madtatt

Good morning, model builders. Before I go on vacation, I wanted to post a quick update. The front wheelhouse has been soldered and assembled. And the deck, too. I added a small styrene profile in the middle. This ensures the deck rests firmly on the armored control station and gives the whole thing stability. You can’t see any of it. Once you hang up, you’ll see that it would have been really tight with my profiles. And that’s how the Mikasa got its two upper levels. stern… and towards the bow. That’s it in a nutshell before I set off on my journey tomorrow. And here are a few more impressions of my model in its current construction state.

Hey Jeff, and thank you for your praise, it makes me proud. 😊 You speak from my heart. I really spend a lot of money on the high-quality additional details. But they catapult a model to the next level. And if they're not there, two crazy people like us spend days tinkering with the inferior original kit. But that makes us model builders, right?! 💪 I pushed the next cutters back for now, as the davits are missing and I can’t determine the optimal position. The steamboat isn’t glued down yet either. So I started on the rear bridge. I was a bit apprehensive about this construction phase. You might remember that I removed some of the profiles on the bridge houses because I wasn’t sure everything would fit in the end. But first things first. First, I laid the wooden deck while I could still exert pressure on the plastic part. This will stop once the underside has received its large brass component with the gusset plates. After everything had thoroughly dried, I wanted to attach the posts that support the bridge on the bridge house. They were originally made of plastic, but I immediately rejected that idea. I cut some out of brass to give them more stability. Attaching them, however, turned out to be a real test of patience. After testing the bridge, I realized, no, not like that. It’s completely unstable. So I’m starting from the back. I drilled holes for the posts so I could push them through from above later. Next, the outer support structure was attached. What a delicate construction phase. But it looks so good, doesn't it Jeff?! After I had completed that satisfactorily, I had to carefully tape everything off to avoid dirtying the wooden deck with the primer. The base coat is applied, and then the moment of truth. Does everything fit?! And you see, yes… everything fits together perfectly. So I wouldn’t have had to remove the profiles at all. It would have been close, but it would have worked anyway. Still, she’s confident. I’ve already soldered the little bridge house and placed it on the deck for fun. Very nice.

Okay, so it turned black. Today, the entire machinery arrived in the barge. Placed on the deck in its cradle for testing. The space is very limited and it is damn tight. Since the davits are still missing, the barge isn’t secured yet. The chain hoists for lashing it down aren’t attached either. The next cutters are again 3D prints. The shape of the Mikasa is slowly taking shape.

I have a question for you about the boiler of the steam boat, which I just painted in my favorite color, gray. Now I'm looking at the boiler and wondering, were they really painted gray?! Or were they perhaps painted black, since the gray wouldn't last long in the heat and might burn and peel off. Do any of you have any information about this? Edit: Hello everyone. This question has already been answered in other forums, and I'm going to paint the boiler black.

Thank you very much Jeff, very thoughtful. 😊 Let’s move on to the next yawls: the small steam launch. I haven’t found a 3D printer for this one, so I emulated Jeff.. Originally made from the box, the boat really doesn’t look anything like it. First, I removed the rough outline of the engine and the bulky center bar of the upper section. Then I inserted a grating floor. The Bismarck’s former bridge wing was trimmed and fitted. Cheers to the etched parts grab bag. And I removed the suggested grating at the rear. Now I made a bench seat and glued in the ribs from profiles. I attached an etched grille from the KA set to the rear. We still need a boiler. It’s also only rudimentarily represented in the original, so there’s room for more. A small profile should represent the engine and its cylinders. A few flanges on top—you can never have enough. Then, little by little, more details were added: piping, a handwheel, and a support for the tilting funnel. A small instrument panel at the front rounds it all off. Everything is then mounted on a styrene strip for easier handling. More piping and a second handwheel. It never hurts. And then I am quite satisfied with the whole facial expression. Let’s put the whole thing in the little boat. Let’s put the funnel in for a test. Ferrules are really great for small funnel. So far, so good. Now we’ll apply the paint, and then we’ll add the small parts like the propeller and rudder.

