Richelieu

[Barry]

Just thought I would make a seperate thread. I was lucky enough to find a very beautiful part finished Super 3d drawing on the net which had quite a few bits of info on the fore tower.

[Don Boose]

I'm glad to see that you are continuing work on this beautiful warship, Barry.

Don

[Barry]

A bit more progress

[Golden Bear]

Nice job, buddy.

[Don Boose]

Richelieu was certainly a distinctive and attractive warship with that unusual stack-cum-superstructure and pair of quad turrets forward. That's a fine-looking image, Barry.

Don

[B-Manic]

Nice guns! Great modeling job Barry.

[GreMir]

Nice job. I'm assuming that the cardmodel will follow? ;)

[birder]

very nice looking ship, you are a productive guy, Barry!

[Barry]

Thanks friends eventually the card model will arrive but there are quite a few bits shrouded in mystery still such as the boat racks and the superstructure on top of the funnel housing. For once I would like to do all the 3d work before starting.

[Barry]

The boat racks are in fact an open girder structure with 2 boats on the deck and on top of the lattice plus 2 smaller boats nested in the upper boats. Most of the ships boats had been replaced by carley floats in 1943. There is some discrepency between the pics of Richelieu leaving New York after her refit with regard to the heavy AA guns midships splinter shields. They are shown here as tubs which is as the French drawing but in pics they are shown as a combined mounting. One of the most complicated bits to design are the splinter shield around the bridge platforms which give the ship it's distinctive look.

[Don Boose]

Excellent images, Barry. I have very little information on these beautiful ships in my library, so I am learning a lot by watching the ship take shape in this thread.

Don

[Barry]

A bit boring probably. This is the aspect of Richelieu that makes it come to life (wishfull thinking perhaps) the armoured bridges. They were a lot simpler to draw than I thought. The question is can they be unfolded and glued.

[Don Boose]

Definitely not boring! Very impressive. Looks like a late 30s European poster.

Tompions in the muzzles?

Don

[Barry]

Slow progress the heavy high angle AA midhip turrets do not have the full turrets depicted and need to be squared off and have an open back. They would be ok on Jean Bart. There are also some querys on the shape of the lower mounting platform. All good fun but there are very few pics around showing that section in any detail.

Tompions are a fluke producing the barrels by rotation Don.

[B-Manic]

Tompion: a plug for the muzzle of a gun to keep out dust and moisture. Often very decorative ceremonial ones were produced. More brass to polish.

~cheers
dougls

[Don Boose]

More beautiful images, Barry. Thanks.

Don

[Gil]

Barry,

Looks like somebody I know is being romanced by the rendered image. This becomes a problem when you realize that you've become good enough to create rendered designs that will always look prettier than anything you can possibly build..., Gadzooks and Drat anyway...,

+Gil

P.S. Don's right. The one shot of the armored bridge could easily be made into a French Navy recruiting poster from the 1930's. Now let's see..., what would it say in French?....,

[Barry]

Quite right Gil. However as I look down the line of new and old models I can see the deterioration of my fingers ability and think sooner or later it will be down to pretty pictures on the screen and no models hence the practice.

This is the screen I really use to check if it will work and it's still too good !!

[tincan871]

I envy your talents, barry. Great work !

Ed

[eibwarrior]

So this is what you've been up to post-Tarawa. :-)

Great work Barry. I can't wait to see this one materialize. Great choice!

[Barry]

Thanks fellas nearly ready to think about unfolding

[Barry]

Correction having unfolded a few bits it's back to the drawing board for another month.

If you have the full version and are using the automatic cut and merge routine it does make quite a few mistakes which throw out the unfolding in Pepakura. This is usually due to extra lines being generated which pass through points without intersecting and usually sit above the correct set. If you have to do it they are easy to find using the select tool set to normal. A bit tedious but it works.

Not sure you will even find the additions in this pic.

I also know why non professionals don't do battleships.

[eibwarrior]

Excellent work Barry. It's really beginning to take shape now. Looks fully outfitted to me. If you tackle this and a carrier at the same time, I think that easily qualifies you as a professional. :)

[birder]

That looks nice, Barry!

[Greg S.]

I have a Richelieu on the stocks myself. It has been there for ages. I didn't get past the deck and base. I realized that I did not have sufficiently clear drawings to progress further. Since the French Archives made drawings of the Richelieu available, this is no longer the case, but the amount of work involved is beyond my present level of motivation. Sooo many details.

Good luck! How do you juggle so many difficult projects at one time?

[Don Boose]

Great image, Barry!

Don

[PiotrekJ]

Hm, Richelieu was the fisrt model I ever built. I was then 15 years old. I must say it's not great, but I keep it for sake of memories :)

[Golden Bear]

Yeah, at 1:100 this thing is going to eat a lot of paper. You're the one to make it work though.


Carl

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping by.

Carl 1/200 at 1/100 I would have to extend the house !

PiotrekJ old memories are nice as are old models.

Greg so far it's only a drawing with a lot of questions about building it. As for the juggling I think it is a butterfly mind.

For the few who might be interested this how far I got. I am not accurate enough with mapping so I do it the hard with the analogue cutter in metso. The lines are becoming confusing.

[Don Boose]

The lines are certainly confusing to ME, but I'm glad you are continuing to work on this one, Barry.

Don

[eibwarrior]

Wow Barry. The computer model is really looking good. Just curious, but how many hours do you typically put into a computer design for a ship this size??? And for the Tarawa?

[Golden Bear]

You didn't ask me but I'll chip in anyway... it is hard for me to say with any accuracy how many design hours go into a model. Not only are there a couple hundred hours on the CAD model - yes, I think it comes to that many over the 4 months or so of effort - but many hours also spent with the art program. Then there are many, many hours spent just studying photos and plans, trying to figure out how things REALLY fit together.

Barry - pity about the 1:100. I was looking forward to photos of the aft section in your den and fore section in the dining room.


