1:350 Gneisenau, Op Weser�bung Apr 9th 1940

[LE BOSCO]

HI Stein

Nice mastery on your ventilation towers ,i like your job ,very convincing
congrat's
Nicolas

[Stein Gildberg]

Thanks for nice feedback guys!
I sometimes feel I like details because they are... eh, well, details!

I'm now installing the final details at and around the funnel before painting. It's always exciting to see how it looks after painting, so I cross my fingers!

Stein

[Stein Gildberg]

Well, here it is, after painting. All ventilators glued to it except two standalone ventilators positioned further aft on the deck.
No mainmast installed, and 20mm AA installed yet, but that will follow together with ships boats around the funnel.

First picture is showing Gneisenau in Brest before the new hangar was installed. You can clearly see how the ventilators are shaped and positioned.

Remark: The new hanger installed in Brest.
This hangar contained a catapult with one plane installed and another plane stored. When needed the hangar doors were sled aside to allow the catapult to be swung 90 degrees to either side.
A third plane was stored on the hangars roof. It is therefore wrong when Heller/Airfix has modeled a catapult + an Arado AR196 on top of the hangar!

Well, "my" hangar" also needs finishing - but that will be the small version.
Next: Ships boats

[Hallis]

That looks amazing. I'm assuming you painted the PE and then installed it?

[Stein Gildberg]

Hallis: Yes, the railing was airbrushed before it was installed - as I always do.
To be sure that the paint sticks to the metal when shaped, I always use a thin layer of metal primer (Mr Metal Primer).

Other parts are often best left unpainted before assembling. Such as small parts with small tolerances - small AA-guns etc.

Stein

[Stein Gildberg]

Finished!
The ships boats need a lot of work to look nice. In this case it is quite simple as Dragon�s boats are very well done!
I choose to use the clear plastic wheelhouses. They are more close to the real thing than the ones from LionRoar.
Portholes are drilled out and given a small circle of brass paint to frame the porthole.
Some pieces of PE are �self-made� from my parts bin, while the windows in the Admirals Boats are made from Realistic Water (made the same way as the ones on the bridge).
Lifebuoys are from Scalemodel.

Here is the first boat installed on the funnel�s forward boat cradle.
The mainmast is now in place, and the funnel assembly installed on battery deck.

One thing discussed earlier in this thread: Gneisenau anchors are stored on deck (as Guest wrote: like the ones in Prinz Eugen, Admiral Hipper and others).
I only have a photo from a distance of the ones in Gneisenau, but I have a good one from Bl�cher!
Here you can see the system: The anchor is stored in a �tray� (or wedges) � anyhow: directly on deck. They are not (as Guest correctly wrote) lying flat on the deck, but in this (raised) tray.
Of course this �tray� is not sufficient to hold the anchors in place in rough sea; therefore the anchors are secured by a guiding/securing loop + chains as seen in the picture.

[Guest]

Hi Stein, the last photo is Scharnhorst because there are no skylights on the deck around A turret and there is the bulkhead with doors between the conning tower and bulwark. Also, this is Scharnhorst at anchor, and it looks like both anchors are dropped.

I think the trays can be seen in the image 4th row right,

http://www.scharnhorst-class.dk/gneisen ... ction.html

I don't think the destruction affected them too much. There may be better images elsewhere.

[Stein Gildberg]

Yes G! Quite obvious actually!
This shows how easy it is to get fooled, even when you know what to check for...
I used photos from Breyer/Skwiot's book "German Capital Ships". And as I investigate, I also find wrong photos in page 272 and probably 273 as well - in addition to the one in p 270... Can never be enough checking...

A picture showing the same point, but in Gneisenau (the anchors in their trays) can be found in p 280 in the same book. Here you can at least see one of the skylights that are Gneisenau specific.

Stein

[Guest]

Hi Stein,
yes there are still some mistakes with identification in books, it's all too easy to miss them.
There are some nice images of Blucher's anchors in this book as well..

http://www.modellmarine.de/index.php?op ... &catid=157

[Stein Gildberg]

Hi G!

