S4Simon

That's good news. Just thinking about what to build next after the Bismarck. A nice weathered Leopard Tank would hit the spot. 🙂 And a twelve month build option looks very inviting.

Ebay 🙂 Universal warship crew 1/200 WW2 I chose Version B. I think they were cheaper.

🙂 Crew Added 🙂 Well just 20. Another 100 to put somewhere.

A box of 1/200 scale Bismarck crew. They’re very very small. 🙂

AA guns, wing bridges and railings installed.

I went the Custom Hobby Decals route. Simple to apply and looks good.

Usually removing standard sized snapped screws is a difficult job, but in this instance since we're using seriously tiny screws it makes the job.... much, much harder to resolve. Drilling out is difficult and could cause more problems. ie. damaging threads. But since you oiled the screw prior to fit, removal should be slightly easier. I propose to get a small hammer and a very small flat screwdriver with a hardened tip, or even better just a hardened pointed tool. The object here is to try and etch in a deep mark (make an indent) in one side of the snapped screw head (near the edge). Once a mark is made in the screw head, use the tool and the hammer to tap the damaged screw in a counterclockwise direction. Hopefully this will loosen the screw enough that it will just unwind and pop out with no damage to internal threads. Hope that makes some sense. If the indent you make is deep enough for the tool to bite and right on the edge of the damaged screw, you should be able to make some progress. Mark the screw edge and the chassis with a permanent marker so you can see any small movement as you tap away. 🙂 Good luck.

We ll I can confirm that the second gun has elevation control, so would expect the same fitout for all 4 guns. 🙂

I put the front one on straight away. When you receive the decals they give you the option of painting the red background and then just applying the white decal, or you can put on the full white on red decal. I panted my deck red and then applied the white decal and sealed it with micro sol. Bought my decals from customhobbydecals. The flag decals come with the set.

A couple more black and white shots - really brings out the detail. And some shots showing the decking after the wash was applied.

... And success. Part 84 - A stress free and enjoyable build.

Short 1 minute video showing build and wobble test. 🙂

I wanted to try and improve on the stand that is supplied in issue 84, where we have to hold our masterpiece in a slightly insecure way. Anyway, I found some offcuts in the shed and spent an hour building an improved jig that holds the deck securely in place. First batch of pics shows the build process - very simple. Deck is locked in place by the 6 screws. 2 at either end and another 2 on the sides. Good News - I installed the module last night and connected up the wiring. No catastrophes, no issues and no stress. It was actually a very enjoyable process. Happy Days.

In reality, know one knows as no-one has a completed model yet. These videos are just testing the hardware. The finished ship will have audio so any mechanics should be muffled. The clicking noise is the testing of the guns firing. These will only fire once upon command when the ship is completed. I suppose we'll have to stay tuned to the German subscribers as they will be the first to finish.

Nice. 🙂 Was thinking of doing that myself.

One circuit board is labelled Bismarck motor test board and the other is labelled Bismarck led test board, which also has the limiting resistor. The motor test board will kill all the leds given time as the load resistor on the led board takes the excess load away. You’ll need to buy a small led replacement from an electronics shop. Should be only a few cents. And just replace the old dead one.

Finished weight will be around 6kg. It would look pretty cool in the water, but I'd test in a bath tub first before setting sail on the high seas... or a lake, or a pond. And it's gonna need a lot of silicone. 🙂

I've added some more images on the Bismarck Photos thread. First time weathering a ship. I don't follow any rules / guides for weathering. Basically just using artist oil paint (black) - rubbing the hull. Then using Tamiya weathering kits for rust. Plus I added a black wash to the superstructure - to bring out the lines.

As a matter of course, I grease all my gears and spindle points of contact. Works in a number of ways in that it makes the gearbox quieter and smoother in operation. I reckon Terry's answer above will solve your problem though. Also if required, loosen the 2 top cover screws just a little.

Oz Spitfire subscriber as well. When this originally went live in Australia I emailed Hachette (UK) to get some confirmation about the base. They originally stated that only mail subscribers would get the dynamic base, and newsagent deliveries would be the spitfire only - no base. The aircraft consists of 80 parts, the dynamic base is parts 81-100, and the diorama bits 101-120. I see this month (march 21) that the newsagent deliveries have been extended to include the dynamic base.

I’ve gone down the weathering rabbit hole. 🙂

My only mod is the front and rear decals. Adds a nice touch. Oh - and the blast bags.

I'm really enjoying this build. Well engineered. Up to issue 76 here in Oz-Land.

Nice to see another weathered Bismarck. 🙂 I’m enjoying getting mine a little roughed up too.