Subject: SMML VOL 2826 Date: Sat, 07 May 2005 01:17:12 +1000 The Ship Modelling Mailing List (SMML) is proudly sponsored by SANDLE http//sandlehobbies.com For infomation on how to Post to SMML and Unsubscribe from SMML http//smmlonline.com/aboutsmml/rules.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1 Eastern Express Borodino 2 Re Yamato - Doyusha! 3 Re ARK of china kits 4 Tom vs. Loren Perry race for exquisite kindness 5 1200 mysterious Bismarck kit ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From John Fraser Subject Eastern Express Borodino Hi I was wondering if anyone had seen the 1/350 Eastern Express "Borodino"? I was wondering if it was accurate, if the kit contents were the same as "Kniav Suvorov"or best avoided? For a 1/350 kit of a pre-dreadnaught it seems a bit pricy, but I would probably buy one if it were any good. Many thanks John ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From "Herron, Danny" Subject Re Yamato - Doyusha! Thanks all on the Doyusha Yamato question. Have a great day! Danny R. Herron ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From Darren Scannell Subject Re ARK of china kits Everything you mention about toy like is true. Someone (I can't remember who and he may even read this list) from the Warship Models Underway message board ordered from this company a few months ago. He got a 1/200 Sovremenny I think. It was prebuilt and RC'd. The kit was very basic, crudely made, poorly detailed and the RC portion inside wasn't as advertised. Old batteries, shoddy soldering, makeshift mechanical bits etc. He got very little after sales help from the company. Also, depending where you live, shipping might be unreasonable. I recommend if you want to build in this scale, use the established companies like Scale Shipyard, Sirmar, floating drydock or Loyalhanna. (I know there are more, but these are off the top of a very tired head at the moment) Buy a hull, buy some fittings and scratchbuild the rest. It's much more rewarding and not as difficult as you may think. Anyway, you know the risks, let us know how it turns out. Regards, Darren ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From Bevilacqua Luca Subject Tom vs. Loren Perry race for exquisite kindness Hi all fellow modellers. Having bought a 1200 Nichimo kit set (Yamato, Akizuky, Kagero) for a "small" diorama, I went ahead and ordered P/E sets from both GMM (Yamato) and Tom's Modelworks (destoyer set x 2). Unfortunately in Italy we have an abysmal postal service. When you order something to be delivered by mail, you seriously risk the package being lost or taking forever. Are we a G-7 country? I kind of doubt it. In my past modelling efforts I already bought from both Tom and Loren. Their exquisite products always took a very long and risky journey in the Italian Postal service, but in all cases finally got to intended destination. Once, because the delay was very long (3 frets for 1350 Nimitz + New Jersey), Loren was so kind to offer to resend the frets at no charge. The frets just got here while the mail exchange was taking place, so I was impressed by Loren's kindness, but had no need for additional frets being actually shipped. This time, once again the frets still have not gotten here (neither Tom's nor Loren's). I wrote to both and both were, as usually, kind and friendly and both offered to resend the frets at no charge. Tom was very kind and friendly. He suggested to wait a little more and in case he would resend the frets at no charge. A modeller can ask for no more, you would say. Excellent products, timely service and friendliness even when you happen to live in a 3rd world (oops..., I meant G7) country. Actually Loren manage to delight me even better. Since I had already bothered him in the past with the same problem, knowing his kindness, I volontereed to wait another while and in case share (50%) the cost of the replacement frets. No way. He went ahead and sent the replacement frets right away with no further waiting from me. shipment via Fed Ex air and no charge (not even for shipping costs). I do not know what to say. It is heart warming that our hobby lets us get to know such exquisite people. Thanks Loren, you really deserve your success and I am looking forward from buying other frets from you in the future (this time I will pay for ensured mail). Luca ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From Bevilacqua Luca Subject 1200 mysterious Bismarck kit Hi all fellow modellers. Some of you might remember my obsession for big scale battleships. In the past I tried to convince some of us to lobby for more 1200 kits from Trumpeter, hopefully classic battleships, with little success I hate to say. I nevertheless gathered interesting info from fellow modellers about 1200 DKM Aeronaut "kits", semikits from several vendors (Sirmar, Fleetscale), paper models and the like. It all opened new horizons for my modelling carreer (BTW I am now enjoying (!!!) building the venerable 1200 Nichimo Yamato, not bad as I had expected, but this would be the subject for other posts), but 1 year ago I was still dealing only with 1350. Back then I noticed in a newspaper vendor, a weekly issue ("Costruite la Bismarck" - Build the Bismarck - Angelo Peruzzo editore of Italy) of a magazine promising to help you build a big scale Bismarck. First issue would come with a not so badly cast main turret. I was tempted but gave up. These weekly series take forever to get finished and you end up spending enormous amunt of money. Besides at that time I still had 1350 experience to gather and did not know bigger scales were so difficult to get kits of. When I learned , trough SMML, from fellow modellers about 1200 Aeronaut kits, I remembered the episode and tought that Angelo Peruzzo had probably struck a deal with them to market their Bismarck kit in this way. Two days ago I stumbled on the 58th issue of the series, in another newspaper vendor in Naples. The weekly issue was sold with the quite recognizable trapezoidal roof on top of Bismarck forecastle. It was 1200 or 1250 (more likely 1200, but I am not sure, I had little time to inspect it). Not particularly good but defenetely PLASTIC !!! It was tough plastic (may be not styrene, may be ABS), light grey, almost white. PROBLEM Where does it come from? I know for sure Aeronaut kits have wooden box superstructures and not plastic ones, so the hell with my aeronaut deal theory. Buying from Angelo Peruzzo is out of question (it seems that the whole series is 100 + issues, winding up at about 1000 US$ overall). They do not seem to have a www site either. On the other hand it is impossible that they invested for a new mould to market a big kit in this peculiar way. They must have found some old mould, some chinese manufacturer or some stuff like that. Some pieces definetely exist, I can swear it. Anyone can shed a light on this mistery ? I am experiencing difficulties at sleeping -) because of it. Ciao to everybody Luca ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Check out the SMML site for the List Rules, Reviews, Articles, Backissues, Member's models & Reference Pictures at http//smmlonline.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume