Another 1/350 HMS Berwick 1940

[thekz]

4 minutes ago, robgizlu said:

All round lovely work - and I'm thinking all the time of the things I didn't do but should have 

Apparently the difference between our projects is that you make 5 models a year, and I make one.

But your Berwick is already finished and looks very impressive on the whole. Even my wife liked it.))))
I am still very far from the end. And there are still many chances to make mistakes..

[robgizlu]

Wise words - my attention span is limited.

Keep it coming

Rob

[thekz]

In my opinion, the main decoration of County-class cruisers is their funтels.😍

Of course, the real beauty comes after applying camouflage and installing braces, but it's already pretty in this form.

 

 

The main improvement at this stage are steam-pipes. Trumpeter simplified them a lot - in the set all 8 are the same and too short. In reality, there were 7 of them on Berwick. The extra one was useful for lengthening the rest.

I made bends in different ways - I bent over the heat and glued them out of pieces. As a result, it turned out crooked. 😑

But, thank God, on the finished model it will be impossible to look at the pipes exactly from the bow or stern. And with a half-turn it looks kind of acceptable.😃

The pipe fittings, internal pipes and sirens forgotten by the Chinese are made of wire and sprue.

 

Now I breed gophers in the hangar. What happened and why there are gophers in the hangar - I`ll write in the next post.😉
To be continued...

[socjo1]

1 hour ago, thekz said:

In my opinion, the main decoration of County-class cruisers is their funтels.😍

Of course, the real beauty comes after applying camouflage and installing braces, but it's already pretty in this form.

 

 

The main improvement at this stage are steam-pipes. Trumpeter simplified them a lot - in the set all 8 are the same and too short. In reality, there were 7 of them on Berwick. The extra one was useful for lengthening the rest.

I made bends in different ways - I bent over the heat and glued them out of pieces. As a result, it turned out crooked. 😑

But, thank God, on the finished model it will be impossible to look at the pipes exactly from the bow or stern. And with a half-turn it looks kind of acceptable.😃

The pipe fittings, internal pipes and sirens forgotten by the Chinese are made of wire and sprue.

 

Now I breed gophers in the hangar. What happened and why there are gophers in the hangar - I`ll write in the next post.😉
To be continued...

 

Very elegant and inspiring!

Buckles on the funnels are made just from copper wire?

 

Regards,

Michał.

Edited February 24, 2021 by socjo1

[S-boat 55]

some very impressive stuff going on there, I'd agree the funnels are the feature of the, good job yours are looking very good so far, 

[thekz]

3 hours ago, socjo1 said:

Buckles on the funnels are made just from copper wire?

Yes. Cooper wire 0.15 mm, twisted on a drill 0.3 mm

[robgizlu]

I agree - the funnels are their defining element .

Yours are looking fab - all that super-detail will make a big visual difference

Rob

[thekz]

As I promised, I'm talking about gophers.
 What it is? Russian modelers call a gopher a part, as a rule - independently made or heavily modified, which turns out to be invisible on the finished model. Moreover, the more complicated this detail, the fatter the gopher. I would be grateful if readers would tell me what the English call it. In the meantime, we will call it in our way - gophers.😉
 I admit, I never make gophers on purpose. But they themselves somehow work out.🙃
 The best place to breed gophers in Berwick is the airplane hangar. He can't be empty! The second Walrus was assembled there. He really did not want to climb into the hangar - he had to shorten the left stabilizer by half and narrow the left pair of wings. I was ashamed to photograph such a mutilated Walrus separately and hastily hid it in the hangar. Q.E.D! Of course, you can notice that there is someone in the hangar, but ... I think you already understood everything yourself.

Photographing a gopher is even more difficult than it is! I had to give up my favorite black background and even resort to using Photoshop. After all, everyone can see that there is Walrus? And that it has braces on wings?😉

 

Here's another wall

 

And this is the back wall of the hangar. There are no gophers here, don't look.)) Here Trumpeter saved on ventilation pipes - there should be two thick ones (on Cornwall too)

 

Another gopher l was caught outside the burrow in time.

Here I defeated vanity and captured a homemade catapult. Yes, everything is very sloppy. God grant that she could be seen at least a little.😃

[S-boat 55]

That hanger arrangement although a 'gopher' is really quite wonderful, its giving me ideas! 

