BLACK VIKING

More of the DUKW driver: 
Daz file cleaned up and made printable by Game Print. Bad gaps all filled in with no serious loss of detail. 
Pics show the figure fresh off the printer and post-cure, no fettling yet. But depending on the skill of the digital sculptor, some amazing detail can be included, as evidenced by the lacing, cuffs, collars, face. Of course a lot of this would be lost in smaller scales... this big boy is 1:8. BTW, I didn't bother buying the hair package! But he'll be wearing a helmet anyway.
 

Thanks everybody for the suggestions. Fortunately it looks like @henrythestaffy is coming to the rescue by 3D printing a whole bunch of them for me. My heartfelt thanks, mate.
 
And this is the reason I'm having so much trouble making the deadeyes out of natural materials:
 

 
That deadeye is 2mm on each side. I haven't been able to make any myself that are smaller than 3mm. And keeping in mind that those three holes have to be big enough for cotton thread to fit through . . .
 
Steven
 
 

E.J,
Thanks for your notes - Yes, it is much more work indeed. And as you stated - bits don't fit right. I had planked the lower balcony flooring using the kit's provided template piece. Well as much as I "played with it" it just was not going to fit as needed.
So had to make one from scratch and plank that one as well. And then I noticed - Yikes - that one of the door hinges of the foredeck bulkhead had separated. Luckily, I was able to separate the framing without causing any other damage. Door hinges are now like Fort Knox lol. 
When it comes to interior work your current log is way Up There - Well done indeed!!. Haven't reached that stratosphere  yet. On my list of attempts for a future build. As always thanks for following this log.
 
Cheers,
 

Hi mates,
Just sharing a bit of frustration that has now come around to bite. Early on I had decided (insecurity) to square tuck the stern as well as adding four detailed cannon door framings. Round tuck two years ago seemed too difficult for me to achieve properly – hmmm? The square tuck dimensions – have now come back to create the following issues.
Just sharing lol… image texts go through that part of this build
 
That said as I was putting this post together it has helped me to more clearly find solutions…
 
As always thanks so much for your likes, posts, or just silently dropping by to have a look.
 
Cheers,
 

Ok Brothers, I'm still here..
Was a bit under the weather again so I took the opportunity do so some research into F-104's and Paul Coudyrette's Rub n Buff Technique... 
Found a lot of pics of his models especially his Bare Metal birds... It appears to me that he's built most of the various manufacturers bare metal aircraft models, in his 50+ year modeling career, including the B-58, the B-25, the B-17 and all the various fighter aircraft... He was a master of brushwork/fingerwork, never used an airbrush, in fact he didn't even own one... You will see why I want to learn this technique...

These are all Paul's builds... Yeah, that's what I said as my jaw was breaking when it hit the floor... Unfortunately there is no tutorial on his technique and he passed some six years ago...  Of the numerous requests in the forums he frequented was to do a tutorial, he would always say he explained his method in other forums/threads, occasionally giving a hint of what he does, but never in detail... I did find one post where he outlines his technique, (probably cause he got tired of answering the questions over and over) but then when you spend decades figuring out how to do something like we see above, it is time to admire and not question... (I also found a post on what he uses for those colored heat stains on RnB and pretty much all his tinting for BMF's)
There is a video of his technique being demonstrated but it is in French and although it does show the finish as applied in basic technique, it doesn't go into a lot of detail in what was happening while doing it or how to finish it off...
 
So I need to do some more testing... I want to make sure I understand his technique fully and that was his advice, try, try and more try... He was willing to point the way, but he stated more than once that the best way to learn it was to try it and experiment, just like he did over 60 years of modeling...
 
I think that is why you don't see very many models done this way (almost none except his) No one is willing to do the work to learn and perfect his technique...
 
Paul Coudyrette, A master modeler, maestro with a paintbrush.....
 
Anyway, This is my next step...

Yeah putting the main fuselage halves together without doing too much damage to the painted finish... This is alternative 2 because I'm leaving the engine out, in fact I'm thinking through how I want to present this plane again... Feeling a bit uncomfortable with the everything open look, it's not my style... So I think I'm gonna go back to the image of what she shows in the video and let it be that....
 
Like she returned from a successful mission...
 
Anyway onwards, testing won't take too long... and I'll probably do a few simple parts first like the wing tanks just to make sure I got it right...
 
 
 
 

good evening everyone
 
4 wheels on my wagon (well not quite on but complete), tonight i made the outer wheel bandings
the chassis which was stripped down yesterday, was primed and now has a new coat on, pin strips well complete it 
at present i am rebuilding it, looks better than before, but even further removed from what it should look like
 
 

Forget Hero Forge, see elsewhere here about Daz (and probably others).
I was able to get a WW2 army uniform for a figure, pose him, and he's now on my printer. Big guy, for my 1:8 scale DUKW. 

Following preparation works about rails :
 

 

 
 
 
 

At last a day pic even with cloudy sky.
Main deck rails, weathering and rigging need to be added.
Using a small sand paper I made parallel (almost) lines of worn on weathered deck. Looks convincing I think

Alive and kickin’, part II.
 
