USS United States by popeye the sailor - Revell - 1/96 - PLASTIC - bash

[SkerryAmp]

Whew,  all these logs to get caught up on!!

 

I LOVE The merging of worlds!  The plastic ship with the wooden deck is awesome! and looks great!

 

Your creativity man,  love it and always look forward to what will come from the popeye shop next!! never disappoints!

[Marcus.K.]

Hey Popeye, 

 

wow - I very much like your decks. And as mentioned before : I believe they look quite realistic to my eye. I would not care about a different between the two decks too much. Could´nt it be that the poop deck was renewed the last time in dock, while the spar deck still has the old planks?

 

Concerning self-combustion of paint. My boss once fond a burned area at his wood terrace. The paint can which he placed below the planks of his terrace floor was catching fire during the morning sun, while he was doing some shopping. He placed it there several days before and nothing happend. But this was the first day with morning sun shining on his terrace and on the paint-can. It burned, blackened the wood - but it was not hot enough to set the house on fire - by a great deal of luck !! - and when the paint was burned away the can did just stop burning. When he got back and noticed  the mess in the afternoon everything was cool and cold again. 

 

He said he placed the can outside because of his fear concerning the smell and the drugs in the paint. He did not expect the danger - but it was obvious !! He really was lucky not to come back and finding a blaze instead of his home. 

 

So ladies and gentlemen world wide : be careful with easily inflammable fluids and materials. The danger might come in unexpected moments !!!

 

Back to you ship : its great and I follow you any time you post. 

[popeye the sailor]

thank you Adam and Marcus...you two are like.......way too kind    you and others have done well,  in making it sound like a positive,  and I thank you all for doing so.   even if I end up doing the decks over again,  I will know that I'm on the right track.  I am very pleased how the spar and pop decks came out.   I came home today and gave it another coat,  after sanding it again.   this is the only window I'd have for the next few days....it's supposed to rain.   I'm beginning to think that it's the paint.........I'm glad I didn't do anything to the Half Moon.

 

I know I have quite a few builds in the cue....I was hoping that I could lay some ground work for this build, and get it to the point where I could bounce to it a lot more frequently than I have been.  but I feel that I have to wait once again.  I did manage to take some pictures of the deck  this time,  while it was still wet.

 

it will give you a god idea of what it should look like,  if I didn't encounter all these problems.

 

 

 

 

I let it dry for a bit,  then I brought it back indoors.  I even gave the poop deck another coat......it didn't turn white.   I'm feeling that I must be using the wrong lacquer.......the other lacquer I use,  I spray with my airbrush.   perhaps I should decant it and thin it down.......I will see if I can get a retarder for it,  but I will also try and see what the effects are with a reducer.  there's no reason why I can't experiment a little.  

 

 

 

 

I got my other light working again,  since I'm going to try and work on both tables again.  for those who wonder what my set up looks like........here it is

 

 

you'll notice the boot boxes under the tables........they are the part boxes for the Trawler,  the Half Moon,  the United States,  and the holiday harbor boats.   the rest of the parts for the Gothenborg are on the table.   there's an odd box off to the side.......that's for the Boulogne.

 

Marcus.......that is a very scary tale.......I'm glad that it had a happy ending  {weird}.  but yes,  that's a example of how fire needs to have a maintained flash point to survive......either that,  it ran out of fuel.

    I am humbled that you like my work......I thank you very much.  once this build can really take off,  I think it will be more enjoyable for both of us    hopefully another update will come soon!  

Edited May 13, 2014 by popeye the sailor

[mtaylor]

Popeye,

 

I'll keep my fingers crossed that it was the humidity....  Looks great at this point.

[augie]

I agree with Mark.  Looking really fine.

[lambsbk]

I think the decks look great. Can't wait to see them in the hull.

[mobbsie]

Jeez Popeye, another one on the go, to my reckoning that makes 8, that's gotta be some kind of a record aint it, unless you haven't started the Boulogne yet in which case it's 7. I wonder where you find the time to go to work        

 

I hope it all works for you this time mate, deck looks great.

