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[ballastanksian]

That is a lot of etch! You rarely get a tenth of that in a plastic tank kit.

What are the flower like pieces?

[carlmt]

Thank you all - trying to move the bar a little higher in the kit world.........

That is a lot of etch! You rarely get a tenth of that in a plastic tank kit.

What are the flower like pieces?

Those are the propellers for the lifeboats Ian - they just need the blades tweaking when applied to the model.

[carlmt]

Starting to apply the etched nickel silver now - I love this material.......so much better to work with than brass as, thickness for thickness, it is a lot firmer and bends (when needed) much 'cleaner' without kinking.
 
One of the stairways folded up and placed (not yet fixed) in position.  There will be a round handrail glued to this which is a continuation of the railings from the deck above:
 

 

 

 

 
Also made a start on the access gangways and ladders to the foredeck and up to bridge front:
 

 

 
Boy, am I looking forward to dealing with all those stanchions..........over 750 of them!!!!!
 
 

[ballastanksian]

Do lots of breathing exercises and deep breaths, or have a small glass of your favourite tipple to steady your nerves pre stanchion:O)

It looks very accurate that stairway.

[carlmt]

Now that Wicky is over for another year, it is full steam ahead to get the Norland prototype finished so that she can be photographed for the launch.  To which end, I also have to balance the tasks of finishing tidying up the build drawings, creating the 3D diagrams and writing the instructions...along with creating the last of the 3D printed fittings (windlasses etc,) - all with the aim of launching the kit sometime in June!
 
Main task on the model is to get all the railings added, then the lifeboat davits and boats then the last of the fittings.  As mentioned, this is going to be a task and a half so plenty of breaks taken to steady the nerves and prevent me losing my temper with them when things don't quite go to plan.
 
Done so far - the access walkway to the bow and half the railing under the bridge windows:
 

 
Lengths of railing on the uppermost deck has been started:
 

 
And this is the method I use to mark out where the stanchions appear on the deck:
 

 
Now, what do folk think?  Should I leave all the etched metalwork in it's natural state, thereby highlighting the nature of it when the model is on display at shows, or should I paint it?  I am tempted by the former to be honest and not just because it saves the ball-ache of painting it all, but being painted it would be prototypical.  Interested in your thoughts...........
 
 

PS - There is still the top handrail to be added to all the stanchions yet - I am waiting on a delivery of suitable wire.

[gingyer]

Why not half and half??


One side all painted for photos and display of a finished model
And the other showing the parts

[Colin Bishop]

I would prefer to see the model properly completed otherwise it just looks unfinished, but I do understand your point. I have seen models in shows where there is a tray in front of the boat with a selection of fittings 'in the raw' so to speak so it is possible to see exactly what has gone into the model, in your case what people will be getting with the kit.


Best under glass of course!


Colin

[BFSMP]

I agree with Colin on that one.


I have always felt that museum models [although they were showing the craftsmanship of the apprentice ship builders in part, as well as the designated model builders] looked unfinished and as such "not real".


And the suggestion of having some sort of display case with certain parts of the etchings in a fabricated manner would look superb, imho.


Jim.

[Colin Bishop]

This is what Colin Vass did when displaying his amazing Warspite model.

Colin

[ballastanksian]

Could you draw and laser cut a paper mask that goes over the deck and has slots that the stanchions sit in? Then spray them in situ as I assume they will be the same colour as the walls they are above?

If you drew the hole marking jigs then would it be that difficult to copy and modify the jigs to become masks with slots instead of holes/centre marks?

I assume you have the distinct benefit of having marking jigs for all the rails on the ship?

[carlmt]

Hi All - Thanks for the views on whether to paint the etchwork or not...really appreciated  .
 
Have decided to go for it and will be spending time with the brush and Humbrol in the near future.  As for making a mask to spray the railings, in theory it might be possible but practically I would have to mask off the whole ship if I were to spray them in-situ.  I think the answer will be to assemble the stanchions to the decks 'dry', add the horizontal railing (I generally use superglue on each joint instead of solder) and then when the glue has dried, remove the whole assembly and spray elsewhere.  Once the paint has dried the completed section can then be reintroduced to the deck with a pin-prick of superglue in the hole in the deck.  Will post the results later  .
 
During this week (evenings) I have been tidying up all the kit assembly drawings and ensuring that the data drawings for the laser-cutter are correct and complete.  Nearly there with that now so just have to order up some more styrene sheet and we will be good to go for cutting the first 5 kits worth.  Today has been spent in the workshop creating the masters of the lifeboats.  These will be vac-formed units in the kit to keep the weight down:
 
First job - create the basic wooden form from pre-shaped styrene and hard balsa (that I just had hanging around):
 

 
These were then roughed out on the bandsaw to get the plan shape:
 

 
and then finished off by hand sanding.  As these are going to be used for creating the master mould, they were waxed and polished to within an inch of their lives and secured into their styrene mould boxes:
 

 

 
Whilst there are 10 lifeboats on the ship, there are only 2 sizes (8 large, 2 small) so we can get away with only making 2 masters.  These were then encased in the RTV mould mix and then placed in the airing cupboard to cure overnight:
 

 
Once these have cured, resin castings will be taken - 8 times for the large one and twice for the smaller - so that they can be attached to a board and vac-formed as one sheet.
 
