Cap San Diego by mikegr - 1/160

[mikegr]

I'm going to make my first scratch project after months of research. Not sure if this should be posted here as i won't use plans exactly but a model. The problem is that the model is on paper so must be copied on wood. But it won't be a wooden model either as most probably other materials will be used.

Cap San Diego was a hybrid cargo and liner launched in 1961. The "white swan" as was nicknamed is a 159 m, 10000 dwt ship which ran a regular schedule between Germany and South America, completing 120 round trips until 1981. After being sold and running under different names and under Spanish flag and also flags of convenience as a tramp trader, the run-down ship was scheduled for scrapping in 1986, when She was bought by the city of Hamburg

[KeithAug]

Loverly looking ship - from an era when naval architects still thought aesthetics were important. Good luck with the build 

Edited November 22, 2020 by KeithAug

[ccoyle]

2 hours ago, mikegr said:

Not sure if this should be posted here

 

You got it in the right place, since you are doing a scratch build using the kit parts as templates. I've seen this attempted before, but I can't remember in whose build log it was or if they ever finished. The card company, for those who may not know, is Dom Bumagi ("Paper House"). I believe they are out of the Ukraine, and they offer some very nice kits.

[mikegr]

I got printed the first batch of drawings. 

Noticed that original size is in A3.I measured the overall length and was found to be 3 cm shorter than displayed. So I did the calculations and printed the hull plans 31% larger instead of 28% to get the correct dimensions in 1/160. Not Sure about the other sheets though, 

regarding the bridge, cranes, etc.

Edited November 25, 2020 by mikegr

[mikegr]

Meantime I printed the ship in my A4 printer and made a prototype just to get familiarized with the model. Purpose was not to be the best looking, just to get the basic idea. I used whatever paper I had some cardboard and plastified regular paper

 

[mikegr]

Kit has some inaccuracies so I have to do some extra work but nothing that can't be fixed. At the hands of an expert builders though it can look very impressive

 

 

[mikegr]

Done with bulkheads. I had to redraw the slots from 1mm wide to 8 since I'm going to use 8mm thick wood for the frame

[mikegr]

I cut the two parts of the central frame. I use plywood 8 mm. Noticed some peeling off after cutting so I coated all the  edges with epoxy resin which sealed the wood. I marked the cutting areas with modeling tape, slots were redrawn from 1mm to 3 mm wide so they can fit the bulkeads.

 

[Tony Hunt]

Looking good. It's a very handsome ship, should make a great looking model.  I'm looking forward to seeing it progress!

[mikegr]

Ok after a week on evening work managed to fit bulkheads on frame. Fitting them vertically was the one thing. In my ocassion I had to measure the distance from frame to bulkhead edges to make sure are well positioned. Redrawing and cutting fitting slots by hand is a job that can't be done perfectly by a begginer. I  ordered a PU glue so I can fill in gaps easier but cause of lockdown, shops only accept online orders and courier services are overloaded so delivery time is 2-3 weeks!

Anyway I just used some wood filler. Not of great importance but I wanted the hull to look a bit better

 

[mikegr]

The initial paper model plan calls for a 3 decker ship. In my A4 printed test model this proved quite rigid even not proper paper have been used. However that would require too much woodwork which I would like to avoid as a begginer.
After weeks of research i decided to plank the hull using pieces of aluminum sheet 0.2mm thick, which is easier to work with, than wood. But this thing has to sit somewhere solid so my model won't end up as a Coke can. After research I decided to use polystyrene, light and easier to give it shape.
Polystyrene has its drawbacks. If pressed even gently with fingers can be curved. But what is important at the moment is to sit in alignment with the frames so my hull will look as smooth as possible. This will allow me less filling-sanding effort. It doesn't look as beautiful as wooden models but I opted for the easy way. Time will show.

 

 

Edited December 24, 2020 by mikegr

[KeithAug]

Aluminium over polystyrene is quite novel but it looks like an interesting approach. Worth a try I think, I look forward to see how it turned out.

[bdgiantman2]

Interesting project you are undertaking. Being from San Diego has extra meaning to me.  Looking over the pictures you have provided, I am amazed at how similar in profile this vessel looks to the nuclear cargo ship Savannah, except that your ship has twin funnels and probably has diesel power.

 

Brian

[mikegr]

There has been some snowfall which slowed down my progress.

I have finished the polysterene work on the hull. Also, due to fact i used 8mm thick plywood for the frame, i had to sharpen the stern and bow as well. Some smalls frame parts from the paper model were trimmed down to almost elimination.

The next step was to aplly filler is some areas and sand them. It took me two evenings to finish it.

Next thing was to cut the deck. At the moment and cause of lockdown the only wood available was 4mm MDF.  I managed to sand it down t 2,5 mm aprox. Then cut it and fit it to hull.  As found out MDF was is a very absorbing material i sanded it to remove the water based primer and gave it 3 coats of specialized white primer for MDF.

One thing that made me happy is that i shaped the bulkheads in that way so deck has the inclination from center line to edges, present to all merchant vessels. Most ready made models don't have this detail which i believe is a must.

