Other Tim, “Dioramartin” will be so proud of you! 
2 Likes
Hard to believe this is 1/700, given the level of finesse and detail
I know what you mean, Russ, this is my first Flyhawk kit, and they don’t hold back!
Not content with just the relatively straightforward limiters for the round tubs, the sadists at Flyhawk even provided the miniscule arched limiters for the hexagonal 20mm bandstands.
They may not look like much in place, but these things were devilishly difficult to fit as the supporting arms under the arches must be bent at exact angles to touch the tub sides below the arched limiters – which themselves must be set at consistent angles atop the tiny bandstands. No spares are provided, so when I dropped one (the last one, of course) I spent a good five minutes on my hands and knees rescuing it from the carpet monster!
Still, with the kit-provided safety rails and flagstaff in place, It’s hard not to appreciate Flyhawk’s thoroughness!
8 Likes
Uhhhmmm… no. That’s not how you scale weight. it would be 4165kg/ 700 cubed.
0.0121g.
(I have my Pedantry pants on today)
oh. and the whole model a bit south of 40 grams.
I think.
I’m not actually very mathy. Not 5 or more kilos, anyway.
5 Likes
Craig I need to take my boots off to count past 6 most days. You wear those pants with pride!
I knew that answer was off but the thought of packing a sack of potatoes into a ship the length of my palm (or so) amused the hell out of me.
1 Like
More progress:
The barrel limit rails have been added to the aft 20mm gun tubs…
…as have the etched frames for the Carley floats beside the main funnel and the ‘midships superstructure safety rails.
5 Likes
Tim,
Very nice work, still shows you are the king of P.E.
Mark 
1 Like
I’m going cross eyed looking at those tiny pieces, Tim, and I’m not even the one working on the kit, so I can’t imagine how you’re coping 
1 Like
Tim,
Very nice work, still shows you are the king of P.E.
Mark
I’m going cross eyed looking at those tiny pieces, Tim, and I’m not even the one working on the kit, so I can’t imagine how you’re coping
Thanks guys, although I feel less like a king than a slave to the PE! The small size is challenging enough, but the lack of spares makes it nerve wracking every time I drop a part. Other than that, though, Flyhawk’s awesome little kit is nicely designed and a pleasure to work with!
2 Likes
I found this interesting National Geographic video on the raid, in HD. Some very interesting detailed 3D renders of the Campbeltown both before and after renovations, and animations of the actions: https://www.saintnazaire.fr/actus/operation-chariot-le-75e-anniversaire-se-deroulera-pres-du-vieux-mole-2133
2 Likes
Thanks Leo. I liked the animation!
1 Like
Those animations give great bird’s-eye, as well as worm’s-eye views of the harbour and lock areas for dio’s. Much better than available photo’s.
1 Like
Tim,
If you have a dedicated work bench to do your modeling, you could add a jeweler’s apron. I made one up using an old pillow sheet and attached with Velcro. It really made a difference by catching all of those dropped PE pieces. I still lose one once in a while when it pings off the tweezers, but even then the mess on the work bench seems to stop 90% of parts from leaving the bench and to the carpet.
Mark
2 Likes
That’s a good idea, Mark - but I’m sure my family would miss my crawling on all fours, penlight in my teeth, grumbling at the carpet! 
2 Likes
Great stuff Tim,
Those safety rails look the part, don’t always get them in 1/350th, but at least in that scale they are simpler to scratch.
Cheers Si.
1 Like
RedDuster
Great stuff Tim,Those safety rails look the part, don’t always get them in 1/350th, but at least in that scale they are simpler to scratch.
Cheers Si.
Thanks Si. I like the look of 1/700 rails, but boy are they getting tough to see with my aging eyes!
Anyway, the safety railing, Carley floats and various other details aft are done; all that remains to be installed in this section of the ship are the 20mm guns and the etched propeller guards.
6 Likes
Amazing work, Tim!..turning out to be a real gem.
Cheers,
2 Likes
Amazing work, Tim!..turning out to be a real gem.
Cheers,
Thanks Joe!
The 12-pounder gun, its barrel limiter, and the debarkation ladders for the commandos have been added to the foredeck. I also added the safety rails.
Most depictions of HMS Campbeltown show the rails forward of the bridge to have been removed, presumably to make it easier for the commandos to scramble on to the dock after the ramming. This is partly true, but a few close-up photos taken by the Germans after the attack show these rails to have been present but folded down. I was happy to discover this, because the rails provided by Flyhawk are so good it would have been a shame not to use them. I figure the model will depict the ship as she appeared in the last stages of fitting out for the attack before these rails were folded out of the way.
9 Likes
Etched propeller guards added.
9 Likes
How would I realistically depict the railings folded down? I don’t think simply glueing them flat on the deck would look good.
2 Likes
How would I realistically depict the railings folded down? I don’t think simply glueing them flat on the deck would look good.
The rails were folded out rather than toward the ships centerline such as in this view of the German Schleswig-Holstein:
To make them look right you would have to reproduce the sag between the stanchions and keep the spurnwater ridge at the base vertical (i.e., bent at 90 degrees from the now-horizontal stanchions and lines). Even then, I think it might look odd…
I didn’t choose to go this route on the Campbeltown since it would have tended to be too much of a focal point on this small model, maybe even looking to observers as if the modeler had somehow screwed up the railing! 
I did go so far as to leave off the very nice anchors and chain provided by Flyhawk -
I’d have liked to have used them, but they don’t appear in the German post-attack photos, so I surmise that they were removed as part of the weight reduction done as part of the conversion for Operation Chariot.
5 Likes