Hello All,

Great work on the build of this Revell model by the way. I've been following this thread and the "other" big Revell VIIC thread and have started working on the kit I received for Christmas. I just have a couple of questions. Maybe I haven't been reading clearly enough but here goes:

-Did the early U-552 have a wooden deck or metal? I was under the impression that the earlier boats were metal, and that it was determined more economical to use wood only later in the war.

-What method do you all prefer for the drain/flood/vent holes? I've been using a Dremel #106 (ball tip etching thingy) to rough it out from behind and then sanding and sanding and sanding....

I think that's all I have in the order of questions. I'm planning on ordering aftermarket PE, accessories, etc. because with this massive of a model, I want to do it right. Okay then, thanks for your input.

Adam

Hi Adam,

I'm no U-Boat expert but i have put in a lot of time and effort to find out as much as i could prior to starting U-69, indeed this is still ongoing as thing crop up as the biuld progresses.

I can say with some confidence that the early boats, U-552 included, did have wooden decks although i'm sure there are people around here that could prove me wrong!

I also used a ball tip thingy, don't know what size as it's the only one i had, so thats what i used. I did find as i got more confident with it that i could take the plastic almost right down to the flood hole, as they are quite deep on the outside.
All i did then was to remove the wafer thin 'skin' of plastic with new scalpel blade.

Just one word of caution, use a low speed setting with your drill as a high speed tends to just melt the plastic and block up the ball tip thingy.

Post pics of your build here for us to see.

Sav.

Thans for the help Savvy. I don't know where I heard that the metal decks were used. It's probably a shipyard specific thing really. I do plan on using the wooden deck just because of the fact that the Nautilus pieces look so damn good from what I've seen.

As for the holes, it sure is a slow process. I have a Dremel Stylus (cordless) which I bought specifically for this build. I use it on setting 4 (about 12-15000 rpm) and that works good enough. When I get down to where I'm just through the plastic and the hole is open, I start sanding with heavy grit paper to create the thinness to the hull that is so desireable.

When I have pictures to show, I'll post them. It's a very slow process for me because I have about an hour a week to work on it.

Thanks Again,
Adam

Helloooo,

Small update.
I've added extra welds to the hull using, wait for it, 3D decals:o Yes thats right, 3D decals. They are made by Archer Fine Transfers and are brilliant. I used set number 7 (I think?) Surface details perfect weld beads. You use them in the same way you do all decals except they go on before the paint! They look a bit naff in my photo's, partly due to the fact that they look like felt tip pen before they are painted, but mostly because i can't take a photo to save my life!! They also make in various scales lines of rivets, fasteners, casting numbers, cloth texture etc, etc.

Also, i have scribed:stare: in the flood/blow vents on the saddle tanks as they appear in the photo of U-69/99 in the book Anatomy of the ship.....blah...blah...

Sav

http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img297...9016bo8.th.jpg http://imgcash6.imageshack.us/img297...9017om1.th.jpg

Its begining to take shape.
Nice welds Savvy. Ive done the rethink on mine welds , and probably im gonna use the filler or miliput.

Good going with the slots mate.:up:

Thanks for your comments Siara.

Take a look at this http://www.armorama.co.uk/modules.ph...ontent&id=2764 it shows the weld beads painted and dry-brushed, it looks a million times better than anything i could pull off:rock:

Sav.

Thats a good idea , certain to be timesaver , and looks realy neat. To be honest with You it looks to neat , even by german standards.
Mine are going to be more rough if you know what i mean. ;)

I tried masking both sides of the weld with tamiya tape , leaving 1/3 mm gap between which i fill with filler. Then before it dries out i rough it up with the blade , creating weld like line. If its done in short sections at the time , can create good weld effect. After it dries delicate sanding with 1500 grade sandpaper , primer , and its ready. Im gonna go this root.:smug:

It's a U-Boat!!
 

Ok Chaps,

I now have what looks like a Submarine:D

This is all just dry fitted together as wanted to see how well the decks fitted the hull. Perfectly, is the answer to that question. Secondly i wanted to see just how much can be seen through the flood holes. Answer, not bloody lot!!

With this in mind i will install a basic pressure hull with all pipework and fittings roughed out with various bits and pieces, cut down Bic biros, drinking straws and a few basic shapes made out of the waste from the deck sections. Trust me,
you really can't see enough to warrant a scratch fest.

