IJN Hatsuzakura by Landlubber Mike - FINISHED - Pit Road - 1/700 - PLASTIC - with FiveStar PE

[Old Collingwood]

3 hours ago, Canute said:

Have you got a chrysanthemum for the tip of the bow? IJN ships had them for the Emperor.

Yep   and must be a scalled real one.😁

 

OC.

[Landlubber Mike]

There is a tiny PE piece that goes at the very tip of the bow in the Five Star set which might be the chrysanthemum.  A little hard to tell from the pictures and the instructions.  It's like a facing down C in shape.  The pictures of the completed model on the Five Star box seem t show a little bead or something possible in the middle of the C, but it's really too hard to tell from the pictures.

[Blue Ensign]

I admire your perseverance Mike, what a challenge, but one you're obviously up to.

Well done.

 

B.E.

[Landlubber Mike]

Felt good to finally get some paint on this, after such a long period of it sitting on the shelf.  I ended up priming with thinned Vallejo black primer.  For the gray, there are various grays used by different shipyards.  This ship was built by the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal.  Some companies like Tamiya make paint colors specific to the various shipyards (Kure, Maizuru, Yokosuka, etc.).  I wanted to stick with Vallejo, so I went with Vallejo Medium Gunship Gray with a  tiny bit of Vallejo Intermediate Blue mixed in to get what I think is a fairly close match to what the Tamiya paint (XF 91) looked like.  It gets a little crazy trying to be exact, as colors render differently on the computer and even vary across pictures of the same paints posted by different sellers.  With shading and weathering, things will change in the end anyway. 

 

 

 

I like how things came out.  With the black primer base, I lightly sprayed the gray so the hull is already shaded in the various recesses, which makes things much easier.  Next I'll try to add some washes and a touch of highlighting, and then start adding the remaining details like the rails which are still on the PE frets but painted.

 

Thanks for looking in!

[Landlubber Mike]

Just now, Blue Ensign said:

I admire your perseverance Mike, what a challenge, but one you're obviously up to.

Well done.

 

B.E.

 

Thanks BE - it's been a learning experience for sure.  I'm curious to see what things are like when I start work on my 1/350 Shimakaze - I bet the PE will look huge in comparison to what I've been used to on this 1/700 model.

[Canute]

 

Mike it's the little gold disc on the bow.

 

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks Ken.  I've seen them on carriers and battleships and other larger ships, I don't recall seeing them on destroyers.  I have some extra PE parts that are little round discs - I probably could use one of those.  At this scale, it doesn't have to look like the flower.

 

Edit:  looks like the chrysanthemum may have only been reserved for the capital ships:

 

https://forum.worldofwarships.com/topic/79574-why-do-ijn-cvs-cls-cas-and-bbs/

Edited January 20, 2021 by Landlubber Mike

[Canute]

Yeah, probably not, Mike. I keep forgetting this is in 1/700.  I looked for bow shots of DDs, but most were too far away, with fuzzy details. A dot of gold paint would probably suffice.

[Landlubber Mike]

From another website - looks like the crest was on cruisers and above:  https://www.kinenkan-mikasa.or.jp/en/tourmap/central_exhibition_data/bow_crest.html

 

 

In June 1898 Japanese Navy, following the Royal Navy decided to put the Imperial Crest of Chrysanthemum as the bow crest of all ships above cruiser class and was referred to as Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). 
This Bow Crest was equipped on MIKASA's bow from her commissioning till 1987. 

 

 

Edited January 20, 2021 by Landlubber Mike

[Edwardkenway]

Great work Mike, looks good with a bit of paint on her😉

[Old Collingwood]

1 hour ago, Canute said:

 

Mike it's the little gold disc on the bow.

 

WOW Ken😲  Superb mate.

 

OC.

[Canute]

OC, not my work. I just took a grab from another site to show the bow crest. Mike's answer in #69 says DDs never had the crest, only cruisers and up.

[lmagna]

That profile shot really shows off your additional PE work. Very nice!

[Old Collingwood]

I agree with the others  - sublime work  - looking amazing - you must have hands like a surgeon  or watch maker.

 

OC.

[Landlubber Mike]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the kind words.  Frankly if I can do it, you guys can too.  It’s not too difficult, just takes some practice to find what tools, adhesives, techniques, etc. work best for you.

A few sections of this model certainly could be better, so I’m hoping that I’ll be able to take the lessons on this one and put together a better one next time.

[Old Collingwood]

17 minutes ago, Landlubber Mike said:

Thanks guys, I appreciate the kind words.  Frankly if I can do it, you guys can too.  It’s not too difficult, just takes some practice to find what tools, adhesives, techniques, etc. work best for you.

