Shotlocker

Bill,
 
I have to agree with Wintergreen in that, because of the dearth of information on that ship, I became the "master shipwright"
and just decided to build the deck furniture and fixtures as I saw fit, knowing that it in no way probably resembles the original.
Sure took the frustration out of the build by doing it that way and I have a nice-looking model that I and others can enjoy looking
at. Pretty sure I won't be questioned on it!
 
Cheers,
Gary

Bill,
 
I have to agree with Wintergreen in that, because of the dearth of information on that ship, I became the "master shipwright"
and just decided to build the deck furniture and fixtures as I saw fit, knowing that it in no way probably resembles the original.
Sure took the frustration out of the build by doing it that way and I have a nice-looking model that I and others can enjoy looking
at. Pretty sure I won't be questioned on it!
 
Cheers,
Gary

Hello fellow modelers! 
 
We are excited to announce that squadron.com will be returning, under new ownership and management! Squadron will be back!!!
 
As most of you know, MMD-Squadron Holdings, LLC (The parent company of squadron.com and Military Model Distributors) filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy earlier this year. After 53 years of providing a place for modelers around the world to purchase their new and most favorite models and supplies, the end looked like it was upon us. This was a travesty we could not let happen!
 
Knot Models is a hobby merchandiser founded in 2016 that primarily does business in the Amazon Marketplace. Knot Models was founded by Chris Decker, a 20 year industry veteran who has built up and sold both hobby retailers and manufacturing companies over the years. Some of you might be familiar with Trident Hobbies, which became FreeTimeHobbies.com, and the model lines, Midship Models and Yankee Modelworks. Chris founded or was instrumental in bringing these lines to the marketplace. 
 
In April of 2021, Knot Models purchased the business assets of MMD-Squadron holdings from the bankruptcy court in Texas. We have been working tirelessly since then to rebuild and replace the systems that squadron.com needs to operate. We have also been working to source inventory from manufacturers and distributors around the world. Our goal is to relaunch squadron.com in early June of 2021 with over 15,000 products available for you to purchase!
 
As we get closer to our launch date and have more details, we will be sending out more information. We are excited and eager to join you in this new chapter of Squadron.com!
 




Until then, Happy Modeling!

Chris Decker
www.squadron.com
 
‌

I've built many of 'em: 1/96 Cutty Sark (now a dis-masted hulk), Thermopylae, Constitution; Heller Soleil Royal (unfinished), Le Chebec
(nearly finished), Thornier Armor; Imai Catalan ship and Santa Maria, small Revell Constitution, Bounty, Golden Hinde, and Chas. W. Morgan
plus many steel-hulled ships, submarines, and work-type ships. I have to say that I enjoy working with that medium as much as working with
wood models...just love the look of ships, always have.

I've built many of 'em: 1/96 Cutty Sark (now a dis-masted hulk), Thermopylae, Constitution; Heller Soleil Royal (unfinished), Le Chebec
(nearly finished), Thornier Armor; Imai Catalan ship and Santa Maria, small Revell Constitution, Bounty, Golden Hinde, and Chas. W. Morgan
plus many steel-hulled ships, submarines, and work-type ships. I have to say that I enjoy working with that medium as much as working with
wood models...just love the look of ships, always have.

A 1926 auction by the American Art Association included several nice model. Here are some of those illustrated in the catalogue.
 
Amazon
 

 

 
Described as British second rate circa 1665:
 

 
Four models from the McKay collection:
 
Staffordshire
 

 
 
 
Romance of the Seas
 

 
Great Republic
 

 

 
Aukland:
 

 
 
 
 
 

The easiest and most beneficial way to dispose of a large number of tools and supplies is to donate them to a local modeling club. The club can then auction the items off to raise funds, and your father's supplies will end up in the hands of people who can appreciate and use them. To find your nearest club, check here.

I've built many of 'em: 1/96 Cutty Sark (now a dis-masted hulk), Thermopylae, Constitution; Heller Soleil Royal (unfinished), Le Chebec
(nearly finished), Thornier Armor; Imai Catalan ship and Santa Maria, small Revell Constitution, Bounty, Golden Hinde, and Chas. W. Morgan
plus many steel-hulled ships, submarines, and work-type ships. I have to say that I enjoy working with that medium as much as working with
wood models...just love the look of ships, always have.

