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1/350 Trumpeter USS Hornet CV-8 Doolittle Raid


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Welcome to week 18 on the Trumpeter 1/350 USS Hornet project. This week was spent detailing the gun directors and the island. On the gun directors I first removed the molded “blocks” that represented the door and hatch. These were replaced with photo etch pieces. I then used the photo etch for the antenna and mount.

Switching over to the island I removed the molded porthole covers form the bridge and replaced them with the photo etch parts. The photo etch parts have the slots in them where the kit ones did not have them. I then started on the starboard side of the island. After reviewing the photos in the reference book I found that the three “portholes” near the top of the island are actually vents. I filled the portholes with putty then used a small styrene tube and cut an angle on them and installed them over the previously filled holes. There are also a couple of ducts and a storage bin mounted to the railing. After digging through my stash of extra photo etch parts I found a few items to scratch build a platform that has a cabinet attached to it. Not sure what its purpose is but I detailed it to match the reference photos.

I will next be detailing the port side of the island. I have already added the hose reels and some small rail sections. It takes al lot of time comparing the model island to the reference photos. Each time I find another small detail that is missing on the kit version. I still have the masts and rigging to do as well.

See more photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Week 19 – Work was slowed a little this week as I had the laptop I use for making decals started to die and needed to be replaced. I spent a couple of evenings changing over to a new laptop. Turning back to working on the project I added some more details to the island. There are smaller search lights around the island which have been included with the photo etch set. One of the kit search lights on the aft side of the island mounts to the deck. However after review of the photos it is actually mounted on a raised platform. I scratch built the platform and mounted the search light. I also used the photo etch SK antenna rather than the plain looking kit version.

Next I started on the masts. I started by removing the molded ladders and added photo etch details. The aft mast spars were detailed and set aside. The main mast needed a lot more work. Comparing the kit mast and the photo etch parts there were still a lot of details missing. To start with I added the hatch and ladder to go between the two platforms. Next was the top platform in the photos has a small extension on the forward side as well as mounts for rigging. I was able to locate some photo etch pieces in my spares bin to replicate these. Next were two large spot lights. The photo etch set had the face covers. I used a sprue tree the same diameter and then some spare photo etch parts to make the mounts for them. I then started painting the island and main mast.

Speaking of paint, after some research I found out the paint scheme is three colors not two as the kit instructions show. The island is haze grey with ocean grey camouflage. Below the flight deck the hull is ocean grey and navy blue camo. I chose to use the Scale Colors paint for this scheme. I am using SC004 5-H Haze Grey, SC003 5-O Ocean Grey, and SC002 5-N Navy Blue. This is the first time I am using this brand of paint.

I need to finish some details on the aft mast then finish assembling the island to start the tedious task of doing all the rigging.

See more photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Here we are at the 20th Week of the USS Hornet “Doolittle Raid” project! I am still working on island details. As I was researching all the rigging I found more details that I needed to add to the island. I found out that there are three whip antennas on the island. Two of them are on the funnel cap with rails and one on the aft end of the island. I scratch built these using photo etch and styrene rod for the base. I began attaching the first layer of rigging for the forward mast. I am using EZ-Line black fine for the rigging. With the lines attached on the one end I let the CA glue cure for a while before starting to attach the other end.

While the rigging was curing I started looking at the quad 1.1” anti-aircraft guns that sit on the flight deck. I assembled the kit version just to see how they look. They are very plain looking and seem too small for the scale. I then built up the photo etch version. They looked better but being photo etch they seemed too thin. I then decided to use a mix of the kit parts, Photo etch parts, and Aber 1/350 1.1” brass barrels for them. Using the “body” of the guns from the kit I installed the brass barrels and then installed the photo etch mount, seats, gun sights, and ammunition feed boxes. 

I moved back to the rigging and started with the aft mast. One of the things I needed to add was the mount for the flag.  I used some more photo etch scraps to make the mount. I am continuing with the rigging. It looks like there are going to be three sections, the forward main mast, the aft mast, and then the rigging that goes between the masts. All told there are roughly 20 individual lines that need to be added and routed. Once the rigging is finished I will do some touch up with the base color then add the camouflage color and finally the crew that will be placed on the island.

