BLACK VIKING

Seat assembled - painted and weathered, then the belts  from the  enclosed pe  were cut off and glued into place,   then when set  I  did a couple of coats of brushed on flat coat,  then I placed the seat in the tub  and routed the rear harness  through the rear framework  and glued it in place.
 
OC.

More work today -  next job inside the cockpit was to paint the floor assembly,   this was then shaded and dry brushed  for highlighting,  next was to attach the yoke and stearing columb, this again was  painted and weathered  then the floor was glued in place.
 
OC.

Stunning work my friend 
stay safe 
Martyn 

Mizzen sails in place. I decided to go ahead and leave the lanteen sail set as it did not block as much as I though it would and adds an interesting focal point as it is a unique looking sail. I still have a few rope coils to make and then I will start running the braces. 

Well considering I'm off work and stuck at home, my time playing, sorry working! on my models is very little due to all the things I have to do round the house. 😫😥
But have got some colour on the dauntless, only the white but it shows? progress. 😁 I'm thinking one more coat and things can start happening again. 
Thanks for all the likes, comments and digressions, they're much appreciated and a nice distraction 😏😉
Cheers till next time 👍

I have decided that for my first build log (ever) I am going to build the Mantua Model 1:12 Norman Catapult. I decided on this so that I can get some experience working with wood before trying to build a ship. I have a lot of experience working with plastic and some with metal so it will be interesting to see how those skills transfer to working with wood. 
 
Here is the kit:
And the first pieces put together:

Thank you kindly Denis,   I'm very impressed with the quality and accuracy of the moldings.
 
OC.

Hi all,
 
Another good couple of hours,  I touched up the green then picked out  the Black fittings, then a few items in flat Alum,   then when dry  (with hairdryer)  I then ran a pencil to create some shading, next using white I I did some highlighting  then I dulled everything with some flat coat.
 
Next will be to build the seat.
 
OC.

Hi Mates,
The results (for this part of the build) are less than what I wanted to achieve; with the deadeyes attached to the shrouds do I really see my errors. The laniards are not tight enough “looking” – as they come through the deadeyes, and the ropes also angle out incorrectly. 
 
Yes, I could have used thinner ropes, but the next available size down looked too thin. After looking at many museum examples, I felt that the ropes that I used look just about right. So- first two images are what I should have done.
 
The other images reflect the work up-to-date: I’m very ok with the shrouds, middle and end seizings along with how the laniards are secured to their shrouds. PS: Some of the lower deadeyes are angled badly – when I attach the ratlines I’ll do slight shroud twists here and there.
Also mainsail clew, leech and bunt lines have been attached. Sheet lines to follow after topmast yard is finished up.
 
Thanks for dropping - as always – Stay well everyone.
 

Hi OC I used to live about 15 miles from West Malling when I was a kid and my uncle worked there during the war as a parachute packer . Small world. 
 Martyn 

So, for something a little less nerve racking now, I moved on to the building the skylight.  All of the deck structures were built with basswood and separate from their coamings to protect them while working on the rest of the model.  I drew up three versions of its construction before choosing the one closest to the layout shown on the plans.  The walls were built first using 1/32” x 1/16” as a bottom plate arranged in a simple jig set up to hold it together as a flat rectangle with butt joints in the corners while glue up with carpenters glue.  When the glue set up it was removed from the jig and reloaded with more of the 1/32” x 1/16” material, but I made the butt joints offset from the arrangement of the bottom plate.  This was then glued and dried. 
     Using a small square, I laid out the arrangement of the vertical posts and glass bars on the plates making three openings on the sides and two on the ends.  Each opening had two bars apiece.  The posts were made of 3/32” lengths of 1/32” x 1/16” glued between the top and bottom plates.  But, before I assembled the walls, the plates were stacked on top of each other and taped together.  Using a #68 bit the holes for the glass bars were drilled thru the top plate and not quite thru the bottom with my Dremel drill press to assure alignment of the holes.  Now the plates were glued up with the posts glued in between and the assembly was painted light buff deckhouse.  Once dry, I inserted short lengths of some hard black wire for the glass bars through the holes and applied an additional plate on top of the end walls shaped with the camber for the roof that was also painted.  I drilled for and installed four small brass locating pins into the bottom of the assembly for later attachment to the coaming.  For the glass, I took some clear plastic from a packaging shell and cut it for a force fit inside the skylight frame so that I wouldn’t have to use glue that might obscure the plastic.
   To make the roof of the skylight I cut some very narrow strips of 1/32” basswood which I put over a cambered waxed form covered with coffee filter paper. I used some wood glue on the paper and assembled the strips edge to edge and let dry.  The filter paper was very thin but when glued to the planks the assembly held together quite well. (Although the filter paper got quite wet with the glue, it didn’t wrinkle up at all.)  This assembly was then trimmed with end caps that were fit and glued on.  I finished these roof planks the same as I treated the deck planks and when it was glued onto the walls it had a much more realistic look to it than my first attempts which had been cut from a sheet and scribed.  Here are some pics of the finished skylight below.



