Sunday 14 March 2021

Tidying Up some Loose Ends


The models that are going to be rejigged or retired - the two versions of the C.S.S. Georgia (top) and the two smaller ironclads


The bare bones of the small octagonal casemate ironclad


The two hull sizes - the top model is now my standard hull width of 1 1/4”


The floating battery version of the C.S.S. Georgia - it has now had the base removed in readiness for the full hull to be added

 I mentioned yesterday that I planned to retire a couple of models and rework one of them up to the current build standard of the rest of the collection. This is something that is easily achieved and thankfully will not require too much work. The overall idea looks something like this.

C.S.S. Georgia - Currently I have two versions of this, the floating battery option and the full hull ironclad. I am going to take the former and add it to a new hull. There will be one model solely and it will look like a ship but will only be used as a floating battery. 

The two smaller ironclads - These are being stood down and replaced by, ahem, two smaller ironclads - one of these will be an octagonal type whilst the other will be more conventional. What is the difference? Well the change is due to the fact I have decided that my new standard hull size is now 1 1/4” wide and the two that are being retired are only 1” wide. 

The three models that are being retired are going to be turned into floating batteries by the simple expedient of removing the hulls and funnels - there may be a few other little tweaks to tidy them up into their new role. 

Now I realise that this may seem like ‘tweaking for the sake of tweaking’ but I am sure we all have those little niggles that need to be dealt with - and so I have!

For the Union it is far more straightforward. I debated about reworking my two single turret monitors - they are on 1” wide hulls - but the jury is out on that at the moment but to be honest it would not take anytime at all to build another couple of them if I needed to. The U.S.S. Galena will be remade and the existing hull will be used for something else for the Union - I am thinking about using this for a wooden sloop or similar.

I want to get these ideas fully squared away before the final batch of models are underway when my Warbases order arrives. There is no pressure (the small octagonal casemate ironclad notwithstanding....) and so I can take my time and enjoy the process.

2 comments:

Robert (Bob) Cordery said...

David,

I can see why you’ve standardised on the slightly wider hulls for your models, and reworking those that don’t quite fit in with your current fleet makes a lot of sense.

It looks as if this project will be signed off in the very near future.

All the best,

Bob

David Crook said...

Hello there Bob,

It is very much a case of tying up a few loose ends before the final batch of models and signing off on it. Even the rules are coming together so all is looking well!

The the real fun will begin.....

All the best,

DC