Subject: SMML26/05/99VOL557 Date: Thu, 27 May 1999 00:00:46 +1000 shipmodels@tac.com.au -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Re: Photo etched Brass 2: Re: Really Obscure Modelling 3: Re: Charging for email 4: UNREP's 5: Atlantic Models Resin 1/600 Ship Vote 6: 1/600 Resin Upgrades 7: Re: Skywave Oi and Kitakami kits 8: Re: charging for e-mail 9: Re: Yamato wreck 10: Re: HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse 11: Aztek Airbrush 12: ICM KITS 13: Chatham Navy Days 14: SUB-MARINE - OBITUARY AND ROCKETS 15: SMML Coast-to-Coast 16: 1/192nd scale FLETCHER DD 17: Re: Wrecks 18: Re: Prince of Wales & Repulse 19: Tumbling Turrets 20: Re: Pirate Radio Ship -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD INDEX 1: Rich Hahn -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: ALTON007@aol.com Subject: Re: Photo etched Brass Is there a way to make photo etched brass a little stronger without adding to much to the cost of making it. Maybe its just my old shaky fingers but I seem to use a lot of it up. Do you all have the same problem are just a few like me that maybe doesn't really take enough time in handling it or really don't know how to handle it. Maybe Rusty with Flagship Models since he's the pro up to his brass in brass can give us old timers a little insight in making photo brass a little stronger are advise us the best way in handling it. Andy...........A Tin Can Sailor -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: NEFFD@dteenergy.com Subject: Re: Really Obscure Modelling John Platt asked: >> ..offshore radio stations or to use their more popular name pirate radio stations...do any of you have any pictures or plans of these ships...? << These stations broadcasted in the "Short Wave" region of the air waves as is normal in most of the world except here in the USA. Short wave in the USA is used only by Ham Radio hobbyists such as I was in the 60s. We listened to the pirate ships with our homemade short wave receivers and the pirate radio ships developed quite a following in the USA. (I used to listen "Radio Che" from offshore Cuba to keep up my Spanish) The early 60s short wave magazines in the USA often had a feature issue about one of the pirate stations complete with photographs of the interior and exterior of the featured ship. They were a real variety of ships as John mentioned, many being old fishing boats. I suggest that some of the USA SMMLies could check their libraries for old copies of these magazines and send John photocopies of the pirate ship articles. John, you should search the internet for "Ham Radio" or "Amateur Radio" sites. Many of the older USA Hams at those sites will have postcards with pictures of the ships which the stations would send to us if we contacted them. Don Neff Novi, MI, USA (where it is as cloudy as the UK today) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: Bill Schnakenberg Subject: Re: Charging for email >> In a way, this also belongs under the previous thread of "DO THE RESEARCH!" The very immediate nature of the Internet makes "current events" type postings inherently suspect. I'm sure Rusty White was only trying to be helpful in his post regarding alleged pending US legislation to allow the US Postal Service to charge for e-mail, however, my initial reaction was that it was the latest installment of a continuing hoax. The US Postal Service is an independent, publicly regulated enterprise that already turns a profit. It receives no government money. The US Postal Service has nothing to do with electronic media. I then checked the official listing of all members of the US House of Representatives, and, guess what?, there is no Tony Schnell listed! By all means, people, remain vigilant, but check the facts first. << Actually, the USPS does have it's fingers in the Internet pie in one regard. Internet fraud. The following is a quote from the USPS website, http://www.usps.gov. What do Postal Inspectors, protectors of the U.S. Mail, have to do with Internet fraud? Fraud on the Internet results in mail fraud when cyberscammers receive payments for their illegal schemes through the U.S. Mail. That's why this new arena of fraud is of growing concern to Postal Inspectors. End quote: Bill - PSP Terrorist - D'Lanok de Caresk chapter - Anti-Troll Unit 235 The USS Salem, CA-139. The World's only preserved Heavy Cruiser, Quincy, MASS. http://members.xoom.com/ltwes329/salem.