I have finally painted the last bulwark to satisfaction.  Here it is, dry-fit:
 

 
I have fitted all the channels and scraped away paint in the glue locations:
 

 
A couple of troublesome little details needed to be resolved.  First, I was thinking about how the plank-ends of the f’ocsle and quarter deck were supposed to resolve, over the last exposed beam.  My first instinct was to have the plank ends exposed, with a slight overhang beyond the beam.
 
The more I studied other models, though, it dawned on me that this would not be correct for French practice in the latter half of the 17th C.  Take a look at the following examples:
 

 
On Michel Saunier’s SR, the plank ends are let into the last beam, which is dimensionally deeper to accept the plank thickness.
 
The same can be seen on the louis Quinze:
 

 

above photos courtesy of Marc Yeu
 
So, I decided to cut back my deck piece, and I will in-fill a strip of styrene with a just-broken edge to highlight the demarcation ever so slightly:
 

 
My f’ocsle beam isn’t perfectly straight, apparently, but this discrepancy will be concealed by the f’ocsle break railing and belfry.  You will see the detail at the deck entry points.  I will also apply a simple half-round moulding to cover the joint between the beam and the applied strip.
 
Next, I realized that I needed to cut-back more of the kit deck ledge so that I could abut my quarter deck beam to the hanging knee, as I did at the f’ocsle.  This shortening of the Q-deck also provided more clearance for the main halyard tackle.  I’m not sure if I’m correctly referencing the line, but it reaves through the large bitt, just aft of the mast (with a piece of blue tape on it).
 

 
Lastly, I wanted to make-up the supporting brace that ties each successive level of the stern together.  I laminate two pieces of 1/16” stock together, and leave them to dry over a camber former.
 
The one caveat is that I wanted to introduce ever so slightly more camber over the next two levels of the stern.  I had done so, along the top edge of the mid-balcony rail.  Here is how that compares with the former:
 

 
The difference is barely perceptible, but it is one of many small details that will improve the overall perception of the thing.
 
For my lamination, I applied three pieces of green tape to the center inch of the former:
 

 
And the match was spot-on:
 

 
When I get to the top tier of windows, I may do as many as six pieces of tape, as the camber would be greatest at the poop and poop-royal decks.
 
Well, that’s where things stand for now.  Hopefully, tomorrow, I will glue-in the bulwark.  Then, I can cope the brace to delineate the upper limit of the second window tier, while strengthening the bulwark connection.  Then, I can pattern the window piece in cardboard and do an exact layout drawing.
 
Thank you all for your continued interest in the project.
 
Best,
 
Marc
 

Ending all the back-stern of ship, next step, the forward rails :
 

 

RAF Sullom Voe in the Shetland Islands. Sunderland and Catalina flying boats of 330 and 333 Norwegian Squadrons moored off shore. The land on the other side of the Voe is now occupied by the Sullom Voe Oil Terminal.
watercolour 16" X 11" 

That's just beautiful work, Richard!

A view of the seat frame located on the quarterdeck compared with a picture of the full size Olympias. I have built my model as closely as possible to Coates design drawings (the drawings sheets contradict one another in some cases - as you would expect from what was essentially a prototype for a reconstruction of a warship which hasn't been built in living memory...). These include:
1.Differences in framing of the stern.
2. Removal of the footrest from the Trierarch's chair.
3. Differences in the leather upholstering of the Trierarch's chair.
4. Removal of the handhold post at the head of the ladders from the quarterdeck to the gangway.
5. Additional bracketry alongside the steering oar slots.
I am sure some of these changes were incorporated at build and others were introduced as sea trials progressed. Not unlike my own experience of  designing  and building modern ships!
 

Thanks everyone for the nice comments
So, did some experimenting. 
The result should represent a winter camouflage at the end of winter, with a somewhat rusty appearance. And the tank needs now an urgent spring clean up and repaind job.

Almost ready

Surrender

 

S51 Dragonfly Helicopter 
w/c 6” X 4”

Bomb Vessel 19 century, based on the Grenado.

Nice job Patrick!
 
A well worn winter field applied whitewash... just the way it should look....

Thanks OC (but, no T72 in this kit 😉)
 
All part are on the model

Painting
It's been a while since I've done a winter camo. So a green base coat with a thin white wash.
 
Base coat

White wash

 
almost ready

Have largely finished the main deck, now continuing to build up the gunwales. 
 

EG, it's good to go, bud. Side panel decals(?) look very good. Instrument panel is very good. Too bad it will be almost hidden in your cockpit. Bet you're crossed-eyed from that detailing job. What's on the radar screen? It has that appropriate green glow of 50's CRTs. Nicely done. 👍👍

Ok, short update... 
 
Decided to take a break on the tub PE and see what I was going to do with the Instrument panel... the Tub was easy to clean the detail molding from and although nice was a bit soft on the details... the Instrument panel on the other hand is extremely detailed, clean and crisp with deep details not easily removed... The debate I had was do I actually want to try to remove it or build a new instrument panel to accommodate the PE, (which looked flat in comparison to the moulded in detail) or detail paint the existing....
 
I figured it would probably be best to first see what the status of my ancient 5/0 brush skills were...
This is what the real instrument panel looks like....

And this is my attempt to replicate that in paint....

My attempt to detail paint...
Please, I would like to know what you guys think, remembering that it's going to be inside a cockpit and under the Hud shroud...

Wish I had those skills! Truly amazing and very beautiful.