1/72nd Revell Gato Wolfpack

[boomerfunker]

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[salmon]

Yes you captured the look well!
Excellent workmanship.

[jefftytoo]

Wow. SO cool.

JeffP

[PaulC]

Wait -- which one is the picture of the model and which one is the real boat??? Way to go, Tom!

[boomerfunker]

bump to the front

[RickVC]

PaulC,

Mentioned in the initial post by PaulC,
"To fill the new holes left by the pressure proof lockers I employed a trick learned from the pages of the SCR many moons ago. I found some suitable styrene stock of the FW wall thickness and punched out circular plugs to fill the holes. I found some brass tubing with the matching ID of the holes and cut a piece around 1" long. Then I filed one end until it was sharp enough to cleanly bite the plastic. Placing it on the stock I hit it with a hammer until it cut out some neat disc shapes. They fit the holes with minimal trimming. All it takes is some Tenax from the backside and the holes are gone requiring minimal putty."

Another useful too for making circles or holes is a cork borer...if the diameter matches your requirement. Here is a decent example of a small set:

http://www.amazon.com/Ginsberg-Cork-Borer-Set/dp/B001DBNKKM

This is good in that the perpendicular supports for the cutting tube appear to be metal, many feature plastic supports or arms today. Note you can also get these readily at science supply companies like Fisher, VWR, etc.

Rick

[boomerfunker]

Hi guys, I'm back in action again...

Well I haven't been entirely out of submarine action and have been clearing out some projects so that I could concentrate on a big push with Triggers lower half. These two, a small yet still 1/350 scale Ming class sub and an attempt at a ships plaque for the Subron L.A. squadron commodores stateroom on the occasion of his birthday we're a couple of those projects.





Following closely in Wahoo Paul's footsteps I have been duplicating the many important accurizing projects he's identified to make the kit look more like our actual boats. I won't go into details since Paul wrote them up quite nicely a few pages back. I did deviate a little in some areas but the results (and problems to be fixed) we're the same.

Paul identified some problems with the anchor well, the rake and shape of the bow planes well and limber hole pattern therein, the missing pattern of holes at the very fore-end of the bow bottom, and dressed up the planes themselves with some weld beads for pizzazz. I attacked all these too and with the exception of the bow buoyancy hole pattern fix (waiting on the AMP aftermarket part) have finished with the cosmetics on the bow. But pictures, am I right?

Here is how I did the hole pattern behind the planes. I first tried cutting out disks to size and re drilling the new holes but things weren't working for me and my half-moon shapes we're all over the board. So I decided on a drop in piece and make a jig with a scribing template to keep my moons more uniform.





I cut out the anchor well and moved it to the horizontal and taking a cue for Silversides and Drum I plated over the top portion somewhat. I cast the heavy white metal anchor I'd bought from Bluejacket Shipcrafters into resin while I was at it and now it's is a third of the weight but the same great shape. The rake of the bow plane well was also based on period photos, Drum and Silversides as well. It is very pronounced and angular so I build up a sharp edge with a piece of Evergreen and Metal Glaze putty. The superstructure does a weird overhang here of the pressure hull too and I tried to address that as well. I think it will pop more with the final paint.

[boomerfunker]

Hey! Lets pop on those planes and see how it all looks together.
How come I see holes? I shouldn't see frickin' holes.

Measure twice cut once lads, always remember. My hole pattern was a wee bit off and therefore wrong as hell. I kept the moons and punched fills for all the round holes, backing them with the thinnest of plastic sheet for strength for when I went to redrill. Now all lies true or at least hidden like they should be.




The planes are plain and I liked Paul's jazzing them up with weld lines using a clever trick " Salmon" Tom taught us earlier in the thread using tape, superglue and baking soda. I likewise did mine too using Batfish and Silversides as my reference. The little square shape was tricky and some places required a second hit but I like 'em. Today I drilled them out for the pins that will make them actual working planes at some point but that too must wait until the AMP parts are installed. Until then things are happening in the stern.

[jefftytoo]

Amazingly impressive detail work. Again, I am humbled. And envious. Both by the quantity of progress and its spectacular quality—especially with my boat indefinitely on the blocks. Don't know if I'll ever get to the same anchor and dive plan well revises, but I should at least be able to do that neat weld line trick on the planes. Hand salute to you, Boomer. Well done.

JeffP

[salmon]

This sub looks like it has a chance to make it in the water! great progress and super looking sub.

[PaulC]

Looking great, Tom. Where'd you get the metal half moon stencil?

[boomerfunker]

Hi.

Thanks guys it's fun to be back at work on her...

Paul--the template is from, I'm guessing an overseas company, called LionRoar...



I believe I got mine from the legendary vendor rooms at the IPMS show a couple years back. Squadron doesn't seem to have it.

TomK

[boomerfunker]

Back for more. Took awhile but a wild ride with my employment delayed things.
You know what relieves work stress? Working at the bench. Unless the model cause stress too.
Then it's double so um, never mind....

Anyhow still playing catch-up to Wahoo Paul but narrowing the gap. I have finished the modifications to the bow section, have the bow planes mechanism installed and working and the proper hole pattern installed. The bow planes are essentially like everyone else's whose ever done 'em and mine actually WORK so kudos to me. I went a different way with the AMP templates I got for that hole pattern forward. I doubled them up for thickness then used that as a drop in part. Pauls scribing of that row of little ovals on his is very good but I thought I'd avoid it altogether and the inevitable anomalies I'd create doing them myself.

[boomerfunker]

I have also more or less finished the stern too. What? No really. The rudder is not permanently installed yet but ready, and the tricky removable skeg business went better than expected. I opted for a slightly different path here too. Most skilled hobbyists would drill and tap the area for a machine screw. Those guys are awesome. I have, however, through luck and perseverance managed to somehow avoid learning how to do that. My method uses an alignment pin, strong magnets and a bit of friction fitting styrene in the gap. Seems pretty solid to me and very removable. I also installed and did not like at all the AMP stern tube shutters. I didn't quite get the wavy concave grooves in the pieces so I filled them and made my own. I had to re-scibe the doors over styrene, CA, resin and putty all in the same area so it's a bit rough looking. Not a spectacular effort those but there is time for massaging it before final paint.

Finally, I have hacked away all the dead weight on the main hull but I've left all the supports, and pins in place for now. I don't really have my game plan in place for the deck yet and I want to keep every support location on the table as it were till I do. The deck is next with a side trip down to Mare Island and the proper hull limber hole pattern which I also don't have quite figured out what I'm doing. But stupid is as stupid does my mama always said.

[salmon]

Tom,
I was not smart enough to know I should not have built the Gato as a first sub, glad too! Keep on plugging away, ignorance is bliss. Love what you are doing!
Peace,
Tom