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Category: R/C Submarine Kits, Hulls, or Accessories
Total Immersions 1/72 Nautilus kit
Submitted by
Bob Martin
See pictures below
Delivery:
First off, delivery of my kit took almost five months from the time that I ordered it. I understand from several other people that have ordered this kit that a wait of this length is not uncommon.
The model arrived in good condition and it was extremely well packaged. The hull was sandwiched in dense foam blocks with ample spacing between it and the walls of the box to ensure that no damage occured.
The kit contents:
Examination of the kit revealed excellent detail and crisp castings. Unfortunately they were riddled with small air bubbles, though that problem should be easily addressed with minor filling and sanding.
All of the pieces are cast resin. The hull itself is well over 1/4" thick in most places. Many of the small detail pieces would have been better suited to casting in white metal, as I found that many of my parts needed to be completely scrapped and rebuilt from scratch.
Additionally, the wheelhouse, wheelhouse interior wall pieces, and upper deck piece were badly warped and required heating in the oven to soften them enough to straighten back into shape.
Fit and finish:
The kit goes together marginally well. Filling and sanding is necessary for a very good finish.
My biggest disappointment is the kit's separate deck piece. It was cast too thick to fit over the upper hull, and was bady warped and distorted. I finally had to resort to cutting off the entire top portion of the hull to allow the deck to be fit into place. I also needed to take about 3/16" off the nose of the deck in order for it to fit in the proper position. I'd have been far happier if the deck was molded in a single piece with the hull.
Lee also supplies a rusting kit with the model that, when used as per the directions, coats the model in a generous layer of authentic rust. The finish is a bit heavy for my tastes, but other modeller's looking for that "antiqued" look for their model will be very happy.
Kit instructions:
The supplied instructions are well written, but could definitely do with far more illustrations of the individual steps. Fortunately the kit is composed of a comparitively small number of pieces and figuring out where each goes is a fairly simple matter.
Overall impression:
I am somewhat disappointed in the fit and finish of the model. If more time had been taken in casting the model or if better materials had been used, I'm sure that most of the problems would be nullified.
That said, I'm very impressed with the design of the kit and the amount of detail rendered in it.
For an experienced modeller, this may be a good kit to go with, but beginner modellers will have difficulty getting the parts to properly mate up and make for a really good display piece.
Any specific questions can be directed to me at bob@rc-sub.com. I also have a section in my website dedicated to this project at www.rc-sub.com/tinautilus.html.
Pictures:
Partially assembled kit w/ scratchbuilt salon interior
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Badly warped wheelhouse and upper decking
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Shaved forward decking piece
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