The official Submarine Warfare Group Build 2016 - 2017

rob44

You may want to try ez-line. I use it for antennas for airplanes etc. It is stretchable and snaps back to it original taughtness if disturbed.

 

http://berkshirejunction.com/ez-line/

 

Rob

 

Rob I want to thank you for recommending EZ line. I have heard about it before but never tried to use it so I ordered the fine line from Ebay.

I wasn't happy how the streched sprue cable hand rails came out and took me several frustating hours to attach but the EZ line took me just minutes! I'm realy impressed at how easy it attaches with thin CA. You can even leave some slack for a natural looking droop in the rigging. I may just order a thicker one for other applications.

Need to clean up a couple of the stanchions where the sprue was removed and retouch with black paint. Hopefully i can start the weathering/rusting very soon.

That is really looking great PJ. I like the color modulation on the hull. The weathering is going to make her look fantastic.

I hope to start the Hunley this weekend;

There are not a lot of parts.

Right off the bat I see I'm going to have to fix the bow. The curve is a result

of errosion during the 130 years underwater.

Getting the spar torpedo correct is going to be interesting.

That's intresting that they would mold the bow as found and not designed.

I think the kit is designed around the H.L. Hunley as it was found.

Everyone was surprised to see the curved bow when She was recovered and many

thought it was designed that way. 

Sometime later It was determined that errosion caused the curve along with the hole

on the forward starboard side.

I also believe the current thinking is the missing forward conning tower porthole

was caused by an anchor snag well after she sank.

I'm thinking of Vac forming the hull so I can do a wreck diorama also.

mach71

I'm thinking of Vac forming the hull so I can do a wreck diorama also.

That would be awsome.

Well the Hunley is about 1.5 inches too long for my Vac-former. That stinks.

Edit:

It's not much, but at least I've started!

Thanks Steve. I have been slowly plugging away at the weathering using different color oil paints. Whats great about using the oils is that I can go back and remove what I want with no problems, even if dried, the thinner damped brush will fade the oil paint away. It's tedious work going over all those tiny holes but worth the effort IMO.

I also wasn't happy with the stretched sprue wire railings and used the recommended EZ line and man what a difference. It was so easy and fast to attach. Thanks again Rob!

The sprue took me hours to attach and was a bit thicker than what I wanted. Any thinner and even the super glue disolved the join point and the railing came loose. The EZ line attaches with tiny drop of thin CA and grabs within a couple of seconds. It took me about 10 minutes to do the railings with the EZ line.

I sound like a sales rep for them for from now on, that will be the rigging of my choice.

The flash makes the colors stand out more than under normal light. I still have to weather the starboard side and add some rust colored washes along with some more pe parts. The deck guns will also get a very light drybrushing to pop details.

That looks great PJ. Subs are a tedious weathering project, especially on something as large as a 1/144 Gato.

I've tried EZ line and like it however it seem s to be very susceptible to temp changes. I typically don't use it for mast rigging because there’s no give and it's tough to cut if there's a little bit hanging off after attached to a yard, but for life lines it looks like it works very well. I can get stretched sprue down to the width of a hair which makes it hard to see but can also tighten it up with using the smoke off an incense stick, which also make the house smell better.

Your almost there!

Thanks Steve

Yes I can get the stretched sprue super thin like hair but like 3 out of 5 glue points it melted and dangled, even using CA.

I found it very easy to cut off left over EZ line by using the Xuron clippers that are SUPER sharp.

I know I may be to late to the party, but I just joined up.  I have a 1:700 scale USS Balao I'd love to build - and I could use the GB as a means of kicking my rear into gear.  I know its a rather small kit, from Hobby Boss - but it was a birthday gift from my 4 year old and I know he'd like to see me build it up. 

I got you down Buried,

I will be intrested to see that. Your 4yo has good taste.

I had enough issues doing a 1/350 Gato, would never even attempt one half that size (being around 6 inches long).  Your tweezers are going to get a workout

Looking forward to her.

Thanks guys, I managed to get the model assembled last night, I was suprised, it was a total of about 10 parts, and went together rather well.  I'll get some pictures of it tonight after I get some primer on it.  It really is a small little guy, maybe 5-6 inches long, but has some nice detail to it for that size. 

I've been away from the build for a bit. 

I spent some time sanding and filling the hull seam. I'll have to rescribe and replace

some detail lost. The seam required more work than I expected.

I've started to add to the front of the hull, to remove the curve.

I'm using Aves Apoxie sculpt.

I'll let it be for a few days to let it set up.

That looks like it's working well Mach.

Your job does take you away for a while.

PJ,

However did you manage to mount the 1/144 Gato on finials? I have been stuck trying to figure how to mount mine. I used the Nautilus mask to drill out the limber holes which did not work out as well as I would have liked but still... Not too bad. However it made drilling out the mounting holes a bit more difficult as well as getting the nuts secured. If I can figure out how to mount this sucker then I can finish it time.

