1:48 Engine Room #3 Battleship USS New Jersey for Permanent Display on Board.

Happy Monday. Back in the shop! The new Vinyl Cutter produced some more good stuff; the propeller shaft graphics.

Before I could cut anything I had to remove the black vinyl from last week's number-cutting. That wasn't easy. It should be, but because I had the cut set too deep, all the numbers and their bounding boxes along with the backing sheet were cut all the way through to the carrier sheet. The carrier sheet is adhesive coated, necessary to hold the stock as its being reeled back and forth as the cutter works. Normally, you just peel the entire sheet off the carrier apply another piece of vinyl. But with everything cut clean through, I was left with all the separate strips and individual characters and any holes (like the centers of the number 8 or the triangle in the center of the number 4). This took over a half hour with tweezers and hobby knife to peel them off without damaging the carrier.



Stars & Stripes Decor on Prop Shafts:
Besides the US patriotic theme, the stripes help the crew determine how many turns the props are making and makes it clear that there's a 32" dia., solid steel shaft spinning in their space. I drew all the designs on a single page in the Sihoulette design software, but you can selectively choose what you're actually going to cut. This was very useful with some parts being cut from white and red vinyl. I thought I had bought blue, but didn't, so the blue areas are masked and airbrushed.

The stars were a challenge to lift off the backing. I understand why people buy the special transfer tape for vinyl cutting. The Tamiya Tape worked well, but it's not transparent enough to really see how the cutting will be applied to the workpiece. I'm going to get the real stuff. You have to be careful when pulling the details off the big sheet. If they don't come off the first time, you run the risk of the array getting out of register. Some of the stars did get loose and took some fiddling to get them applied.



The result were pretty good. Ryan was happy to see that I've added some "Crew applied" graphics to the model.





i also got the replacement turbogen foundation post-cured and all cleaned up. The re-drawn version now has the perfectly sized hole for the 4mm columns. The previous one had holes for a scale of 7" diameter column, and needed to be drilled larger for the 4mm brass columns. Now I have perfect and plumb fits for all the columns. Sometimes it takes more than one try to get things right. Just ask Elon Musk about luanching his Starship.

I then started doing the new circuits for the LEDs. In this instance I've added a 3rd light to give more illuminaton on the lube pumps and lube oil cooler in the lower deck area.



When the attachment leads are soldered on, I will assemble the columns, then prime and base gray. This week should produce some good things. My friend Bryant, called today to get one final dimension check to use when cutting the ogee trim pieces that surround the base plate. When I get the finished base I'll bring it to the plastics house and have them measure it for the clear acrylic purchase. I get the acrylic CNC cut leaving a pretty smooth surface requiring very little sanding before cementing.

Oh, the joys of using a vinyl cutter. Been there, done that, quite often.

Excellent work so far!

Today was one of those days where everything was working until the very end when it stopped. I continued to produce useful things from the vinyl cutter, got the evaporator deck fully covered with grating, prepared the columns for mounting to the base, and continued work on the new Turbogen platform. It was the latter that we South at the end of the day.

I made the warning strips on this rectangular tank at the lube oil pumps. It was easier than masking and denser than my custom decal would be. I think it works well.



Again, pulling the strips of the cut vinyl sheet required patience. I made two sets just in case, and it was the prudent decision. One of the stripes folded over itself and got too annoying to continue with. The second one worked out okay. This is what the sheet looks like after "weeding". In this case, the weeds are the things I needed.



I glued the legs into the new TG foundation using epoxy. Before doing so, I filled their bottoms with J-B Weld epoxy putting, in which to install mounting pegs. I also filled the tubes on the finished decks.



After installing all the columns and epoxying them in place, I worked quite hard to get the mounting frames down onto the tubing. I had to worked them down side by side. I then took it outside to prime and after dry, shot a finish coat of Dark Ghost Gray Mission Models Acrylic paint. I was very pleased with the outcome.



