SS Normandie by ChrisSC - FINISHED - Blue Ridge Models - 1/700 - PLASTIC

[yvesvidal]

I am glad you tried the water in the pool. It makes for a big difference and an eye catcher.

 

Yves

[ChrisSC]

On 2/23/2021 at 8:42 PM, Old Collingwood said:

"Holly Mollies"     thats hurting my eyes just viewing your masterpiece   - and look at that water in pool  - thats it Im getting my trunks...

 

OC.

Yup, it sure is small OC. Well about halfway through these railings I realized I'm putting them on upside down. I assumed the thicker rail was a top course like all the other PE railings I have seen. Turns out it should be on the bottom. Like the old saying says, never assume. I found this out when I got to a pre shaped railing in the well deck area. I am kind of just rushing through it now. This model requires a top notch skill set and experience with resin....and patience with good eyesight. I don't have enough of all three lol!!! It's a learning experience for sure in my case.

[Old Collingwood]

That is looking  really good.

 

OC.

[lmagna]

2 hours ago, ChrisSC said:

It's a learning experience for sure in my case.

You may have accidently discovered something Chris. In  my humble opinion the upside down railings look just like the real thing with the top rail being made of a thicker polished wood railing instead of the metal of the lower sections.

 

For not having any top notch skill, experience with resin, and patience combined with good eyesight you are sure turning out a miniature masterpiece. It is frightening what you could possibly do if you had all of those attributes!

Edited February 26, 2021 by lmagna

[ChrisSC]

28 minutes ago, lmagna said:

You may have accidently discovered something Chris. In  my humble opinion the upside down railings look just like the real thing with the top rail being made of a thicker polished wood railing instead of the metal of the lower sections.

 

For not having any top notch skill, experience with resin, and patience combined with good eyesight you are sure turning out a miniature masterpiece. It is frightening what you could possibly do if you had all of those attributes!

Thanks Lou. I was kind of taken aback when I discovered the railings were designed with the thicker rail on the bottom. It's the first time I've come across them that way. I agree, the real ship does look like the top rail should be the thicker one. In this scale I don't think anyone will notice unless they get in real close lol.

[ChrisSC]

1 hour ago, Old Collingwood said:

That is looking  really good.

 

OC.

Thanks OC. It looks better with a little distance between it and the viewer lol! I have another resin model of the Normandie that hopefully this one will help with getting my feet wet with resin. It's 1/350 scale and unfortunately it doesn't have the PE window frames. I would love to have had them switched with the more detail on the larger model.

[lmagna]

2 hours ago, ChrisSC said:

In this scale I don't think anyone will notice unless they get in real close lol.

I personally blame the makers of the PE. It is obvious in the pictures that the top rail is nice heavy polished wood and stands out as such. It would also be obvious to anyone who has ever taken a cruise on a ocean liner. They should design their expensive after market additions accordingly.

 

2 hours ago, ChrisSC said:

It's 1/350 scale and unfortunately it doesn't have the PE window frames.

Is there any possibility that the 1/350 PE for the Entex Titanic would fit? There are a lot of salon windows in that set.

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/toms-modelworks-3521-rms-titanic-pe-windows--162718

 

Possibly another source would be Old Model Kits. They offer an amazingly expensive resin 1/350 Normandie that is supposed to have two sheets of PE. Maybe they would be willing to sell you just the PE sheets if they include what you want.

 https://www.oldmodelkits.com/index.php?searchtext=1/350 normandie

 

 

Edited February 26, 2021 by lmagna

[ChrisSC]

18 minutes ago, lmagna said:

I personally blame the makers of the PE. It is obvious in the pictures that the top rail is nice heavy polished wood and stands out as such. It would also be obvious to anyone who has ever taken a cruise on a ocean liner. They should design their expensive after market additions accordingly.

 

Is there any possibility that the 1/350 PE for the Entex Titanic would fit? There are a lot of salon windows in that set.

