BLACK VIKING

My first selfmade Sail

Hello!
 
While I was away on Christmas vacation for a week, my Next Project (which I ordered on my birthday back in August) still did not arrive at my house, though the Polish Post swears it is on its way. So in lieu of the Next Project I have decided to go ahead with an interim next project. I have chosen to build the Fokker D.VI from MPModel for a couple of reasons:
The D.VI is mercifully short of rigging. The model is designed by Marek Pacynski.  
That second point needs some additional explanation. Mr. Pacynski's designs have been a mixed bag for me (see here for a prior example). I have completed two of them, but two others wound up in the trash can. The two finished models were both WW2 monoplanes; this one is a WW1 biplane. I have many of the other MPModel biplane kits designed by Mr. Pacynski in my stash, so this one is a guinea pig of sorts -- a build to see how the Pacynski WW1 kits stack up against the WW2 kits. Call me a masochist, but I'm always willing to give a designer another chance at redemption.
 
The D.VI, of which only 59 examples were built, is a relatively small and simple aircraft, so this kit shouldn't take too long to build if everything goes together with a minimum of fuss. That's what we're here to find out if it will do.
 
Stay tuned!
 
P.S. Mr. Pacynski is nothing if not extremely prolific -- you'll note that this kit is #9 in the MPModels series. That line now includes a whopping 124 titles.
 

 

Standing rigging and ratlines now complete, less bowsprit shrouds (WIP).  I should get through the yards, sails and running rigging fast enough.  I think this will be the last (and my first) rigged model I build for a while.


 

The second plane has been a little easier.  I realized that the cowling shapes differed between the B-1 which was my kit versus the B-2 which i am modeling.  It helped a lot having the Hobby 2000 B-2 boxing for the other model so that I had a model to convert the B-1 cowlings.  It wasn't too difficult, and I didn't try to make them absolutely perfect given that the engines are going to be tarped anyway (all I needed was the general shape):
 
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With the cannon pod removed from the plane in this diorama, I realized that all that would be remaining would be the cannon rack as well as the open space in the bottom of the fuselage for the ammo, etc.  So, I cut open the bottom of the fuselage similar to how I did the other.  Much easier this time around as I didn't have the various aftermarket detail pieces in the fuselage so the fuselage was essentially hollow.  After cutting, all I really had to do was line it which was fairly easy.  I'll scratch the cannon rack and add it separately at the end of the build.   
 
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This model is also primed, so I can start throwing on some color tomorrow:
 
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https://forum.largescalemodeller.com/uploads/monthly_2024_12/IMG_2067.thumb.JPG.99f7db633e2b305707778546b10936f8.JPG
 
Thanks for looking in!
 
 
 

Post 12
More patterns to add.
The final action of this section is to add the stern counters and Gunport patterns.

0272
The lower counter is fitted first, I soaked this piece before clamping into place.

0276
The Upper counter follows; I did need to tweak this a little to follow the run of the Lower.

0285

0286
The lower counter includes the discharge hole for the Port side seat of ease, quaintly described as the ‘Necefsary’ on the Adm Plan.
 
Gunport patterns

0304
The forward end was soaked, clamped around a tube, and given the heat treatment.

0295
The parts can then be dry fitted along the hull.

0297
There is a guide-line on the pattern to match with the line of the ply sub-deck, to maintain the ports at the correct level above deck.

0337
On this basis, where the pattern reaches the stern I found it sat just below the level of the stern deck cabins. Not entirely sure if this is correct, but there is not a profile drawing of this stage on the plans. The Manual photos would suggest perhaps not, but not very clear on this particular aspect.
 
Still, I am where I am, and I need to maintain the gunport levels.
 
The Starboard side pattern was fitted using pins and pva.
It goes without saying that glue is not applied to the bulkhead extensions, but I did glue against the side of the stern cabins, and the forward end into the prow slot. Diluted glue was then run along the joints below the sub deck. Before pinning I Painted glue on the bulkheads below the subdeck.

0306

0311
The Portside was fitted 24 hrs later, but firstly I checked that the sides were level with each other. Once satisfied I pinned and glued as before.

