Very clean built and great looking reels Tim 
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Tim,
as Thomas says! More extremely nice details adding to your Hatsuzuki!
Cheers
Jan
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Those cable reels look fantastic!
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Those reels look very good Tim… Well done
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Hey Tim,
Those cable reels really look great. Few questions if you don’t mind concerning the reels. Were cables painted or left natural metal? Are there any differences in reels used for hoses and cables? I’m thinking fuel and water lines. And were ropes ever put on reels? Thinking maybe mooring lines or tow ropes. I’m an Army brat so I don’t know much about ship working.
Thanks
John
John
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Very clean built and great looking reels Tim
Tim, as Thomas says! More extremely nice details adding to your Hatsuzuki! Cheers Jan
Those cable reels look fantastic!
Those reels look very good Tim… Well done
Few questions if you don’t mind concerning the reels. Were cables painted or left natural metal? Are there any differences in reels used for hoses and cables? I’m thinking fuel and water lines. And were ropes ever put on reels? Thinking maybe mooring lines or tow ropes. I’m an Army brat so I don’t know much about ship working.
Thanks
John
Thomas, Jan, Martin, and John, thanks!
And John, as to your reel questions… I really don’t know! I assume that the reels aft were cables for streaming the paravanes but have no idea what all those others might have been for. Color renderings usually show them all to have been cable and unpainted, so unless I learn more I’ll probably go with that.
I’d like to get things right, though - does anyone else know more?
In addition to the two small reels on the gunhouse support, there were also five larger ones fitted to Hatsuzuki’s foredeck.
The etched reels in the 1/350 Tom’s Modelworks set were a little too small to use for these, so the kit reels were replaced instead with parts from Gold Medal Models 1/350 Assorted Cable Reels set (350-23).
As before, I formed the wire around plastic to make the “cable,” in this case Evergreen plastic tube wrapped with 28 gauge steel wire. This was then cut into drums of appropriate lengths.
To prevent any unrealistic see-through, I cemented plastic rods inside the tube drums before trimming them off and filing the ends flat.
The 1/350 IJN six-hole reel ends provided by GMM were correct for the 1/200 Hatsuzuki, but their supports were the type used on larger ships. Fortunately the set comes with not only Japanese but USN, Kriegsmarine, and Royal Navy types as well, so I substituted USN and RN reel supports which matched those used on smaller IJN ships.
After cleaning up the etched attachment nubs, the reel ends and supports were bonded to the drums with super glue.
Here are the first three test fitted in front of the bridge structure. There are still two more of these to come abeam the bridge, plus four more aft!
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I love how you’re building up these cable reels, Tim 
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As Russ says, and they’re looking splendid.
I have to admit that cable reels are not my favorites to build…
And I don’t, reference your question some days ago, what exactly was on those reels and for what purpose. So your guess is as good as mine. I do know that we have reels for mooring lines, but mostly below deck.
Cheers
Jan
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I love how you’re building up these cable reels, Tim
As Russ says, and they’re looking splendid.
I have to admit that cable reels are not my favorites to build…And I don’t, reference your question some days ago, what exactly was on those reels and for what purpose. So your guess is as good as mine. I do know that we have reels for mooring lines, but mostly below deck.
Cheers
Jan
Russ and Jan, thanks. And the fun continues…
The reels to go on either side of the bridge structure were identical to the two smaller ones I just made for the bridge front, and these too were constructed from Gold Medal Models parts with cables of 28 gauge steel wire.
Although I managed to complete them, these five reels with the steel wire turned out to be a whole lot more challenging to assemble than the smaller first set. The problem was the wire. I didn’t notice until I had already made the drums that, although effective (and I happened to have some on hand), the steel wire had an exasperating tendency to stick to my magnetized tweezers! Too small to handle with my big fingers, the drums were easy to pick up with the tweezers but frustratingly difficult to manipulate – or even release – without the help of my small wood-handled paintbrush.
In the end the steel still worked out all right, but before taking on the four additional reels for the deck aft I am going to invest in some suitable (non-magnetic) brass wire for the job!
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Tim,
the reels definitely look very cool!
For that ‘sticking to my tweezers’- trick I don’t need magnetic tweezers. I don’t even know what exactly does the trick in many instances - but as a matter of fact, tiny parts alway like my tweezers better than the place I want them to go… 
Cheers
Jan
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Tim,the reels definitely look very cool!
For that ‘sticking to my tweezers’- trick I don’t need magnetic tweezers. I don’t even know what exactly does the trick in many instances - but as a matter of fact, tiny parts alway like my tweezers better than the place I want them to go…
Cheers
Jan
Thanks Jan! The new reels took a bit of effort to complete (partly due to my foibles with the steel wire), but I definitely like them better than the kit parts.
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They REALLY do look cool! Great job!
Cheers
Jan
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Hello Tim!
Found this forum accidental during my research about the Suzutsuki. Then I noticed your building of the Hatsuzuki.
I´m really speechless…in a positive way!
I will never get near your skill level. But to see your building stages is so helpful for my Suzutsuki (1:200 Nichimo) build.
Now I have noticed that you “perhaps” did “some” errors in case of the main turrets.
I know that you have the Gakken No. 23 as one of your references.
Most of the original photos are showing the second type of the Akizuki Type destroyer. And the handmade drawings of them, are a mixture of Type 1 and Type 2.
Your Hatsuzuki is a type 1. Same as my Suzutsuki.
