yvesvidal

Chris, I am very glad to see the Master of Cruise Liners back on the saddle. Still waiting to see that 1/200 Titanic kit.... 🙂 Yves

Craig, Each session is purchased separately. Yves

Kevin, you may want to organize all these wires as they will not fit inside the hull. Also, the light leaking out of the modules will look ugly, through the openings of the deck. Yves

Mike, Nothing is double planked. The hull is supposed to be copper tiled and that is probably where I am going. Above the water line, I am planning to use the maple planks of 0.4 mm thick (same width as the main limewood planks, 8 mm) and pretend to have a nicer planking arrangement. We will see how it goes. Yves

Well, there is not much I can do at the stern at this stage of the hull building: It is time to move the construction crew to the bow: Yves

Turangi, This is a gorgeous diorama, beautifully executed. The model is stunning and the long wooden planks are perfectly displayed. I would just place a few 4x4 pieces of wood to insulate the planks from the ground. Wood was never placed directly on the ground. Yves

That Vallejo Royal Blue color is stunning. Beautiful hull. Yves

I just glued the rear gun deck section. The hull has been coated with resin and so the deck can be installed permanently: The figures (AMATI 35 mm) may be a tad too small, although 35 mm is about right for 1/48th scale: A goofy picture: Yves

Not really a "scale model" per say, but Stefan D. is currently the Master at 3D rendering and has published a large number of absolute references and books on the subject of Battleships. Yves

Oh, I forgot to present the stand.... available in Session #4 only..... Shame on CAF for that one, since you really need it during Session #2. On top of that they cannot even spell Bellona correctly.... Yves

Second quadrant completed. Of course, lots of sanding remains to be done.... but the overall shapes are there: I am leaning very strongly in favor of a coppered hull. Copper tiling has always been a fascination for me (the glittering of the metal...) and since Bellona was tiled later in its existence, it makes sense to try to do it. Besides my planking is far from being presentable as such and will require a second planking in the non-tiled sections (above the water line). I also suspect that the bow is going to be even more difficult to plank than the stern... Therefore, I am learning about the tiling process by reading what the members of this forum have done on their models. The deep blue is the one that matches the best, the English paint used on these period ships. Inside the hull, I am brushing some acrylic resin on the wood, to seal it and increase the bonding strength of the planks to the bulkheads. There is an enormous amount of pressure and tensions taking place and I do not wish the planks to start coming out, in a few months or years. Planking has been done with Thick and Quick Titebond glue (or is it Quick and Thick?) and I trust them to a certain point. The only glue I trust fully is the two components epoxy, slow curing glue. Before brushing the resin.... And after ! I noticed that the lime/poplar wood provided by CAF Model was occasionally splitting. Soaking that wood into resin is probably a good insurance for the long term. Interestingly, no resin seeped through the hull....indicating that it is waterproof. Just for fun, I could not resist trying the various gun deck pieces: And the Upper deck and misen mast: It is getting exciting.... Yves

Don't feel bad Zack. We all go through these challenges and defeats. It is part of the learning process and the mastering that comes well later.... 🙂 Yves

Superb ship, Maurino. Yves

Magnifique !! Yves

Some progress on the planking. I almost finished one quadrant of the ship: Most of the planks were placed in this crude jig: A little dipping in pure alcohol and then placed between the nails - Four planks can fit nicely, while drying in shape. When released, they rebound a little bit, but are more willing to comply to the difficult shape of that hull. Now, I just have to do the other side, with more than 24 planks.... A first pass of "scraper" and some rough sanding took place. I am still debating if I will paint the hull (anti-worms white) or copper plate it. I would love to do the copper plating but need to learn about that process. Non-covered section of the hull may require a second planking made with 0.4 mm thick maple planks, provided in the kit. I still have plenty of time to think about it.... Yves

Congratulations John. Such a beautiful and unusual model, extremely realistic and built like the prototype. Yves

Kevin, Some fierce competition coming my way... I will be following with a lot of interest. Do not neglect too much the Panart, Enterprise and many other kits you have, though. Yves

Is the Gee Bee, the 1/32nd scale William Brothers kit? Yves

Alan, You have been officially promoted to Creality Ender V2 Field Support Manager !!!!! WOW, what a difference in printing. Yves

Very interesting project. Surprise or Sophie? I like both. Yves

Alan, What a difference that upgrade makes. And thank you for identifying and finding a solution to this problem for us all, Creality Ender 3 users. Although mine is not as damaged as yours, I will definitely consider that upgrade on my printer. Yves

It is starting to look really good, Ras. Yves

I love the excellent rendering of the wales cuts, through the laser parts provided in the kit. It is very realistic. Yves

It is so precious !!!! This is going to be a big hit on the market place. Yves

Also, there was a question about the size of the large guns. I just started putting one together for fun: Multiple PE parts are also provided to finish the gun. Yves