Next on the production line for the ACW. I shall be building two models using the above template and I am also looking at making this standard for other models due to the better ‘lines’. For the record it does NOT mean I shall be rebuilding the ACW collection!
Phew! What a blisteringly hot weekend it has been! Firstly I was not able to visit the Broadside in Gillingham, Kent - really sorry to have missed it but I have good excuse - as Laurel and I were at an all day soul concert in Maldon. This was very much her day as she is a great fan of soul music from the 60s through to the 90s and it was the first time she had ventured out for such an occasion - previously most of our trips were fairly localised so for her, spending some ten hours in her wheelchair was a big deal (as it was for me as the ‘pilot’! Laurel is a committed soul and Motown fan - my own tastes in that direction tend to be jazz/funk (1970s vintage) and anything Stax/Philadelphia - so it was great for her and I to get out in the sunshine for some ‘tunes’ on what proved to be a long day. I won’t go into details but it was a good, albeit exhausting experience.
We even managed to have a dance - the first since 2020 which was pretty special given her circumstances.
By mutual agreement Sunday was going to be a very easy day and so I was able to get a few bits and pieces attended to. My Warbases order arrived on Saturday and as expected a few minor tweaks were needed to some of the items I had designed. I will not go into too much detail at this stage but some of the bits and pieces will be of profound interest - at least to the die hard naval wargamer!
Bear in mind that my models tend to dance ‘fast and loose’ with finite detail - as long as it looks close enough to the original that will do!
I was also able to make a start on another couple of models for the ACW collection which was a little naughty really as I still have three models still on the go. The design you see above is for the C.S.S. Tennessee of Mobile Bay fame - my hull template is a little curvier than the original but is in keeping with the overall style of my largely ‘cartoon’ models. She was a casemate ironclad and the only difficulty will be the pilot house incorporated in the casemate. Then of course there are the corners of the casemate - why does have to be corners? (He says in his best ‘why does it have to be snakes?’ Indiana Jones voice) - which I will need to think about.
There are a couple of other things that fall into the ‘Scatchbuilding Naval Wargaming butterfly’ category along with something else that should be with me on Monday and so guess what? That will be the subject of the next post….
8 comments:
I was at the Stax Volt tour night at Colston Hall, Bristol in July 1967.
A wonderful night but Otis Redding was dead just a few months later.
Somehow I find 3D printed stuff somewhat 'souless' and much prefer hand sculpted masters or scratch built conversions etc. I think that this is one reason I'm so drawn to your models David:). They just appeal to the Airfix kid in me!
Great that Laurel had a long but enjoyable day out, with a dance to boot, but I'm not sure how you coped in the heat. We ducked indoors just after Midday due to the high humidity. I too am a fan of 60's Soul and Motown music, based upon hearing it as a young kid and of course the Golden Hour with Simon Bates on Radio 1!
Hi Nobby,
That must have been some gig for sure! Of the soul artists I have seen the standout for me was Edwin Starr - not because I was a high fan of his but because the live show was slick and hugely professional - you could hear every note as clear as a bell and this was outside in a park! Sadly I never saw any Stax performers, nor any Philly artists but I really enjoyed the music. Then of course jazz funk kicked in but my musical tastes are now very much wider and so I am just as likely to be listening to Frank Sinatra via David Bowie, Queen, the Eagles as I am Earth, Wind and Fire, Marvin Gaye or the Brothers Johnson!
All the best,
DC
Hi Steve J,
You can probably get just about warship you care to name as a 3D print but for me they all have one thing in common and that is a lot of what I believe is extraneous detail - especially when used for gaming rather than as pure models. I have every admiration for those that use such models just as I have for those that fully rig and use etched brass for super detailing. It simply is not for me as I prefer to make my own for the period. Besides, it’s fun!
Having said that I am thinking that building technique will probably not go beyond pre dreadnoughts simply because the ships thereafter tend be become rather more ‘fussy’ looking with a lot of superstructure detailing that would be hard for me to replicate especially as the models would need to be smaller.
The heat was an issue for sure although we coped - the fluid intake was substantial and strictly of the H2O variety! The music was more in Laurel’s line than mine although Heatwave (appropriately enough given the weather!) were pretty good. For the record the dance we had was to ‘Always and Forever’ which was very appropriate as it was our first dance at our wedding.
I am an incurable romantic!
All the best,
DC
Fantastic to hear that you and Laurel got to go out to play…
It sounds like a splendid day…
I look forward to seeing your finished ships.
All the best. Aly
Hello there Aly,
It was great day out albeit long, hot and with variable sound quality (and the acts to be fair!). The main thing is that Laurel wanted to go and I will always encourage her to do so as it is important not only for her wellbeing but also her confidence.
The ships are underway although I have a number of experiments to conduct first of all…..
All the best,
DC
Sounds like a good day out. Actually going to a concert myself in January - Mollie Tuttle... didn't believe it when I found out she was appearing in King's Lynn! Ship project sounds good, always nice make something from scratch.
(Mollie Tuttle: American Bluegrass artist - worth looking up. I've got four of her albumns but she's not well known in the UK - 'discovered' her by accident and I assume her tour - as a supporting act to someone I'd never heard of! - is a way of breaking into the UK market)
Hi Rob,
Not an artist I am familiar with so in the interests of research I will have a look and see what I can hear! We have booked the concert at the same venture for next year - the line up is still be finalised - but as mentioned, it is usually rather more in Laurel’s line than mine.
The ships have kind of stalled slightly of late as work and other stuff have been keeping me busy but I hope to get cracking on some more soon.
All the best,
DC
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