Micronaut Only Thread

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Fri Nov 19, 2010 3:00 am

Okay, looking ahead on this project I know I'm going to have to place an order with GHQ for some parts. What I need to identify is a source for the three life boats on davits on either side of the superstructure. Anyone have any ideas what GHQ kits have these boats that I could scavenge or order from GHQ. They look pretty generic so I could probably use anything back to WWI. Thanks.

Paul

LAX_Kev · Post by **LAX_Kev** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 12:16 am

Paul -
Two kits quickly come to mind when thinking of lifeboats and davits:
From GHQ: UKN 28, SS QUEEN MARY - I remember attaching an awful lot of lifeboats when I assembled this one!
From "the other guys": MF-122, General POPE (AP-110) - completed ship needs 10 single boat/davit pieces, and I've usually got 12-13 when I open the box.
I'll check my parts bin this weekend to see if I've got anything you might need.
Kevin

LAX_Kev · Post by **LAX_Kev** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 12:19 am

** Inadvertent Duplicate **

dragon6 · Post by **dragon6** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 12:54 pm

av8rmongo wrote:Okay, looking ahead on this project I know I'm going to have to place an order with GHQ for some parts. What I need to identify is a source for the three life boats on davits on either side of the superstructure. Anyone have any ideas what GHQ kits have these boats that I could scavenge or order from GHQ. They look pretty generic so I could probably use anything back to WWI. Thanks.

Paul

SS Norway GHQ HUS15

It has two rows of lifeboats in davits, port and starboard. I believe each row has 12 boats. You would need to snip each boat or a row of three for each side. The nice thing is it's only two pieces for a lot of lifeboats.

You mentioned cranes... how many in the Seaplane tender set?

LAX_Kev · Post by **LAX_Kev** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 4:37 am

Ray -
When I got the CURTISS seaplane tender, the kit (USN-69) came with three heavy cranes, and two of these were needed to complete the model.
Kevin

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 5:19 am

I looked at my Gen Pope and I think the boats are too big. I can only fit two in the space alotted for three lifeboats. I can't find my Queen Mary so I'm stuck on that one but my SS Norway looks promising. Ray are you sure they are separate pieces? If so I'll get those.

The casting mold arrived so all I need is the boats.

Paul

jb · Post by jb » Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:22 am

...check out the boats & davits in the pack #s USN 54 & 55

dragon6 · Post by **dragon6** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:58 am

av8rmongo wrote:Ray are you sure they are separate pieces? If so I'll get those.

Paul

Separate pieces? Each boat? No. Perhaps I did not explain well. Each sprue is 64 mm by 2mm. It has 11 lifeboats nose to tail. Each lifeboat is 5mm by almost 2mm. There are two additional boats in davits that are very small at the end of the sprue. The other sprue is a mirror image.

Since you said you would need three boats per side I suggest you cut the three end boats off the sprue, leaving them as one piece three lifeboats long and gluing it down. If you need individual placement then you will need to cut each boat from the sprue. The lifeboats are on a 'base' in that there is a 2 mm wide stringer running the length of the sprue attaching each boat to the line.

I don't have access to my camera at the moment but I think I can get a picture of the sprues up by tomorrow afternoon if that would be helpful.

Another possibility would be CNC's world war I lifeboat pack. Those are 5mm long, not sure how wide but have no davits, lots in the package.

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 1:01 pm

Ray,

Thanks, that's perfect. What I meant by separate was separate from the rest of the superstructure. So I'll be ordering a couple sprues.

Paul

dragon6 · Post by **dragon6** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 1:47 pm

Glad to be of help. Remember each sprue is mirrored image so you need both or all the davits will be on the same side. Of course there isn't much detail on the lifeboats so you could, perhaps, just turn them around for the opposite side as the boats are pointed at both ends, thus no obvious aft section.

Let me take this opportunity to ask a paint question. 1980s USA deck color is/was dark but what about helo decks? Some pictures seem to show the helo deck in lighter color than the surrounding deck, some show it as dark as the rest of the deck and some show it darker than rest of the deck

battlewagon · Post by **battlewagon** » Fri Nov 26, 2010 3:14 am

dragon6 wrote:Let me take this opportunity to ask a paint question. 1980s USA deck color is/was dark but what about helo decks? Some pictures seem to show the helo deck in lighter color than the surrounding deck, some show it as dark as the rest of the deck and some show it darker than rest of the deck

I served in the '80s aboard USS Enterprise and as I recall, the helo decks were done with the same "non-skid" asphalt-like covering that was on the carrier flight decks. It was a very dark gray when fresh and it got lighter over time. (I paint this Gunship Gray)
I just called my brother who was flying SH-2F's off of frigates during the same time period and he just confirmed that the helo decks were indeed the dark gray non-skid material.
I hope this helps.

dragon6 · Post by **dragon6** » Sat Nov 27, 2010 10:06 am

battlewagon wrote:I served in the '80s aboard USS Enterprise and as I recall, the helo decks were done with the same "non-skid" asphalt-like covering that was on the carrier flight decks. It was a very dark gray when fresh and it got lighter over time. (I paint this Gunship Gray)
I just called my brother who was flying SH-2F's off of frigates during the same time period and he just confirmed that the helo decks were indeed the dark gray non-skid material.
I hope this helps.

Yes it does. Thanks very much

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Wed Dec 01, 2010 2:43 am

Okay, the Thanksgiving holiday is over time to get back to work...

The final parts for the master mold are finished! Thanks to Kevin Donahue for donating some lifeboats from his SS Queen Mary the main hull and superstructure is ready. The life boats are just a tad bigger than the plan would indicate but I think they work perfectly to mask the imperfections in my work. I've made so many other rationalizations in this model to make it work out that this one isn't going to bother me.

The bridge piece is another area where I made compromises. The funnel on the real ship is rectangular not wanting to take the time to build one I used a funnel which I think is from a WWII US cruiser. By the end of this project I think I'll have a decent table-top representation of the MV JONH P BOBO but it won't be museum quality. Anyway here's a sneak peak at what it will look like with the bridge section attached to the hull.

Now just imagine the cranes, helo deck supports and stern ramp in place and voila!

The next step is to pour the master mold for these two sections which I should get done today. The mold will cure for 24hrs then the first production cast can be made. More to come...

Paul

av8rmongo · Post by **av8rmongo** » Fri Dec 03, 2010 12:54 am

And now for today's update...

The mold box has been prepared and the ship has been glued down using basic Elmer's glue. After waiting half a day to make sure the glue dried - a critical step - its ready for the RTV Silicone Rubber.

I use Alumilite High Strength 3 silicone rubber for my resin casting. It takes 24 hrs to set but it is very durable and can tolerate more stretching when demolding the cast resin than other silicone types I've used. Just make sure that after pouring the silicone over the mold you tap it lightly on the table for several minutes to get the air bubbles to come to the surface. As mentioned earlier make sure the item you are making a mold of is securely attached to the mold box. If not it could float up ruining the mold and at about $30 a jar the RTV isn't exactly cheap.

Here's the mold after the RTV has been poured. You might be able to see some of the bubbles that have risen to the surface after pouring. All I can do now is wait 24hrs to see if I have a good mold or if I have to start over again.

Wish me luck.

Paul