Trumpeter TRU03719 Plastic Model kit

Product Information

Titanic was a beautiful ship. Her lines were clean and graceful, and she sat on the sea with genuine stature. I think Trumpeter has done a very reasonable job in reflecting all of that in their one-piece hull. That is not to say, however, that this project won’t be a labor of Love. I am building this for my daughter. She has been fascinated by the Titanic tragedy from a very young age. At age six she could tell you all about Captain Smith going down with the ship and nurse Jessop and her surviving multiple sinkings, etc. She made me get up in the wee hours on the exact date/time of the 100 th anniversary of her sinking to ring a bell in commemoration. We’ve even toured Margaret Brown’s home in Denver (nobody called her “Molly” in her lifetime). She is more interested in the human stories than the ship itself but will very much appreciate this representation when it is finally completed. Some additional hull details need to be attended to, but I can’t put off drilling out the portholes forever…

This view of the Olympic prior to launch gives a good sense of what is needed. As Roger pointed out earlier – The kit is very far from reality. The Olympic class ships do, however, look very different in their under-counter plating than what Roger showed on his model. Specifically, these ships have “centerline plates” (Robert Read’s term) that provide strength across the theoretical midline and anchor the additional outboard strakes. These are solid plates with no midline seams. The marked portholes are now filled and new portholes will be drilled nearby to more accurately reflect their actual position. I agree with your view on build log formatting... I don't think Facebook and other similar forums lend themselves to laying out a log. The MSW type of environment is best since everything is laid out in one place and others can easily follow the progression and improve on my approach (and mistakes). It allows everyone to see a cohesive narrative and get context on the WHAT, WHY, HOW questions that inform my build. In addition to the kit portholes, I needed to add a few that were missing or needed to be relocated. These locations were marked with a green Sharpie pen and some Tamiya tape laid down to help with alignment. The wiskers is drill swarf from the port holes, I've used Porthole Jiggs from Nigels Modeling Benc to drill pilot holes on all the ones that are to be drilled.

Trumpeter | No. 03719 | 1:200

I was careful to use the existing kit molded plates to blend into the new styrene pieces as I expanded the plating. After crafting on one side, I’d trace the plate using Tamiya tape to replicate the same piece on the other side. Using a larger bit, I drilled out the portholes to accommodate 1.5mm fiber optic filament. Much improved. Upon seeing the end of the film that first time, sat through all the credits and when the lights went up, saw some amazing stuff, people were visibly moved from all ages, young and old, one older lady and younger lady were holding each other as the older lady audibly and visibly cried ... Mother and Daughter I assumed? ... upon walking to exit, lots of people were murmuring, that was excellent and other such good praises ... and I couldn't agree more.

I first considered modifying the kit rudder to improve the shape and add the missing details. I assembled the necessary tools and marked a pencil line to refine the shape and went to work.This service does not deliver on a Saturday or Sunday. If you would like Saturday delivery please call us on 01782 409310.