Subject: SMML VOL 862 Date: Mon, 27 Mar 2000 00:00:08 +1000 shipmodels@tac.com.au -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Eastwind WAGB 279 2: clear planes 3: Re: Adding Ballast 4: Re: Battleship Cove 5: Re: D-I-Y paint chips 6: Re: Semtex/Haze Gray 7: Re: Coontz class DDG 8: Casting & Copyright 9: Re: Copyrights 10: Re: Ship museums 11: Re: 1/125 Figures 12: SMML in San Francisco 13: Re: Coontz class DDg/DLG models 14: Classic Warships Pennsylvania Conversion 15: CALYPSO as J-826 16: Re: Museums 17: Fine Art models 18: Need some assistance -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: "Keith Bender" Subject: Eastwind WAGB 279 Ok movie buffs, Which movie was it that had the icebreaker Eastwind WAGB 279? I would love to see it if its available, Thanks, Keith -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: "Keith Bender" Subject: clear planes On regards to the question of making clear aircraft. Yes this can be done for I have seen them. There is a man in CT. who does this. He is also the same fellow who made the P.H. diorama that you may have seen in the past. I will ask him if he wants his name out to the public but I will find out what materials he used. He made all of the hellos for the U.S.S. Princeton LPH 5, that's right, LPH as in early sixties conversion. They are 1:192 scale. Anywho, these little beauties have clear windows once you paint the fuselage. He did tell me had problems with the casting material crinkling so he had to experience with different barriers for the mold. "I'll be back" with more on this, Keith -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: "Polvi, Henry" Subject: Re: Adding Ballast >> I recently finished (except for some details I had to order) a 1:350 plastic copy of the SMS Emden . . . for a beginner's effort I think it looks pretty good. Could have been worse. But there was one thing I did finally do that improved the model by a factor of 10 (in my opinion) without touching any of the visible exterior, and that was to add ballast to the interior hull. << I do the same, for the same reason, I use a bunch of pennies laying in the bottom, solidified in place with white elmer's glue, arranged to give a correct waterline through a bathtub test. [Polvi, Henry] Thornhill, ON -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From: AandMBlevins@gateway.net Subject: Re: Battleship Cove I can appreciate Keith Bender's feelings about the teak from the decks of the USS Massachusetts. I built a model of the Iowa (BB-61) for my son when he was stationed aboard her. He suprised me one weekend when he brought home a piece of teak from the deck. Some trimming, sanding and finishing and it is today the base of the model my son has displayed in his home. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From: ironship@usit.net (Jon Warneke) Subject: Re: D-I-Y paint chips John Sheridan wrote: >> I'm just wondering that's all. It seems like you are doing a awful lot of work for something that can be had for less than 20 bucks. If you are doing it for the sheer joy of knowlege then fine. But if you are doing it so save a few bucks then it seems to me to be a complete waste of time and resources. << Actually, he'd be saving a little more than that. To get all of the colors listed on the website, you would have to purchase both USN sets and both RN sets, so the cost would be around 80 bucks. Saving the cost of the average 1/700 scale large kit, or small 1/350 kit, wouldn't be a complete waste of time, and you'd learn about how the Munsell systems works too (although I still haven't figured out an applications for that yet...). Jon -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From: "John Snyder" Subject: Re: Semtex/Haze Gray Semtex was a cementitious material applied to decks. In the early war period it was a cream color, and was green in the later war period. As far as waiting for Alan Raven's books on RN camouflage goes for a definitive answer, be advised that the Semtex chips in our Royal Navy Sets 1 and 2 are matched to color samples supplied to us by Mr. Raven himself.... Modern Haze Gray does indeed differ in color from the WW2 Haze Gray. For modern USN vessels try the following: Haze Gray: FS 36270 (26270 for scale effect) Deck Gray: FS 36008 (26176 for scale effect) John Snyder Snyder & Short Enterprises The Paint Guys http://www.shipcamouflage.