BANYAN

Nice clean work Danny. One of the advantages to come out of my recent 'error' of incorrect scaling and having to replace my top masts and rigging was the realisation that it was easier to fit the jeer/tye blocks early as you have pointed out. Still would have preferred not having to remake the masts though cheers Pat

That's not just a capstan Alex; that sir is a masterpiece of craftsmanship! Always a pleasure to see your updates. cheers Pat

Coming along very nicely Sharpie; impressed with the Ballista! If the power you generated in the scaled version is translated up at the same ratio/proportionally, that would have been one powerful weapon for those times. cheers Pat

Hi guys, WRT the draw plate - simply soak the skewers and split them - all you need is a sharp blade/razor and roughly split them with the blade as if splitting a log (no chopping required ) This will give you quartered skewers (or even lesser sized) rough stock to start with. Has worked for me with the very occasional split that goes wrong - I found soaking them first really helped. cheers Pat

Hi all, As you can see from Bogey's update to the parts he is producing for me (replacement parts to the OzMod resin model), there is a considerable amount of change. This has been brought about by three main reasons: 1. I wanted to reconfigure her to the fit as she was in 1973/76. 2. The superstructure blocks produced by OzMod had a number of errors and had omitted a fair bit of the detail. 3. I wished to produce as detailed a model as I could at that scale (noting this is my first resin build. I will point out some of the omissions and changes that required the new versions as I get to those parts. Basically, only the hull, PE (radar etc) and the decals from the kit will be utilised. My next task is to clean these parts and prep them for gluing together. I am contemplating drilling a couple of small dowel holes after aligning and masking taping the above and below waterline model parts together to make alignment with the glue in place a little easier. if I can align these holes with where the pedestals will fit - even better However, I think that may prove elusive as there is a big cut out in the upper resin hull block where I think I need to place the after pedestal. I have read online that wheel cleaner is good for ensuring the removal of the mould release. I have invested in some non-acidic cleaner designed for cleaning white-wall tyres so I will test it on one of the superstructure blocks this weekend to ensure I do not have any unfortunate reaction/outcomes. I must say though that the detail Bogey is providing is outstanding and should allow a nicely detailed model. I must also thank Jim Lad again - John without your data and trips over to her for photographs and measurements we could not have achieved this level of detail. cheers Pat

Thanks for looking in Schooner; I am hoping to have a little fun with tis build once we get the issues sorted. Bogey, thanks for posting the updates mate - appreciated . At this point, rather than have the log jump ahead of itself I might add the updates to the 3D print as they are used? cheers Pat

Nice job on the deck planking Dave; she is coming along quite handsomely. cheers Pat

Jack, I read a tip (on FineScale I think) that one person recommended - dip the items into blackening solution (quick dunk) - you do not need to need to blacken it, only to dull the patina of the etched brass. They claimed this works very well - I have yet to try it? cheers Pat p.s. I think this needs to be moved to the Painting forum

Thanks mate; appreciate you looking in. The shop took a while and I am almost completely set-up now ready to enjoy the retirement years. Thanks Mike; great to have you visit again cheers Pat

Great effort with the lathe Keith. What cutting tools did you use, the standard bits for metal or did you remove the tool post and use hand held wood cutting tools? cheers Pat

Looking great Sharpie - good luck with the completion date cheers Pat

You're making some great progress Mark - far from a 'dead' project The planking looks good and the 'painting' with wood will provide some very nice detail. cheers Pat

Quite the adventure you're having with this build Keith. An enjoyable log to follow. cheers Pat

Once you get going on the rigging there is no stopping you Danny - looking very good. cheers Pat

Those macro shots can be either your best friend (in revealing issues you had not seen) or your worst enemy in revealing issues that really aren't that observable Looks good Keith cheers Pat

Thanks Foxy. I have pretty well found most of what I need now (just some decals which is well underway). I opted for some 3D printed replacement parts and some PE to provide detail. Scale Warships has some great stuff but unfortunately for me, mostly at the wrong scale I am working with. Appreciate the pointer though. cheers Pat

Only too well Chris (something to do with a reptile mostly ) I still have a bosun's call at home (used it on the sleepyhead kids a couple of times. cheers Pat

Can't work without em Vossy; same issue on passing the 50 the pitch and ball seemed to get smaller - I use the same type as Tadeusz with interchangeable lenses (plastic). I have tried some cheap loupes (eBay - China) but I find it difficult to adjust for depth perception when working with them. Welcome to the club and a very long innings. cheers Pat

Great milestone John; especially with the number of interruptions I have caused that planking looks spot on. cheers Pat

Thanks Bogey, these bits are real 'nice' with plenty of detail for the scale and will correct some small errors, and poor definition in the kit. In this post I will try and add some of the thought processes going into the preparation for the building of this kit. As stated earlier, my intention is to try to depict her as she was back in 1973-76 so the biggest alteration will be to remove the classroom modifications and reinstate the Limbo Mk10 mortar, Type 182 towed torpedo decoy and add the correct boats. Unfortunately the ones in the kit look nothing like the real boats. The enhancements are to add the appropriate detail for such things as davits, cranes, RAS equipment, and better define the anchor capstan area on the forecastle John (Jim Lad) has been very helpful in ducking over to the 'bat' to get detail photos and dimensions of parts for us. Thanks again John, very much appreciate that. With the addition of some new decals for the gun barrel safety rings, danger and RADHAZ signs etc, and some PE for rope reels, guard rails etc.; hopefully I will be able to create a more accurate model. The hull is pretty good with just a small gap at the bow area to fill (dry fit assessment only). I am currently struggling with how to do the many upper deck fire hose racks with hydrants. These are going to be very finicky PE folding exercises (micro-origami) I think I will provided some discussion about decisions taken, the detail Bogey has been able to add for me and show you the kit part versus the enhanced detail parts from Bogey via Shapeways 3D printing. The frosted resin prints provide some nice detail, even at this scale. For example, the after castle block now has the properly defined vent intakes which even with well made PE would have been very hard to replicate. These are done in such a way that they have the same effect of 'added' detail so that minimal pre-shading etc will be required for definition when I start painting. I am currently getting the paints organised and Defence Models and Graphics (Australia)have been very helpful in providing some advice. I will provide more complete discussion on this when it is time to spray the first paint. cheers Pat

Very nice planking mate; looks a treat! cheers Pat

Coming along very nicely Dave; looks good. Always good to start with some hand-made jigs and tool setups; especially when the budget doesn't support something more upmarket that is a nice little setup you have contrived. One word of caution with a Dremel based lathe though is that you will have to take things quite easy as you will soon overload it (not a lot of torque) on larger dowels etc, especially if using hardwood. Will work - just go slow! By that I don't mean low rpm, but rather don't try to apply much sanding or cutting pressure. cheers Pat

The build is coming along nicely Keith, and a wealth of information being shared. One small note of caution though - watch the masking tape on the painted lower hull - the longer you leave it there the more likely the gum will adhere to the paint and discolour or mark it. I would consider removing the tape from the paint altogether and mask above the paint line using heavy duty paper or the like to cover the painted area? cheers Pat

Thanks Greg - I was aware of this one as the kit had the wrong flags; I got a replacement set from Float-A-Boat here in Melbourne. cheers and thanks for sharing. Pat

Also try Hobby Tools Australia ( http://www.hobbytools.com.au/ ) whom have these http://www.hobbytools.com.au/drill-bits-sets-and-accessories/ - Melbourne based supplier but ships Australia wide (and International) - just a happy customer cheers Pat