 

Be Good

 

mobbsie

[patrickmil]

Outstanding decks Popeye! I'm glad these are turning out well for you.

[riverboat]

Nice work , they came out real good!! Now you can start making after market wooden decks !!!

Frank

[lambsbk]

Frank - let him finish the build before you get him started on another project... :)

[popeye the sailor]

thanks for  the kind words gentlemen.......I solved the mystery!  I should have thought of this before!

 

 

today I decanted the rest of the first can,  and half of the second can.   all I had to do,  was pick up the decanting bottle.......it was very cold to the touch.  the propellant in the mix is the culprit.  with airbrush and rattle can,  the paint is sprayed through a tiny orifice.  airbrushes work with 15 - to 25 PSI......rattle can,  in my guestimate,  sprays at a much higher pressure.  the higher pressure going through the orifice,  drops the temperature,  and causes moisture {condensation} to develop.  it didn't occur with the poop deck simply because there wasn't much deck surface...short blasts.   I will let these three bottles breathe a bit before I seal them up,  to let the rest of the propellant leach out.

 

thanks Dave, Augie and Mark........there will be no more problems now.   the spar deck has four coats,  and the poop deck has three.   with the fourth coat,  there is still a bit of white still present....I may just leave it,  and touch up the brown paint work.   although.....I have thought about laying down a coat of semi gloss,  to give the decks a little shine.........this flat lacquer has absolutely no shine at all......it's pretty dead.  thanks for the good word  

 

thanks Mobbsie.........you have lost track    I have eight in the cue.......the Boulogne is among them.

     now that the warmer weather is here,  I can do some sanding in the garage.......the Boulogne Etaples and two of the Holiday Harbor boats need to have the hulls done.   once I set up a jig to hold them,  I can begin.   I'm making another jig at the moment........I'll let you know how it goes.  I have a build log for each one......the Boulogne is probably buried again.........perhaps a bit later      thanks for the good word!  actually,  I still just poking around with this build.......I see so many that are doing the Connie..........I can't wait to try out some of the many cool ideas that are going on.

 

thanks Patrick.....I'm a lot happier,  now that I know what the problem is......I never had this problem with air brushing.   it's another reason why I hate rattle cans.  thanks for the good word!

 

gee.......thanks Frank!  for that......maybe I can quit my day job  all I'd really need to do is work up some deck templates.   the plus side is that I'd be doing something I love to do    I could go even further.......how about a TV show  "Pimp my Deck"      I'm just kidding.......that's a really cool thought.....I really appreciate it  thank you Frank  

 

not to worry Dave.........I can't leave my day job just yet.......I need what bennies I get    

[Jim Lad]

Great to see the final result turned out so well, Popeye - and that you came up with an answer to the problem.

 

John

[popeye the sailor]

thanks John    there are still a few minor blemishes......I'll just do some touch ups when I repaint the raised detail.  I don't want to give the panel another coat of lacquer.  thanks for the good word  

 

 

I made up a jig for the 5 mm thin stock I have.  I counted that I have 13 strips on hand of this same hue thin stock.  I started with a piece of wood the same size as the table on the scroll saw.

 

 

here is the strip stock that I'm going to cut

 

 

cutting two guide bars,  they were cemented to the wood panel.  I cut a center line in the wood panel to act as a guide for the blade.  

 

 

 

the piece of wood you see in the center,  I was going to use as a pressure pad for the strip stock.  at the moment of truth however,  it didn't work right........I ended up pressing my middle finger behind the blade,  and my index finger 1/8 {good guesstimate} before the blade.

 

 

*disclaimer* - no fingers were harmed during this operation

 

I ran them through very slowly.........when enough of the other end was sticking out,  I changed to pulling rather than pushing.   I ended up with this........

 

 

I'll use what I have left on the center area...........when I clear all the deck obstacles,  and I run out,  I'll switch to the newly cut stock to finish it up..........I'll work 'em in somehow  

 

 

 

 

[usedtosail]

That is a nice jig, Popeye. I am glad it worked so well.

[riverboat]

"Do Not Disturb"........ GENIOUS@work........ well, looks like you've got the setup going, and I like the name "Pimp my Deck".......

don't worry about the bennies, you'll make a FORTUNE!!!

