven't finished clean up) is the fit between the deck the the hull structure - I think a bit of clamping will be required to make it snug which in turn will squeeze the cement - this may mean a change of plan as I was hoping to fit the wooden deck 'off the ship'. 2 - Perspective - Tirpitz (1/350) For a sense of modelling perspective here is Mikasa next to the 1/350 Tirpitz - perhaps manufacturing 1/200 pre-dreadnoughts would be a good marketing ploy for those who do not have room to build/store WW2 1/200's 3 - Perspective - Bismarck (1/200) For a real life perspective here is the Miskasa next to the Bismark 4- Step 2 Instructions 5 - Step 2/1 Here are the parts cut out for the QF 6 inch casemates and associated fixing pivots - I am using cake holders to hold duplicated parts which is a tip I picked up from @Captain Slog on his Ad Nak build. 6 - Step 2/2 Here is a close up photo of one of the QF 6 inchers - note the the sprue attachments and seam lines which will require clean up. The plastic seems quite soft on this kit so will need to be careful when scraping. I actually damaged a few barrels when trying to do close up cuts. The barrels will be replaced by the Pontos set. 7 - Sprue Labelling Here is how I manage my sprues with clothes pegs - this for sprue K I plan to load another post or two over the weekend Richmond

Nice introduction Slog, really looking forward to building along with you and the videos will be a great guide. Unfortunately I don't have the skills for video production, at the moment there is a greater need to get my photography skills sorted!