1/600 Belfast conversion to HMS Sheffield

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday All, my current build of an Airfix kit is the conversion of the Belfast kit into HMS Sheffield (C24). This ship was one of the first group of Town (Southampton) class cruisers, commissioning on 25th August 1937, was the last to be decommissioned and scrapped in 1967, and between those dates had quite an eventful career. She was one of the first ships to be equipped with radar, was one of the first to fire her guns in anger in WW2, hunted, shadowed and was fired upon by Bismarck, survived a 'friendly' torpedo bomber attack by Swordfish aircraft, was Burnett's flagship at the Barents Sea where she engaged the Hipper and sank the destroyer Eckoldt, and fought the Scharnhorst off North Cape to name a few highlights. I've chosen to model her as after her refit in 1941.

This conversion required two major modifications to the hull. It had to be shortened by 11mm and the molded bulges unique to Belfast had to be removed. I chose to do the shortening first, a fairly simple task. I simply removed a section from amidships and rejoined the two hull halves. Before I removed the bulges I decided to pack the insides of them with styrene strips to maintain reasonably thick hull sides, and I did this in three layers. The first layer was made up of thin strips cut from a 0.4mm thick styrene sheet. By laying them along the hull they also helped to reinforce the hull cut-and-join.

SHEFF50

Then I cut wider strips and ran them vertical.

SHEFF70

And then I repeated the first layer. In hindsight I think it would have been better to use thinner styrene, maybe 0.25mm thick, and taken more care to pack them better into the hull bulges. I ended up with void spaces between my packing and the original ship's side, which ultimately needed filler.

Here's the hull after I removed the bulges. Well, almost removed as you can see by the lines of filler. I removed the bulges by gouging, filing and sanding. I possibly could have taken more off but I didn't want to break through the original hull more than I already had, in case there were more void gaps.

SHEFF80

Then it was time to drill out the hull scuttles (port holes). The pattern of scuttles changed during her life so when I decided what pattern I was going to use I marked them out on masking tape, applied said tape to the hull and then drilled with a pin vise.

SHEFF100

My personal taste is to drill the scuttles partly though the hull, not all the way.

SHEFF110

After this it was the decks, but I'll leave that until the next post. So thank you for your interest. Regards, Jeff.

[ArnoldAmbrose]

       Gidday All, let's see how this new format works. One thing I'm having trouble with is inserting photos between blocks of text. The photos appear at the bottom of a post. No big deal, I can work around that.

       The first photo below (SHEFF180) shows the hull decks and extension of the foc'sle deck. Due to the molded-on deck houses and guide pieces on the Belfast kit decks that were very different to those I need for Sheffield I decided not to use them. Instead I made my own decks. For planked sections of deck I use Evergreen V-groove sheeting, and plain sheeting where planking is not required, in this case under B-turret deck. The difference is not very noticeable in the photo. On the main deck abaft the catapult you can see the deck houses drawn, which are very different to those of Belfast. So again I made my own. That section of deck is inverted in the photo, to show what I've done underneath. The grey decks are kit parts, not used. You can also see that I've increased the height of the turrets with thin styrene sheet and added thicker tubing to the turret rotating pins. This is due to my method of fitting large turrets (cruisers and battleships) to the hull, locked in but removable if required.

       The next photo (SHEFF210) shows the hull decks dry fitted, B-turret deck started and the next level of the aft superstructure made. Those square-section styrene lengths glued to the decks are guide pieces to fit the deck houses correctly later. I like to paint decks and deck houses separately before gluing them together, to cater for a nice sharp delineation between the two different colours.

       And I think this will do for now. I'll try to add the two photos. If they're not visible please let me know. Regards, Jeff.

 

[Sailorman]

All looks fine to me Jeff.  A very interesting build.  Keep the posts coming.

 

 

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday and thanks Sailorman. Your wish is my command, as they say. 🙂

       The next stage was the bridge structure, and for this I was able to use some of the kit parts, although a lot of scratch building was needed here too. As can be seen in the first photo (SHEFF240) the first level, which was B-turret deck was entirely scratch built. Most of the next level up was too, although I used a kit part here. The grey part to the left is an unmodified part from another kit, to illustrate what I did to the kit part. You can see that I removed some molded-on features, plugged some holes, narrowed it a bit and chopped off about 2mm from the rounded front. I still had to add the sides to this level. These two levels when combined form the hangars. This photo also shows the V-groove and plain styrene used for the foc'sle deck.

