Bismarck - Doing the Sea

[White_Wolf]

While the artstic team is working on creating the best possible design for the water, I spent a bit of time doing some calculations and preparing the base for the upcoming "water". More on the materials later.

The base is a box made of pine wood which was stained and also had two handles installed. Makes it a lot easier to move. When done, this will be pretty heavy, so handles are a must.

The whole thing on the inside was covered with Aluminium foil, the sort of stuff used for baking - see that little pieces to the side. That will prevent the Celluclay from sticking to the wooden horizontal sheet directly. Very important, as the Celluclay shrinks when drying, resulting in possible twisting / changing the alignment of the surfaces covered. Used that foil to write some ad-hoc calculations regarding the position of the waves creating by the ship moving at speed.

At the stern, there will be a rather turbulent wake, not too long because the base is already very long. The 240 is the length of the ship in meters, the circle indicates where one of the three propellers is located.

When the final design is out, work begins.

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Laurence, you have drawn out something that I see a lot with ship models. That is the weird side wakes. You never see those with ships in motion, even if they are running slow. Here are some good examples.

This on is definitely underway on a fairly smooth sea. Yes, there are some big ripples from the sides but they are straight and don't curve to the front. They also are angled between 15 and 30 degrees. Defenitely not 45 degrees which is what a lot of folks do. Also the wake to the rear is straight back and doesn't widen much until it is much further back.

Here is the Wisconsin on a rougher sea. The big ripples are there, but only have some white caps on them right next to the ship.

Here is one where the ship is running slow on a smooth sea. The ripples are there and less angled. They also move away from the ship. No crests though just big rolls and they definitely don't curve.

 

[moon puppy]

I get what you're saying Paul but I recall reading somewhere that the Iowa class bow design was a lot more slip stream than others meaning it would displace less wake.
Check out the Washington at sea.

 

[White_Wolf]

Gents,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I got mine from a range of sources, but this one below is a very well written and illustrated material.

SteelNavy.com

Former domain of a ship modeling site and an information center for boat enthusiasts.

www.steelnavy.com

Plus some photos of the real deal found on the net - Bismarck sailing and not at a high speed (lack of visible smoke) possibly in good weather (calm, flat sea)

Look at how wavy the water appears at the bow then moving towards the stern. Visible white crests too. Tricky bit is to ascertain where the fake, painted bow wake is, but the water is undulating regardless. This is probably the B doing 10-15 knots (my guess).

Tirpitz, as we all know, the sister ship - same size, same shape.

Long way to go with the water, and, given the base is not big enough to show a lot of water around the ship, all the waves will be short in length, frothy and rather straight. The design team is still working on it

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Gents,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I got mine from a range of sources, but this one below is a very well written and illustrated material.

SteelNavy.com

Former domain of a ship modeling site and an information center for boat enthusiasts.

www.steelnavy.com

Plus some photos of the real deal found on the net - Bismarck sailing and not at a high speed (lack of visible smoke) possibly in good weather (calm, flat sea)

Something to consider about that article, he was showing smaller ships that were moving at a higher speed. I would suggest using photos of large ships for reference as the wave patterns will look different. I also don't go with his drawing showing the weird wave patterns. Again the angles are all weird.

Here is one of the Alabama underway. Something I noticed when looking at this photo is how the water wavy along the waterline. They are not sharp waves though but big rollers, then there is the wide frothy area on each side behind the big bow wave. Behind the ship you can see the ripple waves, but they mostly disappear in the frothy area.

 

[centaur567]

What a beautiful job you did on the ship. I have use spackling for water. It doesn't shrink. Gary S. XLV MMXX

 

[Skinny_Mike]

 

[MrT]

Seems to me the kind of wake she will make depends a lot on how rough the seas are and her speed through the water. That leaves a "lot" of room for interpretation. Water is a lot like weathering it's never consistent or symmetrical. It does what it does. So carry on and don't sweat the details.

 

[White_Wolf]

Spot on Terry, very rough sea and very high speed - showing the Bismarck during his trials. This was the only ship that was referred to as "HE" because of the great respect the Germans had for Bismarck, the Otto von.
I just want to make sure planning goes into it, without getting lost in the details. Nothing is perfect in this world, so this diorama won't be either.

Laurence

 

[Iron Mike]

I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with, Laurence, it's always stellar.

 

[White_Wolf]

Well, thank you all for your thoughts and compliments - much appreciated.

Unfortunately, Bismarck is back in storage, safely in storage that is. We have to find a new option for our living arrangements, it's a long story and I won't go into it. Until we find a new place, I have to pack all the stuff and take it to the storage container we have been renting since relocating to Canberra. Hate this situation, but, as soon as I find a solution and all is back to normal, work will resume.

On the bright side, gives us time to plan ahead, which isn't a bad thing.

Thank you all,

Laurence

 

[Iron Mike]

Best wishes, Laurence.

 

[Duke Maddog]

Sending up prayers for you Lawrence.

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Man, the problems with moving. Hope it gets worked out soon Laurence!

 

[White_Wolf]

Thank you gents, much appreciated.

Bit of an update, if I may call it that ..... still in limbo land - can't seem to find a suitable place to rent that ticks the amount I want to spend and the space and configuration on offer. One last attempt early next week to see a place advertised, really close to where we are now.
In the meantime, I have asked for approval to move back to Sydney. Same job, same team. I have been working from home since March anyway, so it was understood and approved. At the end of the day, all they want is to get the job done, and I can do that wherever home is.
Next week will decide our new place. Somehow I don't want to move back, but, looking at it with a critical eye, it would tick a lot of boxes.
Modeling has been put on hold and I hope it won't be long before I start that Bismarck water thing - it's been 3 years already .....

Take care folks, stay safe.

Laurence

 

[Iron Mike]

Best wishes, Laurence. I believe things have a way of sorting themselves out.

 

[Heavens Eagle]

Take care Laurence! I know the moving thing and how big a pain it is. We will be patiently waiting for your return.

 

[White_Wolf]

Thank you Mike and Paul - it's really frustrating - I have not had a chance to do modeling as much as I would have liked to. But, life sometimes points us in a different direction. Work comes first, then the hobby we all love.

Take care folks,

Laurence

 

[Brokeneagle]

Nice progress....just caught up with this. Would it be possible to get an overall photo of the ship as it is now so we can see the size and the finish in the room?

Ian

 

[Sherman 18]

Will be watching