If you recall, one of the issues I was having with the Invincible was the configuration of the aft superstructure, in particular the aft boat skid. The resin part and photo-etch pieces just didn’t want to work together. I was left scratching my head as to how to make the boat skid fit. Here is a picture of the kit with the resin part in question...


After Scottish modeler David G graciously sent me a photo CD with pictures of the Invincible's sister Indomitable from the Glasgow Museum of Transport, plus some drawings he made, things fell into place for me. Instead of trying to fit pillars underneath the kit supplied resin part (which was my original plan), I took the plunge and decided to make my own boat skid.

Here's how the boat skid looked like when I knocked off for the evening on Monday night...


Next step, before adding the rest of the bracing, is to fill the gaps between the photo-etch shielding and the superstructure (Yeah, I should have done that BEFORE I started building the boat skid, but forgot!). The white stubs on the deck are new mushroom vents - I carved off 80% of the vents that were on the kit, since most were malformed in the casting process.

Making this boat skid is new ground for me, so any comments, suggestions and constructive critiques are welcomed.

Martin, my friend, I will say that your scratch skid looks a whole lot better and truer than the previous...Great job! I'm glad that you have got this little snag overcome, mate, thanks for the update!
~Gunny

Looks much better to me also. I have to say this actually looks like a ship. Most WWI ships I've seen in models or drawings have decks that look so bare they don't look real. This looks like the kind of thing such ships must have actually had.

Martin, that's a significant rework and it looks terriffic! I don't know about you, but for me, this is exactly the part of a build I like the best!!! Figuring out how something that isn't right in the kit/accessories should be, figuring out how to do it and then making it happen.

Gotta be why I became an engineer I guess!!

I'm really looking forward to how this turns out.

Tom

It's little details like that that are the difference btwn the super modeler and the good one. Fantastic work. You and Tom have my respect for both of your devotion to detail work.

Got the aft boat skid done....


Also made tons of progress on the forward superstructure. I added the front of the chart room and made pillars/supports from plastic rod and very thin brass rod.


The above picture shows the chart room platform dry fit. It's now glued into place. Next step is to glue the struts for the forward tripod mast in place...

Lots of touch up to do, so please don't mind the mess!