       The second photo (SHEFF380) shows more of the bridge superstructure. The hangar roof level has the next level added to it, plus some tubs for 20mm Oerlikons and pompom directors. And moving up (towards you in the photo) is a level with two sections that had a walk-way between them. This is incorrect for Sheffield but I didn't realize it at this point. Later I bridged the gap by adding 'sides' to this level. And at the very top is the compass platform/open bridge. This bit was also modified but after the photo was taken. Both of the top two levels had the rounded face removed. As you can see, I like to paint as I go. And I paint as I did 50 years ago, enamels troweled on with the hairy stick. I don't have an air brush.

       The third photo (SHEFF400) shows the bridge levels fitted together, the top level modified a bit and the rounded bridge face removed. That thin vertical strip down the front is to form the 'slightly' curved bridge face that the batch-1 ships had. The unpainted hangar rooves will later have quad 2lb pompom positions glued there later, hence the lack of paint.

       The fourth photo (SHEFF410) shows the slightly curved bridge face done. As usual, close-up photos show my rough workmanship.

       And the final photo for this post (SHEFF450) shows the hangar doors and bulkheads being done. I used Evergreen V-groove for the roller doors too. Some of those internal styrene bits are to make the hangar sides conform and match each other, they didn't all glue perpendicular to each other.

       I think this will do for now. Thank you for your interest. Regards to all, Jeff.

[ArnoldAmbrose]

       Gidday All, the next job was the funnels. I had to raise the forward funnel but lower the other. I did the forward funnel first, using both sets by cutting one to give a long base and the other to give a long top. Staggering the cuts helped continuity, which helped keeping it straight when I rejoined the top and bottom. The first photo below (SHEFF480) shows the top and bottom segments before rejoining. It also shows the sides of the superstructure below the open bridge are packed, making it a solid structure without that walkway I mentioned earlier.

       The left-overs from the forward funnel were about 1mm short to do the aft funnel but instead of raiding spares I inserted a spacer when I rejoined the top and bottom. You can see the white spacer in the shorter aft funnel in the second photo (SHEFF500). The styrene rods glued into the funnels from below are to position the funnels when I glue them to the model. You can see the holes for the rods drilled into the model in the background. In the second photo you can also see the shelters for the 4-inch gun crews. These are open on their inboard face, not solid as the kit parts are, so I cut away the inboard faces of them. And the pompom mounting positions atop the hangars are being made also.

       And finally for tonight, the third photo (SHEFF540) shows the forward superstructure is attached, the funnels dry fitted and the 4-inch gun positions commenced. So that's it for tonight. Thank you for your interest. Stay safe, and regards to all, Jeff.

 

[ArnoldAmbrose]

       Gidday All, the 4-inch gun shields were OK, just needed sink holes in the sides filled and a bit of flash removed at the rear. I tizzied them up a little. The supplied guns however were in an ocean of flash, pretty much unusable, as you can see in the first photo below (SHEFF610). Nearly all of the kits I have are like that now. I made my own guns by tapering 0.5mm styrene rod and glued them together in pairs before adding them to the mountings. The white square is a height spacer (each mounting received one) to raise the paired guns to the correct level (the kit guns have this molded on, underneath) and the white rectangles are twin breech blocks. I removed the molded breeches for ease in cleaning off flash to the kit gun shields. The heavy tubes added to the 4-inch mountings are temporary, to give me something to hold while working on them.

       The second photo (SHEFF620) shows the complete light gun outfit of the time I'm modeling her, late 1941 - 1942. I scratch build my own quad 2lb pompoms and single 20mm Oerlikons. They're not as good as bought AM weapons I've seen but I prefer to make my own. That saves me some money too, which as a retiree I have to think about. Since the photo was taken I added cartridge collection bags to the back of the Oerlikons.

