First, I need to thank Mark Smith (Gunny) for setting the hook in me on carriers. His article on the USS Saipan really got me interested in carriers, and then after winning a Saipan (first time I ever won anything) at OzCon, I really became interested. In turn, I bought the Sara.

If you ever wonder if all the advice you guys give ever does any good, I'm here to tell you that it does. I've always been hesitant to attempt a ship in a small scale, let alone the use of photo etch on a ship, but over the past year of reading the articles and build logs, I think I now have the confidence to attempt it. It may take a considerable amount of time to complete it, but I think I'm ready

Thanks.

Dry fitted Sara:
Note the nice detail and the clean mold lines.

95bravo,

Great looking build. I'll be attempting my first carrier soon on an upcoming campaign. USS Hornet.

Looking Good Steve!
Still a lot of work, dough
Keep us posted

Skipper

It's really nice to have you back around here, Mr. Arthur...

Sara's looking good, mate, and I'll be watching your blog with enthusiasm!

Now, when are ye' gonna' build the Saipan?

Ahoy Steve!

Sara looks like she's going to be a beauty.

Gator

I began work on the aircraft and the flight deck cleaning up the mold lines which are very light and easily removed. I noted that I will need to shim the upper and lower parts of the Island but no big deal; the gaps are very minor. You may have noted that I cut out the blast deflector for one of the forward catapults and I think I will have the other in the raised position as well. I assume that both deflectors would have been up at the same time during a launch. Since there may be a delay in the delivery of the WEM Colourcoats, I may order another batch from one of the suppliers John Snyder recommended.

Started work on the air wing.
Tiny eagles prior to dry brush and weathering. I'll blend the pastels a little better with original color and then weather. The peeled paint on the one tomcat is the result of CA accelerator. ( had to re-glue it to another toothpick) I guess the paint wasn't cured enough. Live and learn.


The offending kitty:

Looks great I will be working on a forrestal so you really got my attention
Jim

Very nice work Steve.

Gator

I've started dry brushing the aircraft and the shading is much more subdued, yet noticeable. In retrospect, I think that a wash might have been better and much easier to blend in than the chalks.

Thanks guys for the kind comments.