ALGOMA STRONGFIELD by JKC27 - FINISHED - 1:200 scale - Equinox class lake freighter

[JKC27]

Last day off before I go back to work so tried my hand at some dry transfer lettering.....

 

Also going with different ship name but identical otherwise. Will have to change title of thread

 

 

[realworkingsailor]

Do you have any blank decal paper?

I find it easier to apply the letters on a flat surface, then seal them with Testors glosscote or dullcote. All that remains is to apply them as you would any decal.
 

Incidentally, if you’re looking for hatch crane track, try Micro Engineering’s code 55 flex track.

 

Andy

[ccoyle]

16 hours ago, JKC27 said:

Will have to change title of thread

 

I fixed it for you.

[JKC27]

1 hour ago, ccoyle said:

 

I fixed it for you.

 

Thank you!  The dry transfer lettering process kind of led me in that direction! 

[JKC27]

4 hours ago, realworkingsailor said:

Do you have any blank decal paper?

I find it easier to apply the letters on a flat surface, then seal them with Testors glosscote or dullcote. All that remains is to apply them as you would any decal.
 

Incidentally, if you’re looking for hatch crane track, try Micro Engineering’s code 55 flex track.

 

Andy

 

I might redo the lettering, especially on the back...looks too messy.  The dry transfer is quite easy, however....... the really small ones were pretty hard to do, and keep straight - the white letters on an almost clear transfer sheet made the alignment difficult, hence the result.  Might investigate the blank decal paper though..... never used it before.  I suppose there is the traditional wet slide option with individual letters, but I think that would be hard to isolate each letter especially with them being quite small.  My eyes were hurting looking at it after a while.

 

Also......I will for sure check out the flex track.  I have not got around to the hatch crane and track.  I don't have specs/dims for the hatch crane other than the basic views on the general arrangement.  Of course, the Strongfield's hatch crane seems pretty complex on it's own, with a small crane on top of it (which I do have already that I purchased on Shapeways).  I assume you've done one of these before.......  I'm open for tips/suggestions on how to tackle this. 

 

Overall I am happy with how this has turned out.  I consider it my first true build.  I did a not to true scale Edmund Fitzgerald, which I still have to letter and finish that hatch crane too.

[realworkingsailor]

You can rule off the blank decal sheet and the transfer sheet with a pencil and by lining up your pencil lines (which should be easier to see) you should be able to get nice straight words. The pencil on the decal sheet can be erased carefully afterwards.

 

Although I’ve never built one before, I’ve seen a few examples on builders models. They always seem to use brass code 100 track (about twice the size of code 55) on models that are about 3/4 the size of yours and it looks hideously clunky.

 

Looking at prototype photos, the structure of the crane looks reasonably straight forward, a frame of rectangular steel tubing and three legs on each side. You probably wouldn’t go too wrong using dimensional styrene stock to make the frame. You could probably pick up some cheap N-scale plastic wheel sets that you can use (if you want a real challenge, make it so it can roll up and down the deck!)
 

Andy

[JKC27]

I redid some of the lettering.....

 

The final small details are tedious but coming along. Hatch crane is half done I'd guess....probably 3rd trybatbit to make it look right.  Finishing up ladders and handrails as well as front mast and small parts like winches and fairleads. Still a bit to go but overall I'm happy. I am sourcing parts as much as I can and other parts are handmade.

[JKC27]

Had to order more railings, so waiting for those to arrive.

 

One thing that is kind of wearing on my mind, and purely for the pursuit of excellence/perfection/accuracy is thinking how I am going to create all the appropriate radars, masts, antennae that are both on top of the wheelhouse and also at the front mast.  Lots of really small (at this scale) lights, and probably 2 smaller radars along with the main one, and then the different radio antennae.......  trying to keep in mind that this is my first true, hardcore build, and those little nuances will come with experience.

 

 

Edited February 25, 2022 by JKC27

[KeithAug]

On 2/25/2022 at 6:01 PM, JKC27 said:

how I am going to create all the appropriate radars, masts, antennae that are both on top of the wheelhouse and also at the front mast. 

 

A lot of members have faced these challenges. Post a few pictures and I'm sure you will get a lot of useful advice. Build looking good.

[realworkingsailor]

On 2/19/2022 at 1:39 PM, JKC27 said:

I was just looking through your build photos again, and noticed that your forward fairleads don’t line up with the winches. That poor mate is going to get a royal blast from the old man for breaking so many wires on the hatch coaming!🤪

 

(The winches should also be staggered fwd and aft in the hatch bay so their wires run clear to both sides).

 

Otherwise, it’s looking great 👍 

 

Andy

[JKC27]

On 2/26/2022 at 2:04 PM, realworkingsailor said:

I was just looking through your build photos again, and noticed that your forward fairleads don’t line up with the winches. That poor mate is going to get a royal blast from the old man for breaking so many wires on the hatch coaming!🤪

 

(The winches should also be staggered fwd and aft in the hatch bay so their wires run clear to both sides).

