1/350 US Coast Guard Reliance class Cutter TLAR Models #723

[Rhino]

258 ml mold box for the lower hull. It is important to know how much RTV to mix. I figure the lower hull takes up about 60 ml of volume.
The rudders go in here too. Milliliters and grams are directly related. Weighing the Masters will tell me how much resin to be ready to mix and pour for each mold.

7 1/8 inch mold box fits in the rack for the pressure pot! YAY!!
The main hull's mold box will be slightly wider and a shade longer to insure proper mold wall thickness, even using a more ridged RTV.
But now I know for sure this project, in fact, can be molded and cast with existing equipment.

I'm sure I'm boring the dogsnot out of everyone, but this was a BIG deal today!


I don't want interested parties to think I have forgotten the "Man Scale" 1/700 scale Reliance class WMEC. She's still building.
WMEC=We Must Eat Chicken. A coast guard joke about the choices from the galley on a long patrol.

Thanks again for looking in!

 

[Rhino]

Life raft canister racks, early and late ships boats and 1/350 Cape Island crab boat, Frazier crane and covered 26-foot motor whale boat, by request.

Round modern Mk.38 25mm Chain gun platform, Saturday morning modeling fuel and deck lockers, flag bags, tall and short Nav. radar mounts for the masthead platform, mushroom intake trunks with exhaust stacks. I saved $11.00 by making stacks out of brass tube over buying 1/72 PBY exhaust pipes.

Upper works mold may lay out something like this. It is unwise to crowd a complex mold full of dinky parts.

Contemporary USCG 210' Cutters seem to have forest of dome antennas (SATCOM GPS Navigation) about the superstructure. There should be plenty! My goal is to produce a 1/350 scale kit of the Reliance class that allows building of any of the 16 ships in the class from 1964 to 2023.

The capability to reproduce almost every detail in 1/350 exists. The question is, where is the stopping place? Those that know me well know that I am not good at "Drawing the Line". Boat cradles and the locker under them may well be that place to stop. I might need the hydraulic pumps and cylinders that operate the old-school boat davit frames as well.

In the old days here, in 1/700 scale, there were "limits of scale". Not mastering details too minute to make a decent casting.
NSM with this model kit. Limits must be self imposed.
Wish me luck!

In 1964, the men of USCGC Active convinced some of the naval personnel at Little Creek VA. that their ship was nuclear powered, since she had no smoke stack.

Thanks again for looking in again and again!

 

[moon puppy]

The waffles casted great!

 

[Rhino]

Really!? Funny 'Pup sees only the friggin' waffles?! 500 hours in these Masters since July? You are killin' me Smalls!

 

[Rhino]

I spent hours measuring and Mastering the hydraulic small boat racks. Hydraulic scissor arms raise and lower to accommodate different sized USCG small craft. Grids let the heat out from the machinery and allow water to drain in a heavy sea. I followed the line drawing faithfully. (?!?)

These never existed. That's what I get for working on this cutter without any liquor!!

No photo of a Reliance class cutter ever shows such a thing. It was just my enthusiasm running away with me.

Basic fixed racks bolted to the deck hold OTH RHI and Motor Surf Boats on the boat deck. Nothing more. 2 sets of these will go in the "Deck stuff" mold. "It could be worse. It could be raining."

 

[moon puppy]

These never existed. That's what I get for working on this cutter without any liquor!!

Well you have them now for boats that did have these things.

 

[Rhino]

The Big Cutter's lower hull and 1/350 Cranes and shithouses will be molded in MoldMax 20. The bigger ship part needs a more robust mold. All the other molds, 1/350 "Upper Works stuff", Carl's 1/350 covered 25-foot Motor whaleboats, 1/350 Frazier crane, Cape Island lobster boat, 1/700 Martin P5M-1 Marlin flying boat and Convair F2Y Sea Dart and other 1/350 Reliance class WMEC necessities.

Never mind about the tall cardboard-looking mold in the upper left. That's a SECRET!!
Only TLAR Models 1/350 US Coast Guard Reliance class Cutter customers will find out what THAT is!

In the pressure pot! 24 hours from now, we'll find out how MoldMax 20 performs.
I used a bag of Navy Beans to keep the pressure relief from hissing! They seem fitting, No?!
Thanks again for continuing to look in!

 

[moon puppy]

Such a tease...

 

[Rhino]

Such a tease...

MoldMax 20 makes a stout mold! That is good for the lower hull mold, but extracting the Masters from the "Cranes and Potties" cup mold was strenuous! I may have to remake those in MoldMax 10. 7 new molds were cleared this morning with only moderate damage to the more delicate Masters. Everything can be repaired.
Stayed tuned for more exciting Coast Guard Cutter Casting News!

 

[Rhino]

Here goes nuthin'!