More tomorrow!!! 

[Rottweiler]

Were my lifeboats,ex Caronia model,no good for your purposes Carl?
Those you have made are looking good anyway.Another positive step forward.
Keep up the good work
Its going to be a beauty!!
Mick.

[carlmt]

Hi Mick 
No mate, the Caronia boats were too small to use.  No matter though, I will take moulds from them so that you have a nice fresh set for your restoration.

[Rottweiler]

Thanks Carl,certainly no hurry to have them.
Shame you couldn't use them though
Mick.

[ballastanksian]

Hi carl, I fear that styrene band around the edge of the hull master will cause you no end of trouble at the vac forming stage unless the wooden layer below it is the same size or more. It looks like it will cause an undercut trapping the vacformed sheet onto the masters.

[deadwood]

Done so far - the access walkway to the bow and half the railing under the bridge windows:
 

 

Hello Carl,

I haven't been here at Model Boat Mayhem's for a while, so I've been missing your advances with the NORLAND kit prototype.

I am stunned and congratulate you to your achievements so far and the exquisite model shipwright craftsmanship that you exhibit here.

A couple of days ago I bought the latest issue of the German ModellWerft model boat magazine because it featured an article about the scratch scale build of DFDS's PRINCESS SEAWAY (ex TT Lines´ PETER PAN) whose model was also depicted on the magazine's front cover.
In the same issue was a report about the Intermodellbau 2017 exhibition at Dortmund, and in this article on page 70 there was a photo of presumably Linkspan's booth at this venue showing a model of the PRIDE OF HYTHE.

Unfortunately, Dortmund is too far away from Berlin for me, so that neither my wife would give me leave for a visit, nor that I could afford the traveling for just a day or two.
Otherwise I would have enjoyed to have met you at your booth for a wee chat.

Anyway, that article reminded me of your tireless and diligent project, that I should more regularly follow here.

Just a silly question about your photo above which I quoted.
Is the side walkway really meant for the crew to access the forecastle deck?
This seems a bit strange to me, as the front wall of the superstructure surely must host a door for access from within.
Likewise, I cannot imagine that the walkway is for uses such as window cleaning, paint work, or light bulbs changing.
Or is it an exterior access to the focsle in case of fire or smoke in the indoor rooms and paths?


Ralph

[carlmt]

Hi Ralph - Great to hear from you
 
Thank you so much for the compliments - although I am not so sure that I exhibit 'exquisite' craftsmanship with my modelling as evidenced by the wind visor above the bridge in the photo  , but I sure am enjoying developing this kit.
 
With regard to the ModellWerft magazine, and the model of the Princess Seaways therin, I would love to be able to obtain a copy as this sounds like a great article.  I do know the model and the modeller as we 'follow' each other on Facebook - he is currently building a 1:100 version of the older TT Linie ferry Peter Pan.  I didn't realise that a shot of our Pride of Hythe was also within - although I did speak with the Editor when he was visiting the stands.  We didn't have a Linkspan booth as such though, we were kindly allowed to exhibit the models on the PAMBC stand.
 
As for the walkway on the Norland model, yes; it is actually the only means of access that I am aware of, of getting to the bow.  There are no other doors in the front superstructure I can find on any of the plans, drawings or photos that I have.  I understand that there are a couple of hatchways in the foredeck which, I assume, are emergency escapes from spaces below the deck.
 
Pressing on now with getting everything ready for the launch of the kit this month - although it does seem like chicken and egg getting there though!  Either I have to work on the drawings and instructions or I work on finishing the prototype model.  Either way, the launch cannot really take place until both are completed.
 
I do hope you can one day make it to Dortmund - it really is a great show and it would be marvellous to meet you at last!
 
All the best
Carl
 

[carlmt]

As mentioned above, there are many 'small' matters that need to be attended to before we can officially launch the kit.  The main drawings are now 80% complete - just the deck detailing and detailed elevations to complete.  The instructions have yet to be started, as have the 3D drawings that will form part of those instructions, but we have copious notes to refer to!!!
 
All the wood, propellers, propeller shafts and wire are here, the styrene sheets are on order for delivery this week - laser cutting at the weekend!!  A few more 3D fittings to be designed - primarily the anchor winches for the bow - and then the order will be placed (over 150 fittings per model).  The etched nickel silver sheets are ordered and the graphics will be cut next weekend. And the biggie!!!! I collect the first production hulls tomorrow evening!!!!!    So.........all set for a launch this month!!!!
 
