king derelict Posted January 26, 2023 Share #1 Posted January 26, 2023 In an effort to maintain my last unbroken New Years resolution (finish all started projects). I completed an experiment with the 1/700 Hobby Boss HMS Astute. I have a few submarine models and it always puzzles me to find a good way to display them. I have also been impressed by modellers who have encased their finished project in resin. I wanted to try it but had no real idea about how to build a casting tank, the right resin, release agents, does the curing heat damage the model or the decals etc. So this is less about building Astute and more about trying to set in an epoxy sea. The Hobby Boss kit has few parts and the submarine has a simple black paint scheme. The decals are a bit of a challenge with lots of long thing bands to place on the hull The casting tank is made of 1/8 Perspex and held together and sealed with hot glue (first mistake). I sprayed the inside of the tank with Future polish as a release agent The plan was to present the model on the surface so the craft sticks, double sided tape and Lego bricks set the sub at the right depth in the tank The project was going to sit on the brand new dryer while the resin cured. It seemed a good idea to put the tank in an extra container - just in case. There was a bit more resin than I expected in the first pour but I put it all in and was not terribly happy to find that the tank had a leak on one of the sides. - but I was thrilled that I had decided to use an extra container and I decided to carry on. Then winter hit Florida for a week and I didn't want to try the second pour in case it didn't cure properly. I resumed with a different brand of resin and made three further pours to get the depth I wanted. They all cured nicely The leaked resin peeled off the bottom of the casting easily The sides of the tank released with a bit of force and the basic casting seems to be successful with a couple of caveats. The long delay between first and second pours resulted in a definite interface between the two pours. Also the second resin has a slight tan cast to it. I had planned to try to colour the resin but couldn't think of a way to get a consistent colour. It belatedly occurs to me that I should have coloured one part of the two part mix which would then be used in all the pours. There are small bubbles - I'm not sure how to improve that I added some waves and wakes with artists gloss medium but it wasn't very visible against the clear resin so I added some medium with micro balloons added. I think it was a bit too much and its stark against the clear resin So i added a sea blue base which has got closer to the effect I wanted Far from perfect but it answered some basic questions for me and I'm happy with a first attempt. I have a part built 1/700 USS Gato for the next part of the project - full immersion. I have a couple of Flyhawk U boats that I would like to make up into a single display with one surfaced and one submerged. They are much too nice to pour resin over until I know what I'm doing, Thanks for looking in. Alan yvesvidal, ccoyle, Landlubber Mike and 7 others 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Collingwood Posted January 26, 2023 Share #2 Posted January 26, 2023 (edited) Thats a toough job to pull off Alan as i know it falls to the security of the case (as I read in other resin ship/sub dio's) as you know I have my Flyhawk Hood on hold that I plan to make her in the sinking role dio. OC. Edited January 26, 2023 by Old Collingwood Canute, AJohnson and mtaylor 3 Quote Current builds 28mm Battle of Waterloo attack on La Haye Saint Diorama. 1/700 HMS Hood Flyhawk with PE, Resin and Wood Decking. Completed works. Dragon 1/700 HMS Edinburgh type 42 batch 3 Destroyer plastic. HMS Warspite Academy 1/350 plastic kit and wem parts. HMS Trafalgar Airfix 1/350 submarine plastic. Black Pearl 1/72 Revell with pirate crew. Revell 1/48 Mosquito B IV Eduard 1/48 Spitfire IX ICM 1/48 Seafire Mk.III Special Conversion 1/48 Kinetic Sea Harrier FRS1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landlubber Mike Posted January 26, 2023 Share #3 Posted January 26, 2023 Alan, that came out really well! I've always wondered how to do the resin pour approach like you did, so thank you for posting the process. I have a couple of models in mind for a similar approach. I forget exactly, but from others online, I