Subject: SMML VOL 1882 Date: Tue, 20 Aug 2002 11:45:57 +1000 SMML is proudly sponsored by SANDLE http://sandlehobbies.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Re: Pizza boxes 2: Re: Project Mercury/Gemini 3: Re: USS OMAHA and color schemes 4: White Paint on Mediterranean Station Ships (Was USS Omaha) 5: Re: weathering techniques 6: Invisible details, weathering 7: Re: Apollo/USS Bennington 8: Watching Paint Dry 9: Re: Omaha's white and buff 10: Re: The Joys of Rust 11: Re: Realistic paint jobs 12: The Mighty Iowas??? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: Fkbrown90@aol.com Subject: Re: Pizza boxes Thanks for the interesting suggestions of uses for used pizza boxes. They all rank right up there with my contribution, leaving them on the kitchen table to remind me to go get another pizza!!!! Franklyn ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: cpowewax@att.net Subject: Re: Project Mercury/Gemini USS Wasp CVS-18 was the prime recovery ship for all Mercury and Gemini mission up to GT12. After that splashdowns switched to the Pacific and Hornet took over. I was a young PO3 aboard Wasp in 1966/67 and made two of the last Gemini Missions. I was also aboard USS Neosho AO143 when prior Gemini/Mercury missions flew and we were a back up recovery vessel station off of the Canary Islands in case they missed their primary splashdown point. I remember vivdly being screened as a blood donner since I have O-Neg blood, and practicing with the boiler plate mock up capsules enroute. I also remember aboard Wasp almost accidently walking into the Telephone conversation between the astronauts and the President. This was staged just outside of the sickbay on Wasp, It happened at the top of the ladder to my berthing compartment. No one told us and we were leaving, then we saw all the lights, and someone off camera waving frantically at us to go back down. I had many 8x10 glossys since I worked with the NASA folks shipping their materials for them. I donated these to the Boy Scouts of America museum in Princton Junction NJ. This has since been relocated to somewhere in TX. When we would return to Boston Harbor everyone from the Governor on down would be there to greet us. The aft starboard aircraft elevator on Wasp folded up in a verticle position for bad weather. So we would place the capsule behind the folded elevator in Hanger bay 3. Then once tied up they made a big presentation out of lowering the elevator, and wheeling the capsule, and or Trailer containing the astronauts to the edge of the elevator for the media. Wayne E. Weatherwax SKC,USN(ret) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: "Michael London" Subject: Re: USS OMAHA and color schemes In response to John Snyder's response to color schemes adopted by USN and RN in tropical climes the following applied to RN ships prior to WW 2. Home Fleet - dark grey. East Indies and China - white to fo's'c'le deck level, medium grey above. Mediterranean & other foreign stations - very pale grey. Note white hulls were not used in the Med except where a ship from another station is passing through (it was not uncommon for such ships to be photographed at Malta, say, en route to the Far East). Surveying ships and China gunboats - white hull, buff funnels, ochre masts and yards. Boot topping: Grey hulls - black. White hulls, grey upperworks - dark grey White hulls & yellow funnels - red Michael London ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From: "Edward F Grune" Subject: White Paint on Mediterranean Station Ships (Was USS Omaha) John Snyder commented: >> Such paint schemes, though archaic appearing to us now, persisted nearly to the outbreak of WW2. << Photographic evidence shows that the use of the white scheme resumed after the end of WW2. I refer you to photos at the US Naval Historical Center of the USS Grenwich Bay (AVP-41) as the Middle East Force Flagship in 1955. http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h97000/h97640.jpg I would assume that the practice continued until the installation of air conditioning became common on all ships. Ed Mansfield, TX ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From: "Bud Link" Subject: Re: weathering techniques Weathering is a very big factor in the model railroad hobby, and among plastic aircraft kit builders, too. Try some of their sites. [I'm a great believer in "cross-fertilization" -- SOMEBODY out there has already solved whatever I'm wrestling with!] Here's a good one from the aircraft guys: http://hem.bredband.net/thomaskolb/art/models/weather_e.htm Also, look at the use of "washes" to bring out detail on the above site. Again, on small ships the method would be best used at a subdued level. Go from the weathering pages to the painting, detailing, and other pages for some inspirational models [even if they only float a short while]. There are good illustrations of the use of "multi-hued" painting, though probably exaggerated for small-scale ship models. Good illustrations of outdoor model photos, too. "How-to," also. Pet peeve: graphics that are too bold. The thread discussed viewing distances. That is, we often view models from hundreds of scale feet away. At those distances, many markings stand out much less than they do on a model [look at prototype ship photos and notice how hard pennant numbers and signal flags can be to read, or at a real railroad car and note how little contrast there is between "white" numbers and an oxide red car side]. http://hem.bredband.net/thomaskolb/art/models/s3a_e.htm Tell me you immediately knew this S-3 was a model! http://hem.bredband.net/thomaskolb/art/models/ea6a_e.htm Same for this EA-6A sitting on the ramp. Hope this helps. Bud p.s. the resin parts the airplane guys have make me jealous! