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1978 HMS Exeter +++FINISHED+++


Bugle07

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Cheers gents, think I have to agree, kit part it is. Although it's missing the box structure underneath the body of the launcher it looks  better than anything I could manage in a dozen attempts (well half dozen, then I gave up).

 

11 hours ago, monsjmse said:

Going to look great when finished - especially on that base. Is the 'sea' a photo, or is it 3D?

It's a Coastal Kits photo base, really great for a quick display. I'll probably make a real sea base, something like the one for HMS Aurora I'm doing below.

 

20190805_223121.jpg

 

More later in the week, have a blinder of a weekend all!

 

Geoff 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Don't you just hate it when life gets in the way of modelling?

 

Well, two weeks without being able to do anything on Exeter meant that tonight was a PE session. Gotta love the stuff...

 

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Ladder attached to the main mast and two bar railing round the top section. Stuck down with Tamiya extra thin so I've got time to position it, unlike CA.

 

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Wing guns attached, although in the wrong bleeding place. They should be forward of the moulded barrier, I may sort this out tomorrow. The guns are not the kits parts which look more like a Black and Decker drill. They're 3D 20mm ww2 guns but look the part here. All the bits on the bridge section are now glued down except the foremast, this will be done later.

 

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Also fitted are the Scot Platform Railings, (round the small blobs at the back), loading brackets to the front of the bridge, (the really teeny tiny triangles pointing out from the bridge wing fronts), and the Radar mast DF aerial, which is the wrong type, as this was for the later batch type 42's.

 

The reason for fitting the wrong one is simple. Although you get enough parts to fully fit two ships in the White Ensign set, it's for one batch two (like Exeter) and a batch three ship. I didn't realise just had different the fittings for these ships are.

 

As this is the practice ship, so to speak, and the much better moulded Dragon kit will be the kit I put all the effort and lessons from this build into, I'm going to save all the correct parts for that kit. I'm going to have to be very careful and not use the wrong bits. For example the air intake grill is different on the two types and I've already used the batch two set on this kit.

 

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Thankfully this piece isn't stuck down so I'll hopefully be able to just swap it with the Dragon part.

 

Anyways, here's how she's looking at the moment.

 

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Main mast still to get the yards attached, a few parts and odds to be fitted, guardrail then a bit of painting will be in order!

 

More soonish..

 

Happy modelling all!

 

Geoff 

Edited by Bugle07
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11 hours ago, Bugle07 said:

Don't you just hate it when life gets in the way of modelling?

Never has a truer word been spoken Geoff! Nice progress here, it’s all taking shape and is looking a little better than just a practice run to me. 

Cheers.. Dave 

 

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Thanks for the comments Gents,  much appreciated. 

 

So since we've got ages till the end of this GB I thought I'd...

 

Wait, it's the 30th of September TOMORROW!

 

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OK, guard rails on.

 

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Other stuff on, along with more rails.

 

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Stuff still to do, Zodiacs and main boats to attach, and a couple of last rails. 

 

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6 weeks, still gotta start the proper one! Aaaarrrgh!

 

Primer on soon, then paint, then may start doing what I'd planned to do in the beginning!

 

Not panicking, honest Guv...

 

Geoff

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:frantic:

 

Mainmast Yardarms attached, last of the safety rails around the main deck fitted, starting to get into full modelling (read panic!) mode now.

 

20190930_222844.jpg

 

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Couple of bits of PE still to be fitted, along with the ships boats but they'll have to wait till the paintings started and the superstructure is glued down.

 

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Priming and painting will start in the next few days, along with the main kit build, why oh why did I think I could build two kits at my speed!

 

More soon!

 

Geoff 

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:frantic:

Well work has really managed to get in the way of life/modelling in the last week or so. But I've managed to grab some time for painting in between preparing for new role interviews and tidying up other people's mess.

 

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Primer went on last week.

 

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Then initial coat of grey, Tamiya Royal light grey if my memorys still working.

 

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Then some black, Tamiya NATO black, on the appropriate areas. I've misted it onto the lower main mast as a couple of pics I have show this when she returned from the South Atlantic. 

 

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Decks got a coat of EDSG and then everything got a coat of AK Enamels, Dark gery for decks to bring out the details. 

