crazypoet

That engine mount was major surgery- nicely done. Also the PE adds beautiful details that you really don't catch until looking at the before/after shots

Sweeet!

Had a bit of time early this morning, so I was able to complete the furniture for the howitzer. I also revisited that caulking hammer. I did the hammer in aluminum tube rather than the heat-shrink thing I tried earlier. I found that it worked better this way, as I don' even have heat-shrink small enough. I still need to paint the thing, but that's a project for tomorrow. The gun furniture was fairly straightforward. The only headache was getting the screw right. I ended up using fine music wire turned around a drill bit. The swab head is part of a q-tip soaked in CA for body and touched up with Tamiya weathering powders. Meanwhile, I found a scale hammer in an old 1:35 tank crew set. It works perfectly for this application. Still scratching my head on a set of spanners though.

I love the Jug! This is beautifully done, and your photography catches and highlights All the work you've done. Your finish is dead-on, with just the right touch of fading and weathering. me like.

I've enjoyed watching this build! It's an interesting subject and I like your approach

this is *gorgeous* - have fun!

Tools and fittings... i'm doing the last few details - which will likely stretch out another month as I pull bits and pices from all over... the boat itself is essentially complete, waiting only to mount the mast and finish the rigging of the stack and torpedo. The source I *thought* I had for turnbuckles and a replacement Flag proved to be a bust, so I'm now having to wait on both. Meanwhile, though, she is kinda pretty... What remain are the finishing details that complete the "story". Tools, stores - the odds and ends that speak to what was happening, that busy morning of October 27, 1864... So. Here's the start on some of them - caulking hammer and caulking irons... I found a beautiful photo for reference a couple of weeks ago. Today, I started prototyping my version using a bit of 1/16" dowel and layers of heat-shrink tube. This first version is both about 50% over-sized and a bit clunky in proportion, but it shows that the idea itself is sound. I'll scale it down a bit and get it done, along with a few other bits and pieces, over the weekend. With this project reaching the stage where it's all fiddlly details and oddments, I can actually shift the main body off the workbench to make room for a certain Grumman for the Resin build...

I watched this through each step along the way - adequate. Quite extraordinarily adequate work. this is is a jewel

I'll echo what's already been said - you've captured her beautifully!

Looking at this, the 308bit console seems a bit "soft" - does it look like that to you? I like the idea of raised buttons and switches, but not if they look like melting butter... or is it just the lighting?

The Non-LSM section is open to topics that fall otherwise out of scape. post away!

Welcome to the asylum!

I look forward to each update as you go - this is great work. I second the beer-can request, if only to show that you have the occasional bit of "refreshment" while working this beast!

Reached a milestone today - all the plumbing is done, with engine and boiler finished and installed. I need to do a bit of detail work on the pipes to bring everything together - these parts were done months apart with some different techniques and I need to blend in the differences. i still need to finish making the various tools, rig the gun, mast, flag and stack. I finally received the flag I ordered...only to find I'd specified the wrong [expletive deleted] size... AAAARRRRGHHHH!!!! So... I now have the *proper* size on the way, along with some lovely brass turnbuckles for the stack tie-downs. This adventure in online shopping *did* give me a chance to realize that the toggle-and-loop rigging I had for the flag was a bit out of scale. I'm redoing that - using brass pins rather than 1/32" brass rod for the toggles. Nobody uses 3/4" diameter toggles to hang a flag... don't know what I was thinking!

Are you going to have the suspension fixed, or build it to articulate? watching this build "over your shoulder" is a joy - thank you for sharing all the little steps

Thanks for the info and the comparisons - I should have caught on sooner about the similarities to heavy card and paper. [smacks forehead] That said, the paper kits that I've seen were aimed at kids - until I saw that Model-Kom kit you referenced above! I'm impressed with what can be done with good patterns

Just thought of a question - something that you've obviously mastered, but that I have yet to deal with... That is forming and gluing compound curves from flat/straight plastic strip. I've been utterly spoiled in that department as most of my scratch-building has been in either metal or wood, both of which are simple to bend and hold their shape after the fact. When I've done scratch-building with plastic it's been either straight bits or pieces thin and small enough that I could use CA to hold them. So what is your approach to clamping/fixing fairly thick plastic curves/twists/bends while plastic cement dries?

Love the work! I've also struggled with large-scale rivets. Pinheads, resin decals... I feel your pain! i'm going to look up your source at MasterClub - thank you for the reference!

Sweeeeet!

This is great work, and an interesting approach - watching with interest!

Starting to come together... a bit bit of rust for the condenser... installation - engine, condenser and prop the hot box and engine plumbing are next. There are three pipes that run from the engine down into the deck, plus one that will run between the engine and the boiler. i'm using brass tubing and white metal elbows, painted with Alclad exhaust manifold and Vallejo light rust - it's giving me what I *hope* is a good approximation of iron pipes and bronze fittings. The prop shaft got dressed up with copper electroplate and fittings made from both larger-diameter brass tube and some heat-shrink tube, both covered in graphite.

So, yeah, I moved the mast fitting... I just couldn't wrap my brain around the offset - it never did look right. so... patch, paint, drill... I had to re-create the original wood grain in the boards where I patched the hole. I found that the back edge of an x-acto blade did the trick nicely. I've not yet applied the last stain wash over the patch, but it's starting to blend in. I'm still waiting on the flags (I understand that they cleared Customs today, so should arrive Monday or Tuesday) so the mast isn't ready for installation. I'll do pics when it's ready - I'm pleased with the way it looks so far, but I need the flags and rigging done before it will be ready for a close-up. I found that a conveniently-sized washer, a bit of brass tube, raised-resin rivet decals and some heat-shrink tubing made for a quite nice mount for the thing - watch this space for further details... while I'm waiting for the flags... here's the first test fitting of the internal components, checking spacing and alignment of the plumbing: there is a bit of trimming necessary in the decking - the deck planks I used are a bit thicker than the original kit specs so I'll have to cut the planks and inset the engine baseplate to make everything level. i also will have to drill through the deck planks for each steam and water pipe. the pipes will pass through the decking and disappear into the depths; fortunately I don't have to do all the sub-deck plumbing. While working these odds and ends, I found good photos online of the different types of tools that would have been carried onboard. Spanners, coal shovel and valve keys for the engine/boiler, caulking hammers and carpenter tools for the hull and suchlike. I'll need to scratchbuild all of those, since such scale tools as I've been able to find to-date are just not right - they seem all to be dollhouse accessories made to look decent from a distance, but which fail miserably under close inspection. I found a perfect anchor, though, which makes me very happy

I love this work, and look forward to watching as always an inspiration

I finished weathering the hull and gave it a light dull coat to seal things in. Today I stain-washed the deck; when the stain cures it will get a bit of weathering touch-up and a dull coat as well. I'm getting close to happy with the mast. It's not *completely* finished and the cotton flags I ordered have not yet arrived, so please forgive the state of the rigging - a bit of a tangeled mess at the moment! When the flags arrive, I'll finish the loop-and-toggle rigging and set the mast. I may yet move it behind the tiller - I'm completely undecided as of yet. It would be "correct" in either location, I just have to see which feels *right* next step... machinery

Ok, ok, I did it. I sprung for DeAgostini Millenium Falcon. Plus some extras. I won't even *think* about starting the build until I have at least the first half of the shipments, but the first load arrived today, giving me an idea about what to expect. the Falcon bits: And the Extras: These are PE and decal sets for the cockpit, hold, turret interiors and main engine screen. All by ParaGrafix. I also have some extra cockpit lighting enroute, and I'm looking at some other bits as well. This kit gives me something that's just plain fun to which to look forward.