Admiralty Drifter with Barrage Balloon - Scratchbuilt 1/350

[Faraway]

29 minutes ago, Steve D said:

Hard 0.5mm brass wire painted white or silver may work to support it

I guess it all depends on the weight of the balloon, but that might work.
I tried a lump of blutac on 0.5mm wire and it didn’t bend too much.

It might be further support by the other wires, all depends how high the balloon will be flying.

Jon

[robgizlu]

On 2/1/2022 at 2:31 PM, Iceman 29 said:

@robgizlu

 

Great project! Knowing your previous assembly, it should be a nice model.👍 

 

Rob, you should have asked me about the balloon, it is very quick to draw and print. It would have been much finer than Shapeways. All it had to do was cross the Channel to get to you in a letter

 

Pacal - That was very kind and generous.  You'll have to be careful or you'll have a stream of begging letters.  I would have asumed it would be difficult to 3D model.  The sculp is very good - the printing not so much.

 

On 2/2/2022 at 11:25 PM, Courageous said:

...a raft! 

 

Stuart

 

On 2/3/2022 at 1:47 PM, beefy66 said:

 

Oh Yee of little faith.  

 

beefy

 

Children!........................Daddy will be furious when he comes home 

On 2/3/2022 at 1:41 PM, Rob G said:

Hi Rob, I was doing a bit of digging and found this website that just may be of interest, if you haven't yet seen it. 

 

http://www.bbrclub.org/Site Directory.htm

 

There's sections there about mooring balloons and also a bit about balloon vessels. HTH. 

 

Thanks Rob - That was one of my research references and very inspiring

 

On 2/3/2022 at 6:17 AM, beefy66 said:

Rob have you considered a back drop so you could attach the balloon from the rear you could make it ala Longshanks method of display as a picture frame and still have the thin wire as support from below just my thoughts   

 

Stay Safe 

beefy 

 

I have Beefy and it remains an option though not a preferred one.

 

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions Fellas

Rob

[Bobs_Buckles]

Ernie Ball 14 gauge steel guitar string may do the trick. Depends (obviously) on the weight of the gasbag.

 

Whatever way you go, GOOD LUCK!

 

Cheers,

Bob 😀

[robgizlu]

On 2/6/2022 at 9:23 AM, Bobs_Buckles said:

Ernie Ball 14 gauge steel guitar string may do the trick. Depends (obviously) on the weight of the gasbag.

 

Whatever way you go, GOOD LUCK!

 

Cheers,

Bob 😀

 

Thanks Bob 

 

Following the instructions of my Zen Master ( @longshanks) I penned the ribs for them to show through at  the sanding stage

 

 

and then opened th car filler ......

 

 

The first time I've ever used - smells great but not so easy to apply though I agree about it drying fast 

I thought I'd work little by little

 

 

 

 

And then ignoring the advice of you all and my Zen master I couldn't resist uasing Sylmasta "A&B" modelling putty to fill the stern.   Possibly harder to sand BUT you are able to smooth it and contour it unlike the S-38 car filler

 

 

 

The A&B putty was old so I'm waiting for some replacement "Magic Sculp" to arrive.

 

The next stage I feel is the hardest and that's to model the Bulwarks, particularly the transom and bow.

 

 

The plan is to stick som 0.16mm plastic sheet into a groove at the level of the deck and once it's fixed, fill and sand to get a flush join - that at least is the plan.  I'm aiming to do one side at a time.

 

Fillets were added, the lower Bulwark contour cut and the process of "welding" it with Tamiya Extra Thin styrene cement, bit by bit

 

 

 

 

Looks a flippin mess at the moment 

 

We'll see

Thanks for looking

Rob

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday Rob, yeah it looks a mess at the moment but it's the final photo in the WIP thread, and those in the RFI section that matter. 🙂

Actually, so do all the other photos, including these ones, that matter. In a sort of "how to" or "how not to" sort of way. I'm still following your method with keen interest.

Regards, Jeff.

[Steve D]

Rob,

 

It's a bit late for this build, but what I do in these circumstances is infill the frames with balsa wood (marked to the largest frame each time) and then sand that back to the frames.  This is quick and easy, the filler can then be added as a thin layer to finish the job.

 

May be a little easier for next time

 

Cheers

 

Steve

[PAUL67]

Rob   it may look rough at the moment but then most builds do at this stage …don’t give up with this miniature…

Paul

[foeth]

For both the balloon and the hull: did you consider vacuum forming? Really easy to do and you get a very light balloon and a nice hollow hull?

[robgizlu]

On 2/7/2022 at 1:24 PM, ArnoldAmbrose said:

Gidday Rob, yeah it looks a mess at the moment but it's the final photo in the WIP thread, and those in the RFI section that matter. 🙂

Actually, so do all the other photos, including these ones, that matter. In a sort of "how to" or "how not to" sort of way. I'm still following your method with keen interest.

Regards, Jeff.

 

Thanks Jeff

 

On 2/7/2022 at 2:16 PM, Steve D said:

Rob,

 

It's a bit late for this build, but what I do in these circumstances is infill the frames with balsa wood (marked to the largest frame each time) and then sand that back to the frames.  This is quick and easy, the filler can then be added as a thin layer to finish the job.

 

May be a little easier for next time

 

Cheers

 

Steve

 

Thanks Steve - filed away in my hints and tips though don't forget this is precisley 8.5cm long - I think I'd have more trouble cutting the balsa 

On 2/8/2022 at 7:28 AM, PAUL67 said:

Rob   it may look rough at the moment but then most builds do at this stage …don’t give up with this miniature…

Paul

 

Thanks Paul, it does take a minor act of faith 

On 2/8/2022 at 7:37 AM, foeth said:

For both the balloon and the hull: did you consider vacuum forming? Really easy to do and you get a very light balloon and a nice hollow hull?

