Thanks Garth i will.
And before i forget it again ,i'm still interested in de plans for the SO radardome.
So let me know what it will cost with postal fee.

cheers, Tom

Hello Tom, and welcome. You're a lot further along in your build than I am in mine. I'm looking forward to seeing how it turns out. Al

Okay, I've taken the bait.............................
Ordered my Vosper from Frank Brechmann in Germany this evening.
I still think it should have been sold with a 20mm on the bow but,....................
I'll fix that.

Cheers,
Julian

Hi Tom,

Great progress on the build, thanks for the input.

Hi Julian,

That's the end of one New Years Resolution

Cheers

Al

Tom,

You looking for something like this?


Al Ross

Hi Al,
Yes the middle one is what i'm talking about.
When i'm home again i'll post a picture of the one i made and then perhaps someone will know if the size is right or not .
I just recieved the "vosper in action " ,it has some nice pictures in it.
Will help putting a 20mm on the bow.
thanks and cheers for now,

Tom
I just rememberd that i put it on the bucket so here is the pic. of the the dome.

Hello Julian, I just knew you couldn't hold out for long, it's so hard to resist the 'Dark Side'. Al

Proportionally...


Al

Yeah, the flesh is weak etc. Also trying to get hold of some Lewis guns and a twin Oerlikon bandstand. Oh yeah, and some wee friends to populate this Vosper thingie............................................................
Should be arriving Thursday with some other things I ordered from Frank.
Julian

Hi Julian,

Resicast do a nice set of Lewis guns but you'd have to make the stands. No twin 20mm that I know of at the moment but keep an eye on U Models, they have just released a single 20mm; AA have one as does CMK..

Wee Friends have a few more Sailors in the pipeline too so it will be good to see if they are suitable for the boat and Italeri may do a crew if they keep to past form.

Accurate Armour have Carley floats & Oars plus additional life floats

Al

Well, it's arrived, it's big and it's very grey. I am in the proces of ordering a couple of Lewis guns to give the impression of some armament being fitted
The box is full of a crisply molded hull and not much else except packing cardboard, ( well, and about 5 sprues). Still rather underwhelmed at the first peek inside the box. I hope to get hold of some " wee friends" to populate the Vosper but they seem to be rather scarse on the ground at the moment, guess a lot of fellow builders are busy ordering crew members too
Need a glass of wine and another inspection of the box, ( matbe two glasses to ward of shock ).
Cheers for now,
Julian

Hello Julian, Don't let those sprues fool you, there are a lot of teeny, tiny parts present. Some seem to have more in common with 1/350, rather than 1/35. Careful handling the photo-etch sheet, I already mangled the radar antenna on the large yardarm. I was planning on replacing it anyway, so no great problem. Looking forward to seeing what you do with it, once you finish the Wasp of course. Al

I usually model 1/48th aircraft and armour and even moving up to this giant the level of detail is pretty nice, some simplification here and there as well as silly application of some of the etch but all in all I'm impressed.

I've waited a long time for Italeri to do a 1/35th RN subject and I'm as pleased as punch with the kit.

All the same, that huge box does look a little empty once you take out the hull and deck! That said, from what I can discover the Vosper short-boats were pretty simple affairs anyway! Save a later weapons fit I don't see that there are any omissions, I suppose a single and twin Oerlikon fit would have been nice but that would have hiked the price even higher!

I've been following this thread and AlanL's other one about fittings and crew figures, I've pretty much decided to finish mine as a Mediterranean based boat, probably as per the pic of MTB84 elsewhere in this thread, I've got an Italeri Breda 20mm in the stash and have discovered that Aber do turned barrel and etched detail set for it which should pimp it out nicely!

All I'd like is an interesting camo scheme, overall greys isn't going to do this big model many favours, at least not on my shelf!

At the moment all I've got to choose from is the standard scheme or, I think, the Dark Admiralty scheme but I haven't seen any pics of that at all. The Light scheme seems to have been applied to boats in the Home waters.

Some of the Meditterranean boats had improvised schemes...
F

This is the Admiralty Dark modification, but I don't recall seeing any photos of Vospers in it. Dark panel is B15.



Boat number and colors unknown:



Al Ross

I expect there are plenty of examples of interesting schemes on these boats, its not an easy task to find decent useful pictures of them, I'm taking the plunge and ordering a second-hand copy of Reynolds Mediterranean MTBs at War, I'm hopeful of finding some inspiration there.

I've found reference to MTB86 being present at Bari during the air-raid in December '43, along with other MTBs, I just can't tell if she was wearing the same scheme as she is shown in the picture earlier in this thread, I'd claim creative license fitting the Breda up front because that scheme is definitely striking and just the sort of thing I'm looking for!

Looks like someone was having fun with the paint brush

Alan

I have managed to get hold of a copy of "New Vanguard's British Motor Torpedo Boat 1939-45". Colour schemes for the Vosper modelled by Italeri are grey, grey or grey Only contrast being the rubber anti slip sections on the deck. Luckily most boats look like they never saw a brush of paint or a bucket of soapy water after they were launched so this will be the ultimate weathered scum bucket boat methinks
Pity that MTB 74 is such a major rebuild because the camo for the St. Nazaire raid is a real dazzler.
If Italeri had chosen the MTB 380, (think Airfix ), the camo possibility would have been a bit more sexy too.
On a positive note the molding of the parts is very good with some exceptionally small bit and pieces. Can't figure out why someone on the design team had a brain f*** and made several pieces for the mast from PE though
Maybe after all a Fairmile would have been a better choice than the Vosper
Certainly more armament involved.
Julian

Oi ! Alan ! have discovered where the thunderbox is hidden on the Vosper

In several of the photos in the included reference booklet, the hatch just forward of the pilothouse is shown open. As I can't leave well enough alone, I'm thinking of adding some interior detail just under that hatch. Does anyone have any photos or drawings of that area? I would think there would be a ladder at least. Any help would be appreciated. Al

You mean the second square hatch back from the bow?

Lamberts plans in Allied Torpedo Boats show that it leads to the forward mess deck, crew-berths, there is a photo on pp16 of the Squadron In Action book showing the mess deck in a later boat, but comparing the drawings with the picture the general layout looks very similar.

No fixed ladder though, maybe it was stowed when not in use?

EDIT: The old Profile publication also has an image of the aft of the mess deck in MTB66, much earlier boat but again, looking at Lamberts drawings the general layout seems close enough.

Hi Al,

Al Ross started a thread here a while ago a with the first of the drawings

http://modelshipwrights.kitmaker.net/forums/172371#1447483

I'm sure he'll add to it if you need specific bits of the boat. Ha, that big emptry space - don't start me but I know what you mean how can you open a hatch with nothing below!!

Alan

Thanks Les, that is the hatch I'm referring to. I've been meaning to pick up the Squadron book, just haven't gotten around to it. Assembled the torpedo tubes and the fit is very, very nice, little or no putty needed. I did have to remove one of the locator pins on one half of a tube to improve the alignment. Beware of the tube end caps (parts 41D) there are some extremely delicate, easily broken, (ask me how I know) fastening screws molded on them. Just noticed that one part (E12) that is one half of a sub-assembly that goes on the tube is/was broken. Will just have to write for a replacement. Al

This is the crew space forward on 57-66:



Al Ross

Thanks Al, that drawing is a big help. Now I just have to decide how crazy I want to drive myself. Al

You and me both

Alan