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Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 13th, 2018, 7:27 pm
by chrism
I started to share progress on this in my workbench thread, and it is intreaging people as to how it is built, so I will share it here too:


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The basic hull assembled quite easily and being a reasonably new moulded kit, it has gone together nicely:
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There is an optional set of etch to add a little more detail which I have obtained:

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This is a kit which I am hoping will be worked in three main stages: the core hull, the bridge and accommodation block, and then the 22 blocks of containers. At this stage, from my pre-planning, I am planning that each block of containers will be separate projects in their own right, with the amount of masking involved to make it look authentic.

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 13th, 2018, 7:31 pm
by chrism
In reality, now (mid-January) I am quite well into the project now, and progress was shown as:


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And after a few more days, and a bit more painting and assembling I was ready for masking and getting the hull painted and moved on a little.


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Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 13th, 2018, 7:33 pm
by chrism
I have now got the hull painted and ready for propellers and other detail items, and then the itch to start the containers began, and was coupled with a variety of questions in my workbench thread,

This first photo shows pretty much all of them.

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They all have a very distinctive front and back moulded piece.
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This is one stack and represents 7 containers high by 17 wide across the vessel
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They are all differing sizes as you find in reality, to represent different types of normal shipping containers. ... Out of the 22 stacks made in total, there are only four that are made twice identically the same
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I have had to label the undersides, as they all slot onto the deck in a very specific order to fit with the bearers which in reality can be moved when a vessel is loaded
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A taster of the instructions ....
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Here they are just placed on the deck to give an idea ....
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You even build one stack to fit around the lifeboat chute - again as they are stacked in real life...
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painting wise .... I shall be occupied for some time .... and will tackle each block now as separate task, here is an idea of a suggested paint scheme as given on instruction book...

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Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 13th, 2018, 8:03 pm
by MarkyM607
Blimey, looks good though. Always makes me think they're going to tip over with all that weight up top. Obviously they're designed not to but it just looks that way!! :grin:

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 13th, 2018, 10:18 pm
by JohnRatzenberger
Well, bummer, not individual containers so you cannot express your inner dock cargo crane :) Do they at least have decals for all of them ? :)

It does look like a neat project. All kidding aside, the masking and painting -- not just neatness but variation, etc -- would drive me nuts.

BREAK. Our cargo/container story.

My town, Nags Head, is so named from the 17th/18th century when folks would tie a lantern around a horses neck and lead him/her back and forth along the dunes at night. The bobbing motion would lead passing ships to think another ship was anchored there and it was safe to do so also. Of course it wasn't and the breakers (both water and human) would make short work of the ship and cargo. We are known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic.

Fast forward to late 20th century and the "island" is a-buzz, a 40ft container has washed up on Hatteras Island and the race is on, no horses but lots of 4WD and beach buggies, sorta like a Mad Max movie.

Cracked it open to find ....

case after case of .....

Doritos :( What's the world coming to ?

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 13th, 2018, 11:38 pm
by general rocket
Nags Head, twinned with Cornwall?

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 14th, 2018, 1:29 am
by PropWash
That's going to be a very cool model as it is so unique. I've got to say though, that painting the containers would certainly try my patience. I'm curious as to the length and beam of the hull?

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 14th, 2018, 2:17 am
by JohnRatzenberger
general rocket wrote:Nags Head, twinned with Cornwall?
No, but I'm familiar with the Nags Head rock and part of our legend assumes we picked up our "vocation" from Cornish ancestors :)

PS, before anyone asks we're also not 'twinned' with numerous houses/pubs of the same name, nor the Airfix OO Country Inn :)

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 14th, 2018, 7:52 pm
by Tarkas
jRatz wrote:Fast forward to late 20th century and the "island" is a-buzz: a 40ft container has washed up on Hatteras Island and the race is on. No horses but lots of 4WD and beach buggies, sorta like a Mad Max movie.

Cracked it open to find ....

case after case of .....

Doritos :( What's the world coming to ?
Don't tell me: you were hoping for a modern-day version of Whisky Galore? :mrgreen:

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 15th, 2018, 7:50 am
by gnomemeansgnome
That's hilarious, John. Somewhere a bunch of internet trolls still living in their parents' basement are going hungry! :-D
The ship and its cargo are looking very fine.

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 17th, 2018, 5:14 am
by FAAMAN
What an amazing model, can't wait to see this finished :grin: :grin:

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: January 17th, 2018, 7:44 pm
by chrism
Thanks for the comments and interest everyone. It is going to be a slow slog of a build from here onward, in order to get each stack of containers nice and well representative of the real thing. I too am not in a race with the kit, and shall plod on and have it as a fill-in inbetween and alongside other builds. I will report back as and when.

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: March 1st, 2018, 8:27 pm
by chrism
This thread is more than due and update, as in real life, and as followers of my workbench already know, the kit is now finished....
So I will update this thread now, in due order:

By the end of January, I had in fact got a few of its decals added, and some base paint had been applied to all of the containers.

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Then it took a couple more weeks before any more progress happened, and then I started on the accommodation block

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Then in the last week, I got on and had a few days totally dedicated to this and ...

started painting the containers .... it was a long chore of a job....
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The accommodation block was progressing .....

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The container ship is getting there slowly.

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and painting the containers was turning into a royal pain in the rear...

The kit came with decals for some of the containers, (namely just Hapag Lloyd). But you can purchase an aftermarket sheet from White ensign that gives a few in many other shipping lines. However, I decided I would wait and see whether I wanted it...

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Once they were all added, and the containers were in place I gave them all a light wash, and the colours have subdued down a lot. I am intending to leave this pretty much as it is now.

For the record, I have not used the etch sheet, as most of it only added railings and stairs to the accommodation block, and most of that is actually hidden among the containers, so I am keeping the etch for another future cruise liner project

So, here is the final reveal of the container ship:

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Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: March 1st, 2018, 10:40 pm
by Dazzled
Very nice Chris. The containers might have been a chore but they look very effective 8-)

Re: Revell - Container Ship Columbo Express - 1/700

Posted: March 2nd, 2018, 3:38 am
by JohnRatzenberger
Looks good !