While the paint was drying I prepared the other decks for the mounting pins. On the TG decks, the epoxy putty didn't adhere to the tube and when I pressed on it to locate a center hole, and they slipped down into the tubing. I took a different tack by CAing 1/8" brass tubing into the 4mm outer tubing. I'll use a 1/8" drill and this way the column will be stopped at the correct depth when the 4mm tubes won't fit.



On the other decks, I added some thin CA to the epoxy plugs to stabilize them and then drill an apply the 3/64" rod. This worked pretty well and those are ready to install on the model.



I also grated the entire evaporate deck. This is actually fun to do and really looks great when done.



And then I was ready to attach the new condensers to the newly completed TG foundation and then…. This.

I installed the hanging frames UPSIDE DOWN!! I was paying so much attention to the tubing spacing and fit that I didn't realize I was doing it wrong. And to add insult to injury, I had secured it all with thin CA at the tubing/frame joint. It was hard getting the frames seated all the way at the bottom, whereas they're not supposed to be at the bottom. The tube connections should be in the middle somewhere. The solid arms should rest on the bottom.

So I took a flat-bladed screwdriver and pryed the whole thing apart. It was very, very secure. I had to destroy two of the loops getting the tube out and crushed three of the tubes to twist them to break the CA'd joint. But… I have a printer, the file was still on the machine, I have extra tubing, so tomorrow I will have new parts to assemble it correctly. This one assembly is becoming a real pain!



Onward and upward!

Today was a little of this and a little of that. The new condenser suspension parts printed as good as the first one. This time, I got them right side up. I put them onto the foundation frame with their columns sunk to the proper depth in the mounting hole… holes which I had to clean out from any reidual epoxy that would prevent columns from seating correctly. I slid the suspension frame down to seating on the foundation, and holding everything down tightly, added some judicious thin CA locking the columns in their correct positions. I removed them and took the new assemblies outside to prime them.



When primer dried I shot them with the color coat.



With the mounting like this with the columns attached, I checked out if I can glue the condensers on the their suspension frames off the foundation, making clamping much easier. I was able to do so, so tomorrow I'll assemble them attach to the foundation. The holes lines up perfectly. The TG systems will be assembled tomorrow. I'm not expecting any more nasty surprises, but you never know. "Hope for the best and prepare for the worst."

I broke off a free standing pipe on the evaporators so I redrew it with some supports and printed another. I also printed a small detail; a gauge panel that sits on the wall of the main reduction gear. There is a group of sensing lines leading from this to places unknown which I may or may not add. It's on the lower level sitting behind the lube oil pumps.

I found one more floor system that needs a small railing. It's the ladder that goes from the lower to upper level. It needs a guard railing to protect crew from falling into the open ladder way. But, the girder system I designed is too diminutive to be drilled for the railing stanchions. I solved this by gluing on some styrene thick stuff below that will accept the rail. It won't be seen easily since the hole deal is covered by gratings.



Lastly, I painted the ends of the prop shafts red to signify that they are cut from something bigger.

Great work so far!

Thanks! Happy Monday. Got a lot more gratings done, and reprinted another set of them since I will run out. I knew I'd have to do that as there are some big surfaces that still need covering. And I finally got the TGs condensers and their respective turbogenerators epoxied in place. This was a big deal after the trauma of wrecking the first one. This one came out much, much better. I glued the low pressure and high pressure turbines together, so they're ready for mounting in the model. I had to print some I-beam columns for the front platform that sits in front of the TG structure.

As planned, I was able to glue the condensers to their frames off of the TG platform, thereby avoiding having to clamp them using that jerry rigged dowel shim as I did the first attempt.

I tried to use rubber bands and Quickie Clampls to hold until the epoxy cured (5 minutes), but the parts kept slipping out of alignment. I ended up just holding them in position until the epoxy started to set up. I add some strategic application of rubber-added CA with accelerator to further stabilize the joints. When it cured I put epoxy into the holes on the TG foundation and added a bit on the bottoms of the suspension structure that will contact the foundation. And then applied gravity clamps to hold it until cured.



When all this was curing I added grating to several platforms.



I also grated the entry platform and the stairway.



