Forlornhope

Wow, thanks for all the further comments guys. Heres a few more pics I took later which might be of interest. Haven't been on the forums much for a while, is there a better way to post photos that doesn't have the PB logo on it? Thanks again for the feed back. Cheers Cal

Thanks, has been a while since I finished this. Still haven't come up with anything better yet though

Thanks for the further comments guys. The dio has now arrived safe ans sound at its new home. I tried to find it again for you but couldn't sorry. it was just one that randomly came up on my page.

No worries Paul, these photos will work for the pe detail along the sides of the superstructure on the pre mod. A couple of notes for you. The aft mast structure thing. I had no idea how the pe sturcture was suppose to go together so emailed James at Dodo and this is the build sequence " The building sequence is D15->D19->D17, D14,->D13. That will be much easier if you build it from the bottom up D15 should be placed before and below D19. It does not require any fold. D17 will need to be folded and placed under D15. It is the supporting structure below D15" I have already mentioned that the kit comes with 3 scuttles along each side below the bridge. They should only be on the starboard side for the Wardroom so the port 3 will need filling in. Would be great to see a couple of Kiwi ships. Only issue I could see would be the availability of the correct style hull numbers and Kiwi bird badge for the funnels. I seem to have an idea that the hull numbers are RN style but could be wrong. Hawk graphics do the Kiwi bird but are hard to get hold of. Hope that helps Cheers Cal

Thanks for the further comments guys. My mate is hanging out to get his hands on it. Still have to run the gauntlet of delivery yet fingers crossed it gets there in one piece PaulE If you are on Facebook there is a really good walk around of the Post Mod Anzac which will help you figure out where alot of the little pe parts that aren't mentioned in the instructions go. These pics are for Perth though and there are differences but even if you are building a premod these pics are really handy. Hope that helps So thanks once again and yes I'm all good Neil thanks mate

Thanks for the comments gents. glad you like my little dio and yes my mate loves it and can't wait to get it and I can't wait to get my new TV I will be buying with the proceeds. I'm still doing my water the same as I worked out with my wreck of Cerberus build way back when, except I used cotton wool for the white water on this after watching a video a couple of weeks ago on how to do it on Facebook. Can I talk Anzacs? For me its the Anzac I'm in love with and her little warry turn. This is my third Anzac and second Dodo version. My first Anzac was the 3d printed version I dressed up as HMAS PERTH post ASMD upgrade. I'm happy how it came out and it inspired the current existence of the proper kit so everything in its place My first Dodo Anzac I built wasn't very good. I rushed it, I was having a lot of trouble seeing the parts and not bothering with alot of the smaller parts so HMAS Arunta postmod didn't come out nice and looked very bland Thats when I decided to upgrade the lighting and work area and not rush things and it made such a difference to Parramatta. There is still a couple of rough spots but mostly things are just so much neater and I am looking forward to now finishing the Hobart class AWD I stalled on because of the fineness of the PE in that. Heres Parra before a coat of paint out of interest. And if anyones building the premod kit the three scuttles below the bridge on the port side shouldn't be there, they are only on the std side for the Wardroom. guess when I found out about that? Twas interesting to fix So adventures with Anzacs. as a bonus someone was keen to swap the built Arunta for an unbuilt kit so I still have another 4 postmods to do for my FBW diorama. This has been on hold with the commission work but I just have one more model for someone else and then its on to my big mumma Out of interest to RN fans the next one is the Bay class from Models Atlantics I'm build as HMAS Choules. Rough as guts kit but hopefully I can make a silk purse from a sows ear Once again thanks for the comments and looking and sorry about the waffle

G'day alll. Been a while since a I posted but I have been busy. Just finished these two lovely ladies for a friend who served on both ships. This the Orange Hobby HMAS Canberra kit built as her sister HMAS Adelaide with decals from Custom Hobby decals and Dodo Models absolutely lovely little kit of the Anzac class frigates. They are not perfect builds but I am really happy with how they finished up. I upgraded my lighting and tools in the work area before I tackled the Anzac and gee it made such a difference to what I can do. So anyway sorry lots of photos Hope you like what I have finished up with thanks for looking Cheers Callum

