Subject: SMML22/06/98VOL218 Date: Mon, 22 Jun 1998 17:43:55 +1000 (EST) shipmodels@wr.com.au --------------------------------- Thanks for having SMML at your home, why not stop by our home at: http://warship.simplenet.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Re: brushing acrylic paints 2: Re: brushing acrylic paints 3: Belgian Navy 4: Yamato/PrinzEugen/Wish List 5: Re: 1/350 scale model wish list 6: Mo Reaches Hawaii (Censored Version:-) 7: Iowa's ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS & ANNOUNCEMENTS INDEX 1: Nautilus BLUEFISH conversion set ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Robert R.M. de Vlam" Subject: Re: brushing acrylic paints >> I have always found Humbrol to have superb hand-brush coverage, perhaps you are doing something wrong. Mix the paint thoroughly, and dip the brush in the tin, don't use the stuff on the lid, just wipe that off with a rag. Also make sure your tins are tightly sealed, clean the rims and use a hammer to shut them. Work quickly and don't let the paint dry out on the brush. When the brush starts to feel thick, clean it in thinner and start again. Lots of people swear by PollyS for hand-brushing but I don't like it at all and have much better results with Humbrol. One trick you can use with most paints in order to get ultra-fine coverage is to filter out the heavy pigment particles. Easier done than said - stir up the paint then wait about an hour or two before opening the jar, (depends on the brand). Let the jar sit undisturbed on a level surface. This will cause the larger, heavier particles of paint pigment to settle to the bottom, while the finer particles remain in fluid suspention. Take your paint from the top and don't stir up the bottom. This may cause your coat to be a bit glossier, but it will be smoother and won't obscure minute detail. The gloss can be toned down later with dullcoat. << Hi Dave, Thank you for your extensive answer. Humbrol acrylics are not bad, but in my opinion not good enough. Furthermore, not all the colors are available in Holland, as the demand is small. According to the importing company, whatever is imported is mostly used for painting tin soldiers. However I wish I had a full range available in Holland. Apparently you use tins instead of plastic bottles. I find that these tins start rusting very quickly. Humbrol also uses plastic containers for acrylics. In case I do not find the quality I look for, I will try out your filter technique. Robert de Vlam. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Robert R.M. de Vlam" Subject: Re: brushing acrylic paints >> I have found Floquil Polly S paints to be extremely "brush-friendly" and I think my assessment will be echoed by other 1/1200 modelers...it even seems to me that Paul Jacobs uses these...right, Paul? Don;'t know about their availability in Europe. << Dear Dave, Yes, Paul wrote to me once, that he is using the brand you mentioned, but wrote also that he did not find the brushing qualities of the acrylics quite satisfactory. Furthermore, I do not know whether the paint is available in Europe or not . If you could give me their email or fax address, I can find out. Robert de Vlam. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Stefan Smets Subject: Belgian Navy For those interested in the Belgian navy: there's an official website(about all the Belgian armed forces, btw): htt[://www.mil.be/marine CU, Stefan. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Steve Sobieralski Subject: Yamato/PrinzEugen/Wish List I don't consider myself a "Yamatoholic", but all the recent comments about the Yamato made me realize I just "celebrated" my 20th anniversery with my own Nichimo "monster in the closet". I think I paid $85.00 for mine- remember we're talking 1978-it was on sale at a local hobby shop and my birthday was approaching so I went for it (Hey honey, guess what you bought me for my birthday). My initial euphoria at the size and scale of the thing (those main gun turrets may be too small, but they're still pretty impressive) was soon tempered by the realization that making anything close to a "museum quality" model out of this thing was going to take a lot of time and effort. Over the years I must have taken the thing out of the box about ten times, looked at it put a few pieces together, and then put it away after losing interest, enthusiasm or both. My main obstacle seemed to be a lack of reference material-I had the Warship Profile, but that was about it. When I saw Skulski's Anatomy advertised in the upcoming features section of the USNI catalog (was that nine(!) years ago?) I figured I was on my way, I couldn't wait. When I finaly got the book I quickly realized that I hadn't had a clue about how much work would be involved to turn this thing into even a semi-accuarate replica of the real ship. (By the way, about the only exciting new offering that I see in the new USNI catalog is Skulski's upcoming Anatomy on the Fuso-due in September I think.) I also recently acquired an impressive Japanese publication on