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From: "john fiebke" Subject: Invisible details, weathering I don't agree that there is a "scale" distance that people look at models. If everything on the ship is more or less in scale, it wouldn't matter what distance you look at it. On my last model (1/700 skywave/pitroad Chokai) I used Gold Medal Model's Ultra-fine IJN railing...and from typical viewing distances you can't see them. So why use them? Because when you look closer, they're there. My belief is that a great model will encourage people to look closer...and at a foot away (700'?) railings and weathering WOULD be visable. One tip I haven't heard...I tend to over-due weathering at first, because it's my favorite part of the project. If I've gone overboard (ha ha...sorry), I go over the model with a very fine mist of the hull color, thinned down and lightened. You can still see everything through the mist, but it blends everything together. I've also used this to create a scale effect to the paint. I'll paint the ship a bit darker than it should be, then I'll go over it with mists of the same color, but lightened more than it should be. What results is the correct, "in-between" color, but it has subtle variations. The airbrush is a fantastic tool. j. fiebke ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From: "Doug Marrel" Subject: Re: Apollo/USS Bennington The Bennington CVS-20 was involved in retrieving one of the unmanned Apollo's, Apollo 4. The XC-142 VSTOL transport made the takeoff and landings off her as well. I was told Benny was scheduled for another Apollo retrieval but was yanked for a reason I can't remember, possibly emergency Vietnam requirements. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From: "John Rule" Subject: Watching Paint Dry Yesterday I spray painted a 1:48 scale Royal Navy Skyraider AEW 1 using a Testors Modelmaster spray can. After 24 hours although the paint is dry, it is very soft, and therefore very difficult to handle. If I try to handle it I will get finger prints on it. Any suggestions how to harden the paint? The weather has been fairly hot and fairly humid. Sincerely, John Rule ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From: "Kathy/Pirie Sublett" Subject: Re: Omaha's white and buff Thanks to John Snyder and Pieter Cornelissen for their response to my question about this particular paint scheme. I was aware, of course, that it was used by the Royal Navy on the China Station after WWI, and used on USN smaller craft in the same location, but I had come to the conclusion that it was not used on major warships: i.e. the various "County" class cruisers as depicted in the Man O' War series and other places which I recall reading were actually painted in white and gray. Could it also mean that the painting reproduced an age ago in "Sea Classics" showing Marblehead in white and spar (to fall back on USGC terms and which is not the same color as buff) is correct? If that be so, let me grab that model of Detriot (1945) and my razor saw. The painting was so striking I have never been able to get it out of my head. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From: AAA Hobby Subject: Re: The Joys of Rust >> It's true that the Navy is looking for ways to reduce crew size, since over the lifetime of a ship the biggest single expense is the cost of the crew. Coming up with more durable paints certainly makes sense. 'Deck apes' everywhere will applaud...just as they cheered when the Navy did away with NSFO (Navy Standard Fuel Oil...the black oil which fouled many a ship's side during UNREPs) and substituted distillate fuel. << Now instead of turning the sides black, the stuff can and has been known to eat the paint right off the hull if the seas are calm enough and left to its own devices! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From: AAA Hobby Subject: Re: Realistic paint jobs >> Over the past few days there has been some erudite discussion about the relative virtues of pristine versus weathered painting on models. Personally I think both approaches are equally valid, but dependent upon the setting or base on which the model is displayed, and as long as weathering is not used as a way of hiding substandard workmanship. << Why not? The tread heads have been known to use a lot of mud to hide poor running gear on tanks. Shouldn't we get a similar break?!?! ;-} ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From: "Pwesty" Subject: The Mighty Iowas??? Hi List I was just wondering if all of the Iowa class battleships are still on call? I read on past posts that there was parts of USS New Jesery-62 that were not open to the public do to the fact that she was on six months call up if need or something. I though that all of the Iowas were stricken of the navy list or were about to be. Can somebody give me an update on what the deal with these far from obsolete ships? Thanks ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Check out the SMML site for the List Rules, Backissues, Member's models & reference pictures at: http://smmlonline.com Check out the APMA site for an index of ship articles in the Reference section at: http://apma.org.au/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume