atic: 1:35 Bronco XXIII with interior

[DrSchmidt]

No idea if they would be interested….

[DrSchmidt]

Back home I also continue the work on the XXIII. Installed the toilet. The XXIII had a modern one that could be used when the boat was submerged but that was dangerous to use as one had to sit right next to the rotating propeller axis. If your trousers got cought in the axis....well.

[DrSchmidt]

Progress on the machine room. I printed the stern bulkhead of the pressure hull together with the stern trim tanks. The fill level of those tanks could be rad out via level gauges, simple glass tubes. The trim tanks could be accessed vial manholes that were closed with hatches and brackets. I glued the bulkhead to the ceiling of the pressure hull where I already have installed the drive for the rudder and the feed through for the vent valve of the stern ballast tank. The test fit of the whole assembly to the lower machine room looks quite promising...

[DrSchmidt]

On with the creep motor for silent running. The motor was fabricated by Brown, Boveri & Cie, short BBC, a Swiss electro-technics company that provided quite some equipment for German U-Boats (neutral means you can make money of both sides). When you look at pictures of the control room of VIIc subs, you can see the actuator switches for the dive planes and rudder with the prominent BBC logo on them. The motor was small and low in power. On one side it was suspended with struts from the ceiling of the pressure hull and on the port side it was propped against the pressure hull side wall. The power was transmitted silently via a belt drive to the propeller axis. That thing I will have to fiddle into position somehow, too. Challengin...

[DrSchmidt]

After my two little side projects I resumed the build of by my 1:35 scale Type XXIII submarine with interior. I installed the belt drive for the creeper motor and then put the upper half of the pressure hull in place. Then followed the final parts of the drive train, the thrust bearing and the stuffing box, the axial seal. Some additional parts like the clutch lever and it’s support post, the rpm meter for the belt drive and the lube oil piping for the various bearings are also in place.

[He Who Shall Not Be Named]

Your staining and dry-brushing work is of note, sir. Makes things in there, 'pop'.

David

[RCSubGuy]

Absolutely gorgeous! A real labor of love!

[DrSchmidt]

Without weathering everything would just be flat white and would have no depth. I try to give everything a used look without overdoing things and make the boat look like it had been sunk twice. The boats were kept clean and operational by their crew. A well operating boat was their life endurance. The level of wear often seen in other builds shows high weathering skills but lacks realism in my opinion.

[DrSchmidt]

Some progress on the upper front section of the machine room's pressure hull. The square box was a Diesel tank that fueled the main engine. Beside are the venting blower and the recirculation blower with all the respective hoses and valve drives for the snorkel, exhaust and induction masts. The pressure bottles contained the boat's oxygen reserve. And of course cables, lots of cables...Despitete the base color of almost all parts being white, painting and weathering takes allot of time, because without it, everything would just look flat & boring.

[trout]

This will need to go in a museum - it is a work of art.

[RCSubGuy]

This will need to go in a museum - it is a work of art.

I second this notion!

And at the very least, an in-depth and well-produced video overview in order to share this piece of art with the world!

Bob

[DrSchmidt]

Bigger Update...the machine room is about 99% done. Getting the front part of the pressure hull in place was harder than expected and I'm not 100% happy with the result especially withe the kink in the cut line in the pressure hull roof. But in the end it will be O.K. and hidden by the outer hull of the plastic kit. After the pressure hull was complete, the rest went in quite easily: Diesel head valve, exhaust tube, vent lines, trim lines, and the corresponding valves and hand wheels only needed minor adjustments. The electric switch board was more work but went in quite well, too. Here only the big hand wheels of the main switches are still missing. Some additional small stuff, oxygen lines and the machine telegraph went in as well. First fit in the port hull halve looks promising,...

[rwtdiver]

Andreas,

How do you find the time to do this extremely impressive building? As I look at the photos and study the detail involved, I once again am impressed with the patience you must have to do this kind of work!

Rob
"Firemen can stand the heat."

[goshawk823]

Absolutely amazing. The larger view is incredible in the details you’ve added.

[SubDude]

The detail draws you in.