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Spaceman Spiff

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Everything posted by Spaceman Spiff

  1. Spaceman Spiff
    Small update. The end is in sight. Sorry for the crappy pic quality - I will have better ones later. Except for a few more bits of PE, the ship is almost finished. Still have to add the mini-mast. Tomorrow I’ll seal the deck and decal it, then weather (my second favorite part after painting) it. The air wing needs to be finished. Then it’s on to making the sea dio. Is it perfect? Far, far from it. Dad likes it and that’s all that matters. Y’all have no idea how’s much I hate this kit 😂
  2. Spaceman Spiff
    Thanks. Going to set that mini-mast aside for now and think about what I want to do. May just leave it as is. Started on the cable/fuel/fire reels PE by White Ensign - I’ll use lead wire and/or black thread for the hoses.Then on to the helos - the supplied ones were so bad I just purchased someTrumpeter birds. Oh, and since there are practically always crew on deck, picked up a set of 1/350 black cat sailors. Now this should be fun. Once all that is together to include the PE railings/ladders/etc , mask off the black waterline stripe and flight deck and start with the haze grey (MRP lacquer)
  3. Spaceman Spiff
    Little mast part 2. Hypodermic needles, lead wire, decal paper, speaker wire, and styrene all were used. Still needs work, but thoughts?
  4. Spaceman Spiff
    Working on a fix and should have the next version tonight. For the supports and part going above, I’ll use stretched Sprue, if that doesn’t work then maybe lead wire but I believe the sprue will be fine. For the loops at the end s, I’ll use lead wire. Great stuff that I use in wheel bays and cockpits of the planes
  5. Spaceman Spiff
    I think I’m getting close on the little mast. I cut decal paper to make the connectors. It’s a start - let me know what you think…
  6. Spaceman Spiff
    It’s the “connector” area where the two mast and spar/boom/whatever meet
  7. Spaceman Spiff
    This one. Two different attempts just plain sucked
  8. Spaceman Spiff
    Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Stalled a bit now because I have zero idea how to make that mini mast. Zero. 😂
  9. Spaceman Spiff
    That is awesome! Thanks for sharing - wish it had talked about Dad’s ship a little more. Towards the end of his cruise, they asked if he wanted to re-up for the Apollo 14 recovery mission in ‘71. He said no - he was ready to come home. I wasn’t a year old before they left on their Vietnam cruise (69-70). Thanks again!!!!
  10. Spaceman Spiff
    Very small update - just pulled the tape off. Very pleased with it, except I feel the numbers are a little funky. Weathering will come later and will also tone down the stark contrast a bit. Thoughts?
  11. Spaceman Spiff
    First - and maybe only - coat on the flight deck. I have a couple of touch ups I’ll need to do, but I’m pretty happy with the tonal variations, although they aren’t really visible in the pic. Looks better in person. I think I may just leave it and use oils to weather/lighten when the time comes. I used MRP lacquer Dark Grey, FS36076. MRP is one of my all-time favorites. Once it’s all dry and I’m satisfied, I’ll remove the masking. Speaking of masking, I didn’t mask for the shadows as that was kicking my butt and I couldn’t get it right. Maybe I’ll come back and hand paint it. Next up is build try mini-mast and start adding stuff and prep for the haze grey… Sorry for the crappy pics.
  12. Spaceman Spiff
    Opinion time: of all the pics I’ve posted showing her and the flight deck, is it my old eyes or is there really a shadow shade around the “11”? Masking that is a little more difficult 😂
  13. Spaceman Spiff
    I was going to wait until I had finished painting the flight deck before I posted again, but decided against it. I fired up my trusty Iwata airbrush and got to work. Did I mention that painting is my favorite part of a build? I did sort of a reverse black basing technique - where I put down the black second. I love this basing method as it allows for tonal variations, something I’ve used on my 1/48 birds. The black actually isn’t black paint, but Mr Surfacer 1500 (black) thinned with Mr Color Leveling Thinner( this thinner is liquid gold) to the consistency of skim milk. You’ll notice I went a bit too heavy around the numbers, but that’s because in wanted to ensure complete shading. My next step is to mask the shadows before painting My hope is that can lay down the dark grey in thin enough layers to show the tonal differences. We shall see. I may have to add some white to the paint.