Carl

[Barry]

That is a fair summation of the process Carl. Sorry I asked the wife but she was not all in favour of the idea of a 1/100th monster not sure she will be that keen on a 1/200th monster either.

It takes a lot of time Elb and sometimes when it's all finished you think it is c**p.

As for Trawa now I am trying to sort out all the files and put numbers on all the bits probably a totaly pointless exercise. I design things defensively so that there is always an overlap on anything big so that small errors do not wreck the whole project which I guess is difficult to explain to a propective builder. The answer to your question is really just as long again.

[eibwarrior]

Wow! the time invested is staggering... I want to get into the design end some day, but I may have to wait until retirement... :cool:

Hey, when in doubt, build big fellas. Don't fear the 1/100!

[kooklik]

Sorry I asked the wife but she was not all in favour of the idea of a 1/100th monster not sure she will be that keen on a 1/200th monster either.
--------------------------------------

Hi Barry
Your model is looking very nice. Can't imagin how big is the monster in 1/100. My wife disagreed with my Train in 1/25 but I told her that the vote result was 1/25. So I got her allowence to 1/25 by vote.
----kooklik----
:D

[Barry]

After lots of emails with carl, Jim Krauslis and Marco who spent last night finding me colour swatches for all the camoflage colours. He will probably shoot me when I tell him I have decided on all grey or grey with a waterline oblong as per 1946. The camo versions have already been done better by the Poles.

This is the aft deck and yes I am to idle to sit there cleaning up the edges and probably damaging them.

It prints better than it looks on screen because of the number of lines causes refraction (? Can't be bothered to look it up.) and the greys merge in better at least on my printer.

[Don Boose]

Hi Barry -- Just checking in after a long absence to see how Richelieu and Triumph (and Carl's Victoria) are progressing. Both of yours continue to march, I see, and more fine photos and discussion in Carl's thread. More later, Don

[marko]

hi there mate,
finally decided to write some posts
:D well no, I won't shoot you due to ordinary color scheme. actually i prefer the gray one.

just keep up the good work mate.
talk to you soon

[Barry]

After hours playing with decking with Carl, I finally decided that the old pattern was just too busy so it's back to refit type colours which will fade a bit anyway they should really be a white/grey colour but the rest of the ship is just grey anyway.

[birder]

That looks nice would add some depth of color if close to accurate, wow would be really cool if you and GB worked on a model together for release, but the hours of work, oh my. I'm starting up an airplane and have already gone dizzy staring at the rendering program, but I design from scratch and scan it in, so skip the design program part.

[Barry]

After hours playing with decking with Carl, I finally decided that the old pattern was just too busy so it's back to refit type colours which will fade a bit anyway they should really be a white/grey colour but the rest of the ship is just grey anyway.

[Don Boose]

I'm glad to see work is continuing on this fine ship, Barry!

Don

[eibwarrior]

Barry, I think that deck looks marvelous. Such detail. Many commercial models don't have that "weathered" look either. Very realistic.

Grey will be perfect. Don't sweat that decision at all.

[Barry]

Not exactly a lot to show so far but it's a start. Former 11 will just be be cut straight through otherwise it just gets frayed so it will treated with crazy glue.

[eibwarrior]

I'm glad to see you putting paper to blade Barry. You're off and rolling!

I eagerly await your next update.

[redhorse]

An interesting start though... :)

[Don Boose]

Great start! I'm glad to see this beauty starting to take shape.

Don

[Papercut]

barry, I have the Fly copy and this is one of the most beautiful ships to ever come down a slip. I am watching this thread closely. From your drawings and now your build, I am sure to get many tips and details from this build. Just keep cutting and posting.:D

[Barry]

Nothing glued together still testing the fit which on such a long hull can be a bit dicey. The obvious mistake is the large chunk missing from the spine but that can be patched and will be.

I wanted to put 3 spines in for strength I finally realised I should have slotted the other 2 in from the top luckily I did not cut the slots maybe a little half thought preservation going on. Still it looks buildable.

I think from choice she should be a waterline kit but I guess it will end up as a full hull.

I am toying with the idea of a late war South Pacific blue strip camo.

[Papercut]

That'a boy, I am so watching this. Again, this was a beautiful ship. Both Richelieu Class ships had an interesting war in that they both started by fighting the Allies, Richelieu helped defeat a British attack on Dakar in September 1940, hitting the battleship Barham with 15-in shell fire. The sister ship Jean Bart would escape from St. Nazaire fitting out basin, she reached Casablanca on 22 June where she remained for the rest of the war. By the time the Allies landed in North Africa, the forward guns had been made operational, Jean Bart opened fire on US landing forces and was rewarded with eight 16-in hits from USS Massachusetts and aircraft bombs. Jean Bart would return to Brest in 1945 and was completed. She would take part in the Anglo-French attack on Egypt in 1956. She was decommissioned in 1961 and scrapped in 1970. Richelieu would go thru a refit in the USA, radar added, her damaged guns replaced with weapons taken from Jean Bart, and without her aircraft. After operations off Norway in early 1944, she joined the British Pacific fleet as a fast escort for aircraft carriers. She was placed in reserve in 1956 and was scrapped in 1968. So please do finish in the Pacific scheme.:D

[Don Boose]

This year's issue of Warship has an article on the cruiser De Grasse. As originally designed, it would have mounted 9 152mm guns and judging from the drawings, would have been a beautiful ship (in my own subjective view). I am now day dreaming about the De Grasse as it would have been, steaming in the Pacific next to the Richeleu.

Don

[Barry]

Far too big to lay out in one piece hopefully these two will fit together (worked on Tarawa) together with the stern section. It still needs the two side spines and quite a bit of strengthening.

Thanks for stopping by.

De Grasse would be nice Don.

She had an interesting war Papercut.

[eibwarrior]

Barry, she looks to be a monster almost the porportions of Tarawa...

Reinforcing will be a must. Maybe a good time to break out the bass wood or something similar?

Keep her rolling Barry. I've been eager to see this one leap off the drawing board.

