[Benihana]

G'day CT,

Here are the first few shots. First impressions, after printing and realising the superstructure is pink, is that its a very solid little model. The lamination for the decks give it some weight in the hand <I don't know why but I really like this feel?>. Its a very neat little model so far. Packing and organising for my move o/s have taken up a lot of time in the last few weeks but I've finally got a chance to share some photos.

It has gone together very well and the instructions are fantastic (they've saved me reinventing the wheel as on previous models. A couple of concerns fitting the structure on the deck up to the edges (my skill not model) but a quick trim of the deck with sharp scissors fixed this.

Couple of things around the pilot house. Firstly I ended up making a horizontal stiffiner to sit inside the pilot house to help me get the shape. Secondly it seems to be slightly longer than the space that's allowed for it (perhaps it is me > Joe do doubt will confirm). Its not a real issue as it just means I had to put the funnel back slightly. What I did was print the upper deck on thin paper, cut out a section and cover the original white circle for funnel placement and just moved it back. It looks great. I ended up using the same technique for mounting the walking beam as this allowed me to assemble it, without having to be super careful that the width was exact and then place on deck. Overall it turned out ~1mm wider (this was me not the kit!). Net result looks really good can't wait to add detail.

Hopefully more to report soon.