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The next build begins This is a quick small build (pause for hysterical laughter) while I work on the drawings for what will be a very large complex build that I finally have the room for. This one is a small diorama of an ASR buoy that has ended up on the beach after a storm. It will be being inspected by some RAF personnel who have just rocked up on a Bedform MWD I'm sure a lot of you know about these buoys (or dumb barges) but I only found out about them watching the film "One of our aircraft is missing" As I understand it, the story begins the Luftwaffe general Udet deciding that too many aircrew were drowning in the channel and North Sea on the way home so he had these buoys built and anchored on the common routes home The British found out and decided to copy the concept with a more seaworthy alternative, the ASR Dumb barge, also know as "Cuckoo", shown here being anchored for the first time, all shiny paint... These were ~30 ft long, this is the best drawing available on line, there are a couple of others, but they seem to be copies of this image, with slight variations. You will note this drawing doesn't agree with the picture when you study it closely I couldn't find any model plans so I've drawn my own. It is in 1:48th and 1:72nd scale, with frame cutting plan at the former scale I'll be using One survives in a maritime museum on Scotland, but it has modifications from its time as a house boat, so be careful. This is a 3D scan of that survivor The other part of this diorama is a Bedford MWD. Now I've never built a truck, but my goal is to scratch-build it in metal and wood which could end up a complete disaster, but I'm going to give it a go. To help, I bought this Airfix kit (no longer available apart from really expensive on eBay). This will help me reproduce the components in brass etc But I'm getting ahead of myself, first the Cuckoo, which I know I can make. This will be ply on frame and then clad in 0.3mm copper. With the cutting plan, I had the perfect first project for my new toy, a desktop laser cutter/engraver Some hours later, and much frustration over file types, finally to the sound of "what's that burning..." drifting up the stairs Job done, it actually worked first time, amazing. The uncut rectangle on the right is for scaling in the control software How sweet is that Some 2x2 and 1x1.5 lime strip later And 0.5mm ply cladding started, its taking shape very rapidly Something a little different, really just playing with some new stuff and I get to build a war-time beach, possibly with a pill-box, we will see Cheers Steve

To tie in with the other threads along a similar line i thought i would post these wip shots of mine, it still requires an italeri x craft ( captured possibly?) and though about having an Arado 196 in one of the workshops at the back..... pics will be posted by my son asap...