Shimakaze by Landlubber Mike - FINISHED - Hasegawa - 1:350 - PLASTIC - Japanese WWII Destroyer

[shipman]

Mike, you did a good job.

 

Somewhere in my loft stash is the 1:200 Nichimo kit.

Of course, size isn't everything. but....mine is much bigger than yours! LOL

[Landlubber Mike]

3 hours ago, shipman said:

Mike, you did a good job.

 

Somewhere in my loft stash is the 1:200 Nichimo kit.

Of course, size isn't everything. but....mine is much bigger than yours! LOL

 

Thanks Shipman!  1/200 would be a really big kit, almost twice as long as this one!  Looks like a nice kit.  

[Javlin]

Mike I missed this one lovely details and the deck is gorgeous bud!!So what's going on with the build now rigging is not to be feared with something like EZ-line.Looking forward to the final dio.

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Kevin!  I have the ship in the diorama, and now I am working on the figures to add to the deck.  I want to do the figures, then finish the rigging and end with the waves, etc.  I had a bunch from Northstar, but they didn't have too many figure positions so I was a bit hesitant to add a large amount of very similar looking figures.  I did end up finding a few other sets from what appear to be new manufacturers which give me a lot more variation, so those came in the mail not too long ago.  

 

It's kind of a pain to paint them all, so I haven't really been eager to get back to the bench to finish them, plus have had a lot of work and family stuff going on.  This week looks good though, so I think your post will give me the push to finish it up  

[lmagna]

Good to see you are getting more build time Mike, this should turn out great. 

What new company did you end up getting the figures from?

[Landlubber Mike]

Hey Lou, thanks for looking in.  I found these from Pro Studio and Ion that look pretty good.  The Northstar figures look great, but frankly are a pain in the *** as they cram all the figures too close together on a heavy plug, so it's hard to individually paint them and remove them without breaking them.  These are on separate plug rows which makes things infinitely easier.

 

The Pro Studio I found on eBay.  The Ion are on eBay and also Freetime Hobbies carries them.  They also make sets for other navies as well.  I wouldn't care as much in 1/700 as the figures are so small, but at 1/350, having different poses is more ideal.

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by Landlubber Mike

[Landlubber Mike]

Finished!  Seeing @Javlin finish his beautiful Chikuma build gave me the inspiration to finish this one up.  The Hasegawa kit with Infini upgrade set is a really killer combo, and I couldn't recommend it more.

 

I was thinking of adding smoke to the funnels, but I wasn't quite liking how my efforts were coming out so I bagged that idea.  If I can figure it out, I might add it later.  Otherwise, I'm really glad I went for the diorama setting.  If I had to do it over, I probably would have made the diorama a little less deep, but lessons learned for my next one.  Overall, for my first 1/350 ship with diorama, I'm pretty happy with the results.

 

Thanks for all the support during the build, and thanks as always for looking in!

 

 

 

 

[Landlubber Mike]

Some detail shots:

 

 

[hollowneck]

Wow. Nice diorama, Mike! I'm also a "figures-on-model" guy, so Congrats on this nicely-executed detail too.

 

The most convincing funnel smoke I've seen on any ship model - particularly ones of the WWI & II eras is made from... wait for it....cat hair. An excellent scratch modeler from my former club models ships that have propulsion from things other than the wind and has a large, furry breed of a cat (Himilayan?) that sheds. He told our members he just snatches a hank when he needs it without describing exactly how the acquisition method happens...from the couch? While she/he sleeps?

 

Very nice model, Looks like you had fun building this one that also didn't take two years to complete!!

Edited October 3, 2022 by hollowneck

[CDW]

You really did something special with this Mike. A model to be admired and proudly displayed. Looks like the real thing.

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Ron!  Good tip on the cat hair - though I'd worry about possibly sneezing around it from my mild allergies!  I tried using cotton balls that I pulled and stretched out.  It actually didn't look too bad.  I painted probably a dozen samples, with black, dark grey and light grey.  I found you had to flatten it before painting otherwise if you tried pulling post painting, the inner white cotton would show.  But once you pull and stretch it, it loses some of its integrity and then you have to try to reconstruct a three dimensional smoke plume.  It might be worth spraying hair spray on it or some mild adhesive so you can shape it.  Something for the next build I suppose.

 

Thanks Craig, really appreciate it.  I owe a big thanks to you for all your help over the years in getting up the plastic model curve.  

[Javlin]

Mike I esp.like the attention to the flag lines 2X and some Nice Weathering!!

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Kevin - the rigging was tough!  Took me a while to figure out how to do it.  I finally figured out it was best to dab CA on the spot to be glued, attach the line with tweezers in one hand to that spot, and then have the second hand ready with a toothpick dipped in CA accelerant.  That made things much easier!  I used Infini's Fine rigging line.

 

Oh, we were talking the other day about sagging rigging.  I saw that VeryFire has a "memory metal rigging" thread.  Not sure what that is, but I'm wondering if it's super fine wire.  It might just be similar rubber thread that is intended to represent metal rigging.  I ordered some so will try it out on my next build.

[CDW]

I’ve read where modelers use stretched sprue for rigging. Cheap and it attaches with ease. Getting consistent diameter stretched sprue would take some practice and patience. All plastic sprue is not created equal when it comes to heating and stretching it. Been there and done that with mixed results but have never tried to do enough of it for an entire model ship.

[king derelict]

Mike

This is a spectacular work. The seascape is stunning and the rigging is amazing. The use of figures really brings the model to life. This is one to be really proud of. I hope it has a prominent dust free home.

