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1st Ship in 15+ years, CVN 65 USS Enterprise

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  • Member since
    December 2012
Posted by dieseldoc on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 10:10 PM

Here it is now. Should have read the FAQ first. This place is different  than other forums when it comes to puting pics in replies.

  • Member since
    December 2012
Posted by dieseldoc on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 9:50 PM
  • Member since
    December 2012
Posted by dieseldoc on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 9:49 PM

Lets try that pic again since it appears I can't edit my own post.

i6.photobucket.com/.../IMG_7065.jpg

  • Member since
    December 2012
Posted by dieseldoc on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 9:46 PM

I was wondering how I would replicate the 3 port holes (not sure what there called) in the bow of the Big E that Tamiya omitted. What I came up with is in the pic below. What I am using are brass rings used in jewlery making. Since I do not know the outside and inside diameters of these I would like to get your opinions as to whether they look to be in scale. I also noticed in the referance pictictures I have collected so far that the to smaller holes are not round but more of an oval.

i6.photobucket.com/.../IMG_7065.jpg

Thanks Mark

  • Member since
    December 2012
Posted by dieseldoc on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 9:45 AM

Yes I have looked at A.M. Jorge's build several times and many others as well. I fact last night I found another forum with a wealth of good information on it and before I knew it it was 1:00 am. Had a hard time getting up for work this morning but it is well worth it for the info I found.

  • Member since
    March 2003
  • From: Western North Carolina
Posted by Tojo72 on Tuesday, December 11, 2012 8:24 AM

That's an ambitious project,should keep you busy for awhile.Did you check out A.M Jorge's build log ?

It's pretty good and detailed

cs.finescale.com/.../131782.aspx

  • Member since
    December 2012
1st Ship in 15+ years, CVN 65 USS Enterprise
Posted by dieseldoc on Sunday, December 9, 2012 10:25 PM

As the title states I havn't built a ship in 15 plus years. I was building comercial trucks for better than 10 years and have gotten quite bored with them. So now after 2 1/2 years of not touching styrene I decided to pull the Tamiya Enterprise off the shelf it has been sitting on and collecting dust for about 7 years. I picked up (stole) this kit  at an IMPS regional contest swap meet for 40 bucks. Well the day has come and I have started this build. My intentions are to build her as she was just prior to being deactivated this month. I know this kit will be an enormous endeavor and challenge to say the least. But since my favorite part of building models is scratch building and super detailing I should be in heaven and not get bore with this build. 

I have assembled the two hull sections. I am using automotive glazing putty for filler because it does not shrink over time. As you can see in the image below I still have more filler to add to the seam. I may very well end up having to replace the bow siffener because it may get damaged/removed in the sanding process to get the seam right.

Next I have mounted her to a building board. Once she is completed the ship will be mounted on a custom made display base. For the pedastals she is sitting on I am using used copper plasma cutter  tips. When I got these they were burnt and full of slag so I made a mandrel for them and cleaned them up on my drill press. Prior to mounting them on the finished display base they will get polished out.

Since the #1 hanger bay blast door is inacurrate in appearance and placement it was opened up. As you can see I still have more sanding and filing to go.

Whats an aircraft carrier with out its hange deck. Yep I am going to scratch build the hanger deck and bulkheads. The deck is made with .060 sheet styrene.

Reinforcements on the under side of the hanger deck so it does not sag.

Hull supports for the hanger deck

The hanger deck fitted to the hull and in place. (Not glued in yet)

A shot through the #2 hanger bay door

Since my intentions are to light the hanger bays at least so the details can be viewed I thought I would take a teaser shot for insperation. I used a LED flash light to light the interior just to get an idea of what it will look like.

Next I will be opening up the portholes for the dock lines and anchors. I am thinking of displaying her with the anchors in a partially lowered position. So I will be adding a floor to the bow section for any excess chain.

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