Tamiya Big-E - USS Enterprise 1/350

Stardate 18052011.

The USS Enterprise project continues ...

Today I finished the last support of the deck elevators. I believe that repetitive work is behind us and we will make progress and see assembly to evolve.

The last of four ...



An hour and a half later ...



Finally we have the four supports



The four lifts in PE with their bases



It'll be good!

I'm betting that you won't be using all of those aircraft decals as you seem to be a sane person.

Hi folks.

Wow !!!

A "must see" decal artwork:

http://public.fotki.com/Obironkenobi/uss-enterprise-cvn65/viewcomments.html

Today, just another elevator support.

Forty minutes later ...

Now, one more only.

Thank you.

A.M.Jorge

 

I am interested in whether you are planning to drill out the portholes that the little disks (the represent the armored porthole covers) seem to be covering. These covers are/were rarely ever closed except in very heavy seas (and even then, closing them is rare). There are small viewing slits cut into them to enable to used for such when closed and are probably not worth trying to duplicate at this scale, and pull handles to facilitate lifting them up to close them. This portion of the ship is known as SECONN, or Secondary Conning Station. It is a fully equipped navigation bridge as on the island structure above the flight deck. This station is manned during General Quarters and has a full navigation team. The ship's Executive Officer, XO, has this space as his battle station. During normal working hours, it is used by the Navigation Department's Quartermasters to correct charts and to goof off in. It is pretty much isolated and a quiet place to go.

Here is a preety good shot of Enterprise's bow portholes as they are normally configured:

Hi guys. Yes, I saw some Big E conersion projects. You can find a lot of them at Google.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=593475

Dear friends, I finally managed to finish the elevator's door that comes pre-shaped in hull. The hard part was cutting the 3mm thickness of the hull. The knife could not cut less than 1 mm distance between one and another because the thickness. Conclusion, I began to cut laterally with a 0.5 mm drill, which has broken. I put a thicker drill, 1mm, and finished the job. Then it was sanded with patience and care, and soon the hole was open.

I finished making the "box" recessed door. It was good, but I had to dismount and adjust to the hole.

The most important is that the final result was good.


Drawing the box pieces of the door




Already cutted




The "box " assembled




The marathon begins drilling the 3mm hull




After about 15 minutes, just finished to drill the holes




The rear view



The knife did not work with this 3mm thickness, so I use the 0.5 mm drilling laterelly until it has broken. Put a 1mm new one and finished the job




Finally I did the main hole






Once sanded, fitted and glued, the door was good looking

You read my mind!!!  I think ballasting that beast will be a challenge to keep her balanced port to starboard unless a kind of weighted keel that may be removable might be fitted but that is child's play compared to getting her to look authentic below the waterline and be under power at the same time.  It would definitely be worth a try!

Anybody tried to convert one of these suckers to R/C? To me a hull that size just screams "PUT A MOTOR IN ME"

Can't help it I'm an R/C nut.

Continuing our assembly, without any big news, I need to use a little more putty in the receased elevator door piece and, while the putty cures, I used my time to prepare one more elevaotr base. It is the third of four. It takes a reasonable time, about 2.5 hours per piece. But it will be very good.

A bit of putty to be very smooth, then we will complete.




Meanwhile, let us take over and do an elevator.




Even after almost an hour, the progress seems small.




Once cured and sanded our door will be good

Dear friends,

After two weeks, we're here again.

Today I completed pieces that have been delayed by my distraction. I painted a piece that was forgotten in the tree; I painted that piece that I had assembled in the wrong way, that become very good by the way; I took the piece that closes the rear deck off and repainted it, a good job of a good dual-action airbrush; and finally I conclued that the door of the hangar will have to be redone, because my part was very ugly.