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From: "Richard - Charlotte Marelius" Subject: UNREP's Someone a couple of weeks ago was looking for photos of CVN's (I think it was CVN65 specifically) being replenished at sea. I don't recall any responses, but my wife (!) just stumbled across this site for U.S. Navy Digital Imagery: http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/.www/digital.html There are quite a few UNREP (underway replenishment) shots of CVN's, CVN with CG's, etc., for those contemplating dioramas. Most, if not all, of these shots are recent, as in the last 2-3 years, so you're out of luck if you're looking for shots from the 60's, 70's and 80's. But they do have a small section on current (past couple of weeks) pictures from the Adriatic or other places of interest. Cheers Rick Marelius -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From: Felix Bustelo Subject: Atlantic Models Resin 1/600 Ship Vote Hello SMMLers, Here is a quick update - 32 people have responded so far, with a few others promising to vote after they think more about the subjects they would like to see. While this is much better that the Airfix response, I know that there are more out there that would like to see this happen. So far, the Normandie is leading the count with 11 votes, the HMS Dido is 2nd with 6 votes, HMS Exeter 3 votes, the following have 2 votes - RMS Titanic, an Essex-Class Carrier (WW2 fit), HMS Illustrious (WW2) and a slew of others with one vote. Also, let this be a reminder that the deadline will be June 30, 1999. So, please send in your two choices for a a subject that you would like to see in 1/600 scale. Send your votes to my webmaster address : mailto:imm_web_master@yahoo.com Once the voting is completed and ballots are tabulated, Peter and I will share the info with SMML regarding the price of the kit. Peter has indicated to me that all it will take is 10 (yes TEN) firm pledges through WEM, which is the exclusive outlet for Atlantic Models. A firm pledge is defined as a credit card number or a deposit with WEM. So, all of you 1/600 scale "fans", here is your chance to get something new on the market. Cheers, Felix Bustelo IMM Webmaster http://members.tripod.com/~Febus65/imm.htm -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From: Felix Bustelo Subject: 1/600 Resin Upgrades Hello folks, I have already sent Caroline an e-mail, but I wanted to share my suggestions with others here. #1 - Boats - Airfix kits really need some decent boats. #2 - Type 271/272 Radar Lanterns #3 - Airplanes Basically, I'll be happy with anything they produce in this scale. And a hearty Yahoo on the Ark Royal PE set. Time to buy those diapers... Cheers, Felix Bustelo -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From: Uwe Besken Subject: Re: Skywave Oi and Kitakami kits Hi Daniel and other interested SMMLies In addition to Douglas, there is to mention, that the decalsheet is slightly different. The only difference are the Shipnames, there are more than one name on each sheet of them but there is no mention in the Instruction nor the back of the box what the names are. I think it can be the names of the other three ships of the Kuma class. Uwe (Germany) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From: "Reynaga, Tim@EDD" Subject: Re: charging for e-mail This is indeed a hoax. A good place to check out any Internet info you think might be questionable is the U.S. Department of Energy's Computer Incident Advisory Capability (CIAC) website at http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/CIACHoaxes.html which tracks and provides the latest info on Internet hoaxes and chain letters as well as links to virus description databases. According to CIAC: Internet access charges... This is a variant of the historic modem tax hoax of bygone years. This latest version started making its rounds on Nov 06, 1998, based apparently on a CNN story. Early versions pointed the finger at the FCC as the villian in this story. Then it was 'the government', then it was 'the Congress'... Further info on this particular hoax can be found at" http://ciac.llnl.gov/ciac/CIACHoaxes.html#internetcharge Tim Reynaga -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From: "Reynaga, Tim@EDD" Subject: Re: Yamato wreck I came across an interesting item in the December, 1995 issue of Smithsonian magazine by science journalist Tomoyuki Kohara: Fish Like Steel-Frame Homes Japan's biggest WWII battleship, the Yamato, was sunk at the end of the war and now lies at the bottom of the East China Sea. According to anglers in the area, the sunken hulk of the Yamato has now become home to large schools of kelp groupers, some close to two meters in length. This makes fishing in the area a dream-come-true for fishermen. The most popular type of old vessel among fish is the steel ship. Fish prefer steel, not because it makes a good sturdy home, but because the constant exposure of the steel to the sea water causes the steel to give up iron ions(Fe++) to the water. This makes the water around a sunken ship rich in seaweeds and phytoplankton which in turn creates an abundant food supply for fish. The reason for this is that