  14. Spaceman Spiff
    All deck markings have been laid out using Tamiya’s 2mm masking tape. I used Ammo by MiG’s masking fluid to seal the seams where the tape meets, hence the dots, in order to prevent any paint from seeping in. First step will be the black for the number shadowing. Also will spray black for the waterline even though most of it will be covered when I put it to sea.
  15. Spaceman Spiff
    Small update. Just about have the back-half lines on. It was a b***h getting them lined up. Once the rest are down and the numbers ready, I’ll start pre- painting and then painting. I know I have other things to build but just wanted to do something different.
  16. Spaceman Spiff
    Using 2mm Tamiya, I laid out the first of the landing/parking markings. Measurements came from the decals. This will take a while and then it’s on to painting the deck.
  17. Spaceman Spiff
    This settles it once and for all on the deck markings. They will be painted on. Note the shading on the numbers. Not going to worry about painting a white edge around it. Also note the deck is very heavily weathered. And here is the open 3"/50 mount. Have not been able to source this type. If anyone could point me where to go, I would greatly appreciate it!
  18. Spaceman Spiff
    The mk35 had the small radar antenna, correct? Haven’t been able to find those
  19. Spaceman Spiff
    I saw that. I had gotten these years ago. Don’t know the Mark for the ones I saw in Dad’s book, but they had were radar directed and had a small antenna/dish on them
  20. Spaceman Spiff
    Work on the armament continues. The open 3”/50 mounts are a beast. They are a Veteran Models kit. Not quite the right version, but like the enclosed dual mounts, no one makes those - hint, Mr Model Monkey! Also ordered some 1/350 Black Cat USN sailors and USN lockers, another hint… So here it is so far. I’ll do the other one tomorrow. Here is what I have so far. Thanks for looking!
  21. Spaceman Spiff
    Ok, sorry to keep on this subject, but I'm thoroughly confused about the flight deck markings. It's a shame that there aren't many photographs of the deck at that time. The few I found that give a date show more than just the dashed line. Now, after asking Dad again, he says he doesn't remember - after all, it's been 50+ years since he was on her. I'll look at that book one last time, then maybe I will paint them. Just in case.
  22. Spaceman Spiff
    Yes, sir
  23. Spaceman Spiff
    Ok, so I talked to Dad. Only a dashed line going down the starboard side and not all the extra “parking” markings going down the deck. Also noted is the black shading on the “11” at both ends…an interesting thing about that is that the shading is different fore and aft. For the aft numbers the shading is made to to look as looking from the rear and throwing shadow forward. The forward numbers look as if it’s throwing shadows to the rear. Oh, and there was no white outline of the deck as in the other “later pic.” Interesting. Easy enough to do. Painting will begin when this humidity drops a bit. I have started on the armament, the dual 3”/50 enclosed mounts are ready for paint. Working on the last two mounts positioned aft. Pics coming soon. I will do an in-process pics of each stage of painting and post them when I finish that part. Thank you so for following along!
  24. Spaceman Spiff
    Found another view from Dad's cruise book. 1969-1970 WestPac cruise. Best image of the flight deck except other bits and pieces. Note the black shading on the deck numbers, the single white dashed line down the starboard side. Seems as if the other deck markings are missing. Not sure. Also not sure of correct scale for the number size in 1/350
  25. Spaceman Spiff
    Thank you! The plastic rod I was going to use is a bit thick, however I have a bit smaller gauge brass rod or maybe even a hypodermic needle I can use in its place. I may not have to carve it out but build around it as in the pic. That’s the USS Guam in your last pic, but the masts look the same. Here is something I found a bit interesting in studying the photos last night - the deck markings appear to be different in Dad’s cruise book vs other period pics. It appears that the “11” has a black shadow effect and also there is only one dashed white line on the left side of the deck. While the markings may be hidden by the people in the ceremony, it certainly looks different. Are my eyes deceiving me?

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