rigging for WW2 ships

Tricky to do at that small a scale!  However, there are a couple techniques that work pretty well.  First is to locate a fly-fishing outfit, either on-line, or in your local town, and get a spool of the finest brass wire they have (and they have some VERY thin wire!).  This can be super-glued to your attachment points without much trouble.  The brass wire is good because it will not stretch, and can be straightened pretty easily!  The other option is to use very fine monofilament, which can also be found at the fly-fishing store, either as 'tippet material' (and you are talking at least 8X here), or on a small spool that is also used for fly-tying.  Monofilament is also easy to superglue, but it tends to want to curl up if you don't keep it tight while waiting for the glue to dry.  One trick (from fly-fishing!) that works to straighten out monofilament prior to use is to hold a piece tight between your hands and run it back and forth a few times over a piece of rubber (like the sole of your sneaker, etc).  The heat generated by this friction is enough to straighten it right out.  Both the brass wire and monofilament options can be easily painted any color you like.  In both cases, it is pretty important that the attachment point be clear of paint in order to make a strong bond, but this can be a very tiny spot and work well (scrape a small spot with an X-acto knife, then touch it up later).  Doubtless other modellers have other tricks, but these have worked well for me in the past! 

searat - I just copied/pasted this info, I have the premium kit, will buy in a couple years, thanks for the info! :)

I wouldn't go drilling a lot of holes - even using a No. 80 bit is going to be too large for things like 1/700 masts and yardarms. Itt bitty dots of gel-type superglue where you want the rigging to go will be more than sufficient.

I tend to use stretched sprue colored with a black or brown permanent ink marker for a couple of reasons: 1) It's free, so I can afford to screw up frequently and make it any diameter I want, and screw up frequently, and 2) It is usually fairly rigid, even for long runs between attachment points. If it sags or bows a little after all is said and done, it can be tightened up with a match. Light the match, blow it out, and then wave the smoking head under the line in question.

And if this is your first ship in 1/700 scale, I wouldn't get too hung up about the rigging, especially on a warship. A line on the correct mast or staff for the national ensign, maybe a few on the signal yards, will be more than enough to make the ship look "busy."

Thanks for the input.  Have you ever tried any type of cotton thread?

Scottie wrote:

Thanks for the input.  Have you ever tried any type of cotton thread?

Most cotton threads have a bad case of the fuzzies.   Waxing them with some beeswax helps this, but may affect the glue performance.   Look at your local sewing notions store for "invisible" sewing thread. This is a fine monofilament thread (like fishing line).   Look too at your local flyfishing shop for some flytyers silk thread

On my Victory I have been using polyester string to help with the "fuzzies". I use Clove hitch knot so I can tension the line as needed. once the line is in place I use a watered down glue mixture to set everything in place.

Nylon thread works well for tall ships, but for more modern ships, especially at 1/700 scale, cotton and even nylon or polyester really doesn't work too well, as what we really are trying to represent here in most cases is wire, not rope.  Stick to brass wire, monofilament, or as was also mentioned above, stretched plastic sprue (I never liked stretched sprue much myself, as I could never get it in a consistent diameter; I guess practice makes perfect, but that's your call!).