JohnWS

Old eyeballs & steady hands. A long time ago when I was a very young chap, my parents gave me a couple of little plastic MTB's about the same size (or smaller) as your's Jon. These came in two pieces, the hull & the main deck/super structure. The idea was to pop the deck off, fill the hull with baking soda, snap everything back together & place the boats in water (usually the bathtub). There was a small hole in the bottom of the hulls at the stern allowing the baking soda & water to mix, resulting in a reaction that propelled the boats forward. Lots of fun & battles won for a kid that loved boats & ships. John

Hi Jon, Yes, the letters do look a little too bold in the photo, but they may not look too different to the eye at 1/350 scale. Getting the numbers exactly right - font, white outline & size - will probably not be noticed since most observers will focus on the boats' deck details & the seascape. Another option would be to leave off the hull numbers entirely. I've found a couple photos where some boats have no hull numbers at all. Although these may have been removed in the photos by the censors for security reasons. Here's a helpful excerpt from John Lambert's The Fairmile 'D' Motor Torpedo Boat book that I used as a reference to size the hull numbers on my 'D' build. John

Interesting conclusion, Jon. I've been under the impression that WWII RN & RCN Fairmile D's hull numbers included the prefix letters MGB or MTB, depending on their armament configuration e.g. https://www.silverhawkauthor.com/post/royal-canadian-navy-motor-torpedo-boats-mtb-motor-gun-boats-mgb-and-fairmile-motor-launches-ml-1939-1945 John

Looks great! John

No problem at all. It's good to be able to have this type of discussion when there's not a lot of reference material or aftermarket parts available. John

No, I don't think so. The technical name for the 2 pdr gun I used on my Fairmile D is - 2 pounder Mark VIII gun on Mark XVI power mounting. Similar to this; https://blackcatmodels.eu/en/weapons/126-2-pdr-pom-pom-mkviii-gun-on-motorized-single-mount-mkxvi-x4.html The larger gun is a 6 pounder Hotchkiss gun on a Mark V mounting. Here's a 3 pdr on a similar Mark V mounting; https://micromaster.co.nz/products/1-350-royal-navy-3-pdr-1-85-40-47-mm-mkv-mounting?_pos=2&_sid=3342771e3&_ss=r John

Hi Jon, I'm not sure how much detail you'll want for your Fairmiles, but I found the following John Lambert books invaluable when building my 1/72 Fairmile 'D'. These books include lots of detailed photos & line drawings of the boats, their accessories, & weaponry. Allied Coastal Forces of World War II, Volume I, Fairmile Designs & U.S. Submarine Chasers - John Lambert & Al Ross - ISBN 1 55750 034 7 Anatomy Of The Ship The Fairmile 'D' Motor Torpedo Boat - John Lambert - ISBN 1 84486 006 X I also used these & other John Lambert books as references for my British Power Boat MTB (includes a Coastal Craft resin & PE 6-pounder forward gun), & Elco PT Boat builds. John

The lifeboat looks awesome. Great detailing. John

Nice micro modelling work Rob. I need to lie down now & rest my eyes. John

Wow! Lots of ingenuity there David. The results look great! John

Looking forward to following along Rob. I enjoy watching your travels into "Modelling the mundane", building those not so well known (aka less romantic) ships. John

Nice build & an awesome diorama. Just looking at the photos gave me a chill. Brrrrr!!! John

Thanks for your feedback Brad, & thanks for your service. Modifying the props should be an easy task. John

Thanks beefy & Stuart. Much appreciated. A funny thing though. This build has lasted so long, when I look back at some of the tiny scratch built parts, I've started to ask myself "How in heaven's name did I do that in such a small scale? Luckily, my motor skills are better than my memory. John

Heading closer to completing this build. Equipment details have been added to the bridge & hanger roofs. Only the hand rails need to added to complete the roof surfaces. The following photos shows where the build stands to date. The bridge roof details: The hangar roof details: The 'to do' list is getting shorter. First, I need to finish assembling the main mast & glue it in place. Then, the pole mast amidships will be glued in place. The main mast rigging & radio antennas & wires will be added. And finallythe hand rails will be glued in place. As usual, this is a lot of fiddly work that will take some time to complete. But, I'm excited that this should complete the Regina build ... after the mandatory touch-ups & clean-ups are done. Thanks for looking in. Stay safe! John

Well done, Rob! John

An awesome job Rob. A high quality build. Luv the little details. John

Thanks again everyone for the likes & kind comments. John

A quick update showing the scratch built details added to the main, bridge, & aft decks. Here are three photos showing the current Regina build status. Next up, radar, communication, & satellite antennas will be dded to the bridge & hanger roofs. Thanks for looking. Stay safe. John

Wow! Fantastic work on the turret, Rob. Very realistic! John

Who needs decals when the painted version can look like that? John

Great looking figure Rob. I like the camo. Is the camo pattern on the uniform & ruck sacks painted on, or did you use decals similar to your ammunition carrier build? John

Just when I thought that all the scratch building on Regina was done, I decided to have another look at Regina's propellers. Two issues popped out, 1) the kit parts looked to be too big, & 2) both kit propellers were molded in the same configuration (they both look the same). There's a good discussion about the different configurations of the port & starboard propellers in Faraway's HMS Laforey build. To make replacement propellers, I found a photo of Regina's the port & starboard props, scaled it to 1/350, & printed it out on heavy weight paper. I cut out the prop shapes & coated them with 3 layers of paint followed by a coat of matt clear to give them some rigidity, Once dry, I used robgizlo's technique to form the shape of the propeller blades. (Thanks Rob!). Here's a photo showing the end result; Now back to adding more parts to the model. Thanks for looking in. Stay safe! John

Looks great Rob. John

My next project will be a brand new modelling endeavour of sorts. My banker (Mrs. JohnWS) has approved the purchase of a new computer capable of running 3D design & print software. My current 11 year old Macbook Pro isn't up to the task. Our kids gave me a 3D printer for Christmas & I've been procrastinating to learn how to use it until I finish the Regina build. First I need to get the computer, then learn how to use the software, & finally learn how to use the printer ... plus restock the wine cellar (I'm sure I'll be needing it) Easy peasy! John