Revell's forthcoming
1/400 scale
Queen Mary 2
by
Ted Taylor
|
Queen Mary 2 |
HyperScale is proudly supported by Squadron
The
background notes below are an extract from
http://www.worldshipny.com/qm2photoessay.htm,
where many detailed photos can be found
"ALSTOM Marine won the order to
build Cunard Line's QUEEN MARY 2, the largest ocean liner so far
conceived and the order was signed on November 6, 2000.
The shipyard, Chantiers
l'Atlantique at St. Nazaire, France built the NORMANDIE as well as the
FRANCE. Approximately 3,000 craftsmen will spend about 8 million working
hours on this project and overall some 20,000 persons will be either
directly or indirectly involved with the construction of this great
ship. Over 300,000 pieces of steel comprising 94 steel blocks, some over
600 tons each, will be joined together to create a liner that will
measure over 150,000 gross tons.
She will be 1,132 feet long and
135 feet wide, the largest ocean liner ever. Passenger capacity will be
2,620 with a crew of 1,200. The first quadruple screw liner to be built
since FRANCE in 1962,she will be powered by four Rolls-Royce "MerMaid"
podded propulsion systems, the largest and most powerful ever built, and
is expected to attain a speed of30knots. Delivery of QM2 is scheduled
for December 2003 and the maiden voyage for January12, 2004. Her keel
was laid on July 4, 2002 the 162nd anniversary of the sailing of
Cunard's first ship BRITANNIA.
The new liner's naming ceremony
will take place on Thursday, January 8, 2004 in Southampton, England,
when HM Queen Elizabeth II will name the new Cunard flagship."
This is Revell's forthcoming
1/400 scale Queen Mary 2 liner.
Please note that the kit was
assembled from a set of test shots with only basic instructions and no
decals or painting instructions.
Construction is remarkably easy
considering the number of parts, there are no fit problems to speak of.
I started with the hull which
was made up and painted using Revell’s new semi matt paints and then a
couple of coats of Johnson’s KLEAR were added for protection. Firstly
the white was sprayed on then masked along the top and the thin line
around the boot topping, next the red was added and masked ready for the
hull red bottom of the hull. Paper towel and some strips of tape now
covered the bottom while the black was sprayed. After an hour or so the
masking was removed and any touch ups attended to.
The upper decks and
superstructure were assembled as separate units as far as possible
before spraying all over white, the details were then hand painted. Hand
rails are supplied and many were added before painting began to save
scraping paint away from cement areas.
When all the paint had hardened
off the structures were added to the hull but top decks were left off
temporarily while all the balcony guards were added. These are in clear
plastic so I used Testors “clear parts cement” which dries absolutely
clear after which the rails were touched in with white.
The life boats and launches are
a big part of the exterior fittings each with their own davits and
supports, each boat was painted and made up but were not mounted until
the side handrails were added to the main deck just below them, I found
it easier this way.
Now all the top decks were
positioned and cemented including the bridge plus the funnel structure
and various housings up there. The railings up here are mainly clear
parts but I used ordinary cement to fix these but the sliding roof
covers over the pool fwd of the funnel can be left loose or attached
with a drop of clear glue,
Various small details were hand
painted in situ and there it was in all its glory all 34 inches of it.
The real ship took 14 months to
build but I made the model in 10 days, some 100 hours of enjoyment. With
a UK advertised price of £39.99 GBP that should please anyone.
Revell's 1/400 scale Queen Mary
2 is due for release in December but don’t
expect Santa to be able to squeeze this big box in your Christmas
stocking!
A little post script. The ship
is fitted with two Tyfon horns, one from the original 1936 Queen Mary
and one recreated from the original patern they are 6’7’’ long and can
be heard from 10 miles away
Click the thumbnails below to view larger
images:
Model, Images and Text Copyright ©
2004 by Ted Taylor
Page Created 03 November, 2004
Last Updated
07 November, 2004
Back to
HyperScale Main Page |