[Barry]

Hi Glen you are right she is more less the same size as Tarawa but she does not have single deckhouses 15" long which is an advantage.Unfortunately 20mm and 40mm cannon grow like mushrooms instead.

I can't cut 2mm card so it's all down to extra supports plus super glue on the bows and sharp ended formers. The 3 sections still need final joining but that can wait until tomorrow when I can see properly. If it looks wavy along the water line it will get some more verticals added. That is why the lateral fillets are so high up more can fit in below.

This time I drew myself a square grid to the fillets square helped a lot.

[eibwarrior]

Barry,

Here is what you need for the 2mm stuff. Vinyl flooring scissors. You can get them at most any hardware store...

http://www.taiwanhandtools.com.tw/product/images/0815.jpg

[Barry]

A bit further forward. A couple of formers need some attention under a book pile overnight and then some strengthening L brackets adding should fix it and one former is a mm or so oversize aft.

The decking is a slightly darkened version of the carl/barry decking added in a lot more lights from Carl's version. Basically because of the acres of wood she carried.

Of course today due to some work being done at home I ended up with a new flat plank typical time cycle always just behind.

THe light is rubbish so just one quick pic tonight might give an impression of size.

[Don Boose]

Beautiful, Barry!

[Papercut]

WOW. This will be one pretty lady. I am blown away by the description of the deck planking. I will place my pre-run order for the kit now.:D

[eibwarrior]

Whoa! She's a monster Barry. Very impressive.

I can't wait to see more.

[Michael Mash]

This looks interesting. I reviewed postings back through this thread, and am I correct .......... this is at 1/200 scale?
Mike

[Barry]

Yes it's 1/200th about same size as Tarawa

[Barry]

Sometimes the design goes wrong, suddenly I can't get a consistant output out of Pepakura never worked out why but every now and again it happens. This design is varying by an 1/8th of an inch, so reluctantly Richelieu joins the builders mess.

Be a while before I restart. Have to do a lot of checking first now.

[Papercut]

Oh No Mr Bill. That is a sad sight. But you gotta do what you gotta do. I am sure the final result will be outstanding.

[eibwarrior]

What a sad development Barry. I'm sure this was a disappointing situation given the time investment you've already made.

Fingers crossed for a resurrection of Richelieu.

[Greg S.]

Sorry to hear about your building problem. I also started a Richelieu years ago. I still have the unfinished hull. Looks like yours, but in a smaller scale. I decided that I did have sufficient drawings of the superstructures to continue. Good luck on your ongoing projects, Barry!

[Renaud]

I can't stand it, the real Richelieu did not end in a sad way as the Strasbourg or the Dunkerque in Toulon. Please don't give up, or you'll be sentenced to design the Bretagne you damned British sunk in Mers el kebir until it is a seaworthy battleship! I was so glad a British could be interested in our ships... It's a pity that our best fleets, the Second Empire one, and the pre-WW2 were unemployed. We French are not lucky with our boats, down to cardmodels.

[Barry]

Oh I have not given up Renaud it just was not good enough so it's back to the start of unrolling, too beautiful not to be finished. I have hopefully improved a few things in the design. Anyway there are a lot of French ships I like still to do.

[Michael Mash]

Cheers to Renaud! An impressive speech indeed. That should provide ample motivation as you begin anew.
Mike

[Don Boose]

Imagine what the French Navy would have looked like in the late 1940s if the war had not taken place. It would have been a fleet of some of the most beautiful ships in the world (in this writer's humble opinion).

Don

[Barry]

Just to reaasure Renaud this project is not dead yet I give you an extremely badly engineered lower citadel.

My daughter bought a new printer for Christmas which I was delighted with then I noticed the output for Richelieu's hull was varying and up to a 1/4" in length. Having lost my ability to think logically it has taken all this time to work out that although the throat on my Hp will take 200 gsm card the friction motor can't pull it through quickly enough so anothe half built hull has hit the dustbin.

I am not sure if I am asking too much of the printer but I think it would help if manufacturers stated the capabilities of their printers clearly. My old Hp when it was new and had not had countless paperwrecks used to print 200 gsm with no problems.

[Don Boose]

Oh splendid! Richelieu redux!

Don

[Barry]

Spine, Keel and Decks now fit tried to rescue some of the formers some worked others did not. Just a slog now for this bit. The dastardly British only put the stern on the bottom Renaud.

[Golden Bear]

Hmm, you should be able to print on 200 gsm card, even with a cheap printer. I'll ask about this while I'm still briefly on their payroll.

[Barry]

Thanks Carl

[Papercut]

I for one am glad to see you back at this beauty.:) Rick

[Don Boose]

The Phoenix arises. This new version looks really good, Barry!

Don

[eibwarrior]

Sharp, crisp and what we expect from you Barry.

Glad to see you're back on track.

[Michael Mash]

Great to see this frame. Looking forward to watching this big boat take shape.
Mike

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping by

Another little experiment the reinforced bulwarks on the conning tower, there are a hell of a lot of them but they are also part of Richelieu's soul. In any picture of her these hit you right in the eyes. Length is 27 mm

[Don Boose]

They look good, Barry!

Don

[Greg S.]

Barry:

The ribs on the conning tower look like way too much work to me. There are so many of them as you say. Mad dogs & Englishmen..I guess (I mean this as a compliment). Good luck.

[Michael Mash]

Nice work on those (tiny) bulwarks. Great detail work like this makes the difference.
Mike

[Barry]

A word to the wise HP only guarantee accurate printing up to 145 gsm on C4280 printers. I did suggest they might like to put that in their advertising in future some hopes.

[Barry]

Finally back to the point I should have been at 2 weeks ago having got round the problems on my new printer. It is still a 1/16th out but after this the rest will be ok.

I am still going to have another go at HP even if I have to ring back all day to find somebody who speaks English. I am going deaf and trying to talk to some nice lad who does not even know how his own firm's printers work is very trying, especially when they tell me he is the Technical expert.

