USS Arleigh Burke DDG-51 1/350 Trumpeter

[Jasico]

Hi folks! This is my first contribution to this forum. My name is Jaime, a Spanish modeller from Mallorca. I'm basically an airplane modeller but I like to try other disciplines from time to time. This is my first approach to a maritime subject being the victim Trumpeter's 1/350 USS Arleigh Burke DDG-51. This is a very early version of the ship and, in fact, I've not been able to find pictures in this very same condition. All of them are post-mod versions.

As I said, I'm not an expert in naval subjects and I'm planning to build it OOB provided rails are also included in the kit. I'm only going to add some photoetched ladders. Actually, the building process is almost finished and I'm planning to add the first details soon.

And now, some pictures. The box and early stages of construction:

This is how I left it for some months after finishing the superstructure and basic paint process.

I was not quite happy with the gray tone and I decided to re-paint the whole structure using Gunze's H-306. Here is the result...

Next step was to paint the circular red line around the fwd gun (see below pic), which for my suprise is not included in the decal sheet. As far as I've seen from the internet, the line should always be there...is that right?

And this is the paint scheme from the kit...what do you think?

More pictures soon...bye for now!

[longshanks]

Looking Good !

Kev

[Thom216]

Dang nice! Like both paint jobs. The first looked suitably worn, though it could have been neatened up. But I like it! Can't wait to see more of your progress.

[SeanM]

That's looking very nice. I actually liked your first worn paint job 😀 Looking at pics of these ships it's very difficult to say what shade is exactly right

[bootneck]

Hi Jaime,

We have some close-in detailed images of the Arleigh Burke class in our Walkaround section

Here are a few examples which show some good points for weathering. Note, on the focs'l, that there are two black lines running front to back on either side of the missile unit and gun. They are quite prominent, they're not shadows, and should be added to any build. Also note that the deck grey does not run all the way over to the deck edge. This edge is painted the same as the ships hull.

HTH

Mike

[phildagreek]

Looks good, the colour can be funny, modern ships' colour seems to change with the weather, just a trick of the light I know, but yours does look good!

[Jockster]

Very nice indeed Jaime, yes most moving parts, such as turrets, on naval vessels have boundary markings to keep crew clear of danger. Hawk Graphics do modern US Navy deck markings and you should be able to get them from AVR Models which I believe are near Barcelona.

[Jasico]

Hi all! Thank you so much for your comments and help. I know about AVR Models but ignored that such amount of aftermarkets are available for naval modelers. For sure I will take a look at them... However, in this case I've got no time to wait for aftermarkets as I want to finish the ship for the forthcoming model contest in Mallorca (30th Spet, 1st and 2nd Oct).

Considering that, no other option but painting. I basically used masking tape and a compass cutter. It's not 100% perfect, but looks good to me...

I sprayed a first layer of white paint to prevent any difference of the red color over the white lines...

Finally, the red coat. I had

When I removed the tape, some white color was visible. I had to play with the mask to add some more red color but not a big deal. Finally, I painted the stencils with a small brush. The line may look a bit wide in the pictures but looks good in real life.

As "bootneck" mentioned (thanks!), I've started to correct the deck edge with grey color. I've almost finished highlighting the details with some enamel washes. I've used "Dark Wash" and "Light Rust Effects" from Mig as well as ref. AK 305 which is some kind of brown wash. This last one is very useful for light grey-colored ships and I'm very happy with the results. As you will see, I've started adding some details too...

As usual, comments are very much welcome!

[Rob 1]

This is looking very good - and the paint finish in particular is bringing it to life.

Edited September 2, 2016 by Rob 1

[rollsroyce]

Hi Jaime. Really neat paint job especially that circle. Also great idea using the bands to secure the ship to the stand. Must stop all the shifting about when adding smaller parts. Thanks for sharing.

Cheek Guy

[Thom216]

She's looking great. Nice work on the warning circle(?)

[stevej60]

Beautiful work so far.

[longshanks]

Kev

[Gremlin56]

Amazing to see rust on a US warship. You have done a lovely job replicating the photo though Jaime. Adding the stencils to the danger circle is quite a feat too I must say, can't even see a model nowadays without my optivisor

[snapper_city]

Looking good so far

[Housesparrow]

Looking at the photos, interesting how the hand railings forwards are slanted inwards.