1/350 Carriers Taiho and Graf Zeppelin

[S-boat 55]

55 minutes ago, Adm Lord De Univers said:

That they do Steve, the camo on the Zep has come out particularly well, but methinks no amount of camo is going to hide that funnel!

 

David

Between Taihos leaning one and the size of Zeppelins I did contemplate calling the thread Funny funnels in 350, it seems appropriate, 😄 

[Faraway]

1 hour ago, Adm Lord De Univers said:

but methinks no amount of camo is going to hide that funnel!

It is a bit ‘LOOK AT MEEEEE’

Jon

[steve5]

but methinks no amount of camo is going to hide that funnel!

it does have that jimmy durante look about it though . 😜

[S-boat 55]

Finally - finally, finished the support structures for the port and starboard platforms - all 42 of them. Its taken a wee while (the largest ones took about 3hrs each as one had 49 parts) and as half of them are now covered in (what has become red primer)  they stand out less that the other side. Curious - do other people do their etch like this - lay it all out and then have one session sticking it together?

 

Did enjoy putting together this little cabin though, it hangs under one of the platforms, still need to add a ladder but not yet for it. It was my first attempt using photo etch scuttle details, It comes as one peice bar the door, scuttle and railing, including a section to fold under to detail the bottom of the floor, 

 

This didn't all go without a hitch, i mentioned red primer - well in the process of attaching the etch i managed to splatter super glue across parts of the hull, some of course then smudged, others dried as blobs, murphy's law dictated that the worst parts would be on/around fine raised detail like the degaussing cable and hull plate lines. I knew when i did it that it was foolish to do it before completing this section of the work but I was impatient. I'll look for the positive and use it as an opportunity to do some wider improvements that the paint shows are needed. The eagle eyed will notice also that there is one section where the gussets are missing in two places, this is as there are two number 62's and 63's on etch sheet J or whichever it was. Means I've used those elsewhere, so I'll need to sort that as well. Broadly though for the most part it doesn't let you use things i the wrong order, the insets are on opposite sides etc to push you in the right order. Didn't mean that i didn't have to heat up several pieces more than once to de-bond and redo them having realised i was doing it the wrong way round or mirrored to what it should be. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quite looking forward to seeing how she looks dry fitted together with them all in place.

 

Any who that's all for now, not sure what bit to tackle next on her, likely her enclosed bow - did they have a specific design name? I've heard them rereferred to as a hurricane bow?

 

Also any advice on painting her now there are all these etch areas, conscious that you can get funny effects caused by air buffeting around when airbrushing corners and there are now hundreds of them under the platforms, would it be better to use a 0.15 needle and get in close, or stick with a 0.4 and do wider coats?

 

Cheers

 

Sam

Edited June 15, 2022 by S-boat 55

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday Sam, that's superb work on those support frames. Waaaay out of my league. Very well done. And as a matter of interest, that little suspended cabin - any idea what it's for? Regards, Jeff.

[steve5]

nice PE work sam , laying it all out like that , would probably be the best way to do it ,

[S-boat 55]

3 hours ago, ArnoldAmbrose said:

Gidday Sam, that's superb work on those support frames. Waaaay out of my league. Very well done. And as a matter of interest, that little suspended cabin - any idea what it's for? Regards, Jeff.

I'll not lie.....no, the one thing I'm finding with this build is there is so little about the ship it makes it less 'historically engaging' for want of putting it another way. I quite like reading about the subject as  im building it but there is so little on Taiho there's not much to read aside a couple of Web pages  

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday Sam, yes from what I can gather she didn't have a very long working life, just over three months from commissioning to sinking. Quite a few of the model ships I've done I've chosen because of what the vessels and their crews achieved. Not much contribution to the Japanese war effort by this ship. I think what makes her interesting is her design differences instead, I think.

     This doesn't alter the fact that you're doing an extremely good job of her.     Regards, Jeff.

[Courageous]

On 6/4/2022 at 10:49 PM, S-boat 55 said:

do other people do their etch like this - lay it all out and then have one session sticking it together?

Err...no. Carpet monster would've had it all.

Your work with all that PE looks painfully stunning.

 

Stuart

[Martian]

Some of the best PE work I have seen in a very longtime. 

 

Impressed of Mars 👽

[S-boat 55]

Not a massive update but wanted to share a pic or two, got the first coat of paint on the flight deck so did a dry fit of things, the deck plank detail is very fine, much thinner than trumpeters for example so I'll need to work out how to go about creating the variation across the deck as with Dunkerque I highlighted plank by plank in places. Thought this showed how bonkers her funnel was though,

 

 

 

 

This is certainly the most interesting of the two side, not that either is 'plain', 

 

Still thinking of darkening the flight deck, supposedly it was stained black just prior to her loss, question is if the deck markings would likewise have been toned down or not? I've seen comment that likely they wouldn't have as the pilots by that point were newer recruits and inexperienced. 

