[berth44]

:)I've just invested in this kit and I eagerly await it's arrival from Hong Kong. I have also purchased an after market product (as I do for all my kits!!) I'm also considering a wooden deck that's just came onto the market, but I await the response from the US regarding this item. Just to finish off, this is an expensive kit, but by buying off EBay (UK, but it came from HK??..funny that!!), with all the 'extras' it was only marginally more expensive (10 bucks more!!!)than forking out the 309 bucks from an Australian seller!!.Anybody else interested in this kit??.......Dave

[berth44]

My kit arrived on Wednesday,so it only took 6 days..fantastic!, and that's the word for the kit as well..plus a 'Wow' factor 10!!...Trumpeter do such a great job with the packing as well,reducing the fear of Mr Postie destroying it in transit!!(you would really need an elephant to sit on it!!!)
Anyway, I've checked out all the parts, all beautifully moulded and detailed, not a bit of flash, I'm really looking forward to putting this old girl together, let's see if I can get it finished for the 7Oth anniversary of Pearl Harbour!!.......Dave

[SkyFire]

Sounds like a good kit and a company that knows how to pack things.
Can't wait to see the photos of it.

[berth44]

Started the Aizona,by painting the top and bottom hulls, sea blue for the 'top' and red oxide auto primer for the 'bottom'. (gave that a coat of satin varnish, improved it's look and feel) I've started to paint the decks,supposed to be 'deck tan', (this paint color was not available at Phillip or 'The Hyperdoom') so I opted to mix my own! I tried my 'mix' out on the gun deck,(AA) looked like I was heading for disaster, but when that coat dried in, the 2nd coat did the job! It's a wee bit 'browner' than 'tan', but I gave it a bit of a 'rub' with a cloth and it looks heaps better, just like the crew had been busy swabbing the decks!!. To paint that one deck piece took 3 hours all up!! ( 2 for the first, one for the second) There's 5 more decks to go, 3 big ones (main decks)and two smaller deck pieces that form the stern and bow deck piece, probably take me all week! I've still to do the boot topping to complete the painting of the hull.
Once that's done I'll do the kit as per the instructions, building up the different sub sections and detailing before final attachment.
I'm paying more attention than ever to 'sprue attachment' and mould or flow lines on each and every single part, any part that has a seem or is joined will have these imperfections removed and the putty (filler) will be at hand if need be to ensure these are fixed and cannot be seen.
Being such a huge 'plastic kit' these 'imperfections' can be seen more easily and therefor can totally ruin the appearance of fitted parts, I've only fitted the rudder and the outriggers for the props, 'sprue tabs' and flow lines a plenty on these small parts, a few minutes spent on each before painting made all the difference, well, it did, believe me!, that's my opinion (tip??)anyway!!...Dave

[berth44]

Got into more painting last night, a lot easier this time, well, except for the bow piece, it has all the detailing bits to do with the anchors, if any body knows the Arizona, you'll know what I mean! What I should have done with this bit 'reverse painting' I should have applied the deck color first, then brush painted the detail for all the anchor stuff, one learns !
Anyway, I've finished the aft deck piece in it's two coats, the middle deck has just one coat all over at the moment, (it's the biggest deck) but in reality, this deck only requires it's outside edges and the decking between 1 & 2 turret to have a 'proper' finish as this deck is where the 'casement' 5" guns are located, then it's 'decked over' with the previously painted gun deck (AA)
With all the decks nearly painted and the hull finished (all but the 'boot topping is done) I'll start taking photos, then I can begin to put the pieces together in earnest..this kit has stirred the blood for sure, mind you, it's not the first time I've felt like this...happens everytime!!...so much to do!!....Dave

P/S "whatsahurry?"

[bluedot0]

No hurry Dave, but at this rate you won't need my piccies......Phil

[berth44]

You might be right Phil!!........Anyhoo, getting on, this kit is big, "Ok", the Bismarck is bigger if we get real and think about it, but my garage.. "as some of you know".. is destroyed, my workbench that can take these big kits is buried in the top left hand corner.... somewhere!! This makes the handling of this kit a wee bit difficult!, I have nowhere to put it so that I can work on it, apart from the dining room table......I havn't been there ...yet!!!
So, last night I'm happily painting away, I've just finished off the bow part, thank goodness, but that's made easy, it comes off!. I then decide to apply the second coat to the centre main deck section, this is attached to the kit, so I'm holding it in my left hand, finger through the funnel hole, imagine an artist using a palet, that's me, "pickyernoseso"... but to cut a long story short and to highlight my plight, I knock over my paint tin , don't I!!.... what a ********* mess ,big deal, it's only paint?!!......... but with the whole aft deck still to do, I've now got about 1/10th of the can left instead of 3/4 rrrrssss, but the real annoyance, this is a 'personal mix' of paints, and can I remember what it is?... in a word.....no!!!....So, here I am, not giving up, sweeping this paint spill into another container, straight off a wee bit of bench that I have left,(for loco testing!!) hairs, bit's of model locos, spiders, flies...you name it, last thing I want is my last bit of decking a deck a completely different shade of 'tan' than the rest!!.... Anyway, I manage to finish off the centre section, thinning it down a wee bit and removing the 'foreign stuff' as I brush away in my desperation to have enough paint to do the job at hand!!
As the night ended.....it got dark!,(my lights are crap!!) and with no more disasters, I've managed a 'first coat' on the aft deck, hopefully there will be enough left to finish it off, and to the guy who said "painting the deck was easy", I say, "no it bloody well isn't, it's a total pain in the butt!!", that my friends, is the polite version, anybody want to hear the other?..I don't think so!!!!!!!!!....god, I'll be glad when this parts over, now for just over 100 bucks I could get 'real' wooden decks........"hmmmmmm"...............Dave

