Simon – really nice work on the mast/rigging; very straight lines! Wished mine looked like that : )

Gary – Welcome aboard! What is the kit? Nice weathering; cheers.

Tom – I also had the (not even started) Fletcher for the Camo ship campaign (but the 1:700 scale version) , will look at your build with interest. MSW’s Kenny Loup (Gator Mask) sells great masks.. I got the one for the Fletcher (1:700), excellent product! Look forward to your build, cheers.

Gary, thanks for the assist.

James, just received my Gator Mask in the mail last week for the Fletcher and a Gleaves class that is waiting in the wings. They look great and I can't wait to begin the process.

James, thank you. Its a Revell 1/72 Type VII C U boat. Big sucker!

Tom, glad to help,

Cheers, Gary

Cheers, looking forward to both your builds!

I will enter my 1/700 AFV Knox Class Frigate USS.Moinster FF-1097 with a Waterbase, as this is my first Model ship and attempt at water i was building for the Divine Watereline Campaign.

ok,here we go,

this was the starting point...

and this is the finished MAIALE...






all the best

paul

Nice one, Paul!

... but you need to still need to connect the rudder with the steering gear.

Cheers,
Guido

A work in progress photo of my 1/350 Tamiya Fletcher. Camo pattern now complete, many thanks to the mask master Kenny Loup. Secondary armament, railings and rigging to go with some final touch ups.

Am not able, for reasons unknown to post anything to the gallery section, so I've posted it this way for now. Will keep trying the other way, but it would seem my account for whatever reason, is over full and I know of no way to scale it down.

Hello Tom,
Do you have a Photobucket account? If not get one. I upload my photo's to my system then to photobucket then to the gallery and I have had no problem getting anything in the galleries.
Just a thought,
Cheers,
Bruce

Hello, Bruce. I have a photobucket account, which is how I was able to post the in-progress picture above. I'm not clear on how to post from photobucket to the gallery however, as it isn't very intuitive for an avowed luddite like me. Thanks.

Hello Tom,
There is a little tutural on posting photo's in the gallery in I think the Network area or photo sub threads.
It also might be in the FAQ area. It has been so long that I do not remember where I read about how to post phpto's on the gallery.
Cheers,
Bruce

Paul – nice job, I like the sled.

Tom – Fletcher looking good; gotta love those gator masks! I also had trouble the other day uploading pics into the gallery. Photobucket works fine for me

Well eventually making a start or re-start should that be will be repairing the damge and paint job on my Revell V11 wintergarden that was damaged in transit to a show in April. Will also be cutting it in have to put it in a waterline base all of the snorkel and periscopes have bits missing and the paint is all scratched and was not happy with the finnish on it then.

Some really great models in here! Looks like it's a Fletcher campaign!

As for my Fletcher, building and painting is basically finished, I didn't have Gator masks so I made my own. Fortunately Tamiya has a 1/35 scale plan in the kit so I copied it, cut out the masks and "glued" them in place with "liquid post it" (a glue in a can that doesn't stick very well, just like those little post-its).



Now, any tips on how to do the rigging? I was thinking stretched sprue?

And any tips on weathering would be greatly welcomed as I'm new to this ship business...

Cheers!
Stefan

Hi Stefan.

I use fine copper wire for my rigging, stripped out of old electrical cables. Just roll it straight under a steel rule on a flat surface, measured & cut to length. I attach with super glue, putting a dab of glue on the attachment points on the ship, and manouvering the wire into place. The wire can be coloured with paint or marker pen.

The Hesperus further up this thread & HMS Roberts on the Big Guns thread were rigged using thes technique.

Weathering, I use Windsor & Newton Artisan oils, they are water soluble oil paints, no turps, no smell & no need for different brushes, apart from that they behave like any oil paint, three colours, raw sienna, burnt sienna & cadnium orange are my usual pick.

Burnt sienna is great for dirt & grease & mixed with raw sienna for older rust, raw sienna for general rust streaking & mixed with varing amounts of orange for new rust. The great advantage of these oils is slow drying time(plenty of time to work with them , and the won't strip off acrylic or enamal base if you wipe them off because you got it wrong.