 

Otherwise, it’s looking great 👍 

 

Andy

Good catch. I dont have those secured down....just placed them for roughing in.  I think those winches are the closest I'd find to the real ones and the spacing between hatches is to the drawings.  I think the actual modern hydraulic winches would a smaller footprint.  I was thinking about the running of the wires the way it is on my model......great if you only use one winch to the up or if you're running your lines one on each side. 🙂

Edited February 28, 2022 by JKC27

[realworkingsailor]

You may be able to get the winches close by sanding off, or cutting off, the little warping drum, and possibly positioning them as close to the hatch coaming as possible (touching even). They really don’t look bad for something “off the shelf”.

 

Andy

[JKC27]

More fine details completed. Hatch crane pretty much complete. Front last is mostly done. Tried to roughly placed it for these pics and it fell over and off my table......had to repair it. 😣 Concrete floors and tiny plastic parts don't mix.

 

 

[realworkingsailor]

The hatch crane looks great!

 

When you’re finished, will you show it doing its job? Or just parked? (Seeing as I see an open hatch)

 

Andy

[JKC27]

28 minutes ago, realworkingsailor said:

The hatch crane looks great!

 

When you’re finished, will you show it doing its job? Or just parked? (Seeing as I see an open hatch)

 

Andy

Thanks Andy! I put a lot of work into that. Planning on having the hatch hang from the crane and having some sort of grain (likely sand....it looks like grain) filling up the hatch that is open. She is a grain boat afterall.  That leaves me the option of having some sort of future set up showing it tied up taking on a load possibly. I really like how things look with the bollards on the deck. All its really going to be missing is the piping that runs along the length on both sides through the hatch fins plus other small features (small hatches mostly).

 

Not bad for first real build I think

[realworkingsailor]

Nice idea to show some cargo too!

There’s a trick model railroaders use for bulk loads where they start with a block of insulation foam (the rigid pink stuff). The block is then cut to the size of the opening and sculpted to resemble the shape of a heap of cargo. After painting the appropriate colour, a layer of “cargo” (iron ore, coal, etc) is then glued onto the “heap”, and then sealed (dullcote or whatever). Saves weight and “cargo” materials.

 

I wonder if perhaps cornmeal might work better than sand to represent grain. The colour would be perfect for grain. As long as it’s well sealed it shouldn’t cause any problems.

 

Andy

[JKC27]

Build is taking longer than i wanted but such is life. I'll be off a few days with covid so wI'll have time to work on it as its not hitting me hard at all. Just hope my wife, kid, and FIL don't get it too.

 

Finally installing railings which are photo etched brass as well as my hawse lips and Port Colborne fairleads. It's really down to fine details like logos and some hull markings. Front mast and radars etc on superstructure will done last so one of my cats doesn't turn my table into the set of Catzilla.

 

 

[JKC27]

Adding the finishing details. The adorable little cat in previous photos decided she'd like to sleep on the deck one night and load a cargo of hairball. Needless to say I had to repair handrails and clean up a small mess. Liferaft containers are installed as well as the RHIB rescue boat and a couple cranes. Most of the accomodation decks are secured in place.  Have to keep it stored in a closet when I'm not working on it until I can either build or purchase a display case.  Hope to get it finished this week.

 

Have to do paint touch ups as well. Was considering giving the hull a weathered look.....some scrapes, etc. as @realworkingsailorcan surely attest to how much of a beating these seawaymax ships take from certain docks and of course the locks strip their fair share of paint I'd imagine....tight squeeze.

 

 

Edited July 11, 2022 by JKC27

[JKC27]

So...I found some wood in my garage that makes for a perfect base to display this one.  Also have some trim!  Have to figure what colour to stain it.  I happened to find a local industrial supply house that has sheet acrylic (shatter proof) remnants for super cheap, so this will allow me to build my display case to protect my model.  1/4" thick, so it's going to be heavy, but that is fine.  Won't be easy to knock around and keep my cats from trying to sleep on it.  I did buy a sheet of much thinner plexiglass to fool around with, but that didn't work out too good.  Thought my table saw would destroy it, so tried using a cutting tool and when I tried to bend it on the scoring it didn't break clean, but that gave me scrap pieces to experiment with.

 

My one local hobby shop suggested I enter this in a scale model contest that will be taking place locally this fall - I did show the owner some pics, and he thought I should go for it.  We will see..... they do have a ship category!  This was never the intention.

[jerome]

A good stain for your base is orange shellac thinned to suit with Alcohol.

simple and easy to apply.

Nice job on you model!

[Sailor1234567890]

I was a deck Cadet in Algoma's Algomarine for about 4 months when I was training for my career at sea. 

[JKC27]

Well.....she's finished. Overall I am very happy with how it turned out, especially being my first truly to scale scratch build. Many modern freighter fittings are either hard to find or just not made so I had to compromise or modify to make it work. I really want to thank everyone on here for the advice, suggestions, etc. and special thanks to @henrythestaffy for help with the bridge deck and @realworkingsailor for his help and input having worked on these boats. As it turns out I will be entering this model in a local scale model  show this coming Saturday. If anybody wants to check out the show in Windsor, Ontario.  First time doing the show thing.

 

 

 

 

[GrandpaPhil]

Congratulations!  Well done!

[JKC27]

On 10/18/2022 at 1:51 PM, GrandpaPhil said:

Congratulations!  Well done!

 

Thank you.  Now, on to the next.