Revell's forthcoming 1/400 scale
Queen Mary 2

by Ted Taylor

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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

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