1/350 Bismarck

[Spad]

Hi

I'm about to venture into new areas with a build of Revell's 1/350 Bismarck but need some advice before I commit glue.

I am quite attracted to the A/M wooden decks that are available. My questions are:

Are they worthwhile?

How easy to use?

Which one(s) can be recommended? - there seems to be quite a variety out there for this kit so I'm a bit bewildered by it all!

 

I'm a competent modeller so not really put off by cut/scrape/scratch kind of activities but I have no idea where to start with this one - help!!

 

Thanks in advance

Rick

[Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies]

Hi Rick,

 

They're easy to use and can be worthwhile. When the kit's deck is seam-free, has recessed planking detail etc then honestly I think a well painted deck ultimately looks better, but the A/M wooden decks get you 80% of the way there with <10% of the effort. If you're not good at painting planks (and frankly most aren't very good at it) then the wooden decks can give a better overall result.

 

If the kit parts do have inconvenient seams then all manner of sins can be completely concealed with a wooden deck.

 

A major bonus of using them is that gun barbettes, ventilators and similar moulded-on deck furniture can simply be sprayed the appropriate upperworks colour(s) without the very tedious masking and/or excrutiatingly slow and miserable task of cutting in with paint brushes. You simply fit the wooden deck after painting and hey-presto - 100% perfect demarcations between deck and sticky-uppy-bits.

 

In my opinion, the best out there are from John DiGiantomasso's Scaledecks.com and by a large margin at that, however they are priced accordingly. Next are Pontos and Artwox/Bluewox. Woodhunter and the likes are cheap, but the quality of the timber stock, planking detail (versus reality) and fit/tolerances is going downhill compared to the aforementioned.

[Spad]

@Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies Wow! that is a very detailed and complete answer! Thank you so much for that - it gives me a great insight into these things.

As the kit has recessed planking joins I think I will give the painting route a go first - if that fails then I will take a harder look at the A/M wooden decks.

Does any body have any suggestions what colour is good for the Bismarck's decks? Were they bare wood or painted?

 

Thanks again Jamie - really appreciated

ATB
Rick

[Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies]

Hi Rick, they were bare planks. I can't remember what timber they used off hand though.