Frank

[themadchemist]

Look! HE took bigger wood and made smaller wood! Its almost like magic.

Pretty soon you'll have a scale lumber yard going.

Nice jig Popeye. Its those little bits that teach us all how to make do with what we have...or have not. NICE

BTW is that the spinach powered scroll saw?

 

...it saws to the finish, cuz' its powered by spinach, its Popeye's scroll saw plan..... (sung to the popeye theme music, with heavy bass of course)

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Tom!  

 

 

Frank..........your awesome!.........do you know that!  

 

 

your too much Keith!  next time I do that......I'm going to change the blade direction,  to cut sideways.   it hit the bar in the back.   at the moment,  I'm planking the gun deck.......hope to have it done soon.   update soon!  

 

love your sense of humor......thanks!

 

[popeye the sailor]

saw this little tidbit browsing on line today.......it made me smile  

 

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101676661

 

there.......that seems to look better.......did it off the front page,  and the thread string looked kinda long.

 

 

 

anyway..........what have I been up to?   well.........making myself bug eyed planking the gun deck!  I actually began this Monday evening,  when I decided what I was going to do,  which was make the jig and cut that extra thin stock down.  I did the king plank and marked off all.......yes all...of the butt joint lines.

 

 

 

then......on Tuesday,  I was in and out trying to remedy Kevin's car woes.  I helped him pick out a car {about a week ago now}.   he had it inspected and it was told to him that he had bought a junk car!  it had some of the usual problems...wipers and tires.  the big problems were frame rot and undercarriage rot,  that I wouldn't have seen,  unless I had it on a lift!  I checked it out.....I admit it.......it looked good to me from what I could see.  I cannot believe that our state laws are written the way they are.......they say that it is OK for anyone to sell an unfit car in New Hampshire.  I e-mailed the NHADA {New Hampshire automobile dealer association}  with my complaint and views of this practice.  I got a reply,  giving me the link where I can lodge a formal complaint,  providing the dealer is a member of the NHADA.  we also contacted the Attorney General......we got the same spiel.   I'm not done yet......this is so wrong on every spectrum.    well........anyway.......

 

the rest of my time was spent on defining the center line of the deck,  boxing in all of the holds.   this took me right into the evening..........oh,  and I did mow the back yard lawn  

 

 

 

 

 

[popeye the sailor]

today.........more running around........but I got quite a bit done as well on the deck.  I had a bit more than 25 of the 3 mm strips left.......I have to divide them evenly between the two sides,  and then I'll use the strips I cut to finish them off.  I'm doing this in case they turn out to be less than 3 mm......they won't too noticeable along the edges.  judging where I was at..........I did about 12 rows on the port side

 

 

 

 

looking at what I had left.......I had better move on to the starboard side.

 

 

I hope I have enough to equal the port side

 

 

 

 

when I was done.......there was a little over three strips left........I had done 15 rows on the port side.  

     the clothes pins you see,  are at work....helping me to eliminate a couple of serious ripples.  I'm hoping that by laying the planks,  the wet glue will seep into the wood and cure the problem.  if you look close,  there are a couple on the port side,  at about the same places.......I'll be doing them as well.  I clamped the deck to the table as well,  to keep it from curling {even with the added supports,  it was still doing this}.

 

 

these are probably the largest decks I have ever done.........and I'm using planking strips,  that in my opinion,  are more 'in scale'  than the deck strips you get in most kits.

 

 

 

at the bow,  I used some of the thinner pieces of the strips that I cut.........the center plank stayed the same as the rest of the deck.  I trimmed them soon after they were dry,  so they wouldn't get broken off prematurely.  looking toward the stern end,  you'll see another plank line that is rather thin.   I had to shim the entire length back.......it originated at one of the holds.  it was done just to keep the line straight.  it's good that most of it won't be seen,  being that far past the large central hold.  I will see what I can get done tomorrow.......I had high hopes to get this all done today.  I hope that tomorrow is a good day.......it was cloudy most of today....slightly humid.  I'm dying to see how this will look!

