Actualy its a side project right now, i want to clear this t55 from the bench and then i hope to pick up the pace a little bit
4 Likes
That’s too bad. I have a few of the Roden kits in this scale waiting in the wings. Somewhere I have an Italeri C-119 in 1/72. I hope it is an easier build.
Paul
More work done on the Monitor. As before, more trial fitting, putty & sanding was needed in every section. The hull top is now on the bottom and my poor start made for extra work here. It will look OK when under a coat of paint.
I wanted to simulate the dents made in the Monitor’s turret armor by the CSS Virgina’s guns. Happily, there are good photos showing a sample of how this looked. My first thought was to heat a tool and mash it into the plastic. A good modeling buddy heard this idea and suggested trying something else as he had never had any good results trying to melt the plastic to create combat damage.
In the middle of the night I woke up and had an idea. I was going to use the Dremel set and chuck one of the small burrs in a pin vice. The manual idea didn’t work very well at all on a trial piece but using the Dremel did the job. At first I used a very small burr that made a scale 9’ bent. It all but disappeared under a coat of primer so next I bored the dents a bit oversize. Not to scale exactly but the dents look better.
The propeller & rudder proved to be trying. The screw was made of 6 parts with no guides or locating pins. The hub was two halves and all the blades had to be attached by guess & by golly. The blades had no front or back that I could see. In the end, it looks reasonably good but was very time consuming. The rudder assembly was also very fiddly but turned out well in the end.
Paul
3 Likes
Nice work Paul, but oh man is that an ugly looking boat. I wouldnt even call it a boat.
It’s not a boat - it’s a warship 
Elegant it ain’t but has a kind of functional attractiveness like a truck, tractor or - a tank. I love monitors and hope to built a resin kit of a twin turret example later after I get a bit more practice with difficult builds.
Paul
It’s a fact-it’s “beautiful otherwise”… 
Gotta say I love that cheese-box on a raft! After seeing your work I wonder if there are any more out there to be had…
Just be aware that this kit is of the Monitor AFTER its famous battle with the CSS Virginia. A sloping base was added to the pilot house which will require some work to backdate. Nothing that can’t be done with some plastic card, a scriber and time. I did not mind the post battle configuration as it allowed the cannon ball dents. Fun!
Paul
1 Like
Little progress … larger complex elements for the photo. Poor plastic, no fireworks … But when you get used to assembling models of Tamyia, Dragon and
Takom has to be talked about 
3 Likes
Your pictures didn’t upload properly Piotr
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Yep… 
Looking good, I have the next version of the kit so I will be following your build closely.
The pictures of the armoured car sure look good so far. What problems have you found with the plastic? I see you have some aftermarket wheels. How are they better than the kit parts?
Paul
That is disappointing. Smooth areas can be fixed with putty but if there are sinks in the springs you will just have to live with them. Dirt & mud can cover a multitude of sins . . .
Paul
Yeah this will be an exercise in cleaver concealment. I took a better look at the rest of the sprues and those seem to be the only real disasters. The odd ejector pin mark, but nothing insurmountable.