       The third photo (SHEFF660) shows the screws. One issue I have with Airfix screws (besides the flash) is that you rarely get a handed set of screws, kits come with left- or right-turning screws only. The HMS KGV and Repulse kits are exceptions to this but check the part numbering before fitting them. So I make my own screws usually now. I didn't know the correct diameter so I followed the supplied kit screws (6mm which equates to twelve feet) but my blades are wider, a little more authentic in that respect. Notice the angle of the blades of the fitted screws - they're opposite each other on opposite sides of the ship. All the screws should be 'outward-turning'. I've confirmed this from photos. The screws, like my other scratched items, are made from styrene strips and rods. I've designed and built simple jigs to make them.

       So that's it for now. Thank you for your interest. Stay safe and regards to all, Jeff.

 

Edited February 19 by Jeffrey-379002

[Heather Kavanagh]

I remember being utterly fascinated by model ships in museums when I was a kid. Part of me would like to tackle a large scale maritime build, but I have to be sensible and know what I’m good at!
 

For such a relatively small scale, you’re working miracles here. Very impressive.

[Sailorman]

Nice to see you back here Heather!

 

[Heather Kavanagh]

I’ve never really gone away. It’s just the old forum wasn’t conducive to regular posting in the way I was used to. Now the back office software is better, I will appear here much more often - though I am wary of duplicating stuff across forums.

[Ratch]

2 hours ago, Heather Kavanagh said:

I remember being utterly fascinated by model ships in museums when I was a kid. Part of me would like to tackle a large scale maritime build, but I have to be sensible and know what I’m good at!

Many modelling skills are transferable, Heather. Don't let different subjects put you off.

[Heather Kavanagh]

Just now, Ratch said:

Don't let different subjects put you off.

I'm not put off. I’m just aware I don’t want to be too distracted from my usual obsession. Getting involved with, say, a 1/350 scale KGV would stretch my resources quite a bit - not least the question of where it would live if I ever finished it! 🫣

[ArnoldAmbrose]

32 minutes ago, Heather Kavanagh said:

not least the question of where it would live if I ever finished it!

You could always place it on the flight deck of your 1/200 USS Enterprise or Nimitz. 😁 

       But seriously, I do understand staying with an obsession subject of extreme interest. And size is one of the reasons I've stayed with the 1/600 scale, despite the limited subjects available. The maximum length of WW2 subjects I'd have to consider would be 18 inches, maybe a touch longer if I whiffed a USS Montana battleship.

      Regards, Jeff.

[ArnoldAmbrose]

       Gidday All, here she is, the Shiny Sheff done! I scratch built the masts but they're fairly simple affairs. The fore tripod and topmast were constructed separately but the main tripod and topmast was a single assembly. I decided the void space between the funnels needed filling so I fitted the Walrus aircraft too. The plane is a kit item(s) but I replaced the launching trolley with one I scratch built, slightly narrower. I have no idea what the colour scheme of the Walrus was in late 1941 but she looked incomplete without some kind of disruptive pattern. Another modification I did was to the anchors. Most of the large cruisers initially had three anchors forward but the third, the sheet anchor, was often removed to save weight and the hawse pipe plated over. The Belfast kit is molded in this state but I'm depicting Sheffield in an earlier configuration, with three anchors. Getting another anchor fitted was no problem but it needed a matching hawse pipe and cable (but no cable winch). So I found an unused kit foc'sle I had (I've bought a number of these kits as a source of spare parts) and carefully sliced off the molded starboard hawse and cable, and glued it to this model.

       Anyway, here she is, HMS Sheffield, the Shiny Sheff in late 1941.

 

[Sailorman]

Looking good!

[Heather Kavanagh]

Very smart.
 

The Walrus camo is a subject in its own right, so I can understand not wishing to delve too deeply.

[Hurricane Boy]

Jeff

Beautiful job on this ship that had a stellar war time career. 

Now, do you have a couple of Iowa Class battleships as the basis for conversion to a Montana?

Cheers 

Tim. 

 

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday All, and thank you for your kind comments.

 

43 minutes ago, Hurricane Boy said:

Now, do you have a couple of Iowa Class battleships as the basis for conversion to a Montana?

Not in 1/600, my preferred scale, although I'd be interested in scratch building an Iowa class one day. As the Montanas were never built they'd be whiffs. I have in mind doing a 12-gun Nelson whiff one day, but that's probably one or two years off. I did a 2A1 whiff version of Nelson recently, that I named HMS Cochrane. The twelve-gun version would require a longer hull obviously, plus a few more alterations. Do you do whiff ships yourself?