 

Thanks EJ - No - well outside of my comfort zone and despite the print/surface qaulity the ballon is really very detailed.  I'm still absorbing basic hull building steps 

 

So once again with Thanks to my Zen Master - Obi Wan Longshanks and acknowledging his patience taking me through steps that a Drunken Donkey would have picked up 5 x faster, it's on with the show......

 

 

 

the Bulwark topping is 0.3 x0.5mm strip

 

 

I elected to sand and fill the port side completely before progressing to the starboard bulwark

 

 

Getting the transom rail to "curve" with a single sheet of plastic was a trial

 

 

It was neater () than I anticipated but the overhanging upward angle was not present

 

 

 

 

I was really happy for a couple of hours until the demons came.

 

So I cut the rear bulwark away and attempted to "salvage" the build and try to get that overhang more realistic which in many respects is the visual signature for these vessels

The problem really arose by trying to use just one piece of palstic each side - even the thin stuff just isn't pliable enough

 

 

I cut pieces of plastic by trial and error to get the right angle - it took 6 

You can see the sort of thing in the next pic at the top

 

 

Hugely more realistic stern, which still needs sanding down

 

 

Hull and Deck now complete to my satisfaction ......unless the demons come again

 

Zen Master is happy and has welcomed me to his world - jes suis arriviste!

Rob

 

Oh and the tip about felt-penning the ribs was Soooo right-on 

[Faraway]

Well.

That’s looking amazing.

A master builder at work.
Jon

[stevehnz]

That is looking really good Rob, your bulwarks are things of beauty.

Steve.

[longshanks]

Nice one Rob 

 

Remember Grasshopper Wipe on, Wipe off  

 

Excellent start, the world is now your oyster. Go for it

 

Stay safe

 

Kev

[ArnoldAmbrose]

5 hours ago, robgizlu said:

So once again with Thanks to my Zen Master - Obi Wan Longshanks and acknowledging his patience taking me through steps that a Drunken Donkey would have picked up 5 x faster, it's on with the show......

😁👍 Does Obi Wan have a brother named Kev by any chance? 🙂    Seriously, I think you can thank the demons too. That stern looks like it was worth the effort.

 

And .   .   .

3 hours ago, longshanks said:

Remember Grasshopper Wipe on, Wipe off

Would "Sand the Floor" be appropriate here too?      Keep up the excellent work. Regards, Jeff.

[Steve D]

11 hours ago, robgizlu said:

don't forget this is precisley 8.5cm long

It's looking very nice Rob, well done, those bulwarks look like a real nightmare. 

 

If I may correct your point, the ships boats hulls which I produce in tissue paper on a mould go down to 5 cm (and could be smaller) using balsa between frames quite successfully.  The other point on taking a tissue shell off a mould is that you can produce many very quickly once you have the mould so a fleet of trawlers is within reach.  6-8 layers of tissue soaked in weak pva make a very strong shell that can include the bulwarks and is easy to sand.  As ever I unapologetically lead the charge re using more traditional materials 

 

Cheers

 

Steve

[Dmitriy1967]

On 07/02/2022 at 16:16, robgizlu said:

 

 

We'll see

Thanks for looking

Rob

 

 

My God! Where could you buy such a huge jar?! She's bigger than a ship!

I could only find a small one.

 

 

 

 

[Dmitriy1967]

13 hours ago, robgizlu said:

 

The problem really arose by trying to use just one piece of palstic each side - even the thin stuff just isn't pliable enough

 

Rob

 

 

 

Have you tried heating the plastic to make it bend better? Or is this plastic not worth warming?

[Courageous]

Glad you stuck with it, she's looking pretty neat.

 

Stuart

[robgizlu]

10 hours ago, Dmitriy1967 said:

 

Have you tried heating the plastic to make it bend better? Or is this plastic not worth warming?

 

Errrm.......yes

 

 

 

Rob

[Courageous]

11 minutes ago, robgizlu said:

Errrm.......yes

Got there in the end though .

 

Stuart

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday Rob, that tiny dinghy at the stern, what's that made of, if I may ask? Regards, Jeff.

[robgizlu]

On 2/11/2022 at 4:07 AM, ArnoldAmbrose said:

Gidday Rob, that tiny dinghy at the stern, what's that made of, if I may ask? Regards, Jeff.

 

Hi Jeff - it's a resin dinghy from a Black Cat models LCI.  I was just test fitting it to the stern to check on clearance.  With hull nearly cleanly sanded, it's superstucture and fittings next.

Rob

[robgizlu]

Well - a couple fo sanding sticks later tkes to this...

 

 

 

I ran a light spray of Alclad primer over just to check for "dings" - it was remarkably clear

 

 

And then sanded it off to get to thepastic surface as it 's easier to weld thin strips of gunwhale rail and rubbing strips

 

 

 

 

The rubbing strips themeslves are sanded back to reduce their height resulting in several "fractures" - especially where I used CA glue over the resin

Scupper holes were also drilled and carefully filed

 

 

 

And while all this has been going on I've given 2 separate coats of Mig Ammo One Shot to the ballon and sanded it back

 

 

The surface is just Horrible!

The plan is another coat of acrylic primer then some Alcald primer.

More soon

I'm enjoying this 

Rob

 

[Bobs_Buckles]

I'm enjoying this too!

Excellent work, Rob 😉

 

 

Cheers,

Bob 

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday Rob, I just lurve what you've done to that hull. Superb. Regards, Jeff.

[Faraway]

All coming together very nicely.

Jon