Thanks guys @ Commodore - Closest I could get in rural GA is Canada Dry or Schweppes. But I have some in the fridge with the root beer. If I can get some good plans for the turrets, they're pretty straightforward. In printing news, I spent an extra 2 hours on the 04 and 05 levels, and they are absolutely MENTAL. Mounting bases for the saluting guns, plus doors, portholes, stairs, and ammo boxes. Supports under the platforms. No one will believe it's my ship when they see it. Started printing a few minutes ago, supposed to be done around 8PM. I have got to get the Rostock done, I could bang out an SS in a couple days tops. I could have run a dissolvable support medium under the overhangs and done more levels in one piece, but that's wasteful of materials and it takes longer to print. so, no dissolving plastic for now. Bonus: The SS is hollow inside the buildings, so lighting can be threaded up through it, and the portholes drilled out to let the light shine through. Also saves plastic and weight. Above the 02/03 level, the SS is 3.2mm thick (wall thickness). 1/8" for the SAE types
Yum. You're really making me look forward to seeing German bits. All those details molded in is just awesome.
Hehehehe... Forward SS is all done apart from the 06 and 07 levels. I have not done any post-processing apart from removing the 'brim' from these pieces (a thin layer ont he bottom that helps them stick to the print bed and prevents warping). They're not welded together, either, so this is NOT the final product, which will be smooth and glorious. (The pieces aren't perfectly aligned in some shots) Back view, looking up, so you can see the support struts for the platform on the 05 level. Glory! Junior Assistant Propwasher Lucky the Kitten was assigned to review plans by Chief Inspector Tuxcat. He is new, and still struggling to figure out how to open the book without opposable thumbs. But he's got a lot of kitten enthusiasm! The little box to the right is the E3D hot end for the Rostock. No, Lucky, not LITTER box!!! LITTLE BOX! And now back to our program... I'm very happy about how it looks. The platform above the 05 level is going to add a lot of character, it's got a non-linear shape to it and I can't wait And a side shot, just to show that I put on the air intakes/vents on the back edge of the SS... the little rectangles sticking off the back side to the left... and did I mention the random boxes on the 05 level? I think they're a mix of ammo and signal flag boces. The ones on the back of the platform (3 of them close together) are definitely signal flags and equipment. There are 3 boxes alongside the building on that level (2 on one side, one on the other) that I think are ammo, as there are 4 saluting guns on that level. Which reminds me, the 05 level has holes printed in it, 4 1/8" holes for the bases of the saluting guns, one 1/4" one for the mainmast, aft of the building, and one 1/4" on each side for a short dowel (to be put in) that is a support thingie for a small rangefinder on the level above. Slight close-up, wanted to show the port side. Also forgot to mention the stairs at the aft end of the building on the 05 level. (In the Navy, we still call them ladders) But there are several flights of such stairs there, and they will look right, i.e. a hole in the deck above and they'll line up. Next couple of levels will really make it look good. This took most of my weekend, but it was worth it, and now I can print more without any mental effort, which is good because Brian K is counting on a set of these for his QE by the February battle!
Heh. The syringes are actually throwaways from work (we need a specific needle, but it only comes with the syringe), they're great for injecting epoxy into crevices, which helps when restoring old boats (and old furniture, doing some work on a cradle for my sister's upcoming adoption of a newborn girl) (Yes, Uncle Tugboat will be teaching her boat battling and speaking in a pseudo-German accent). My goal is to have Gigi yelling 'JA! Ser Gut!' before she's 3, and driving Lil Scharnie (in the calm between battles) by 6. The HOF Board will never believe that though. The syringes, taken in concert with the photographic evidence of peppermint abuse, is too damning. Tonight, working on the upper 2 levels.
My secret evil plan is to make it nice enough that anyone looking at it will assume it is yours or Joel's, and not mine. Tactical deception
Question, how BB resistant is that plastic? Like ABS, little dimple hits? I think it looks amazing! I think as it take hits, it would look like "scale" battle damage. Very cool!
This is ABS plastic. The base level is 1/4" thick (more in a couple of places), and the top levels get thinner down to 1/8". Earlier in the thread there should be pics of the ballistic testing I did.
Mr. Tugs, That 4" mount I mentioned should be featured in the drawings of the HMS Warspite in that fine Anatomy of the Ship book you have there - Warspite had the same 4" secondary AA mounts as the various Brit cruisers and destroyers did. Regards, Chris
I'm not doing them until I finish my SS and the secondary turrets that go on the 1943 refit (that's the one I'm doing, and Brian K is counting on me for HIS superstructure as well). I could do them in the future, they're certainly not very complicated in terms of looking good from 5 feet. I can bang them out before the next big superstructure project.