[Papercut]

barry, I am so glad to see you back at the Richelieu. Looks great. Rick

[Barry]

Thanks Papercut

Pass the dog biscuits Greg mate

[Michael Mash]

You have some real nice images of a very smooth looking (big) build. Looks great with that decking on there.
Mike

[eibwarrior]

It's really neat to see you refine your craft Barry. I remember when I first followed one of your design/build threads a few years ago. You've become a master designer.

I look forward to your progress on Richelieu. This is one of my favorite ships. Despite the printer and fitup descrepancies, you look like you're soldiering through well. Keep up the fantastic job!

[redhorse]

This is turning into something quite impressive!

[Greg S.]

Barry: I dragged my Richelieu hull out a few days ago to look at. It is at about the same stage yours is in the pictures above. I decided that if I ever work on it again, I will convert it to the Jean Bart instead, partly to avoid having to deal with all the ribs on the bridge, which I probably could not make look uniform & line up properly to pass muster. Carry on, sailor!

[Barry]

Thanks for looking and the nice comments chaps

Ok we are on to the next phase will the torpedo bulge work after putting in the 2 outer spines of course. I am now happy with the fit thank goodness. Maybe I should stick to destroyers.

I dropped my usual clanger and put one of the spine pieces on backwards luckily it was on a part of the hull where the formers were equidistant.

Not sure my long suffering wife wants this as a table decoration she prefers flowers.

Apologies for the quality

[Yu Gyokubun]

Bulge work looks good.
By the way does your wife praise your work depending on the quality? My wife expresses no interest in my paper models:(

[shrike]

By the way does your wife praise your work depending on the quality? My wife expresses no interest in my paper models:(

Mine just questions my sanity

[Yu Gyokubun]

Mine just questions my sanity

Mine might be better. Somewhere along the line she seemed to come to mind that she has no other choice but to come to terms with my insanity and since then has never questioned my sanity again….

Quote from the “Taming of the Glue” by Shakespaper:p

[Golden Bear]

I guess that I'm lucky in that my adorable wife likes little detailey sorts of things so she can mildly appreciate my work. She is also surprisingly tolerant with all the clutter that seems to propagate so easily. She is pretty much the only person that I trust to handle my most delicate models.

She did move some models off a shelf in the living room in order to install knick knacks. But I tucked some models in around them later!


Carl

[Greg S.]

My wife is appreciative, but has noticed errors & flaws such as minor hull buckling. She might say, "Looks great, but what is this...?" She is very encouraging except for her good eyesight. Fiddling around with models keeps me out of real mischief, after all. :)

Attached is a photo of my Richelieu on which construction ceased April 1997. The unfinished hull is still in good material shape. Hope you advance further than me, Barry!

[Barry]

My wife does not moan about a damn great plank with half a battleship laid around for days on end and being an engineer she notices when things are not square or just do not look right. I think she is happy it keeps my hands working more or less as I have said before she is more into Aircraft. Maybe that is why I stick to ships she knows a hell of a lot more than me about planes. She did like the TSR2 I built but her favourite was the Javelin which I did not.

Nice looking hull there Greg. Originally I was going to build Jean Bart but by the time she was completed she had lost the Gallic look somehow.

[Don Boose]

The hull construction is coming along well, Barry, spine piece to the contrary notwithstanding.

Don

[Barry]

Got tired of hulls so here are some odd bits of the bridge wedding cake

[Michael Mash]

Looks like some nice progress on that bridge. Yes, I like to skip around about on a build once in a while myself.
Mike

[Papercut]

:DLooking good. I too skip around, helps to keep from getting bored with if too many repetitive items are to be built. Rick

[Barry]

I looked at this lot and as usual painted it red in Photoshop had a look at the plate sizes and promptly took it back to white. If I am going to paint it and possibly sand what on earth is the point of wasting ink like that. The parsimonious papersmith.

You can see the folds for the bulge on the unglued sheet hope it works.

[Michael Mash]

Okay. That big hull frame is starting to get covered up. Looking good. I'm watching and learning.
Mike

[Barry]

I don't think I can teach you much Michael except how to cheat.

Not that much done tonight it's a bit more complicated than the bow. I will run some crazy glue on the built in skeg I should probably have built up the base of the keel running up to the rudder. The rudder housing still needs fitting. I am too tired and will make a mess of it tonight.

[Greg S.]

Barry: What kind of boxes did you use for cross-sectional ribs? I'm glad you recycle.

[Barry]

Hi Greg

Call it being tightfisted just the usual Kellogs box with some "hard" 140gsm card for backing, keel plates are soft recycled card.

[Don Boose]

Smooooth!

Don

[Barry]

I think this keel is about the biggest I can make it would probably look better doing the Polish trick of filling the hull with foam filler and using thin paper. Trouble is I was never good at carving. Hopefully a bit of filling and very gentle sanding should make it acceptable.

[Don Boose]

Coming along nicely, Barry.

Are you still planning on the Far East Fleet camouflage?

Don

[Barry]

Decided against in the end Don it requires the main turrets to be coloured blue and of course breaks up her outline as planned and I think she looks more elegant in haze grey.

[Don Boose]

Probably so.

Haze grey and underway.

[Barry]

A start on the superstructure Carl was writing of doing the superstructure seperately from the hull and this seems to be the ideal design to try it out. I tried painting the keel with my usual paint which just did not work on recycled paper so I gave the hull a spray with automotive undercoat. It acts like the old tissue and dope and tightens up the plates quite well.

[Michael Mash]

The superstructure looks nice and clean Barry. Nice job on cutting out those windows and slits.
Mike

[Don Boose]

It looks great, Barry!

With that vast expanse of still-empty deck and the superstructure towering up like the fortress of St Michel.

Don

[Yu Gyokubun]

Automotive undercoat? Next time I want to try it.

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping to look chaps. Yug please try it on a test piece first. Mike I have to admit the windows are just paint. Don lyrical as always.

