U552 by Kevin - Trumpeter - 1/48 - PLASTIC - German U-boat - Started November 2021

[Kevin]

1 hour ago, reklein said:

Was just thinking the other day that I would like to see a sub model with a full interior. This is a great representation, inaccuracies be damned. It has the feel of a real sub. I'm totally glad I didn't have to serve on one. The only one I've ever been on is the one ,the U-505 I think in Chicago about 50 years ago. Great model keep up the good work.

to see a good one please see this here on MSW 

U-552 Type VIIc Submersible by yvesvidal - FINISHED - Trumpeter - 1/48 - Plastic - - Kit build logs for subjects built from 1901 - Present Day - Model Ship World™

 

[Kevin]

Engine room

there is no space on a submarine, space is designed to have things put in it, so why o why is there nothing under the engines, it is/was full of hydraulic lines trim and ballast lines, fuel, exhaust, air, and on and on

kit we have ....................................nothing

so i am putting things in there, as to weather it can be seen it dont matter, and yes the pipes don't resemble anything, lol but no space

 

 

 

Edited December 9, 2021 by Kevin

[Old Collingwood]

Excellent work Kevin, every inch  improving with your knwoledge  of subs  - lovely work mate.

 

OC.

[Kevin]

6 hours ago, Old Collingwood said:

Excellent work Kevin, every inch  improving with your knwoledge  of subs  - lovely work mate.

 

OC.

thank you OC im pondering on how to get this unit to work wrt viewing

[Kevin]

with the torpedo compartment  nearly finished and the Engine room going to be a long term project i decided to start on the midships accommodation area 

under the main deck is the battery tank, and trumpeter made it to simple 

the kit call for all the cells to be placed on the port side and leaving nothing on the Port side, i will try and improve that, @yvesvidal showed a nice way of doing it, so i am basing my idea on that

i propose to spread the cells across the hull using the kit floor as a template to get the cell at the correct height, but vision is restricted so i am looking at a way on how to improve the deck to look at the tank better

 

 

NOT MY PHOTO

Edited December 11, 2021 by Kevin

[Kevin]

good evening everyone

 

thank you for comments and likes

 

i made the decision to show more  off the battery tank, rather than show other bits that are not in the kit like fuel/water tanks

the cells were made up, painted in

lifecolor matt black,

drybrushed with Tamiya dark grey

oxidisation by  superglue being forced dry by using an accelerator

0.4mm wire for connectors

a tank to be made up next to give it a proper home

 

 

Edited December 12, 2021 by Kevin

[Old Collingwood]

Love how those batts  turned out  Kevin   spot on for detail/colour etc.

 

OC.

[mtaylor]

Nice work on detailing those batteries, Kevin.

[Kevin]

good evening everyone

 

thank you for comments and like

 

i put the cells into a tank to keep them upright and stop them moving around in roughers the space at the front is a missing row, the kit dont provide enough if you put the correct amount in

 

 

although i dont quite know where the hatch is, i need to get someone to inspect the battery, not much room in there, but a small semi naked armless electrician will do

 

and i have made provision for two lights to aid him in his work

 

he needs a raft to move up and down the cell lines, i have provided a rope for him to aid this work

 

my photos yet again let me down

 

 

 

 

[Canute]

Kevin, nice work fixing and shoe-horning those details. Our building materials are way too thick for the scales we work, so you get your situation.

 

The trolley was used in a similar setup in the B-29 to get from the cockpit area to the aft crew compartment, behind the bomb bay. Those were pressurized, but the bay wasn't.

[vaddoc]

Just got scent of your log Kevin, enjoyed very much reading through it! Not much to contribute but I ll be watching from the back of the room.

[Old Collingwood]

I'm a bit worried about that man you have buried down there ontop of the batts  - he  wasn't doing anything bad  - he is harmless.😁

 

OC.

[Kevin]

4 hours ago, Old Collingwood said:

I'm a bit worried about that man you have buried down there ontop of the batts  - he  wasn't doing anything bad  - he is harmless.😁

 

OC.

thank you

 

it dont look right to me, i will remake the raft in a thinner material, and drop it down near the cell tops, not much else i can do with out dismantling the pack itself and taking some height out,

the top of the keel is slanting upwards towards the back to facilitate the way the kit was intended, but if i level that off then i would not get the pack in within the pressure hull as it would come down to low

i think the raft has to change

 

[Kevin]

6 hours ago, vaddoc said:

Just got scent of your log Kevin, enjoyed very much reading through it! Not much to contribute but I ll be watching from the back of the room.

yr welcome, an upgrade package has allowed you to the front nearer the popcorn machine

6 hours ago, Canute said:

Kevin, nice work fixing and shoe-horning those details. Our building materials are way too thick for the scales we work, so you get your situation.

