1/96 HMCS Bonaventure

[NavyShooter]

All decals applied to my Sea Kings!

I'm re-printing the folded rotors - the ones that are in this picture that are painted aren't quite right, so I've redone them (seen in blue) and it looks more correct.

[NavyShooter]

It's been a while since I've had the Bonnie down off the wall - having finished the Sea Kings, I figured it was a good time to lay things out and see what I have left to do.

Nothing is glued on....and this is still the V5 Island, rather than the V6 that's still being detailed in DSM.

I like it...I will observe though that with 'modern' aircraft onboard, she doesn't seem to have a lot of deck space.

[NavyShooter]

The rear of the engine nacelles were actually used for sonobouy dispensers.

There's a couple of different arrangements of the tubes, there's this one with 16 tubes, but I think the RCN used 8 tubes per side.

NS

[NavyShooter]

Yup. After my multi-month saga with trying to get a workable S2 Tracker 3D model...I'm happy with how these look.

Did some work on the H04S choppers tonight. They're now ready for decals.

[NavyShooter]

Well, the air det is complete.

4 H04S
6 Sea King
8 Tracker
8 Banshee

Very pleased with how they look!

[NavyShooter]

Having completed the Air Det, all decals, all paint, all clear-coated...I had a fellow modeler over on Saturday morning to discuss 'next steps'. He was the fellow who sold me the hull almost 10 months ago, and he enjoyed having a look at how she is coming along. I ended up giving him one of the 'old' islands and main masts that were not quite right (since I now have V7 on the printer right now.) I also gave him back the original Shapeways S2 Tracker that he bought, as it was slightly different from the ones that I ended up printing myself.

We had a good chat, and now I've got a list of things I'm working on to get her 'finished'. What do you think the first thing I started working on was...? Was it anything from that list? No...of course not. The first thing I started working on was a full length hangar bay. I have previously made an elevator bay - but somehow I got pushed down the rabbit hole to make a complete hangar bay. So....8 hours of 3D design later, here's what I have. It will take about 140 hours of straight printing to get the 11 sections of it built.

I also decided to pull all the details off, set the air det aside (now that they're done) and start looking at the hull to see what needs to be done to it.

It being a model that I didn't start...but am finishing...there's some interior work that has to be done. It's not really a fun thing to pull out a drywall saw when dealing with a ship model, is it? Suffice to say, the interior is a bit of a mess, and there's more destruction that has to happen before I can focus on reconstruction. I suspect I'll end up dealing with some more fiberglass work as well. I had a feeling that wasn't done. Biggest problem is re-doing the shaft-lines. The stuffing tubes weren't well sealed as originally fitted, and so I'm going to end up taking out the shafts completely, and replacing the stuffing tubes.

[NavyShooter]

David,

Thanks for the suggestion, but in this case, I can set this stuff to print and walk away...come back in 12 hours to a completed part and start the next one...come back in 14 hours and start the one after that...and so on. I've got a busy week coming up and by the time the weekend arrives and I'd have time to start thinking about working on a styrene sheet version, this will already be mostly complete for me. I'll be able to glue the sections together, add some stiffeners, and test-fit. Then I'll be able to do some painting and detailing.

It's a question of time management and efficiency to some extent.

I also don't have large sheets of styrene on hand...so...yeah, there's that too.

To be honest, I was never really all that good at the 'traditional' style of model building, so 3D printing is a way for me to bring computer based stuff to life as well, so I think this is the right way for me to build it.

In the end, I've spent 8 hours doing the design, and while the print time is long, the time I'm going to spend getting it printed is not. 15 minutes checking the printer to pull off the first part, and getting the next one started....then I go away for 14 hours and it all happens when I'm at work or asleep.

[NavyShooter]

It's RC.

[NavyShooter]

I'm going to have to make it removable.

Here's the concept of what I think I'm looking at. Basically 5 deck hatches, giving the ability to lift the hangar deck up and out to enable access to batteries and motors in the midships area, along with easy access to the foc'sle to let me get at the Anchor system, and the stern for access to the rudder.

I want the hatches to be removable in sections to enable me to show off the interior of the hangar without having to remove the island. The idea of a 'cut away' like this appeals to me.

I've been trying to figure out the best way to make the elevators function - I've seen folks using servos as lift arms, others with rollers lifting them on a belt or string, and someone even suggested a scissor lift below. I'm pondering how to make them work - got any suggestions?