 

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After a lot of tidying up of the enamel wash, the black identity stripe was added, again NATO black.

 

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And after a couple of rounds of drybrushing and tidying up slips and mistakes, here we are.

 

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Ships boats, Zodiac's and a few bits of PE still to fit but she's not far off being done now.

 

Just got to do it all again now with the Dragon kit, plus base, in ohhh, about a month!

 

We'll see...

 

Appy modelling all all, cheers for looking in.

 

Geoff 

Edited by Bugle07
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Thanks for the comments gents, much appreciated!

 

20191009-232008.jpg

 

Oil washes and rust streaks are starting to go on now.

 

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On 10/8/2019 at 3:29 PM, Jinxman said:

and suitably grimy as well.

Definitely going for the grimy South Atlantic look.

 

Still have to stick everything down, plus the last couple of small fiddly bit, and the blue anti fouling stripe on the lower part of the hull.

 

And then rigging...

 

More soon.

 

Geoff 

 

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'm starting to get a terrible case of dèja vous.

 

20191018_213206.jpg

 

This is the Dragon version of Exeter, comes with a full hull. Well two bits that join at some points anyway. 

 

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After some serious sanding and a bit of glue we have...

 

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And so the process starts all over again! Hopefully a lot quicker and with lots of corrections to the last effort.

 

Speaking of which. 

 

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On the last bits of detail painting now, couple of very last bits of PE and the ships boats to go.

 

The decals are in the sun to try and bleach out the yellow from them, then a bit of rigginging and I'll be calling her done.

 

That's all for now. Happy modelling all. 

 

Geoff 

 

 

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Really looking lovely there Geoff. Just wondering if your photos would look a better in (Paper speak) Landscape rather than Portrait? Looks to be a great build however I don't think we are getting the best views of it. Just a thought? 

Cheers.. Dave 

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I completely agree with you Dave, I will be sorting out some better pics later, for now camera phone at midnight is the way.

 

Geoff 

 

 

Edited by Bugle07
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  • 2 weeks later...

Time for an update, after this morning's disappointment at the Rugby I decided to take some better pics today.

 

I tried to add the kits decals. You can see for yourself that they have faded, and they disintegrated once I'd put them on.

 

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The yellow decals fell into about a dozen pieces each, but after a fight they kind of got into place.

 

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I didn't have have as much luck with the flight deck decals...

 

I'm not sure if I'll bin them and try to mask the circle or not, thoughts?

 

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So here's where she stands at the moment. Ships boats still to be attached to the rails, a bit of rigging and she'll be pretty much done.

 

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Hopefully I'll get this done this weekend, then onto the Dragon kit. I may get one done by the end of this GB!

 

Happy modelling all!

 

Geoff  

 

Edited by Bugle07
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Geoff, that really looks fantastic, however I'm afraid those decals have really let you down and its one of those things you won't stop looking at. I'd pause and see what else you can do to rectify them, this kit is way too good to be left this way. Just my thoughts.  

Cheers and well modelled.. Dave 

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Thanks for the complements Dave, much appreciated.

 

And I agree about the decals, so...

 

20191107-000036.jpg

 

Not the best paint job but better than it was.

 

Also got a few more rails stuck down.

 

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She's not far off being done now.

 

Cheers for looking. Happy modelling all. 

 

Geoff 

 

Edited by Bugle07
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If your happy with it Geoff, then it's an improvement. There's nothing like knowing that a fault exists as your eyes always seem drawn to it! 

Cheers and well modelled.. Dave 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well with a day to go I'm calling Exeter done. 

 

As always life and work have meddled with modelling time, so after doing 3 people's jobs, getting promoted and looking after the missus post op (nowt serious, but has flattened her for the last 3 weeks) I'm going to call time on this build.

 

20191119_000134.jpg

 

Ships boats, last railings, whip antenna (stretched spru) all fitted. Hopefully at some point in the future I'll get some rigging on her as well as get her into a seascape. But thats outside of this GB. Never enough time in the day...

 

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I'll get some (hopefully) better quality pics taken later today and get them into RFI.

 

Cheers to Dave for hosting this GB, it's been a blast and definitely won't be my last.

 

Thanks for all the comments and encouragement gents, always appreciated. 

 

Now what did I do with that second Exeter kit?

 

Geoff 

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