USS ST LOUIS by thorn21g - 1:24 - POF - Civil War Ironclad - Gateway Model Shipcrafter's Guild

[timboni]

MORTAR BARGE UPDATE (Bob Keeler)

 

   I redid the upper walls to more accurately reflect the scale seven-foot-tall scale (1/24). They 
are made from .040” plastic sheeting and are 1¼” tall (as opposed to a previous try, which was 
   1” high and found to be too short). The walls lean in at a ten-degree angle. The supports are 
   made of balsa “trailing-edge” planks, which are used in R/C airplane models, glued together. 
   Holes for doors and windows had to be recut to reflect placement on the 7’ scale. Doors and windows will be fashioned to scale. 

 

Interior of walls, floor supports and upper supports.

Interior view, with previously constructed (by Bill Kammermeyer) mortar, cannonballs, equipment/tools, and figures.

 

 

View through door

 

Another view through door

 

That's all for March/April of 2024. The next entry will be from July of 2024 and will look at further work on the Offier figures and pedestals for the gunboat. Coming soon!

 

Tim Jovick

•  

 

 

[timboni]

OFFICER FIGURES, Continued:

 

  

Photo of offices aboard the USS St. Louis.                            Officer figures, some with beards, jackets painted a dark blue with gold buttons. The           

Notice that the jackets are about knee-length and              Kleenex lengthens the jackets quite nicely.

are either open at the neck or buttoned up, with a

double row of gold buttons. The hats are flat on top,                                                                                        

with a stiff bill in the front.

 

 

Officer with binoculars.

Officer with pointer. Will likely be placed in Captain’s cabin, pointing at a map on the wall.

 

1. Officer with hands on rails.

 

PEDESTALS (To rest the gunboat on the stand)

 

This is one of two proposed sets of pedestals for the USS St. Louis to rest on. There are four, two at the bow and two at the stern. These are 2-1/4” by 4” and painted gold. There is a hole in the stern starboard pedestal to allow the wiring from the boat to go down into the stand unnoticed. Another set is painted brown and is somewhat taller.

 

 That's all for now, which briings us up to July of 2024. The next entry will be from October 2024 and will have more on modifications of the figurines.

[timboni]

Happy New Year! Here's the latest, from October of 2024, mostly regarding modifying and placing the figurines, but also some anvils, just for fun. All photos and captions are by Bill Kammermeyer.

 

Officer Figurines, Continued (Bill Kammermeyer)

 

The figurines (officers and ordinary seamen) shown in the July Newsletter have been modified by Bill Kammermeyer to better reflect more realism and historical accuracy.

 

Figures before modifications

                            

 

Figures before modifications

 

Figures with more realistic/softer, better-fitting hats, also with facial hair.

 

 

Sculpey added to figure, to add mass and softer lines.

 

Officer figure initially designed by Bob Temper, plus a modified head, unpainted.

 

 

 

Bill has been working on these figurines for both the USS St. Louiss and the Hunley dioramas. Not only painting and animating them, but also staging them to look as natural as possible.

 

 

 

 

 

ANVILS

 

 

 

 

 

That's all for now. More on the Figurines and other fun stuff coming soon. Please to enjoy.

 

Tim Jovick

314-761-5435

[johnhoward]

Thanks for the update Tim,

You guys are really getting creative with the Ironclad Model crew member figurines. I'm looking forward to those other Shipcrafter Team E-Mails I have missed that we discussed today.

 

JOHN HOWARD

[KeithAug]

Great looking crew.

[timboni]

Been awhile since the last posting. These entries are from February of 2025:

 

 

MICHAEL ORGEL, MD (AKA Dr. Mike)

Some sad news to report: Our friend and long-term fellow shipmodeler Mike Orgel (Dr. Mike) died recently. He led a colorful life, being a physician, veteran (flight surgeon), and one who definitely knew his way around a machine shop, having worked in one on a residency in cardiology; he was inventor/co-inventor of several important medical devices, including a heart valve. Dr. Mike was involved in the USS St. Louis project from the beginning, and was a significant contributor, helping to fashion the paddlewheel and other complicated fixtures. He was also an avid cyclist and intimately involved in R/C planes Even at age 86, Dr. Mike still had a crushing handshake, a wide-ranging curiosity, and an associated ability and could talk excitedly and deeply about a variety of topics. And just an all-around good guy. You will be missed, Dr. Mike. Calm seas, fair winds.

 

 

Officer Figurines, Continued (Bill Kammermeyer)

 

Figures at work before attaching the Hurricane Deck 

 

Officers doing map conference BK/VM 12/10/24

 

Crewman working on 8-inch smooth bore. BK 12/11/24

 

Crewman with rope BK 12/13/24

 

Crewman standing on tool chest making adjustments BK 12/27/24

 

Officer giving tech instructions BK 12/14/24

 

Officer checking on food preparation BK 12/13/1SS

 

USS St. Louis and CSA Hunley Figures

 

USS St. Louis crewmember working with rope. BK 1/31/25

 

Hunley quay figures and resting USS St. Louis crewmen on Crates. BK 1/31/25

 

Hunley dock workers and officers. One on right carries a new signal flag. BK 1/31/25

 

 

Army crew for 13" mortars. More may be made for USS St. Louis at time of transition to the Navy. BK 1/13/25

 

More figurines for Bob Keeler's Mortar Barge, a companion project to the USS St. Louis:

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAKING CRATES FOR DECK INTEREST

 

Part of the 28 chests and boxes I built around pine cores with pear and cherry planks, cut to 0.05" on my new Byrnes 4" Micro Table Saw. What a joy! Great cuts with no need to sand. In fact, I wet the surface of each to raise the grain a bit so they did not appear to be furniture. A nice sawn look was achieved. BK 1/13/25

 

The 0.05" planks were glued to the ends and one side of the block and sanded to the block. The other side, and then the top, were added between sandings. Penny for scale BK 1/14/25

 

Boxes were stained with driftwood stain and dry brushed with flat gray. Holes were drilled in the ends for rope handles. Scale rope I made was stiffened with super glue, cut to length and bent around a rod, then glued in the holes, and bent down. BK 1/14/25

 

Onion skin printed labels were added for deck interest. Hail heads were suggested with 36 to 50 indents with a sharp awl. BK 1/14/25

 

COVERING SCREW HEADS

 

Screws attaching the edge work are all covered save two. Those will each have a coil of rope on them. It should look like a working ship. BK 1/14/25

 

 

 

That's all for now. This project is about 99% completed and ready for transportation to the Missouri Civil War Museum. Unfortunatley, the Museum has sustained water damage from recent storms, which has delayed all of their functions. When the installation occurs, I'll be posting some pictures, also of any further progress on the project itself.

 

Tim Jovick

314-761-5435

 

[kurtvd19]

Tim:

When the installation is scheduled be sure to let us know and we can make an announcement for anybody in the area to come to see the ceremony and this great model.

Take care,

Kurt

 

[Cathead]

3 hours ago, timboni said:

You will be missed, Dr. Mike. Calm seas, fair winds.

Thanks for sharing this sad news with us. My condolences to all who knew him.

 

I concur with Kurt, please post any updates about installation at the museum for those of us in the region who might be able to come.