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Airfix 1/600 SS France

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  • Member since
    October 2019
  • From: New Braunfels, Texas
Posted by Tanker-Builder on Tuesday, September 29, 2020 9:46 AM

Very Little gain?

         B.S.! That's what is pulling her out of the Ordinary into the Excellent category. You just keep going Ya hear ? Now, a tip. Do you have some CLEAR two part epoxy or Aleens Craft glue? You can take a little bit and tint it and fill up the pool!

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Tuesday, September 29, 2020 1:46 PM

Thank you all. Yes I agree the little details add up. I do plan on using PE on her as I did on my 1/600 Queen Elizabeth. The pool filling is a great idea but I think I will skip it on the France since the pool is covered by a dome that mostly blocks its view. I'm about to start adding window decals and then onto the PE. Still a long way to go.

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 1:26 PM

I permanently glued down the decks and bridge. I also added window decals and some photo etch doors. It took some filing but it went together pretty good for such an old and warped model. I think I'm going to add some styrene posts on one of the stern decks as it looks a little empty. It also still needs some seams closed up. Then on to the railings and other details.

  • Member since
    September 2012
Posted by GMorrison on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 2:40 PM

What a beautiful ship and model!

Yes, mooring bitts would do nicely. There'a also a pair of booms on the swimming pool deck, but you probably know that.

 

Bill

 Modeling is an excuse to buy books.

 

  • Member since
    October 2019
  • From: New Braunfels, Texas
Posted by Tanker-Builder on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 2:48 PM

I see;

    The thing is, the cover for the pool was real thin aluminum frames painted white on the outside. In real life they were quite thin. Then Clear glazing ( Plexi? ) in between them all.

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 5:25 PM

GMorrison

What a beautiful ship and model!

Yes, mooring bitts would do nicely. There'a also a pair of booms on the swimming pool deck, but you probably know that.

 

Bill

 

 

Thanks Bill. I agree, she did have very nice lines. I wasn't sure if my choice of deck colors would make me happy but they are growing on me!

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 5:29 PM

Tanker-Builder

I see;

    The thing is, the cover for the pool was real thin aluminum frames painted white on the outside. In real life they were quite thin. Then Clear glazing ( Plexi? ) in between them all.

 

Yes and at 1/600 in person you don't really see much of the pool.

  • Member since
    October 2019
  • From: New Braunfels, Texas
Posted by Tanker-Builder on Thursday, October 1, 2020 4:46 AM

Yeah; Okay I digress. I just was thinking like the pool in the Argentina/Brazil Kit.

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Thursday, October 1, 2020 6:32 AM

Tanker-Builder

Yeah; Okay I digress. I just was thinking like the pool in the Argentina/Brazil Kit.

 

Tanker-Builder on the real ship you can't see much pool under the dome. I painted it anyway but that's as far as I was willing to go.

  • Member since
    September 2005
  • From: Groton, CT
Posted by warshipguy on Thursday, October 1, 2020 9:21 AM

Chris,

At 1/600, I like the deck color.  I am simply amazed at how good your ships look!  You are really bringing out just the right levels of detail in this scale, and your painting is emaculate.  I can easily imagine your collection on display in a travel agent's office.

Bill

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Thursday, October 1, 2020 3:01 PM

warshipguy

Chris,

At 1/600, I like the deck color.  I am simply amazed at how good your ships look!  You are really bringing out just the right levels of detail in this scale, and your painting is emaculate.  I can easily imagine your collection on display in a travel agent's office.

Bill

 

Thanks Bill. I usually see this model painted in one of these deck colors. I guess it's just me but I absolutely dislike those colors on this model which is why I used an alternative color that had some sort of greenish tint to it. Some pictures I see of the real ship look grey as well as green. I wonder if the color was changed through the years. I probably should have went with grey but I can live with the green.

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Saturday, October 3, 2020 10:07 PM

Getting bogged down in details on my 1/600 France. Built the mast, a bunch of stairs, and added more decals. The PE is the most time consuming part of the build, especially the upcoming railings.

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Monday, October 5, 2020 7:51 PM

Today I added the davits, some stairways, and painted the funnels on my 1/600 France. More stairways to do and I'm still putting off the railings lol.

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • From: San Antonio, Texas
Posted by Marcus McBean on Tuesday, October 6, 2020 7:50 AM

ChrisSC,

Your build is looking great, very clean and it is building up nicely.  The France is one fine looking ship.

Marcus Beer

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Thursday, October 8, 2020 11:53 AM

Marcus McBean

ChrisSC,

Your build is looking great, very clean and it is building up nicely.  The France is one fine looking ship.