A subtle touch is always best, look at photographs of the ship and see where the rust / dirt is, fair bet there will be a rust streak coming down from the anchor & the fairleads, where the mooring ropes & wires pass through the rails. The hull will tend to be more wathered than the superstructure, as rust spots & streaks can only be dealt with in port. A light burnt seinna wash over the deck will help to make it look used & bring up the detail. again subtlety is the key.

Hope that helps

Si

Paul, the MAIALE is awesome! I'll post a progress shot of my conning tower soon.

Cheers,
Gary

OK, time to join the fray.
Fresh from the shelf of death:



SMS Leipzig.

I have picked up the old thread again, so please follow in-detail there. I'll be back here with an occasional update!

Cheers,
Guido

Simon, thank you so much for those tips. I have tried the rigging and it works very well. Although I’m not going to try to replicate all the rigging, there’s just too much and I fear I will knock off everything in the process... Just a few symbolic strings. Next I will do some weathering. Hop I won’t ruin everything in the process...

Guido, your work is very inspiring! I’ve been silently following several of your more recent builds.

I think I will be modeling more ships in the future. Got my eyes on some of those 1/700 Dragon Battleships and Aircraft Carriers...

Cheers everyone and thanks for all the inspiration!

Stefan

Thanks Stefan,

Wouldn't mind seeing some pics.

Hesperus is on hold till after Telford, couple of things to get finished & time is running out.

Si

It looks like my Dunkirk GB contribution will have to migrate to this campaign: my order for British infantry figures was actually stolen off my porch after the mailman left it. Later that same day, a stranger knocked and mentioned the theft. He accurately described the contents and suggested that for some cash, he could return the goods.

Well, I wasn't going to pay a ransom on just his say so, and declined in seething frustration. Several days passed and who would knock on my door again, but the professional samaritan! This time, he produced the goods and I gave him some recyclable cans and called it even.

Problem is, now my construction timeline is off, so I'll simply adjust my completion date with this campaign!

--Karl

Nice work so far everyone.

I'm falling behind again. It'll really suck if i miss the deadline this time aswell.

Karl sorry to hear about your trouble.
Why'd you give the stranger the cans? Sounds to me that if we wasn't the thief he was atleast an accomplice.

Had a bit of a disaster with the Hesperus on Saturday, Put her to one side on the workbench as was pushing on to finish the Graf Spee and a wingy thingy for Telford. Unfortunately without realising too close to the edge, moved the Graf Spee back a bit to give myself a bit more room, obviously not looking waht i was doing, and there was a muffled crunch, I must have clipped the Hesperus's mast and she went over the side of the workbench.

Damage I don't know yet, apart from the Topmast is certainly gone, she is laying partially upside stuck between a storage cabinet & and a pile of boxes. I did not have the heart to pull her out at the time, mainly because I didn't want to waste the rest of the day looking at a potential wreck, but also because I will have to move a load of stuff to shift the storage cabinet to be able to commence salvage operations.

When I get her out I will decide whether a refit is going to happen or she is a constructive total loss. Will also post pics.

One of these days I will learn to put projects that are on hold, no matter how temporally up on the shelf so they are safe and out of they way.

Si

Simon, sorry to hear about your misfortune. Hopefully you will have a successful salvage and refitting program in your future.

I am calling my Fletcher done. Took some pictures today, after a wash with Windsor and newton payne's gray and some pigments around the anchor. Of Course I'm always open to criticism and tips for improvement.

Here are the pics (lighting's a bit better, I will have to work on the sharpness though... My cave doesn't lend itsself to good photos so I will take better pics next time I set up the photo cabinet.):








Cheers!
Stefan

Thanks Stefan, I will know when I get to pulling half the workshop apart to get her out, then we shall see. Hopefully it is only the mast that has gone. I think I will pick a spare G/H class destroyer fret at Telford to be on the safe side, and a restock of brass rod.

The Fletcher looks good, nice clean build, and I like the subtle riust streaks around the anchors.

Si

Hello Everyone,

After a break of almost 1 year, I will try to get back onto the Smit Houston from Revell.






Those are photos I've taken when I was actively building the model. Will take some pictures now and will post them as well.