@Jeff59 Ah yes, if real life didn't always distract you from the beautiful things. 😁 Model building is like meditation for me when I come home from work and enter this little microcosm. 🧘‍♂️ I'm already looking forward to seeing what happens next with your Bismarck. 🫵😉

Many thanks again, Javlin. This weekend, I had planned to finally finish the pinnaces. The funnels had already been laid down and installed, but there were still a few small items missing that I wanted to add shortly before the end to avoid tearing them down again. Two more boat hooks scratched on each pinnace and the portholes glazed. A chain hoist is installed to secure the boats. Railings and companionways mounted on the foredeck. I need to refinish the deck where the pinnaces rest. During all the adjustments, I scratched the paint surface and had to patch it up. I’ll have to go back to that. Slowly life comes into the place. A new sailor has also started his service. He checks the tension on the pinnace’s chain hoist.

Thank you very much, Yves, for the great comment. Today just two pictures of the finished guyed funnels. This completes the first piece of rigging work. Now I can devote myself to the pinnaces again.

Ahoy, landlubbers. After a short creative break, I’d like to return with a mini update. I’ve pushed the pinnaces back again because I first have to take care of the funnel’s shrouds. I’ve given this a few thoughts. Rope tensioners definitely need to be installed; anything else would be illogical. How can I best do this without too much effort? Here’s my solution: First, I cut stanchions into small pieces. The green arrow points to pre-cut stanchions in a scale of 1:200. I want to use them as rope tensioners. The yellow arrow shows some in a scale of 1:350. They’ll serve as eyelets on the funnel. First, the rigging twine was attached to the eyelet and glued into the lower hole of the funnel. It’s working very well so far. It’s important for me to always use enough twine. This simplifies the whole knotting and threading process. Being cheap isn’t cool here. Then I thread the yarn through the two holes in the cut-off railing support. The yarn is passed through the deck eye and the second rope tensioner is put into position. The first piece of rigging on the funnel is finished. Painted with aluminum paint, the thread running along the outside of the rope tensioner is almost invisible. I’m happy with that and can now focus on the next pardunes.

I agree, Jeff. 👍 And I'll continue working on the Mikasa a bit soon.😉

Hi Jeff. So that's what this is about. This is a controversial point. First, these photos. I think there's no sign of these structures on it. But there's also the opinion that they were added later. The opinions are 50/50. So, since you've already tested it, I'd add it. It definitely sets itself apart from the mainstream.

Ahoy, Jeff. Good point, I thought so too. I also ordered more boats than I needed. It would be a really good idea if they made boats and accessories for specific boat types. That would make things a lot easier. And we have the same opinion about the wooden decks. I also wish I had gotten a deck for the Bismarck from Scaledecks. It was out of the question, and eventually I gave up and used the wooden deck from Pontos because I wanted to get further. And it wasn't suitable for the Mikasa either, since they don't even offer one for that boat. I even wrote to the company and asked if they could consider producing one for the Mikasa. I never received a reply. 🫤 Thanks for the flowers, Jeff. I'm taking a little break from model building at the moment. I have a lot of other things on my plate and don't want to lose focus while working on the Mikasa. 😉

Good morning, Jeff. Let's not misunderstand each other, you're talking about the Bismarck's group listening device, right?! (Gruppenhorchgerät) Arrow on the photo.

Very nice, I'll definitely be on board. When I see your Scharnhorst, the Bismarck will definitely be a great model. By the way, if you need materials for building the Bismarck, contact me. I have quite a few photos of this ship. Even pictures that aren't available online.

Oh yes, Javlin. Tell me, when I think about how much money I've put into my Bismarck, unbelievable. But it's just money. And when the result is pleasing, it makes the model builder's heart happy. I'd be happy to hear more from you. 😊