 

I almost forgot.......I have a plan for the galley floor platform at the stern......I don't want to say much,  for fear that I can't pull it off.    But,  if I can.......

[augie]

Looking pretty spiffy, Popeye!

[themadchemist]

Looks good popeye.
Like I already said, I really like the planking's colour.  I also think once all the guns are in place the planking won't be very noticeable.
Let's put it this way... If someone is looking her over and notices then you at least have someone that is paying attention and that's a good thing.
I always find it comical, when something I spent hours on and someone looks it over is 15 seconds, and just says, nice.
 
So few really appreciate the efforts we pour into our builds and only we know why we do it. Its funny that your holding out on us, " for fear that I can't pull it off". Can't wait to  see what it is. the  suspense mounts...

...duh, Dunh, DUNH!

...tune in next week to see if Popeye can pull off the spinach coated galley flooring, while attempting to auction himself on ebay for 28 million cans of spinach....
 
Hope you get something done about the car, but working with bureaucrats is often like watching snails race. Plus the snails aren't as slimey either, typically.
So does NH require inspection? We don't have that here. If so, a car should be inspection passable to be sold, kind of like a house purchase requires termite inspection.

[Jim Lad]

You're making a great job of her, Popeye!

 

John

[patrickmil]

Nice work on the gun deck Popeye!!!

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Patrick,  Augie,  and John.  I was hoping to get more done last night,  but I was tired and just vegged at the computer.   thanks for the good word!  

 

thank you as well keith........yea,   I know what you mean.   I was looking over the cut stuff yesterday...........I have some good strips,  but I also have just as many that aren't as wide.  I may be fretting for nothing,  considering how much of what I had left covered......I went further than I thought.  this is good    in a way......I'm hoping that the admiral looks at this,  thinks it's not too bad,  and then lets me get the Constitution.........love to have both of these ships side by side.

 

I know i'm holding out........I do apologize.   I can go two ways with this platform......I can plank it with the thinner strips like I did with the bow,  or I can do the same thing I did to the M&M boat.......black and white checker board.   I have been dying to try this out.   I thought about decaling it.....but  I think the little tiles 3 mm x 3 mm  would be more challenging.

 

back in the days,  when I worked for a garage and did safety inspections,  the guidelines were simple.  there were still many aspects that would deem deficiencies {too many to name},  but in today's world,  with all the changes,  I think that the inspectors are becoming way to picky.  for example.......our Isuzu failed because a rear axle seal is beginning to weep.  there is but a hint that it is there {it's not getting on the disc brake rotor},  but it was enough to fail.   in my day,  I simply would have told the customer that they need to get this fixed before it gets worse......but I would have put a sticker on it.  the big problem I see is......the state and the NHADA want to weed out the vehicles that would pose a danger on our roads......but they allow dealers to sell these cars back to the public.  they upgraded the inspection criteria,   becoming tougher,   and have in place now an updated emissions program to lessen the amount of harmful exhaust..   the NHADA is in place to keep all these dealers on board with all this,  and have similar programs out there to promote automotive safety.   what I find sad,  is that out of the same mouths that tout safety....say that it's OK to flood the playing field with these unsafe cars.   we can't rely on the public to be this savvy.......right now,  there is some unsuspecting kid,  buying one of these cars!  the worse scenario....is the kid can't afford the whole amount,  and gets a loan for the car {this is what my son did}.  even with my trained eye.......this one slipped by me.  the other thing that got me,  was that he admitted that they did not check out this car...... they just put a $1,200 price tag on it and put it out on the lot!  I asked him if the car had any problems........he told me that he didn't know of any...now I see why!

 

there is a simple solution.   cars that are over so many miles and age,  usually go to auctions.  dealers and  'mom & pop'  dealers buy these cars.......some fix them up and some don't.   cars with structural integrity issues...too far gone to be safe,  should not be sold,  but rather sent to a yard.  they can set these up in various parts of the state.    these car can only be sold to body shops and repair facilities,   to repair cars that are inspect-able,  but are in disrepair.   the question as to who will deem these car to be unsafe,  should be handled by the auction houses,  and the dealer who takes these cars in for trade-in.  the dollar value can be determined at that time and a fair price can be administered at the time of sale........be it towards the down payment of a new car,  or to someone looking to get rid of their trash {that's basically what a dealer is doing by sending them to auction anyway}.  I'm sure everyone knows what an auction is.......I don't think I need to outline the process   it will change the playing field,  but it will do two things.......it will get these pieces of crap off the lots and force dealers to sell only inspect-able cars,  and it will add jobs in New Hampshire.

