A thing a week 2020, week 24

This week we're back to liftships.  For my third foray into these structures I wanted to go bigger, so I did.  This is loosely modeled after a Viking Knarr, a relatively simple utility ship.  As with the other two, I started with a Readi-Board deck textured with a pen.  To build the negative space in the middle, I cut the deck in half and glued a chunk of textured foam on the bottom.  A pair of wooden stirring sticks strengthened the outer walls.  And then it all went wrong.

Unlike the previous two, I didn't build the keel first.  Starting from the top I built one side down then built the other side down and glued the keel on the bottom.  Once the keel was on, I closed the front and realized my mistake.  The two sides aren't symmetrical.  I did what I could after the fact to minimize the issue but it's pretty clear if you look closely.  Granted, most of the attention in play will be on the deck but I know it's wrong and that matters.  It's also probably a couple inches too tall on its base which I may fix at some point and I really feel like I need like one more of similar size and dignity.

Like the last two, the hull was airbrushed first, two coats of homemade wash was applied, and a final drybrush brought the planking back out.  Also note that I figured out a clever way to not only have masts on the ship but also not prevent placement of minis.  These are affixed by tiny magnets (and unpainted in this shot).  A tiny piece of string is glued to the mast to make it maybe a little fancier.  I'll probably put magnets in the top of these too and experiment with a crow's nest attachment.  They'll be painted eventually.


Next up is a rebuilt of the two mast, single deck ship from last time.  I've attempted to resolve the issue with building the hull at a weird angle by printing out and carving out hull cross-sections.  I wanted to start with something more complicated and i'm glad I didn't.  I did have to work a lot less hard to build the hull which is sweet but the shaping isn't as good and freehanding with the Proxxon does not come naturally to me.  Hint:  lower temperature and slower cutting helped a lot.  I expect most future builds will be constructed this way. 

The original ships had some inelegant stuff at the back of the ship which I've hidden this time around with some fancy bending.  It almost sells as wood.   This one's painted in a rich mahogany and drybrushed with a leather brow. The coloring really doesn't come through, sadly.  Yes, I still need to paint my standin masts, too. 

2020 finished structure counter:  4/5