iron ions constitute an indispensible part of the electron transport system that is so important in the photosynthesis of plants. In the absence of iron, a plant is unable to acquire energy by photosynthesis. Steel hulls, which are abundant sources of iron ions, thus make good breeding grounds for fish insofar as they also constitute perfect environments for the growth of the plants that serve as the fish's food. In Japan, the state is taking the lead in the creation of what might be referred to as artificial reefs to increase the overall size of the country's marine resources. Such artificial reefs come in all shapes and sizes ranging from pyramids to building shapes, with some standing more than 10 meters in height. An artificial reef with a height between 1/9 and 1/10 of the depth of the sea in which it stands can generate an up-current of water that makes a more favorable environment for fish. Ironically, we are building structures the size of battleships, not for floating, but for submerging to act as living environments for fish. Tim Reynaga -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From: Norman Samish Subject: Re: HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse >> I have an article from a dive magazine that describes a dive on Prince of Wales if anyone is interested (no pictures though, and I'd have to find it). << If you locate it, I'd like to see the article from the dive magazine. Some advanced scuba divers have explored some of the wrecks at Bikini, I understand. Does anybody have particulars on these? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From: "Mike Leonard" Subject: Aztek Airbrush After spending nearly a weekend secluded in my workshop with the Aztek airbrush, I may be ready to declare the thing to be the greatest invention since sliced bread, or maybe even bottled beer. The first airbrush I ever used that handles acrylics as easily as enamels. I had a slight problem, though, when I went back the next day and the acrylic nozzle seemed a bit clogged. Any suggestions for cleaning the acrylic tip with something other than water would be appreciated, i.e., lacquer thinner, rubbing alcohol. They also sell a rather pricey cleaning solution, has anybody tried that? Thanks, Mike L Alexandria, VA USA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From: "Caroline Carter" Subject: ICM KITS Hi Guys.. All assistance required.. any help gratefully accepted please! We NEED one of each of the new ICM 1/350 kits of Konig and Kurfurst. If ANYONE out there can supply, then we intend to do a photoetched brass detail set for them (tho' this is the first that Peter Hall has heard about it!). Alternatively, the contact for a model shop/distributor (pref. European) for these kits would be useful, or a fax/E-Mail/website for the manufacturer. Can't figure out who the U.K. importers might be..... Best Regards, Caroline Carter http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/white.ensign.models/index.htm White Ensign Models -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13) From: "Caroline Carter" Subject: Chatham Navy Days Hi Guys, Will there be many of us SMMLlies at Chatham Navy days this weekend. Dave and I will be whizzing down on Saturday (5 am departure) and will probably be there over the bank hols, purely from a voyeuristic point of view. Hopefully accommodation shouldn't be too horrendous to find (she said hopefully!), and the sun promises to shine all weekend, at least in Kent. This will be our first shot at HMS Cavalier, and we anticipate a guided tour of HMS Exeter 1999 from an old customer of ours. It will be nice to see Hornblower's ship "Grand Turk" once again, this time, it seems, she will be in battle! It would be great to see some of you there! These are the webpages. http://www.medwaytowns.com/calendar/1999/navydays.html http://www.medwaytowns.com/dockimage.html Best Regards, Caroline Carter http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/white.ensign.models/index.htm White Ensign Models -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14) From: "Phil Gollin" Subject: SUB-MARINE - OBITUARY AND ROCKETS I was reading the Guardian newspaper today (for non-British-types this is regarded as a very left-wing rag) and was surprised to read the obituary of (Rear-Admiral) Rafael Benitez "Veteran US Submariner and naval hero" (died March 6th). It is rare for the Guardian to publish obits on Royal Naval personnel and this is quite astounding he must have made quite an impression. The obituary went into quite a lot of detail regarding the circumstances surrounding the sinking of the USS Cochino on an intelligence gathering mission in August of 1949. However, there was no real detail concerning the mission itself does anyone have any information? Another Sub-marine matter - apart from a couple of vague newspaper reports, the only real information I can find on the Soviet "Rocket" torpedoes comes from The Naval Institute Guide to World Naval Weapons Systems, 1997-98 (p.683) where they are referenced as "Shval" Entered service in 1977, with a speed of "approximately 200 knots, armed with nuclear warheads (2 yields = ??? kT) and with a range of 12,000 yds, claimed to be effective against submarines upto 30 kts. The newspaper reports I read seemed to indicate that the revelation of the torpedoes was a surprise to western intelligence is this so and does anyone have any more up-to-date info, in particular; Latest ideas on :- Actual Date of entry into service and issue allowances ? Actual Speed ? Actual Range ? Accuracy ? Plus, were they ever regarded as anti-shipping (especially anti-carrier) torpedoes, or only as last-ditch anti-submarine defences? Most importantly - what were/are the Counter-measures or tactics intended to be employed against it? Likewise, are any of the western navies now designing their own versions? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15) From: "Mike Leonard" Subject: SMML Coast-to-Coast Kurt wrote >> Hi Everyone, Well, I am home - 36 days, 11,400 miles, 30 states and the District of Columbia. Been there, done that, got the refrigerator magnet to prove it << Hope you managed not to pick up any speeding tickets along the way. Many of us were with you in spirit, you can be sure. These figures reminded me of those typical reports that come right after a deployment: how many miles steamed, how many gallons of fuel burned, how many eggs consumed, etc. When once tasked to calculate fuel consumption, miles steamed, average speed, etc. I finally threw my hands up and more or less fabricated some numbers that sounded good to all concerned. Mike L Alexandria, VA USA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16) From: BSteinIPMS@aol.com Subject: 1/192nd scale FLETCHER DD Bill: I've spent the past 4 years thus far on BlueJacket Ship Crafters' 1/192 scale FLETCHER class destroyer, USS KIDD. Overall, I think it's a nice kit that can be made out of the box into a presentable model if you have average woodworking skills. The kit provides a solid basswood hull, many britannia pewter castings, a number of sheets of photoetched brass, two sheets of so-so plans (quality of printing-wise), and a very good instruction booklet. It's a late war configured square bridge FLETCHER. If you get BlueJacket's catalog you can study the color photo of their finished model and you will then be in a better position to determine whether the level of detail you see will make this a model you'll be proud of. For me, the model provided an excellent base to lavish the detail I wanted, to replace those items I thought I could do a better job of, to make this the best steel warship model I was capable of. Thus far, at the 95% completion stage, I have 1892 hours invested in the model. Rob Mackie has a photo of the model (at the 90% completion stage) on his excellent Web site "Warship", under Gallery, Destroyers, and while the caption says the model is scratch-built I hasten to add that it is only about 70% scratch-built. The bottom line, for me, is that this has been a very interesting project, I've had great fun, I've learned much about this class of ships, and yes, I'd do it again. But I knew when I started this model that the actual date of completion or the amount of time it would require were unimportant to me. The goal was the best model I could build, not how quickly I could build it. Since this is a personal decision that each modeler has to make for himself, you have to define your goals. If a moderate amount of time spent with a kit which provides most everything for you, you may wish to wait for the imminent 1/192nd scale resin-cast KIDD soon to be released. Hope this helps, Bob Steinbrunn Minneapolis (Where he has spent so much time scrutinizing photos in all his FLETCHER references that he can find any point on his model blindfolded in the dark...) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17) From: Jonathan Parshall Subject: Re: Wrecks >> Another aside relates to Ballard's search for Akagi, Kaga, etc. From what I can figure out from the National Geographic article, he didn't use his trusted search method of real-time video used to locate Titanic, but instead used side-scan sonar, a search method he once rejected, and which results in lots of potential targets, all requiring lowering a video camera to have a peek, which takes many hours at those kind of depths. Budget problems? All that effort and time and only a few photos of Yorktown to show for it? << I am disappointed with the outcome of the expedition, too, for obvious reasons. Trying to read between the lines of the documentary, I