 

See more photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Here we are at week 21 of the USS Hornet “Doolittle Raid” project. This week I was able to complete the island. All 34 lines of the rigging have been mounted. Once the rigging was completed I then painted the camouflage on the island using the photo references in the Hornet book. The pattern that the kit shows and what were actually on the ship differs slightly. The lines have a slight shift when they reach the catwalk half way up the island on the actual ship. I then finished the 4 quad AA guns used on the flight deck. I was looking over the flight deck assembly and decided to detail the hull next. This is being done as the catwalks that go around the hull for the flight deck need to be installed and painted before placing the flight deck on. Since all the catwalks are photo etch I filled all the mounting holes for the kit catwalks with putty. I then started at the stern I added the edge railing and worked on the second deck. This has three hose reels on it. The kit has cutouts for the kit reels. I filled these in with putty and then assembled the photo etch versions of the reels. I used black 6lbs test braided fishing line for the hoses. I used three layers of line on each reel. Need to research the rails and stairs on the stern then onto the catwalks.

See all the photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Week 22 – Starting at the stern I added more details. I added some crew members, the fantail launch, and the mooring rope winch on the starboard side. I used some 50lbs test braided fishing line for the mooring rope and coiled it around the winch spool. The kit does not provide an actual spot to hold the launch so I scratch built the cradle that holds the launch. I then started making the eight 5” dual-purpose guns. The kit gun mounts had a couple of issues. First the kit parts lacked detail and the gun barrels were more like 10” barrels. I cut off the barrels and replaced them with Aber brass barrels. I then added the photo etch details to provide a more accurate look.

Moving on I am now working on the catwalks. Since I am doing an “At Sea” display I used the full hull lower section as a placement guide. With the photo etch catwalk set from White Ensign there are sections that are replaced. The kit shields that go around the .50 caliber guns are too short and thick. These are cut off and replaced with photo etch versions. I started on the aft starboard side. I am working may way along the starboard side first. For the midship catwalk I added some empty reels that sit just under the catwalk. There are also small platforms that require railings added as well. Once the catwalks are done I will detail the bow and then begin detailing the underside of the flight deck.

See all the photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Week 23 has arrived – Continuing with the hull catwalks and railings. The catwalks are a mix of kit and photo etch. The kit sections are where the guns mount. As I mentioned before I removed the kit shields and added the photo etch versions. While on the subject of the guns, I looked over the .50 cal guns. The photo etch version has the thin base. So like all the other guns I went with a mix of kit and photo etch. I used the base of the kit and added just the gun to the base. The photo etch guns also have a few pieces. The shield and the shoulder mounts are separate parts.  Once the sights are positioned I added the shield and mounts, the base was then notched to mount the gun.

I then moved on to the catwalks. Another difference from the kit to the photo etch is the catwalks have different levels when they go under the edge of the flight deck. Once I finished the catwalks on the starboard side I added the railings to the smaller levels and the safety rails for the open hangar doors. One thing to note, on the port side I did the railings first. With as delicate as the photo etch catwalks are, I have had to go back and repair some areas. I kept accisently bumping them or touching them incorrectly while working on the lower rails. When I went toe the port side I did the railing first and this works out much better. I need to add the railing to the catwalks then onto building all the .50 cals (20 just at the catwalk level) and then get the base coat of Ocean Gray on the hull. I am estimating the ship to be completed in about 6 more weeks then I need to start working on the “at sea” base and order the display case once I figure out the size I will need.

See all the photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Absolutely amazing work.   One of the first books I ever read was Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo.   I've been fascinated by the Doolittle Raid ever since.   I have this very kit in the stash and plan to use your work as a reference.   Can't wait to see more.   :salute:

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Here we are at week 24 – This week I have all the catwalks installed and all the railings installed. Before I get into the details of the hull I need to make a correction from last week. The AA guns are not .50 cal. The reference book, as well as some online sources, states they used .50 cal for AA on the Hornet. As it turns out the US Navy found the .50 cal was not very effective. So in February before the Hornet sailed out of the shipyard they removed the .50 cal AA guns and replaced them with Oerlikon 20 mm cannons. The photo etch gun I previously built was the ones that came with the detail set and they are the 20mm.

