WIP - 1/350 USS Lexington (CV-2)

[lvsquarerigger]

I was happily fixing the missing degausing cables and laying out how I was going to do the boat bumpers when I got a little sidetracked. I've been dealing with a bulge on the starboard side right at the forward edge of the patch I made to put the boat pocket and the vent doors in their proper position. I think what happened is the flat sheet styrene cut to the flat plans didn't do well with the transition from a flat side to the cutback for the bow. Anyway I've had problems with cracking and the bulge and tried bandaids but they didn't work. So now I propose to build a boatpocket like assembly and hopefully this will fix it once and for all. Ha! So sez me anyway. I plan to make the assembly, cover it with sheet styrene, slightly overlapping, install the monster, and then cut all the necessary holes. That's my plan anyway.

I did get the additional cables on the starboard side but still have the port ones to go.

Stay tuned.

James

[lvsquarerigger]

First I'll mention the sanding sticks I posted of earlier. The black one on the left is the first one I got and it's 80 grit on one side and 180 on the other. then they go up.
the brown is similar but this and all the others I cut, first in half at an angle, and then half in two pieces of different sizes. Makes it easier to have different sizes for different things. The white is a little finer, the blue is 220/320. the pink 400/600. So it's working quite well for me now.

Then we get to my bulge. In the first ship picture you can see how I was trying to putty and blend in the bulge and I sanded right through the styrene to the brass I had added from behind trying to flatten it out. This was when I said enough and cut out the offending section. I looked at the other places at the stern where there were similar changes but there were boat pockets to help reinforce these changes so I decided to build a reinforcing section behind this area and then put in a new piece. So I put reinforcing strips around the edges and glued in my patch. I had a problem with the thickness of the kit hull varying. I had to sand the top of the forward strip and you can see the putty on the bottom where it was still set back a little. Once smooth, and even dragging a fingernail across the seams didn't catch, I put the pattern on and cut out the vent doors and drilled the portholes.

Done!

In one pic you can see where the forward degausing cables go back up to four but I still have the ones on the port side to do. Then it's on to the boat bumpers and other little fiddly stuff.

I'm still looking for some 1/350 round hole grating with no luck. While at the local hobby shop I asked and found some model car radio grills that looked like they might work, the holes seemed right and the size close, but they were were too small. So Brian is continueing to look but we'll see.

James

[Jon C Ryckert]

Way to go James!

[LE BOSCO]

HI James

very good recovery one must dare!!!! and you did of very beautiful way
good luck
Nicolas

[lvsquarerigger]

Thanks Jon. And Nicolas I just hope I get to the point where I don't do all this learnig by fixing my mistakes.

I got all the boat bumpers in and the thinner rod looks much better. Still not sure if I'm going to try dealing with those little triangles at the bottom whatever they are. I got the starboard side recess for the 5" guns in, just missing one more door and the bollards. Now it's time for the port side.

Along the way I made the garbage chute but won't put it on because it sticks above the deck and I can see me breaking it somehow. And the top still isn't quite right but it's close. I cropped the pic from page 11 of WP 33 as it's the best shot I could find.

Also got all the degausing cables done and they show up in some of the pics of orher things.

I got some 1/16th in tube for the drains along the side but they look too big so will try styrene rod and see if I can find an appropiate size and then find it in tube.

James

[MartinJQuinn]

Your attention to detail - and your persistence - is amazing. Great work.

[lvsquarerigger]

Thanks Martin.

I have both port and starboard 5" gun recesses done with new bollards and the capstan that is not in the kit but is on the plan. I did not like the looks of the previous ones I had made for the aft deck so I cut those out and made new ones at the same time I did the recesses. Also saw that there were capstans on the aft deck so did four of them too. As a bonus I had time waiting for glue to set, as I used liquid plastic cement for all this work, so decided to do a little on the funnel assembly while I was waiting. A little Mr Surfacer on the seams and scars of removing the molded on ladders and a lot of sanding has it in pretty good shape. I also glued the 20mm gun deck in place. I may have to cut some off the forward end to be able to get the ladder down to the flight deck as shown in the Pearl refit plans. Still looking at the great but grainy shot of the old girl after taking a torpedo to get it right. I also noticed those same plans show a small mag room on the front of the deck but in the photo it seems like a bunch of life rafts are stacked there as if they took the ones off the port side of the funnel just in case. Who knows? I'm short a few fairleads and decided I will make them out of solid stock rather than build them up. Also all those drain pipes or whatever along the bottom between the boat bumpers and elsewhere are being a pain. I got some 1/16th inch copper tube, no brass or aluminum at the local hobby store, which is the smallest they had but it does't look right. Since I only have photos and nothing definitive on the plans it's completely a SWAG process. That being the case I found an appropiate sized styrene rod and drilled the end to see how it looked. Pretty good but I'm still deciding how I'll proceed.