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From: CBNJBB62@aol.com Subject: Re: Coontz class DDG Hi Rod The only kit ever made of the Coontz class DDG was by Renewal back in the 1960s. I have a completed kit of one them and guess what! It's not a Coontz at all they made a Mitscher class DL with a stern missile launcher instead of a 5 inch gun mount. They were sold as Dewey, King, Farragut, and I think Luce. Speaking of ships Lost Aurora is beginning production again and in the next batch after first three kits: old monsters and a World War 1 fighter plane, a ship is listed: the Atlantis. They have web site. Check out Starship Modeler website and they have complete details. Speaking of the Battleship New Jersey it's hull color isn't the only thing new about her. Some where in Congress a letter was lost preventing her transfer to the museum group in Camden, NJ and the EPA has voiced concerns over PCB levels in the ships equipment. Plus the group in Bayonne, NJ has filed a complaint with the Govt. Accounting Office (Congressional Watch Dog Agency) on the choice of the home port for the ship. Oh by the way. Back in W.W.II the New Jersey has had another nickname by her crew: The Big Dragon, been lost to time. A friend of mine who served on her in the mid 80's said The Jersey Cow was another nickname the ship had. OK that's my dimes worth. Craig Bennett -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From: GrafSpee34@aol.com Subject: Casting & Copyright Actually, with very few exceptions, just making a copy of a part of a book, recording or product without the copyright holder's permission is a copyright violation. The law does not draw the line between making copies for oneself and copies for others. Copying is a violation subject to civil prosecution. The "all rights reserved "paragraph in the front of almost any book spells it out in plain English. It may appear that copying a page from a borrowed book or tape for personal use is OK but that's only because most copyright owners simply choose not to pursue their legal rights until the copies are offered for sale or used commercially. Now it is all well and good to talk about ethics and law, or the fact that some worthy maker is being deprived of a few bucks. But keep it in perspective; the original posting referred to making copies of model parts that are out of production and/or not seperately available from the original manufacturer. We are talking about a sector of the market that is so insignificant that manufacturers do not even bother to produce and sell them. Appealing to Joe Modeler's sense of ethics to buy multiple complete kits to get a few parts he needs, or scratch build copies by hand is silly and unrealistic. Not gonna happen. It would be rather better for the kit maker to design and sell replacement or upgraded parts at a price and quality that would make it unattractive to cast, swap and use bootleg copies of kit parts. Dave -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From: Richa5011@aol.com Subject: Re: Copyrights Steve Wiper wrote: >> I think the person above Dave's reply is asking if he could make copies for all his friends. If so that is DEFINITELY a copyright violation. << Steve is correct in this. Though not a lawyer, I create documents that are routinely protected by copyright and I would say that I have read the US Copyright laws backwards and forwards over the years to know where I stand on things. With that said... 1. US Copyright laws are one thing, other countries have other laws...infact until about three years ago, China had no copyright or inelectual property laws at all (an argument can easily be made since Bejing does not enforce the laws they have, that from a practical sense they still don't respect copyrights). 2. In the US the law reads inpart, "Copies may be made only for personal or scholarly use, and may not be sold, republished or otherwise distributed in any way.". What this means in plain english is that, if I find a rare book in the library, I can legally make a xerox copy for myself, but I can not sell or give away xerox copies, or reset the type and republish the book without violation of copyright. This applys to printed material (books and magazines), electronic documents (web sites, etc). photographs, as well as other things like kits and software. You will note that the exchange of money is NOT required to violate copyright. 3. The scenario the original question posed delt with making resin copies of parts. Hypothetically, if I have purchased a kit, and somehow lost one of the parts like a turret, I could legally cast a replacement (a personal use) for myself. However, if I were to sell, or even distribute with out cost those cast turrets to others, that would be a violation of copyright. So the original poster is welcome to make his own, but he can not make them for his friends. Manufacturers (copyright owners) like Steve, Loren, Rusty and the others are well justified in keeping a vigilant eye open for violations of their copyrights. They are the ones that have invested time, money and energy in a product, and are entitled to be