Remember where the lower hull started? The end result was certainly worth the effort! Not too shabby for a Guy that doesn't do bottoms!

"Upper works Stuff", Carl Musselman's covered 26-foot Motor whaleboat, and a 1/350 Cape Islander fishing boat. Relief cuts in the Cape Island boat mold alleviated the air bubble in the bow.

Finished 1/700 Waterline Martin P5M-1 Marlin kit castings. The 1/700 F2Y Sea Dart for the 1950's "Strike From The Sea" waterline kit I haven't finished yet cast well.

5 sets of 3D printed 1/350 screws came from Shapeways for the Big Cutter. 1/700 MH-65C Dolphin and HH-52A Sea Guard Helicopters came for the 1/700 scale Reliance WMEC kit too.

It was a fine weekend for molding and casting here! The TLAR Laboratory was HUMMIN"! (It's also our kitchen)

 

[moon puppy]

 

[Rhino]

Carl sent me a cool, lighted magnifying visor for early Christmas. It arrived with his 1/700 USS Simon Lake sub tender Master.
Paul is no longer the only "Bond villian" on this 'site.

Using the cool visor, 2 1/700 life raft canisters became fire extinguishers on the smoke stack assembly. I could easily see to attach and bend stretched sprue for the hoses. This subassembly is ready for RTV.

Likewise, metal bits are attached to the superstructure. This section is close to molding.

See here the Main Hull small parts mold. Life raft racks, lockers, boat cradles, a zodiac I don't need and powered main deck ventilators. I made 5 of these so a guy can drop one and still have enough for the more contemporary version of the Reliance class WMEC.
The vents are capped with DKM depth charge caps to give them some relief. The visor really helped trimming and installing these tiny P/E parts! Thanks Carl!
Why is this important? This is the stopping point for small details for the Big Cutter kit. The Line is drawn!

Larger parts, like gun pedestals, platforms and guns, will wrap up pretty quick, leaving just the flight deck assembly to detail.
2 of 3 remaining major Big Cutter kit components are making rapid headway.
I feel very successful today!

I'll do the old USS Simon Lake proud when I get to Her!
Back Aft Models last issued a kit in 2011. It was a DOOZY!!
The Back Aft/TLAR Models 1/700 joint project should cause quite a stir among ship model guys.

Thanks again for looking in again, and again, and again!!

 

[moon puppy]

Whoa! That's a lot of hardware.

 

[Piet]

I like that you do your own resin casting, you don't see that often on the sites.

I make castings off everything I can cast,
Will never have to glue 1/35 cans, 200l barrels, ammo boxes, etc. for the rest of my life

Silicone is very expensive here in the Netherlands ,but a good
investment

I have shopping bags full, most of them I don't know what they are,
but recently I leave a cast part in the mold so I know what it is.

Keep it flowing

 

[Rhino]

Thanks Piet!
Marking RTV molds isn't easy. My Sweetie bought me Sharpie oil-based markers to try out, but they just blur it you touch them. I put marked freezer baggies in .50 caliber ammo boxes to keep groups of molds for each project. I imagine my molds are MUCH smaller than the excellent, grand, subjects you create. We all have different gifts/curses, do we not?
I do not you men to think I am an expert or made a deal with the Devil to get perfect molds every time.
I'm not and I didn't.

I usually pressurize for 12 hours, demold the Masters and cast the new mold 12 hours later.
At 0500 today, the Big Cutter small parts mold was suspiciously soft & doughy. When I returned home from work, it had poofed. (RTV molding technical term)

Something reacted with the RTV to create gas bubbles and poofing.
Old silicone material?
Activator contaminated by moisture?
Too much mold release?
Nothing here is over 6 months old.
DA SCHITZT DEM HUND IM FEUERSZEUG!!

Job 1 is to try to rescue the Masters and clean them up. Teensie bits of pink, gooey (another technical term) RTV stuck to every detail and crevice.
Job 2: Clean and reset the mold box and Masters for the next attempt.
Job 3: Cut the Havarti-cheese lookin' mold into smaller pieces, so grandkids can harmlessly throw them at one another.
Job 4: Let myself off my petard, because not everything always goes how I expect it will.

"Do Over!" Not so unfamiliar in this business, such as it is these days.
Thanks again for looking in!

 

[moon puppy]

Environmental issue I'd say.

 

[Greg Kimsey]

I am glad you know what yer doin' 'cause I sure don't! Sorry about the stinking bubbles!

 

[Piet]

We all have different gifts/curses, do we not?

We sure do !

 

[jknaus]

Even with good visors I have no idea at all how you can work on something so small. Just mind boggling. Tme to move up to 1/35 so I can see what you're doing lol
Really impressive, but just so tiny.
James

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Are you sure you didn't mix some yeast in instead of part 2?