1/350 Z-25 with Flyhawk Superdetail **FINISHED**

[mrversatile]

Fresh from a coat of Modelmaster Flat Lacquer I am going to call this model done, now on to the Seascape to complete the project. I decided to weather the hull a bit more than I normally do but much of it will probably be covered by water. I am quite satisfied with the result. The final updates are coming soon. Thanks for watching.

[Leon]

Gil you did a fantastic job! Looking forward to seeing the seascape.

[deafpanzer]

WOW! STUNNING!!! Enough said...

[mrversatile]

Thanks gentlemen, I am relieved this is nearly done as I was beginning to get modeler's burnout.

[Deleted]

Certainly can see why, with all the tiny details involved Gil. Awesome job!

[mrversatile]

A quick update while creating the seascape. I sculpted the bulk of the swells with celluclay and after that dried I filled in voids, refined the shapes, and blended the waves with heavy acrylic gel medium. When this dries I am going to paint the water before re-coating it with medium gloss acrylic gel medium. This is a change from my usual method where I coat everything first before painting but I wanted to try to give the water more depth. Finally, I am going to try something different and embed cotton for the frothiness and crests as well as some spray. I have used only paint in the past with pretty good results so this is a gamble.

[Leon]

WOW....That looks fantastic Gil! I've used the heavy acrylic medium and gloss varnish before and that stuff is great.

[martslay]

Extremely looks!!

[adt70hk]

Gil

As I've said before stunning, stunning work!!  

Very well done.

Andrew

[deafpanzer]

WOW! I am following your work very closely... this is the only part I am nervous about when I work on my destroyer. You have been so helpful... mind if you can take pics of the products you used so I can have better idea of what you used.

[mrt51]

Wow!

Terry

[wbill76]

Very impressive Gil! Love the angle you've chosen with the bow lifting just a touch out of the waves. Gives it a dramatic sense of it charging ahead at full steam.

[mrversatile]

Thanks all.

Deafpanzer: I will be sure to include a picture of all the products I use for this at its conclusion.

Bill: Yes, I like real pictures of destroyers being heaved out of the water, and if you notice, I also rolled it toward the port side a few degrees with the heavier swells on the starboard side indicating a sort of "cause and effect."

Now we will see how my new technique works. Here is an example of a similar seascape I did but just painted. It is the USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., a Gearing FRAM Destroyer. As a side note: The JPK is part of the Battleship Massachusetts memorial and is berthed in the city in which I live.

[Deleted]

Super cool!

[mrversatile]

The progress continues with the painting of the seascape with Liquitex acrylics. This is just base coated and highlighted with a turquoise green where the swells will reflect the light. The first picture shows the base coat only after the sculpted waves were given a thin coat of medium acrylic gel medium. The other side is partially finished with embedded cotton for the "white water" effects. This was accomplished by pulling and shaping pieces of cotton, applying them with a gloss varnish (in this case I used Future Floor Polish), and then over coating with more Future.

As a side note, while cutting some excess cotton fibers with a spring loaded scissor, it sprung from my grasp and damaged the rear radar, knocked a Bofor gun barrel off, bent and distorted part of the railing, loosened the lifeboat davit, and broke a photoetch bulkhead off from the 02 level. I was able to repair it all but not without some difficulty.

[Leon]

WOW...That is looking fantastic Gil! Glad to hear you were able to repair the damage.

[Deleted]

Ouch!

[deafpanzer]

It scares me a lot when we deal with those tiny fragile parts. I am glad you were able to fix it. The water base is really looking man good! Can't wait to see more...

[mrversatile]

Thanks guys, everything is usually fixable, but it is way more difficult when it is already attached to the model. This project is nearly done and I ended up adding a half dozen Eduard prepainted photo etch figures for scale as well as a couple more life rafts. I just need to add a few more coats of Future, a descriptive label, and a few touchups.

[Leon]

Looking forward to seeing the finish Gil!

[jsteinman]

[wbill76]

Just chalk it up to a rogue wave Gil! Glad to hear you're able to get it all back together. Seeing it crewed up will be cool!

[mrversatile]

The Z-25 is totally finished!! I would conclude that my first attempt at this seascape technique was a success. I didn't know exactly how it would go but I like it better than my previous method. You be the judge! I hope you enjoyed the build and thanks for following. Now on to the next project and I think the scale will increase significantly.

[wouter]

Well, defo a great result there mate. I'll be trying that seascape technique this year as well if things go well...seems a bit scary though. You sure pulled it off!

Cheers

[martslay]

Excellently looks!!!

[wing_nut]

So nice I am strain to get a wee bit sea sick

[Leon]

Awesome finish Gil! The seascape looks great. I'll also be giving your seascape technique a try sometime.

[mrversatile]

Thanks everyone, and Wouter, it is really easy, just takes some time to get it right. The only solution is to jump right in and try it. I predict the next attempt will be easier. Oh, I almost forgot, Below is a picture of the materials used on the seascape I promised Deafpanzer. I am sorry about its orientation. I tried everything to get it to post correctly but was obviously unsuccessful, but you get the idea.

[Deleted]

Wow! That is rough Seas! AWESOME!!

[dupes]

You sure know your ships, Mr. Lowe. That thing is excellent!