Hi!
Thank you for your comments. And questions.
Since I did not put any work progress documentation on this forum I would like to share with you some of the crucial assembly steps.
It took me three years to finish this Tone cruiser (Jan 2017 - Jan 2020).
I started with a pretty poor experience, especially in airbrushing and "she" gave me opportunity to gain some.
Many thanks to
MichaĆ M. and other friends from KMSA Club at Modelwork.pl for their criticism and advise!
I'll try to explain those steps as much as i can. I use some aftermarket sets and bit of scratch. The main upgrading aftermarket is Eduard's BigEd set.
1. Deck
The Tamiya's linoleum holding bars seems to be pretty over-scaled. Its known issue in all IJN ships models in 1/350 and it is mentioned and well explained in
Dan's K. post. (Thanks!)
I decided to remove and replace them with a thin copper wire. The deck rails and turntables were replaced with LionRoar R3518 aftermarket set.
2. Funnel
The guard rails were replaced with Alliance Model Works NW35027 aftermarket. Pipes are just injection needles. You can see some rivets pattern added.
3. The "Pagoda" bridge
This one was tough!
Tamiya's elements unfortunately appeared totally over-scaled and poorly detailed. I used plenty of aftermarket stuff and some scratch to replace them. There's Alliance Model Works NW35032 and NW35028 perforated beams and gussets, Veteran 35039 and 35032 observation and binocular devices, simple injection needles, brass and copper wires, polystyrene sheets and other stuff from the bottom of a drawer. As you see, I made this mysterious knee-shaped pipes
running from ventilators to AA crew room and stanchions behind them. Eventually it takes 306 parts to accomplish that bridge.
4. Armament
203mm, 5 inch are Master's barrels. Triple and double 25mm cannons are Alliance Model 35036 and 35037 sets. Single cannons are from Infini Model. Their 25 mm barrels were surprisingly "big" for the scale. You should know... I hate over-scale barrels.... grrr.
Finally I also replace them with excellent Masters ones.
Blast bags of 203mm artillery were replaced by thin paper I dumped and shaped in popular white paper glue. Step paddles - thin copper wire.
Infini and Master 25 mm barrel comparison:
!!!!!
5. Fore, Aft masts and flagstocks:
Master's universal yardams and some schratch built.
Hull weathering:
Total experiment! Most of that you see here I've done for the first time.
Generally it is a combination of repeated hair spray chipping, oils, pencils and dry pigments underwater. Paint modulations, oils and pencils above waterline.
6. Aichi E13A "Jakes"
My little birds.... I love them! A few weeks of struggle but they worth it! Perfect set of Rainbow 1/350 Rb3517 is used. I did some painting experiments with
pigma micron markers here for the first time. Windshield "glass" is my own recipe : Bcg glue with AK acrylic thinner. Super flat and transparent. Believe me -
there is windshield glass on last picture.
All the rigging was made with stretched sprue technique i try to implement after
Jim Bauman tutorial. Thank you!
Well, three years in one post.
If you follow and read this line I realy appreciate it!!!!