Here are the pics I promised for last night. Monday night, I added her main battery (ie, her turrets) and her deck guns:
I couldn't wait anymore, and I needed to get them installed before adding any of the railings. Plus, I was worried that the tiny, tiny deck guns would get lost, as I moved things around my bench and between the bench and the painting station.
This shot mimics the photo that is my guide for this build:
and here's the photo, as a refresher:
I don't know if this is correct, about the action in the photo, but it looks to me like she's preparing for gunnery exercises. Turrets A and B are locked on, 90 degrees to port, turret C looks like it's just completing locking on, or maybe it is, and turret D is traversing to port. For my build, the catapult atop turret C will be empty, as if the scout was already launched, and the catapult on her fantail will depict the act of launching the last scout, to head to a spotting position.
I started working with the photo-etch last night, removing the railing for the starboard side of her bow. It's very fiddly, and I still haven't quite worked out how best to shape it or attach it. As far as shaping goes, I pressed the railing along the perimeter of the bow, which worked to a degree. But when I get to the rails around the platforms on her masts, I'll have to come up with a better method. For attaching, I haven't decided whether to use CA glue, two-part epoxy or white glue. White glue is probably the most forgiving, if I make a mistake. In any case, I welcome advice on this issue.
As always, thanks for looking, and criticisms and comments are welcome.