HMS Penelope by King Derelict - FINISHED - Flyhawk - 1/700 - PLASTIC

[king derelict]

Hello Everyone

This is my first pass at a build log so please forgive all the omissions and errors.

I am attempting to build HMS Penelope from the Flyhawk 1/700 scale kit. I have the Deluxe kit with two sheets of PE and metal gun barrels. I also have a wooden deck as an additional item.

I returned to plastic models last year having not built a kit since 1970 and I find things have changed since those days. Kits and aftermarket parts are spectacularly good and my eyes and hands have gone in the other direction. I have been building WW2 RN destroyers from Flyhawk, IBG and Trumpeter mostly with some elementary PE. This will be a step up in many ways so I hope I can bring it to a successful conclusion.

HMS Penelope like so many ships had a pretty rough war. HMS Penelope was an was an Arethusa-class light cruiser commissioned 13 November 1936. 

She operated with the 2nd Cruiser Squadron on convoy escort duties. In April and May 1940, she took part in the Norwegian Campaign. On 11 April Penelope ran aground off Fleinvær while hunting German merchant ships entering the Vestfjord. Her boiler room was flooded and she was holed forward. The destroyer Eskimo towed her to Skjelfjord where an advanced base had been improvised. Despite air attacks, temporary repairs were made and she was towed home a month later.

Penelope was holed both forward and aft by near-misses during air attacks on Malta in March 1942. While in the island, she was docked and repaired at the Malta Dry Docks. Day after day she was attacked by German aircraft and the crew worked to fix a myriad of shrapnel holes, so many that she was nicknamed HMS Pepperpot; when these had been plugged with long pieces of wood, HMS Porcupine. 

Further service in the Mediterranean saw her bombed and mined several times. On 18 February 1944, Penelope,  was leaving Naples when she was torpedoed by the German submarine U-410. A torpedo struck her in the after engine room and was followed sixteen minutes later by another torpedo that hit in the after boiler room, causing her immediate sinking; 417 of the crew, including the captain, went down with the ship

 

I plan to try to replicate the brown and white camouflage used in 1940 during her stay in Skjelfjord . This was an improvised scheme to try and match the colours of the snowy mountains surrounding the fjord. The colour balance was changed over time with the brown elements increasing to reflect the snow melting. That does give me some license to depart from a strict copy of the layout depicted with the kit. There is some controversy and little pictorial evidence of this paint scheme but the ships log attests to it and confirms that it was brown and whit and not just a simple overpaint of brown onto the light grey hull and superstructures. The exact colour of brown is undetermined so will be my choice.

 

My goals for the model are to replicate the Skjelfjord paint scheme, install my first set of wooden decks, use the metal gun barrels (another first) and try to use as much PE as I think enhances the model and remains below my fear limit. A stretch goal is to try a Norwegian fjord diorama. I plan a waterline model. 

 

The Flyhawk box contains a nice print of the box top image with some brief notes about the ship on the back. Instructions for the basic kit assembly and the PE are on separate sheets and there are many sprues of beautifully moulded small parts. a metal weight is provided to and some substance to the model. Parts for a Walrus and a Seafox aircraft are provided. The Seafox is the correct choice for 1940. 

 

My helper will provide company and make sure there is a liberal supply of long cat hairs to add character to the model.

 

This will probably be a slow build as I think through the sequence of build and paint and the appropriate points to add PE and the wooden decks. The wooden decks do come with masks which I think will give me some choices

 

I hope this log will help me at my best efforts. I would be grateful for comments from the many experts and I hope this provides some entertainment

 

Thanks 

 

Alan

 

[Old Collingwood]

Count me in   - I will stare just like your cat is  at the amazement  that happens with people who have  xray vision with these  tiny  Builds.

 

OC.

[yvesvidal]

Beautiful cat!

 

Yves

[Canute]

I'm in, too.

 

Any Maine Coon in the cat? Looks like the one we have.

[king derelict]

6 hours ago, Canute said:

I'm in, too.

 

Any Maine Coon in the cat? Looks like the one we have.

Hi Ken

Yes she is a Maine Coon cross. She came from a local shelter as a kitten with her sister three years ago. They are both great cats. Wonderful companions

[king derelict]

17 hours ago, Old Collingwood said:

Count me in   - I will stare just like your cat is  at the amazement  that happens with people who have  xray vision with these  tiny  Builds.

 

OC.