 

thanks, Sam

[S-boat 55]

9 hours ago, Martian said:

Some of the best PE work I have seen in a very longtime. 

 

Impressed of Mars 👽

Thank you, 

[MRMRL]

Been a while since I looked in on these bad boys. Really nice progress being made, they are starting to take shape really nicely and contrast each other really well. From a fellow ship builder struggling to progress a destroyer, this joint build is a bit too bold for me, although I do fancy both ships at some point (probably won't be so brave to run them alongside each other).

[S-boat 55]

32 minutes ago, MRMRL said:

Been a while since I looked in on these bad boys. Really nice progress being made, they are starting to take shape really nicely and contrast each other really well. From a fellow ship builder struggling to progress a destroyer, this joint build is a bit too bold for me, although I do fancy both ships at some point (probably won't be so brave to run them alongside each other).

Thanks for the compliment, I'm trying to get them finished for Telford in November in case I'm brave enough to enter one so I may have to pick one to focus on as I'm already at the 9 month mark we'll see, don't know that I want to pressure myself, 

Edited June 8, 2022 by S-boat 55

[steve5]

that is just lovely clean work mate .

[S-boat 55]

Been doing a little here and there on Taiho, started more of the planes, decided the seats should be a different colour, some types black, others tan, does that make me a little crazy

 

This is how much you can see when they are fitted into the planes - not a lot, rather frustratingly I noticed there is a small blemish/raised dot on the front seat but not until id put a few in, Im not sure if it will notice or not when the canopy is in place, 

 

Aside that Ive been fitting various small ready use lockers etc to the platforms, think they are starting to busy up nicely,

 

Anyone happen to know what these are supposed to be? The parts themselves have a major sink mark on one side so im hoping i can fit them in a way that doesn't show as it dont think its really fixable without loosing the detail, 

 

Thanks

 

Sam

 

[VinBizz4786_]

This carrier (the Taiho) is probably the most beautiful ww2 carrier of the world, and yo're doing a really great job !! Congats mate ! Keep going

[Faraway]

On 22/06/2022 at 21:44, S-boat 55 said:

does that make me a little crazy

Probably.

But you’ll hardly stand out. 

Jon

[S-boat 55]

Hi All,

 

Me again, been doing a bit on the AA guns to break things up, also been adding the support ties to the platforms, 

the kit parts are pretty good but the DX version of the kit adds further detail, the main support has only two holes but the PE faceplate for it has four, and they're slightly larger than then two on the kit part so they needed opening up

 

The gun 'body' is a resin upgrade, definietly fiddly and the opening for the gun barrels didn't quite line up so needed some jiggery and pokery, 

 

PE upgrade on the kit parts that complete the mount

 

Bring it all together for this

 

All Six done

 

I should start the triple 25mm AA mounts next but im not looking forward to doing 18 of them so i'll duck that for now, 

 

Hopefully have a bit of something to show later, 

 

thanks

 

Sam

 

 

 

 

[beefy66]

Very nice details there Sam I was considering one of these at the last show I attended then I remembered how many other kits I have on the go so thought better of it I will just keep looking in on this one for now.

 

Stay Safe 

beefy 

[S-boat 55]

2 minutes ago, beefy66 said:

Very nice details there Sam I was considering one of these at the last show I attended then I remembered how many other kits I have on the go so thought better of it I will just keep looking in on this one for now.

 

Stay Safe 

beefy 

Thanks,

 

I know what you mean, I realised I was at the point where the stash goes from looking  fun to looking daunting,

Sam

 

[S-boat 55]

I continue to jump around from bit to bit on Taiho, the truth is I cant quite work out what order to do a few key bits in to save later hassle with painting, I may just have to accept that there isnt an ideal way available, 

 

Anyway, been doing a bit on her funnel, the brass support structure was tricky only because Veryfires instructions tell you bend upwards but its actually for a downwards bend and vice versa (well in my opinion they do), so it all fell apart, came back together easy enough though and is just stood in place for now. Still more grill etc to put on but its a start, and frustratingly the bald section of detail on the front of the funnel is a moulding error not my careless sanding, 

 

 

Also these are the ties I mentioned for the platforms, oddly as you'll see there some that dont have any on them. Given there are some that are on the etch sheet but not instructions im assuming its an error on the instructions, 

thanks for looking, 

 

Sam

 

 

[Courageous]

Some nice shiny bits.

 

Stuart

[johndon]

Excellent work so far, the Tamiya 1/700 version of the Taiho was the first ship kit I ever built. 

[steve5]

very nice , clean PE work sam .