I took "my" picture of Bl�chers anchor from that book. Unless you have got a copy, and considering your interest in Kriegsmarine, I highly recommed you this book. It is full of rare pictures and info and was my primary source for info/photo when I built my Bl�cher from a Trumpeter Hipper starting point.
I noticed that the adverticement is dated 4th Dec (St. Barbara's day!) in 2000, so I guess the chances for finding one is slim.

Stein

[PetrolGator]

Your preciseness and quality of work is impressive.

[Guest]

Hi G!

I noticed that the adverticement is dated 4th Dec (St. Barbara's day!) in 2000, so I guess the chances for finding one is slim.

Stein

Yes you're right, it seems to be unavailable now unfortunately. The date is actually 2010, so I'm a bit surprised that it disappeared so quickly and so completely.

[Jaguar]

I like these boats. Very well modelled.

[KevinYoung]

Awesome workmanship Stein you've done a lot of homework on this build and the detail is superb. Thanks for posting pictures of Gneisenau .

[Stein Gildberg]

Thanks for nice comments Chris, Jaguar and Kevin! It�s always an inspiration to get this kind of feedback.
But also to G: I really appreciate your critical comments. It makes me try to check and check again. So far I think you have improved my work quite considerably!

Well, I still have to make the hangar which I�ve started working on, - and the aircraft cranes:
Cranes are quite another type in GN compared to SCH. It seems that the Kriegsmarine used different cranes in almost all their ships. To do the same job � more or less�
The cranes in the Scharnhorst kit might look a little fragile, and with a curved profile (like the original, accurately made too).
The ones in GN are of what seems to me a more solid type, and with an angle in the profile.
So luckily I have a Trumpeter Hipper kit lying around, and the cranes in GN and Hipper are of the same type. So I used Hipper�s crane to scratch some for GN.
Drawing are from AJ Press no 33, Admiral Hipper. (I highly recommend this series, but unfortunately most are sold out).
I also have a Flyhawk PE-kit for Hipper, so I decided to use PE from it for the crane arms (the plastic ones from Trumpeter looks terrible!).

Still, there are details missing, so I also had to scratch part of the mechanism attached to the cranes arms from styrene sheets and rods.
In the photo they still miss a couple of details on top of the crane houses, but they are about to get in place!

[sirpaul]

Some really good stuff going on here. Stein whats next, one with the upgraded 15 inch guns??

[Stein Gildberg]

No, I hate the idea, Sirpaul!

Just joking.
In my opinion people should build what they want. And no one should have too strong opinions about what other people think is right to them!
But I stick to building something that has existed, or exists. So: No 15� GN from me!

(By the way: Since modellers/models often are criticized for having the wrong number of nails, antennas etc etc (you know what I mean), I really like the idea of David Griffith who visited our IPMS fair here in Norway this year: He had a marvelous display of a sub at a pacific base 1:700. And the name of the display was �Welcome home "USS Anchovies�. Well, as David said, I never think there ever was a sub with that name, but this way I�m avoiding all the �besserwissers� that tell me what is actually wrong with the model so and so�). Good idea?

[Hallis]

Well you just need to build a "Scharneneau" with 15" guns hehe

I liked the idea that the ships were designed to eventually carry 15" guns. It's a shame that they never got them and were left with the firepower of a heavy cruiser/pocket battleship rather than a real battleship or battlecruiser. But that's better for the the allies that it didn't happen.

[Apophysis]

Hello Stein,

got some nice pics of the early Gneisenau. Do you know them?













Cheers!
Dirk

[sirpaul]

No, I hate the idea, Sirpaul!

Just joking.
In my opinion people should build what they want. And no one should have too strong opinions about what other people think is right to them!
But I stick to building something that has existed, or exists. So: No 15� GN from me!

(By the way: Since modellers/models often are criticized for having the wrong number of nails, antennas etc etc (you know what I mean), I really like the idea of David Griffith who visited our IPMS fair here in Norway this year: He had a marvelous display of a sub at a pacific base 1:700. And the name of the display was �Welcome home "USS Anchovies�. Well, as David said, I never think there ever was a sub with that name, but this way I�m avoiding all the �besserwissers� that tell me what is actually wrong with the model so and so�). Good idea?

Yes that sounds like a great idea! I like to stick with the actual's as well. But after time in building, there are only so many subjects available. Besides not all builds are meant for a judges eyes.