Getting back to the build, while installing the railing on the bow I noticed there is a flag pole on the bow where the Union Jack flag is typically flown. Using some photo etch scraps I made the flag pole. Next I then painted the hull with the Ocean Gray base coat of paint. I then started detailing the bow. In the reference photos they had coils of mooring lines on the bow. I wanted to replicate these. I tried a few different things like regular string and wire. Neither of these looked like coils of rope. I then found a spool of 50lbs braided fishing line that I previously used as aircraft tie down rope for the 1/48 B-25B “Ruptured Duck” Doolittle raider aircraft I built previously. So I tried to coil it up but it was difficult keeping the coil. I then came up with a jig and made the mooring rope coils.

You can see the detailed process I used in my Tips and Tricks section at: https://davidsscalemodels.com/tips-and-tricks/how-to-make-mooring-ropes/

With the mooring ropes installed I then added the anchor chains. There are two launches on each side of the ship. These are the boats used as life boats and captains launch. The kit has the basics for each one but the photo etch set has details like rudders, rails, flooring, and life preservers. Once the boats were painted I looked at the placement. The kit does not provide the cradle used to store the boats on deck. I took some square stock styrene and scratch built the cradles. I then cleaned up the boat cranes on each side and installed them. I am working on the other twenty three 20mm AA guns and then need to add crew members to the bow.

See all the photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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The 25th week covers assembling and installing all the anti-aircraft and 5” guns. The Oerlikon 20 mm cannons took some time to assemble. There are only 4 photo etch parts as well as the kit part modified for the mount. Assembling all 28 of them took three evenings but they are all built, painted and mounted. I then painted the 5” guns and mounted them.

I then added the few remaining ladders for the catwalks. For the one ladder that goes up to the catwalk on the port side I added one of the 3-D printed crew members that are positioned walking up a ladder. Right now I am painting many of the crew that will be positioned around the hull and bow. Once the crew has been placed the hull will be complete and the flight deck assembly can be detailed and installed.

See all the photos and details from the start in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Week 26 on the USS Hornet – I have hit the 6 month mark! First, I want to say I hope everyone had a great holiday. With the holiday season here I have a few days off from my regular job and was able to get a lot of work on the Hornet. To start with I added crew members to the bow and hull. There are a few standing near doorways as well. Once they were placed I moved onto the flight deck catwalks. For the bow end I added the catwalks and rails. They were then painted and mounted to the flight deck. For the aft section there are also four 20mm AA guns as well. I cut off the gun sections from the kit catwalk and trimmed them to fit the photo etch catwalks. I am waiting to add the AA guns until later to avoid accidently damaging them.

The next part is new for me. I purchased the Nautilus Models wood flight deck. The directions strongly call out to stain/paint the deck prior to installing. They recommend using the White Ensign US11 Flight Deck Stain 21 which is made by ColourCoats. There are sections for the island and other flight deck details that need to be cut out to fit on the deck. The wooden deck is self-adhesive so you just need to use a knife to cut through the backing paper to remove them. The decking was them painted. I next painted the two lines that were used to guide the B-25’s down the deck. The wider line was for the port main gear and the thinner line was for the nose gear. Another interesting marking that was unique was they actually glued sheets of non-skid to the deck at the 450ft mark for the main wheels. The purpose at the time was to stage the B-25 wheels on the spots. This was to line up each aircraft on the exact same starting point for the launch. I replicated these by painting two black squares in the correct locations Once it was dry I did a little weathering with dark gray pastel chalk around the elevators and the landing area.