    For the wheelhouse, I cut off the end of a piece of basswood that was formed to match the required W and L dimensions so that no end grain would be visible.  One end was then tapered and filed down to form the roofs sloping cambered top.  A piece of 1/64” square basswood was cut and fit for the trim piece.  The face of the wheelhouse was drilled for the ships wheel shaft.  The assembly was then painted light buff deck house.
     Since the roof on the wheelhouse was much thinner than the other deckhouses, I used some of my grooved 1/64” plywood instead.  Since the grooves were too far apart, I scribed lines in between them.  The roof was stained and finished like the decking on the top and the perimeter of the bottom.  Once dry, it was glued on by clamping it with a cushioned pad on the roof side to ensure it would follow the shape.  The edges of the roof were then finished; the wheel was painted a dark brown and glued on with medium CA.  Below are a couple of photos of the completed wheelhouse.


 

WOW Lou
 
I have no idea if they are out of scale or not. But I do know what the 1/35th pilot harnesses look like on my Huey. They are small, so yours must be TINY. You did a fantastic job in my opinion, such as it is. My hat is off to you.

I think this self isolation has cocked my brain up . I forgot to add the pictures  
Martyn

I think this self isolation has cocked my brain up . I forgot to add the pictures  
Martyn

Just had a look a a few more pics and I found this.
Martyn

Cheers for looking in Popeye .
Had a bit of time this afternoon to have a go at the name on the side . I think it looks ok , just one more thing the paintwork looks to new and is there a way of whethering without a airbrush. Any help would be most appreciated.
Stay safe all 
Martyn

Hi all and a big thanks for looking in . I can't find a lot of information on this plane but she was damaged by flack which killed the ball turret gunner but was repaired to fly again. If anyone can find out more I would be very happy.
Hears a picture of her and I believe her code number is232006.
 I will post some pics of the build later 
Martyn
 

May I say a big thank you for all the information Egilman and everyone who has looked in   .
Hears a few pictures. The fuselage and wings where painted with Tamiya USAF olive drab and the underside USAF mid grey . I have built up the cockpit which is very basic. It needed a bit of filing to get it to fit . Next job painting the logo on the side before I start putting it together.
cheers for following 
Martyn

Oh well, We still know that the others exist so I doubt you will be able to get away with it for long. BUUUUUUUUUTTTTTTTTTT as a certified roterhead I can still look forward to this build and forgive you just a little. This time.

The Borg lost !  Resistance is not futile  !  My next  aircraft will be a somewhat smaller model than what is anticipated.  That is until I can figure out where to display the other two behemoths everyone wants to see built.
 
Some years back I was invited by a close friend who was career US Coast Guard, first as an Enlisted then as a Warrant Officer, to his Change of Command ceremony during which he assumed command of Coast Guard station Sandy Hook NJ.  Attending his Change of Command ceremony were members of Air Station Atlantic City who decided to just fly over for the ceremony in one of their Dolphin helicopters. As they approached the beach to land the pilot executed a series of hold and hover maneuvers as the Dolphin descended, roughly at about 10-20 foot intervals; I was able to snap some photos each time he hovered.  He is retired now after a 30 plus year in the Coast Guard.  Those photos follow:
 
On approach
 

 
Hover 1
 

Hover 2

Hover 3
 

Hover 4 - couple of feet to go

Touch down
 
And
Watching him descend and hold a hover was quite impressive.
 
And now on to the build
 
The obligatory box and contents and instructions
 



On examining the contents it is a well made kit, like the other Trumpeter kits I've assembled, namely the 1:350 scale ships.
 
The next update may take a while as I need to order some paints for this model.  Stay turned !
 
 
 

Psychotherapy, and the sails filling slowly  with wind. Wish to all of you, all the best and an end to  this  catastrophe that came on us so suddenly.

