Galil�e WIP

[JBA]

Hi guys, i will need to work a bit on my website during the summer, so my next WIP is on the friendly sites I know.
That diorama is already being posted in a panzer site, but I thought you salty guys could also enjoy it.
Kinda.
You see that's a 1/35 diorama, with a wreck in it, and most of the stuff will be scratchbuilt.
So i will try in 3 instalments to reach the point at which I already am.

So what's the Galil�e? she's a very handsome Third Class cruiser, built 1895ish, scrapped 1920ish. here is a picture of the Galil�e.

ah ah, yes, but in fact it's NOT the Galil�e I will build! I use that name because it *sounds good*, i will rather build a close looking enough boat called the Protet.
But then Protet sounds really bad and I happen to work with a guy whith the same name etc etc..
Anyway, I will work mostly the cabin of the boat and maybe one or 2 other parts. i will also try new techniques for the sea etc..
So okay, first step, the stanchions!

done out of solder, eh.. it took me 2 years to come out with that very simple way of doing things..











Then there's a 37 mm hotchkiss gun at each side of the bridge, and they put some special reinforcement below so that the whole doesn't collapse at the first gun shot. Here they are, brass, plastic, solder and some photoetch I had left from the Sokol.









that's it for now, second part late today or early tomorrow!

[JIM BAUMANN]

SUPREME workmanship on the stanchions!!!

Love the ball effect .... ( tricky in 1/700 eh...?)

Beautiful--if fragile-- but so sharp!

BRAVO!�--impatient to see more

Jim Baumann

[JBA]

Thanks Jim!
I wouldn't touch anything in 1/700 to be honest, my hands are too big

well, here's the second part of the update on the Galil�e!
first the gun, that's a 37mm Hotchkiss one. i thought that would be the same as sold to Russia and that I already built for the Sokol, but no, it seems the French used a slightly different version when it comes to the position of the trigger and shape of the handle, not to mention the sight.
Anyway, here's the first part, some brass tubing, and Magic Sculp to do the shape




Then starting a bit of wood cutting -indeed the cabin appeared to have been mad of wood, so better start now

Homemade photoetching!
No more amateurish and blind driving like I did for the Sokol. I have been building a few homemade devices in order for batch processing the photoetch making process
First the 2 templates done on computer




printed on transparent paper and put in sandwich with the heklp of the target shaped guides I printed


Under the insulate machine

In the developing bath

O� looks good, once developed!

..in the "etching machine".
Well that's a slightly transformed morning chocolate plastic box

hey, you might have observed that I didn't attach the pieces to the fret! hey that's because I hate trimming photoetch. So i prefer letting them loose in the etchant bath and filter it afterwards..

like said one German friend "das ist Rheingold"


Well, that's enough for the whole build -with a bit extra too!
next instalment tomorrow, with probably the gun finished as well as other stuff

[MichelB]

I can't wait to see more!

[JIM BAUMANN]

Aha!

non-attached PE...

good thinking!

JIM B

[ModelMonkey]

Brilliant!

[JBA]

thank you friends!
Jim, not attaching the PE is something I have to think twice when using, indeed the etchant doesn't bite the same amount depending on the position of the fret in the bath. When the pieces drop at the bottom, I can't see them and verify if they're ready or not! I have to wait till the filtering. Here it was okay because the fret was small enough -15cm wide.
here we continue,
Time to solder the ladder: that one is fixed behind the cabin and is supposed to ease the access on the compass which is situated on the roof. I also do a bit of ladder, this time one of the 2 that leads to the bridge, only one bit, the rest would have been eaten..







Back to the 37mm, more Magic Sculp rolling for the 2 parts of the base




Then this tiny thing done outr of semi hardened Magic Sculp is the visor


here are most of the pieces done, except the shoulder thing and the trigger





ok for now, maybe a last post for today as I just finished the gun actually
JB

[JBA]

here are the last steps of Hotchkiss building and then the glamour shots!
So after that one I caught on with the late:)

[JBA]

Okay let's start the work on the bunker. I found no evidence of any opening at all in that bunker which is situated below the cabin. it's armoured all around with some weird looking bat like attachments to the bridge which is being made of wood.
But hey, if somebody has got any evidence about Protet's armoured bunker, i take them

those attachments are for later, first plastic cutting.

the whole point is having an almost perfect cylinder at the end of the game



the 2nd smaller round is being situated at the top of the first round

then i have to fix this kind of flying pan looking like top -which is partt of the armour -it wasn't that easy for the right bend to get
IMG]http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u273/jbandre/flyingsaucer.jpg[/IMG]



Here it is finished. Now on to work with the curious looking attachments

[JIM BAUMANN]

First class Methodology!

