Now to making the seabase
I wanted to try another approach this time using Styrex XPS. On the other hand I was not looking for a drastic change in style of seabases within my Savo Island collection by using a thicker Styrex layer and creating larger swells, so I decided to stay with the 4mm plexiglas as a basis (it serves also as a weight!). I added only a 3mm thin layer of Styrex on top of it. That allowed for some light swells that I used to make by putty or paper in the past - definitely easier and faster with Styrex.
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As usual I prepared the wave pattern according to the excellent
http://www.steelnavy.com/WavePatterns.htm guide by Donald C. Simon - only to realize that such pattern is not relevant for a small and slim vessel like a submarine. So I searched for some photos of submarines at a moderate speed that could be used as a guide, the one of USS Torsk posted above being a good example. It turned out not the best idea to mark the wake with white marker, it later tended to show through the blue paint so another layer was required
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Another material I tried for the first time was the Green Putty I used to sculpt bow waves and wake, it worked just fine.
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Then I used a car paint spray can for the base dark blue and I was quite surprised to notice some of the Styrex being “consumed” by the paint although the can said the contents was acrylic paint! It can still be used but the first layer should be really thin to prevent irreparable damage to the Styrex layer.
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Next came highlighting of the wake by airbrushing green and white.
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I´ve never fixed my models permanently to the seabase before. The narrow gap between the hull and the seabase (covered with acrylic gel medium in the meantime) is usually noticeable only from overhead and I preferred the (yet theoretical) possibility of removing the model and using another seabase for it. However, in case of a submarine there was no other way as the convex hull would make the gap too obvious. I used the light wall putty to fill the gap. Being water-soluble it is easy to remove any unwanted marks on the hull. It is also white colour so there is no need to paint it in the vicinity of the hull as it looks like a good representation of foamy seawater. Cotton wool and acrylic gel will make it for the bow wave. I also tried one new material – AK Snow Sprinkles for the lighter foam. The Snow Spinkles are essentially tiny transparent balls in acrylic gel medium. This gives a quite unexpected effect of making the bow wave less even and smooth, adding “droplets” to it.
I am sorry but I completely forgot to take photos of final phases of the seabase construction, I was perhaps overexcited that the work comes to an end
. You´ll have to wait until I take photos of the completed build – coming soon! Sorry for the waiting time but I want to show it all at the time of the 79th anniversary of the Savo Island events in 10 days time
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