I've built many of 'em: 1/96 Cutty Sark (now a dis-masted hulk), Thermopylae, Constitution; Heller Soleil Royal (unfinished), Le Chebec
(nearly finished), Thornier Armor; Imai Catalan ship and Santa Maria, small Revell Constitution, Bounty, Golden Hinde, and Chas. W. Morgan
plus many steel-hulled ships, submarines, and work-type ships. I have to say that I enjoy working with that medium as much as working with
wood models...just love the look of ships, always have.

I've built many of 'em: 1/96 Cutty Sark (now a dis-masted hulk), Thermopylae, Constitution; Heller Soleil Royal (unfinished), Le Chebec
(nearly finished), Thornier Armor; Imai Catalan ship and Santa Maria, small Revell Constitution, Bounty, Golden Hinde, and Chas. W. Morgan
plus many steel-hulled ships, submarines, and work-type ships. I have to say that I enjoy working with that medium as much as working with
wood models...just love the look of ships, always have.

What type of plastic ship models do you have? Here are a few images of my work modifying plastic kits:

I enjoyed a  visit to HMS Unicorn back in 2013, I do hope she is preserved, she is an important historical  artefact.
 
Here's a few photo's I took at the time which may be of interest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
B.E

I built this in 1954 soon after getting discharged from the Navy.  This was my first attempt at ship modeling.
the ship was rigged before installing into the bottle then once set in the clay the masts and sails were raised by using the rigging. I built a special  tool for reaching inside the bottle from scrap. It is a little bit ugly but did the job. 
 
Bill

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

A few tweaks have improved the fit of the bottom from what they were (seen in the photos).  Something not easily seen in the photos (but seen on broadside images of the same kit) is that the act of forming the stern together (the last phase of attaching the hull sides to the deck/superstructure) causes the an upward deformation of the deck ... a little like a banana curves - although not as much.  The railings want to flair outward as well.  I blush with the positive comments on the build, since (as many builders are) I see every fault ... yet have learned enough to do better on round two as noted below.
 
  I looked at the components of the Metal Earth (Iconic deluxe kit) Missouri and saw that the rear hull sides have been laser cut with a 'compensating' downward arc that should deform upward on assembly so that the deck will stay level.  'Guess they learned this from the Arizona.  The Big Mo kit has actual turned gun barrels for the main armament.  Build observations on-line have noted that when assembled as-is, there is some 'wiggle' in the big guns and they don't align well ... unless one uses epoxy in the tiny gun mounts before attaching to the turret pieces.  Secondary armaments are flat and bent up like that of the Arizona - so I intend to clip them off, fill the small turrets with kneadable epoxy and insert steel pins as the guns from the outside (going into the yet-to-cure epoxy) for a more realistic effect.  In fact, I might try to scare-up a few hypodermic needles to cut off with a Dremel so they'll have a 'bore'.
  Idea #2 is to have small screws imbedded (centered with a jig) into the turret epoxy on the main turrets so that the finished turrets can be mounted (secured with a nut under the mounting plate) so that they can swivel - as if BB63 were about to deliver a broadside for a shore bombardment.  The Missouri is 887' in length and the model measures right about 1 foot ... so I guess you could call that around 1:900.  Will it be any easier than the Arizona (e.g. larger parts)?  Well, it seems the designers have put in more detail and there are more parts total - and some of them are just as tiny.  After a session on the last model I was a little cross-eyed.
 
  From doing the last model, as levels are stacked to make the superstructure, there is cumulative 'play' that needs to be addressed.  So idea #3 is to 'fill' the various layers that will get stacked in order with kneadable epoxy, making sure to level-off the epoxy at the bottom before it cures.  Then when that level is attached to the one below (having a solid metal 'roof') a dab of regular epoxy in the center of the filled bottom will bond with the surface below upon attachment.  That way there will not only be twisted (or bent) metal tabs holding the higher level on, but a glue bond as well - which should eliminate any 'wiggle' between parts altogether.
 