Thanks,

Steve

Hopefully I can still participate in the GB. I have been out on medical leave. I have the Trumpeter 1/144 Gato that I want to finish as the Wahoo after it's last upgrade.

I want to say that there are some impressive work here guys! 

Well I have completed the Balao, first model in a VERY long time for me.  Of course I didn't have any of the paints that the kit called for, but I think I was able to mix and substitute to get close. 

I do know that my photography skills are ... lacking, I'm going to try and watch a few tutorials on how to photograph models and i'll try and post a better image soon as I can. 

Buried,

From what I can see of it looks good, and congratulations on our first in a long time. I'm honored you chose my GB to do it in.

I will wait for some new pictures to put on the wall.

What a lot of us do for photography is place a white or grey poster board behind the model.

I will lay the board half on the wall, half on the table and place the model on the table half. This way you don't see any seams in the backdrop but one continuous flow that doesn’t take away from the build. Sometimes I will make a picture backdrop and position the camera to make the build look it like it's in the picture. It's harder to do with a model that’s on a stand.

The poster boards are inexpensive and I’ve seen them for less than a dollar.

Using the Nautilus template I marked all the limber and drainage holes for the Gato. Next will be the drilling out of all these! 

Steve

That's a lot of holes that need work!

That is a fact! I drilled them out..... not really happy how they came out but I'll post pictures tomorrow.

Steve

Well, the drilling did not come out anywhere near what I wanted it to. I guess a saving grace will be that you will only be able to see one side at a time after it is mounted...... dang! I think I should have glued the two halves together before drilling. I only  had rubber bands holding them and slippage is apparent in the nonallignment of said holes.  

Steve

Trying to drill holes straight is tough even when you have a guide like a porthole.

docidle

PJ,

However did you manage to mount the 1/144 Gato on finials? I have been stuck trying to figure how to mount mine. I used the Nautilus mask to drill out the limber holes which did not work out as well as I would have liked but still... Not too bad. However it made drilling out the mounting holes a bit more difficult as well as getting the nuts secured. If I can figure out how to mount this sucker then I can finish it time.

Thanks,

Steve

Hopefully I can still participate in the GB. I have been out on medical leave. I have the Trumpeter 1/144 Gato that I want to finish as the Wahoo after it's last upgrade.

I want to say that there are some impressive work here guys! 

 

 

 

Hi dc (Steve) MC is also named Steve LOL.

Sorry for the late reply but the wife and I have been traveling thruout southern Spain for the last 2 weeks so I have been AWOL since LOL.

First, regarding your question I too sat there and finally figured out an easy way to mount the boat on the finials. I selected the locations and drilled the pilot holes on the hull. I then used a 1/8th wood thin dowel as the mounting points to the boat and the wood finials which were drilled with corresponding holes to accept the dowels. I then sneaked up on the correct diameter hole in the plastic by using the next sized drill bits till i got a snug fit aroun the plastic. The boat is then slipped over the dowels and has a nice snug fit not requiring anything else to keept it on and secured. It's a very easy and simple method. 

As far as the bottom flood holes go, it's easier and more accurate to join the hull sides first then mark the locations. I then used a sharp needle to mark the drilling points to eliminate any drifting.

Let me know if you have any other questions.  

Steve (MC)

I'm almost done and looks like it will be completed by this week. Most of the weathering was done before we left on vacation.  I'm still blown away by the level of detail the 3D guns have specially after the paint and drybrushing went on. Also the EZ line product is just amazing.

I agree Steve. It was......fun.

PJ,

Thanks for the mounting advice. I am going to try something similar and hopefully it will work.

Anyway,

After doing research on the Wahoo, I found that the lower limber holes were not there. I am not sure if it was a Mare Island style vs. Electric Bosats in Conn. So I filled in the holes with Green Putty and sanded like nobody's business till i got it smooth. I'll hit it with some primer so see what I need to fix but I think it will work okay.

Also, I drilled 116 blowholes that were added on her last upgrade along the edge of the deck. Another bit of fun!

Here are some pictures to show what I have been up to.

Thanks Steve. I am not sure how far I am going to go trying to make this look like the Wahoo but we will see. I agree about PJ, I was going over the posts on this thread and I am in awe! There is some mighty fine modeling going on here.

Steve

A quick update. I filled and sanded, filled and sanded the limber holes a number of times today until I got the hull looking the way I wanted it to. Also worked on the PE radar sets and almost finished the sail. I am hoping to glue the hull together tomorrow and finish installnig all the deck accessories too. I need to cleanup the Naultilus deck guns and get those finished.

I'll post pictures tomorrow.

Steve

That's great Steve. I'm excited to see her.