A few sections of this model certainly could be better, so I’m hoping that I’ll be able to take the lessons on this one and put together a better one next time.

I think thats how we all learn on our own models, its so hard not to accept our build  as being a test for our next one, but guess its the way it is  as we learn and improve with everyone built.

 

OC.

[EricWilliamMarshall]

52 minutes ago, Landlubber Mike said:

Frankly if I can do it, you guys can too

I have ordered some photo etch for a 1/700 battleship I have and it’s your fault!  The ship looks great painted!

[Landlubber Mike]

3 hours ago, EricWilliamMarshall said:

I have ordered some photo etch for a 1/700 battleship I have and it’s your fault!  The ship looks great painted!

 

Fantastic, I'll happily take the blame!  Hopefully you don't mind posting a build log - can't wait to see your work!  

Edited January 21, 2021 by Landlubber Mike

[popeye the sailor]

she is look'in super with a coat of paint Mike........quite a bit of PE,  that's for sure    very well done!   I have a 1:350 I have yet to finish........I wouldn't go smaller than that   

[Landlubber Mike]

Come on Popeye, you can do it, I have faith in you!  

[baskerbosse]

Here's Hasegawa 1/700 chrysanthemum for cruiser Tenryu. Quite small..:

 

[Landlubber Mike]

Now that is tiny!  

 

Are you building this one?  I had the Tenryu on my list, but ended up getting the Tamiya Tama with the Rainbow upgrade set.  I think the Tama, as part of the Kuma class, was like a larger Tenryu.  I love the three funnels on it (if you like funnels, ships like the Sendai light cruiser have four!).

[baskerbosse]

Built it a year ago, log here 

 

I have the Akagi in 1/700 as well, but I'm yet to get any PE for it.

 The Sendai looks cool with the plane and catapult.. 🙂

[Landlubber Mike]

8 hours ago, baskerbosse said:

Built it a year ago, log here 

 

I have the Akagi in 1/700 as well, but I'm yet to get any PE for it.

 The Sendai looks cool with the plane and catapult.. 🙂

 

Oh yes, sorry, completely forgot that I had seen your beautiful build!  Glad I have company in the 1/700 asylum  

 

What did you think of the kit?  Nice to have the kit and PE in one box.  Seems to be a fairly comprehensive PE set as I look at your pictures.

 

Which Akagi do you have?  I have the early three deck version with biplanes, along with the 1/350 kit of the later version.

 

[baskerbosse]

The kit is well detailed, good fit and the photoetch covers a lot.
From entire superstructures to the oars of the ships boats, you can see on the box photo as they left the PE unpainted..
Now, i don't have much to compare with until I have actually built some others. This was the first one of modern ship models so far.
Really enjoyable build. Spur of the moment buy from the hobbyshop, thinking I'd finish it in a week or two :-). Underestimated the amount of work needed for the photoetch by a bit..
The Akagi I have is 1/700 scale late configuration (one flight deck), Hasegawa full hull edition.

I saw the discussion a while back around cutting surface for PE. For what it's worth, I found that a curved scalpel blade and a piece of glass is perfect for me. No bending and easy to get a clean cut.
 

Edited January 24, 2021 by baskerbosse

[cog]

8 hours ago, baskerbosse said:

I saw the discussion a while back around cutting surface for PE. For what it's worth, I found that a curved scalpel blade and a piece of glass is perfect for me. No bending and easy to get a clean cut.

I use both curved and straight blades on both hradwood and glazed wall tile. Presently I use the hardwood a lot. I recently got a piece of scrap black perspex, which I will try on my current build - not a ship.

[Landlubber Mike]

The blade I use is a #10 curved blade:

 

 

For this 1/700 PE though, I’m going to see if I can find a blade that is much smaller and more like a chisel.  That might give a little more control and precision.

 

The black acetate is nice because of the color contrast against the PE.  I wish it was more matte though.  It’s very reflective of overhead lighting which is annoying at times.

 

[cog]

Sand it, Mike, it dulls down enough not to reflect your working light. An added advantage ... PE doesn't slip when the perspex is sanded

Edited January 26, 2021 by cog

[Landlubber Mike]

That's a good idea Carl.  Would it turn the surface cloudy though, which would make it harder to see brass?  I guess I could always polish it back out, but not as much so that it is so reflective.

[JohnB40]

Well done Mike,that is some outstanding modeling work there.The finished destroyer is miniature masterpiece. I would have had trouble just seeing the parts,even with Optivisors with the highest magnification.

John