  'Guess these would be 'minor busts' to the kit as supplied.  In between household chores, I'm reading Underhill's "Masting & Rigging the Clipper Ship" ... a good balance of both text and illustrations that make a good primer for any would-be modeler of sailing ships - wood or plastic.
 
Fair weather and smooth sailing to all !     Johnny

Great job, Johnny. I've only done one of those Metal Earth kits - made the Hubble space telescope for our astronomer son for
Christmas a few  years ago. Not as much work as your Arizona but definitely good practice for fiddly bits! I put it in a shadow
box for display...perhaps you could do that for yours?

Ahoy mates,  I was looking at the Scarnhorst build and that was enough to spur me to built a little metal kit of the U.S.S. Arizona thats been laying around since last Christmas.  I've been very busy trying to keep the Admiral happy, so have not made further progress on my long term build (Wasa) - so I found some You Tube sites with tips for the Arizona (and other metal models as well), and it looked like something I could actually FINISH in a day.  The caveat on this model is the SMALL scale - 1:1325 - based on a 608' prototype shrunk down to 5.51" long!
 
  The Arizona was built in 1915 and refurbished in 1931 ... we all know of her fate on December 7th 1941at Pearl Harbor.  The model is configured to that time, and has a surprising amount of detail for something so small.  Of course, compromises were made - but the product will not take up much space on the shelf.
 

 
  The picture above shows the tools needed - actually the flush cutters were still a little large to sever the 'clip points' on the laser-cut stainless steel sheets (2), so I had to touch them up with a grinder to refine them.  The drill bits were to form small curves in the pliable metal, or to form small cylinders.  My lighted magnifier was a MUST, as I found it hard to work with some of the tiny pieces ... or even see some of them.  The metal is actually delicate, and I accidentally broke a couple of small bits off ... there were a couple of small repairs made with 1 minute epoxy.  Building this was a 'crash course' in dealing with this type of model, and in future will take on a better kit of this type (not as small) of the U.S.S. Missouri.

 
 
  Zowie, here are the sheets with a hand shown for scale.  I applied a wash of diluted Testors enamel red to the hull where it had anti-fouling paint, and light brown to the wooden areas of the deck (not shown here) - those area had some laser-etched texture.  The rest of the parts were left bright metal, since the paint doesn't stick well to dead-flat shiny surfaces.
 
  
 
 
  Here is where I had over-bent a tiny compartment and broke off part of the wall.  I did this repair with kneadable J-B putty to fill the compartment to be a backing for the broken section of wall.  When mounted, the repair was a success, as the cured putty (6 minute set variety) is not visible from the outside.  Fine tweezers,  and finely tapered needle-nose pliers (no serrations) a dental tool and also an X-acto knife were wielded as need to push, prod, tease, bend and otherwise work this thin-metal medium.
 
 

 
Above is a substantial part of the superstructure.
 

Here are the aft guns.
 
 

 
 
  Now I've got the deck together ... this is an ABBREVIATED build log, since this sort of model was (as stated at the start of the log) just a break from the many things I have yet to do on my 'honey do' list.  Lat year the Admiral got a new deck.  Now I have to put  a spa next to the deck.  But really, the model has a certain 'charm'.  The total build time turned out to be 10 hours over two days.  There was a lot of fiddling with it, and some errors had to be un-done and corrected, but it is very good practice at manipulating small objects.
 

 
 
  And here she is ... all of 5 1/2 inches in length.  You can see the applied red and tan paint in the areas mentioned before.
 
 

 
  Here you can see that there is a lot of detail etched into the metal.  I think that for the Missouri I will apply the lessons learned to be able to do a better job on a better model - one etched on larger sheets.  
 

 
 
  Here is a view from the stern.  Other than for the aforementioned repairs, no glue was needed ... just a lot of patience.
 
Smooth sailing and fair weather !  Johnny
 
 

I finally have the bulwarks done.I bulked up the transom by planking in it inside. I was hoping I could save the deck but its is too scarred up from years of knocking around. So a new deck is also on my punch list. 
 
Bill

Well, here are some. I'd forgotten that I filled in between all of the frames.🥴