am sensing that Ballard may have been far from satisfied with the way this mission turned out. For one thing, he had equipment problems out the yazoo to contend with. In addition, I was told by another individual recently that the Navy told *Ballard* that if he was going to use *their* equipment, he was going to damn well focus on finding *their* ships. Hence the need to look for Hammann, which (in the very biased opinion of this researcher) is about as important to completing our understanding of the historical record as finding my cousin Eddie's ski boat, especially if you've got Akagi sitting out there nigh to hand. I'm not slagging Ballard; I'm sure that funding high-profile commercial history expeditions is not an easy undertaking. He did what he needed to do to wangle the equipment and all that. But I can't pretend that I'm happy with the results of this expedition. I'm really glad he found Yorktown--she was a gallant, important ship, and fully worthy of his effort. But Hammann over Akagi? Let's get real, folks... Jon Parshall Imperial Japanese Navy Homepage http://www.skypoint.com/members/jbp/kaigun.htm -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18) From: Sanartjam@aol.com Subject: Re: Prince of Wales & Repulse Hi All, I'm very interested in the dives on the Prince of Wales and Repulse, and was wondering: 1. Could I get a name and address of the diver who dived the Repulse last summer? I presume the PoW was a bit too deep to dive; the New Zealand team that dove the wrecks in 1989 was able to spend a lot of time on the Repulse but only a very short time on the PoW. 2. Was the article on the wrecks from the Royal Navy Diving Magazine or another publication? There were articles in the Diving Magazine in 1965 and 1966 by D.P.R. Lermitte, who led the dives. 3. Was the ABC special "Battleship, Battleship" about a fellow named Ray Hyde? It sounds like him; he was trying to put together something called "Project Battleship." He was a diver who once worked at a "Marineland" near Sydney. Is there a way I can contact ABC for more information on the special they did? Regarding the PoW's propellers, I think two of them were knocked off by the Japanese torpedoes hitting the shaft brackets (one on the portside and one on the starboard side). To the extent this is getting off-topic, I apologize, but this is really interesting stuff to me. Cheers, Art Nicholson Hi Art, Try contacting the ABC(Australian Broadcasting Corp) at: http://www.abc.net.au Shane -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19) From: Suvoroff@aol.com Subject: Tumbling Turrets >> An interesting point is that the main armament is still attached, something which fell out of Bismarck when she capsized (any ideas anyone?) << It is also interesting to note that the turrets stayed in the German dreadnoughts scuttled at Scapa Flow while they fell out of the Bismarck. I presume that there is some mechanical feature in the ships of the Second Reich to keep the turrets in place, which was removed by the time of the Third Reich. But why have this in the first place? If the ship rolls to the extent that would have the turrets fall out surely it would be too late anyway. Yours, James D. Gray -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20) From: Louis Dausse Subject: Re: Pirate Radio Ship John Platt wondered about pictures or information on pirate radio ships. How about a model? There is a 15" Dutch paper model of a pirate ship named Radio Veronica. We have a few. We don't catalog it because I'm not sure it is still available from Holland and the directions are all in Dutch. The kit has a nice illustration. Anyone interested, send an email to: mailto:l.dausse.pmi@worldnet.att.net and we will send a photocopy of the picture, information on the kit and, of course, our catalog. I was once interviewed by a Dutch pirate station (landbased). It was an eeire experience. On a foggy night, somewhere on the coast my Dutch host and I had to find a blacked-out hut where the pirates operated. I could have sworn I was in the Dutch Underground, dodging the Gestapo, to get a message out. In fact, the station was raided by the police from time to time. The station's listeners paid the fine that was levied and the station would find some new hiding place to broadcast from. I don't think they ever operated from a ship. Lou Dausse Paper Model International -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: "Pletscher-Lenz-Schneider" Subject: Rich Hahn I was trying to send a message to Rich Hahn. But my computer keeps telling me that his address has "permanent fatal errors". Does anybody know how to reach him or can anybody forward a message to him that he should contact me, when is e-mail works again? Thanks Falk -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume