Ravens Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 The ship. The Derfflinger class of dreadnought battleships were the last class of three German battlecruisers completed before the outbreak of World War One. Derfflinger and Lutzow participated in the battle of Jutland Bank (known to Germans as the Battle of the Skaggerak), and played key roles in sinking the battlecruisers HMS Queen Mary and HMS Invincible respectively. Lutzow was scuttled during the battle after sustaining massive damge, however Derfflinger survived a serious mauling at the hands of the Grand Fleet, earning the nickname 'Iron Dog' from the British as a result. Hindenburg, the third ship in the class, was completed too late to take part in the battle and was scuttled at Scapa Flow along with the rest of the High Seas Fleet. The main deck was flush, lending elegant lines to the overall appearance and eight 12-inch guns were carried in four turrets, two of which were in the superfiring position. The secondary armament consisted of twelve 5.9-inch guns housed in the superstructure; torpedoes were also carried. The kit. To commemorate this year's centenary of the Battle of Jutland I will be building Flyhawk's 1/700 SMS Derfflinger, which is a waterline model based on the ship's appearance in 1916. The kit is the special edition which comes supplied with a sheet of photo-etch as well as a seaplane and brass barrels for the main armament. I have also bought a wooden deck by Hunter, and might have a go at making a scenic base for the model. Opening the reassuringly sturdy box reveals various sprues in single bags, plus a sealable bag presumably included for keeping all of the parts together once the kit has been started. There is a metal plate included in order to give the model a bit more weight. The overall quality of the detail and moulding is pleasing, and the torpedo netting is represented as well. The extra goodies contain a sheet of PE, which provides railings, inclined ladders, regular ladders, flagpoles, cranes, anchor chain, a crest plus a few other bits and bobs that I've yet to identify. The complicated sea plane is made of etch and a resin (or possibly plastic) body and wings; decals are also provided. Also of interest is a revision to the standard instructions, so if you're modelling with the basic kit then watch out for parts B31, which the correction states should be marked as B37. First job will be to prepare and glue the baseplate and hull sides, and give all of the sprues an undercoating to get things started. This is my first Flyhawk ship and I'm definitely encouraged by what's on display so far. Thanks for looking in, Ross. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfqweofekwpeweiop4 Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 Quite interested in this, despite me preferring WW2 ships. Derfflinger was the star of Jutland, damaging many of the British Battlecruisers and QE's, possibly landing the fatal blows on Queen Mary and Invincible. Bet the plastic parts look nice if other Flyhawk stuff is anything to judge by! thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 25, 2016 Author Share Posted March 25, 2016 Quite interested in this, despite me preferring WW2 ships. Derfflinger was the star of Jutland, damaging many of the British Battlecruisers and QE's, possibly landing the fatal blows on Queen Mary and Invincible. Bet the plastic parts look nice if other Flyhawk stuff is anything to judge by! thanks Mike Everything looks nice and crisp with plenty of soft detail - for example the rivets on the turret faces are almost microscopic. It's already got me thinking about adding at least one of their recent Royal Navy subjects to the stash. Ross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfqweofekwpeweiop4 Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 You should if you can! I've got Aurora and Naiad, both are worth every penny - I really should finish off Aurora, seeing as it's not a million miles off being done! thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
longshanks Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 Looking forward to watching your progress Kev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martian Posted March 26, 2016 Share Posted March 26, 2016 If this build is anything like your Titanic we are in for a treat and on that basis, I'm in Martin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mal Posted March 26, 2016 Share Posted March 26, 2016 A fantastic kit,perhaps not quite as sharp as the Aurora and Naiad,but far in advance of any other 1/700 injection moulded ship,I bought the basic kit from Starling models,(excellent service by the way thoroughly recommended) it does contain the errata concerning parts B31 & 37,I will definitely follow your build of the"Iron Dog",all I will add all fingers crossed for Flyhawk to release a KGV. Malcolm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 26, 2016 Author Share Posted March 26, 2016 A fantastic kit,perhaps not quite as sharp as the Aurora and Naiad,but far in advance of any other 1/700 injection moulded ship,I bought the basic kit from Starling models,(excellent service by the way thoroughly recommended) it does contain the errata concerning parts B31 & 37,I will definitely follow your build of the"Iron Dog",all I will add all fingers crossed for Flyhawk to release a KGV. Malcolm I'm also hoping for new KGV in 1/700. The existing Tamiya ones are sharply moulded and build into very nice models, but I'd welcome a fresh offering with the option of full hull and with the detail of modern kits such as these. Ross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mal Posted March 26, 2016 Share Posted March 26, 2016 I'm also hoping for new KGV in 1/700. The existing Tamiya ones are sharply moulded and build into very nice models, but I'd welcome a fresh offering with the option of full hull and with the detail of modern kits such as these. Ross. Sorry I didn't make myself clear I was refering to the 1912 KGV class,KGV,Audacious,Centurion and Ajax. Malcolm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 26, 2016 Author Share Posted March 26, 2016 Sorry I didn't make myself clear I was refering to the 1912 KGV class,KGV,Audacious,Centurion and Ajax. Malcolm Ah, those would be great too. Ross. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beefy66 Posted March 26, 2016 Share Posted March 26, 2016 This look interesting but tiny Beefy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 26, 2016 Author Share Posted March 26, 2016 I had originally planned to join the slender hull halves to each other before securing them to the base plate, however due to their flexible nature there was no guarantee that they'd set correctly so I opted to tape them on to the base plate first and then apply plastic cement to the joins. This worked out okay and was certainly a better approach than my initial plan. I have decided to order some additional PE to go with the sheet provided in the kit; unfortunately it will be shipped from overseas and could delay the project slightly, but I can use that time to work on a scenic base if I hit the wall before it arrives. Also, it appears that the PE sheet described in the first post is included as standard and not as an extra for the special edition. Cheers, Ross. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mick Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxy Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Nice work and looking for would to this build. The sea plane looks interesting foxy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 Nice work and looking for would to this build. The sea plane looks interesting foxy There is a surprising amount of fiddly etch to go between the wings - looks like it could be a tricky one. Cheers, Ross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 30, 2016 Author Share Posted March 30, 2016 Since my airbrush has conked out the painting of the deck and hull will have to wait until a new one arrives. Until then I will proceed with the turrets and any other areas that can be sub-assembled in the meantime. The plastic barrels for the main guns flare dramatically at the ends so I will replace them with the brass ones supplied in the commemorative edition of the kit, which I feel are a definite improvement. Step one was to remove the original plastic at the point indicated in the extra instructions and then give the remainder of the part a clean up. Next I drilled a suitably sized hole in the part for the pin on the brass barrel to sit in, and finally superglued the brass part to make the new barrel. Here's the original barrel alongside the trimmed piece and the completed part. I'm going to change tact for the remaining ones however and glue the brass on in pairs while the plastic is dry-fitted to the turret base in order to avoid subtle alignment inaccuracies. Cheers, Ross. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike McCabe Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 Sorry I didn't make myself clear I was refering to the 1912 KGV class,KGV,Audacious,Centurion and Ajax. Malcolm Combrig do them in resin. Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beefy66 Posted March 30, 2016 Share Posted March 30, 2016 Bass is looking much better then the plastic. Beefy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 31, 2016 Author Share Posted March 31, 2016 For the remaining seven barrels I held the plastic parts in a dry-fitted position using clamping tweezers and then glued the brass barrels on; once dry I glued them into their final elevations. Since it's not going to be a 'builders' model I arranged two of the turret's barrels to be in different states of elevation for the forward pair to simulate activity, and the aft ones were set in a level cruising position. Next I will undercoat the brass and attach the turret faces. Thanks for looking in, Ross. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 A very nice start there. I have this and the upgrade set in the stash, and I must say they look truly stunning. My hope is they do the WW2 HMS Gloucester, it is about time one of that class was available... Looking forward to seeing your progress. Ray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted March 31, 2016 Author Share Posted March 31, 2016 A very nice start there. I have this and the upgrade set in the stash, and I must say they look truly stunning. My hope is they do the WW2 HMS Gloucester, it is about time one of that class was available... Looking forward to seeing your progress. Ray Thanks Ray. Is it the Flyhawk upgrade set you have, or a different aftermarket one? Ross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray S Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 Thanks Ray. Is it the Flyhawk upgrade set you have, or a different aftermarket one? Ross. Hello Ross, it is the Flyhawk one. I got it from Dawngrocerystores (in China) on E-bay. It arrived within a week, and I was not stung for import duty or Parcel Force delivery charges either. I am trying to pluck up courage to start it! Hope this helps, Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted April 1, 2016 Author Share Posted April 1, 2016 Hello Ross, it is the Flyhawk one. I got it from Dawngrocerystores (in China) on E-bay. It arrived within a week, and I was not stung for import duty or Parcel Force delivery charges either. I am trying to pluck up courage to start it! Hope this helps, Ray I ordered a Flyhawk one, but it's the less expensive of the two that were on option; I think the other one included a wooden deck and plenty of other things. Good to hear there were no extra delivery charges - I've been lucky so far in that regard but I've heard of instances where others have encountered a hefty extra price tag on their parcel. Cheers, Ross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted April 7, 2016 Author Share Posted April 7, 2016 The airbrush arrived but doesn't fit my hose, so another delay. Meanwhile the Flyhawk upgrade was delivered today and I'm impressed. It consists of six sheets of etch, plus brass gun barrels for the secondary batteries and there's even some fine lace to replace the plastic torpedo netting if you are modelling the nets in the stowed position. Notable details include: Metal decks and platforms Vertical facades Options for open doors Porthole rings with eyebrows Brass torpedo netting for the deployed position. Detailed structure for the motor launches, and countless other parts. I don't think I've ever used this much PE in 1/700 before - I'll have to plan this one carefully! Cheers, Ross. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravens Posted April 7, 2016 Author Share Posted April 7, 2016 I must admit, I never thought that I would ever be doing after-market porthole rings in 1/700, so this would be a good time to request advice from any PE veterans. My plan at the moment is to mix some acrylic paint with slow-dry retarder and apply that to the plastic, and then apply the brass porthole using a pin or suitably sized drill bit. Hopefully the slow drying paint will give me enough time to position the pothole so that the eyebrow is properly aligned at the top. Once a batch of these are in place I would airbrush some more paint over the portholes to act as a seal. I wonder if PVA glue can be mixed with the acrylic paint to further strengthen the bond in the first step? Regards, Ross. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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