Adding a few more main bits of the superstructure and finally the keel will have to do I shall describe it as having pressure dings. The midsection of the plates could do with doubling. The funnel is probably too angular but there are a load of bits and pieces still to be added which will lessen the effect. The platform decks each have a hefty shield around them that should cover up a lot of the edges.

[redhorse]

That superstucture looks really good. So many curved lines, there's just something there I like!

[Papercut]

Looks great and the funnel looks right to me. This will be one sexy lady when done. The superstructure for her gives the appearance of a sleek race horse.:DRick

[Golden Bear]

This was a honey of a ship. Those lines are just beautiful. The French have always known how to give a "right" look to a thing. The funnel is a little sharp but you are correct that once all the doodage is put on it will be just fine. I'm looking forward to a four-banger turret!


Carl

[Don Boose]

I agree with all of Carl's comments, about French warships and your model, Barry.

It's easy to by lyrical when looking at your model warships: poetry in paper!

Don

[Michael Mash]

Nice outdoor shots of that hull Barry. Spring is here. That superstructure is quite a combination of shapes. Looks good. What is the boat in the backround (behind the superstructure)?
MIke

[Don Boose]

Surely that is Barry's fine USS Spruance (DD 963), no?

http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/ships-watercraft/1109-uss-spruance.html

Don

[Barry]

Thanks for the kind comments Richelieu is one of a kind.

Don as always you are correct it's still Spruance sitting there another of my favourites.

Carl I will probably try folding the front corners of the funnel without scoring to see if I can get a small radius curve there. The aft side is covered in steam pipes etc. The four banger needs some detail work still.

I just wanted a small job to play around with tonight so I built the secondary turret range finder. I have not added the lenses as I would like to find a decent photograph of them first if I can.

[eibwarrior]

Nice work Barry. She's really taking shape now.

I almost purchased a 1/700 Richelieu plastic (I know, blasphemy) kit this weekend after reviewing your thread here...

Such a gorgeous ship, and you're doing a good job on her Barry.

[Barry]

Elb thanks for the kind words plastic does not bother me I am a big fan of Jim Bauman's ship dioramas. I have 3 40 year old Airfix 1/700th KG5, Dorsetshire and Formidable sitting on my shelf much in need of repair but no plastic glue.


Well the start of it this one took about 2 hours to get somewhere near right only another 6 foot to go. I think a large brandy will be called for.

I have not cut out the portholes my eyesight is not what it was so I shall settle for second best.

[Don Boose]

The portholes look just fine.

Don

[Michael Mash]

I agree with Don. Portholes look good. And that bow is looking real smooth.
Mike

[Barry]

Thanks Don and Michael.

After all the trouble with my new printer I did not even try to get within a milimetre printed over the length and trimmed back solved a lot of problems but you need a fine point to mark the join. A little bit nervewracking always is.

I am reasonably happy with it.

[Don Boose]

It's reasonably magnificent, Barry!

That hull looks flawless. And ain't that bare superstructure elegant?

Don

[Michael Mash]

That is a great shot of the entire length of the thing. At this point, it almost looks like a piece of sculpture.
Mike

[member_3]

Now that is an impressive hull and superstructure. That ship has lovely lines! Keep up the great work, Barry!

[eibwarrior]

What a beast!

I didn't think anything could top your Tarawa Barry, but you have certainly given it a go. Richelieu will be amazing.

Great start!

[B-Manic]

Looks very good Barry. Very sleek lines on that hull, almost looks like its moving.

[Barry]

Thanks for the kind words I looked at the hull shape and my first funnel and decided it had to go. So funnel Mk 2 a bit more rounded.

[Golden Bear]

That's it Barry!! Beautiful. Just beautiful. Really nice to SEE a model getting built.

Wonderful

Carl

[Barry]

It's a bit kiddies bricks like at the moment but I feel fitting the bridge shields is going to be a little fiddly so I would like as much space as possible to work in. The optic tubes can wait until nearer completion.

Hopefully the whole structure will be reasonably perpendicular at the finish.

[eibwarrior]

Very good Barry, she's going up rather quickly for what amounts to a test build at this point.

Looks like she's a marketable design, if you know what I mean.

[Michael Mash]

That superstructure looks tall and straight, a little like Fuso. It probably won't look as tall once some of the other parts and armament get installed. Nice work.
MIke

[whulsey]

Catching up on your build thread and I came accross this from a few days ago.
(I tried painting the keel with my usual paint which just did not work on recycled paper so I gave the hull a spray with automotive undercoat.) Do you mean primer?...or actual spray undercoating, which is a more tar-like coating used for sealing and rust proofing.

[Barry]

Yep primer spray

[Barry]

Waterline needs some regluing to stop the wavy lines. It's a bit big to handle at times a warm spoon should help.

[redhorse]

This is a beautiful ship and build. I'm curious about the warm spoon and how you use it?

[Barry]

Spoons have all sorts of useful curves and for some reason beyond my science warming it seems to help with burnishing bumps. You can also use the bowl to form things like rounded nose cones.

[Barry]

Sorry Carl it's only a 3 banger and the small one at that. It's still a test build I unfolded it with the side join in the wrong place so it gapes when glued. I am quite pleased with the wind up barrels but the end nearest the turret needs several winds removing it would also look better soaked in crazy glue and sanded down properly. That might be beyond my fingers.

I used Pepakura to get the barrel length and radius then entered those into Siatki using the parallel rolling routine then drew diagonals to get the increasing radius.

The whole thing is a bit on the simplified side should have some internal mechanism.

[Golden Bear]

Niiiice! Many happy faces to see this.. :):):):):)

Imagine building a turret with more than 2 guns!! ...they're probably breechloaders too! It's a good idea to delay the 4 barrel turrets for awhile to keep our attention involved.

I'm not fond of putting in up/down pieces for turret guns although it is easy enough to do. Anybody who needs to play with moving parts on a model probably shouldn't be touching it anyway. At least on WWII ships the shields were cut away far enough that you could put them in. In the era I'm designing in they weren't designed for high elevations and frequently their maximum elevation was reached when the but end of the gun was depressed below deck level - that is a little tough to model without a lot of complication.