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/toms-modelworks-3521-rms-titanic-pe-windows--162718

 

Possibly another source would be Old Model Kits. They offer an amazingly expensive resin 1/350 Normandie that is supposed to have two sheets of PE. Maybe they would be willing to sell you just the PE sheets if they include what you want.

 https://www.oldmodelkits.com/index.php?searchtext=1/350 normandie

 

 

Lou I never thought for a minute the railings were upside-down. I guess I should have looked at all the PE first. I have some of Toms Titanic windows and they won't fit the 1/350. The 1/350 kit I have is the Old Models Kit but it doesn't have any PE for the windows. In quickly looking through it there are mostly davits and railings and a few other things. I have no idea how I will approach the windows. The only solace I can take is I have looked at the kit finished by others and the windows look kind of sloppy on every build I've been able to find. Ocean liner windows are always an issue for me and liner windows and resin really don't play together well. If we were talking about a few windows then maybe if I were ridiculously careful I could get them done but with hundreds of windows I can't be that consistent. With this 1/700 version I have only been able to find one built to view online. I have had quite a few people tell me they have the kit but none are building it lol. On another forum a member sent me a link to someone's build of this kit. The builder basically had a bunch of PE commissioned and just about rebuilt a significant amount of the kit from what it was out of the box. I'm not that interested in spending any more money on an already expensive 1/700 model. From a foot or two away you can't see any of these details anyway!! The next thing that looks like fun are the davits. My eyes will thank me when this one is in the books! I will continue to forge ahead.

[lmagna]

Too bad on the 1/350 stuff. Possibly look at four rail PE sets and consider cutting window frames from them. Don't know.

 

On your present build I still think you were right by putting the thick part on top! Good luck with both the davits and eyesight.

[ChrisSC]

Well I'm calling this 1/700 resin Normandie done. That's about as much as I feel like doing to it. I doubt I will ever put rigging on it as it's so fragile I think a breeze would break stuff off! This was a lot harder to build than I ever thought it would be.

[Kevin]

Very nice indeed

[Ryland Craze]

Congratulations on completing your Normandie.  You did an excellent job on building this model.

[ccoyle]

Very handsome, Chris!

[Shotlocker]

Beautiful model of a beautiful ship!

[Old Collingwood]

Superb work Chris  - really top notch workmanship.

 

OC.

[Canute]

Well done. a very sleek ship.

[Old Collingwood]

Whats next mate?

 

OC.

[lmagna]

Marvelous job on a seldom modeled ship in a hard to work with medium Chris. Congratulations 

[ChrisSC]

53 minutes ago, Old Collingwood said:

Whats next mate?

 

OC.

Thank you all for the kind words. OC, I'm not sure what's next but what I can tell you is it won't be anything made of resin in 1/700 scale lol!

[wemattson]

That is truly beautiful!  Magnificent work.  Thank you for posting a build log of a model seldom seen.

[yvesvidal]

14 hours ago, ChrisSC said:

Thank you all for the kind words. OC, I'm not sure what's next but what I can tell you is it won't be anything made of resin in 1/700 scale lol!

 

Yes, you need to rest your eyes and your hands....so, the 1/200 scale seems like a good candidate for your sanity 😁

To be honest, I cannot wait to see someone build the Titanic from Trumpeter....especially someone with your skills and attention to details.

 

Yves

[Landlubber Mike]

Wow Chris, sorry to have not come across this one sooner!  What an incredible job!  You really knocked this one out of the park, congratulations!  Even more amazing that it was your first at this scale. 

[ChrisSC]

Thank you wemattson, Mike, and Yves. Yves, I have seen some spectacular builds of the 1/200 Titanic on some other forums. I'll get to mine eventually but I could only hope to do half as well as some of the builds I have seen. Some of these modelers working on that kit have amazing talent. The amount of aftermarket support for that kit is also unmatched. I'm kind of tired of seeing Titanic but that's one kit I look forward to building.

[gak1965]

Fantastic job! This ship is special to me, because my paternal grandmother came to the US from Greece, third class, on the Normandie in late '35. She was a subsistence farmer on Rhodes, who in the space of a couple of weeks went from a part of the island with no electricity or running water to Piraeus in Athens and thence to La Havre and New York City to be met by my grandfather, a man she had not seen for several years while he saved up the money to bring her to the states. The culture shock must have been unbelievable.

[yvesvidal]

On 3/2/2021 at 11:16 AM, ChrisSC said:

 Yves, I have seen some spectacular builds of the 1/200 Titanic on some other forums. I'll get to mine eventually but I could only hope to do half as well as some of the builds I have seen. Some of these modelers working on that kit have amazing talent. 

 

Well, let us be the judges ! I trust your skills and capabilities to turn that monster into a master piece.

 

Yves

[camscottkeen]

Hi Chris,

 

Love all your models. They have inspired me to get back into modelling. I have decided to do the 1/600 Queen Elizabeth, 1/570 Queen Mary and I am getting a 1/600 Normandie 3D printed at the moment.

 

Do you (or any other forum members) have any suggestion for Photo etched railings etc for the 1/600 Normandie?

 

Thanks from Australia.