1/72nd Revell Gato Wolfpack

[wlambing]

Why is pound sign, Arabic numeral two, autocorrecting to read "Forum" as a link???????????!!!!!!!!!!!!

[scott t]

Jeff I like the way you put the periscopes in a diminutive crate for transport.

[jefftytoo]

Bill: I wondered about that. Didn't look quite like the big night periscope head to me. I think some filler is in order for that little cut in it.

Scott: I like the little wooden shipping crate too. But I didn't make it: the 'scopes came that way.

Both: The point of using these metal 'scopes is that they shouldn't snap off as easily as the kit's plastic ones.

[wlambing]

Jeff,
I think filler and some judicious looking at some pictures will fix you right up!

[jefftytoo]

Thanks, Bill. I do believe you’re right!

[jefftytoo]

As recently posted on FB: Okay, though looking pretty rough here from a lot of handling, over-gluing, scratch-building compromises, sanding dust, etc., most of these flaws will cover up fairly well with paint. I’ve now fully reconfigured and alternatively detailed this generic Revell Gato kit sail to look as much like Harder as I possibly can given the reference photos I had to work with. Admittedly far from perfect, but she DOES look like Harder—trust me on this! I’m thus calling the sail done and moving back to main deck work. Onward!

[salmon]

Pictures are tiny....are you trying to hide the details? LOL

[jefftytoo]

Tom,

I can't seem to win no matter what I do. My photos either come in too small, sideways, or too large—and then the site doesn't accept them. Sheesh! ;-)

[wlambing]

Jeff,

What is your plan/methodology for painting that little beastie? I'm looking at mine and trying to decide what I'll do when it comes to that. Is yours all glued up, or still in sub-assemblies to allow for a good paint job?

Take care,

Bill

[salmon]

Jeff,
It is such a beautiful build you have going there. The details you added really make it pop. On painting are you going to pickle the metal?

[jefftytoo]

Bill and Tom,

Thanks much for the painting interest and I'm so sorry for the extreme tardiness of this response! (I need to rig this thread, if possible, to ping me whenever someone other than me posts on it!)

At first (ages ago!) my plan was to show Harder in her original early-war all-black livery—easier to accomplish and definitely a standout from the standard camo measure of most of the r/c Gatos out there. But after some thought, I decided I wanted to depict her in the camo pattern after all, since that's what she wore on her famous fifth patrol when she successfully took on all those destroyers. That's truly her legacy patrol, after all, so I couldn't ignore it.

Of course, the above is easy for me to say, since I won't be painting her! For this detailed camo job (when she's ready) I have once again hired my extremely talented friend Lars Liljeblad—the same gentlemen who applied the spectacular paint job to my big Disney Nautilus…so I think you'll agree Harder will be in very good hands. I am still (and always will be) all thumbs with an airbrush, and Harder represents yet another case where I want the final result to be better than I could ever hope to achieve myself.

As for the question of "pickling," I made this same query of Lars some time ago. He claims to have had fine results using PE without pickling in the past, so I guess we'll see. I had pickled Seaview's white metal parts during her build per Mr. Merriman's specific instructions. But again, that was white metal; I don't now how much different brass will be to work with. I expect some very fine sanding, especially along the main deck and superstructure, should do the trick. But again, I guess we'll ultimately find out when she's eventually out in the sun and on the water, eh?

Jeff

[jefftytoo]

And now she has stanchions and safety cables. As usual though, not easy at all. Nothing about this boat has been easy!

Harder’s types and positions of stanchions did not match the generic arrangement provided with the kit (based by Revell on postwar Cobia’s configuration), so a lot of effort has been put into altering and moving them as best I could for more accuracy. For instance: eyelets were provided about halfway up the kit stanchions for the middle safety cables, whereas reference photos showed Harder’s “middle” cable was only about a third of the way up off the deck. So I removed all those little eyelets and simply eyeballed the “middle” safety cable into its lower position with CA. Also, Harder had more angle struts among her stanchions than Cobia, and in different positions, and her stanchions were placed further back along her afterdeck. Again, I accounted for all of this as best I could using reference photos from her last big refit (Feb. ‘44) and shots of her at sea on one of her later patrols before her loss in August that same year.

[salmon]

Looking really amazing! Love the extras you are doing.

[jefftytoo]

Many thanks, Tom! Now getting dangerously close to paint. Basic pre-trim lead weight and foam installation first.

[jefftytoo]

Wrapping up this build. Discovered Harder didn’t carry a 4” deck gun after all: she had a standard 5”/51 caliber gun (not the “wet mount” type) mounted before her final patrols. So I abandoned the 4” kit gun and ordered the appropriate part from Shapeways. Arrived the other day. Added some little bits of PE from an Otto Gerza set where I could. Translucent white resin prevents you from seeing any detail in the gun, but it’s there and seems reasonably good. Paint will reveal, of course. I’m just glad she’s now sporting the correct foredeck hardware. Take that, IJN!

Now I’m installing a first pass of lead weight and pre-cutting foam so Steve Neill won’t have to start from scratch when it’s time to start trimming. Coming up first, though, is her Lars Liljeblad paint job. Stay tuned!