BLACK VIKING

And me  

Morning,
 
Mark,
You can only get the really big clothespins at the really big, super size Wal-Marts. 
They work well for propping up a car for repairs!
 
Well, the virus holiday continues....hmmmm...what to work on today....B-25 or Niagara...hmmmmmmm….plastic or wood.....hmmmm…..God I love modeling!!!!
Maybe another cup of coffee and an update from yesterdays activities first.
 
I am mostly following the instructions as for a building sequence. 
Under the cockpit is the forward landing gear. There is some PE for this area.
I installed what I could. Some PE were painfully small. I tried, but, they ended up flying off the tweezers never to be seen again.

These will be painted with a Tamiya flat aluminum. 
I may try some Tamiya panel accent in this area to give it a gritty/greasy look.
I've never used weathering products, but this may be a good area to try.
Any recommended products for weathering? I've seen powders and paints. 
 
I've heard that airbrushing metallic colors can be a bear. 
With that in mind, I'll prep the rear landing gear as well and then paint all at once. 

I gave the PE for the cockpit area one coat of Mr Color flat black. 
I was going to give them another coat but I kind of like the "beaten up" look.
 
Boy, close up photography REALLY brings out the scratches in the plastic. 
Some of you more experienced modelers may have noticed my shaving plastic for PE skills are still a work in progress. 

Here's where we stand.
 
Good from afar but far from good!
I really need to stop zooming in too close to these pieces with the camera!!!!!!

Those PE foot pedals were a beast to install. 
Basically had to hold them with tweezers until the glue started to grab.
They were done before the control panel was glued to the cockpit.  

I hope to have the seats installed soon. 
I'm working backwards. Control panel, flight controls then seats. 

Wash your hands!
 
Tom E 
 
 
 

Removing the frames from the boards was a bit tricky, laser not cut all the way through. After removal a quick sand and now a dry fit. Instructions have the bulkheads numbered but not on the actual pieces so it was a bit of a jigsaw getting the correct order.
I have the AOTS book to help along the way. 

WE have an engine, now we need wheels for the engine to do its job.....
 
Wheels and Tires.....
 

I normally don't partake of wide whitewalls, but in this case, on gold rims, they really look the part.....
 
But the point is to put the engine power to the wheels and for that we need a frame.......

For this edition, I stripped the chrome off the frame and running gear, the previous one I didn't and had to deal with constant touch ups cause paint doesn't stick to chrome that well. Paint adhesion here won't be a problem. Now this car had a frame that the engine crankcase was an integral part of the structure on the forward end. here I've inserted the engine between the frame rails to align the two sides so the rear cross members are assured of being square. It was removed for painting..... Overall semi-gloss black.......
 
Assembled....
 




Next part, the lower body pan & fenders....... (dressing out the underworks)
 
EG......
 
 

Well, it is now finished.  All the decals are applied, the final fiddly bits attached, radio antenna wired, and a coat of floor wax applied to seal everything and give it a nice gloss finish. Now to find a place to display it in my ever shrinking display areas. 
 
Thanks for following along, the comments, critiques, and assorted off-topic side conversations - enjoyed them all.
 
Photos follow:
 

In case anyone is wondering, it carries the markings for Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City (Michigan , I believe)
 
Stay tuned for the next incarceration build
 
 

No, you dont... (politics...)

And me  

I have to wait for the decals to dry and set firmly so I can put a 2nd coat of gloss over them and then post some update photos.
 
In the meantime, reinforcements arrived at 1245 hours today.  Maybe I will now have enough fire power to blast my way out of this incarceration prison I've been in..... 
 

 

And me  

And me  

Cockpit has been painted. I am out of British Interior Gray Green, and no stores are open to buy it, so blended my own and airbrushed that. I think it came out darn close. I replaced the seat with a resin one from Ultracast. Aside from that it will be just kit parts other than decals. Next I need to gloss coat all of this so I can apply a wash. 

And me  

And me  

Some more progress. I really don't like fiddling around trying to get a mast to go down into the mast step once the deck is in place, so I made a sort of "channel" for the mizzen 


As the bonaventure doesn't go down so far I just put in a set of mast partners for it.

 
 
Bonaventure dry fitted:

And both mizzen and bonaventure

Constructing the fighting top for the bonaventure mizzen:



A hole drilled in the bottom for the mast to go through. When I first built the model I didn't know about crosstrees and trestletrees. The other (existing fore and main) masts don't have them, so I'm not putting them on the new ones.
 

And a disc on top. I'll be carving out the middle to form a ring as the upper surface of the top.
 

Reinforcing ring at the bottom - great gobs of glue, I'm afraid. Wiped off later:

And around the middle:

More photos when I've completed it.
 
Fighting top for the mizzen:
 

and I've made a "master" to get it circular. I'm hoping it works. That other disc will have the middle carved out to form the ring around the upper surface of the top.

More to come as I make more progress.
 
Steven
 
 
 
 

And here's another block, this time from the 11th century Byzantine ship wrecked at Serce Limani (also known as the glass wreck because of the cargo it carried). The block turns out to be very small when you make it at 1:50 scale - 4mm long, 2mm wide and 1.2mm thick. Drilling the holes was quite a challenge (it took three tries before I succeeded).
 
Here's the original block as discovered (from The Rig of the Eleventh Century Ship at Serce Liman, Turkey - MA Thesis by Sheila Matthews, TAMU 1983:
 

And here's my copy of it under construction:
 
Transverse hole:

Holes for sheave slot

Trimming to size:


Finished:

And assembled, with lines in place:

VERY fiddly. Now to work out where to use it!
 
Steven
 
 
 

Well I think I am DONE with the Loon which is the first of four!  I mounted on the Camp plaque we received each year we were campers (this one is from my 2nd year at camp in 1960 - appropriate as my plan is to give this at the 100th camp anniversary this summer - 60 years after I received this plaque).  The next model will be the Hawk which I will mount next to the Loon and then build a case.  I am still planning on building the final two models (Gull and Falcon) for myself and mount on my last camper plaque in 1964 but we'll see...I will keep this log open and only note major progress going forward.
 
 
 
 

I found this canoe at a second hand store a while back. Even before I thought of building ship models. I had it on my shelf all this time and decided that I could do something with it. Definitely inspired by @Osmosis and his beautiful Peterboro, recently completed.
I always thought that this canoe is out of scale; 20.25” long and a beam of about 3.25”. I has no tumblehome, no keel, no thwarts and a large rocker. But I think I can do something with it. I initially thought I would somehow cut it down to 16” to make it more proportional to a typical canoe but decided against that.
I've sanded all the paint off of it. As you can see the planking was very well done. Interesting on how the builder crossed the planks at the bottom instead of meeting in the center. I don’t know if that is a usual way of planking a canoe. I’ve never seen that before.
I removed the fore and aft decks and then the gunwales.
I want to clean up the inside but I don’t know how. Any advice is appreciated!
I plan on stemming the whole thing and compressing the beam by about 1/4” - 1/3”. It’ll be a long skinny canoe but I think that will take away the flare profile to make straight sides or maybe a little tumblehome.
I would like to build up the bow and stern to change from a touring profile to a more traditional profile. I think that will help in making it look more proportional. At least to my eye.
I’m going to plank over the existing planks. Add a keel and stems. Add nice decks and gunwales. Add seats and thwarts and finally make a nice pair of paddles.

This appears to be someone’s interpretation of a wood canvas canoe.  I personally think that it is well done. The rocker may be excessive but canoes intended for use in white water river canoeing are built with considerable rocker to improve maneuverability.  Likewise River canoes often do not have keels.  Unlike other boats a wood canvas canoe does not require a keel as a structural member.  A lack of tumblehome would also improve stability in challenging conditions.
 
The real thing would be built from cedar, the ribs 5/32in thick x 2-1/2 in to 3in wide.  Planking would be 5/32in to 3/16in white or red cedar.  Each canoe builder had his own planking pattern and the planking is not intended to be watertight.  Planking is nailed through the ribs with the nail points headed over.  No glue is used.
 
The canoe is then covered with heavy canvas.  Canvasing is an interesting job.  The Canves is made up as an envelope suspended by ropes.  The canoe is put in the envelope and stretched longitudinally.  I used a boat trailer winch.  The canvas is drawn up over the gunnel with plier like tools and nailed or stapled.  The nails or staples are later covered up by the outwale.  The canvas is not glued to the planking.  If the planets are properly aligned the result is a nice smooth canvas cover.  The canvas is then treated with a home made coating to waterproof it.  I used linseed oil, old oil based paint, powdered silica, and Japan drier all mixed together.  The canoe is then painted.
 
The point to all of this is that planking over this otherwise nice model will ruin it.  A good paint job- satin or eggshell finish will be as close as you can come to the painted canvas.  The Peterborough canoe is a completely different animal with totally different framing, and modifying your canoe will just make it a bastard.  From your “handle” it seem that you are interested in Northwoods lore and culture.  You can then take satisfaction in knowing that the wood canvas canoe is/was a direct descendant of the Native American’s and Vouyager’s birch bark craft.
 
You should be able to find a huge amount of information about these canoes.  Thy looking up the following:
 
Wooden Canoe Heritage Association
Wisconsin Canoe Museum, Spooner, Wisconsin
Old Town Wood Canvas Canoes
Northwoods Canoe Company 
 
Roger

In response to the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic, and to help ease your time while practicing social distancing, the Nautical Research Guild has decided to make the digital edition of the Nautical Research Journal, Vol. 65.1 – Spring 2020, free for all to read and enjoy. Please share this digital edition with all your friends, family, and fellow modelers you think might enjoy, or need, a fun distraction.

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I always liked the boat tails. Here’s an Auburn I saw this past summer in the town next to mine. Cars had a lot of class then. I’m going to enjoy this build.
Kurt

Hi all and thanks for the comments and likes  
A bit more done the wings and tail fins have been fitted and the fuselage glue together.
I have dry brushed the whole aircraft to give it a worn look.
 I have found out that she was hit by flack and number 2 engine caught fire but was put out quite quickly. It was replaced and a new cowl fitted but wasn't painted for a few weeks so I have shown this.
Just a little bit more to do then she will be complete.
Thanks for following 
Martyn

Have to say I have always put black thread between the seams of the planks on the decks of my models. I realize that others do it differently and I really admire some of their techniques, but to each their own. As for the procedure, I now have a method that works for me. First I give all the planks a preliminary sanding before I glue them to the false deck. Then I lay down a plank to glue it. Before the next plank is put down I wax and lay down a black thread adjacent the plank. The wax helps somewhat in keeping the thread in place. Then the next plank is glued down adjacent to the thread, which provides the space between planks. Once the planking is completed, the threads are removed. The planking can now be sanded again to remove any glue and smooth out rough spots. I also take a #19 exacto blade and run it dwon the seams to remove any glue that might have got left behind. Then the thread is laid down again between the planks. I like my decks lacquered so I apply a coat as the threads are laid down. It takes a couple coats of matt lacquer to finish off the decks for me.  I realize it's a bit of a process but I like the results, so I keep doing it. Not for everybody I know, but hey, we're snowflakes, we're all different. Here are a few pic's...
 

Ok this will be OOB, and with only what I have on hand for supplies. I built one of these 30+ years ago and the wife took one look at it and claimed it... It sat on her shelf in the living room for 10+ years with a halogen spotlight shining on it.... And she was proud as punch when she was telling people that I built it for her...... Unfortunately, it didn't survive the trip to the new digs 20 years ago, and since I'm at a place I can't finish the truck till parts get here, I'm going to occupy my time re-creating something she loved.....
 
