Here is the loaded version of the Steamer Bellota:
And a few more pictures:
and next to the empty one:
And again for size comparison with the Warlord tanker:
Next will be the tanker and passenger liner versions.
As I said in the last post I wanted to make moulds of the steamer Bellota. Here they are:
Here are the first casts of the parts:
And the build steamer. The life boats and davids are still missing as are the air vents. I have to do two part molds for these. Will be done next week. Furthermore the masts are missing these will be done with brass rod.
Here is a picture of the cast steamer:
Some more pictures from different angles:
And pictures with the Warlord tanker alongside for size comparison:
The model as shown above is supposed to show the ship in ballast so riding very high in the water. I have done a loaded version ,too, have still to put it together, will show later.
Now I will do the tanker and liner version next!
I finished the parts of the steamer Bellota in the last days and did the molds yesterday. Here are the components of the ship:
These parts are cast separately to be able to use the hull for different layouts and to make the individual molds smaller.
This is what the steamer looks like:
And here is a size comparison with a warlord vosper hull:
As you see it is quite big but not as big as the trumpeter liberty ship. More when the first parts are cast. Hopefully tonight.
Here is the Rheinland painted and ready for the gaming table. I might give her a wash to dirty her up a bit though.
Yes, of course! Sorry that I haven’t written anything in the last week but real life came in the way. As i am sure happens with you lot often enough, too.
I have done a little more work on the generic steamer Bellota. I started work on the bridge area. this will be the bridge for a cargo vessel . I will do a bridge structure for a tanker and a passenger liner too. The aim is to build one hull and different superstructures to build many different steamers. There will be different funnels, too. Furthermore the cargo holds will be single peaces so that they can be left of when building e.g. a tanker. The tanker will get single peace fuel lines for placing on the deck.
So here is the start of the cargo bridge structure. The railing on the hull has to be cut away on the cast later to place the bridge correctly.
More to come
This weekend I finished building the steamer Rheinland. The model is to be used for the Cruel Seas game from Warlord. It is in 1/300 or 6mm scale. it is completely scratch build . More about the build here, here, and here.
I did the molds and the resin casting, too.
The only thing missing are the lifeboats. I will build a Kriegsmarine version next. Depicting the ship as a Hilfskreuzer ( auxiliary cruiser).
This will be my next build for Cruel Seas. I will use this plan as a guideline to build different steamers as convoy ships for Cruel Seas games. The model will be around 24cm long.
I will use the same hull with different superstructures to represent different generic steam ships. Like tankers, frighters, passenger liners etc . Here is the start on the hull.
When finished I will cast the hull in resin to safe me the hassle to always rebuild the same hull . The ships will then get different superstructures also cast in resin to be able to mix and match them accordingly . I will do different funnels, bridge sections etc to build as many different looking ships as possible. So keep an eye on these pages for more updates. I might be able to cast some ships for others if the need arises.
I added the last little details to the steamer Rheinland. She will be prepared for casting today and I think I might manage doing the molds tomorrow then. I took pictures of her alongside the tanker from warlord for size comparison .
So as this build nears completion I am open for suggestions what should be next. I am thinking about doing a generic cargo vessel size will be in-between the tanker from warlord and a liberty ship. So length would be around 24 cm. Any more suggestions? What is missing for cruel Seas?
I did a little bit more with the Rheinland steamer. basically more sanding and filling. I added the funnel and the life boat racks. now only the fine detail like windows , anchors etc are missing. Then molding will commence .
I will be at the Kiepencon on Sunday with a cruel seas participation game more info on the con here.
Hope to see you there!
The next ship to be build for Cruel Seas will be a 1/300 cargo steamship . It will be a bit bigger then the Rheinland.
As I started with cruel Seas ( see last post) , I decided that I would need more costal steamers for convoys. One tanker is not enough. Therefore i started to look for old plans of coastal steamers in the WWW.
As i often travel to the north sea island Borkum I started to look for plans of old steam ships with brought the tourists over to the island during the 1930-1940. These ships were called “Bäderschiffe” in German. I found plans for the steamship Rheinland with was build in 1926.
The Rhineland was build at the Vulcan ship builders at Hamburg. She was 57m long and 8,7 m wide. She could carry 613 passengers and had overnight accommodation for the crew. She had two engines reaching 12,5 knt. She was coal fired.
This postcard shows the Rheinland after 1933 as she shows the banner ” Kraft durch Freude” in front of the bridge.
The Rheinland serviced the line between Emden and Borkum and Borkum-Helgoland as well as Helgoland-Hamburg. During the second world war she serviced this line and was used to ferry refugees through the baltic sea. She was used until 1968 . In 1960 she was rebuild and looked very differently from what you see above.
Above are some old postcard pictures of the steamer. the color picture shows her sometime after 1933 as the bridge looks different after 1933.
I will build her as she looked when brand new in 1929.
As usual I use cardboard and extruded polystyrene for my model building. Here are some pictures of the building process so far . Oh, I forgot to tell, the model is in 1/300 or 6mm , the scale of Cruel seas. The model could be used as a Sperrbrecher or similar war time use in the games.
And a picture with a Vosper from Warlord for size comparison:
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