Banzai!

While I was off staggering around the city streets looking for work the Gods at UPS were doing their thing, shipping a long cardboard box from Florida to Georgia.   Returning to the office I spied it leaning against the wall, resting on an encased bow or stern and thought “crap, I hope it survived shipping.”

Due to a busy week she sat on my kitchen floor, still boxed for two friggin’ days and looong nights.  Like a kid at Christmas I stared at the box each night and wondered how mangled the superstructure would be.  The guy I bought the ship from is Frank down in Region 3 of the MWCI.  He’s well known for making great superstructure and has even been hired to build super for other captains.  After seeing his Russian boat last fall I was really looking forward to see what the Mogami looks like in person…and afraid of what the UPS Gods had done to her.

The Mogami unpacked!

Finally!  Earlier tonight I opened the box while Frank was on the phone and he talked me around the ship.  Nice!  She looks great and I owe a big thanks to Rick and David at Battler’s Connection for helping with the packing and shipping.  They reall know how to pack a ship!  The Mogami arrived with two minor breaks in the superstructure, both on very fragile parts.  Both can be fixed in ten minutes once I find what I did with my glue and vices.

The camera is crapping out on me so I was barely able to get one pic.  I’ll get the camera situation sorted out and take some decent pics soon.

If a Journey of a Thousand Miles…

…begins with the first step then after yesterday I’m one step less than a thousand miles into my journey through this hobby.

My aquatic odyssey began on the internet last fall when I discovered r/c model warships and after a bit of research and visiting a battle in Savannah, GA, I thought I had a good handle of what was involved in building a ship…and then I bought a kit.  YIKES!  A menagerie of parts from Battler’s Connection arrived a couple of weeks ago and after unpacking the box I looked at the contents and could only think “oh crap, what have I gotten myself into”?

An instant Von Der Tann kit...just add labour.

And so the odds and ends sat there on a makeshift workbench in my house until early yesterday afternoon when a local battler, John Pardus, took pity on me and invited me over for an informal build session at his house.  It took a pot of very hearty coffee to sober up from Saturday night’s libations but with a little go-juice and ample nudging I finally loaded the ship in my car and headed over to John’s joint.

A Virgin Hull for a Virgin Captain....

Arriving at John’s we set out to shape the sub-deck to the hull and after some coaching by John I was soon sanding it to fit.  Damn, this ain’t hard (when you have a patient coach willing to let you use his tools and guide you through the process)!

Within a few hours we fitted the sub-deck, took a trip to the local hobby shop for supplies, marked the hull, taped out half the windows, and grilled burgers.  (Ok, so John gets sole credit for the burgers–but I ate half!).

John showing me how to remove broad areas of the sub-deck using a killer Ryobi sander.

I’ve got to give credit to John for his help.  I couldn’t let anyone build this ship for me.  While I’m not a woodworker I’ve screwed up, I mean, “worked on” most everything I’ve owned from cars to motorcycles to homes and one of the things that appealed to me about this hobby was the do-it-yourself nature to it.  Indeed, I decided against purchasing a used ship in order to get started and wanted to build my first ship.  (More on that shortly).

Halfway through our informal build session and the sub-deck was ready to install.

However, as I mentioned above, after unpacking the VDT kit I started second guessing my abilities.  But with John’s help and guidance I found that I CAN do this myself, even if I’m going to need a bit of help (and head smacking) along the way.  What’s clear now is that I’m going to have a VERY large debt to play forward with future newb’s to the hobby.  Oh well, that’s just the price of admission and I’m fine with repaying that debt!

The Imperial Japanese Navy's Mogami...BANZAI!

Now, what was I saying about wanting to build my first ship?  Well, that’s still the plan BUT due to some good fortune (and finding a misplaced tax refund check) I’ll soon be adding another ship to the Boat Werks, an IJN Mogami!  But not just any Mogami…no, this ship comes straight from Frank’s fleet, the MWCI Region 3 guru of kick ass superstructure!  I had the chance to meet Frank at the battle I attended last fall and saw first hand his workmanship.  I am so damn stoked to have a chance to battle this ship that I’m typing the word “stoked”, quite unusual for a middle aged moron like me.  Heh.

The latest communique on the ship’s location arrived earlier today and stated “…your ship went out via UPS today. The tracking #’s are…(censored by the War Department)“

Hmm, instead of Herr Bauers maybe Banzai Bauers would be a better moniker….

Loose Lips….

A Future Running Mate For The Von Der Tann?

…sink ships, or so I’ve been told.  And with that in mind I won’t say too much now other than there are rumours and speculation of a pending pact with Imperial Japanese forces that would result in a certain ship arriving at the Boat Werks within weeks.  Until the rumours can be confirmed and a pact signed I can’t say more.

In other news….

Got a call yesterday from a local battler in the metro Atlanta area who has invited me over for an improptu build session at his house this Sunday.  It will allow me to get started on the Von Der Tann (VDT) and help further my education in the hobby.   With a little luck a larger group of the ATL guys will soon get together for a build session so there’s a good chance I’ll be getting some major progresson the VDT.  Hot damn!

Now THAT Looks Fun!

While chasing a rabbit down a hole on the thing we call the inter-nets I ran across a true toy for boys of all ages; Model Warship Combat.  The idea is to spend hard earned money and burn precious free time building a radio controlled (r/c) model warship armed with BB gun cannons and then fight your boat against others in hopes that you’ll sink a few other ships before yours winds up on the bottom of a local lake.  Sound interesting?  Well, it did to me.

After far too many hours spent on the ‘net researching the hobby I decided to visit a battle held by a local club.  A weekend trip to the Savannah, GA, area left me hooked.  I just HAD to build and battle a ship.

Fortunately there was an active online community of hobbyist eager to share their advice and so with a little knowledge and brash arrogance I ordered a kit from Battler’s Connection.  My first ship is a WWI era Dreadnaught, the SMS Von Der Tann (VDT).  This ship was recommended as a good beginner ship for battling but the company did give me fair warning that “intermediate” building skills were required.  For some reason I thought I was imminently qualified for an “intermediate” build considering I have absolutely no modeling, r/c, nor woodworking skills.  Why, yes, I am often predisposed to impulsive acts.  Why do you ask?

Battle!

Repair!

Damn the torpedos….

Fire!

I placed my order in late January ’09 and within a few weeks a large package arrived at my office.  Unpacking the box at home I was immediately overwhelmed with what I’d gotten myself into.  How the HELL am I going to build this damn thing?  Oh well, while I have no experience in any of the required skills I do possess one vital attribute; I have ample experience in getting myself in over my head and swimming out of troubled waters.  Looks like this job is gonna require ALL of my skills in that area!

I can’t promise frequent updates as my work schedule is quite hectic this time of year.  However, I will be sure to document my build as it progresses an keep a log here.  My hope is to provide a record for myself of what I screw up on this build and, hopefully, provide future recruits to the hobby with some help and hints along the way.

- Herr Bauers