Digital Navy - USS Arizona - 1/100

Fine Details

I've completed the work on the bow of the ship. All the items are in place and waiting for chain, which is something that I'm looking for.

I've been busy with the small details in the shots below. Davits, boarding platforms and boarding booms. I've wrapped the handrails around the bow and have run them half way down the starboard side. The detailing is coming to an end very soon. Then all I will have left are the ship's boats and a bunch of rigging.

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Thanks Ski and Mauiman...

Yes, I've worked my way back down the starboard side with handrails, open chocks, bollards and some other details. The boats are fast-approaching. I've previewed the parts for these and they look very straight forward. I can't wait to get into them.

It's like taking the white flag in a very, very long race. :-)
 
Beautiful work on the Arizona! Really clean and crisp detail on this historic ship 67 years after her rendezvous with destiny! My daughter is a Vet in Maryville, Tn just around the corner from you'all. Have a Merry Christmas and a Great New Year!
 
Small details wrapping up

I've been tardy in updating recently. I've completed the details on the starboard side and now I'm starting on the ship's boats. I've completed one of the small launches, but I'm not quite satisfied with the look. I used 110 pound card and it was really too heavy to make the boat look right. I've since acquired some 60 pound card and I'm going to use it to build the remaining boats. Should get some better results. As you can see from the third photo, I've got a lot of boats to build and my 1/350 plastic Arizona has been distracting me of late.

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you have done a really fabulous job,

i am going to have to reattempt my try at this model.

you consistant progress inspires me to continue my model making


keep up the good work!

:thumb:
 
More Boats

Thanks Ski!

Here are some more boats to look at. These are taking more time to build than I had anticipated. Also, the construction of the hulls is good for the smaller 1/250 scale, but at 1/100 I find the results are mediocre at best and the construction time is lengthy. Gluing all these large seams takes patience and skill.

I'm bogged down in the motor boat launches at the moment, and fighting the temptation to get further involved in my 1/350 plastic Arizona. I've got to stick this thing out to the end since it is so close....

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Thanks Jeanma. You did a very good job on your version of Arizona.

Thanks for sharing.

Yes, building at this size leaves no margin for error. It's a challenge to make details work at this size when the model is designed to be much smaller. But the work is still fun.
 
I've been following this build from the "get-go" and have found it really well done,amazing ,actually for the sheer size and the fine workmanship. However I have a comment to make about the ships boats, I don't quite know how to criticize because I can't do as well and also perhaps because there's no better way to build them,but I don't think they're up to your standard so far. I too built a smaller version of the Arizona and never did get the ships boats right. Its really tough to get the pleasing sheer line those boats have and also the interior of the boats need to be colored. Sorry,perhaps the 1-350 model is distracting you.For some reason that big stack of boats a battleship carries attracts quite a bit of attention for me if for no other reason than "How'd they get em up there?'. Just my 2 cents.
 
No, I'm in complete agreement with you. I'm very discouraged right now. To come this far only to get hung up on the ship's boats is difficult.

I've had some time to think about it and I feel that since these boats are much larger than their intended design, the hull construction is inappropriate for 1/100. Instead of seams and one-piece hulls, they need to be made like the ship's hull. Formers with hull skins that span from frame to frame.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do at this point, but I've been piddling around for over a week now, mostly out of frustration with these boats. I've been known to cheat in the past, and I may do so again with these boats. I'm not sure how, but I'll probably think of something. I may move on to rigging and other small details for now, just to keep things rolling.

As always, I appreciate the feedback reklein. It gives me affirmation of my own thoughts.

Thanks!
 
Eib, those could be dressed up easily enough, I would have no hesitation myself to do so, but since I'm doing a sailing ship presently I have lost all intent to make everything out of paper. Impossible. Lines? Decent masts? Oh well, I guess I shouldn't throw out the baby with the bathwater, but you know...I think the design of the boats not of the same quality as the rest of the ship, and that is not the fault of the builder. I was thrilled when the boats on Cleo were designed so beautifully, makes it easy. (between you and me, I used putty on the boats anyway to make them fair enough for planks- don't tell anybody):thumb:
 
I have read thru the complete thread from start to finish and I by no means am one to tell someone that has done the job you have what you need to do, your are light years ahead on skills, I can offer this advice, it is clear to me you have the ability to solve problems just by the idea of what you came up with to up-scale this beast and followed thru, then I read what it was going to cost to print/material, and as I see you kept on keeping on. I can not say what is the answer to the smaller boats hulls in this size, to me all of them. no matter the scale are a pain at times, even for those who like me have built in wood, the small boats never look right, to solve those problems as you suggested, look else where and at differant materials. I understand the desire to keep everything paper built, but with laser cut parts, turned barrels and PE being used now that brings this pieces of work to another level, if you need to cheat then cheat if you get the results you are looking for. I agree with you, frame and plank the boats and you are still in keeping with the idea you had when you determined to build. I just want to incourage you on to see this finished to honor all who gave for freedom that day known as December 7th.
 
Well yeah,one could carve the hulls from wood and then use the paper superstructures,but that would be cheating a little. These boats are gonna be about 2" long or so. I wonder if a guy could find a suitable design and use a little copier magic for the hulls at least. The gunn'els etc from the kit could still be used. I will take a look at my unbuilt Cleo. kit and see how they do it. Hang in there EIB its a beautiful build. You got more time in that than a lotta guys got in their train layouts or a wooden ship model, not to mention the bucks you spent on the paper and copy work, BILL
P.S. Oh yeah Merry Christmas to you and all.
 
Merry Christmas guys. You've given me re-newed focus with your comments. I didn't realize that my build was inspiring to so many folks... Thank you!

I know what you're saying about alternate materials papastumpy... I gave up trying to build the fiddly little JSC Walrus float plane for my 1/400 scale KGV. I finally went to resin and 1/350 scale as a substitute. You could tell the slight scale difference, but the plane looked great in the end. My friends (novice model enthusaists) visit my office frequently and always comment that the KGV is their favorite among my collection and they can't tell that the Walrus isn't paper! :-)
 
I'm cool with whatever material you want to mix together to get good results. I was treading lightly in case you were a purist. I admire folks who can manipulate those litle paper bits ,such as in chocks and bollards,but thats where I usually draw the line and go with styrene or resin castings. I should've remembered you did your railings in styrene. There's a really good paper Fuso build going on over in Model Ship World ,kits, forum thats really good too and it looks like the guy is going all paper. Its been a long haul,no hurries. BILL
 
eibwarrior,

I think your boats look perfectly fine. I think that you can only do what the kit gives you. It's of no fault of yourself. I know I can't meet the detail level you establish on every ship you do. I simply don't have the patience to place all of the additional pieces. Add the fact that the ship would turn out as one big splotch of glue as a result!

I think you start hitting the limit on detail that paper can give with these kits. It starts getting into the realm of scratch building that you are getting to.... Like I said, I think your boats look fine!

-Ski
 
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