1/144 Scale USS STODDARD (DD-566) - Kitbash, Revell FLETCHER

[BB62vet]

Tom - Will do!! The chains came out great - until I got in a hurry and ripped the first 5 links and last 6 links off of one of them. Will reprint in the a.m. They came out just as the ones of ours did back whenever - fully loose, etc.

Pascal - Thanks!! I appreciate your input on the printer settings and following the build!!

Note - printing items such as handwheels with axles or such print better upside down with supports at the top to the wheel axle. Right side up they tend to print the handwheel only, w/o an axle - example - control wheel on stand for the anchor windless -

Prints better upside down; I usually print 4 of these in order to get one good one. Upside down, you normally get 4 out of 4.

Hank

[Fliger747]

Hank:

My hand wheels usually come out right side up, I use a medium support at the bottom. Maybe increase you exposure 0.1 seconds? Anyway glad they are coming out well for you! Looks great!

[BB62vet]

The aforementioned print runs came out successful - the chain stoppers and my new chains are "fully functional" as one might say. Last night dyed them black and due to heat in the shop and blurriness in my eye from Lasik treatment, I closed up for the night. I hope to get the foc'sle items installed in the next few days so I can move on to the port side main deck railings.

Hank

[BB62vet]

I noticed that the pad eyes for the chain stoppers are not shown in the Plan Book, thus I will consider these as post-war alterations. However, both my photos of STODDARD's foc'sle and an overhead shot of 50's era DD-520 show the exact same arrangement of the anchor chain gear. So, I've now added those items as well as the chain stoppers -

As usual, things will need touching up paint-wise. Also, I have the dbl shackles attached to the anchors -

Sorry about the clarity; it is what it is!!!

Tomorrow, I hope to get the anchor chains in place and chain pipe covers installed. Perhaps even the windless Brake wheel and control switch console. There is also a 3rd chain stopper to be located on the center chain stopper pad eye. Here is the cropped photo of DD-520 which shows the anchor gear in a very good overhead shot and how the stbd/port anchor chains are typically arranged -

STODDARD's arrangement is identical to this ship. I may have to reprint these small pad eyes as mine seem to be a bit oversized. I'll check my parts box to see if I have any smaller ones that I printed last year. They may actually be more to scale than the ones currently in place.

Hank

[Fliger747]

Hank:

I think with the new printer you should be able to print really dinky pad eyes! Coming along well!

Tom

[BB62vet]

Hank:
I think with the new printer you should be able to print really dinky pad eyes! Coming along well!
Tom

Thanks, Tom!!! Yes, my placement of those pads is a bit fwd of where they should be. AND...about 20% reduction in size, so possible small printer run if I don't have any smaller ones in the parts box.

Hank

[BB62vet]

Today I went into the chain stopper file and added the pad eye after scaling it down a bit. These items are shown on the 1968 BoGP, but I don't think the draftsman actually scaled them, rather he drew them to SHOW, more than anything else. So, using my photos and the 2 from other ships I've come up with an acceptable size for these pad eyes in conjunction with the chain stoppers themselves.

These parts are all "free floating" as I call them, and that is due to location of each part of the whole item being separate from another and supported as such when laying out for printing. Quite a step up from the typical crappy kit parts for anchor chains, etc.

Here are a few shots of the modified chain stoppers - I did two sizes of pad eyes and will use the ones that look the best -

These are shown on the drying turntable. Next, I will cure them in my Curing Box, and they'll be ready to dye and install. First, I have to do some touch up of the deck painting prior to adding these parts.

Hank

[Fliger747]

Hank:

Those came out really crisp. I don't think people realize how tiny those are! Of course freeing them from the supports and then fat fingering them into place is another matter, but very convincing!

Tom

[BB62vet]

Thanks, Tom!! Yes, and they are "free floating" as well (i.e. - the links/parts are all separate). I've now gotten them installed on the foc'sle and hope to get the anchors & chains done this week upcoming. Here's the progress so far -

I printed these with the stopper upper part as a separate item and that will be a tedious job to clamp around the chain link once the chains are in place. But, the patience to accomplish this will be worth the time spent.

Hank

[BB62vet]

So, finally this evening I have finished the foc'sle adding the port anchor/chain & connecting the chain stoppers. As well, now have the windless control console (p) and the capstan brake wheel (s) in place -

Tomorrow, I hope to get all the paint touched up and then turn the model around to finish the forward main deck railings on the port side of the ship. I've also redesigned the two whip antenna bases that are on either side of the bridge, eliminating the antenna which will be replaced with a spring steel rod (0.032" dia. music wire) and then painted to suit. The original 3D printed whip antennas both curled within a couple months of printing them. I'll also replace the various whips on the fwd/after stack in the same fashion.

Hank

[Iceman 29]

Beautiful chains Hank, I'll have to try them out.

The chains for models are expensive in the shops...

[BB62vet]

Pascal,

Thanks so much - your continued interest is nice to see!! Yes, I'm extremely happy that these items CAN be printed at this scale without any unnecessarily expensive printing tools. I'm fairly confident that the same chain could be scaled down to 1:192 or 1/200 without difficulty, making sure the supports are under and aside of each link as I've mentioned in prior comments.

This certainly beats the commercial chain and "fake chains" that the kit manufacturers provide.

Hank

[Iceman 29]

Thanks for the advice, I'll wait until I get my new printer in few days with the resin that suits it.

YX Model chains are good quality, but expensive, and that's to be expected.

https://www.hobbyeasy.com/en/data/vyw6m ... 1596870163

https://i.postimg.cc/vTcgTp80/Screensho ... 18-749.jpg

[Fliger747]

Good job Hank!

[Mgunns]

Hi Hank:

It looks like you are nailing down the new printer and printing off some fine items, the chain brake, and the other assorted focs'l items that you have done. I'm going over your build and catching up on what you have done since I last looked in. I have been doing wingy things again, my latest are 1/72nd P3's. I will be looking in from time to time and eventually will be getting to mine. I think I got bogged down with trying to do too many things and then the PE that comes with the model. I got real frustrated and put it away. I will be taking a different approach when I get back to it. Anyway, I like the progress you have made, especially the little davit on the gun house. That really looks neat.

[BB62vet]

Mark,
I appreciate your comments!! Always helpful to have positive feedback. Yes, the new printer is working out well - just took some time to get the settings dialed in for the type of resin I prefer to use. Those small details DO add up and really stand out on smaller (as well as larger!) scale models.

Sometimes it takes leaving a build for a while and then return to get back into it - esp. if there's a lot of out of box additions/mods, etc. that need to be made.

Glad you're still "winging" it AND onboard with SMF!

Hank

[Fliger747]

Hank:

As always looking for some progress on Stoddard! You have done so much work on her that at this point you could add a scratch built hull under her as almost everything else has been replaced. Maybe some time I'll do a wartime version of Watts, maybe, though too many irons in the fire at the moment. Your professional draftsman's skills have clicked in with the 3 D printing for spectacular results.

Hope things warm up a bit for you! Of course it has been -30 something in town here overnight.

Cheers: Tom