Interesting. my first reaction was a paint platform but that would not be out while at see. I have the same pic in anatomy of the ship there are some swing booms in that location and there is also a small hatch but there is nothing on the plans of that shape. It could be light casting a shadow so if the swing boom is closed you would have two shapes. I also consulted Dr Ballards discovery of the Bismarck nothing in there so I consulted my reference pics. there are several picks that do not show this. so what ever it is is not part of the hull so is detachable. I then found a pick as she was being worked up that showed some form of cage in that location slung over the side of the hull at deck level.

You can see in this link the hatch but nothing else and no black paint
http://www.bismarck-clas...bismportaftsection.html

You can see the cage in this shot (bottom pic)
http://www.bismarck-clas...ery/gallbismcommis.html

in this link you can clearly see something is there but i don't think it is paint in one areal shot it is a lot darker than the black strips
http://www.bismarck-clas...ery/gallbismrhein2.html

In this link there is a pic of Prinz Eugen with a similar mark in a similar place
http://www.bismarck-clas...ery/gallbismrhein3.html

I have also seen the same mark on the sister ship Tirpitz.

so in conclusion... I haven't the faintest BUT fairly sure it is not paint so is a mistake on your plans and also fairly sure what ever it is is removable so from a model point of view you can ignore it.

Its a strange one, there is a modern German corvette that has exhausts just above the water line creating black smoke marks but theres nothing to say Bismarck had anything like this plus the marks have quite square edges on the Bismarck so I don't think smoke could have caused this. It could have been caused by something rubbing up against the ship?

Wow your steaming ahead with this. Question does the funnel come with the lift or is it excluded?

Nice first kit I have seen with this on.

Lovely work Ben, certainly enjoying following your progress with this one....

Regards

Alan

More work on the side hangars, they have had a skin of ply applied, this was primed and sanded back to give a smooth finish ready for the etch to be applied, some basic work done to the funnel, this was glued together, gaps filled and sanded. I added a cage to the top of the funnel using fuse wire. I also drilled holes into the exhaust pipes around the cap of the funnel as these came solid with the kit part. However i'm not too pleased with the outcome as some are off center. I have also made some progress on the hull.















As you can see from this photo there is an edge that runs around the whole ship, however the deck supplied with the kit comes to the very edge of the ship, i have tried sanding back the deck to produce an edge but this has not worked because i'm starting to lose the edge detail of the deck. So i have added plastic strip around the hull to give me the edge.







The instructions were unclear on how this edge should look so i rounded it off, but i think this was wrong and it should be flat along the deck so i have added a strip of wood which will be sanded back and the top filled to give me the flat surface.





The first coat of primer applied, I used the Humbrol 150ml primer at a cost of £5 a can, this can lasted for the one side of the hull! I needed to find an alternative which would be the Halfords 500ml primer.

Thanks Andy,

Theres so many little extras you see in photos and want to add them to the model to make it as realistic as possible, but where does it end? I hope I have re-created this edge to something of how it looked, you can see how this turned out when i get the photos up.

Yeah I have started to use cheaper primers, it was costing a fortune at £7 a can, I found one called simoniz for just over £3 a can, and it gives a good coat.

Ben

After some time away and other things happening I have had a chance to start work on the model again.

To address the step between the platforms and deck below the funnel, I used some strip wood glued in place and sanded down, so when painted it gives the impression of a continuous deck







The superstructure has also had its first coat of primer, from this i can see where work is needed, either sanding back of metal parts or filling. However I think the ship is starting to look good at this early stage, the paint has really brought out the detail in the etch parts.

looks great ben, will be looking forward to seeing a few more pictures. This log will be a good reference for me when i come to start mine once the hood is finished. That might be some time though.

Thanks for the comments