28mm U Boat

 28mm U Boat (s) U201

                                                                           U201 - table ready

This was a reasonably priced 28mm scale 3d print from Highland Prints.

https://www.highlands3dprints.com/shop/p/u-boat we (my gaming buddy and I) actually ended up buying each other one of these each for Christmas.

The U boat is huge… 1 metre long. The print provides a great starting point from which you can add as much detail as you wish. I decided to model my boat on U 201 (The Snowman Captain Adalbert Schnee - Knights Cross. I really liked the idea of the Snowmen on the tower and a camouflaged boat.

Below: A great Christmas table centre piece...LOL. 

These are the bare "starter" models from Christmas Day. 

They are huge. 

We wanted the boats to be the centre piece of our war-game table but still remain playable and be able to store/transport. So this is when the real work started.

Tonnage flag were printed. Wood veneer was added along the inside (apparently to stop hands sticking to metal in icy weather on the actual).

Below: pre painted the rivets (nail decoration) are added to the tower. You can also see the maintenance doors (below the rail on right) and on the nose (far left) that were added. It also shows the air intake pipe (made from green stuff).

You can see crew figures in my previous posts.

Here is a list of modifications I made to mine:

1.      Magnets were added to: the deck to secure the tower; the A.A. and deck gun and periscopes – so that they would be easily stored and would not break during play.

2.      I glued the boat into 2 sections – it arrives in 5 parts plus tower (for storage).

3.      Tiny nail decoration circles (small 1 mm circles – approx. 100 off) were used to simulate the rivets on the tower. These were positioned and glued in place individually.

4.      Both periscopes were extended (using wooden dowels) to a better height (I wanted to display the tonnage flags on it.).

5.      Gun barrels were drill out. A deck gun cap/seal was added (rope and gun cap / cover). A sight was also added using green stuff and wire.

6.      The two air intake pipes on the rear tower basket (made from plastic and green stuff)

7.      The entire deck was re-surfaced with cardboard (printed to a more feasible scale – the original drainage rectangles were about 2mm too large). So I designed a pattern and then printed it out on cardboard…. then cut all the small water drainage rectangles out. Then stuck it down. We just thought a 28mm figures foot would have dropped through the original printed deck. Plasticard was just too thick and we tried wood veneer but it just broke up.

      Periscopes / guns are painted German Grey as these were slightly darker that the ships light grey.  Beloew is a good picture of the Snowmen (with Knights Cross) LOL based on the actual boat pictures. I printed out “tonnage” flags and a German Flag (magnetically attached the flag to the cradle), printed out 2 snowmen (at the right scale) and the Coat of Arms of Remscheid for the tower.

  I made the sail/tower side  navigation lights from green stuff, the thin hand railings (from wire), compass (from tube),  tower deck was lined with veneer (like the original), telescopic radio antenna and its storage box and ring (made of wire and green stuff, veneer), lifebelts (are green stuff), I used plastic 1mm square box piping to go around the base of the tower were it meets the main deck. This was just to add detail.

9.      Small maintenance squares cut from cardboard and were also added to the tower (at the nose and tail).

10  Below; The tower seat/standing on the rails was cut from wooden sticks. You can also see the small square  maintenance hatch on below flag on the left.  You can also see the rivets (nail decorations). 

11 

12Side railings were designed on Tinkercad. Then positioned again with small 1mm magnets to reduce breakage.  These were tricky as I had to make them 2.0mm thk to get them off the printer bed without breaking them…they are a bit rough (but I thought I'll keep them on - with magnets - so that i can use or not use).

13Paint – the original Light Grey  (Ral7001 deckfarbe hellgrau) paint was used and the darker grey strip (RAL7024 dunkelgrau. I actually spray primed - then brush painted two coats and one airbrush coat of the light grey. Then air brushed the dark grey. The RAL 7001 is very good paint but very thin.

Below: The Deck Gun - painted in a German grey as these were replaceable items (like periscopes etc.).

Deck (I wanted to be able to see the structure through the new deck).

Below: new card pattern on card ready to be cut out.

Deck after one coat. Actual U boat decks were wooden, with rubberised black paint.

Then it was onto just weathering…more weathering…more weathering. I wanted the deck to look worn and the ship to look used but not too rusty just surface rust.

We are currently putting together the other Christmas u-boat  - a modified version. Something that looks more like a “Flying Fortress” to me LOL. The tower has been re designed with even more deck cradles (with AA guns everywhere)!

References books I found really useful...

So the next post will be either a dock for them or the other u boat...chicken or egg? LOL