the Yamato called "Super Illustration" which is over 100 pages of perpective drawings of all aspects of the ship fom the hull to deck fittings. So for the last few years I have been periodically taking on small segments of the kit and "accurizing" them to the best of my ability, patience and endurance. Needless to say, I agree with what's been said here before about the shortcomings of the Yamato kit, but the other kits in the Nichimo 1/200th line are a different story. There are four WWII offerings and, I think, three or four modern JMSDF ships. The four WWII kits are the destroyers Kagero and Akizuki, and submarines I-15 and a Type IX U-boat. The destroyers are very nice and, with the addition of some photo-etched railings and other details, can be made into exquisite models-the Akizuki is a particularly handsome and impressive ship. One nice feature they all share is a two piece hull split not longitudinally, but at the waterline. I'm not sure about the current availability of these other kits, but for 20+ year old plastic kits they are well molded, fairly well detailed, and worth acquiring if you're a fan of large scale warship models. On the Prinz Eugen-I just obtained a book called Ghost Fleet: The Sunken Ships of Bikini Atoll by James P. Delgado. I haven't had a chance to read it completely yet, but I have skimed a few portions of it. Delgado made extensive dives to the ships at Bikini as well as the Prinz Eugen and there are detailed observations about the conditions of the ships in the book. It is my initial impression from browsing the book that the PE sustained rather severe hull damage from the underwater A-bomb test which caused or contributed to her sinking, and that the hull today is severely deteriorated and weakened in the damaged area and could not be refloated. I could be wrong about this-I'll read more extensively and post what details about this are in the book. One interesting statement in the book concerns the reason for the ship's acquisition by the US Navy after the war. I remember some speculation here recently regarding the PE becoming an operational unit of the US fleet and how she might have appeared had she done so. Apparently, the US wanted the ship mainly to keep her out of Soviet hands, rather than having any real interest in or desire for the ship herself. There is a quote from the ship's American captain to the effect that on taking command he had anticipated that the navy would operate the ship for a few months, basically to check out her machinery and equipment, particularly those items believed to be superior to ours. Then he received the orders to take the ship to Bikini. Another macabre detail that emerges from the book is that the Japanese battleship Nagato still carried dead bodies from her crew when she was sunk during the tests. As far as ships that should have been saved, how about the Goeben/Yavuz? A genuine WWI German battlecruiser that was scrapped when?-in the sixties or seventies. UNBELIEVABLE. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Allan Plumb Subject: Re: 1/350 scale model wish list >> I started to think of a beautiful ship. all in the eye of the beholder, of course. take a look at the Alaska Class large cruisers, Alaska CB1 and Guam CB2. These white elephants were obsolete on the day they were launched, << As I've told a correspondent, the ship with the best combination of I'd-like-it-and-enuf-others-might-buy-it would be HMS Exeter. However, my favorite subject is battleships. More specifically, battlecruisers. Even more specifically, pointless battlecruisers. (I think all big-gun capital ships have been not-cost-effective since the effective entry of mines, torpedoes, and aircraft, but they're still awe-inspiring. And fun to build.) In that category, I'd love to have an Alaska, but even more I'd love to have HMS Glorious/Courageous. (Furious is too far gone even for me.) Talk about your classic "eggshells with hammers"! Allan Plumb P.S. On another thread, I'm in Houston, Texas, USA. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: Henry Subject: Mo Reaches Hawaii (Censored Version:-) Greg I realize this info will be of little use to you, but there are others on the website that may be interested. The Missouri is in Hawaii!!! I understand that she should, as we speak be tying up at Pearl Harbor!! She was sighted off the windward coast at 0600 this morning and was to be parked off Waikiki for display at 1000. Enjoy!! v/r HBlecha ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: "Morley, James (Frankfurt)" Subject: Iowa's Can someone just talk me through the differences in Bridge structure of the 4 Iowa's (the Squadron book - "Fast Battleships II" does not do this). ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS & ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From: James Corley Subject: Nautilus BLUEFISH conversion set A review of the new Nautilus BLUEFISH conversion set is now available for viewing at http://warship.simplenet.com/nautilus.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume