Thanks to everyone who was able to attend our December meeting.
Here's the LINK to the video recording of the meeting.
Speaking of video. The connectivity we've had lately has been the source of much frustration for me. I can't justify spending $35 a month to get access to the other ship club's wifi connection. Without an external to the building antenna there's no way to improve the signal. It's strange because the video feed I get coming in is excellent, but the feed going out is choppy. I worked with the AT&T folks to find a solution. They made some adjustments that they think should improve the connection. On top of that I've made an upgrade to my iPad to support my flying. This one has built in cellular so we'll see if that improves the quality.
We kicked things off with an excellent recap from Roger Schafer on his trip with brother Gerald to Antartica on the Cruise/Research ship, Viking Polaris! Too much information for me to share here so please look at the recorded meeting video. Roger did an amazing job telling us about the ship and programs offered by Viking. If you would like to learn more about this please reach out to Roger. Great stuff, Roger!
Zodiac boats going to shore
Roger reported that they go to keep the red parkas
Ships boats in the Polaris boat deck
Submarines for some deep sea exploration.
We had some follow up from the last meeting. I did some research on this new offering from Hellenic Model Ships. Turns out this ship is of French design. As you can see in the drawing below it's well fitted out. Roger and Gerald mentioned they saw a ship that looked just like it in Argentina. We'll look for some more information about that at the next meeting.
We also followed up on the emery sanders that John Widmar shared with us. I found some on Amazon
for only $11. These are different grits glued to wood sticks. John reports that the solid base is great for sanding the bottoms of hulls, etc. Great tip, John!
David Angelo took a break from the Victory to build up a couple of his cargo ships. They look great in their commercial livery.
Rob Weilacher finished up his USS Saipan, CVL-48. The Aki kits are hard to find. Rob reports this to be an excellent kit and it came together quickly.
Rob's next project is the USS Indiana in 1/700 scale by Vee Hobbies. This is the deluxe version which includes barrels and extensive photo etch.
Rob shared a clever way Vee Hobbies helps the modeler identify where holes for weapons and fixtures need to be drilled out. The numbers represent the different battleships, BB-57, BB-58, etc.
I came across a very interesting model that was shown at IPMS Telford. This is a cut away model of an early Flower Class Corvette. The modeler even cut the water away so you could see the interior below waterline.
Jerry Beasley came across some interesting photo etch from shipyardworks.com. This first set are 1/350 stanchions. You would mount them to your ship and add something like a nylon thread for the rails.
The second set are photo etch halyards with blocks, also in 1/350 scale. They are designed to represent the double lines you would expect to see for raising and lowering flags on your ship.
A new kit announced by 3D Wild is the USS Bogue in 1/200 scale. The ship was instrumental in the sinking of U-575. The kit includes a model of U-575 (Type VIIC U-Boat), as well as twelve TBM-1C Avenger and nine FM-2 Wildcats. It's supposed to be available before the end of the year, but look for it in early 2024.
A new company (to us at least) is Modern Naval Research Team. They are releasing a series of Imperial Chinese Navy and Imperial Arsenal Foochow ships in 1/700 scale. No idea what these look like beyond the box art.
Ben at Black Cat Models has a new high quality and resolution 3D printer. He's planing to release a series of small craft starting with 1/350 Harbor Defense Motor Launch (HDML). Ben took a shot at printing this hull with the railings attached. He didn't have a lot of success as you can see from his test shot. He advised that the kit will be shipped with photo etch railings.
I brought a sample of a new series of 3D printed models from SS Models in 1/2000 scale. This is the USS Weymouth Class light cruiser. It has two parts. Upper hull and lower hull. Amazingly it comes with a set of photo etch railings and ladders. The detail is amazing and includes printed masts. The quality is better than what you would expect in many 1/700 kits. I'm going to finish it up and bring it to a future meeting.
Rob shared with us a 1/700 Gato submarine from SS Models. The detail is what you would expect from 1/350 or larger. The flood holes around the bow are open as well as the doors on the conning tower. It can be made as full or waterline. The hull has a slight warp at the bow but that can be easily taken care of with some hot water. Warpage in the hulls is an issue for SS Models. This model can be improved upon with a Gato photo etch set from Tom's Modelworks.
AFV club is releasing some water bases for their 1/700 Perry and Knox class kits. Also available is a beach base for their 1/350 LCT Mk.6. These appear to be solid and not vac formed bases like we've seen in the past.
Another new player in the market is Zimi Model. They are releasing a 1/35 USN Quad Four Bofors. It looks pretty good but the hoses look a little toy like. I think changing the hoses out for something made with wire and adding some hose clamps will vastly improve the look of the model.
Trumpeter has announced the release of their 1/700 HMS York and USS Iowa. Both kits will sell for $43.75. The York looks fairly basic, but the Iowa seems to have more detail and fidelity. Check the internet for more detailed photos of sprues, etc.
Books are a great motivator for model builds. Here are three...
The first book is "The Mysterious Case of Rudolf Diesel". He was the inventor of the diesel engine. He vanished while testing his engine on a U-Boat.
The next book is "Bloody Sixteen" by Peter Fey. This is the story of the USS Oriskany, her ships crew, and the air wing during the Vietnam War.
Finally Tom told us about a book he read called "The Wager". Described as a tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder. This is the author of "Killers of the Flower Moon". Tom said he read the book in two nights.
That's all for this month. If I missed something please let me know. I look forward to seeing you in the new year.