I'm starting with the Monogram # 2311 The Metal Master kit....

And yes, that is exactly the way Monogram thought we should build it... Soft Chrome & Gold.... The instruction have no painting suggestions or table of colors... I am on my own... {chuckle}
You know it doesn't look all that bad in reality, it's not real  of course and saudi sheiks weren't buying cars with sterling silver bodies and solid gold trim yet..... This was the 1930's, the middle of the great depression Ford Model "A"'s were selling for just over $250.00 Henry Ford was paying his workers unheard of money so not only would they stay but be able to buy his cars... this Packard was selling for $5,200.00 decidedly a car for the well heeled...
 
But one must understand what one was buying when they bought one of these, THIS, is the original muscle car.... Two generations before Carrol Shelby started the ponycar/musclecar rage, this was the car to get if you wanted to go fast in style...... It has an up-tuned Packard Straight Eight that boasted a whopping 109hp, it was sold as a car that would do 109 mph when everyone else was barely getting to 80.... (road tests easily demonstrated that it would peg the speedo at 120 and eventually break the cable)
Yep, 120 mph stock....... some 120 Packard speedsters were built, in five different body styles, of course the most popular was the runabout, but they had a phaeton, a coupe, a sedan and a touring car as well, all built on the speedster chassis. (some 50 or so were runabouts of which 30-35 still exist, the sedan is the rarest of them all, 15 were built and only two known vehicles remain)
 
They can sell for up to 2 million dollars for a particularly well documented showroom car, or 50-60,000 for a decdntly maintained driver.
 

Anyway... as with all vehicle kits, they start you out with the engine......
First lets take a look at the real deal.....

Packard Green and a nice polished aluminum crankcase trimmed in black.....
 

And my feeble effort to replicate it....
 
Frame coming up next.......
 
EG

finally.........some progress on the Memphis Belle    I took the day off yesterday............'cuz I wanted to,  and not because of the virus.  don't get me wrong......this is some serious stuff,  but the more I hear about it.......naaaa,  I better shut up.......chalk it up to one of the emotions felt during a crisis like this    
 
I had made a mistake in my paint choice early on......the Zinc chromate is too yellow........I could have used it on the Wulfe Hound,  for cry'in out loud.   to give it a green hue,  I mixed in some olive drab.....it's much better,  but not perfect.  I will use it.....only for the reason of highlighting the interior more.  you'll see it in a moment......     I painted the instrument panel and the navigator's compartment with a brush.  it came out a bit streaky,  so I will assemble the entire interior and use the airbrush on it.  I can touch it up with the brush later.   after assembling the interior,  minus a few key parts that need detail painting,  I slid it into the fuselage,  so it would dry in the correct position.........I did it with every segment I added {rest easy.......no time lapse photography}.
  
out of the 'box'.......it looks like this.

you can see my Zinc Chromate Green....other colors will be added after the rest of the assembly is painted.....the seat color,  ect.....     then I started to play with the turrets...I couldn't find this one part.  after a visual search came up empty,  I referred to the number and searched again.  I couldn't believe what I saw.........this part was totally unrecognizable......it was loaded with flash!  I spent about an hour trimming it.....there was even a tiny rectangular area within the part that needed to be cleaned out.......a really small part to begin with.

the part you see in the shadow is another part with a lot of flash........even though it's a larger part,  it broke as I was cleaning it {it's drying at the moment}.  here's a better shot of the navigation compartment

with this,  it will involve the clear parts.  this is my first attempt using a window mask set.  I think I'm a tiny bit off with the windshield........I'll fix that  

the two sides up at the nose were next.........these two panels are clear.  they are the main reason why I chose to buy this set.  each side has three windows,  with one of them housing a machine gun.  I was dismayed that the set does not have a mask for the gun window.  I improvised a bit,  cutting out a mask for them both.....not perfect,  but they will do,  although I could try and round off the corners.

I've also done some of the painting that I felt I could do....some of the small bits.  today I hope to get larger areas done    more on her soon!