Thia is the kind of stuff that inspires-- and can be applied to smaller scales also!

Tres Bien!



JIM B

[Avery Boyer]

Excellent, as always, can't wait to see more. Knowing the quality of your work, this will be fantastic!

[JBA]

Thank you Avery and Jim, only 2-3 weeks to go hopefully!

Well, i had some time on my hands yesterday so I did those bat like attachments. it took me a while actually to understand what was going on on the plans, but hey, on for a new Photoetch sheet..

let's trim the little bits

let's fix them underneath -you note that I have been taking out the bottom of the cylinder -that's for easier fixing on the main cylinder that is

OK, it should look like that in the end..

well, I had some plates left from the Mass�na's hulk, so I cut out some and put on each side, I guess it's more logic to assume these were fixed like that, despite the fact there is no evidence eh.
the attachments near the inner circle are not tops, but they will be hidden by some wooden work!

ok, now it's time to assemble the bridge

[JBA]

More soldering today! First here are all the metal pieces required to work on the bridge



soldering!



what you've got to rememberwith PE is that it's badwith thickness, so back to platsic for a bit of extra thickness!


here is an approximation of the final result -sort of a dry fitting, of course everything will be tied together by the wooden part of the bridge wich i hope to make tomorrow

[Sean Hert]

[MartinJQuinn]

Holy cow, that is amazing.

[JBA]

Thanks Sean and Martin !
Here we go again, with balsa cutting, I don't really like this actually


I use white glue to glue all the different bits together and there's quite a lot of them..


The cabin will be partly destoyed, so I scratched the balsa with the back of my knife, when it's enough eaten, I just tear the wood apart


here is the way with which I manage to make some angled borders. it's quite rude like most of the tricks I use actually..


even more welding -this time it's all the "accessories to the stairs which lead to the roof



As you can see in orange, managing to get some perfect angles on the corners is not that easy. i will have to use some filler here and there..


here what's the cabin looks like today...




... tomorrow the details should be added as well as all the other wooden parts of the boat!

[JBA]

First a mockup, I need that to really be able to undertand what will be the final dimensions of the thing

I cut some feather cardboard,, and I will use a long blade to "sculpt" the waves

When I am done, some plaster to cover the irregularities

In the end you get that:

I built a wooden frame around, and then it's time for a few layers of latex

then some extra latex mixed with some gauze to create the mould! gauze is for strength

let dry overnight..

well some extra coats tomorrow, it's going to be a dull day

[JBA]

I have not been idle this week-end but sadly this is not the kind of work that will look okay in pictures as I started the water and have plenty of coats to pour..

But then please note that in order to place the blockhaus at the right place, I made a plastic dummy of it in my form . i also test wether the whole is being waterproof!


Those Scale hardware rivets are just great to do these kind of effects


extra woodwork..

Here's the steering wheel

okay, today i *should* be able to finish the boat!

[JBA]

The 6th layer of resin is poured for the sea, that brand I use needs 8 hours+ to set. I am halfway..

In the meantime I finished most of the boat:
now THAT was not easy..
First getting that bloody solder wire through the tiny holes of my solder done stanchions.

Then actually fixing them on their support (supperglue was of no use -I had to use 2 parts Epoxy glue). Once it's done, I had the upper railings in plastic to fix. I managed to bend them using my solder iron and putting the plastic close enough.


Anyway at then end the parts look like this:

[JBA]

Today I must be at 8 layers resin pouring for the water, things look okay but I don't post any pic until it's ready. I fear of a "colour slippering" compared to what I originally wanted. So that means I won't start to paint the thing until the water is completely done.

So i did a mast yesterday, I am not sure yet if I will include it or not. i had foreseen it's use by designing the right phototech bits -because once more it will look better with it.

Okay, more soldering







In the end, here are all the parts. the black stuff is Apoxie putty, the black one, it feels like you have been putting your hands in coal when you end up using it.
Very dirty but i am out of Magic Sculp!

the stuff dries overnight and then tomorrow i will finish it..