Marcus Beer

 

Thank you Marcus, yes she had nice lines. I'm currently working on the PE railings and they are definitely the most difficult railings I have encountered yet out of my four models.
  • Member since
    September 2013
  • From: San Antonio, Texas
Posted by Marcus McBean on Thursday, October 8, 2020 5:03 PM

ChrisSC,

France looks like she has a lot of straight lines so the railings shouldn't be as bad to install as say a pre-drenought with all those gun to work around. 

Marcus Beer

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Thursday, October 8, 2020 7:39 PM

Marcus McBean

ChrisSC,

France looks like she has a lot of straight lines so the railings shouldn't be as bad to install as say a pre-drenought with all those gun to work around. 

Marcus Beer

 

Marcus, if the railings were straight out of the package I would definitely agree. The issue I'm having is the railings have slight waves to them from shipping and no matter what I do I can't get them perfectly straight again. What happens is I have to tack them and straighten them as I go which doesn't look nice at all. The 1/600 PE is really thin. Once it has a wave it's always going to be there to some extent. I've tried rolling it, clamping it in the PE bender, squeezing it with flat jaws but it's never a virgin again lol. It actually would be better if the runs were shorter in this particular case. I really hate when things look sloppy but I can only work with what I have. The 1/350 PE is much more forgiving as far as wavy railings are concerned.

It doesn't look that bad in this photo but when dealing with such a small scale a tiny wave turns into a 50 foot long bent railing!!

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • From: San Antonio, Texas
Posted by Marcus McBean on Thursday, October 8, 2020 9:25 PM

ChrisSc,

Have you tried heating up the railings to take out the memory? 

Marcus Beer

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Friday, October 9, 2020 9:29 PM

Marcus McBean

ChrisSc,

Have you tried heating up the railings to take out the memory? 

Marcus Beer

 

No I haven't tried that. Thanks for the tip, if I run into this issue again it's good to know that may help. 

I got a lot of railings done on my France. My dog bumped me and my elbow crushed the bow railings after they were glued on......straightened them out as best I could. The PE also had a lot of waves to it from shipping which didn't come out that great. I found the railings on this ship the hardest ones to do of the four models I have done. Lots of long straight runs and curves.
  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Friday, October 9, 2020 9:43 PM

After I had glued down a couple of railings I realized I should have been using 5 bar instead of 3 bar on the bow and stern, oh well lol!

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Saturday, October 10, 2020 7:48 AM
The railing bending culprit lol!

  • Member since
    November 2009
  • From: Twin Cities of Minnesota
Posted by Don Stauffer on Saturday, October 10, 2020 9:13 AM

Looking great.  PE railings sure make a great large ship.

 

Don Stauffer in Minnesota

  • Member since
    September 2005
  • From: Groton, CT
Posted by warshipguy on Saturday, October 10, 2020 10:06 AM

Excellent work!

Bill

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • From: San Antonio, Texas
Posted by Marcus McBean on Saturday, October 10, 2020 11:09 AM

warshipguy

Excellent work!

Bill

 

Ditto!  Beer

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Monday, October 12, 2020 10:35 PM

Thanks guys. It just needs a coat of flat clear to cover any glossy glue and I'm gonna call it done. I don't feel like putting anymore time in this one, it was harder than I thought it would be.

  • Member since
    September 2013
  • From: San Antonio, Texas
Posted by Marcus McBean on Tuesday, October 13, 2020 3:45 AM

ChrisSC,

Great finish, the France looks wonderful. 

Marcus Beer

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Tuesday, October 13, 2020 7:44 AM

Marcus McBean

ChrisSC,

Great finish, the France looks wonderful. 

Marcus Beer

 

Thanks Marcus!!

  • Member since
    December 2003
  • From: 37deg 40.13' N 95deg 29.10'W
Posted by scottrc on Wednesday, October 14, 2020 8:11 AM

Very clean build.  Toast

  • Member since
    September 2005
  • From: Groton, CT
Posted by warshipguy on Wednesday, October 14, 2020 8:24 AM

Excellent build!  Impressive!

Bill

  • Member since
    February 2020
  • From: South Carolina, USA
Posted by ChrisSC on Wednesday, October 14, 2020 2:33 PM
Thank you Bill and scottrc.I was going to start on another Airfix 1/600, maybe QE2, but I just got word from the manufacturer that my 1/350 Lusitania wood decks are in the mail. I have really been chomping at the bit to finish that model. I started cutting my own wood decks for her but decided a professionally cut set would look much better and be worth the wait as she's a rare model. 
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