Thanks OC

I welcome advice from you and the other grand masters

 

Alan

[king derelict]

A tentative start has been made. It seems to me that one of the necessary skills is the ability to look at the kit and decide how to break it down into elements to build and paint, especially when masking is required. I spent most of the morning staring at the parts and the assembly information and decided that I will complete the hull, build the elements of the superstructure as far as masking will allow and then assemble, add final details and touch up paint. Some of the PE is much too fragile to stand any form of masking.

The waterline hull assembly and the weight were completed. all tightly fitting. This was followed by the first consideration. The wooden decks came with a set of masks and I was unsure whether to install the wooden decks and then add the masks for subsequent painting or to add the masks to the bare decks and install the wooden decks before final assembly. I decided to install the masks on the bare decks thinking that if any paint got under the mask it was likely to be insufficient to affect the adhesion of the deck but if might be hard to get a perfect register with the mask over the wooden deck and any paint getting on the wood would be disappointing. I made one exception with the lower bridge structure where I did install the wooden deck and then applied the mask. The build up of the structure would make adding the wooden deck difficult later in the build. This is the first time i have used a wooden deck so this may be completely incorrect.

 

The PE has been started. This is as small as I think I can handle. It is probably invisible on the final model. It a support for the bridge upper works

 

The PE is very nice to work with so far although I go in fear of teh crane and catapult that will be built later. There are even ladders and railings around the bridge companionways

 

 

Thanks for looking 

 

Alan

 

[Old Collingwood]

Very nice work  - very tidy and clean  - not easy at this scale.

 

OC.

[king derelict]

2 minutes ago, Old Collingwood said:

Very nice work  - very tidy and clean  - not easy at this scale.

 

OC.

Thanks OC. I need frequent breaks to let my eyes unfocus a bit

 

Alan

[Canute]

Good idea to take those breaks, Alan. I assume you have good lighting and some kind of optivisor to work with that fine stuff.

[king derelict]

On 6/8/2021 at 6:45 PM, Canute said:

Good idea to take those breaks, Alan. I assume you have good lighting and some kind of optivisor to work with that fine stuff.

Thanks Ken

Yes I installed a pair of LED strips above the work table as well as a focussed desk light. I use a pair of 3.5 x magnifiers for most of the work.

[king derelict]

The accumulation of brass continues. The bridge is about complete, the funnels are in progress and I worked up the courage to make the derrick. I am quite happy about how it came out. I still have the crane hook to add to complete it. The Flyhawk PE is very nice to work with. The fold lines are deep enough that the bends come out nice and clean although the downside is you don't get too many attempts before the part fails at the fold line. The fit with the plastic parts is good too.  So far I'm thoroughly enjoying the kit. There are a lot of elements to work on. I need to start the brass guns and the Seafox.

Thanks for the likes and support

Alan

[Old Collingwood]

Insane but beautiful  work,  I have seen there HMS Hood   and I am so tempted by  but  from China  delivery  is quoted as something like  2 - 3 Months.

 

OC.

[king derelict]

Many thanks OC. I have bought some of the Flyhawk kits from China and they have generally shown up much earlier than advertised, maybe about a month. I've used a guy Yanworld who has always delivered early.

I'm trying to work up to HMS Good or Prince of Wales

[Old Collingwood]

13 minutes ago, king derelict said:

Many thanks OC. I have bought some of the Flyhawk kits from China and they have generally shown up much earlier than advertised, maybe about a month. I've used a guy Yanworld who has always delivered early.

I'm trying to work up to HMS Good or Prince of Wales

Yep I have my eye on one of their delux  eddisions  - they do look Superb.

 

OC.

[Old Collingwood]

I am so tempted now   - I  have built just the one kit in this  scale  but  now I think my small scale  skills have improved.

 

"Damn decision's"🤨

 

OC.

[king derelict]

if you can paint buttons on the Rifles you would walk all over a 1/700 Flyhawk kit. They are beautifully designed so everything fits and their PE integrates seamlessly

[Old Collingwood]

I have just pulled the trigger on this  - just need it to arrive  (oh  and finish my  Waterloo dio)

 

OC.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/ipp/124741063964?transactionId=2418136915002&_trksid=p2047675.l48352

 

 

[Canute]

Do you have a different link for those of us who don't do Facebook?

[king derelict]

1 hour ago, Old Collingwood said:

I have just pulled the trigger on this  - just need it to arrive  (oh  and finish my  Waterloo dio)

 

OC.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/ipp/124741063964?transactionId=2418136915002&_trksid=p2047675.l48352

 

 

Well I feel honour bound now to buy the Prince of Wales. So I just did! It's only money

[Old Collingwood]

4 minutes ago, king derelict said:

Well I feel honour bound now to buy the Prince of Wales. So I just did! It's only money

Looking forward to seeing your build on that as well.