Carl

[Michael Mash]

Nice work on that triple turret Barry.
What is the caliber of the guns on this one?
Mike

[Don Boose]

Excellent so far, Barry, especially the secondary armament turret.

Don

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping by chaps

The Mk 2 appears to be a bit more logical at least the sides don't bulge of course I have since found out it needs some small bits adding still.

As the title says the caliber is 152 mm Michael

[Golden Bear]

I should add that I really like the deck.;)

Carl

[birder]

I agree, your ship is coming along nicely, and the guns look really nice Barry!

[Papercut]

Nice. I am awed by the barrel twist build. Could if not too much trouble, you illustrate this. I think this would help all of us heavy fingered maulers with the daunting task of rolling those devils called barrels. Pretty please:D. The ship is looking great, and I am glad you are still working on. Rick

[Renaud]

All pre-WW2 French battlecruisers were intended to compete with German ships such as the Graf Spee, and since these latter ships were considered as preys to be chased, the main artillery was all fitted front. But the only battle action Strasbourg and Dunkerque had to faced with was exactly the opposite, it was at Mers el Kebir: while escaping the naval base, these unlucky ships couldn't use their big guns.

[Barry]

Papercut " twist" was probably a wrong choice of word I used 80 gsm copy paper for the barrel which makes it very easy to roll the shape forces the taper on the barrel. You add glue sparingly as the taper edge changes.

I used a bit of 15 amp wire to start the roll.

I hasten to add this is not my idea I am not that clever

Hope this helps

[Barry]

Found that this needs a central support the barrels are a very "French" shape and difficult to get looking right.

[Don Boose]

Nice work, Barry!

Don

[Papercut]

Papercut " twist" was probably a wrong choice of word I used 80 gsm copy paper for the barrel which makes it very easy to roll the shape forces the taper on the barrel. You add glue sparingly as the taper edge changes.

I used a bit of 15 amp wire to start the roll.

I hasten to add this is not my idea I am not that clever

Hope this helpsThanks barry and I will give it a try. And I respect your modesty, but you did shed lite on this method regardless of who thought of, again thanks.:DRick PS: the ship is looking good.

[Barry]

One of those jobs that requires slow drying glue I used PVA does not look good under the camera lens. I think the time has come for small ships at 1/100.

[Don Boose]

I see some peelage (not to be confused with ullage and spillage) and minor warping, but it all looks fixable. The basic beauty of the design and structure remains and the glitches fade in significance.

Marchons, marchons!

Don

[Michael Mash]

This is a complex superstructure. Paper is almost always fixable. I like that quadruple turret.
Mike

[Barry]

Thanks Don and Mike

I desided to press on with it and the splinter shields cover up a lot of the ugly bits. I am going to have to edge the laminated platforms but that is more in keeping with real practice and there are a lot of pipes to hide the bits that will not look right. The missing bit in the splinter shields is somewhere on my carpet and totally invisible of course.

[Michael Mash]

Yes I know the feeling. I have enough parts in my carpet for a full build. These last two images look good. All the pieces are comming together.
Mike

[Barry]

A Mk2 turret without it's range finder this one has some internal structure, success will depend on whether or not the range finder "ears" fit. It's the one nearest to the conning tower. Smaller ladders bigger holes for the guns and the mountings are paired not equidistant.

[birder]

She looks impressive Barry!

[Michael Mash]

Nice work on those turrets Barry. What is strikes me about this ship each time I see it is the lack of any small equipment or tiny pieces that you usually see all over a project. It makes your boat look so smooth and uncluttered. Are you saving all that stuff for late in the build?
Mike

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping by Mike and Glen.

Mike there is very little clutter on the decks mainly around the anchor chains and stern not the usualvents sprouting everywhere but she is covered in 20mm and 40mm cannon.

The reason for doing the big stuff first is that these are the parts that give the most trouble in fitting as Pepakura does not give any allowance for thickness so there is quite a bit of trial and error at least from me.

I built the barrels from 80 gsm notepaper just as a straight roll and butt joint I cheated and put end caps on.

[Don Boose]

It looks terrific, Barry! The earlier minor peelage and warpage seems to have been dealt with and the superstructure is just dandy.

Don

[Golden Bear]

Always a treat to see the progress on this model.


Carl

[Barry]

Quad minus shields barrels the usual panel pins.

[Golden Bear]

Yeeoww. You're going wild Barry. Not just the quads but wrappings? Huh. Very nice. Of course you are now committed to about 100 more of them. But this model is worth the effort. An absolutely beautiful ship that will repay all the detailing you can give her.


Carl

[dansls1]

Very nice progress indeed.

[Wilfried]

Hello Barry,

did you use brasswire around the barrels?

With lovely greetings
the Wilfried

[Barry]

Hi Wilfried

You are correct as usual brass wire.

regards

[Barry]

40 mm with shield and 20mm, ammunition drum is a bit large. I used 80 gsm paper on the 20mm laminated to 140 gsm for the shield and base. The shoulder rests on the 20 mm were a bit on the small side to cut.

[Golden Bear]

Drums don't look like a problem. As for the shoulder rests, wait until you see the 47mm guns I'm stuggling with. Nice pictures, buddy.


Carl

[Barry]

Thanks Carl

I was watching Wilfrieds destroyer build and admiring his deck house top decks so I had to try and emulate his apparent technique. I covered the nasty edges on the bridge platforms with 1 mm strips from 80 gsm notepaper. It looks better than just painting the edges and is more true to real world edges. I have to cut a lot of 1 mm strips to sort this lot out.

[Barry]

The heavy AA guns on Richelieu are the original French design this one is built using 140 gsm for the shield and 140 + cornflake card for the base and trunnions. barrels are wound 80 gsm strips.

I guess that tests all the guns on Richelieu I suppose I will have to attempt the propellor shafts now.