 

I do envy you in a way Keith.......there are other states that don't require state inspections.  I'm not sure what your state has in place,  but whatever it is.......please send it up here

 

I know this is a bit off topic,  and I do apologize.   I did the solution part as I wrote this........I have too many thing rattling around in my head at the moment.....this helped me to reason it out.   I do ask that you don't have me remove it....it would please me to think that others will see it.  thank you for letting me vent.

[dgbot]

I found your build. I like the way you are upgrading everything.

David B

[themadchemist]

Strangely Popeye, Cook Co. (Chicago) required inspections way back in the late 80's. I had a friend in college from Downers Grove and his car had to pass emission testing, but in good old Southern IL it's like a completely different state.

 

Sadly as long as there is $$ to be made P.T. Barnum was right... there's one born every minute.

Although PT was implying suckers, with cars today we're pretty much all suckers with all the electronic gizmos.

Heck our Hyundai has 4 coils, we just replaced the 3rd.

 

I guess one solution is tell the dealer, Lets have it inspected, it passes and I pay and buy it, it doesn't and its your baby. That would weed out the intentional scoundrels.

 

Its a war that can't be won, maybe your battle may be successful though. I've found the old adage "the squeaky wheel, gets the grease" effective.

But at 6'2" my squeak is more like a roar, its less intimidating from a wheel chair now though

At least my oak walking stick, makes me a semi-Buford Pusser.  Hum, wheeling TALL

Tammy wheel me over there, I have a few heads to crack.  

The mad in tmc doesn't just mean crazy, look up Lyme rage. There was actually a murder that was acquitted due to temporary insanity due to Lyme rage. Kidding aside its not a pleasant part of this infection.

 

 

Just so this isn't off topic, I though checker board last night when I read that comment .... That's my vote.

and if the Admiral won't commission a Conny, have you thought of crying. Sometimes it helps to let them see your sensitive side, just don't go too far and get on the floor kicking and screaming 

 

I just temporarily pictured an image of Popeye in the model aisle on the floor scream and crying "but I need that Conny" and the Admiral saying "If you keep that up mister, I'm taking you outside"

[popeye the sailor]

thanks Kieth for the interest.......but in the interest of the topic,  I'll let it lay.   if there's more to the story......I'll put it in the shore leave,  for everyone to weigh in at their leisure.   again,  thanks for understanding.

 

at one time,  I tried to get a Connie kit.   I am so sure that the United States kit is a spin-off,  I wanted to measure and compare the hulls to see if this is true.   you should have seen the admiral's face when I brought up this idea.   she doesn't even like the idea that I'm building this one,  since she's seen how the wood kits look.   it used to be,  that when I would bring up the subject of starting the United States,  a wood kit would appear.........I guess that appeal has worn off.  I figure that if I show her what it will look like integrating wood......she might say yes.   as you can see......I'm still working on it.

 

I try not to pull too much of a tantrum.........how can I see stuff,  that would spark any ideas,  if I'm told to stay in the car

[riverboat]

You're getting to be a real pro!!!

 

Frank

[popeye the sailor]

thanks David.......more to come,  you can be sure  thanks and enjoy  

 

 

thanks Frank   pro?..........a pro can do this without thinking.   right now........my head hurts!  

[popeye the sailor]

this morning,  I took care of those three rows that needed to be on the port side.   I completed one of them,  the other two are about half way there.

 

 

now......after 31 rows {counting the king plank}.........here is how much of this deck,  25 1/2 strips will cover!

 

 

I started this with six packs of wood strips  {60 strips}.   I did the poop deck,  the spar deck,  and what you see here of the gun deck.   this is all I have left.........

 

 

it's amazing how far they went