modelcrazy

Bakster, I've always just put it on. You need to make sure the deck is absolutely clean, no dust, no finger oils. I usually do this with alcohol and a cotton swab. You my want to spray some acrylic gloss in the deck after to help the adhesive adhere but again, make sure the deck is clean  before applying the veneer. You'll have one shot at it. If you mess up it can be lifted and reapplied but you run the risk of tearing the wood and/or making the glue less tacky. Use a turret barbet or some other large object to yes as a reference and aline it. If an edge gets stuck down while your doing this don't worry, use an Xacto blade or something to lift it back up. This is why some use a mist of water first . Once down, use a wood dowel or some such to press the veneer down, especially around the deck details. 

BTW, I forgot to mention, remove all the little details on the sheet before removing the deck. This will helpvline it up and keep you from frustration when the deck is applied. 

Someone may have a better way but that what I've learned through the years. 

 

I have all of the details removed and it is ready for inking, probably this weekend. I will do an update when that is done. Once done with that, I will set that aside because I am nowhere near ready to install them. Next I will move towards fabricating the guns. That should be fun, and I am looking forward to it. 

PS: Just for grins, I might do a little more experimenting with the ink, maybe see how well dry brushing works. Who knows--maybe I'll prefer it.

Following KCs advice I checked out some YouTube videos on veneer decking. In so doing, I came across an excellent video about PE. Most of you guys have no need for this, but for PE greenhorns like me, it is an excellent basics tutorial. This video filled in some knowledge gaps that I had.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=V6C7LGDTlwo

The deed is done, Ink is applied. A few things to note:

1. In my initial test I had applied two coats of Ink; with the final piece I applied 1. It is slightly less gray.

2. I applied the ink one section at time so that the ink didn't have time to dry. I saturated the piece and then quickly removed the excess using cotton swabs.

3. I experimented with dry brushing and I found that you can reduce the overall depth. For my veneer, and my taste, I didn't go that way.

4. For grins I applied the Ink to a piece of actual wood stock. The wood absorbed the Ink as well as the stain test. I then tried sanding it and yes, you can alter the look as GM mentioned. When it comes to this veneer--things don't seem to behave in a logical manor. I DO believe this manufacturer has applied a sealer, and that changes all the rules. With that said, this Ink could behave differently for you than it did for me, depending on your source for the veneer.

5. Unfortunately, the images below are a poor representation of reality. In my opinion, the piece turned out fantastic. I am really happy with how the Ink knocked down the rather toyish appearance. Now, it looks like real wood. 

Thanks for the advice along the way...

Amazing Bakster, you really put some time and effort into that and it shows.

modelcrazy

Amazing Bakster, you really put some time and effort into that and it shows.

 

as modelcrazy said , some real nice work steve . would love to see it for real to get the full effect , maybe some day mate 

Deck Division reports deck ready for inspection, sir!

Nice that’s going to look sharp when it’s in place .

That's really nice. I'm going to have to try it on mine.

Bakster the decking looks fantastic!

Darn!

 How're my "Snipes" gonna get oil smoke stains on Forward decks when we " Blow Tubes"? I guess we can do it when we are going " Full Astern"

 We like to mess up purty decks. Gives the "Deck Apes" sumpin ta do! And those are beautiful. Very nice job. I haven't used any wood decks yet.

A big thanks to everyone that commented on my decking...I appreciate the support! It is pretty amazing what manufacturers can create when they set their minds to it. Wood veneer is pretty cool stuff!

I watched a youtube video last night where a builder applied several washes to his veneer decking, all the washes are commercially available. In general, I felt it was too over the top. One wash in particular was near black. What I am getting at though is that he used a salt wash made by Mig. He loaded the piece with the wash and over minutes the stuff dries out leaving behind a blended and lightened appearance to the work done earlier. This intrigues me and I might have to buy some for testing. Not so much for this build but for future projects. This might be good for producing weathering effects. The stuff really knocked down some of the heavy washes he applied. 

And that is my Sunday morning two cents. Lol.

you guy's with the after market stuff do a phenomenal job!!! but this old man well I work whats in the box. I salute you! 

latest pt pics dont laugh too much lol

Bakster... Going to look good under the big guns.

Crown... You do nice work OOB.  I like it.

crown r n7

but this old man well I work whats in the box. I salute you! 

No... I salute YOU! Your PT looks great! I love all the subtle weathering that you did, it looks ready for combat! Very nice work Crown...

Wow Crown, that PT looks fantastic. That is some great weathering there. John himself would approve I think.

Yeah Nick your PT looks superb! Love how the weathering and the gunk on the hull came out- she looks like a Pacific vetern! 

Bakster: The deck looks cool, looking forward to more. 

DutchLQ7

That deck looks amazing! Great job and the walk through was very informative. Something to aim for in the future when I’ve built up some of the skills I’ll need.

