I’ve started a new project; the USS Hornet model at 1/350 by Trumpeter. My first inclination was to just add some PE, a squadron of B-25s and paint her carefully.
Howver as fate would have it, I started reading in other forums that the hull shape was “wrong” and after looking at a number of photos I could see a new project forming.
I’m going to try to scratchbuild the hull below the hangar deck! the most obvious difference is that the ship had a pretty pronounced flare in the hull below the deck, but the kit has big slab sides that go straight up and down to the waterline.
I purchased a drawing of Faired Lines and Molded Offsets from Floating Drydock, and scaled down the sections to make a quick jig. I scrounged up a styrene sign, an old shelf board and some 1/4" molding to make a 3-D template. I’m going to try Balsa Foam, so I bought a couple sheets of 1" and cut it up into blocks. By coincidence each block is exactly three sections, which helps keep things lined up in the jig.
I’ve experimented with a number of adhesives, and Elmer’s is the best.
My next move is to cut the hull at deck level. I’ve bolted in a stiffener to keep things straight.
I’ve cut the hull off at/below the hangar deck. This was not a problem. First i scribed the cut line at the stem and stern using a height gage. I have a Postit pad that’s about 2" thick and I just fold it over to be the correct height (within 0.002).
then I used a single edge razor blade to shear off the remaining bits to be true to the deck level.
The balsa foam “buck” is easy to shape.
It’s time to try to finish this build. Two moves and six years, I’VE RUN OUT OF EXCUSES.
I think that I made this thing way too complicated. That crazy jig was tossed in the first move, and after the second move the hull sat outside in the garden shed for a year.
But it’s a costly kit, I have the PE and extra Mitchells, and I’ve certainly improved my skills as a modeler.
This is a new idea from the vault ! I hope you finish it now . I promise , I am still trying with the picture thing . T.B. P.S - I see a passenger ship in the left-over parts , do you ?
There was a big chunk of hangar deck missing. Got it put back together.
Evergreen sells a number of useful scribed siding sheets. Here i used “N Scale passenger siding” which matches the roll-up doors that Trumpeter includes.
That is one courageous project; I think it has our attention. I will watch with everyone else. I was scheduled to start my Trumpter CV-8 project last January 2017, but was distracted with a B-26! I am well aware of the hull problem; but it, when ever I start it, will be just fine for me! Good luck Bondman!
Ha! I never even noticed! I’m not paying attention closely enough. Well, either way, it’s a great thread, and it’s great to see you revive it. I’ve got builds like this, too, where I got stalled and then the years passed, and I’m only now picking them up again.
So much to report, but currently without photo sharing.
I finished the hull shaping and the hard shell over the foam. I would not do it this way again. The finish is too prone to nicks. I would use poplar next time. It would be heavy, but stronger.
Painting has followed. 5-S was difficult to find but Tamiya XF-18 has been a pretty good match.
I used 20-N and 5-N from Model Master. They look fine.
I had a set of Gator masks from back when I bought the kit 7 or so years ago. Two moves, 7 years of hot garage storage.
At first they looked a little yellow and wrinkled.
But with a little TLC I got them to lie down. It helped to cut them up and put on in three sections each side, matching the ends and floating the middle one. With planning at locations where the pattern was full height to the deck, the gaps were easy to bridge with little extra sections of mask cut from the sheet.
I am really impressed with the product. The pattern looks really good.
I definitely would look at their set for CV-9, next.