 

As for what else it could be called IM not sure - I've heard people use the term 'modelling for the gods' but aside that don't know, 

 

Sam

[Modelholic]

I think I'd have been very tempted to model both hangar doors open!

I've stolen your measurements for funnel buckles and am now up to about 50 buckles.

Tom

[robgizlu]

Thekz - I'm not certain there is a translatable phrase or word but I like "gopher" 

I love the level of detail you continue to add - those doors are excellent.  The Ventilation pipes really add to it.

Marvellous work

Rob

 

[thekz]

11 hours ago, Modelholic said:

I think I'd have been very tempted to model both hangar doors open!

Definitely a good idea. To be honest, I also had an ambitious plan - one Walrus with folded wings in an open hangar, the second with folded wings on a catapult. I made one with folded ones and made sure that it did not fit in the hangar (((

I had to change plans.
Is it realistic to open the hangar? Really!

To do this, you need to replace its side walls with thinner ones and most likely make your own Walrus on a scale of about 1/380. Then he will climb into the hangar.

I didn’t dare to do this. Sorry....

[thekz]

My hands were itching to paint something for a long time. Finally I allowed myself to do it.)) 

I started with the fun part - the wooden deck. I admit that I have little experience in painting decks at a scale of 1/350, so the painting method was invented on the run. Perhaps it is somewhat complicated, but it is "fool-proof" - all stages are well controlled and it is possible to correct flaws.

I must say that I do not use special paints for scale models, but inexpensive acrylic for artists. The main difference between these paints, besides the price, is that they are less opaque. Therefore, if someone wants to try my method using Tamiya or Vallejio paints, it is necessary to take this difference into account and either use more contrasting shades or dilute the main color with varnish, or somehow modernize the method “for yourself”.

First I mixed three of these colors:

 

 

The first stage: a chaotic airbrush drawing with colors 1 and 2. Color 1 also covers the metal areas of the deck, which will then be simulated with rust.

 

 

Scratches on the fresh paint in the direction of the planks were made with alcohol and brushes of different hardness.

 

 

Color 3 is applied with random strokes. Either brush strokes with liquid paint alternate, or vice versa - with an almost dry brush. Pay attention to the brush - I tried several and the best fit was this heavily swept almost completely unusable. I often save these brushes - they are good for simulating rust, scuffs, etc.

 

Then everything is quite simple - two thin layers of color 3. When applying paint, do not strive for uniformity, the airbrush torch is small, the direction of movement is along the boards.
While you can stop at this. The wash will come later.
 

____________________________________________

PS:

 

 

 

Is this Berwick in 1949?

No, this is preshading)))))

[socjo1]

Is your name Picasso?

Modelling Picasso?

😉

Seriously - looks very intriguing, and as always I'm wainting impatiently with 🍟 and

[robgizlu]

I agree with Michal - intriguing!

Rob

[thekz]

12 hours ago, socjo1 said:

Is your name Picasso?

Modelling Picasso?

Just call me Modigliani

[thekz]

14 hours ago, robgizlu said:

I agree with Michal - intriguing!

I myself wonder what will turn out in the end 

[thekz]

 

Hello guys
I returned. Dear Rob and Michael, I really want to apologize to you. I am not Mig Jimenez)))
I very quickly realized that I cannot describe and comment on every layer of paint I applied. If only because the painting process at times got out of control and I had to change the original plans. The most difficult, oddly enough, turned out to be the painting of the sides in color 507C. I chose this color option over the dark gray sided one Rob was doing because I hoped to show the impact of autumn storms most effectively on the light gray color. For me it was very important painting. I will briefly describe how it happened:
1. Since Berwick's hull was painted a dark gray in the previous period of service, I decided that this color must be visible on the bow, stern, near the waterline and in other places. I took the color that I mixed as 507B, added a little white and yellow to it (thus depicting paint fading) and applied a thin layer on the pre-shading, rubbing with alcohol in the anchor hawse area, on the nose, etc., showed rust.
2. On top I began to apply a light gray, again erasing a little each layer. After 3-4 layers, I achieved the desired effect - the pre-shading is barely visible, rust and dark gray are sagging in the places of the chips. Everything was fine, except for one thing - the overall shade turned out to be too dark. More layers of 507C were needed. But they would have killed the preshading (((((. Here we had to change the plan.
3. I dried the paint well and covered the body with hairspray. The workshop smelled of girls))) It seems that there is some kind of special chemistry for this, but I'm used to hairspray (I just have a few bottles lying around. I have to spend it.) Then another layer of 507C, alcohol and a soft brush. We dry for a day and repeat. In the end, it turned out approximately what I intended - different areas of the board have different light gray shades.