Great work. I think I will take p knitting

Alan

[Glen McGuire]

Mike, what a superb build and fantastic presentation!  I love what you did with the water, in particular the froth at the bow.  Very realistic!  Congratulations on a beautiful work of art!!!  

[Canute]

Very nicely done, Mike. Really like your waterscape.

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Alan, Glen and Canute!  Really appreciate the kind words.  It was a lot of fun putting it together, minus dropping PE on the ground and spending an inordinate amount of time looking for it on my hands and knees. 

[lmagna]

Nice to see what you ended up with Mike. A true masterpiece to be proud of.

For smoke you might want to look into fine needle felting wool, or roving wool depending on your need, in dark gray or black My wife does a lot of needle felting projects and I have found a number of uses and as it is already died no need to worry about the color. 

 

Congratulations 

[Landlubber Mike]

Thank you Lou, really appreciate it and all the help you've had with ship and plane stuff over the years.  And thanks for the tip on the felting wool.  I'll have to look into that.  Already dyed helps a lot!

[Roger Pellett]

Very nice work!

 

IMHO, for World War II oil fired ships manned by crack crews smoke is best avoided.  While modelers might think that it adds atmosphere, in reality it was a dead giveaway for the ship’s position.  Boiler tenders were responsible for balancing the combustion air-fuel mix to prevent clouds of smoke.

 

Roger

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Roger!

 

And yes, it's interesting going through pictures of the IJN WWII ships.  For ships that were moving, you'd think they'd all have smoke plumes, but a good percentage of the ones I came across did not.  Your point about the boiler tenders makes perfect sense as to why.  Thanks for passing that along - saves me from having to go down that rabbit hole and plucking hairs off cats. 

[popeye the sailor]

hey there Mike.........such a great looking model!    very nicely done and the diorama adds to it.  well done putting it all together! 

[hollowneck]

22 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

 I tried using cotton balls that I pulled and stretched out.  It actually didn't look too bad.

Mike, I've discovered that regular, bog-standard cotton balls are hard to work with in fashioning smoke, and in my particular experience, making "sea spray." The solution, ironically, is to use synthetic cotton balls, specifically created and sold as "medicinal cotton balls." Sheep have never come near them. A synthetic, possibly nylon, rayon - or even Biktarvy or Ozempic.

The medicinal cotton is easier to work with, can be painted easily and various glues (and hair spray) work well once you've "teased" it into a convincing-looking shape.

Hope this helps with the next one. I've got a diorama coming-up soon and I'll likely use this exact same material for some sea spray at strategic spots where my ship's bow is smashing into some big rollers!

 

BTW: I had to buy a large bag of 1,000 to get two medicinal balls for my last diorama. If there's a supply chain problem at your end, just give me a shout-out; I can spare one or two for an MSW buddy.

Edited October 4, 2022 by hollowneck

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Popeye, really appreciate it!

 

Ron, I'll have to check those out and thanks for the offer!  For my sea spray/white foam, I used Liquitex as the medium, and generally used cotton balls that I stretched out.  The Liquitex dries clear, but the foam turns white from the cotton.  I also used a combo of Vallejo white and Tamiya white for different shades of white.  My Vallejo was a bit thin and chalky, so it worked well for the areas mid hull to the stern.  The areas at the front and back, as well as right up against the hull, were lightly touched up with Tamiya white.  Having the two helped make more more contrast and less uniformity.  

 

If you want translucent waves, you can form the waves using toilet paper, which when wet from the gesso turns translucent.  A good way to show water cascading over the side of the ship.  Though, I'm not sure what scale you are working in so the toilet paper might not be strong enough - or you just have to use premium four-ply 😆

Edited October 4, 2022 by Landlubber Mike

[RGL]

Looks great, maybe next year I’ll try a seascape!! 

[hollowneck]

6 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said:

saves me from having to go down that rabbit hole and plucking hairs off cats. 

Indeed...Holy Smokes!...you got your boiler tenders doing their jobs!

1 hour ago, Landlubber Mike said:

If you want translucent waves, you can form the waves using toilet paper, which when wet from the gesso turns translucent.

Aha. Interesting. I haven't tried any medium with TP,  just diluted white glue & water. I used toilet paper (single-ply, important!) on my HMS Swan diorama to get the effect of wind moving across a water's surface. Attached is a close-up where you can easily see the effect of the minute "crinkles" produced by the toilet paper after it had thoroughly dried but before any color/painting. If you'd like, the pic has enough resolution so you can zoom in closer for details. The water surface effect is especially visible near the towed boat.

 

You've gotten plenty of well-deserved "High Fives" on your model. Congrats (again). Great job.

Edited October 4, 2022 by hollowneck

[HardeeHarHar]

People like you set the bar so high.  Your work is incredible, and the diorama is so realistic.  Epic job.

[king derelict]

Volunteer for smoke production on full alert

Some great diorama ideas here.

Alan

 

[hollowneck]

3 hours ago, king derelict said:

Some great diorama ideas here.

"Wakey, wakey, pussycat"... Model ship builders in the house!

Model by Howard Williams, CMMS (Connecticut Marine Model Society), 2019. Tug smoke courtesy of his "mature"feline.

Another model by Howard Williams, CMMS 2008. Ironclad smoke courtesy of Howard's younger kitty.

Photos: courtesy of me.

 

Apologies Mike. Is this hijacking your thread?...

 

Edited October 5, 2022 by hollowneck
added text and apologies