 

The trolley was used in a similar setup in the B-29 to get from the cockpit area to the aft crew compartment, behind the bomb bay. Those were pressurized, but the bay wasn't.

i never realised that sort of thing was used in aircraft, lol its 0430 and i have learnt my new thing for the day already

[Old Collingwood]

15 minutes ago, Kevin said:

thank you

 

it dont look right to me, i will remake the raft in a thinner material, and drop it down near the cell tops, not much else i can do with out dismantling the pack itself and taking some height out,

the top of the keel is slanting upwards towards the back to facilitate the way the kit was intended, but if i level that off then i would not get the pack in within the pressure hull as it would come down to low

i think the raft has to change

 

My poor sense of humour  there my friend  - cant help it  blame christmas.

 

OC.

[Old Collingwood]

Anyway  -  your up early  mate.

 

OC.

[Ian_Grant]

7 hours ago, Canute said:

 

The trolley was used in a similar setup in the B-29 to get from the cockpit area to the aft crew compartment, behind the bomb bay. Those were pressurized, but the bay wasn't.

God, I hope they didn't need to traverse that in order to bail out if necessary! Thought the too-small escape hatch in a Lancaster was bad....!

[Kevin]

1 hour ago, Old Collingwood said:

Anyway  -  your up early  mate.

 

OC.

if i wake up i get up, normally about 0300 to 0500 come 2130  i go bed

[Kevin]

good evening everyone

thank you for comments and likes

 

i wasnt happy with the room i had given Hans to work on the battery, so i removed some from the bottom of the lowest pint on the cells then adapted the tank to put the raft cradle in which was also altered to make it look a little more in scale

 

 

it was another Friday afternoon on the design of this module as you can see the bulkhead behind the bunks extends way above the pressure hull

i wasn't able to find where the battery hatch was, so artistic licence put it there, this wasn't just for daily maintenance but for cell changes and whole battery replacement

Edited December 14, 2021 by Kevin

[Kevin]

good evening everyone

 

sticking to my only two modules on the go, i went back to the diesel room and got on with making something out of the stbd engine

 

it never turned out as good as i had hoped (then again nothing ever does, but once weathered and in the diorama it might pass the test

the pipes are 0.6mm solder, i then changed as much of the add on bits as best i could

Green is Lifecolour darkgreen

the engine frame is Lifecolour bluegrey

 

 

[Old Collingwood]

Splendid work Kevin  - that piping and those rocker arms look Superb.

 

OC.

[Kevin]

good evening everyone

 

thankyou for comments and likes

 

progress has slowed down a bit, Christmas is getting in the way, another couple of weeks and it will be long out of the way

 

work still continues on the two modules, 

the diesel engine is still coming together, but i certainly wont be trying that again, its all the fun of exhausts, manifolds and ventilation that needs sorting now

in the other module above the battery, the wood panelling is still drying, but looks ok

 

moved fans to the stbd side and made replacements to go in its place

 

new manifolds

temp lighting

 

 

 

Edited December 19, 2021 by Kevin

[Old Collingwood]

Amazing work   - all that pipework.

 

OC.

[Kevin]

good afternoon everyone

 

i may have gone over the top with the weathering, but it is water based and will tone done, im just waiting to see what it dry's like

[Canute]

Kevin, I like it. It fits in with some stories told by a friend, who sailed diesel subs early on in his career. After every cruise, his wife made him burn all his clothes, due to the odor. So, the look you achieved works, at least for me.😉

[Kevin]

two young dogs in the house has slowed any model making progress this year, after all they come first, but now they are old enough, im slowly getting back into a routine, but for the next week or so i have gone back to plastic and brought the Trumpy 1/48 U552 back to the table which was last seen 3 years ago, the engine room is now slowly heading towards completion, for this section i modified the Port Engine and put it on the other side, a lot more weathering and detail still to add

[Old Collingwood]

Great to see  you  back Kevin.

 

OC.

[Kevin]

On 9/8/2024 at 7:24 PM, Old Collingwood said:

Great to see  you  back Kevin.

 

OC.

Thank you OC

[Kevin]

Stern Section

nice easy section to build up, have added some extra details in to show some interest, But only half the equipment comes with the kit ie main motors switch board etc, i understand why, but shows nothing as to how these vessels operated/space, cold, dark and very cramped

 

 

 

The stern hull is a separate section to the rest of the boat, i guess to reduce the size of the box, but it also differs in that the whole hull section is in a one piece clear plastic, where as the rest of the Port side hull is grey plastic but i have a plan

the inside of the hull will be matt black to avoid any light seepage with grey primer external before any top coats

the enhancement kits replaces a lot of the moulded free-flood holes and require cutting out and the PE being inserted 

i have also cut the top out to replace with the new PE deck and opened up a viewing panel oh and put some lights in

Edited September 14 by Kevin

[yvesvidal]

Nice work Kevin. It reminds me of the agonizing hours spent cutting and drilling that massive hull, with a Dremel.

 

Yves