The Ship Model Forum

Looking good!

Don't forget the boot stripe and anti-fauling red though.

With Lex, many modellers (and profile drawings, and the kits' box art!) place it too low, but the top of the boot stripe was actually at the top of the vertical face of the armour belt (not anymore on the inclined 'step', but right up to the edge of it). For the period you're setting your Lex in, this is clearly visible on p24 of the Wiper book.

Because the ship is so large, the boot stripe appears quite thin. Close-ups from other periods can give you an idea of the exact thickness (like the one of the stern during Coral Sea in the Wiper book). But I'm pretty sure that there will be a clear amount of non-fauling red showing under the boot stripe too on your model, just like on that photo on p24.

A bit of extra work, but it'll look good on the model! :)

Cheers,

Marijn

[quote="MartinJQuinn"]It's ok. Little bit of bleed through. Next time, paint the lighter color first, mask and then the darker color. You might find you get better results.[/quote]

It has been difficult on this deck as I'm using the wood deck and it bleeds because the wood is absorbing the paint and then wicks it under the tape. Perhaps if I had sprayed a clear coat between color layers I wouldn't have run into these problems. Something to try another day, although next time I think I'll just use the plastic deck instead.

**EDIT**tegunn you must have been posting right when I was :thumbs_up_1:

That being said here's a couple pictures for fun with the superstructure/funnel, turrets, and the Vindicators for the Marines on Midway and Lex's Buffalo.

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress14.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress14.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress15.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress15.png[/img][/url]

[quote="MartinJQuinn"]It's ok. Little bit of bleed through. Next time, paint the lighter color first, mask and then the darker color. You might find you get better results.[/quote]

Wood decks are a challenge to paint, especially stained ones. Did you brush on the stain? ..Sometimes if you spray a clear laquer to help seal it after you paint the letter paint, apply the letters to mask, spray clear again(light coat) before staining. Brush painting might encourage bleed-under though... hmmmm challenging it is...
It's looking good already.. I like the pre-war era just as well as the WW2 era subjects.

It's ok. Little bit of bleed through. Next time, paint the lighter color first, mask and then the darker color. You might find you get better results.

OK. I just finished the flight deck markings. Not perfect, but they look good to me. I'll have aircraft parked all over the deck, so it'll look fine underneath them. I couldn't cut a stencil I liked for the 'LEX' on the stern, so I just pieced it together with my thin Tamiya tape. What do you guys think?

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck4.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck4.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck5.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck5.png[/img][/url]

Thanks Matt

Yes, you can see it in the photo of the Brewster landing on the ship camouflage site.

HTH
Matt

I had a question about the picture Rick posted, reposted below:

[img]http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p303/TincanREDavis/zPHNYx11CV2crop-10Nov41_zpsyi5zonbh.jpg[/img]

Is that a deck stripe just aft of the aft most 8" gun running perpendicular to the others? (It lines up with the gang way leading off the port side of the ship). I'm on my phone, otherwise I would have circled the area in question.

Also, what color do you guys suppose the wind break on the bow was? It looks too light to have been 20B.

Stencils

[quote="MartinJQuinn"][quote="ArizonaBB39"]Thanks Matt and Martin. Since I knew the 5S band was much too short I couldn't live with it and fixed it.[/quote]

Ah - now you are a REAL modeler. Ok, I jest (sort of)...[/quote]

:thumbs_up_1:

I painted the stripes on the flight deck, per the picture Rick posted earlier. Now I've got to figure out how to paint the "LEX" on there...

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck3.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck3.png[/img][/url]

*Edit* I do know the starboard stripe is crooked as it nears the stern. I'll leave it for now (shh, quiet Martin :heh: )

[quote="ArizonaBB39"]Thanks Matt and Martin. Since I knew the 5S band was much too short I couldn't live with it and fixed it.[/quote]

Ah - now you are a REAL modeler. Ok, I jest (sort of)...

Thanks Matt and Martin. Since I knew the 5S band was much too short I couldn't live with it and fixed it.

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress12.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress12.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress13.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress13.png[/img][/url]

I brought it up to just below the boat pockets per Martin, and looking at the plans on the HNSA site for the location of the hangar deck.

[quote="ArizonaBB39"] I think my band of 5S is just a bit too low, but too late now.[/quote]

It should come to right under the boat pockets, IIRC. Looks good Abe - keep it going.

:thumbs_up_1:

Time for an actual update. I got my 3DModelParts order today and got the rest of the 5"/25 guns installed. I glued the flight deck down and primed the ship. I painted the boot topping and then the hull. I think my band of 5S is just a bit too low, but too late now. I also installed the wood deck. I had to cut it up smaller than it came and it left tiny little seams. I'll thin down some paint and flow it in the seams and then park some airplanes over top :heh:

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress8.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress8.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress11.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress11.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress9.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress9.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/Progress10.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/Progress10.png[/img][/url]

And one with Pennsylvania

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/Pacific%20Fleet/LexandPennsy2.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/Pacific%20Fleet/LexandPennsy2.png[/img][/url]

Thanks Greg! The color was a mixture of insignia blue and 5D dark grey (I think it was a 1:5 ratio). After I mixed the color thoroughly I thinned it down a lot and brushed it on with my widest brush. It took several coats before I got it to a shade I felt was appropriate.

The stained deck looks great, Abram. I can't wait to see it assembled on the hull. I especially like how the non-uniform coloration will provide a weathered appearance. What color/methods did you use?

Pictures of the stained wood flight deck. What do you guys think?

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck2.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck2.png[/img][/url]

[url=http://s214.photobucket.com/user/AbramJ/media/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck1.png.html][img]http://i214.photobucket.com/albums/cc184/AbramJ/USS%20Lexington/StainedFlightDeck1.png[/img][/url]

Well the plotter at work was out of ink, so I printed each page I needed of the booklet of general plans in sections on 11x17 paper and have started taping it together. The plans are a definite help. My 3DModelParts order should be here by the end of the week and I can finish installing the weaponry on the Port side of the ship. After that I'll attach the flight deck and clean up the seams then paint the hull. I stopped by the hobby store today and bought some 5O, 5H, and 20B paint. I should have enough 5S left to do the lower band of paint. I also stained the wood flight deck last night. I'm not sure I like it. I'll post pictures tonight after I get home from class. I'm a little surprised Artwox doesn't produce an already colored deck (maybe they do? I don't know).

Here are the original color plates from that pub I posted above. They are much clearer than those lower-res ones that were redrawn. Its a later version of the same pub but still may help.

[url]http://maritime.org/doc/camo/index.htm[/url]