Finally i did my first wood scratch built. Unlike planking i found out that shaping things out of wood can be very fun

Edited January 24, 2021 by mikegr

[mikegr]

I have been started making the superstructure. Unlike modern cargo ships it has a round delicate shape, its not a square box. That makes it more challenging to built. For the front curved areas I use aluminum sheet 0.2 mm thick, quite easy to bend. I drill it then making window frames using staples cutting in L shape pieces. After gluing  them and  dry i have to trim it to give he perfect shape Quite time consuming procedure.

 

[KeithAug]

Superstructure is looking quite smart, nice detailed work in cutting out the windows, well done.

[mikegr]

Hello

MCO has been over, at least for now. Some new material ordered as well as a few tools. Meanwhile I have been working on the superstructure level by level. The main silhouette is clearly shown now I will start gradually building details while correcting some imperfections.

I am also experimenting with the deck color which varies from picture to picture of the real ship, depends the time those are taken as well as weather condition.

 

[GrandpaPhil]

Looking good!

[mikegr]

I have almost finished the first Deck minus some details. I made the wooden deck by veneer. I cut It in planks 2cm x 1-1.2 mm wide by hand. Some were not cut accurately so had to be removed and replaced.

 

[mikegr]

I finished the pool deck. The wood veneer color matched closely to the real one. I start working at the bridge deck. The complex shape will be made with the same technique. Polystyrene shaped, then car putty and sanding.

[rpeteru]

This vessel is powered by Two MAN K9Z 78/140D. The 9 refers to the cylinder count and the 78/140 refer to Bore and stroke respectively,780 mm bore and 140 =1400mm stroke. In my earlier days I spent a lot of time with this engines smaller brethren. Mainly K8Z 57/80C.

[rpeteru]

There are youtube videos on this particular vessel.

[mikegr]

I was thinking to cover the hull with thin aluminum 0.20 mm stripes then use automotive filler. This would reduce the sanding and shaping hull time.

 

As i started the process i decide either to enlarge the metal pieces to reduce work load or skip it at all and go straight to smooth the hull using car body filler, sanding and repeat the process unit I get the desired effect. Which I did. It would be proved a disastrous decision.

Even hull didn't have any great imperfections, it took around half kilo of filler to cover it all. Then after a few minutes the hull area between frames collapsed. I have seen this happen on another project while using rubber adhesive glue. Probably catalyst heated polystyrene and forced it to shrink. I added locally some acrylic putty to fill the gaps. Even it was easy to work with, body filler on the other hand is not. So working with hard and soft ingredient at the same time is not an option. Another layer of car body filler will do the job although this would require lots of extra sanding effort plus will increase even more the weight of the hull.

 

 

[mikegr]

the last accident literally smashed my hopes for an easier work on shaping the hull. Giving the perfect shape is crucial for the appearance of the model. However I will need a great amount of filler (added weight) and a lot of extra sanding work. Under these circumstances I realized one thing:
The project Cap San Diego is over...


Why? Because Cap San Diego Lite is on.
Learning from the rookie lessons I already started the process of a new hull with different approach. With better materials and lighter as the previous one would require a big amount of filler. Keel will be made from 4mm plywood instead of 8 so I can work easily the sharp bow and the round stern. Bulkheads are made of 2-2.5 mm wood instead of 3. For main deck a strong wood less than 1mm thick will be used instead of the 2.5 mm MDF which proved too heavy and problematic (don't forget I use paper model plans so I need to to adjust wood thickness according to plans.

 

[mtaylor]

As much as I hate to see models abandoned, I totally understand why.   You've learned a lot which is good and so the next will be even better.  I would suggest to just add version 2 to this log for continuity not only on the build but on the learning process.

[KeithAug]

I am pleased you are having another go. She is a very handsome vessel and deserves to be modelled. I remember my first model had plenty of car body filler in the hull.

[mikegr]

On 11/24/2021 at 11:07 PM, KeithAug said:

I am pleased you are having another go. She is a very handsome vessel and deserves to be modelled. I remember my first model had plenty of car body filler in the hull.

It is a bit sad that there's no interest for making a model of this fine ship.  Thats why I decided to built my own.

 

I have finished filling the hull, thick coated with acrylic putty and sanded. Too much dust but this was sanded down easily in 30 min.
In some areas the layer was thinner and polystyrene was exposed. This time I put bit if wood filler locally for quick dry. After done with it I will give several layers of thick acrylic layer, gesso style.This will create an extra protective layer and smoothen the surface for the final car body filler application. Like I did with my experimental Alfa class project.

 

[mikegr]

I have applied several layers of thick primer and sand it. It got an almost smooth surface. Then I applied a coat of car body filler liquid, bought in a bottle. It is a bit more easy to work with and gives a fine smooth finish.  I applied several coats each time less amount of it. I used glaze putty to fill in small holes. There's a lot of work to be done yet.

[mikegr]

Meanwhile bridge deck is done, only details need to be added

 

[mikegr]

this is the hull after several layers of filler and primer