Perma-Grit Tools
Perma-Grit Ltd.
For purchase and enquiries, visit www.permagrit.com
 

 
 
We all know the old adage when it comes to making purchases, ‘Buy well, or buy twice’. That is especially true with regard to buying tools. We’ve all bought things for our hobby which looked great at the time or looked like a bargain. I know that in my case, very few of those purchases were actually money well spent. One area, working with wood, that we all need to buy for, is the sometimes-onerous task of sanding our models. Over the years, I’ve learned that buying good quality aluminium oxide paper is probably a better deal than cheap silicon carbide paper. However, when it comes to specific tools to do the job, one of the best names on the market, and one of the most respected, is English firm, Perma-Grit. This company has built its reputation up over a period of almost 30yrs now, manufacturing Tungsten Carbide grit tools of different grades, by bonding it to steel under extremely high heat, in a furnace. Perma-Grit have sent us a sample of their tools which a modeller could find very useful on the workbench, and I have taken the opportunity to use a small number on my current Zulu fishing boat. 
 
Needle Files (different size shafts)
In my sample pack were these four needle files. These are the 18cm/5mm shaft, and 14cm/3mm shaft. All Perma-Grit tools are packaged against a card backing and shrink sealed in clear plastic. The rear of the packet also has information relating to the specific product range.


 
The tools you can see here are:
18cm Large Needle File (Round, fine), # LNF-ROUNDF 18cm Large Needle File (Half round, fine), # LNF-HROUND 14cm Needle 3 Square, (medium), # NF-3SQUARE 14cm Needle File, Hand (medium), #NF-HAND  


Firstly, a little about the grade of grit with these needle files. Files with ‘fine’ grit are classed as an equivalent of UK 320 grit sandpaper. Those with ‘medium’ grit as classed as UK 220 grit sandpaper. The surface of these files is densely packed with grit, and I can’t see any of this coming away readily. Whilst Perma-Grit don’t supply a lifetime’s guarantee, if you feel that any tool from them hasn’t met your expectations, then you are always welcome to let them know of this. Cleaning the surface of these has also been thought of. These files are pretty impervious to most chemicals, so you can use acetone to remove any CA, and Nitromors/paint stripper to remove general debris.

 
Whilst these tools can be used ‘as is’, some modellers will feel more comfortable using a handle, and I’m also one who would feel that I can exercise more control with a handle fitted. To cater to shaft size, Perma-Grit offer these two handles:
 
Handle 3mm collet, # NFH Handle 5mm collet, # LNFH  
These are simple to use. You just twist the knurled ring to loosen the collet and then slot the file in before retightening. Of note here is that the red handle is hollow and can accommodate quite a lot of the file shaft so you can adjust the file to what suits you best.

 
 
 
Sanding blocks, angles, and flat files
Sanders come in all shapes and sizes, and so they do from Perma-Grit too. We have three types here, all very different and with a wide range of roles in our hobby. For your info, tools classed as ‘coarse’ have an equivalent UK sandpaper grit of 180.

 
Angle 75 Degrees (coarse), # R-201C Flat File (fine), # F-101 Wedge Block (coarse, fine), # WB140  
The Angle sander is an unusual thing. It’s very easy to hold and manipulate, with two sanding faces. This one has a coarse grit, but can also be bought with a fine grade, which, given the shape and possible modelling uses, would perhaps be a safer bet. The Flat File is simple in approach. This is long length of steel with a fine abrasive coating on one side. This could be used for getting the squareness of a freshly planked hull, removing a lot of that waste until you switch to a sanding block or just manual sanding paper.


With the Wedge Block, you get something more akin to a traditional sanding block, except in metal of course. Where this differs is that one side of this is fine grit for some nice finishing work, and the other side is coarse. As I’d already done the rough work on my model hull, I took the opportunity to do some fine sanding. The grit on these sure takes off material superbly, and I went very gentle with this.



 
 
6.5m Round File (fine), # R-204F
If traditional style files feature in your workshop, then this one is very similar to that, being a regular looking round file with an integrally moulded handle. The whole shaft on this is coated in Tungsten Carbide and the handle is very comfortable in the hand as well as being nicely weighted. 


 
Rotary tool bits
Perma-Grit sent me a small number of their most commonly used rotary tools. All of these have 3.1mm shafts and are compatible with Dremel rotary tool products.