0336

0343
Some tidying up and then onto planking.
 
B.E.
28/12/2024
 

SOLEIL ROYAL UPDATE : 
the Lower ratlines are now complete from the Spritsail, Foremast, Main and Mizzen mast, with 942 clove hitches being tied in the process.
Now moving on to rig the deadeyes/shrouds for Top masts of the Fore, Main & Mizzen.

Before airbrushing, I brushed on a thin coat of wood filler and water on the whole body, sanded with 400 paper, then used a rattle can to spray on a white latex primer. The final paint finish turned out pretty well with that prep.
Tim

I have completed the Flying Dutchman!!  Rigging the sails was challenging, given the lack of a plan view of the rigging.  The directions that are provided left a lot to interpretation and the directions did not match the picture of the completed ship provided with the kit.  I made a few incorrect assumptions and had to circle back to correct so as not to get lines crossed up or to make room to tie off to the pin rails.  I continue to learn more with each build (especially what not to do )and the Dutchman provided a great platform for learning and opportunity to improvise without negatively affecting the finished product model.  It all worked out and I am happy with the result!  On to the next project!

Also working on replacing the stern lantern with a scratch build version I can add an led to.
 

Thank you for the brilliant comments.  Hopefully will be a update soon as I have been working on the rigging 
Martyn 

The Mizzen mast ratlines went well , the fore mast needs some straighting out but I will finish it up after Christmas.  The Party 
Is beginning, so Pile gave everyone the rest of the week off. Party time.
 I started sending my crew mates Emails say Merry  Christmas, I sent 10 now it says I have reached the maximum amount of messages for one day try latter. Lol that's a frist for me.
 So to all members and staff at MSW/NRG. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  And to all have a great New Year.
Bob  M.
PFCGP 
Goober . 
MERRY CHRISTMAS.  

 
 

Goober said he left all the served lines in the box, we looked at the plans all the way to page 13. Looked for every .5 mm line=F, figured out what we needed and served it all, today.

We  should have enough  lines , but it's real eazy to serve up a few feet of which ever size we need.
Then , yes I started the ratlines, rusty but it'll do 
.

Meet Runner the boys hired him , and soon had him running lol.

Adjusting ratlines on the foremast then run up the Mizzen mast to see if we can do anything with the shroud. 

on his way down Pile yelled stop.

Right there, this is were Runner will end up when we are finished.  It is to hide my first attempt at Futtock shrouds.  Lol. Its a blob , but it will be  hidden by Runner . 

Thank you everyone for the likes, with mates like you guys we can't go wrong.  Thank you all.  😊. 
 

Ok my freinds, Merry Christmas.  I have to get to my ratlines. I will do up to the platforms  then run the lines for the topgallant.  Then finish the rest of the ratlines.  My only joy is that there is a whole lot of ratlines on the Pegasus. .
  I still can't believe  how much fun modeling is. I definitely am in my happy place  today.     
Knocklouder & Crew !!
.
 

Post 9
Completing the deck beams.
Adding the carlings completes this stage of construction.
Preliminary to this I took the precaution of planking the inner faces of some of the aft partitions, as I don’t know at this stage how much may be seen.

0220

0221
The fit of the deck beams is very precise, a joy to work with, and how good to see nicely laid out scale beams, a tribute to Chris’s design skills.
Note: the Stove needs to be fixed in place before the Carlings that support the Upper deck grating are added.

0207
This is a neat little resin item engraved with all the major features one would expect to find.

0212
I painted the stove with Vallejo Black, highlighted with Black/Grey. A light touch of weathering powders was then applied.

0217
Not a very clear view of the stove will be possible, but I will seek to maximise it.

0206
I do like to open up the lower deck to reveal as much as possible, but there is a trade-off with the Upper deck detail which has to take precedence.

0204
I think Harpy will prove trickier than Indy to get the effect I am looking for.
The next stage is playing around with the deck pieces to get a feel for the planking layout.
 
