This is an example of some of the Eduard replacement parts. They look 100% better than the Dragon kits parts, but just look at the results -

All the superstructure levels are just slightly too high, so that the accumulated extra height (about 2 1/2 mm) becomes very noticable, throwing everything out of proportion. The range finder platform legs are easily replaced but now the funnel looks too short! The replacement armored conning tower does look good however, but requires a bit of work to make it fit. I really screwed myself on this one as I already knew, from previous experience, NOT to use AM products on one model that was designed for another manufacturers model. The PE faceplates for the main turrets also look good but don't fit because the gun barrel spacing on the Hobby Boss Arizona is narrower than on the Dragon kit - I found that out, too! The searchlight platform on the funnel will almost fit, but only after a fight with it! This is what you can expect - have fun!

Well....thanks , again Biggs! Sorry to hear you had such a hard go of things. AM sets are few and far between working correctly on the kits thay were actually intended for...let alone tossing in a wild card of a different manufacturer.

I am fairly confident I have things under control at the moment and basically assess each step as they come. NOTHING is impossible!! I have gained a lot of the 2.5mm you witness back through thinning of the deck after removing all of the features which get replaced in PE. I was not planning on using the kit supplied tripods as well. Shooting for brass rod but styrene if needed. My best estimation is the funnel will fall within an acceptable range of height comparison to the bridge tower to where that first chine down from the funnel cap is almost level with the top of the roof to the navigation deck.

I have begun to snip some tiny stuff in preparation for semi-construction and painting as I go. Hope to have some sort of an update soon!

Yeah, I thought of popping off the PE structures and replacing the decks with thinner sheet styrene. But that will result in more headaches as the Eduard bulwarks and splinter shields are not made for the same shapes as Dragon decks. I'll leave it as it is and add a bit to the bottom of the funnel to make it higher. After this bit I think I'll just toss the rest of the Eduard PE, although the boat cradles look usable.

I agree, sometimes it's easier to build up rather than remove and replace! With me it depends on how far I got. Sometimes just let those sleeping dogs lie. I ran into the first discrepancy on the flag bridge with a slight height difference...but nothing some sanding, chop chop and filler couldn't handle! What doesn't kill us makes us stronger, right?

Hello;
I just bought the dragon Premium edition and will be watching your build with intrest. I should get the Artwox deck today.

Bill

What tool did you use to remove the fore and aft Aztec stairs so cleanly?

Glad to have you along for the ride Bill!! Will be lookin gout for yours at some point!

Hey Anthony! I used a pair of Hakko CHP-170 Micro Soft Wire Cutters. They cut pretty much smooth, then hit things with a light sand!!

I probably would have had some sort of update from today as I was at a friends for a build meeting of sorts...except we did more talking than building I think!! LOL! Hope to have some more soon!!

Thanks, Todd! Need to do some surgery on some of mine.

rebuilding my 3 Pearl Harbor Battlewagons. WeeVee is the easiest. Cail is somewhat the worst of the 3. But Arizona is messup pretty bad. I'll post photos next week.

Well Todd, that looks like a real challenge!! Don't lose your spirit while underway in this build, can certainly be tough at time when nothing really fits as planned/desired. But you're doing a great job dealing with it!!

Cheers,

Jan

Good luck on the kit surgery Anthony!!

Looking forward to seeing the reworking of your battle group Mardis!! I think if I could get a decent Arizona under my dealt (this is #2) I might have a go at some of the other lady's she set sail with!

Nothing huge in the way of an update, but it's something, right? I managed to dive into the PE a bit. After cutting off all of the features on the various decks of the bridge I sanded them down a bit thinner than what DML had them at. Not only was this done for the thickness of the but the Eduard parts do come in a bit shy on measurement for use with the DML version...not impossible though.

I chose to solder the bridge cabins instead of the CA route. This gives them much more strength and the sanding process smooths thing out nicely I think.





I still have watertight doors and what-have-you but CA will probably be a lot easier than the solder route!





You can see at the back end of the flag deck above, that the PE that needed to be installed there needed a little bit of extra love. I had to attach a small cleat using styrene to the inside on both sides to act as not only a support but a filler for the tail end. I also added a small strip on the underside of the searchlight platforms that stick out as they are suppose to have a little frame on the bottom. I am not too concerned that these were also perforated deck, oh well!