Sav.

http://imgcash5.imageshack.us/img516...9021gm5.th.jpg http://imgcash5.imageshack.us/img245...9024td8.th.jpg http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img180...9023fc6.th.jpg http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img516...9019ng9.th.jpg http://imgcash4.imageshack.us/img245...9022fn9.th.jpg

Realy good Savvy. The deck its tasty.:up:

Pressure Hull
 

Yesterday i said i would be making a basic pressure hull.

Well, you really can't get much more basic than this, but it really does work and goes to show just how little can be seen of it.

I started by drawing around the deck sections on to some thin plastic sheet.
I then made up some simple angle brackets made from more sheet, this was then scored with a knife and then bent to 90 degrees. These were then super glued to the bow and stern sections of the hull. The mid section 'shelves' were just glued to the inside face of the saddle tanks again with scraps of sheet.

Then i trimmed around the sections drawn up earlier until they were a snug fit, easy!!

On to this i will glue various bit's of rubbish that resembles the fittings found in this area.

Sav.

http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img184...9028ul2.th.jpg http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img520...9027qc5.th.jpg http://imgcash5.imageshack.us/img179...9026mz7.th.jpg http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img184...9025ca1.th.jpg





PS You can just see in one of the pix that i have added the drip channels. I made these from 0.8mm quarter round styrene.

Simple , but effective! :rock:

Like the drip channels to.
Savvy? Where did You get the reference for the ballast tank vents?
Im having trouble finding reference regarding the pattern for my 552.
What makes matters worse is , i now have 3 diferent patterns on 2 separate PE sets. Wild gues?:hmm:

Just a lucky find,

I managed to get a copy of Anatomy of the ship 'The type VII U-Boat' for £6 from Amazon. I'd already decided on U-69 before this, so how pleased was i when the book turned up to see a very clear photo of U-69 in dry dock!

The book is crammed full of line drawings of most aspects of the type VII and is a real must for anyone building Revell's giant. There are some confusing drawings in the book as to what type and where these vents should be, so i just copied mine off the real boat:up:


Sav.

http://www.u552.de/images/galleries/u552/u552_17.jpg

Hi Siara,
Whilst looking for some ref for you as regards the saddle tank flood/blow vents i noticed in this photo that the flood drain holes on the hull side differ to what you may have been led to believe. It may not be a problem for you, but i thought i'd give you the heads up on it whilst you can still do something about it.

There are more photo's here http://www.u552.de/ hope this helps if you've not seen them already.

Sav.

Thanks Savvy.
I know the site well , problem is , none of the snaps there nore in my collection regarding 552 shows clear vent pattern. I even went as far as checking the list of all the boats made in Blohm & Voss yard in that time , and i still can not get the idea about the pattern.
Im still searching tho....:up:

Hello,

Sprue, Biro's, bits of wood and a bit of 'kit bashing' gets you a simple pressure hull.
I followed pictures of the yankee model works resin pressure hull as a guide for the pipe work which is all made out of sprue heated and bent over a candle, you can see the rest form the pix. I'll give this a coat of halfords grey primer followed by some weathering, thats about it really.

Sav.

http://imgcash2.imageshack.us/img180...viewug4.th.jpg
http://imgcash4.imageshack.us/img184...viewno3.th.jpg
http://imgcash5.imageshack.us/img184...viewjf6.th.jpg

Ok,

Here's the upper pressure hull painted up and weathered with some mig pigments.
The weathering is a bit rough and only there to to give this area some interest, when the decks are on pretty much none of it will be visible!

Sav.

http://imgcash6.imageshack.us/img519...viewyx4.th.jpg http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img516...viewvt7.th.jpg

I like it Savvy - i like it a lot. One thing - not a criticism - i would add the ring under the Conning Tower - apart from that - excellent.:yep:

Hi Siara,
I understand your comments as regards the Conning tower ring, but, you just can't see it. I did a dry run to see just how much i could get away with, the answer was quite alot! Unless i was going to make the decks removable i could see no point in the extra work.

I also know that you are probably itching to see pix of U-69 with the paint on (as i am yours) so i took some photo's, all of which are out of focus:stare: So here is one of the 'better' ones until i take some more.

Sav

Ps I used Revell's deck as a mask as seen here
http://imgcash3.imageshack.us/img519...viewqe8.th.jpg

Nice job Savvy. Thanks for the tip with the deck for mask.:up:

Did the welds come out good under the paint?

Yes mate the welds look rather nifty,
They should look even better when i've got some weathering on the hull. I'll take some more photo's tomorrow, this time in focus:doh:

Sav.