B.E.
22/12/2024

Finished one side above the wales. Will have to ask on this site about bending the wales as I don’t think my current method with the Admiral’s hair tongs will do the business but that’s later. Afterwards changed image to one showing better scarf joint only left hand length of wales is fixed. Most likely remove brass pins later.
 
 

Lind,
 
This is all I use a LED panel using 240v power. I find placed at the side creates less shadow on the side of ship I’am working on. Not particularly powerful 11.5W. I bought it in B & Q a UK superstore. I prefer natural daylight whenever possible. SORRY misread your post you meant internal lighting in the ship.

Fore castle update

The general shape is ready, my own free interpretation. In the open parts on the middle deck shields still have to come

Current status

Progress was slow in decamber. because...
Went ice fishing in Lapland

Dreamed about a big (fish) catch... 😇

Actually I like cats more then dogs, but this was fun

And the aurora borealis was fantastic

And in between a new small project

Thanks for following

Thanks OC.
I wanted to build a larger scale aircraft carrier because the aircraft would have been bigger and more detaied but that kit was more expensive. I have been eyeballing the larger USS Hornet though.LOL. Same with the Bismark but they would have taken up more room as it is these two GH and SR will fill the void. I did not know of this site when I built them so ya no log.  The 1/72 scale landing craft that I built for my museum display was also a great build which I added the Arty OP tanks, Priests with the porpoises, and universal carriers with wading equipment on all of them plus crew was a very pleasent build, It was a resin kit by Milcast. I noticed their no longer producing them or are out of stock. They also made a 1/35 scale as well but same story on supply. I wish I had pictures of it to show (may have some on file somewhere). Still deeply annoyed  that that guy gave it away, It was  $$$.
The large scale Yamamoto would  be nice to buld.
 
Thanks Baker as well. I will be adding more ribs as the build continues. Meanwhile as I wait till tomorrow to get a new blade belt  decided to make a start on 4 anchors. Small one is the 1/72 scale.
 
Question: the cannon and trucks of the GH, that would the size be in 1/35 scale of the various types used?
The 1/72 scale trucks  were 7.0 mm wide minus wheels X 18.3 mm length  X 5.9 mm high and the cannon are 31 mm wide by 32.5 mm length ( the upper deck guns “weather deck”?)  
Will also be adding swivel guns.  The trucks also look like they varyfrom 4 wheels to 2.
 
Thanks again for any and all info.
 

After completing the first layer (base color), I noticed a few small gaps that needed to be filled before moving forward


I chose to fill the gaps with superglue, not just because it was faster, but primarily because I needed a strong material that could hold securely.

The next step is to carefully sand the filled areas to avoid creating noticeable "steps" between the sanded sections and the painted surface
 

Thanks, everyone, for your kind comments and "likes"!
 
I have a small update to report, as some progress has been made over the last couple of weeks.
 
Most noticeably, the main decals and lettering have been applied! I always like this stage, as it gives the model an identity and some history. Overall, I would rate the DK Decals as being of great quality, clean crisp printing and thin decal film, as well as minimal film around the edges of each decal. The glue they use is somewhat stickier than that used by other decal brands. This means a bit longer of a soak in water, as well as a need to make good use of Micro Set when positioning each transfer. The decals set down quite nicely into the various folds and recesses of the plane without too much difficulty and the use of Micro Sol was not needed in most cases (but I used it anyway, just out of habit, and just in case). The shark mouth proved to be the most trickiest decal to get right, lots of gentle manipulation to get first one side in place, then the second. Thankfully the left and right sides came as two separate decals to make this process about as easy as it could be. As far as any remaining lettering, I'm down to the stencils provided in the kit supplied decal sheet. I am leaning towards sticking to the more prominent ones (like the fuel filler covers), rather than the litany of tiny fine stencils found elsewhere on the airplane.
 

 

 
I've also added a couple more important details. The prop and spinner have been added, as well as the engine exhausts. My modification to make the prop spin seems to be working well enough.
 

 
The remaining canopy parts have been masked and are ready for painting, and the landing gear is coming soon. Given how busy life gets around this time of year, it will take a couple of weeks picking away at things as time permits. I'm not going to be overly ambitious and claim that I'll have everything done by the New Year, but I should manage shortly afterwards. 
 
