Landing Craft, Assault — Operation Infatuate I, 1 November 1944 (1:35 Gecko kit)

[Guest]

With the corrections made:

[ATTACH]490869[/ATTACH][ATTACH]490870[/ATTACH]

I first glued a strip of 3.2 by 1 mm into the bottom of the opening, and filed its top edge at an angle so the floor would fit better on it. The floor itself is 0.75 mm plastic card, also with its rear underside filed to an angle so it doesn’t sit too high. It deliberately sticks out a little at the front, so I can trim and file it to size after the glue dries.

[Jim R]

Well Jakko I had to read it through a couple of times and study your photos but I can see the problem and the solution. Well done sorting it although the solution itself was pretty straightforward.
Keep at it, this is modelling at it's best.

[Guest]

When over on the TWENOT forums, where about three of us are building this kit, we discovered the problem with the ramp’s height,¹ my first thought was that I would have to live with it because I didn’t think I would be able to correct it anymore on my model. A closer look, though, told me that it was still easily possible to fix the problem. So my model now has a double front floor

¹ Note that if you follow that link, Google Translate uses “valve” for “ramp” because in Dutch, the same word, klep, is used for both.

[Waspie]

Hat off to you Jakko, you have certainly gone that extra mile with this build. The research, the craftsmanship to get where you are is incredible. (As well as being great to watch it progress).

[Guest]

Thanks If I’m honest, I think this is probably medium-grade scratchbuilding. Nearly all of it is flat plates and strip without difficult shapes, intricate bits or very fine parts — as opposed to the sort of work people like scottie3158 or Scratchbuilder habitually do, and which I don’t see myself pulling off

The next bit here was the side benches in the troop compartment. Early boats had open, slatted benches here, which Gecko provides for all three positions (there is to be a bench in the middle too). Later, the side benches were replaced by enclosed ones which were filled with buoyant material. (Some photos show boats that have such a bench in the middle too, or only the central bench like that, with slatted ones along the sides.) In 1:35 scale, all of these are about 5 mm high and 6.5 mm wide.

An enclosed bench is easy enough if you use Gecko’s floor: just cut two strips of plastic card, set one vertically on the floor where the bench is, and glue the other on the top in a Γ shape — this because you can’t see the outer side, so you don’t need to bother fitting it, except maybe a little bit for support at the front and back.

However, my floor curves like the real one, and cutting a plastic strip to follow that curve is rather tricky. Thinking about this problem, I hit on the idea of square tube, but as I mentioned, the bench is wider than it’s tall, so that doesn’t work either. And then I happened across 6.4 by 3.2 mm rectangular tube After buying a pack and cutting a section to length for the bench, I curved it to follow the floor (just pulling it over the edge of the workbench, plus a little pushing and pulling with my fingers). Next, I cut two strips from plastic card, 0.75 mm and 1 mm thick and about 6 mm wide.

To actually fit the bench, I glued one strip to the floor, making sure its visible edge was in the right location. Then the other one on top of it, followed by the tube to get a nice, square upper side, again taking care to line up the visible side.

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You can still see the lamination here, but that’s OK, some filler will take care of that:

[ATTACH]490890[/ATTACH]

That just needs to be sanded smooth once it’s dry.

[scottie3158]

Jakko,
Maybe so but I don't undertake a complete refit lol.

[Allen Dewire]

I have been following this from the cheap seats Jakko. Too warm to sit in your upstairs and watch for this old guy......

What I really enjoyed the most, is you bought this kit with a fantastic and historical idea for it....But, let's look at the facts here......

You buy a kit, open the box, check the parts, take a good look at some references, break out the ruler, start measuring the dimensions, realize the kit is a total dud in that area, close the box after cutting the hull off the sprue and then scratch the rest of the build, using the boxtop pic and your references, as the kit parts are all wrong!!!...Respect Jakko, and you are doing one heck of a job on this Sir!!!...

And I thought I was Mad!!!...

Prost
Allen

[Guest]

Maybe so but I don't undertake a complete refit lol.

Imagine what would happen if we got together to work on a model …

You buy a kit, open the box, check the parts, take a good look at some references, break out the ruler, start measuring the dimensions, realize the kit is a total dud in that area, close the box after cutting the hull off the sprue and then scratch the rest of the build

To be fair, I have the box open next to me and regularly look at various parts to check stuff. But in general, I use it mainly for storing the hull when I’m not actively working on it, as well as the figures that will go on it and all the parts that are going to end up in my spares box at the end

Respect Jakko, and you are doing one heck of a job on this Sir!!!...

Thanks

And I thought I was Mad!!!...

I will refer you to the title below my avatar

[Allen Dewire]

You're Right, we are having so much fun in this wonderful hobby!!!........Aren't we???...

[Guest]

That’s what I keep telling myself, anyway …

[stillp]

Jakko, I hate to tell you but 1/35 does not mean you use one thirty-fifth of the kit! :smiling5:
Pete

[Guest]

I was wondering why I wasn’t building 1:1 …

[Jim R]

We always used to say that the late Simon T bought a kit, threw most of it away and then scratch built a great model. You seem to be following in his footsteps. It does make for an interesting thread though

[Guest]

I couldn’t hope to stand in his shadow