The Ship Model Forum

Work runs slow these days, now is winter here and a influenza has attacked me.

Arms was instaled at the new top rangefinder.



The top front 2nd floor was carved like in the pictures, but until now I no idea what is this.



And the 3rd floor was started:





I change a bit my focus to clear the mind and I recreated some details on front deck:

The most complicated was the aircraft rails with their triangular supports:







To do it I cutted a lot of triangular plasticards and glued it at rail lateral.



After sanding carefully the triangles they had a homogeneous appearence, and I installed they on deck.







Other fittings begun to be installed on front deck too.

Lucky you (influenza aside): here is so hot and damp that I gave up modelling until the weather gets back to bearable...
the rear mast structure looks very good: I'll probably try to change on my ship too but may be tricky because it was the only thing I glued up to the deck!
At least I got some new toys from RM Giampiero.

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"For the one who walk in darkness with a stick is blind, but the one who sticks out in the dark is... Fluorescent!"

Hi Gianluigi,

Fortunatelly influenza has gone and now I'm recreating some new light projectors for Pola.

Yes, I understand you. I have the same problem here at summer, some days temperature goes above 40ºC or more. To work with the airbrush at these hot days is near impossible due humidity condensation inside the air tube, the air filter is insuficient for the task.

For this reason and to facilitate the painting job I have leave some pieces loose on my Pola until I'm sure they are OK.

I did some purchases from Giampiero for Pola too, but due the World Cup customs house here is too slow and pieces are delaying too much to arrive.

Best Regards,

Ricardo

Last days I spent considerable time working in a little detail. I'm talking about a new light projectors set for this Pola:



Original kit pieces has no ressemblance with the real thing and I prefer to built all projectors because I dont like to work with resin.



But before show new pieces some considerations:

Before 1940 Pola's projectors has its glass lens exposed to sunlight. No problems about it at peace times, but at wartime it was very dangerous because the sun reflex was visible at distance by the enemy. Seems to me original kit pieces tryed to represent projectors with exposed lens.



For this reason, about mid 1940, all projector's lens was covered by black shutters. But curiously appears to me the original silver painting was preserved on projectors. It combined with the black shutters looks very strange as a wartime camouflage measure.



I begun new projectors by the bases, correcting its forms:



And here with some projectors bodies on the way:



And here some details from a finished new projector:



1 - With the shutter carved on face;

2 - This piece is complex and I instaled a central axle to facilitate the fitting between the the body and the base assembly, it permits me too to change the body elevation as the real thing.

3 - The rear view;

4 - And the original kit piece for comparations.

Before continuing, some considerations more:

During all it's carreer, Pola had two projectors at rear funnel platform:



But the two light projectors disapeared from the bridge's platforms about 1939 or 1940 depending from the pictures sources:



And a sole projector was installed at top platform at the same time:



Independently the fact I know Pola had only three projectors in 1941 configuration, I prefered to do the 4th to have chance to choice three better I have, before instal they on kit. And now I have a projector surplus.



Originally I was working with the possibility to adapt the rear funnel platform from the kit in my project. But during fitting tests I discovered original kit piece was too short (about 2,5mm), to fit at it's correct position at rear funnel.



I observed too, original platform legs from kit was too thick and wrong positioned out of the circles centers. These legs functioned too as projector's rotation axles.



For these reasons I decided to do a new platform with new legs in correct positions.



And here some pictures from the new pieces in a dry fitting test on the kit.







For today, it's all...

Loving this build!
I've been wondering what to do with this kit for a
few years now...your build has now become my
primary inspiration and resource!

Thank you for taking the extra burden of photographing
and posting your progress.

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Thank you for your kind words Daniel and welcome to the Pola's club.

Look at Ramaja's Pola at this link, some months ago he was my inspiration too and today we are sharing some informations about this project: viewtopic.php?f=59&t=152675

Best Regards,

Ricardo

hello Ricardo

very nice work that you made he is sure he is on the masterpiece path
congrats
Cheers
Nicolas

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https://ladiagonaledubosco.blogspot.fr/

Thank you too Nicolas!

Hi,

Work goes slow but don't stopped at Pola.

After some discussions with Ramaja about top bridge format at pages 1 and 2, and considering mine or his interpretations don't answered some questions we had from some pictures, I did some new research and I think I now have a definitive answer for they.

Projecting some lines on some pictures from Zara and Pola I used before, I observed now some interesting angles I don't was attentive before:













But the answers begun to appear when I found this interesting picture at Cinecitá page:



After some considerations, I concluded this picture was take inside the top cabin. It's easy to see because is the only area at Pola with this windows configuration.

The first question this picture is answering is: Yes, this cabin has doors opening to lateral platforms, as we can see in some other pictures I'll post. But for now, projecting lines inside the cabin we can see some strange angles again.



Ramaja had asked me why we don't can see cabin's lateral walls on this picture:



I'm was very curious about this light we can see pointed by the green arrow. But observing the white rectangle pointed by the red arrow, and after to see the inside cabin picture, now we can say it's the cabin door. And the light we saw pointed in green is a sun light throught the open door. But why in this strange position?



We can see the same doors and sunlight at both cabin sides pointed in green and red in this picture:



Looking for a answer for all these questions, I found this old thread here in this forum: viewtopic.php?f=13&t=83409

First time I saw this cabin interpretation, I think: "This modeller is mad"!!! . But now I know he's near correct and part of this interpretation can answer the questions I pointed.

And after some measures, I did my own new interpretation based in the observations I did above:

Comparing with my anterior interpretation, lateral walls now has a angle at door area. It can explain why this narrow platform can acomodate a light projector and the cabin door that appears at some Pola and Zara pictures:





Some other progress on this project are the new AA fire directores I'm doing partially based in some Ramaja's drawings and my own observations:



Now is missing the front plate, the shield in front of the cilinder covers and lateral arms.

Today arrived too some new parts to be used on this project:

A stairs and rails set from Giampiero:



A Breda 37/54mm dual gun set from Giampiero too:



This Trumpeter Roma's set that will have some pieces shared among Roma and Pola too. (It's a Ramaja´s suggestion to me)



And this generic wood deck sheet from Artwox, remembering due some modifications I'm doing on rear deck I can't use the especific Artwox deck for Pola.

HI Ricardo

a great research job and a good enforcement on the modifications to bring to your Pola
bravo
Nicolas

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Hi Nicolas,

Thank you for your kindly words.

The great problem on this project is the absence of consistent informations and good pictures from some ship parts. In this case the only way is improvise with the few elements we have in hands.

Best Regards,

Ricardo

I have the same probleme than you Ricardo with my 1940 Richelieu version that's why we spend a lot of time on our respective projects
cheers
nicolas

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https://ladiagonaledubosco.blogspot.fr/

No doubt Nicolas, people who photographed old ships in definitive never had thought about the problems that plastic modellers like us have today.

Best Regards,

Ricardo

After a long delay, due a travel and others compromises I'm returning to this project.

I restarted it working in 100/47 gun shields. Problems with kit shields shape was pointed by Ramaja at his topic, and here's a picture from Fiume with original kit shield in detail, showing it's bad shape.



Ramaja opted by modify a kit shield and make resin copies for the others, but I hate to work with resin and prefered to modify shields one by one. And here is one of them lacking some details as top and front doors and a rectangular object on front.









A general view on it's kit positions:



I sanded walls until the correct thickness on rear.



I'm working too in a new scratch built set of guns, using new tubes from a Pola's set from Master I purchased in my travel. They are better tooled than tubes from Aber I'm using before.

Here a comparation with the original kit gun.





By the way I'm building too new gun suports with correct triangular shape. Here a comparation with kit suports, lot of details missing here will be added soon on the complete support.



Some pictures from 100mm/47 OTO 1927 guns I'm using as reference for the scratch build:







Some 100mm/47 guns was exported to Russia before the war and was instaled at Krasnyi Kavkas cruiser, in Russia the gun was knew as "Minizini". Some pictures from "Minizini" I found are better than italian pictures and I'm using they too.

Hello Ricardo
nice restart glad to see your work here

cheers
Nicolas

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https://ladiagonaledubosco.blogspot.fr/

Hi Nicolas,

Thank you for your kind words.

Soon some news here.

Very glad you are back to it Ricardo. I'm building Pola now but with less dedication than you. Still, your work is inspiring.

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