Airfix 1/600 SS France

Joined
Mar 1, 2020
Messages
256
Points
238

Location
South Carolina, USA
After enjoying building the Airfix 1/600 RMS Queen Elizabeth I purchased as many 1/600 Liners as I could find. The rarest one is the Airfix SS France which I finally found on ebay at a high but reasonable price. She is my current project but I have to be careful since messing her up and trying to replace her would not be easy.

So far she is in prime with the propeller shafts and stabilizers installed. I really would have preferred to leave them until near the end of the build but they needed a lot of filler which would have messed up the paint job. I'll just have to watch out for them as they are very delicate. Once I get the hull painted and mounted on the stand they will be much less vulnerable to damage.

The holes for the shaft supports were just a mess and the hull had quite a bit of warp to it so I filled the support holes first from the inside with styreen sheet and then putty on the outside. I also glued in a brace of styrene sheet to help hold the two halves of the warped hull together. She needs a little more filler before paint.
1.jpg2.jpg3.jpg4 Primed.jpg5.jpg6 Propeller Shafts.jpg
 
Haven't seen this kit for a while, looking forward to your build.
Jimsky, if you think 1:600 is small, look up Joseph Lavender's 1:1500 scratch-builds, with even more detail if you can believe that.
 
I've been dealing with my Mom's health issues so I haven't had time to work on my 1/600 France. Today I took a little break and did some painting. Not so sure about the color I chose but the ship had green decks. This color is a gray that has a green tint. I really don't want to paint it a dark green so this is what's going to be on there. 25 Paint.jpg
 
The SS France was really one of the most beautiful Ocean liners ever built.
Maybe also because she was the longest one ever built...... beautiful lines
 
I permanently glued down the decks and bridge36.jpg36A.jpg37.jpg38.jpg39.jpg. I also added window decals and some photo etch doors. It took some filing but it went together pretty good for such an old and warped model. I think I'm going to add some styrene posts on one of the stern decks as it looks a little empty. It also still needs some seams closed up. Then on to the railings and other details.
 
Hi Chris,
I found your building log of this liner. Very nice work with all the tiny parts. The painting looks beautyfull.
Like my Robert E. Lee: a lot of windows, railing and stairs. In the beginning you think: where do I start. But at the and you get the WOW.
Regards, Peter
 
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