 

Nick your PT is lookin very very nice! Looks like you will be 1st finished!

A small amout of progress. Work is keeping me busy. I found a bit of time last night and this morning to work on the Blueback.

I sanded the surface prep, Re painted a few spots, sanded again, polished her with a paper towel, and put another coat of primer on her. Polished again with a paper towel. I think it's finally ready.

There are a few very shallow imperfections but they should go away with another primer coat and paint.

The big parts dry fit

Hey Mach--your sub is looking like an ominous beast! Like it's ready to wreak havoc! I like it....

It's almost ready for a crazy Ivan!

I'm having no luck finding the deck fittings. I might have to scratch them.

Next question for you sub guys. What color should the lower hull be? Flat red?

Brown/red?

I'm planing on Semi matt black on the upper hull.

It struck me tonight that I should try imaging the deck in RAW format. RAW doesn't do all the in-camera processing like it does for Jpeg, and that is where the trouble comes in. In doing RAW I was able to get much closer to what the piece looks like. I'd say I am about 80% there. The colors are still a little off and some nice nuances are still not visible, but the image is much better than the first ones that I posted. The actual color of the piece leans more to a brown, this image leans to red. I underexposed and pushed the color slighly to help bring out the subtle detail. Anyway, this will give you a better idea of how it looks. 

No comments necessary unless you want to. 

I started work on the big guns and it is going well. I will have some images for you in the days ahead.

Modelcrazy I started one August 12th after i go back from the Nats. i have the hull painted and a little work to open up the turbine intake vents on a 1/350 FFG. Is that too far? I had just posted an update in the ships forum if you want to judge progress. there’s lots of Pontos advanced detail kit left to go but Bad on me for not thinking to check the group builds before starting though. No worries if it’s too far as I will do another one no matter what 

chris

This was super helpful. Definitely going to benefit from several pices of advice here. This is just my 2nd attempt at pe on a ship. Have done 1 or 2 plane cockpits but those are nothing like ships. Next i need a good rigging guide if you guys have a favorite drop a link in for me 

This was super helpful. Definitely going to benefit from several pices of advice here. This is just my 2nd attempt at pe on a ship. Have done 1 or 2 plane cockpits but those are nothing like ships. Next i need a good rigging guide if you guys have a favorite drop a link in for me

Bakster

Following KCs advice I checked out some YouTube videos on veneer decking. In so doing, I came across an excellent video about PE. Most of you guys have no need for this, but for PE greenhorns like me, it is an excellent basics tutorial. This video filled in some knowledge gaps that I had.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=V6C7LGDTlwo

 

TheMongoose, your good, I got ya down Capt.

Looking forward to it. 

TheMongoose

This was super helpful. Definitely going to benefit from several pices of advice here. This is just my 2nd attempt at pe on a ship. Have done 1 or 2 plane cockpits but those are nothing like ships. Next i need a good rigging guide if you guys have a favorite drop a link in for me

 

Bakster

Following KCs advice I checked out some YouTube videos on veneer decking. In so doing, I came across an excellent video about PE. Most of you guys have no need for this, but for PE greenhorns like me, it is an excellent basics tutorial. This video filled in some knowledge gaps that I had.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=V6C7LGDTlwo

 

 

 

 

 

 

@Bakster,

I'm going to have to back read everything you did for the deck, because I will use the same technique. It looks outstanding! 

@Nick,

The 109 looks amazing, and I agree, I think John would be extremely pleased.

@Mach71,

Wow, she's really taking shape! I'm looking forward to seeing some paint on her.

Ok gang it’s deadline time for me again. This year’s local club build for September is a tribute build, anything Marine Corp, in honour of a past Club President, Ed Kinney. I’ve chosen to do the FFG-48, USS Vandegrift. It ties in nicely with the group build as posting updates keeps me motivated plus I know I’ll need some help along the way to get it across the finish line by Sept 15th. 

General Alexander Vandegrift was the first Marine General. He led the battle for Quadalcanal, won the medal of hono, and rose to commandant of the Marine Corps. After the war he was probably best known for keeping the Marines from being absorbed into the Navy. Gonna try to do him proud.

 I had just started this so if you’re interested here’s the link to my work on the hull over in the Ships forum.

Now for my latest progress, slow and steady like the tortoise wins the race. The deck is glued down and the brass is on the bow. Not sure about these Pontos directions but this section made some sense to do now.

While I was at Nats got myself a touch and flow. Never seems to be in stock at the LHS. I mention it here because I don’t think the gap i had between hull and deck would have stayed closed for a year without how hot this plasti weld is. Check out the icing from this joint 

Did some minor work on the helicopter bays and finished up the front of the superstructure (is that the right term here?).

Took a beginners class on soldering PE at Nats as well. I ve got the space really organized with the intent of not losing any pieces! There’s 3 large frets of PE in this kit plus pins, barrels, and davits. Has me scared enough to clean haha.