[Michael Mash]

Nice job on the AA gun Barry. Pardon my ignorance, but what does "gsm" stand for?
Mike

[rickstef]

grams per square meter

a paper weight measurement, just like the lbs designation in the US and Canada

[Don Boose]

Fine-looking gun enclosures, Barry!

Don

[Barry]

A break from numbering parts ( I have started on Spruance Jim) added a few more guns and rebuilt A turret. A couple of 40 mm enclosures on the stern.

[Golden Bear]

Had to check out the 40mms chum. Looking good. And I cannot see enough of those 4 barreled turrets.

Carl

[member_3]

Those 40mms look sweet (as does the rest of the ship) - how many mounts does this beastie have in total?

[Don Boose]

Very fine. That trio of 152mm guns with the barrels trained skyward is most impressive.

Don

[Barry]

Thanks Carl

Ron I make the AA count to be

6 twin 100mm turrets
50 20 mm single
16 quad 40 mm

This is at odds with Wikpedia

Don the pictures I have seen of Richelieu show that the French had everything pointing skywards with the exception of the main turrets even in port.

[Michael Mash]

Nice work, and nice camera angle on that first image ....... looking right down the barrels of those quadruple turrets.
Mike

[Wilfried]

Thanks Carl

I was watching Wilfrieds destroyer build and admiring his deck house top decks so I had to try and emulate his apparent technique. I covered the nasty edges on the bridge platforms with 1 mm strips from 80 gsm notepaper. It looks better than just painting the edges and is more true to real world edges. I have to cut a lot of 1 mm strips to sort this lot out.


Thanks Barry,

it's one of the simple things in life; I cover all the edges of the decks with 1 mm cardboard stripes; it give a good optic and helps for a good plugging of the etching railings ...

With lovely greetings
the Wilfried

[marko]

Hi mate,

as promised i started on catapults and loire, for the pre-US refit version.
a bit of research shows that 2 catapults are needed, one crane and rails for guiding aircrafts on deck. hangar is located beneath 3 aft cannons.

good news is that everything is mounted on the rear lower part of deck. So no difficult modifications are needed.
It would be good to have the outline of that deck part and the 'step' from upper deck in metso format or better 3ds /3dm to mount everything in its place

http://www.shrani.si/f/q/Wo/3MHYryAq/catapult.jpg


regards,
Marko

[Barry]

I will try and sort it tonight mate thanks try and catch you on linr soon

Looks great so far

[marko]

hi mate,

i fell asleep yesteday, but i managed to finish the crane. i scaled down your deck to 1:200 since i've drawn directly in 200th. the crane looks a bit long, but it is only optical. it reaches all the cats and rails when rotated its individual arms and base. any shorter, and it would be imposible to lift aircrafts from water to deck safely.
http://www.shrani.si/f/3X/jR/1ENBE1bq/rear-deck.jpg

[Barry]

Too long to roll too idle to try I used wooden meat skewers a bit of paint will hide all the ugly bits and I can finally get on with the superstructure. The hangers are probably out of place but they are solid which is what I wanted I can add other bits later.

[Don Boose]

They look just fine!

Don

[Papercut]

I agree with that as well. Received WAK's 1/200 Dunkerque this weekend. I believe that the French design Battleship was the most elegant ships afloat during the war, and could hold their own against any combatant. I also received the laser cut frame work and metal barrels as well. I am chomping at the bits to start!:eek:

[Barry]

slow progress at least the bilge keels are on

[Wilfried]

Barry,

your work is superb in case of the dimensions of this french beauty ... I now start construction of the Black Swan mod. version of the German naval frigates from the beginning of our navy...

With lovely greetings
the Wilfried

[Barry]

Thank you Wilfried

I like your next choice I have a scratch built Black Swan of the war years one of my favourite ships which I am trying to find all the files for.

[Golden Bear]

Nice choice, Wilfried. I am eager to watch this take shape.

And, Barry, I wish I had the confidence and ability to handle hulls like you do. QUite a model.

Carl

[Barry]

Nothing spectacular from now on just more and more 20 and 40 mm cannon. The bandstand for the heavy AA is probably wrong but I have no plans to show how it was supported. If it ever gets released I will change it and the decking around it.

[Don Boose]

Nice work on the AA batteries, Barry. The bandstand looks plausible. It fits the architecture of the ship.

Don

[Phil]

No words to be found, I'm sure a "WOW" will not suffice, but that's all you get.

[eibwarrior]

Nice work Barry. It's been a while since I last checked in on your progress. She looks great. Nice main guns and small rifles too.

I wonder if the Model Card version of Richelieu would be of any assistance to you in your small details? I think I have that one in my stash.

PM me Barry if you need some scans....

[Barry]

Thanks for dropping by friends I wish the hull was as good as you think Carl but I should have put more stringers around the bulge it is out of sight anyway.

Thanks Don and Elb. Thank you Phil I know you don't like guns.

[Wilfried]

Hello Barry,

those ships are not acceptable without guns; I like the lines of the construction of them to bring all the power in an effecitive place ... :)

With lovely greetings
the Wilfried

[Phil]

Well...Actually I do like guns, but I like your craftsmanship more!

[Barry]

Thanks Phil

Aft 20 mm group need barrels and shoulder fittings

[redhorse]

You're outdoing even yourself on this one, Barry. Gorgeous!

[APA-168]

Looking good Barry! Lovely model of a lovely ship :)

[Don Boose]

Yes. Impressive work, Barry!

Don

[dansls1]

Guns are looking good ;)

[eibwarrior]

Looking good Barry. This old battlewagon is getting it's due.

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping bye friends and for the kind words.

My first attempt at the shoulder bars I think I need some practice they very awkward things to bend.

[gtb -red]

nice one Barry!

[Michael Mash]

Good looking set of guns is underway. That must be some awfully tiny wire!
Mike

[birder]

Nice work Barry. Fun to follow along!:)

[Barry]

I think maybe this is a bit of a waste of time in that they are quite difficult to see when finished. I did not double them just printed colour crudely on the back of the sheet.

