Hello people! My name is Brian, and although I have built upwards of 200 models of all kinds over the course of my life, I have not had the opportunity to do so for quite some time… about 30 years. So, in order not to bore everyone, I will be brief… I’m 52, married with one amazing kid, 2 dogs and 5, yes FIVE, cats!
I served in the US Navy back in '85 to '88 aboard the USS Nimitz with Attack Squadron VA-35, and have always wanted to build a model of the Nimitz as an homage to my time spent aboard such a majestic, although hot, loud and smelly vessel… so this past Christmas, what I thought was a telescope, turned out to be the 1:350 Nimitz! I’m not ashamed to admit, I danced a jaunty jig when I saw what it was… but now I have a problem… I haven’t put glue to styrene in 30 years, I have NO tools whatsoever, and a model that requires pro-level skills to show properly.
So, in that regard, I hope you folks dont mind if I lean on ya a little bit for some assistance and guidance during the build. I am NOT going to document and photograph my build, I dont have a ‘shop’ to speak of, so this will be built on my dining room table. I will post pics as I go along, so you can all have a giggle at me.
So that’s me and my story, thanks for having me and I look forward to building this enormous model with your help and expertise to guide me.
Welcome to the forum Brian. You should check out the ships of the American flag group build in the “group build” section and join us if you would like. There are many experienced ship builders on the forum that will be happy to answer your questions.
Welcome aboard and man that is diving right in. I’d do a few cheap models first to build up skills before tackling what sounds like a special and meaningful build. Good Luck and have fun.
Welcome aboard. Only 5 cats? Wait till you have a dozen of the portable hairballs.
You will want to get a pair of sprue nippers, a bottle of Tamiya extra thin glue, and an assortment of sanding sticks. For those think fingernail sanding files from the beauty supply area of your favorite big box store. Way cheaper than the hobby specific ones.
Lot of talented ship builders here more than willing to help with any questions.
Do your research for painting, don’t rely on the callouts in the instructions. Lots of aftermarket goodies out there from photoetch brass to 3D printed stuff. Depends on how far you want to take her and how many $$$ you want to put in her and your abilities. Might want to do another build before to get feet wet. Maybe a DD or DDG.
Welcome aboard shipmate,( VAQ 131, USS Ranger 1988-1994). Thank you for your service!
Watch the cats, they are good at making things “disappear” we had 4 at one time. Two thinhs ya can’t do is herd cats or shovel rain.
Look around the foums as said LOTS of knowledgeable folks here…some grumpy ones too but they mke the place fun.
I also agree, get your feet wet on something cheaper the Nimitz is plastic and will be there for ya when your ready. The main thing is you have one[:D]
You’ve come to the right place. The members here are very knowledgeable and ready to help out with any and all questions/problems that you might have.
Don’t leave any parts or the plans for your models laying around. I used to have 2 cats. One of them got into my workroom and shreaded the plans for the sailing ship that is my avatar. The kit was from Italy and I had a lot of fun getting another set. While waiting for it, I put a screen door on the room so it would be closed up to keep the cats out but still let me keep in touch with the goings on in the house.