think the bubbles might be caused by too fast a pour, or it might be from the heat as the resin dries. In any case, adding a little color to the resin might minimize their appearance, if not look more natural. Great job! mtaylor, Canute, Old Collingwood and 1 other 3 1 Quote Mike Current Wooden builds: Amati/Victory Pegasus MS Charles W. Morgan Euromodel La Renommèe Plastic builds: SB2U-1 Vindicator 1/48 Five Star Yaeyama 1/700 Pit Road Asashio and Akashi 1/700 diorama Walrus 1/48 and Albatross 1/700 Special Hobby Buffalo 1/32 Eduard Sikorsky JRS-1 1/72 IJN Notoro 1/700 Akitsu Maru 1/700 Completed builds : Caldercraft Brig Badger Amati Hannah - Ship in Bottle Pit Road Hatsuzakura 1/700 Hasegawa Shimakaze 1:350 F4B-4 and P-6E 1/72 Accurate Miniatures F3F-1/F3F-2 1/48 Tamiya F4F-4 Wildcat built as FM-1 1/48 Special Hobby Buffalo 1/48 Citroen 2CV 1/24 - Airfix and Tamiya Entex Morgan 3-wheeler 1/16 Terminated build: HMS Lyme (based on Corel Unicorn) On the shelf: Euromodel Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferde; Caldercraft Victory; too many plastic ship, plane and car kits Future potential scratch builds: HMS Lyme (from NMM plans); Le Gros Ventre (from Ancre monographs), Dutch ship from Ab Hoving book, HMS Sussex from McCardle book, Philadelphia gunboat (Smithsonian plans) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king derelict Posted January 26, 2023 Author Share #4 Posted January 26, 2023 14 hours ago, Old Collingwood said: Thats a toough job to pull off Alan as i know it falls to the security of the case (as I read in other resin ship/sub dio's) as you know I have my Flyhawk Hood on hold that I plan to make her in the sinking role dio. OC. I think your Hood diorama will be great. It's worth practicing with your chosen resin before committing to the main task. I found a half inch layer cured no problem. A few stray bubbles aren't going to be an issue with all the mayhem of the sinking. Alan Canute, Old Collingwood and mtaylor 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king derelict Posted January 26, 2023 Author Share #5 Posted January 26, 2023 13 hours ago, Landlubber Mike said: Alan, that came out really well! I've always wondered how to do the resin pour approach like you did, so thank you for posting the process. I have a couple of models in mind for a similar approach. I forget exactly, but from others online, I think the bubbles might be caused by too fast a pour, or it might be from the heat as the resin dries. In any case, adding a little color to the resin might minimize their appearance, if not look more natural. Great job! Thank you Mike I plan to try colour in the next attempt. I also probably stirred the mix too fast. It's a bit scary committing your finished model to the resin but for some displays it's a great look. I have a handful of 1/700 submarines that I want to use this technique for Alan yvesvidal, Old Collingwood, mtaylor and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landlubber Mike Posted January 26, 2023 Share #6 Posted January 26, 2023 You're a brave man for sure for trying it. Can result in disaster if you're not careful. I saw one guy's diorama almost get ruined because he poured more than recommended, and things just got messy. Looking forward to seeing your next attempt! mtaylor, Old Collingwood and Canute 3 Quote Mike Current Wooden builds: Amati/Victory Pegasus MS Charles W. Morgan Euromodel La Renommèe Plastic builds: SB2U-1 Vindicator 1/48 Five Star Yaeyama 1/700 Pit Road Asashio and Akashi 1/700 diorama Walrus 1/48 and Albatross 1/700 Special Hobby Buffalo 1/32 Eduard Sikorsky JRS-1 1/72 IJN Notoro 1/700 Akitsu Maru 1/700 Completed builds : Caldercraft Brig Badger Amati Hannah - Ship in Bottle Pit Road Hatsuzakura 1/700 Hasegawa Shimakaze 1:350 F4B-4 and P-6E 1/72 Accurate Miniatures F3F-1/F3F-2 1/48 Tamiya F4F-4 Wildcat built as FM-1 1/48 Special Hobby Buffalo 1/48 Citroen 2CV 1/24 - Airfix and Tamiya Entex Morgan 3-wheeler 1/16 Terminated build: HMS Lyme (based on Corel Unicorn) On the shelf: Euromodel Friedrich Wilhelm zu Pferde; Caldercraft Victory; too many plastic ship, plane and car kits Future potential scratch builds: HMS Lyme (from NMM plans); Le Gros Ventre (from Ancre monographs), Dutch ship from Ab Hoving book, HMS Sussex from McCardle book, Philadelphia gunboat (Smithsonian plans) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.