 

 

4. I used the same method to paint the underwater part. There are different shades of rust under the red-brown. And not chaotically, but based on photos of real ships. For example:

 

 

Here's what happened. Of course, I didn't stop there. Real paintings are painted in oil!

 

 

 

The colors used were white, shade gray and a few browns. Basically, I applied thick paint with thin strokes, and then shaded it without a solvent with a hard brush. But a more typical method of application - an oil point and smearing with white spirit was also used.

 

And here is a small wash with rusty, dark gray and olive colors.

 

The oil takes a long time to dry. Therefore, in order not to get bored, I was engaged in leisurely work - I made deck fans and funnels braces

 

 

 

[steve5]

incredible work thekz , goes to show the variety of way's modelers think outside the box . 

going to get a coffee and study your way a bit more .

love your rigging too mate .

Edited April 23, 2021 by steve5

[bismarck builder]

thekz

Your painting is outstanding sir a lot of thought has gone into that any chance you can do a quick run through of the hairspray method for me

cheers

gary r

[thekz]

52 minutes ago, bismarck builder said:

thekz

Your painting is outstanding sir a lot of thought has gone into that any chance you can do a quick run through of the hairspray method for me

cheers

gary r

1. Paint the surface in the color that should look out from under the main paint. It is better that it is not a solid color, but a mosaic of different believable colors, like in this photo:

 

2. We dry well. At least 24 hours.
3. We cover with hairspray the places where there should be scuffs. Can be coated directly from the balloon, but it is best to pour it into an airbrush.
4. Immediately apply a thin layer of the base color.
5. Next, you need to erase the paint. Here options are possible: a softer brush moistened with alcohol or a harder one - with water. Depending on how long the base layer has dried, the result will also be slightly different. Ideally, combine different techniques.
6. If necessary, repeat steps 2-5 again.

[robgizlu]

It really is ocming together - Love the weathering and that base /seascape is REALLY good 

Rob

[thekz]

I put off painting for a while and started detailing again.

 

 

Finally, I completed the 4 inch anti-aircraft guns and almost all the rafts.

 

 

In general - nothing complicated, but next time I will try to choose a ship with different artillery)))

[thekz]

I finally got used to the effects on the boards and started launching Berwick's HMS into the water.

 

 

As I promised, I am publishing a detailed photo report about this joyful event.
Let's fix the ship on a stand.

 

Neatly not my strongest side - in some places between the board and the base there are gaps. It doesn't matter - I know how to patch them up.
We need synthetic padding and 3 adhesives: PVA, transparent "liquid nails" and transparent foam glue. Each of them has its own task.

 

Let's start by gluing small pieces of synthep along the contour.

 

After they are fixed, we will saturate them with PVA.

 

 

We will saturate the area under the nose with "Liquid Nails" - this glue allows you to create volume.

 

The glue is dry. It can be seen that here and there it is necessary to add. Let's add.

 

Now comes the fun part. We glue a large piece of synthep under the nose. We will saturate it with transparent foam glue. It is sold in our hardware stores and costs less than 1 euro per 100 ml. This glue is not suitable for the formation of calm water, as bubbles form in it after drying. But it is very good for imintation of splashes. Apply a large drop of glue on the synthetic winterizer, let it dry a little, form it with tweezers, wait for it to dry completely, add more.

 

 

This is how we form the spray under the bow.

We will prepare individual strands of synthep impregnated with glue.

 

 

 

 

Let's add them to taste.
Then the tedious part of the work - you need to remove all protruding hairs and cover up all defects along the side. Apply some glossy varnish to the beads. There are also few-color accents - light white and dark - dark green paint, highly diluted with glossy varnish. Let's dwell on this result for now.

 

 

 

 

There are still several months of work on the detailing ahead and I will have time to add something. Or even remove something.

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday Thekz, that's an excellent 'heavy weather' sea, and it looks like the ship has had a hard time of it. I pity the crew when they next reach harbour, all that rust chipping and painting the Buffer will have them doing. Regards, Jeff.