NS

[NavyShooter]

Based on the drawings and estimates, the ship is 20 cm deep from the top of the flight deck to the keel, and the Hangar bay is 6.5 cm, so that will leave me about 14 cm to work with (5.5 inches - ish).

Should be lots of space.

[NavyShooter]

Had to re-print the radar dish at 80% scale to get it just right. The 100% size version was a bit too big.

Time to figure out how I'm going to make it rotate.

[NavyShooter]

Also decided to print the aft cable deck area, the raised box area is due to the rudder post.

[NavyShooter]

As a former Naval Electronics Technician in the RCN, and based on my experience with RADAR systems, the period of rotation actually varies based on the range gate for the RADAR. Longer range settings will have a lower rotation rate. I will likely set it between 30-50 RPM.

As for the rudder post - it is what I got with the hull. Unless I do some more major surgery to it, the rudder post is already in place. (I have some major surgery to do already on the shaft lines...so maybe I'll change it...but probably not.)

Have a look at the snip from the NO 3 Deck plan that I show here. As you can see, I've moved the bollards aft and outboard a bit, and deleted the capstan. The capstan is between frames 208 and 209, right on the center-line.

[Maarten Sch�nfeld]

Had to re-print the radar dish at 80% scale to get it just right. The 100% size version was a bit too big.

Time to figure out how I'm going to make it rotate.

Seeing your pretty good estimation of the Hollandse Signaal LW-02 radar, I thought this little plan might be helpful.

It is even in 1:96 available from Shapeways: https://www.shapeways.com/product/WLNUD ... radar-1-96

[NavyShooter]

Thanks for that Maarten!

I think I'll stick with mine rather than getting one through Shapeways. The $43.46 price, plus shipping, plus import fees, and taxes, and exchange rate will push it over $100 Canadian...probably $120.

For $120, I can buy 3 spools of filament, and print out a few dozen of them. It's not a perfect copy as with the Shapeways one, but for my needs, it is close enough.

I'll use the picture you sent and maybe add some detail to my design and when I break this one, I'll print a more detailed version!

Also, here's some more 3D design work brought to life...here's the aft catwalk- version 3, and Version 4 completed. I'm going with V4.

Brad

[Maarten Sch�nfeld]

With the economics of price, customs and shipping by Shapeways your decision seems fully justified to me. Then better have your own design. And for sure it's pretty close to the real thing, few will spot the differences. I'm only one of the few more intimate ones with Dutch radar gear. If you happen to go for the details I could hand you even more detailed plans of that radar and others from Hollandse Signaal

[NavyShooter]

Thanks!

I'm generally pleased with how it turned out. The cost-benefit analysis is part of why I was able to get this project! The guy I bought the hull/deck from last year bought a single airplane from Shapeways that cost him $90. He realized that to do a complete air det that way would run him over $2000.

So. I got the model.

Here's an updated version of the Aft Cable Deck area. Still needs a bit of work, so V3 hit the printer last night. (You can see the corrections marked on it in black pen.)

[NavyShooter]

Oooohhhhh....I met with a local modeler today who's done resin kits for years, and actually worked on a 1/350 scale Bonnie at one point - he's still got it in progress, but nothing done on it in a while.

Anyhow, he gave me 2 CD's of plans and pictures of the Bonnie....including some plans that I've not seen before.

The 'usual' group of Bonnie Plans that make the rounds are the original 1958 'as built' plans, and the two folks that have emailed me copies of them have sent me the odd-numbered decks. I assumed that meant that the even numbered decks weren't available...but now I have them. FASCINATING. Here's a snippet of #4 Deck showing the Chief & PO's Cafeteria, and part of the crew's cafeteria.

NS

[XFR]

Hi Navyshooter,

Been catching up on your build, very nice build.

[NavyShooter]

It's been a while since I put any work in on the Bonnie - busy with work, and family stuff.

Got out to the garage last evening to play about with a project I've been pondering for a while. I actually printed the fuselage for this Sea King about 6 months ago, but only ordered in the motors last month.

A bit of soldering, a bit of shimming, a bit of drilling...and here is the demo version of the Sea King that'll be able to sit on deck with rotating blades.

A helpful individual in one of the Bonnie groups pointed out that the rotor blades are backwards...they spin the other way....so back to the drawing board for that part.