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Post by david on Nov 4, 2007 0:33:44 GMT 1
It seems that the Amati deck-planks are still of concern, at least to Napoleon and myself, and given that Don is likely to be posting more on this in due course I thought it might be worth starting a new thread here. In my original post on this subject, I mentioned the bad 'print registration', as it's called in the printing industry, but it seems to me that the scale of the planks is wrong also. Not quite anorak enough to count every last plank in the Brower book drawings, its obvious from even a cursory glance that there are roughly twice the number of planks than are printed on the Amati parts. (In actual fact I don't think its possible at this scale the reproduce the planks accurately, but I definitely think we can do better than Amati.) The result is therefore in stark contrast to the highly detailed PE parts. In addition, the colour of these deck sheets is a rich teak, which when varnished will look dark and unrealistic; we know that the Bismarck's deck was made from natural teak which when weathered and bleached for only a few months, would have turned to a pale warm gray like my garden furniture. I'm cautiously pessimistic that Hachette/Amati won't resolve these problems at all, so I've been working on a DIY solution for the last week, because as Don says 'printing spoils the look of the model, makes it seem too commercial!!' The shot below shows two planking tests. The large sheet at the bottom is 1mm thick, from which I've cut 2 sets of 6 planks. Before cutting the planks from the sheet I painted it in grey paint and then Sepia ink to simulate caulking. I'd first tried black but found this much to harsh, so I wanted to see if others colours might work better. After painting I cut the sheet into 1mm strips (so, 1mm x 1mm in section), using a quickly rigged-up jig made from 2 metal rulers separated by 1mm. The strips were then rotated 90-degrees so that the 'caulking' was butted up to the 'natural' side of the next plank. This provides a more realistic scale to the caulking than the printed decks ever could, but because every plank is the exact same thickness, the consistency of plank width is pretty well perfect. Cutting the planks produces slightly varying thickness's, but this doesn't matter because the cut edges face up; any uneveness is sanded down leaving a smooth finish. It may not be very obvious from the picture but, the different colours for the caulking, subtlely alters the appearance of the decking, the sepia not unexpectedly shifting it towards the red; the gray making the wood closer to bleached teak. These tests were made on untreated lime sheet which created a small amount of 'colour-bleeding', softening the caulking lines. I am next going to try sealing the 1mm sheet before spraying the paint/ink to see if this will sharpen the line more. Making these planks and sticking them together with PVA was easy and took very little time, and using a jig it would be possible to cut hundreds of planks in the space of an hour. So Napoleon, beginners that we both are, I agree with Don, you should just 'jump in'. Incidentally, I'm no 'legal eagle' but Hachettes disclaimer 'included parts may differ from those illustrated' does not say 'included parts may differ from statements describing highlighted features', vis: "Laser cut decking planks" (Note: not sheets) "Decking planks: Lime wood, laser cut to ensure thinner planks" I might put a call into the local trading standards office about this. David. PS: In case its not obvious, I meant to write Glattfixed, I guess its the smell of the stuff!!!! Markus, are you out of Glattfix Rehab yet? Just found this picture on one of the German forums, I think it speaks for itself:
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Post by russ on Nov 9, 2007 10:58:58 GMT 1
okay the amti deck is fitted on that picture so what happens to it when the substructure is sprayed it will get sprayed to so surly aftetr a lick of paint or varnish it will look a hell of a lot better
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Post by Achtung!! on Nov 9, 2007 12:44:05 GMT 1
Soory I have lost the thread here - is the picture showing the '[lanking' from Amarti as being in two different shades ?
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Post by eric on Nov 9, 2007 12:54:40 GMT 1
I think the lower deck has been treated with a varnish or some such.
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Post by david on Nov 9, 2007 13:16:28 GMT 1
I don't think that either deck has yet been fitted in the above picture, and reckon that the base wood colour of the deck accounts for the huge difference in colour. I hate to imagine the colour of that lower deck when it is varnished; magnificently built though the Bismarck was I don't think that anyone would claim it had polished mahogany decks! Its a pity that the German build looks like being such a mess, especially since its their ship after all, and they've already had to put up with other problems. David.
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Post by Achtung!! on Nov 9, 2007 13:35:03 GMT 1
I am getting a bit concerned now....
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Post by SB on Nov 9, 2007 14:47:33 GMT 1
I am getting a bit concerned now.... Seems strange as to why they are not hopping mad about this decking carry on in Germany
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Post by Achtung!! on Nov 9, 2007 14:49:09 GMT 1
Lets ask our German Friends on this board then.
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Post by Mike B on Nov 9, 2007 18:55:26 GMT 1
David, try another test using pencil lead rubbed on the sheet before cutting. Wood glue will stick to it without treatment.