Thanks to everyone for your continued support!
 
Andy
 
 

Anime, yes, "Kiki's Delivery Service"

I've been adding a bit of colour here and there as a relief from being tweezer deep in the tiny world of HMS Galatea. Suddenly it looks like I have Kiki mostly complete. Its been an interesting exercise because she doesn't really have the human face I am used to with the white metal figures. She is based on an anime (if I have that right) so my painting methods have gone out of the window a bit. I need to tidy up the lips to get them even and a touch around the eyes. Maybe some satin gloss on the hair but otherwise I think I'll call it done. The cats eyes I am quite happy with given they are a cartoon style.

The figure comes with a background building section to mount the figure on. I decided to paint the building in very subdued colours to allow the colour of the figure to contrast. I'm not sure whether that's a good idea but we will find out shortly.


A nice print. The damaged plaster revealing the bricks underneath is very well done.
 
Thanks for looking in and the likes
 
Alan
 
 
 
 

Ready to begin painting! I'll start with a light grey enamel paint to prime the hull.
The neutral grey tone ensures it won't interfere with the subsequent colors (yellow and blue). Additionally, grey is ideal for spotting minor imperfections


I’ll be using an airbrush to apply color in thin, precise layers as needed.
This is my very first airbrush, over 30 years old! I got it back when I first started building plastic aircraft models

painting hull 1.mp4    

Great job BE, I really like the modifications you are doing on this kit. Regarding the cable storage I had a similar question a while back (though it related to a Cruiser class vessel, I was considering building). There is no clear indication if it was shelves or walled off, if it extended down to the hold or not. I did ask the question and got a number of responses which though not completely satisfying may help you as you try to puzzle this one out. Post #28 has some analysis on the plans for the Argus which seem to show the cable tier as only going half way up the height of the deck so maybe the access was on the top?
 

Thank you Glenn, I don't think Harpy would give you much  brain ache, a nice relaxing build I think.
@ Tom - I've got most of my Boxwood from the USA, and Estonia, altho' the stuff I'm using on Harpy is from the UK.
 
Post 5
Fitting the Lower deck
To complete the deck, w-o-p was applied to the boards, and a final light sand using p1000 paper.
To finish the scuttle covers 58 ring bolts are made up.
A repetitive and tiresome task but I prefer the look to ‘bent over’ eye bolts to represent these features.
For these I use Amati 2mm brass rings and fine eyelets. The holes were countersunk to allow the bolt part to sit lower in the cover.

0085
I still can’t get my head around this scuttle set-up, must have proven awkward walking about with that ring fest on the lower deck.
I have also mused about the purpose of the Sail Room. Was it used for storing sail tackle rather than canvas itself?

098
From the Adm. Plan the room is only 9’ x 5’ – a small garden shed in modern terms, not much room for large sails.

092
I can now peg the deck in place and add the cable housing sides, also secured by pegs.

088
These require gentle handling, the mdf will snap at weak points if lateral pressure is applied. It is also important to seat these fully down without pressure to accept the retaining pegs.
Because I planked the deck careful trimming of the edges was required to facilitate this.
This system is a joy to work with, no more messing about with temporary clamping, and use of tape to check the fit.

089
Regarding the cable store, I wonder how they got the cable into it? There is no apparent access either from the Lower deck or above, shown on the Adm. plan.

095
More puzzlements have occurred to me about this small vessel than any previous build I have done, a ship of mystery.
Time to carry on with a bit more of the basic construction.
 
B.E.
16/12/2024

Campbell has been out of business for quite a few years but many of their kits are available on eBay.  I am in the planning stages to build a micro layout in HO scale. By convention a “micro layout “ should be no larger than 4 square feet but have a reasonable operating purpose.  This is my first structure for the layout, though not my first Campbell kit.  I repurposed the building to be a small market with the owners living above.   I left off a lot of the gingerbread and added a small loading bay on the rear left. As I was typing I realized that I hadn’t installed the vent pipe on the roof.