1/350 USS Reagan CVN-76

[sgtryan13]

Well, I figured it is about time that the Reagan got her own thread here. Normally I would not build 2 models at once, let alone 2 massive CVN's (I am working on the Bush at the same time) but in this case it just made sense. the Bush is a commission build, and I had planned to build a modernized CVN for my fleet anyways. Seeing as the Bush and Reagan are nearly identical, I figured it would greatly speed up the build process if I did 'em both at the same time, as well as give me a test platform to work out the kinks on my own ship, then the customer gets the perfected versions on his.

What I initially thought would be a rather simple aspect of this build turned into a huge challenge: the Bulbous Bow! When looking at detailed reference pics, the shape of that bow is way more complex than it looks at first glance. I initially thought it was basically a tube with a rounded off end, man was I wrong! It has a "ridge" on top, and curves in, then out on the sides, I wish I was better with computer programs so I could draw a cross section to illustrate the shape, but needless to say it was not easy! After many attempts, I have a result that I am happy with. there may be an easier way to have done this, but what I did was cut the bow area off and install a block of styrofoam insulation board with the shape of the bow drawn on it. I then got to cutting and sanding and filling until I was happy with the results.

[sgtryan13]

A lot of careful filling and sanding was required to cover teh rough texture of the foam board. I used a mixture of wall spackling thinned with water to coat the whole bow area, then wet sanded it with 600 grit paper, followed with a generous coat of future and more careful wet sanding. The final result seems to be a seamless transition from the foam board bow to the plastic hull. I'm happy!

[Elvis965]

Nicely executed, Ryan!

Perseverance pays off!

Did you think about trying some balsa foam? It might have required less filling & sanding than the styrofoam.

Bob

[sgtryan13]

Thanks Bob, this area tested my patience right off teh bat! Never heard of balsa foam , but I am always looking for new techniques. I honestly hope to not have to do another one of these bows any time soon, but if I do I will certainly be looking for a better way!

[Elvis965]

This is the stuff:

http://www.dickblick.com/products/balsa-foam/

Someone had started a build thread on a Hornet and was using it to correct the hull, but I can't find it at the moment.

Bob

[kidcurrie42]

Superb finish to the bow, looks as though it was actually part of the kit, , i too had never heard of balsa foam, but i know if i do a Reagan or a Bush it will be waterlined

Great Job Ryan and good to see Reagan have her own thread.

Happy Modeling

John

[sgtryan13]

Thanks John, I almost gave in a few times adn waterlined this one myself! Honestly the only reason I kept at it is that i have a full hull nimitz in her 1980 fit in my fleet, and I thought it would look awesome displaying this one next to her as a full hull comparison between the 30-ish year evolution of the class to what it look like today. Not much work will be done to the reagan now until I get her mounted to a temp wooden base, that bow is just too much of a portrusion for me to not worry about knocking it into something and breaking it off or denting the foam!

[pingjockey]

Looks great Ryan!

[sgtryan13]

Thanks Scott!

Progress continued this weekend, Reagan got her waterline, including a difficult stripe across the bulbous bow area. Many portrayals of this ship have the bow completely hull red, which honestly would have been much easier, but I am striving for accuracy here, so that meant adding the boot top there too. I think the result is worth the effort. Hangar is nearly complete for the reagan as well, I did not take in-progress pics of the hangar, since witht he exception of a few very minor details, it is identical to the hangar I built for the Bush.

[kidcurrie42]

Looking Good Ryan

Happy Modeling

John

[sgtryan13]

Small update on ronnie. For all the details, you can see the WIP thread of my USS Bush. Reagan recieved all of her port side hull mods over teh past 2 weeks, and her hangar bulkheads have started being installed. She is behind the Bush, and recieves less attention as she is for my fleet, and on no time deadline.

[sgtryan13]

The hangar installation has progressed some more, just need to finish up the aft end of bay 3, then I can start populating the deck with the airwing.

[kidcurrie42]

Very nice work Ryan, you have got the mural looking great.

Happy Modeling

John

[sgtryan13]

Holy Cow, over 9 months since I have worked on the Reagan!

Well I am very excited to be posting this, I have finally made it over the burnout suffered at the hands of the Bush leading up to nats, and I am back to work on the Reagan!

I have tried several times (unsuccessfully) to get back into this beast, but I just couldn't get into it. Now that I have completed a smaller build, I am back in the groove. Though I can't prove it with pictures at the moment, the Reagan got some real attention today.

One of the ship judges at nationals was kind enough to go over the Bush with me after the show, and point out the few areas I got gigged on, and sure enough, I made the same mistakes on the Reagan, so I went and rectified those.

In all my builds of this kit, it has always bugged me that the stern boat dock included in the WEM pe set just does not fit right. Well today I concentrated on the stern, and in looking over reference pictures I realized that the stern deck portrusion that the dock attaches to is entirely the wrong shape and size (for Reagan at least). That being said, I broke out the razor saws and the dremel tool, and hacked apart the ship's stern and rebuilt it to a correct shape. And to think I thought I was completely done with the hull... The boat dock is going to match up to the stern beautifully now!

Have to wait tillmonday for pictures though.

[boomstick68]

So glad you're back to work on the Reagan. This will be the inspiration I need to get my Nimitz to the finish line.

[sgtryan13]

I think the fact that I jumped back in with a large-ish modification to the hull will go a long way in keeping me on track here, I am excited about this ship again!

The photos below illustrate how I went about making the stern corrections. Started with an ugly hole cut out there, and ended with a (in my opinion) beautiful extension that looks like it was part of the kit all along.

The one major difference with this hack job compared to the previous ones I have done is how I filled the hole in the hull. In my previous attempts I put in a backing and then added my putty filler of choice, sanded, primed, and filled qnd sanded many more times. Well this time I tried something different, because these holes are pretty deep, and can take the filler putty a LOOONG time to harden. I put in a styrene backing, but made sure that all the sides were sealed, then Imixed and poured some fast setting resin into the hole, and 5 minutes later it was rock hard and ready for sanding. One shot and done this time, I think this will be my way to go from now on.

I also did a lot of other hull work that I didn't bother to take pics of. I cleaned a lot of areas up that still had some tiny flaws visible (areas that I mated the new weapons sponsons especially), and added some piping around the hull as well. I did not like the filling job I did on the port midships area before, as when my flashlight hit it at a certain angle, there was a small divit visible, so I re filled and sanded and painted that area as well. I am going to be my toughest critic on this build, striving for as near perfect build quality as these mortal hands can get! Though I would love to have her done in time for mosquitocon in the spring, my only real deadline is the 2014 nationals in VA.

[ArizonaBB39]

Excellent work!

[LE BOSCO]

Hello sgtryan

excellent recovery neither seen nor known
best regard
nicolas

[MartinJQuinn]

As always, excellent work, Ryan.

[Timmy C]

It might be too late, but have you thought of putting in the access hatch and stairs that lead from the dock platform to the hull?