I am betting that a couple of you might notice the two triangular pieces of white stock on the front. The Conning tower, while actually being the wrong size, should sit flush with the front edge and the windshield/splinter shield that goes in from is actually stepped up form the deck. Rather than trying to fashion a .5 mm strip to wrap around the front of the conning tower I chose to just pad it up a little in this section. Once the decks are painted and being this is 1/700 scale, I doubt much will be seen.

A quick mock up is in order. Please bear with the semi-unevenness as these are not glued in place and there is some sanding still needed to the bottom of the PE.





Looking down on the searchlight perches off the flag deck, there is a nipple-shaped protrusion. The railing actually conformed to this shape on the original ship and the Eduard PE is not long enough to go this route.



Fortunately, I have two sets of the DML PE Railing in this kit and one of the railing sets where close enough for the task.




So, there is a ways to go on this and I am sure there will be more pitfalls along the way yet to come! Thanks for tagging along!!!

Almost missed you there Jan...Thank You!! There are some tough little fits and more to come but every once in a while a little challenge can be fun!!

Nice work with the Brass Todd, coming on really well.

Si

Thanks Si! Forgot how small 1/700 was..LOL!! Once you dive in it's not so bad really...just the eyes aren't getting any younger...LOL!!

Todd

Your Arizona is looking good and your PE works is great. Any tips you want to share regarding soldering would be well received. I tried it and well the results we're disastrous

Looking forward to seeing more as you progress

Dave

Thanks Dave!! I really appreciate the feedback!

As for the soldering, it's safe to safe that everyone has their own approach and technique to thee application. But the basic concepts apply to all...

- Keep a clean sharp tip to your soldering iron. Before you start, you can use sandpaper or coarse flexi-files, but a fine flat metal file works great on the fly when its hot. You're not trying to file down the tip, just clean all the gunk off and expose the clean metal tip.

- Low melting temp solder. I use some from Radio Shack...about 4 bucks I think. 62/36/2 Silver-Bearing Solder -- 0.015". This doubles for wiring the occasion headlight on my Pz.IV's This is small enough to fit into any spot really and you can slice of small pieces and place them right into the tricky joints.

- Flux!! Next to the iron itself, this is the most important item. The solder flows wherever the Flux is. Again, Radio Shack is my supplier of this.

With a good hot tip you should be able to flow a join quick enough not to separate adjacent joints. Sometimes you can use a heat-sink to keep the heat away form the other joints. An alligator clip will do the trick in most cases.

When doing small parts it can be easier to either melt a tiny amount of solder on the tip and place it where the part will go. Add more flux to the back of the part, then hold the part down with tweezers so it does not move and heat it up. Or, you can flux the spot, place the part and hold down with tweezers, then with the same tiny amount on the tip of the iron, touch the joint and the solder should just flow under. Andy outside corners or small blobs can be filed off and then sanded with a flexi-file.

There is a little practice to get the feel for it but the joints are worth the effort. ......

Hello;
How did you do the bulkheads for the 5"51 Guns?

Bill

Hey William! Sorry for the late reply...a little of the holiday festivities here at the homestead held me at bay!

I actually used the handle part of a Bic pen. I didn't have the right size styrene tubing on hand and figured the curve was close. Cut the piece slightly smaller than the opening and was able to bend the piece into place. I wanted to just glue it to the inside, but the guns would not fit!

Oh...thanks for the heads up on this project! Seems I set it aside to jump on a number of other projects! I might have to make sure this makes it back to the bench for 2016!

I think that I am out of the time frame for the campaign, I have started on the Mini-Hobby 1/700 Arizona. I painted the decks with Tamiya rattle can wood deck tan, then added some individual planks at random with variations of the wood deck tan. I gave it a wash with sepia artist oils and then a light dusting of the Tamiya rattle can again.

I think there was a few of us that missed the deadline of the Battleship campaign Grant! All go though...it does not mean we can't keep working on the project! Nice work on the decks! Amazing what a good wash will do the the color of the base! Keep it going!!

I keep postponing my build in anticipation of new pieces from MM and 3DModelParts. Then keep getting side-tracked on other projects!

Good work with your Arizona, Todd. Some years ago i re started ship building with Dragons Pennsylvania, 1/700 scale. The kit was in her 1944/45 fit and its well detailed but fought me all the way ( sadly this can be seen )
So good luck with this project.