 

OC.

[king derelict]

Real life got in the way for most of the day but I did manage to complete the forward funnel and its walkways

 

I also tackled one of the elements I was very nervous about, the catapult. In the end it was quite straightforward although a bit nerve wracking. I used the folding  / bending tool from The Small Shop and that really made a huge difference in getting nice square folds. As a result everything fitted together nicely.

 

The PE version is a big improvement over the plastic part

Tomorrow I think its time to add the brass to the guns

 

The painting is a bit of a way off but I'm starting to think about some elements of it. It was an ad hoc scheme and Im thinking that it is unlikely that the smaller deck equipment would have been painted. Some of that stuff had moving parts and I don't see matelots with six inch paint brushes slapping brown paint all over it. I don't think the deck railings would have been worth it either so I think I will see how they look in teh original grey and make some artistic judgment based on teh appearance.

 

Thanks for looking and liking

 

Alan

Thanks for looking and the likes

 

[Old Collingwood]

Excellent work Alan,   that PE  just looks so amazing.

 

OC.

[king derelict]

22 hours ago, Old Collingwood said:

Excellent work Alan,   that PE  just looks so amazing.

 

OC.

Thank You OC, Its great to get encouragement from the masters. 

 

Alan

[king derelict]

Another first today. I made up the brass gun barrels for the first time. The six inch guns went quite well although it feels like a irrecoverable step cutting off the plastic barrels. The four inch guns were very fiddly. I nearly decided to go with the plastic barrels. The plastic is actually quite well detailed and not too fat for scale but I wanted to try to improve on this build. So ithought "Well I'll try one."  In the end with a diversion to find and retrieve three barrels that somehow escaped I made all four. I see in the photo that I knocked one set of barrels out of alignment so that will now be fixed. 

I started the Seafox and it just needs the propeller and the floats. The PE rigging is overscale but I think its better than nothing and may look more subdued when painted

 

[popeye the sailor]

your not shy with the PE.....that's a good thing    you must feel like your in Gulliver's world,  when pin heads are larger than some of the parts your working with     but it's fun,  and your doing a fine job........glad I tuned in!   

[mtaylor]

Looking good, Alan.   As for the barrels not being "aligned"..  I think those barrels could be raised, lowered individually.  Not sure about aiming, but definitely for re-loading.

[Old Collingwood]

1 hour ago, king derelict said:

Another first today. I made up the brass gun barrels for the first time. The six inch guns went quite well although it feels like a irrecoverable step cutting off the plastic barrels. The four inch guns were very fiddly. I nearly decided to go with the plastic barrels. The plastic is actually quite well detailed and not too fat for scale but I wanted to try to improve on this build. So ithought "Well I'll try one."  In the end with a diversion to find and retrieve three barrels that somehow escaped I made all four. I see in the photo that I knocked one set of barrels out of alignment so that will now be fixed. 

I started the Seafox and it just needs the propeller and the floats. The PE rigging is overscale but I think its better than nothing and may look more subdued when painted

 

Those barrels look lovely, what do you use to drill out the plastic blast bag ends - a small drill bit in a  pin vice?

 

OC.

[king derelict]

18 hours ago, mtaylor said:

Looking good, Alan.   As for the barrels not being "aligned"..  I think those barrels could be raised, lowered individually.  Not sure about aiming, but definitely for re-loading.

Thanks Mark

You are correct. At the time of the camouflage scheme Penelope was under repair after running aground and under frequent air attacks so its unlikely she was all squared away for inspection.

Actually I went back to look at correcting the alignment this morning and had to look hard to find it. The camera is a very exacting eye. those barrels are maybe 1/3 inch long total.

 

 

[king derelict]

17 hours ago, Old Collingwood said:

Those barrels look lovely, what do you use to drill out the plastic blast bag ends - a small drill bit in a  pin vice?

 

OC.

Thank you kindly OC.

I used the smallest two of these drill bits. I bought them for general modelling use a while ago and found they break extremely easily but they were really good for drilling the holes for the brass barrels. I didn't use them in any sort of holder; the coloured collar was sufficient to rotate the drill bit and allowed me to use very gentle pressure and avoid the bit skating off the part. I'm sure there are more sensible ways but this seemed to give me the best control and least chanced of accidently drilling my finger

 

Alan