Regards, Jeff

HMS Cochrane jm1

 

Edited February 25 by Jeffrey-379002

[Hurricane Boy]

Hello Jeff

Look at that Nelson conversion! very nice work Jeff.

No I don't do conversions myself, as a matter of fact, it has been a very long time since I completed a ship model. I am more a student of history when it comes to ships....but I am so inspired by your conversions and Patrick's scratch builds that I have taken a 1/700th scale Fletcher out of the stash to build straight our of the box. I will post something if I see it through. I have about twelve 1/700th scale ships in the stash. what I like about ships (and airplanes) when built in the same scale (any scale) is that you can compare them just like they were tied up to the dock in front of you. So my HMS Illustrious and USS Hornet allow me to compare to design approaches to the same treaty restrictions. I have a bad habit of dry building them as far as I can just to compare them.... I really should build them!

Cheers,

Tim 

[ArnoldAmbrose]

24 minutes ago, Hurricane Boy said:

I really should build them!

Gidday Tim, that's what they were made for. 🙂 

       Like you I also tend to stay with one scale for the same reason, comparison. I like the 1/600 scale also because it's what I started with, 1/700 is a bit too small and fiddly for me, although I've built some. I've got a few more in the stash, mainly to use them as 3D 'plans' for scratch builds. I intend to stay mainly with the 1/600 scale. If I include two 1/570 ships (to me they're compatible with Airfix ships) then HMS Sheffield is number 50.

       Any particular Fletcher? I scratch built one (USS Mullany) last year in 1/600. She was my second scratch built ship, the first being a generic long-foc'sle Flower class corvette. Not being Airfix kits I don't know if I can post them on the forum, but I think they compliment the Airfix range, and again I can compare the Fletcher class with RN destroyers. Lusty and USS Hornet would be a good comparison too.

       Thanks again for your feedback.       Regards, Jeff.

[DoubleD]

Well done Jeff - very impressive👏

[Sailorman]

18 hours ago, Jeffrey-379002 said:

Gidday Tim, that's what they were made for. 🙂 

       Like you I also tend to stay with one scale for the same reason, comparison. I like the 1/600 scale also because it's what I started with, 1/700 is a bit too small and fiddly for me, although I've built some. I've got a few more in the stash, mainly to use them as 3D 'plans' for scratch builds. I intend to stay mainly with the 1/600 scale. If I include two 1/570 ships (to me they're compatible with Airfix ships) then HMS Sheffield is number 50.

       Any particular Fletcher? I scratch built one (USS Mullany) last year in 1/600. She was my second scratch built ship, the first being a generic long-foc'sle Flower class corvette. Not being Airfix kits I don't know if I can post them on the forum, but I think they compliment the Airfix range, and again I can compare the Fletcher class with RN destroyers. Lusty and USS Hornet would be a good comparison too.

       Thanks again for your feedback.       Regards, Jeff.

To an extent it is possible to post pictures of kits by other manufacturers on this site but one must remember it is an "Airfix" website not a general model making site.  Hence it should not be used to "advertise" other manufacturers! 

[ArnoldAmbrose]

5 hours ago, Sailorman said:

one must remember it is an "Airfix" website not a general model making site.  Hence it should not be used to "advertise" other manufacturers! 

       Gidday, and thanks. I looked at the guidelines earlier today and that's what I understood the situation to be. The majority of my models are Airfix. I restarted the hobby about 25 years ago, and where I left off, with Airfix ship kits. I've stayed with them for a number of reasons, one of them being the scale - 1/600. Any non-Airfix ships I build are likely to be almost total scratch builds of ships Airfix don't do, and it's to compliment/match those of Airfix. So I'm unlikely to be promoting other brands because I rarely do them. 🙂

Regards, Jeff.

[Sailorman]

Hi Jeff you are a kindred spirit!   I too build to a scale of 1:600 and though I have all the Airfix 1:600 ships, I've only built half of them.  I am mostly interested in liners.  Unfortunately, the Airfix range is rather limited so I too am into scratch building.  My "fleet" numbers around 50 ships some 26 of them being liners.  Most are scratchbuilt.  I tend to post one or two pictures on this site of each scratchbuild as I complete it.  This doesn't promote any other manufacturer so it should be fine.