Below are photos of my 31” (1/69 scale) Disney Nautilus built in 2002. I bought the kit in 2001 from a company called Sci-fi Matters. It was advertised as “20K Submarine” and did not reference Disney, Nautilus or the kit’s designer Scott Brodeen. It is a resin kit with a few of the smaller parts out of white metal. The parts had great detail, but required a good deal of “elbow grease” to achieve a proper fit. A lot of minor repairs were required to fix scratches in the upper and lower hull castings. I wound up replacing over 1,000 rivets lost during sanding. The base color was mixed per the instructions (black/gray/rust) which created a dark chocolate color. After it was applied, various shades of rust were added with an airbrush and pastel sticks. Finally it was dry-brushed with Model Master Light Ghost Gray. I hope you enjoy the photos.
That is REALLY nice, Phillip! I have never seen or heard of that model before, although I am familiar with Sci-Fi Matters. I built a couple of large resin space ships that they sold, from early vintage sci-fi movies and tv shows. Those were simple kits, but nicely to scale and reinforced with an imbedded metal rod running the length of the fuselage. Too bad the company didn’t last long.
Cadet Chuck-The 31" Scott Brodeen kit has been around for many years, copied and sold by many different companies. One place it is currently being offered is at www.nautilusdrydocks.com for $450.00. In addition they sell 16" and 66" sizes. The 31" was the perfect size for me, but it took alot of work before I was happy with it.
Sprue-ce Goose-Lost rivets were replaced by drilling a small hole at the original rivet location, then adding a tiny drop of 5-minute epoxy into the hole. This method worked really well but was tedious and slow, since only a few rivets could be added before the epoxy started to cure.
Hi , I won,t rain on your parade . Although the DISNEY vessel is very attractive it is not correct ! I happen to have a translation of the original book and the vessel is described totally different from the DISNEY boat .There is , I believe by SCHREIBER in GERMANY a papermodel of the vessel . It is taken DIRECTLY from the description in the book . It still has the big windows on the side , BUT , they are oval as are the ones in the conning tower . The organ and great room ? are in the papermodel .It is a cutaway and it has the cabins , the dining saloon and the engine room with the reactor . Of course way back when there are flaws that only a science fiction writer could do . Again , who knew he could be so prophetic on a future vessel ? I like your build and must say , are you going to make your own movie with her ? She looks that good .I have a pet octopus that would be glad to play with it , BUT , where do we get a miniature of KIRK DOUGLAS ? Again , a very , very high quality build . You are to be congratulated . tankerbuilder
Years ago, the Disney stores were selling a very limited edition finished, manufactured modet of the Nautlus for a LOT of money- I looked for one but never saw one except for a picture. Yours is much bigger and nicer! Congrats on a great build!
True, the Disney version is not accurate to the book, but that was by design. Walt Disney favored a cigar-shaped tube, similar to the Verne novel. Designer Harper Goff (Who designed much of Disneyland and later the sub used in Fantastic Voyage) thought it way too simple. “Once you’ve seen it, you’ve seen it!”
In the Disney version, Nemo and his crew built the Nautilus on a secret island, unlike the book where the Nautilus is built in sections by various shipyards and then assembled in secret. Goff thought Nemo would not have had access to machines to roll the metal into a cylinder, but would have used flat plates of iron riveted together. The cutting teeth for destroying wooden hulls were like the blades of a plow and could be replaced if damaged. The Disney Nautilus is a beautifully thought out design, much in keeping with Victorian technology. Most importantly, it has inspired and captivated audiences since it’s it’s first appearance in 1954. No other screen version of the ship has been as successful in doing so.
tankbuilder-Thanks for the compliments. Justimagine is right on the money with his statements. Goff’s Nautilus is “the” submarine everyone thinks of when this Jules Verne subject comes up. I read he wanted to combine the physical characteristics of the two most dangerous sea creatures he could think of, which were the alligator and shark. The dosal fin, prominent tail and rough rivet skin are several examples he used. I think he was very succesful because the design looks like an aggressive weapon. Considering how popular the design has remained over the last 50 plus years is a true test of its success.
Cadet Chuck-The 22" pre-bult/prepainted collector’s model was limited to only 1,000 copies, and sold out very quickly. I had one but later sold it (i just liked the 31" better). You still see them for sale on Ebay every once in a while but they are expensive.
modeler#1-You have good memory. An article on building this model was in the January 2005 issue of Fine Scale Modeler.
The paper-model is by SCHREIBER out of GERMANY.Now there is a little problem here .The sub I have is NOT a round cigar-like tube .It is ,when you consider technology back then built of flat and curved angullar pieces .The shape is very close to being a octagonal type with curves and such where needed .The thing would be hard to build with the shipbuilding abilities back then The SCHREIBER model does reflect this . All in all I think I will go out with a blast .The last model WILL have to be the 66" version. That will upset everybody .HMMMMM tankerbuilder .