Nice work so far

Hi guys and thanks for the comments, glad you like it. Paul E , there have been a few folk wanting to do the Kiwi Anzacs. As far as I can remember you leave off the observation post on the flight deck and they don't have the same system for landing the choppers and adding Phalanx. I haven't looked but I think the style of hull numbers are the same as RN I could be wrong though. Hawk graphics do the kiwi bird emblem for the funnels but the company are hard/ impossible to get hold of these days. Pre mod can be built straight out of the box but the post mod kit needs a bit of work. Mainly the wall around the hanger door. there is some differences between the pre and postmod ships. I have to go back and fix mine up as I have only just really clicked onto just what the differences are even though they have been staring me in the face for a few years now. So far I have added the flight deck, ladders and a few other pe bits and given the hull a paint job and started with the decals. once the area around the hanger door is fixed I can finish the decals and then start fitting her out. One area I had trouble with was the funnel vents. Gee they are small. I love the fact that there is even windscreen wipers for the bridge windows molded on. I wish I could actually paint them though But thanks for looking and more to come soon Have a great weekend Cheers Callum

Well redid the resin and finally got it right. Pretty happy how the water is looking. Its not finished yet still needs more colour on the surface then acrylic gel medium for the wave motion but I can't add that till all the ships are finished and ready to attach to the base. My Anzacs have arrived as well and I have already started the first one. Gee they are nice little kits. Well done to Dodo Models. So Thanks for looking and more to come soon Cheers Callum

You have been at this for a long time mate, gee thats awesome workmanship though.

Thats some lovely work there, well done

What a gorgeous pair, well done

Lovely little Beaufighter Neil, well done

Thanks guys, Holden 05, I have my Anzacs on the way, actually there are 16 of the buggers coming. Got some commission work to do. Hanging out to get them though. Will have 4 post mods on this Diorama though. Ian, Thanks for the kind words. Had a bit of a setback, I put the subs in place and started pouring the resin. Was looking really good till I realized 3 of the subs were sitting too deep in the water. I still had a another layer of resin to add and by the time I did that the water level would have pretty much covered the decks of the subs looking very wrong. Not sure what happened but all I could do to fix it was pull the resin out and start again. Got to blow off a bit of frustration taking to it with a hammer. So I've just had new subs arrive and more resin and just have to get it all back together again now. Hopefully I get it right this time. Fingers crossed Thanks for looking and more to come soon

Awesome work Neil, those new engines are a huge improvement over the kit.

G'day Vladi, Have a look through this Flicker album, lots of RAN photos here with plenty of Canberra mixed in https://www.flickr.com/photos/41311545@N05/ Also there may be WW2 RN radar sets available in 1/700 scale which may have the sets you are after on them. Look forward to seeing what you finish up with Cheers Callum

Such perfect workmanship. I'm in awe all the best for the new year Best regards Callum

I keep pressing a key thats making me post early to continue...... I ended up raiding mine for some of the parts to get this finished as it was getting picked up earlier than intended. Heres how it finished up looking in its display case. Really happy with how it all finished up and I am very much hoping for the same results with FBW. Having 8 Armidales in the house at the same time was pretty cool I couldn't help having a bit of fun on my dio So thats what I have been doing to prepare myself for this little adventure. So thats it for now, Hopefully more soon

Thanks Molly and Rob, its a big project but I am hoping that my little projects from last year have now given me enough practice to be able to do this without to many issues or unknowns, as well as the sub and chopper dio to practice with clear resin, I have done a couple of dios of a section section of the patrol boat base up in Darwin with the Dodo Models Armidales. Gave me a chance to have a play at all the land areas like trees and grass and buildings etc without it being too complex. The first version I posted in RFI a while back but this is the second version which I think looks a lot better in layout being bigger and the boats in the center. The second one was a commission, I

That looks amazing

Thanks for the comments gents, going to be at it for a while I think but should come up alright.