Painting parts





The part of the hangar door that I created is very ugly (below left)




The rear part of the platform that I took off just before repainting with the airbrush to paste again





In the picture may not give notice, but was much better than before




More glue to fill the joint





Starting from scratch





The last chance to get well





A bit of putty and will be good

I continued to fill the gaps of the joints of some parts, now, mainly, the front ends of catapults. We are nearing the end of this novel. But already I foresee that  these catapults will give me some work to leave this with good aspect. Also spent much of my time doing the support of another flight deck elevator. It takes time, but even that is not so tiring, gets to be fun.

Once filled, sanded joining the larger platform.

More super glue to fill the joint of the front ends of catapults.

Oh yeah, have not given up the last recessed door.

We will finish a new elevator base, first we drill 

From the rear.

Half an hour later ...

An hour later ...  only two more ...

looking good,it seems all your hard work is starting to come together now.

Dear friends, I'm continuing to the bow assembly. The pieces come with safety nets, so I must remove them (the nets) in order to glue the PE later. The top piece of the parts fit very well with the low. Note that each part is different, designed to be attached to each specific track of each catapult. As I sanded a lot this part of the bow, the fit between the pieces and the deck was very poor, with a failure quite reasonable. This is an area that will be show, so the finishing has to be good. Another problem is that the flight deck is mostly in high relief. I'm thinking of scratching the raised deck lines and so I will could sand to get a better finish. 

I also do some more simple joints of hull. There's no secret, fill the gap with super glue and sand.

Assembled and without the safety nets

Glued on the flight deck, watch the size of the gaps

Super glue  to fill the gaps between ship's hull and small platforms






Two more







Sanding and filling again







Sanding the other two 







Filling the big one






Sanding the two that were filled again

Continuing ...

After drying for a week, the homemade door part is not good yet. I had to fill with more super glue. I have not given up. As the glue dries, I decided to finish the join between the bow and the flight deck. There are some fairly large gaps to fill. Filled with super glue and sanded. The details of the hatches were damaged, so I thought it best sanding and rework them with 1.6 mm  diameter styrene, the same I'll use to make the fire hoses axis.

The elevators are also part of the flight deck. I also began to prepare the structures in styrene for use with the PEs. I had an accident and cut my finger. But I went ahead!

Our port that will be one of the doors of the elevators is still not good, need to fill in the missing corners

More super glue and we will see how goo it will be

The photos of the elevator which was molded in the flight deck, removed in order to use the PEs.

The base of one of four flight deck elevators. Already adjusted one. This is the second. Two more are left.

The original piece:

Beginning with the holes

The rear part

Half an hour later ...

Adjusting the bow and the flight deck joint

Many gaps to fill. So I thought it best to fill them, sanding the hatches. Then I will do again with 1.6 mm styrene

After sanding still left some flaws. More and more super glue and sandpaper

Making hatches

And after pasting. It was good, but I had to sand all the pieces will stay with the same height. It was also a little hard to handle, but after all it worked.

I was looking at the hull and I realized (the obvious) that one elevator that is molded with the central part of the flight deck, in the hull also there is a closed door molded . However, this door should be recessed, as the door, in fact, not exists in front of the elevator, but behind the internal opening. Thinking about this, I decided to make a new recessed door from the unesed parts, since the kit only provided three indenteds ports.

 First, I got the part not used, measured and drew the new parts in plastic:

 Then I cut and pasted the new parts using super glue:

 There lacked some corners to fill, which I did using more superglue:

Way to go ...

Today I'm near to finish the hull. At least the base of the hull without the details.

Let's go the flight deck. We must remove the safety nets of the kit in order to put the PEs.

First deck's part, before:

Then, without the safety nets:

Second deck's part, before:

Then, without the safety nets:

Third deck's part, before part before:

Then, without the safety nets:

Look at the elevator that is molded together with the deck. I'll have to remove. It's about 4mm plastic to cut !

I lost the detail photo of removed elevator, but you may see the four elevators' "holes" on deck:

 Look at the first part of the deck being glued. Here, we must have patience in the test fit of parts. If I miss the deck junction by much, I will fill gaps and sanding until the sun turn off !

