Update on my 1/400 scale Lindberg HMS HOOD

Hi there.

Well work has commenced on this,ahem!, Lindberg model of HMS HOOD.

First I have decided that all I want is a reasonably HMS HOOD model to muck about on the pond with this spring and summer. It would be nice if the model were atractive to display when out of the water as well.

I have done quite a bit of on-line research since my posting earlier regarding the irony of the HMS HOOD kit by Lindberg.

Some thing else I found last night that struck me as particlarly Ironic was that HMS HOOD was the *THIRTEENTH* (and last)Battle Cruiser ordered for the Royal Navy.

I have found quite a bit of information online both text and images including 11 *COLOUR* photos of the 1/64 scale 'Builder's Model' which portray HMS HOOD as she was *PLANNED* to be built.

I have decided I will be building this kit as HMS HOOD appeared in the

1920s. The secondary armament and the smaller guns included in the Lindberg kit are more suited to this time period.

My model of HMS HOOD is going to be radio controlled. The 2 outside kit props, attached to 1/16 in brass rods, will provide the driving power via direct drive provided by 2 inexpensive electric motors coupled to the shafts. I might add the 2 inboard motos at a later date. I will be constructing them the same as the 2 outboard shafts when I do them.

Because of the 1/64 scale 'Builders Model' images I now know what the

15 inches turrets are supposed to look like. I have reshaped the Lindberg turets to more closely resemble these. I have also made 8 guns for the 15 inches turrets from brass tubing nestled inside each other. Even unpainted they look good. I might make them out of aluminium tubing instead since last night I found photos showing that in the 1920s the 15 inches guns were brightly polished near the muzzles.

I have already started the 4 new 15 inches main turret gun mounts. The Lindberg kit as built out-of-the-box would have 'A' and 'Y' turrets sitting flush on the decks. I have found 4 plastic bottles that once had tubes of CA glue in them that are exactly the right diameter. I will be adding some detail to them. I have another plastic bottle that is slightly smaller in diameter and is tapered that I have glued some sand paper on to. I am using this to ream out the holes on the fore- deck and the quarter deck for the 15 inches gun mounts.

I am off to the hobby store later today for some i/16 in brass rod and the tubing that it will fit into so I can start the drive shafts. I think I will get the aluminium tubing for the 15 inches gun barrels too.

I have found enough ships boats that are close enough in size to outfit the boat deck.

All in all it looks like this will be a fun project after all.

I'll be testing the model in the tub and will run it in the pond once the ice covering it has melted.

I am off now to commence scribing the deck planking on the fore deck, the quarter deck and the boat deck. The planks will be about 1/32 in wide in this scale. Not exact perhaps but close enough.

Cheers from Peter

Reply to
TankBuilder2
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The ones in the kit make it look like the turret crew have to crawl around on their knees, they're so flat.

Evergreen makes scribed styrene plastic sheet in a lot of different scribe widths; that might save a lot of trouble:

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Pat

Reply to
Pat Flannery

Hi there Pat. I finished scribing the fore-deck and the quarter-deck at 2:00 PM today which is less than 6 hours after I posted the update. I did not spen all 6 hours scribing either.

The Evergreen plastic strips would be more finicky than what the scribing was.

I phoned the local hobby shop to see if they had 1/16 in brass rod and tubing it would fit in. THe owner could not be bothered to look and see if he had it. There is no way I am riding my bicycle 15 kilometres (10 miles) in what the weatherman says feels like -30 Celsius (-22 F) to find out if he has it or not. It is a small shop and would literally only take him 2 minutes to check. With service like that he may not stay in business long.

I am off now to scribe the boat deck and also mark it for cutting to the proper outline for a pre-1941 HMS HOOD.

I may just scratch-build the 15 in turrets.

Cheers from Peter

Reply to
TankBuilder2

You may want to check some hardware stores if they don't have it; some here in North Dakota carry it. Two groups that do make use of that rod a lot are RC aircraft modelers and model railroad fans. So stores that sell products for them may carry it.

I don't know how one would fix the turrets on the Lindberg kit; I can't understand why they thought they were shaped like that.

Pat

Reply to
Pat Flannery

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Hi there again.

It really is amazing that no-one makes a plastic HMS HOOD kit with a really accurate 15 in gun turret. Even the Academy 1/350 scale HMS HOOD missed the correct shape. I read a review of the new Trumpeter/ Pit Road 1/700 scale HMS HOOD 1941 KIT on the HM.\S ASSOCIATION SITE at:

Reply to
TankBuilder2

We used to have a ship guy here who was of the opinion that Trumpeter wouldn't get a ship 'right' except by accident. And that was with plans and advice from experts.

Bill Banaszak, MFE Sr.

Reply to
Mad-Modeller

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Hi there.

According to the reviews at the HMS HOOD Association web site of these

2 new Trumpeter/Pit Road 1/700 scale HMS HOODs they are otherwise excellent kits and the 15 in turrets are close enough for all but the most finicky of modellers.

Surprisingly in the reviews of all known kits at the HMS HOOD Association it is the Italeri 1/720 scale kit of HMS HOOD that is considered to be the best plastic kit. Too bad it is an odd scale was their comment.

Cheers from Peter

Reply to
TankBuilder2

Speaking from the outside, I don't see 1/720th as all that odd. Revell had quite a line at one time in that scale. Also, to me, it isn't that far off 1/700th and there are many kits in that scale. I wouldn't have too many qualms about displaying them all on the same shelf, but I'm not a shipbuilder so my ideas may not jibe with those who are builders.

Bill Banaszak, MFE Sr.

Reply to
Mad-Modeller

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Hi there Bill.

I actually do not have any qualms any more about displaying 1/720 and

1/700 scale models together. It is not as bad as placing 1/32 and 1/35 scales armour models together - unless you are going for forced perspective.

I have quite a few of the Airfix 1/600 scale WW1 and WW2 ships. I also have the Revell 1/570 Scale RMS Titanic that I converted to the RMS Britannic (sunk in 1916 by a naval mine. The ship sank in 50 minutes) and is displayed on the same shelf as my Airfi 1/600 scale DKM Bismarck. When I measured the hull of the DKM Bismarck model its dimensions indicated the scale of that model is actually 1/575 which is extremely close to the scale of the Revel RMS Titanic.

I have often wondered what with t he slight descrepancies in the true scale of a model why people are so unwilling to display 1/50 and 1/48 scale aircraft models together/ I admit that 1/50 scale kits seem to be very rare these days.

One thing that I really like about the old Airfix 1/600 scale line of ships is that they were full-hull models. If you (or I) want to build a water-line model from one of t hose kits it is pretty easy to cut the hull halves apart prior to assembly. I find it very interesting that when people look at my full-hull models of WW1 and WW2 ships they invariable state, "Gee, I never knew there was that much of t he ship below the water-line." I think that many ships are rather like an iceberg with most of t heir mass beneath the water.

I also often cut the the hulls off of my plastic models of sailing ships so that the hull sits on an angle as if it were under sail if I am going to rig it with any sail set. This also greatly reduces the height of the finished model.

Cheers from Peter

Reply to
TankBuilder2

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