A hole was drilled into the flight deck where the island goes so that the wires for the island lighting could be routed. The island was then mounted to the flight deck. I routed the wires through the hangar and then to the bottom of the hull. I then checked to make sure all the lighting works. I then needed to adjust the intensity of the lights. They are way too bright. Since the island uses 5mm LED’s and the hangar deck is only PICO size I needed to adjust the intensity for each section. To accomplish this I added a 650 ohm resistor for the power in. This made the hangar deck lighting correct but the island was still too bright. A 470 ohm resistor was added to the wiring going to the island. This corrected the intensity level to a much more realistic level.

Finally, for this week I used a box to raise the model. This was done to allow me to paint the 5-N Navy Blue camouflage on the bottom of the hull. Using a reference photo I duplicated the scheme. I am currently working on adding the rest of the details to the flight deck like the pilot house and the deck crane. There is light at the end of the tunnel! I am hoping to start working on the B-25’s then all the crew members for the flight deck in the next week.

 

You can see the numerous photos and details from the start of the huge project in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

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  • 2 weeks later...

Week 28 - This week has been spent building the B-25B’s. I made an assembly line so I could open up the fuselages for the cockpits. Once all the aircraft fuselages were built I placed them on the flight deck just to see placement. I placed them as they were staged when they pulled out of San Francisco Bay and then how they were staged for the launching just to give you an idea on how much space they had to work with to get perform this mission. I will be staging them as they were on deck as the ship left San Francisco Bay on April 1, 1942.

I then made all the landing gear using the PE struts and the kit wheels which had their struts removed. These were then installed on all the aircraft. Next on the assembly line was adding all the landing gear doors. The undersides of all the aircraft were then painted with Neutral Gray with aluminum for landing gear and wheel hubs. Getting ready to paint the Green Drab on the topside then add all the decals. Then I just need to add the propellers and the canopies. The B-25B’s should all be completed this coming week. I am also going to measure out and start preparing the base for the display case.

You can see the numerous photos and details from the start of the huge project in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/

 

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Week 29 – One week closer to completing this project! The B-25B’s are now complete. I spent the early part of the week painting the aircraft, building the propellers and painting them, applying the decals and installing the canopy and nose. They are then set on a grid so I can place them on the ship in order. It was a little time consuming as I had to let the paint dry then the decals set. During these little breaks I started to layout the base. I needed to do this so I can get the exact measurements to order the display case. The case ended up being 33” long, 12” wide and 10” tall to accommodate the base and ship. Once the case sizing was established I contacted Grandpa’s Cabinets ( https://www.grandpascabinets.com/ ) Display Cases for Collectibles - Custom Display Cases and ordered the case. I then figured out the position of the ship and where the wakes will be. Since I am using sheet styrene for the base I decided to use some Milliput to for the wakes. Also during one of these breaks I packed up all the electronics in the hull and glued on the waterline base.

After installing the canopy and nose on the aircraft I then added the propellers and painted the tips. This now completes all sixteen B-25B’s of the Doolittle Raiders. I then grabbed the dish with all the 3-D printed crew and sorted them out (Navy enlisted, Navy Officers, USAAF pilots, and USAAF enlisted). I will be painting them and then placing them and the B-25’s on the flight deck. I will then build up the base.

You can see the numerous photos and details from the start of the huge project in my build log at https://davidsscalemodels.com/build-log/1-350-uss-hornet-cv-8-doolittle-raid/


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  • 4 months later...

Excellent work on this kit.  I just picked one up myself, and am planning on using the GMM Hornet set.

 

How did you paint the island, after all PE was installed?  Paintbrush?  I really can't see paint strokes, and I'd be afraid to mask off the island with all those details.

 

Again, Excellent job on this kit!

 

Rod.

 

 

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7 hours ago, Rod D said:

Excellent work on this kit.  I just picked one up myself, and am planning on using the GMM Hornet set.

 

How did you paint the island, after all PE was installed?  Paintbrush?  I really can't see paint strokes, and I'd be afraid to mask off the island with all those details.

 

Again, Excellent job on this kit!

 

Rod.

 

 

Thank you, As for the island, it was all brush painted by hand due to not only the PE but the island details itself. I used Scale Colors paints. I painted right out of the bottle. The paints are a little on the thin side so I painted on 3 thin coats. The paint does a great job of leveling itself out and leaves no brush marks.

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