compensated for their efforts. Nat Richards -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From: "Joe Costanzo" Subject: Re: Ship museums I don't know about you guys, but I don't like the idea of requiring visitors to take a tour as in Hornet. When I visit a museum ship, I like to do my own thing, not follow a tour guide with a flock of people crowding over all the exhibits! Of course it also depends on how good the tour is. I was visiting USS Edson (alongside Intrepid) and to see anything belowdecks you have to take the tour. The woman giving the tour spent all of 2 minutes in each location, blurting out as much as she could as fast as she could, the tour finished in under 15 minutes. It's a shame too because aside from the usual things there were some very impressive ship models that I would have liked to get a better look at. On the flip side, a staff member on the Bridge was very helpful and even gave me a nice line drawing of the ship. BTW, I have a number of survey shots of the ship for an upcoming model project, so if any of you guys want scans of the pics let me know! Joe Costanzo -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From: Alan Simon Subject: Re: 1/125 Figures Currently re-positioning heads and limbs on several of 18 figures supplied with Revell-Germany U47 (Type VIIB with interior detail). That's a $20+ investment. But U47 is probably easier to find than rare Preiser or Merten TT Scale (1/120) model RR figures (of course, you do get to build the U-boat). Try Walthers or other model RR supply house for TT scale figures. Alan Simon Atlanta, Ga. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From: cfrieden@calpoly.edu Subject: SMML in San Francisco > One of the locals claimed she had two 5" guns, one fore and another aft of the conning tower. Hard to tell since the gangway sits on the after mount. << Pampanito currently carries her origonal deck gun configuration. Her late war configuration was a 5 inch gun aft, a twin 20mm mount forward, and two 40mm guns. Also, the 4 inch gun carried by Pampanito today was carried by the Tautog, the highest scoring US sub of WWII. It was found in a field, in Michigan as I recall, where it was being used by a black powder muzzle loaders club. They would fill it up with gravel and shoot the leaves off of the surrounding trees! Hope this clarifies things, Chris Friedenbach -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13) From: "Bruce Ross" Subject: Re: Coontz class DDg/DLG models >> There must be some mind readers out there, no sooner do I put down a good book on the subject, thinking that it would be a good subject to follow up the C F Adams and Knox with, than lo and behold, someone enquiring about one. I don't believe that this one has been done in any scale at all, which is a shame as it , like the Adams, is a classy looking vessel. Depending on how the Adams and Knox fare in the market place, it will be next on the list for US frigates / destroyer subjects in 1/350, always providing Caroline says yes to it being a WEM kit. << Peter, As a former Coontz sailor I'd definitely be in for one. The only request I'd make is to do one other than Farragut due to she was the only one with the ASROC reload house built up in front of the bridge and that would be a bear to grind off. Make one the others (like Preble....my very personal favorite don't ya know!!) and add a separate piece that could be glued in place for Farragut. Bruce USS Preble DLG-15/DDG-46 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14) From: "kenny_II" Subject: Classic Warships Pennsylvania Conversion Hi, I was at a model show in Houston today and came across the Classic Warships conversion kit for the 1/426 Revell Arizona to USS Penn, 1945 fit. All the parts appear to be there, but there is only one very generic instruction sheet. I'll bet I can get some good advice from a couple of people on this list as to which of the many cool resin parts go where. I'd been wanting a true late war Penn, so this kit is a real unexpected surprise. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance, Tim -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15) From: Victor Baca Subject: CALYPSO as J-826 In volume 861 of SMML Malcom asked for info about Calypso's beginnings. The RV Calypso was christened as the Royal Navy minesweeper J-826 in 1942, she was of the YMS class built as lend-lease in the U.S. She served after the war as a ferry boat on the Gozo to Malta run. On July 19, 1950, the ex-warship and lowly ferry was sent to Antibes to be transformed into the most celebrated little ship of our time. THE definitive book on Calypso, "Jacques Cousteau's Calypso," written by Jacques Cousteau and Alexis Severine is a must-have for any fan of the great