[Don Boose]

Look good.

Don

[Barry]

Main breakwater in place, the only thing glued to the deck so far. Every time I think of doing more I wonder if the part could look better and the answer is usually yes.

[eibwarrior]

That looks pretty good to me Barry. I wonder what that little nagging bug is called? Modeler's block maybe? I know what you mean though.

Tough to criticize that breakwater though. I like it.

[Don Boose]

It seems as if every feature of this beautiful ship was unusual and attractive. Even the bow breakwater!

Don

[Barry]

There are not a lot of hatches and winches etc but a lot of AA guns and as I can't count these days I thought if I just dropped them on the deck where they fit it would be easier.

I hate painting things so I will try and build the lot and have one long session painting the barrels.

For anyone interested the barrels are 16mm Veneer pins I bought a 100 grams of them for £3 probably a lifetimes supply.

I'm sitting here having a rethink about releasing this one as Colossus has already been pirated the trouble is that marking the sheets is a task I do not want to do. Bit of a nuisance really.

[mabrown]

I'm sitting here having a rethink about releasing this one as Colossus has already been pirated the trouble is that marking the sheets is a task I do not want to do. Bit of a nuisance really.

What a shame that the pirates may prevent the release of this wonderful model.

I'm sorry to hear that Colossus has been pirated Barry :mad:

[Michael Mash]

Those are a couple of great images of some nice work. Look at all those guns! And it looks like you have engineered elevating gun barrels on those triple turrets?
Mike

[eibwarrior]

Good looking work Barry. Richelieu is really starting to take shape now.

I too hate to hear that your Colossus was pirated. Is there nothing sacred anymore?

[Yu Gyokubun]

Those are a couple of great images of some nice work. Look at all those guns! Mike

I agree with Mike. Those guns are really nice!

[gtb -red]

can't say too much else. just a great build.

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping bye no pictures still building 20 mm cannon I have not done half of them yet.

Mike sorry another optical illusion might go back and try to make the guns elevate.

[Barry]

A compromise it actually has a forward curve but also curved backwards in plan which does not work in card. When the glue is well set the supports will be doubled

[Don Boose]

Interesting! I had not previously noticed that secondary breakwater tucked in under the guns of the A turret. The curve is not so evident in the photos (but, then, neither is the breakwater).

I also found a photo of R arriving in New York in 1943 with what looked like a barricade full of small caliber (20mm?) guns just behind and in the same shape as the main breakwater.

Don

[mabrown]

Nice work on the breakwater Barry.

I also really like your deck texturing. How did you achieve it and what programs do you use for your 2d work?

[Barry]

I guess this is what you are referring to Don.

The decking is a shared effort between me and Carl main undertone comes from Carl and I added odd shades of colour to an underlay in black plank outlines then messed about with the colour depth in Photoshop 7.

[Don Boose]

That would be it. Here is the photo that appears in the Wiki site: File:Richelieu en route to New York 1943 bow.jpg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Richelieu_en_route_to_New_York_1943_bow.jpg)

Don

[Barry]

Heavy AA directors they have to be fitted before the tower gets glued to the deck two nights work to fit all the supports.

[Golden Bear]

I've been waiting for an update Barry. This is quite a project you have here. How is the build for the 1000 20mm guns going (I know that you can't hit me here 8000 miles away)?


Carl

[Don Boose]

Impressive superstructure!

Don

[peter taft]

Barry... i started to view this tonight and i've read the lot {and lost track of time} Everything that can be said has been to you as regards your beautiful work... so with the only word that i can find fitting for your work is AWESOME ! :D

[Barry]

Thanks for stopping by and the kind words I think there are another 18 20 mm and 8 40 mm to go still.

Boat racks and cranes....... I would like to find a good pic of the cranes they just look a bit crude at the winding end and the rigging is a bit odd the wires go up to the top of the superstructure and back down to the crane head.

[Don Boose]

The boat rack looks good, Barry.

Don

[Phil]

Heavy AA directors they have to be fitted before the tower gets glued to the deck two nights work to fit all the supports.

You blurred that picture on purpose, just so I would not drool didn't you? lol

[redhorse]

Again, I'm just amazed! I'm looking forward to your cranes.

[Yu Gyokubun]

I would like to find a good pic of the cranes they just look a bit crude at the winding end and the rigging is a bit odd the wires go up to the top of the superstructure and back down to the crane head.

Is the function of the wires from the superstructure to hold the crane? I'm not knowledgeable about it but looking forward to the wiring

[Barry]

@Yug
a picture of the crane pulleys there should be two pulley wheels at the end of the jib one for the topping lift the other for the load.

@Phil

I hope these pics are less out of focus I aplogise because it is like a pile of childs bricks mainly because there are mistakes in quite a few places the upper bridge does not have a box lip, it's a windbreaker and the doors on the bridge are too big and the ones on the AA deck are too small. No concentration these days. This way if I can my idle self moving I can still fix them.

@Redhorse & Boosed thanks mate

[Phil]

WOW! I was only teasing you, but thanx for the remedy!:rolleyes:
Superb workmanship as always!!!

[Michael Mash]

The images are nicely in focus showing you have done a ton of work on that superstucture. Nice job. I am enjoying seeing this one come alive.
Mike

[dansls1]

She's looking great Barry!

[Barry]

Just a long slog nearly there. Not sure whether to paint the barrels or not

[birder]

Those guns add nice detail Barry! I like your persistance it is commendable and a great attribute for a builder, much more a designer like you! Very nice work Barry!:)

[Greg S.]

Barry: Nice work.

[Don Boose]

It jusst keeps getting better, Barry!

Don

[gtb -red]

It jusst keeps getting better, Barry!

Don
I agrreeee!

[Barry]

Thanks for the kind words a few more bits to rebuild and maybe it will start to look finished.

[Michael Mash]

You deserve high marks with your work on this one.
What is next for you?
Mike