ELBE 1 1948 by Mirabell61 - scale 1:87 - Lightship

[FriedClams]

Looking great, Nils.  Interesting lettering process and the results turned out very nice.  Bet that still took some patience placing them over the rub rail.

 

Gary

[Mirabell61]

Hi Gary,

and thanks for your words, Yes , it was tricky with the rub rail underneath, I thought self adhesive stickers or cut out decals would be OK, but all wrong, finaly I made the letters from white painted and self adhesive thin aluminium foil, and that sticks to the hull contours like hell. I made the lettering a bit larger than the plan shows, (like the ship has in reality ), in fact its nearly from the top bulwark grab rail down to 10 mm over the waterline (on the model)

 

Nils

 

[Jim Lad]

You've done a great job on that lettering, Nils. Is there any 'wiggle room' with that adhesive lettering when you put it on, or does it have to be precise first time?

 

John

[Mirabell61]

Hi John,

To get the sitting right first time ....

I put a horizontal tape line at the footline of the lettering, (for all letters),  started sticking on from there, one by one, and then carefully rolling the the letter upwards, light alignmet corrigations still possible till the rub rail. Pressing into the corners of the rub rail with a piece of wooden plank, and then rolling on the upper part of the letter. It works quite well after a little practice.

 

Nils

[Veszett Roka]

Coming along very nicely Nils.

[Mirabell61]

Thank you Veszett.

I`m doing a prototype flap for the freeing ports (outside bulwarks), each with 2 hinges in brass soldering. I think I`need 5 or 6 of them on each side

 

Nils

 

 

 

Edited May 7 by Mirabell61

[Mirabell61]

Update

 

made the updated forecastle bulkhead and support for the front mast, also the seawater tight access doors. The mushroom-anchor chain end will be connected to the ringspring buffer element on deck

 

Nils

[Michel Bénard]

Still going strong.

[Mirabell61]

thanks Michel,

 

I`ve started with the long deck house today with 16 positions for portholes on each side

 

Nils

 

 

 

 

[Rick310]

Very nice!!!

Rick

[Michel Bénard]

Hello,

 

The character oversees the work ??????   😅

[Mirabell61]

thank you very much Rick and Michel,

 

Nils

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  Elbe is close in spelling to Elba - the first island where Napoleon was sent.  The associated palindrome is:  Able was I ere I saw Elba.

[KeithAug]

Those clamps look like they have seen a lot of service Nils. I will be interested to see how you finish the potholes.

[Jim Lad]

Potholes are never finished Keith - they just get deeper!  (sorry)

 

Looking good, Nils.

 

John

[Mirabell61]

Hi Keith,

 

right keith, I have a whole bunch of the clamps in that size and they look weard, I have built many ships with them already ....

The portholes will be of pushed-in rounded face brass tube-rivets. The size and "glassing" will be a number smaller that the other side hull ones

 

Nils

[Mirabell61]

Update

 

made the removeable deck-house together with hand rails and lightshafts with seatight hinged covers. After primering painting the deckhouse  portholes were inserted. Also the aft bulkhead was fitted out with two doors and portholes therein .... Slowly its getting shape

 

Nils

 

the making of the deckhouse

the handrails are from brass wire. There are 5 screws that position and hold down the deckhouse to the deck

 

Dechhouse with portholes

there are 10 lightshafts around the deckhouse, The doors will be next

 

 

[Michel Bénard]

Wow, that's fast and well done ! 😉

[Rick310]

Really well done!!

Rick

[Mirabell61]

many thanks Michel and Rick,

 

Nils

[Mirabell61]

Update

 

all portholes with glassings, all doors with doorknobs and wall boxes for rolled up fire hoses are mounted to the deck housing

 

Nils

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Jim Lad]

You'll be finished before you know it, Nils!

 

John

[Mirabell61]

Thanks John,

so far so good, now comes the fitting out part and the boatsdeck. The lighttower mast is basicly done already but not painted yet. The soldering of the fragile frontmast in brass will probably be the most difficult thing on this ship, as well as the two ships work / lifeboats. I think I`ll make the boats with silicone mold and raisin cast ( I did`nt see these for purchase anywhwere)

One problem I have, is that all has to be addopted from pics and the web, because I did not buy the buildplan in the beginning, and the plan with side view and frameplan out of Helmut Thomas`s publication is missing all the details, also in bird`s view, on the boats deck, and of course the dimensions in order to scale them down to 1:87

 

Nils

[Veszett Roka]

Hi Nils,

 

I know very little about the German Merchant Marine, so it might be false question, but:

Didn't the FIRE boxes has to be Feuerlöschgerät or something similar? They sign the boxes English instead of German?

[KeithAug]

17 minutes ago, Veszett Roka said:

They sign the boxes English instead of German?

Yes that struck me as odd Veszett / Nils. It would be good to understand why.

[Jack12477]

Could it be the number of letters in English versus German and the models scale ? FIRE versus Feuerlöschgerät

[Jim Lad]

I thought the German would be simply 'Feuer'.

 

John

[Mirabell61]

thanks Vezett, Keith, Jack and John,

 

You all are right, I was expecting comments on that, but the answer is simple:

I only had one white capital letter "F" so that went to the wallbox at the rear bulkhead, I still had enough small white letters to spell "fire" on the other boxes.  Also the would not have been enough space on the boxes to spell the appropriate German word. In german maritme fitting out the engl. language is international and quite common anyhow. I am OK with that.

 

Nils

[KeithAug]

1 hour ago, Mirabell61 said:

I only had one white capital letter "F"

I would have never thought of that answer!🤔

[Mirabell61]

Update

 

made the six line-fairleads and the shutter flaps of the freeing ports. Quater- both sides aft there will be a crossed-rolls fairllead, I`m working on the prototyp out of 8mm square brass tube and fitted with 4 crossed rolls. This little bugger has taken me a few hours to make and to put together (soldering in the rolls axises)

the freeing port shutter flaps and the line-fairleads. The pressed brass nickel plated fairleads are shortened so that they come flush at the inner side of bulwarks

the workable rolls are from small brass tube, the axis are from 0,8mm brass wire

I refrained from cutting break through openings into the bulwark (for stability reason )

 

the hinged shutters

 

 

Nils