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1/72 USN 80' Elco PT Boat with some mods

JohnWS

By JohnWS
in Work in Progress - Maritime

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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11 hours ago, beefy66 said:

Great job so far really looking busy not a lot of space left for anything else on the day cabin 

 

when you say you will be busy over the holiday period do you have a red suite and white beard  🎅🏻

is that the reason for less modelling time  :whistle:

 

beefy 

Thanks beefy.  No red suit or white beard for me, although I could have a grey beard. 😉

9 hours ago, Courageous said:

Those upper works have lots of detail, look beautiful and look great on its deck. :yes:

 

As for this Crinbo melarky, the only good thing about it is the holiday and you're going to get that is modelling related...humbug. :rofl:

 

Stuart

Thanks Stuart.  No modelling stuff on my Christmas list, but money will work just as good. :nodding:

9 hours ago, Terry1954 said:

All that scratch building work on the radar and deckhouse is really bringing the model alive John.  Very impressive stuff.

 

Terry

Thanks Terry.  Your comments are appreciated.

8 hours ago, longshanks said:

 

I can't think of a better way to spend a year . . . .

I hope you've had as much fun as we have on the journey

 

:clap2:

 

Kev

Thanks Kev.  It is a fun project.  I thought I knew a lot about the Elco boats, until I started doing research for this build.  Boy, am I learning a lot!

5 hours ago, stevehnz said:

Nicely expressed indeed Kev, I for one will be sorry to see it end, but I'm also looking forward to the final reveal. :)

Steve

Thanks Steve.  At my modelling speed, there's no worries that I'll be finishing this project anytime soon.  :laugh:

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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We're just about ready for Christmas here so I've had a little time to devote to modelling.

 

I've been focusing on making the remaining small parts for the PT Boat build, as well as preparing & cleaning the remaining 3D printed & resin parts.

 

Here's a few photos;

 

The stanchions for the life lines located near the stern.

 

46278513182_e64710a705_b.jpg

 

Torpedo roll-off racks cleaned and prepped for painting.

 

31389847487_d74a119c04_b.jpg

 

Coiled rope, using a similar technique used by robgizlu on his MGB40 build.  Thanks for the tip Rob.

 

46278519382_c6fc821f5f_b.jpg

 

Cleaned & prepped Attack Squadron's resin USN Mark 13 Torpedos, ready for PE & assembly.

 

46278523212_e2a41e81ff_b.jpg

 

And finally a shot of all the bits & pieces waiting to be added to the PT Boat's deck.

 

45416288095_959afdcdb9_b.jpg

 

I still have to make a few more deck lockers & the anchor, plus finish the guns & torpedos.  But, the end of the build is slowly coming into sight (my first New Year's resolution for 2019 :nodding:).

 

Thanks for checking in.

 

John

 

 

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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Hi again!

 

Christmas has come early.   I've been thinking of adding more crew members to the PT Boat.  I have two + two upper body green figures (Martians?) that were included in the Revell 109 kit, but I wanted some with additional poses.  There's not a lot of choice for 1/72 scale USN figures other than those available through Shapeways.  I've heard that Shapeways may be increasing their prices in the new year, so decided to order a 15 man 3D printed PT Boat crew a couple of weeks ago & beat any possible changes in price.  We just ended a series of rotating mail strikes here with Canada Post, so I didn't think I'd receive the crew until early in the New Year.  But much to my surprise, a package from Shapeways arrived in the mail today.  My little green sailors now have company.

 

31418527857_f2b064aa31_b.jpg

 

I don't know much about 3D printing, so I found it interesting how the printed figures were produced.  The figures were 3D printed inside a  'cage'.  There's no  attachment points between each figure and the cage (they look like they're floating in air).  Cool, not much physical prep required for painting other than cleaning!

 

It's hard to see the detail in photographs due to the translucent material used, but the detail Is very good & the crew should be a great addition to this build.

 

46357760471_8f0a063d7f_b.jpg

 

A note regarding the PT Boat crews uniforms.  Most photos of the USN crews manning PT Boats in the South Pacific show that the crews didn't have any particular working dress code due to the hot tropical climate.  Shorts & being topless seem to have been the order of the day.  PT Crews serving in the cooler Northern Hemisphere tended to wear more standard uniforms of blue dungarees & long sleeve shirts or officer & CPO khaki/blue working uniforms.  I couldn't find any 1/72 model figures that appeared to represent sailors serving/working in the Tropics.  All seem to represent sailors in the cooler climates - shirts & long pants.  This worked out okay for me as PT 620 never served in the South Pacific & was later transferred to the South Korean Navy, away from the Tropics. 

 

John

 

 

 

 

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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28 minutes ago, longshanks said:

Those figures look interesting

I look forward to seeing them with a coat of primer

 

Kev

Me too!  The primer I'm using is a light grey.  I hope it shows the detail.

 

Kev, you've set a high standard for painting your figures on your 658 build.  I'll see how the USN stacks up against the RN.  :winkgrin:

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robgizlu Very Obsessed Member

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Hi John

I'm really interested to see how these paint up.  I've just ordered from Shapeways today and always feel products are a bit hit and miss.  The Cleaning that each needs seems very varaible.

However - those torpedo roll off racks are exquisiteB)

Sheer quality all the way

Rob

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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40 minutes ago, robgizlu said:

Hi John

I'm really interested to see how these paint up.  I've just ordered from Shapeways today and always feel products are a bit hit and miss.  The Cleaning that each needs seems very varaible.

