Nice rew0rk, Tim!

Absolutely!

Ditto.

Tim,
I knew you’d overcome the window issue. Spectacularly I might add— now onward and forward!
VR, Russ

Great job on the bridge windows Tim,

They look the business.

Cheers

Si

Well done Tim - really looks better - keep it coming !

Thanks guys!

The bridge structure is mostly done for now - I just have to go back and do some minor touch ups (the fender racks have gone missing) and then it is on to the next step.

Beautiful work!

Thanks Graham - almost done with the bridge!

The pilothouse vertical window frames are attached only to the lower bridge to allow the roof to be removed for later installation of the interior parts and for painting.

This is how things look at the moment with the roof removed.


Just for fun, I added a basic support structure to the pilothouse overhead from Evergreen .010”X.030” strip.


It won’t be easy to see, but the structure is in there for anyone who cares to look!

Tim,

Nice finish on the bridge. Of course I thought you would at least add a coffee bar for the crew...LOL.

Mark

Funny you would mention that... in Gakken Reikishi-Gunzo's Pacific War Series Volume 23 IJN Akizuki-class Destroyers, their 1/100 scale model seems to show a little table with a teapot on it:

–maybe the IJN version of a coffee bar?

Really like the structure on the bridge deckhead, even painted I think it will stand out more than you think Tim.

great job,

Cheers

Si

Tim,
Again, fabulous work on all the little details. Just out of curiosity, how are you going to do the window treatment? Or do we have to “wait and see?”
VR, Russ

Stunning work Tim, simply stunning!

In the words of Oliver Twist - Please sir - more !

Thanks guys!


All that handling and reshaping while fitting the window frames caused some collateral damage, but after re-applying the little round roof vent hatches and replacing the damaged radar room supports and fender racks, the bridge is good to go.

Hi Russ,

I guess it is a “wait and see” – because I don’t really know myself! My first thought was to fit individual “glass” panes from acetate, but this may not happen as I now hesitate to add anything that might obscure all that detail added inside the pilothouse. It is hard to see inside there as it is. Plus, windows without glass would be authentic as Japanese navy ships had window sashes that slid down into the lower frames for better visibility/ventilation. You can just see this on the bridge of Yukikaze with one front window completely open and another halfway down:

Then again, most observers would expect to see glass panes there... so I dunno.

Tim,
I think something like Microscale Crystal Clear would work, but will obscure the detail. How about very thin clear acetate, bent to curve around the inside of the frames, maybe even with some gaps for open windows? I once saw a large model of the USS San Francisco, and the builder used microscope slip cover glass (which is very thin) to replicate the bridge windows. I asked him how he cut such material, and his reply was “very carefully”! Later he told me he etched the glass slip covers on a flat surface with a razor saw, and “ snapped“ the glass at the etch, but also said he went through about 100 slip covers to get 30 good windows. Just a thought!
VR, Russ

Thanks for the ideas Russ. Not quite there yet, but I'll give it some thought as I prep the other areas.

Weapons next!

Hi Tim - once again my compliments.
For my 2 cents I think the bridge needs glazing at this large scale .
Russ’ idea on slide covers seems worth looking into.
Acetate seem like it would be fine also - you could leave a sash open here and there for viewing.
What’s next - weapons?
Cheers - RT

Thanks Richard, I suppose you are right; no glass in the windows at this scale would probably seem odd. I’ll likely use bits of acetate when the time comes. As for the weapons, yes, they are next – except I first need to adjust the funnel footrails.


I had liked the look of the brass footrails the on the funnel, but since I changed the style of the bridge footrails, the funnel rails really should be changed as well to match.

Really, those look amazing.

Mark

Something you might consider for the windows is UV cured resin. You could make it as thick, or thin, as you want, and with a bit of work you can make a mold that will make it just the size you want.

Just a thought.....

Thanks bob, that's an interesting idea... but I'll probably just go low-tech with acetate

Thanks Mark. I too thought the brass footrails were attractive, but they definitely clashed with the different style plastic footrails applied to the bridge.


I wasn’t all that happy about doing these rails all over again, but the finer plastic footrail supports would clearly be more accurate, as this picture of IJN Oboro shows... so I bit the bullet and pulled out the wires, removed the 21 brass support fittings, and filled in all the holes.




Another look at my references also showed the need to add additional supports with closer spacing as well as another row along the funnel cap. To make the changes I drilled out 50 new holes (using scrap 1/400 railing for spacing) and cemented .010” plastic rods into them as had been done on the bridge structure.



I again used my handy homemade tool (a bit of .015” sheet with a .018” hole punched in it) to help trim the supports to a uniform .015” length.



As on the bridge structure, the footrails were attached to the supports with Tamiya Extra Thin cement.


I’m definitely not fond of rework, but the footrails are now more accurate – and the bridge and funnel structure details match!