James

[lvsquarerigger]

A couple of small steps and then a biggie.

I lost (broke in removing) the fairleads for the 5" gun recesses along with the bollards as previously covered so I set out to make a few. Started with some .040 sheet scraps and cut it down to the necessary size. Then I marked out the size of each one and drilled out the middle. Then I cut out the top with some sprue cutters. Then I separated them into itty bitty pieces. Now I had to file and sand them into the necessary shape. I ended up using a small pair of needlenose pliers as they kept twisting in the tweezers when I first tried them. Then it was glue them in place. The pics I took of them in place were fuzzy so I won't post those but the fairleads will show up in some other pics.

Now it was time for the biggie, glue on the flight deck! Haven't done that before so I used liquid plastic cement, figured a longer set time and a better hold once finally cured. Did I learn differently! After clamping the bejeepers out of the deck I let it sit for a couple of hours. Found a couple of spots that were still loose so I reglued and clamped one of them and left it overnight for good measure. Started today and found a few other places that didn't take so started to fix them when the fun began. In trying to make just a little room for glue I popped off one of the boat pockets. OOOOOOH S--T!!!! Now I've got a boat pocket flopping around inside my carrier. I tried to get it with locking tweezers and hold it just inside, glue it, and then pull it up tight. Naaaaah, too easy so it didn't work. Afer several futile attempts I started peeling back the flight deck for access. Ended up opening it from the aft 5" gun area, down the side, and around the front. I needed to get enough room to get my ham handed fingers in there because I couldn't get a clamp to work although I tried several. Along the way I found the joints still soft, could slice right through them with a knife, so decided I would put it back together with CA after scraping the surfaces clean. So I went bit by bit, glueing, holding, glueing holding, and had it done in no time without all those clamps and fuss. Let it set a bit and then started sanding all the seams and that's where I am now. Haven't filled any seams but that's next on the agenda.

James

[lvsquarerigger]

It's been awhile since I posted and there isn't a lot to show but it has been a lot of tiny, tedious, work. I've been making the kind of rectangular tie offs along the water line. There are twentythree of them and the way I did them it required 69 little square pieces of .020 in .060 squares with .3mm rod to make the loops and supports. Could only work for a bit and then it got too hard on my eyes. I finally got them all done, broke 2 #80 drill bits along the way, and just as I finished the last one I broke one further back. so I proceeded to clean it up and redo it and broke one on the starboard side! So then it was the repair process all over again but no more breaks this time. So now it's on to the drains and stuff in the same area. No real details in the plans so it's check all the pics you can and go for it.

James

[Danila77]

James, hello. I want to thank you.
Approximately eighteen months ago, I saw your work and wanted to build a USS Saratoga at the end of the 1930s. Looking at your work, I'm a bit of kit fixed Trumpeter At the moment, the model looks like this, there is still a little to finish and correct some errors.

[lvsquarerigger]

Glad to inspire someone to tackle something like this. Wish I could finish mine in the timeframe you did yours but it seems life, redoing something I find as not correct, and just generally being anal about it precludes that like just now. Frustrated with one little detail on the 5" gun platforms and not having much luck getting what I want which in turn leads to frustration which is where I am now, frustrated. But sooner or later I'll get back to it and continue.

James

[Danila77]

James, good evening.
5 "guns, I completely changed on the resin sets from Veteran Models
Danila

[lvsquarerigger]

It's not the guns but the decking. The forward sponsons had planking on the deck and round hole grating on the fold-up portions while the rear ones just had the round hole grating on the fold up portion. I've got the forward ones to the correct size, the planked decking by using railroad car siding, and the rounded ones are the problem. L'Arsenal makes the grating but has been out of stock seemingly forever. My LHS found a similar material used for radiators on model cars but it's even more delicate than any PE I've used and doesn't want to glue down. The directions say ca will spread and clog the holes, which I can testify it does even using a pin to barely get any on. they suggest varnish which does not seem to exist in paint stores any more and the varathane I tried didn't work either. So it seems Hobby Lobby has small bottles of varnish in their craft section so that's next on my agenda. We'll see.

James

[Mgunns]

Hello James:

I have been following your build. I am doing Saratoga in a 30's scheme. Not a specific date or anything, just an era. I am impressed with the amount and quality of the work you are doing on the Lexington build. I have been debating whether to get this kit or not, as Sara has taken awhile to build and I loose interest after awhile, but; I bid on one on ebay. I will be using your build log as a source of reference. Your work is inspiring to say the least and I look forward to more posts as you progress through your build.

[ArizonaBB39]

Excellent work so far! Keep it up.

[dbiggied]

I see you are still on the hull...if a master like you can take his time, then I don't feel so bad that I started on my boat pockets a year ago and then got off to another project and haven't touched the Lex since. I will have a build log soon, but for now, I hope you will share your knowledge with me on two points...

#1. I have the Stern book and the Squadron at Sea book on the way, so forgive me if the answer is there, but what evidence did you use for how you made the vent trunks in your boat pockets? I always assumed from the plans that the vents were flat gratings on the decks of the boat pockets but yours extend above the deck. I can't find a single picture that shows the interior of the pockets well enough to tell me anything about those vents.


#2. I am looking at pages 6 and 10 of the Wiper#33 book...specifically at the hull bulges...in the first picture here taken from page 6, the port side hull bulge appears to have the sloped top surface and then the vertical side, similar to what is cast on the Trumpeter hull...



However, in this picture of the starboard side taken from page 10, what in other pictures appears to be the sloped top surface of the hull bulge actually looks like it protrudes from the surface of the hull, almost like an additional bilge keel just above the water line. Are my eyes giving out on me or is this a detail that was changed later?


Thanks!

[Mgunns]

Hello Doug W.

It looks like a platform attached to the side of the hull for people to paint or whatever else working party they would be on. It isn't a permanent fixture. If you look down the hull you can see the attachment points all along the hull just above the water line. I look forward to your posts as it looks like Squarerigger hasn't posted in quite some time.

[dbiggied]

Thanks Mgunns...I see what you are saying about it being a work platform...makes sense...just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything. Pictures of the lower hull area are very rare so it's hard to work out all the details.

I will be starting my own build log soon...probably as soon as my other books get here. Hopefully lvsquarerigger will still be keeping up with his build...his work has been an inspiration to me. I know he's had things in his life get in the way plenty of times before, so a month or two without posts isn't unusual.

[ModelMonkey]

As a comparison, on the 1936 plans for sister Saratoga, that feature shows us as a hull blister on Sara's port side outboard of the armored belt. Its slope changes from fore to aft.

These plans are for Sara as modified in 1941 receiving a large starboard stability blister. Perhaps Lexington would have received the same modification had she survived Coral Sea.

And a beautiful build you have!!

[lvsquarerigger]

Boy! Don't check in the forum for a few days and of course everyone decides to comment or question. Any way Doug, in answer to your two questions I have one of my own: Do you have a set of plans of any sort? And the short answer is if you go back to page 13 of this log I describe how I found the picture in Squadron at sea, there are a few on pgs 13,15,17, and 19 that show Lex under construction and you can see the bulge very clearly. Most particularly the one on 13 is looking forward on the hull and you can see how the hull dips in and then the bulge starts out. If you scroll down slightly I detail how I made the adaptation for this but there's only one picture of the model and it really doesn't show up well.

On pg 14 I detail how I did the pockets and there's a blowup and crop of one of the pictures on pg 36 of Squadron at Sea and you can see the pockets very clearly. What I usually do is copy the photos and enlarge them so I have a bunch of 11x17 papers that I can look at and see the details a lot better than the small pics in the book. I also have a large collection of pics that I have found all over the place online to refer to along with the books you mention and a few others.

Hope that helps and if you need more or are still confused don't be bashful about asking.

James









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