On page 121 (Gakken No. 23) you can see Suzutsuki´s turrets No. 3 and 4. You will notice that these turrets are different to other photos in this book. Only two of the side scupper pipes have continuous handrails beneath them. The foremost scupperpipe one hasn´t the handrail (visible too on the drawings at page 124)
Another difference are the two horizontal “lines” who are between the two handrails on each turret side. On the photo at page 121 both lines are missing.
The big question is now, are these differences related to different IJN Arsenals, or were they parts of the changings bertween Type 1 and Type 2 of the Akizuki class.
The trouble begins when you compare original photos in the Gakken No. 23. The turrets are often different in some aspects, but they are from the same Type of the Akizuki class.
And another “important” thing is, don´t trust the Kagero publications! They are often inaccurate in some aspects. My motto is “believe your own eyes”, in case of original photos vs. drawings.
Your biggest problem is, that there aren´t many good photos of the Hatsuzuki available.Perhaps it is easier to communicate private via Email or perhaps with the Facebook Messenger.
for changing photos or plans.But only if you´re interested!
Best Wishes from Germany!
Christian van der Sanden
Hi Christian, welcome aboard!
Thank you for your consideration in voicing your observations about my work in a private email. I am not sensitive about constructive criticism, though, so I’m posting my response here for the benefit of other modelers on the forum who might also be interested.
On page 121 (Gakken No. 23) you can see Suzutsuki´s turrets No. 3 and 4. You will notice that these turrets are different to other photos in this book. Only two of the side scupper pipes have continuous handrails beneath them. The foremost scupperpipe one hasn´t the handrail (visible too on the drawings at page 124)
Here is a close up of the photo, and you are right! I missed that and made my turret rails like the ones on Harutzuki with the odd little curved portions below the scuttle:
Hatsuzuki was, as you said, of the same earlier group as the Suzutsuki and would presumably have been similarly constructed. Doh! 
Another difference are the two horizontal “lines” who are between the two handrails on each turret side. On the photo at page 121 both lines are missing.
I believe the horizontal lines between the two handrails you reference were stiffening strakes applied to the forward gunhouses to strengthen the flimsy sheet metal structures against seas coming over the bow. The strakes are absent from the page 121 photo of Suzutsuki’s after mounts because they were only needed forward. They are faintly visible on the only surviving photo of Hatsuzuki:
Since the strakes were applied to only the forward gunhouses, I left them off the after mounts.
The trouble begins when you compare original photos …The turrets are often different in some aspects, but they are from the same Type of the Akizuki class.
And another “important” thing is, don´t trust the Kagero publications! They are often inaccurate in some aspects. My motto is “believe your own eyes”, in case of original photos vs. drawings.
Your biggest problem is, that there aren´t many good photos of the Hatsuzuki available.
I completely agree! It is often a challenge interpreting (or even finding) photos, and I suppose the drafters of the various plans do what they can to be accurate but, like all of us, make their share of mistakes…
Thanks again for your thoughts, and by the way, I’d love to see some photos of your Suzutsuki build if you have any 
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Hello Tim!
I noticed to late that you can clearly see the two (three) strakes at the forward turrets on the only available photo of Hatsuzuki. So the only “possible” error is the handrail. But imho leave the handrails as they are!
Because we have no evidence that the handrails were the same as on Suzutsuki.
So my message is “obsolete”
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Hello Tim!
I noticed to late that you can clearly see the two (three) strakes at the forward turrets on the only available photo of Hatsuzuki. So the only “possible” error is the handrail. But imho leave the handrails as they are!
Because we have no evidence that the handrails were the same as on Suzutsuki.
So my message is “obsolete”
Thanks again, Christian. Yes, the rail may or may not be wrong… but I appreciate your perspectives in any case.
They REALLY do look cool! Great job!
Cheers
Jan
Thanks Jan. I’m glad to be done with reels for a while!
The gunhouse superstructure had handgrab-type ladder rungs to provide access to the top. For these I used the “medium rung superstructure” parts from White Ensign Models’ 1/200 Iron Rung Ladders set.
The set comes with handy etched templates for siting the rungs. I marked their positions with the tip of my X-acto…
…then drilled the pilot holes with a No. 80 drill bit fitted into the X-acto handle.
The rungs were then set into the holes and positioned with the help of a .020 X .060 inch plastic strip spacer to ensure evenness and uniform height.
Once in place I secured them with tiny drops of liquid plastic cement. Even though the cement doesn’t work on the brass rungs themselves, it melts the surrounding plastic enough to hold them securely. I prefer this to super glue as the connections remain soft for some time and permit adjustments while the cement sets.
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I had earlier drilled holes in the gunhouse superstructure for the exterior handrail supports but had opted to defer fitting the delicate plastic handrails until the etched brass handgrabs were secured on board. Damaging fragile assemblies while working on others nearby is a constant concern!
After installation of the ladder rungs was completed, I set .010 inch plastic rods into the handrail holes. These were left long to make it easier to see that their orientation was correct as the cement dried.
After allowing the cement to thoroughly cure, I used my homemade tool (a piece of .015 inch plastic strip with a .018 inch hole in it) as a guide to trim them down to uniform .015 inch lengths.
Once the supports were ready I added additional .010 inch rod to each support with a tiny dab of liquid cement until it reached entirely around the structure. It was then trimmed at the ends.
Though simple, these handrails are extremely delicate; I see in the last pic that the just-installed aft starboard end has already broken loose!
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Ingenious! 
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Tim,
once again that looks fantastic! And just as Russ - your little ‘homemade’ tools and the way you fix those steps - cool, or better, just awesome!
Cheers
Jan
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