The ones I have here are:
 
Rotary Drum (fine, 11mm diameter), # RF3F Rotary Rod (coarse, 4mm diameter), # RF6C Cutting Disc (32mm diameter), # RD2




 
The Drum tool is as you would expect and very similar in appearance to Dremel except that this doesn’t need to be assembled, nor will it wear out as quickly. Being fine grade, this will be perfect for the hobby, when bevelling bulkheads etc. The Rod tool is exactly that. Tungsten Carbide has been fused to the shaft, enlarging its diameter to 4mm. The one I have here is coarse but can also be purchased in a finer grade. Of course, the Cutting Disc does need a little assembly. All that’s involved is slipping the disc underneath the nut and spring washer, tightening with a small spanner. It MUST be noted the rotary tools running speeds are anywhere from 5000rpm to 20,000rpm, and they are NOT recommended for metal

Whilst these tools have been supplied as separates, they can also be bought as sets. If you already have several of these tools, then the sleeves (tool rolls) can be purchased separately. I have two such sleeves here. One is designed for the larger tools, and the other for smaller tools. These are made from red canvas so are rugged, and they are secured with a Velcro fastener. 





 
 
My sincere thanks to Perma-Grit for sending these tools out for me to take a look at for Model Ship World. To buy these and check out the rest of their extensive range, visit www.permagrit.com
 
 

Hi all,
   I started this kit about two years ago, and in the general workbench confusion that reigns in my shop I thought I lost ALL the rest of the parts to finish it up, so I put it in the "finish later" pile. Lo and behold, when digging for other stuff I unearthed most of the missing parts... the cutters especially. The Verlinden 1:200 ironclad series (about 5 kits, I think) are absolutely flawless resin castings with no flash, blobs or bubbles. The dimensions are about 12" long (with spar torpedo), 2.75" wide and 2.5" tall (with masts). I think they're out of production, but they're out there for less than $100 if you hunt around. They are simple waterline kits, with a one piece hull and only about 10 other resin parts. Since I've already completed most of the time consuming work, I've decided to finish this while I continue on my Philly. 
 
   CSS Palmetto State was one of about 22 ironclads built or commissioned by the South in the Civil War, and were generally outclassed and outnumbered by their Union counterparts. The South just didn't have the materials or industrial capacity to have parity with the Union, but they sure came up with some creative and interesting designs using what they had on hand. Here's a brief history of the CSS Palmetto State.
 
Things I will need to do to finish it are:
 
Straighten up the PE railings (aftermarket, from a 1:350 Bismarck PE add-on kit)
Finish adding the rope for the gunport covers
Add the anchors and anchor davits with appropriate rigging
Add battened masts, oars and sails inside the cutters and tie them down to the molded mounts
Add four guy wires to the funnel
Add a ventilator, whistle and cook stove chimney on the upper deck
Add a short bow and stern pennant mast with pennants
Add two masts to the ends of the upper deck with associated rigging (very simple... three lines each)
Build the bow spar torpedo, mount and rig it in stowed position
 
   I'm going to mount it in a clear plastic case meant for 1:18 auto diecasts.  The case I selected has a clear bottom, and the inside measurements are about 13" x 5". I'm planning on painting the underside of the clear base with a murky water pattern and then use clear gloss Mod Podge medium to simulate ripples on the top of the base around the ship. I may include a dock section, it depends on how much room I have and if it will not detract from the model.
 
Here's where it stands now, I'm sorry I don't have any previous in process pictures, but I'll continue this as a build log and post progress as it happens.
 

 
 

Hi all,
   I've decided to post another non-ship completed build, this subject is one of my favorites!
Here's what I started with. It was originally part of some Arctic Commando play set I picked up at Big Lots about ten years ago. Very crude, but the casting was superb and begged to be detailed. It's about 7 inches long, so I'd guess it's about 1:9 scale and made of vinyl with movable legs and jaw.

I glued up the legs in the best positions I could to match the body cast lines, then used putty to hide the seams. I then went over the whole casting with a thin layer of putty and carved in more hair detail. Next was primer and then color coats. Nobody knows what colors the real animals were, so I took some artistic licence with the "camo". Some detail paint, washes and gloss for the eyes and mouth and she's done. I'm planning on building a diorama to "plant" the figure in a complementary setting.
 

I've always loved Sabertooth Tigers since I was a kid, and was really pleased to find this fine casting to work with.
Here's a 1:1 casting of a real Smilodon Fatalis skull I keep next to my computer. It was made by a friend who interned at the La Brea tar pits, and he made a mold of a skull which then he used to make some castings. It's awesome...(really creeps out some of my guests, tho).

Meh.. don't sweat it, all our brains are going.    The tail numbers look great.