With the condensers installed where they should be by design, the TGs just dropped right in place. The steam exhaust trunk drops into the hole on the condener top. When I reprinted the foundation I changed the positioing just a tad that made the fit better.



And another view.

It's just like...........................................magic!

Great work so far!

Magic! Penn & Teller better watch out!

I trimmed up a pile of 2nd batch of floor gratings. I was first using a #11 blade to trim off the supports and to provide more contrast so I could more easily see the junction. I later changed methods and cut the supports using a Tweezer-style Sprue Cutter. The cutting surface was a piece of plexiglass covered with electical tape.



Instead of rolling masking tape to hold the gratings onto a surface for painting, I again drafted Press-n-Seal into servie as a mass holding device. This actually worked, but your really have to press the heck out of parts to keep them from releasing when the airbrush is turned in their direction. They did ocassionally pop loose requiring vigilance to keep the in place.



With this new batch I finished another major platform. This one occupies the forward portion in front of the turbo platform. There's just three more platfors to pave with gratings.



Lastly, I got back to the turbo platform and started piping the systems. The large lube oil cooler sits underneath the starboard side turbo. It requires cold water in and out, but I never actually saw its piping so I just imagined my own, tapping into the seawater lines leading to the turbo condenser underneath. One of the printed pipes didn't align properly so I fabbed one out of solder wire. The oil lines will lead under the floor panels towards the lube pump array just next door. They won't be easy to see, as in the prototype.



I did print the main pipes going to the turbos, starting with the main steam. I wasn's sure it if it would line up since the actual location of the turbos was dictated by the final location of the condensers. As it works out, the steam pipes aligned close enough the slight squeeze I had to give them isn't very obvious. They are pinned pipe joints. They are not glued yet. I may wait until the unit it installed on the base to make the final hook up.



And then I started fitting the condenser coolings piping. This too aligned pretty nicely. They too are pinned joints. I will glue them in tomorrow and adde the grating covering the turbo deck. And that major assembly will be done waiting for installation.



I have a suspicion that all the subs will be done before the base plate is delivered to me. My friend just got it glued up on the weekend and he likes to finish things very professionally with staining and multiple, rubbed-coats of lacquer. Then there's shipping time. Oncw I have the base in hand, I will get the plexiglass cut. I can build the lighing circuit board before getting the base. Case and base work goes really fast.

It is looking amazing.

I enjoy all of your building tutorial including the reasons for certain techniques. I also like seeing the area around the project which gives me other tool ideas. I have been building models, balsa and plastic, from the mid 1950s and have used weights from barbells, old window sash weights as well as angle iron. Since using your terminology of gravity clamps rather than weights and adhesive instead of glue, my fellow model club members are suitably impressed. Well, almost, anyway.
Keep up the excellent work!

It's the curse of starting my working life as a shop teacher for the first 7 years, and then the next 37 years in training and development, I tend to lean towards descriptive writing when telling folks how to do something and word choice is important, so I really appreciate that you've noticed. That said, it drives my wife crazy when I slip into my "teaching mode".

Most of the afternoon was spent creating some customized decals for a model building friend, so I got only about 2 hours in the shop. I continued work on the turbo system and painted some details on the air ejection units. I also replaced some missing valve handles on same.

I got all the other pipes fitted and then repainted them since their coat of white paint was pretty thin. I painted their respective valve wheels yellow and tomorrow they'll be ready to permanently attach. While they were drying, I started applying the grating to this important assembly. The grating application continues to be a pleasing activity.



I'm still not sure how my build ended up with the 2nd level on the port side being about 1' hogher than 2nd level on the starboard side. I looked at my drawings to see how difficult it would be to rectify and I think it's more work than it's worth. In my daily commuication with Ryan I suggested that delivery will be in early November. My modeler friend was wondering if it would be done in time for our big judged model exposition this year. It might be, and I'd really want the local guys to see it, but I'm afraid of something happening to it. It's very anxiety producing moving it from Louisville to the Camden, NJ waterfront. The model is big and it will be heavy.

Excellent work so far!