"Jan Klarbæk gives us a closer look at Nautilus Models, 1/72 scale wooden replacement deck for the Special Navy Type IIA Submarine, in this MSW "Inbox" review.
background...
The Special Navy type II A submarine has been around for some time, and now the update sets are slowly beginning to surface …
This first set to hit the market is a replacement wooden deck from Nautilus models designed to replace the kit parts D1, D2 and D3.
in the kit...
The set contains one wooden deck made from laser cut plywood approximately 1 mm. thick.
The deck is packed with a cardboard backing and include instructions are packed alongside in a plastic bag. All very professional.
The deck in it self features flood holes that go all the way through – so you save your time thinning out or drilling through the flood holes in the original parts.
Being wood, you get a texture like the real deck, but since the real deck is part wood and part metal In sections, you are going to make sure, that the wooden grain and texture do not show through your finish.
Being about 1 mm thick, it’s a bit too thick for scale appearance, so if you can’t live with that, you have to attempt to thin it from the backside, or wait for someone to market a photo etch replacement deck for better scale representation.
details and accuracy...
The deck shares the same layout as the kit parts. The only reference I have that shows the whole deck is a drawing on page 82 in “Vom Original zum Modell” bye Eberhard Rössler, and from that I find bout the kit parts and this replacement deck to be reasonably accurate for the deck layout from 1935.
Being wood, there is a number of details that can be added like hinges and handles on the large number of hatches.
Conclusion
This is a well made replacement deck for your II A, but being rather thick you won’t get a good scale representation on the thickness of the deck around the open flood holes.
On the other hand, the cut-trough flood holes save you from opening them up yourself, and the wooden texture will give interesting possibilities with sanding the painted deck for a worn appearance.
I got my deck directly from Nautilus Models, delivery was swift and packaging solid, so my parts arrived all the way to Europe without troubles and in a few weeks.
Even though the price is listed as USD 20 plus USD 5, shipping and handling, I had to pay USD 25 plus shipping and handling.
SUMMARY
Highs: a well made replacement deck for your II A, and the cut-through flood holes save you from opening them up yourself. The wooden texture will give interesting possibilities with sanding the painted deck for a worn appearance.Lows: It's rather thick you won’t get a good scale representation on the thickness of the deck around the open flood holes. Verdict: A bit thick for scale presentation, but a well made, very useable replacement deck.
Well Kenny, quite frankly I don´t know - but I am going to attempt it when I start my build.
By the way - If the last sentence don´t make much sense, its because some +++ got lost here and there
Hi Jan
Good review... I guess the deck thickness is because the part is supposed to replace the kit part - so, it will be leveled with the hull.
One thing that you may do, is to use some thinned wooden varnish and apply to the wooden deck prior to do anything (apply it to both surfaces: top and bottom).
This will seal the wood, will make a better gluing surface, and you can use acrylic paints if you want
Cheers and keep working on the Typ II
Rui
Rui - yes some kind of treatment before fixing it will be needed - if only because its wood, and wood reacts with any kind for liquid "raising" the fibers. So a treatment and light pass with some fine sandpaper propably is a must.
The deck replacement covers most of the deck, but some of it origninaly was steel, so I have to see if I can achieve a different texture than wood for the steel parts.
I´m about to begin my IIA build - so I will test if sanding down the deck around the openings is possible. More to follow in another tread.
Cheers
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