After a long month beginning and a holiday, I finally got some work in the model. Still assembling the hull. I glued the rear deck and the others spopnson that had not yet done. To my misfortune, I discovered that I mounted a wrong platform, and now I can not glue a diagonal beam supporting the upper deck. I had to take off the flat piece of the base platform and then paste the opposite side. I had to glue, fill gaps and I have to paint again. In the end, will be good.

Rear platform:

Something very strange is happening with the painting when I "unmask" the pieces, where a tape over the other, a line was clearer. I'll have to paint again. The paint, in general, are not adhering well to the kit.

More a small platform:

Diagonal beams supporting the upper deck:

One more:

I stuck to dark gray platform unlike

Half an hour after removing super glue and sanding, I need to fill the gaps, sand and paint again:

It was because of this beam that I discovered the fitting wrong sponson:

The last two small platforms, and the right made by me, because I lost one of these little pieces. I nedd to fill gaps before paint.

From this and the previous day was clear that the detail in from the plastic kit, resin and PE will have to be assembled later.

Overall, I have to fill some gaps, sanding in order to paint.

That's it.

Hi Biil,

I really don't know any color conversion chart, but I found this, it's very helpful:

http://www.paint4models.com/paintchart/paintconversionchart20100101b.html

I hope it was useful.

does the Tamiya colors translate to the model master paints and is so where can I obtain a color chart?

Bill

Today I glued the pieces in place. Still was not very good in some places, the tape marked in ink, guess I'll have to retouch.


One of the platforms




Another




Today I also folded my first PE. It is a ladder. I thought it was fairly easy, though I only have some needle-nose pliers. Look:

Highlighting the tree.

Already bent:

Look at the size:
http://i.min.us/ilB6Hq.JPG


In place below the flight deck and on top of the hull:



So I could glue the anchors:

Dear friends modellers.

Today progress has been small, but important. Rather than put everything together and then paint, resulting in some failures, I painted some places and details that will be difficult to access. However, after joining, I have to fill the gaps. The job is doubled, but is more beautiful (hopefully!). And then, who is in a hurry?

The material and the "hull color"

Providing that one cleaning before painting. A lot residue of dust from sanding.




Areas that will be difficult to access.



Areas that already have access difficult. Imagine then.

The rear deck also will be very restricted.




The platforms that will enter in these tight spaces.




Testing ...




I put the horizontal strip in front of the vertical.

Really starting to take shape now

Hi, guys. Today I did a few details that are clear in the photos of the ship at 1982/1983 and even in the manual, but did not come with the kit. They are my first "scracthbuilts. At first It was a little difficult, but ultimately it becomes fun.

There are still a few more details to start painting the hull.

Looking very impressive!  Are you in on the ship group build?  I'm in with a 1/200 scale Arizona and a 1/350 Gambier Bay.  I'm almost ready to start as soon as I finish planking the hull of my 1/200 Titanic all wood model for R/C.

Olá de novo. Fiz uma mudança de curso. Eu tinha intenção de fazer um hangar bem simples, mas não o farei mais. Estou fixando as peças menores do casco e preenchendo as falhas pequenas. Demorou um pouco mais do que pensei para poder fazer a pintura.

Hey everybody, I've been masking some parts, for, as I said, I plan to paint the hull soon. It required some patience and a few hours, but it was still fun. In the end, my roll of masking tape over!

Hi. This week I lost one small sponson piece, so I've needed to scratchbuild a new one. Also, needed to sand some gaps yet. But I've started to mask some sponsons. Soon I'm intending to paint the hull.

Hi, guys. No updates until now. It's very warm here this summer. Regards.

Dear friends,

after several weeks assembling, gluing, sanding, filling gaps, today I did the first painting in the model. All previous work is beginning to show results. It is still a small part, but was very good, better than the average of my previous models.