Artist's "How To" on Hand Crafting 1/1200 Scale Models

by Mr. John Youngerman

My 1:1200-scale ship models are, with very few exceptions, hand crafted of balsa wood.  I also use artists’ Bristol Board for decks, card stock, Evergreen and Technical Details plastic rods, tubes and strips, sheet plastic of various thicknesses, and brass rod/wire.  My aim is to produce a unique model to the very highest standards of accuracy in terms of dimensions and features, and to also craft a ship model that reproduces the essential grace and power of the modern warship.  Many collectors of ships in this scale have referred to my models as “works of art”, especially as there is only one example of a ship at a particular time ever made.  An example is HMS Furious, where I have made her as originally completed, and also as later reconstructed as an aircraft carrier.  Similarly, HMS Renown, the battlecruiser, has been built as she appeared in 1917 and also as she appeared, much changed, in 1944.  And, with the huge numbers of warships to choose from, it is unlikely that I will ever repeat a particular model.  

All of my models are painted as accurately as possible in terms of the paint colors and schemes for that ship at a particular time period, using many different reference sources and Snyder and Short color chips where possible.  For the most part, I seal the finished model with Testors Glosscoat, followed by application of Model Master or Colourcoats enamels.   The painted model is then finished with a coat of Testors Dullcoat or Flat Finish to eliminate gloss.  Once in a while, I may use Model Master acrylic paints, especially for certain otherwise difficult-to-find colors.  Paint schemes are normally spray painted using my air brush where possible, with decks and details painted by brush.  Ships boats are individually crafted because cast boats that meet high standards are almost never available on a commercial basis.

I try in several areas to improve upon what is possible in many mass-produced models. These areas include: masts, where I go to great lengths to use correct or at least reasonable and proportionate diameters of brass wire which cannot be duplicated in most molded ship models; guns, where I use brass wire of varying diameters for the various sizes of gun up through 8 inch guns and, in the case of the larger guns such as for battleships, use turned down toothpicks  (a rather long, tedious job); and deck features, where I try to represent the more important features such as capstans, bollards, and hatches, but not to load the decks such that they look “overdone” with tiny, meaningless excrescences.  Where needed to improve the look of a model, I may also use photo-etched railing, catapults, cage masts, and radars, as available.  These features can often significantly improve the “look and feel” of the model.

Collectors used to the heft and weight of commercial metal model ships will be surprised at how light my models are.  They are, however, quite strong and capable of withstanding most handling, except perhaps for “little fingers”, which are to be discouraged anywhere in this hobby.