P/S, "model making can be oh so jolly but when you run in to folly, it's not too jolly!!"

[bluedot0]

Your garage is very "cosy" Dave, but you may not be allowed to use the dining table........wooden decks are much easier I think, I test fitted the Nagato last night.........all I can say is perfect.....did you check out Scaledecks yet....Phil

[berth44]

Cosy??, it's a diaster zone Phil, ...(I exclaim out loud)""""It'not cosy everybody....Phil is blind!!!!""""""
I probably agree that the decking would have been the way to go (I had a wee look at that site Phil, I'll look again) but I'm really quite pleased with my 'painted deck',(s) I'd say probably my best effort ever! I've just got a bit of 'tyding up' to do on some of the deck detail to call it a day on them, wee touch of the blue here and there. Weathering??, I'm not really bothered, it's not just an overall tan color, it does vary between nice and 'clean' (swabbed') and dullish. I've heard a dusting of talcum powder might do wonders???
So,I've now finished this part of the painting, (phew) , even the boot topping is done, and I'm really pleased with myself, it's an area that I usually stuff up, I mask it, it's squigly, paint runs through, usually have to work on it...This time, perfect 1ST time, "yabadabbadoo!!"The sory goes, when I was in the 'auto shop' getting me 'Anti Foul' (I've got nothing against chickens?)Paint, I did spy a roll of "masking tape', I thought, why not, I'll probably need it, and so last night I used it with 100% success, great stuff, if it works for me, I recommend it!!
It's called 'PACKMATE Fine Line Masking Tape', it's a bright green color, so you know it's on!, and being for fine line work on cars it's conformable, so it goes round stuff, it's also very cheap at under 9 bucks and there is heaps of it, 55M!! (X6mm wide)...and, it's German made, can't be bad??
So that's a huge job done and I'm very pleased with it. I'm now going to work on a better way to secure top and bottom hulls (it alredy has 4 screws, but I think it reqires more) I've broke the rudder at it's fixing point, it just fits into a hole in the keel, I think it was meant to be glued, but I want it to turn, so I need to do a wee bit of re-modelling..more later...Dave

[bluedot0]

Disaster zone?......well maybe....just a little bit....and I'm not blind Dave, haven't have a drink for ages.
Wood decks are the go, but not weathering......I'm not good at it, so everything I build is in pristine condition on the day of commissioning.
Your getting on with her, any chance of a piccy or two (piccy not biccy), I may need to come and have a look before I go, a panel beater friend of mine put me onto that fineline tape about 10 years ago, excellent stuff, you'll never use anything else after using it......Phil


Chickens???....

[berth44]

OK, Phil, you admit it, it's a 'little bit' of a disaster zone, I retract your blindness!! On the tape, here's me thinking I've just discovered something Phil!...10 bloody years ago,"grrr" strewth mate, why didn't you tell me!!
Anyhoo, now we know it's great, Phil has given it the thumbs up! I might try and put a photo on line, but I'll need to find out how to ,firstly get the photo on the MAC, then onto this new forum, or, better still, just come and see it!! I do biccy's!!...Dave

yes, chickens, cluck cluck are 'fowels'..not 'fouls', did you not get it???

[berth44]

Phil, I tried to send an Email to Scaledecks about the deck for the Arizona, it might be out, but my phone number wont go through, keeps rejecting it! It asks for an 'extension' in a box, what extension..Where are they situated???.......Dave

[SkyFire]

Just had a look at the site, thinking that you could probaly put a 0 in for the extension.

[bluedot0]

Not sure what you mean here Dave, I sent an email from work to the following address, I still haven't received a reply as yet, but I wasn't expecting one straight away.

[e-mail]

You can ask your question by using the contact us form in the shop section, there is no need to enter a phone number, the fields are shown as "not required"......don't use the register form, there's no need to if your just asking a question........Phil

[bluedot0]

I've now registered on his site Dave, if your still having trouble let me know and I'll ask for you.....Phil