Using clear resin to get depth of water. So the RANS website has had a few really cool pics showing how I can display the subs with the underwater hull areas visible. doing this has been a major headache but I think I have it sorted now. and from a couple of weeks ago images showing five Collins birthed. Something that doesn't happen very often. love the detail in these shots with all the gangways and mooring lines etc. I am so setting up something like this with mine. So after my first failure trying to get water at depth, I have been very nervous trying it again with clear resin. But another series of pics on the Navys Facebook page inspired me to try a little diorama as a practice run for using it. Having a spare Collins and Taipan I thought I would have a go. The white thing is a plasitc tube covered in cotton wool. The first photo of the chopper and sub show the wake being more under water with the lighter blue tinge instead of more white with the prop closer to the surface. looks crap now but wait for it. and the resin poured and hard as a rock. I love this stuff. theres a couple of airbubbles but thats only because I tried to move it before it dried. Then the surface is spray with these clear paints. I love these as well. Mixed together and thinned down with some clear coat they make a great water colour. I even mixed a little into the resin. But that is pretty close to what I want for FBW To finish it off I have added a bit of white paint to acryilic gel medium for the white water areas then some acrylic gel with out white for the rest of the surface water. Couple of dudes chopper attached to the thinnest bit of brass I could find that would hold the thing up and bobs your unlce (or auntie in this day and age ) I tried to use cotton wool for the mist from the rotors but it didn't work out too well. should have left it off. Other than that I am really happy and relieved this has worked out and as I said I love clear resin now and can't wait to get it done on the FBW dio. I know the sub and chopper are a bit off topic but they are related. Cheers Callum

So I am getting a bit confused with the new BM layout posted that early. This is a series of pics showing the base being built up to where its at now. Thats the old base with the frame for the new one. the new measures 93cm by 56cm And the basic measurents worked out for the land areas The shape for the land areas built up, I also had to paint the water colour so it felt like I was working on a harbour instead of a bad carpentry project. Using plastic stock to get the gutters, footpaths etc road colour painted And masked for painting the concrete areas masking off and ready for the grassy dirt areas And how its looking now with some grass For the ships I am planning on having the LHD HMAS Adelaide AWD HMAS Hobart FFG HMAS Melbourne (one little hiccup is I am more than half \way through building mine and have her painted in the RANS storm grey but she has recently been repainted in the new Haze Grey and since I am going to have her sitting with the AWD I have to decide whether to repaint mine) I will also have 3 or four of the Dodos Anzacs when they come out. They are the reason why I decided to do the diorama bigger over the last one. And I will have 4 or 5 Collins class subs(I only have 2 so far) Because the subs are not water line I have to get a bit creative with how I display them. Thats where I got in trouble last time. Out of interest the first attempt cost me nearly $500 to setup for the water. which I have to throw away. For this second attempt I am using clear resin and its going to cost me all up under $200 to set up and its a larger base Lessons learned. This last pic shows the area that will be filled with resin for the water. it will come up level with the frame top edge. (its a 7mm depth) And thats where its at. Pretty happy with how its come together. I was a bit out with my measurements so had to improvise a bit but its close enough. Thanks for looking cheers Callum

Morning all and happy new year to everybody. Been pretty quiet here, hope everybody is well. This is a second attempt at a project I tried to do a couple of years ago. The first attempt is posted here http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234959444-2020s-ran-at-fleet-base-west-1700/& Even though the first attempt was an expensive failure the project has arroused a fair bit of interest in modern RAN ships. Orange Hobby have modified thier Juan Carlos to the RANs LHDs plus released better Collins class subs Dodo Models have produced the Armidales and are due to release the Anzacs in both pre and post upgrade plus Custom Hobby Decals are going to be releasing a range of RAN decals covering several classes of ships. Exciting times. My skill set has improved as well after building a couple of version of the RANs patrol boat base in Darwin. The layout for the second FBW base is bigger as I have tried to get the 2nd wharf in plus the base main mast as well. Heres the Google Earth image I am using