Mike B
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Post by swanrail on Nov 9, 2007 23:55:01 GMT 1
Well done David, you and I are thinking along the same lines!! I have printed out the first deck sheet from the German site, and have concluded that I need to make the planks 0.6mm thick from this. I have just bought a stack of 1m by 5mm by 0.6mm lime strips, which I shall cut in half to give me 0.6 by 2mm. As you say (and I did this on my Grenado) paint one side of the planks (black or whatever) to represent caulking. Then glue into "sheets" of planking. I then intend to use the printed out copies as in marquetry to allow me to cut-in the wider side and deck housing edges (say 1 to 2mm wide) and to cut in the circular bits. To make these, I bought a sheet of 1mm lime. once made up, I then need to sand down to about 1mm thick to glue down onto the "framework". (the reason I am cutting 2mm wide is that my Minicraft saw does not guarantee a perfectly consistant width over the 1m length). Unfortunately, although I can buy 1mm by 1mm strips, the lowest size in 0.6mm is 2mm, but for the same price per strip, I can buy the 5mm wide version and by cutting in half, get twice as many planks for the same money!! (I think that I was born with some Scottish blood on me!) Keep us posted when you complete the first deck.
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Post by david on Nov 10, 2007 14:27:05 GMT 1
David, try another test using pencil lead rubbed on the sheet before cutting. Wood glue will stick to it without treatment. Mike B Hi Mike, I did try using graphite, soft pencil sanded onto wood and then rubbed into it, but found that I couldn't get it black enough. David.
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Post by david on Nov 10, 2007 16:09:15 GMT 1
Well done David, you and I are thinking along the same lines!! I have printed out the first deck sheet from the German site, and have concluded that I need to make the planks 0.6mm thick from this. I have just bought a stack of 1m by 5mm by 0.6mm lime strips, which I shall cut in half to give me 0.6 by 2mm. As you say (and I did this on my Grenado) paint one side of the planks (black or whatever) to represent caulking. Then glue into "sheets" of planking. I then intend to use the printed out copies as in marquetry to allow me to cut-in the wider side and deck housing edges (say 1 to 2mm wide) and to cut in the circular bits. To make these, I bought a sheet of 1mm lime. once made up, I then need to sand down to about 1mm thick to glue down onto the "framework". (the reason I am cutting 2mm wide is that my Minicraft saw does not guarantee a perfectly consistant width over the 1m length). Unfortunately, although I can buy 1mm by 1mm strips, the lowest size in 0.6mm is 2mm, but for the same price per strip, I can buy the 5mm wide version and by cutting in half, get twice as many planks for the same money!! (I think that I was born with some Scottish blood on me!) Keep us posted when you complete the first deck. Don, I'm glad to know that I'm not going this this alone! I feel that even if Hachette/Amati do the decent thing and provide the decking they promised, it still won't look as good as the 'one plank at a time' solution. Anyway, the letter I sent to them a couple of days ago will at least be a shot across the bows should they think of taking other short cuts in future. Where are you getting your 0.6mm strip from? My latest plan was to fine sand the 1mm sheets, which will bring them down in width slightly, seal with Glattfix, spray with grey paint (top surface and one side for the plank ends) and then cut to a width of 1mm. The length of the planks is a bit of a mystery and my best bet at scaling them gives 6.40M, which at 1:200 is 32mm. To give a bit of colour variation to each plank, I plan to randomly scatter a handfull of planks and very lightly spray paint them with something brown. I think I'll follow you in printing out the Amati deck plan to use as a guide for the edges. I'm also thinking that it will be necessary to do the decks before applying the PE parts with rails etc., and painting with the decks masked. What do you think? It will be a couple of weeks before I can do much but I'll post progress snaps in due course. David
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Post by swanrail on Nov 11, 2007 0:05:42 GMT 1
Hi David, according to the picture of the deck, which I made to exactly fit the deck, the planks should be 30mm long, so your guess was pretty good!! I am toying with the idea of strapping several planks together with sellotape and then cutting notches in the 2mm wide part to represent the joins (making deep enough to allow sanding, but not too deep to seperate the planks, to darken will have to give it some thought. This way, the planks can be laid in easier to manage lengths in one go. My 0.6mm by 5mm by 1m strips came from THE MODEL DOCKYARD. Probably be some time before I get round to my next stage of making these decks up, as I am keen to finish the second planking and to protect it before it gets damaged (easily done), and according to the previews, this will take quite a few more weeks to finish off.
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Post by poulw on Nov 11, 2007 10:00:54 GMT 1
There is an excellent website with a photo collage of a scratch built Bismarck project 1/100. The modeller is a Frenchman named Pierre Reinhard. This link refers to page 6 (last page) of his photo documentation gemo27.chez-alice.fr/bismarck5.htmAfter the first 6 pictures (about portholes), you can see how he makes the deck planking. If you've got the time, you really should check out the complete photo series from page 1. This guy is simply amazing. Poul
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Post by yoddhâ on Nov 11, 2007 10:43:07 GMT 1
Excellent find Poul! This is what modeling is about......
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