However - those torpedo roll off racks are exquisiteB)

Sheer quality all the way

Rob

Yes, I know what you mean Rob.  I mentioned earlier in this thread about my first experience with Shapeways 3D printed Oerlikon & Bofors guns and the poor packaging. I only ordered the racks from Shapeways because I couldn't find them anywhere else.  I was pleasantly surprised when the racks arrived - good detail & quality, plus great packaging.  Same story with the USN boat crew.  So far I'm really happy with the crew, plus I'm impressed with the very fast shipment & delivery.

 

I needed to soak the racks twice for about a total of 8 hours to remove all the surface wax. We'll see how long it takes to clean & dry the crew figures before priming.

 

John

 

 

 

  

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robgizlu Very Obsessed Member

robgizlu

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John what did you soak in?

Simple Green which is recommended is astronomically expensive in UK.

I've tried detergent. ultrasonic cleaner etc but I still feel there is residual wax which needs physical scraping

I read yesterday about dipping in white spirits??  (?mineral spirit in N America)

Rob

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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Hi Rob.

 

I use a few drops of Dawn Ultra dishwashing liquid in warm water.

 

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSzX8ZqzlkNm_MTwXsjDMx

 

It's a great degreaser.  I've used it for many years washing greasy automobile parts and safely removing wax & polish off auto paint (doesn't damage the paint).  It's great for washing dishes too. :laugh:

 

John  

 

 

 

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GMK Very Obsessed Member

GMK

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2 hours ago, JohnWS said:

needed to soak the racks twice for about a total of 8 hours to remove all the surface wax.

John, as always, lovely work. 

 

Can you provide more information on the “soaking”? What liquid did you use? Thanks. 

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JohnWS

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16 minutes ago, GMK said:

John, as always, lovely work. 

 

Can you provide more information on the “soaking”? What liquid did you use? Thanks. 

Thank you!

 

Have a look at my reply to robgizlu, above.

 

I use Dawn Ultra dishwashing liquid.  It doesn't take much, usually two or three drops in a margarine dish filled with about 3 cm of warm tap water.  I first heard about Dawn during TV coverage of an oil spill along the North American West Coast.  Thousands of birds & animals ended up covered in the oil slick.  Dawn doesn't contain phosphate so it was used to safely remove the oil without affecting the birds & animals.  I started using it for automobile maintenance as a degreaser and wax/polish remover.  Dawn worked great.  Once I got back into modelling, I started experimenting using Dawn for cleaning plastic, resin and photo etched parts, and more recently 3D printed parts, prior to painting.  So far, so good.

 

During soaking, I use a soft short bristle model paint brush to gently work the Dawn solution into the nooks and crannies to remove any excess oils & wax without damaging the parts.  After soaking & cleaning is complete, the parts are rinsed in clean water & allowed to air dry.  If the cleaned parts still have residue on the surface, I repeat the soaking, rinsing, & drying process until the parts look & feel clean.

 

It's a simple process but, like any new process, I strongly recommend you test the Dawn solution with scrap parts first to ensure the solution won't damage the good parts to be cleaned.

 

John

 

 

 

 

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JohnWS

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Hi everyone!

 

I've finished cleaning the 1/72 scale 3D printed torpedo racks & the PT Boat crew, and sprayed a light coat of primer on the parts.

 

The primer really makes the details on the 3D printed parts pop.

 

Here are some photos.  I tried taking the photos in different lighting conditions to accent the details.

 

First the torpedo roll-off racks.

 

46410902871_0340d9fc08_b.jpg

 

And the PT crewmen.  I really like this set as it's very detailed, it has the crew in a number of different poses, and it has little sailors of various body builds from skinny to heavy set - very realistic.

 

46360220982_720594fc41_b.jpg

 

46360225782_385a216974_b.jpg

 

46360232552_72d80ca29d_b.jpg

 

46360236532_5c9c7839de_b.jpg

 

As this is probably going to be my last post until after Christmas, I'd like to use this opportunity to wish all of you who have been following this build, as well as those who look in from time to time, a very Merry Christmas & Best Wishes for the Holiday Season.

 

46168560441_e7096bca33_b.jpg

 

John

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JohnWS Very Obsessed Member

JohnWS

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16 hours ago, stevehnz said:

... think of me sweltering & too hot to enjoy all that food & drink, but I'll do my manly best. :) ...

No sweltering here.  We have a windchill of -10°C tonight.  No snow either, so we won't have a white Christmas this year.  I suggest you drop a few more ice cubes in your drink Steve.  🍹

 

John

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JohnWS

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Time for a little experimentation.

 

giphy.gif

 

I'm at the point where the USN Mark 13 Torpedos for this build are ready for paint.  After researching and discussing the USN torpedo colours with BM members (see USN Torpedo Colours Thread), I decided to paint the torpedos with a colour to simulate a bare steel body coated with yellow coloured Cosmoline corrosion inhibitor.

 

To find a paint colour similar to the Cosmoline coating I experimented by painting a piece of scrap plastic tube with Model Master acrylic base coats of steel and brass colours.  Once dry, I dabbed on a various coloured washes to simulate dirt, corrosion, and wear & tear, etc.  Once that dried, I coated the (test) tube with a layer of Tamiya clear yellow acrylic paint.  Here's a photo showing the results.

 

45575787285_373f4de196_b.jpg

 

It looks like I found a close match to the actual colour by starting with a steel colour base coat & over spraying with clear yellow. :yahoo: 

 

Now painting the torpedos begins.

 

Thanks to all who helped with the research and to those looking in.

 

John

 

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