18 May 2011: Finished!

Well, as I am want to do, I put off doing most of my repairs until the two weeks before the Spring Regional! The wiring repairs turned out to be easier than I was afraid they would be, although I am still worried that some of my crappy solder joints won't hold up to the rigors of combat. The re-sheeting process also went pretty smoothly. I followed the same methods I detailed in a previous article, with one major exception: I used my airbrush to paint on the grey and red paint. This resulted in much lighter paint coverage, which I hope will help the hull retain its penetrability longer. However, it did require a little more prep time as I had to mask the different colors as I went.

Above: Here is the hull after masking for the red paint.

Below: The red paint has just been applied. I used Tamiya XF-7 Flat Red, and it looks pretty good!

Above: Here is the hull after the masking was removed. I was really happy with the sharp color separation I was able to achieve!

Below: It always amazes me how much of a difference the black waterline stripe makes to the ship's appearance.

In order to complete the work, I had to replace one of the turrets (lost at Hagerstown in '06). While I was at it, I also decided to re-paint the turret tops in a slightly more realistic flat black.  The rest of the superstructure could use some more cosmetic work, but that will have to wait for another refit as I was simply out of time for this one!

Above: Unfortunately, the spy rodents sent by the Allies didn't reckon on an encounter with my feline security system! ;)

Ready to go! See you on the lake!

Andy Rucker