oceanographer and his famous ship. The book was published by Harry N. Abrams, Inc., the ISBN # is: 0-8109-0788-7 (1983). When you open the book, you're greeted by a beautifully drawn general arrangement plan of Calypso, inside is a wealth of info on the ship with fold out drawings to really get your modeling juices going. The cover drawing shows the ship in the modern guise with the squared off forward wheel house windows. There was a set of plans published by the Musee De La Marine showing Calypso in her 1950s era configuration (rounded wheelhouse face). I purchased a copy some years ago from Abe Taubman. He may still have this nicely drawn set available (it also came with B&W pix of the museum's model). National geographic magazines dated October 1952 and March 1958 show La Calypso as she appeared with the rounded wheelhouse face as well. This early material coupled with the little Revell kit would make an interesting modifucation. Good Night Jacques, Wherever You Are... Victor Baca -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16) From: Bradford Chaucer Subject: Re: Museums >> As for the bastardization of our museum ships, Lex, Intrepid and the rest, I understand a playground of sorts for the rugrats , but the interactive crap described in postings and other personal accounts, leads me to personal disgust. History and honor are not trendy or fun. The memories of the heroes who served, fought and died from these monuments should not be defiled by this kind of activity. I would hope that the USN, which often retains a certain amount of control over museum ships, would put a halt to all that. I'll get off my soapbox.(reminds me of Hyde Park Corner!!). << The same has always been true of the Air and Space museum in D.C. I was always disgusted by the lack of meaningful info about the aircraft that they had on display. I was particularly bemused at the 3-4 lines that they managed to scrape together to explain the significance of the C47!! Regards, Bradford Chaucer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17) From: Schiefet@cs.com Subject: Fine Art models >> I came across this company's site by accident. Without a doubt, these are the best, high quality and detailed models I have ever seen! Photos of the Fletcher destroyer and Arizona models have to be seen to be believed. Obviously, no expense is spared producing these amazing models. I haven't gone through the whole site to find pricing, but certainly they must run in the many thousands. Check it out and be amazed. http://www.fineartmodels.com/about_us.htm << Greetings, Fine Art Models had several of their assembled kits on display in the United Terminal of the Detroit airport. One of the guys in the office spotted them and brought back a brochure. Steve Singlar Pelham, NH ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18) From: "Bruce Buchner" Subject: Need some assistance I attended an IPMS show yesterday and bought several ship kits from the vendors. One is the Modelkrak Russo-Japanese War Suvorov in 1/700. Kit seems very nice but when I opened it I found I had no instructions. Does anyone else have this kit that could copy the instructions and email/fax/send them to me? Ideas for color schemes would be helpful. I tried to look on Vladimir Kopylov's Russian Navy page for a photo but it seems to be no longer available. Does anyone know if it has a new address? I also purchased a Torpedo Run 1/350 Soviet Golf II missile sub which I think is the same type as was involved in the famous Glomar Explorer expedition. The casting is superb but of course the instructions are in Japanese. The color photo of the finished model on the box shows the upperhull and sail to be the expected black but the hull below the waterline is light green about the color of RAF WWII Sky Type S. Does anyone have an idea if this is correct or what colors the Soviets used below the waterline? Thanks, Bruce Buchner -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SMMLcon Infomation & posts The Deadline to pre-register for the SMML convention is April 1st 2000! If you want to attend, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can get a accurate head count. Also, for those who plan on coming to the convention from far away, the special rate on the Hotel expires on April 6th. Hotel arrangements can be found at: http://www.smml.org.uk/help/smml_hotels.html The SMML convention date is May 5th and May 6th onboard the USS Salem (CA-139) Ship Museum. For more information, check out the SMML website at: http://www.smml.org.uk/help/smml_con.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thanks for having SMML at your home, why not stop by our home at: http://www.smml.org.uk -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume