1/700 West Virginia 1941 & USS California 1941 (Pit-Road/TR)

[MartinJQuinn]

I like that boat rack on WeeVee. They both look great - you are in the home stretch now.

[Harpy]

That's stunning Dan.

[Dan K]

Thx very much, guys.

Yep, I seem to be rounding the far turn............. just need to stay the course. I have .......distractions.

[ModelMonkey]

Brilliant.

[J.F.S.]

Outstanding!

[Dan K]

I stepped away from the BBs to take a break and work on something else. However, I'm back at it for now.

Fore and aft rigging has been added. I've used Infini's lycra rigging for the first time for the lines between the yardarms. The forward yardarm bends easily, so I needed something with give. It worked out well. In some ways, the lycra is better than the Dai-Rikki line that I use, but I do wonder about it's long-term durability.

WeeVee first.

[Dan K]

And California:

[Dan K]

I admit that one of the projects I stepped away for was Maryland. I wanted to take advantage of the learning curve for the bridge and masts before everything receded into the fog. My intent is to get back to Maryland later this year.

[Chuck Bauer]

This project reminds me of one that was recently completed by another master modeler known for his work in this tiny scale.

Each time I have checked in here I have seen more and more to marvel at. It might be my imagination, but it seems like the photography is clearer lately, as it is making it easier to see the breathtaking workmanship. When I look at these latest photos I think I am looking at something in 1/200 or 1/96.

But no matter what the scale, this work is setting a bar of some sort, and setting it way up there where mere mortals will have a hard time reaching it.

This goes beyond "crisp." I think it is more like "pristine perfection."


Thank you for sharing the ups and downs along the way.
This may be the Agony and the Ecstasy for you, Dan, but it is totally enjoyable for all the rest of us.

[marijn van gils]

Great work Dan, as usual!

[Dan K]

Chuck, I always appreciate feedback, but your generous and gracious comments have blown me away. Thank you very, very much. (Btw, any improvement in photography on my part is dumb luck and better lighting.)

You, too, Marijn

All that's left are seaplanes, flags, and flatcoats. The Kingfishers should be interesting to tackle. Challenging, actually.

[Vladi]

Dan, they look amazingly good, great work!

[Dan K]

Disaster.

I had just finished spray flat coating both ships when the California (the better of the two builds) slipped from my hand. I'm not even sure how that happened; I was purposely holding it tightly.

To say that I am crushed, disheartened and disgusted is an understatement. I was basically done, save the flags and aircraft.

[MartinJQuinn]

This makes my physically ill to see this. I still think she can (eventually) be repaired.

[taskforce48]

Ok, that's out of my system. Take a deep breath, walk away for a bit. Work on another project- then return to this beautiful Phoenix and raise it from the ashes.

Let the spirit of these guys help fuel you-

" Members of the Salvage Division discussing her salvage at Pearl Harbor, circa February-March 1942. Those present are (from left to right): Chief Shipfitter J.M. Ephland, Master Diver; Lieutenant Wilfred L. Painter, Officer in Charge of Work; Commander John F. Warris, Temporary Commanding Officer, USS California; Captain Homer N. Wallin, Salvage Officer; Lieutenant James W. Greely, Assistant Salvage Officer; Lieutenant Wilbert M. Bjork, Assistant Salvage Officer; and Lieutenant James W. Darroch, Assistant Salvage Officer."

Matt

[Chuck Bauer]

Hi Dan,
I had this happen to me twice.

The first episode was when my 1/350 scale Titanic came loose from its base and fell from a four-foot-high shelf onto a cement floor covered with only one layer of thin, cheap carpeting. I had my back turned to it when I heard the crash, knew instantly what it was. Lying on the floor it didn't look much different than the real Titanic on the ocean bottom except it was in one piece. But I was able to re-do the model--especially the masts and the rigging--to a better condition than original.

The second such event occurred when I worked at a local hobby shop and one of my ships was on display there. My model was inside one of those commercial display cases with the glass counter top, glass shelves inside and adjustable metal shelf brackets. Well, one day an enterprising young employee decided the shelves needed dusting and he asked my permission to lift the model out of the case so he could do his dusting. Stupidly, I said yes. I knew the guy, he was a responsible person--what could go wrong?
I didn't want to hover over the guy, so I turned to the side briefly, only to hear a sickening loud crash and this employee's voice shrieking in horror. The glass shelf had slipped off its bracket, throwing the model to the floor, upside down. It landed on its masts with the whole wood base on top. You couldn't actually see the model, only the upside-down base on top of it.
The employee practically broke into tears and this brought all sorts of people around to witness the disaster. I did my best Charlton Heston impersonation and graciously forgave him. Then took the model home and began the repairs. I ultimately ended up with a better model than I had to start with, but it was not easy.

The difference between my circumstance and yours, though, is that your have a much better model to begin with than either of mine were. But the good news is you have much better modeling skills than I did at the time of these two incidents.

So, I would do two things:
1. Make sure your son is out of the room and then mutter every swear word you have ever heard in your life. If you don't swear, then just skip this step.
2. Pray.
This covers both ends of the spectrum and may ease your pain a little bit.

Next, I would do some extra research and see if there is some little detail or item you could add now to the model that wasn't there before. Maybe even add something you're not sure was there, but could have been, and nobody can prove you wrong (Ho ho HO)
This will help ameliorate the disaster a tiny bit and give you something more for us to admire when the repair work is completed.

And if you can't think of a way to make it even one iota better, than just make it so the repairs can't be detected. It will still be better than most of us can even dream about. A true Kaplanian masterpiece.

With your patience and skills, the repair should go smoother than you think, and when finished, it will give us all even more reason to admire what you do and how you do it.

[Keith T. Bender]

You poor man. I can't even look at it without something puckering up. I seen this happen to you not too long ago. I'm sorry my friend. You will rebuild it. Make it better, faster, stronger and it won't cost six million dollars, just six million hours. This will be the next best of show, the other contenders don't know it yet. Well some of us do.

[Jeff Sharp]

This unfortunately is the harsh reality of printed cage masts. They are very fragile and unforgiving even with the slightest bump.
I feel your pain! I�ve had to replace too many of them already and know that the test of time will not be their friend either.
Photo etch masts were at least much more forgiving. I�m still a believer that a better version of a etched cage mast can be produced in this scale.

[Dan K]

I appreciate all the support, guys. I know it's just a model, but this accident REALLY, REALLY sucks.

So much work in, and now, so much more to come. It'll certainly seem like 6 million more hours, K. I still don't get how it happened. I was purposely holding it tight to avoid this very thing.

Chuck, it maybe a cliche at this pain, but I clearly feel your pain. To your first point, my son witnessed the tail end of my reaction. He's probably scarred for life. Which means I have fulfilled my parental obligations.

To your point about making it better, ironically, that very thing happened to my Kyokuto Maru at MosquitoCon a few years ago. A certain judge dropped her during examination. Fortuitously, he dropped her in a way that damaged the one area that I have never been satisfied with, and she did comeback better than before.

Here, I seek no such improvement. I know I should put CA away for a bit to work on something else, but I just couldn't stand her the way she was. I slept on it and have charted a possible course back. I'm starting with the broken bridge wing and foremast. If I can get them back together, I'll take a long breather before continuing.

The bridge wing is straightforward. The printed foremast, as Jeff pointed out, is a bit more challenging. (And I agree that something better could probably be accomplished with photo etch.) In this particular case, the latticework only broke on one level between two rings. So, it's become a matter of cutting a replacement and fitting it in properly. What makes everything a bit more challenging is my supply of 5-L. It's a custom mix, and I've been unable to replicate it. So, I have to carefully limit my use in the repair, 'cause it's all but gone.

How things have progressed.

[Jeff Sharp]

On the bright side, maybe now you can paint her superstructure decks brown. Wink wink!