[rjccjr]

Hi All;

There is an enormous difference between building a ship model and designing one. You can start by buying a kit or downloading it, take for granted that the designer did a good job, and then assemble it. You look at a picture of a model or the model itself and say to yourself "That's a good build." or "That's not." When you start something like this it is an entirely educational experience. You begin to understand the value of research, which goes on from long before you draw anything, until you finish the model. You simply have to face the fact that it is going to take a very long time to do. For those of you who have ever faced the doldrums of simply not feeling like building and wondering how to get back the spark, it helps to promise yourself "I'm going to work on this every day, even if it means just gluing only two pieces together." You also have to learn to pace yourself. Just walk away from it for a while, but still get those two pieces together. If you are designing, you are going to complicate things for yourself. First time around on a drawing there is always a problem of fit. There is also the problem of learning to actually realize what you are looking at. For example, I started working on what seemed to be a simple cable reel. Nothing to it, nine parts. Wrong! It turned out to be a towed noisemaker to decoy torpedoes, forty one parts. Why did it have that curved splinter shield in front of it? Well, it isn't a splinter shield its protection against heavy weather for the men who have to work the array in foul weather. Attack submarines don't pay a lot of attention to surface weather when they are on the hunt, but the intended victim sure does. Well, it did slow everything down. A lot. Had to take a week off to figure out how to do it. Thank God I never gave up my day job to do this kind of stuff for a living. It's bad enough when you're retired and have the time. The torpedo loading crane turned out to be more complicated too, but that had a quicker solution. There are a lot more folks interested in aircraft and I admire the guys who can handle the compound curves involved. On the other hand, there is a certain fascination, challenge and education that goes with dealing with ships and the sea. They are a lot more complex. Every ship has a story and every crewman has as well. Some more dramatic than others, but there are a lot of surprises out there. That's what maritime history is made of.

Regards, rjccjr