As well as cracking on with getting all the drawings sorted - and this includes ensuring that all the 'production' drawings for the laser machine are correct with no 'bugs' - I have been trying to progress the work on the prototype model.  This weekend it has been work on the masts :
 
Above the bridge and just in front of the binnacle is a simple mast carrying the steaming lights.  This is constructed from 2mm ramin dowel with 1mm brass support legs.  The platforms carrying the lamps are lasered out of 1mm thick styrene.
 
I found it was easier to construct this mast off the model using a scrap piece of styrene as a template to hold the mast and supports - so with the template dimensioned up, the correct sized holes were drilled in it and the dowel inserted, followed by the brass support legs superglued into the dowel:
 

 

 

 

 
Once dried, the lasered styrene lamp platforms were glued in place:
 

 
Following this, the whole assembly was painted and then mounted on the model with the main upright mast let in to a 2mm hole in the deck and the support legs resting on the deck.  The whole lot was superglued in place, then the 8 individual lamps were added to the platforms:
 

 

 
The main mast has also been structurally completed and just awaits the fitting of the radars and handrailing:
 

 
And this is a quick overview of how she stands this evening:
 

 
Lots more railing to add yet.........................

[ballastanksian]

You are on a winner if you are providing templates in the kit for such jobs Carl  I think that little things like that make a good kit great and shows you care about your customer's building experience. No model boat kit is snap together, but a jig here and there are so helpful. A few styrene military model kits have provided jigs in the past.

[carlmt]

You are on a winner if you are providing templates in the kit for such jobs Carl  I think that little things like that make a good kit great and shows you care about your customer's building experience. No model boat kit is snap together, but a jig here and there are so helpful. A few styrene military model kits have provided jigs in the past.

Hi Ian - Yes, there will be a few jigs with this kit.  The mast shown here (although that is quite simple, but every little helps!) and one for setting up the rudders - which will be most useful I think.  The shafts should be self aligning with the use of the A frames, but a jig for setting their spacing apart will also be included.  All these jigs can be incorporated on the 'scrap' parts of the 2mm thick styrene.
 
 

[carlmt]

A 'Red Letter' day here at Linkspan Towers - the first 3 production hulls have arrived!!!!! 
 

 

 
Now to crack on and get the rest of the kit ready........................

[ballastanksian]

I bet you felt it was like Christmas opening those up eh Carl! From what I can see they look really crisp

[deadwood]

With regard to the ModellWerft magazine, and the model of the Princess Seaways therin, I would love to be able to obtain a copy as this sounds like a great article. 

Hello Carl,

I would like to send you the scanned article. But I am not sure if you have received my email that I had sent to your sky.com account.
At least it wasn't bounced and a DNS query shows it as a valid MX record.

Code: [Select]

$ dig sky.com. mx +short
1 mx-eu.mail.am0.yahoodns.net.


[carlmt]

OK - I know I have been a bit quiet on here lately regarding the Norland.  Sorry folks - life has got in the way (the day-job mainly) but it doesn't mean that we have been resting on our laurels here at Linkspan HQ.
 
Two of the first three Norland hulls have gone to their new owners - even though we hadn't quite got everything together - but these chaps were keen to see what all the fuss was about and they will be receiving the remaining bits and bobs over the  next week or so.
To that end, the last of the 'prototype' parts have arrived and we are quite pleased with how they have turned out.
 
First up is the final sheet of etched nickel silver:
 

 
This sheet (there are two kit's worth shown here) replaces the idea of using laser cut card for the vent grilles.  We just could not source suitable card stock in the short time frame for the purpose so we have gone the etched metal route:
 

 
I think you will agree that it is very crisp and, should the modeller wish to, each grille slat can be rotated by 45 degrees to better represent the original.
 
In addition, we had the final 3D parts turn up.  First up are the life-rings and panama ports:
 

 
These will also be made available as accessories - initially at 1:96 scale - in packets of 5, most likely launched at Warwick.
 
Also a future accessory, but in actual fact a prominent part on the Norland fordeck, is the spare anchor:
 

 
And finally, the anchor cable windlasses (starboard version shown):
 

 
And the whole ensemble:
 

 
So now that that is the kit parts sorted, just the instruction book to write!!!!
 
First show will be Haydock, then Ron Dean's Open Weekend, then Blackpool and finally Warwick.
 
Must get the prototype model finished then!!!! 
 
Pip pip.
 
Oh....by the way......one of the chaps who was mad kind enough to buy has been in touch to ask if it would be possible to produce the parts necessary to depict the model in her stretched configuration!  As if the model isn't long enough already  .  Well.......anything is possible.........
I love a challenge......................

[derekwarner]

Yes Carl.......these etched nickel-silver detail plates looks very crisp indeed , however a few questions

1. do the individual etched panels require a super light rub with ~~1200 W&D paper to obtain a surface for paint to adhere  to?

2. with the external surface of the plates being nickel coated ''family of brass of copper & zinc" ....we assume this will not corrode or oxidise ....however the edge of the sheet being etch cut.....will they oxidise if left unpainted?

3. if the answer to 2. is yes......then do the manufacturers who etch the completed plates add a preservative [oiled or WD40] type finish to stop oxidation?

Derek