Check this out!! Incredible!! Had to make sure you guys saw this thing.

http://www.network54.com/Forum/110741/message/1181767057/Herr+Hauptman%27s+Champagne.

Thanks for the post/link. That IS awesome!

Without a doubt a very impressive and inspirational diorama. The underwater part is superb.
The 'shark hunt' is leaving me slightly puzzled though. The guy on the bow, seems to be sitting rather relaxed, and at a odd angle, considering the shark just below him... as for shooting at a shark with pistols, I'm not surprised that the guys on the stern seem anxious for the diver to get out of the water, notwithstanding the bottle he is holding up...
The mix of figures and outfits seems just a bit to much though. One with a life vest, one with a Pith helmet, one with a jumper, ......

Very good, but more consistency with the figures would have made it even better.

Cheers
Henk

I really like the concept but some of the underwater details stuck out in my mind. The life rings that are tied to the sunken boat should be floating toward the surface, pieces of crates would be floating, not laying on the bottom, etc.

Don't get me wrong, I don't have the talent to attempt anything like this but some of the albiet minor details are off.

Thanks for the link.

Shaun

Ahhh, and as for the paint chipping, no seaman would get away with that...

What a great diorama! Thanks for posting the link. However, the whole shark thing seems a little odd for me as well.

None the less a fantastic diorama!

i would certainly have like this diorama more if that one (signed quite good Spanish diorama maker Domi) was not around for approximately 2 months.

Extraordinary.

Never seen anything like this before. What a great idea and what magnificent effort on building. And I really like to take a swim there!

Thanks for sharing this one.

This diorama is stunning and incredibly atmospheric, you can almost hear the seagulls and waves splashing, and against that hazey background this looks just like the Med, one of the finest dioramas ive ever seen. I simply love the atmosphere it creates. I also like the mix of figures, it adds some interest, and helps to tell as story.

However, some things do look a little bit off like the lack of any floating debris and those life rings. I think its impossible to create, and id love to see if there any methods of pulling this off-but there would be bubbles from the second diver and all the wash from the LWS. I think it would of looked a little better with some floating stuff, but hell I coudlnt even dream of pulling something off like this.

I chooseto look beyond the minor flaws, which I did notice myself, and see the artistry of this creation. Wow

Me too


Outstanding work and much better than I could do.

Ryally

One word...Amazing

A lot of work went into that and it shows, an inspirational diorma for sure!
Thanks for sharing,

James

Many superb individual elements here, all masterfully painted, but the whole is less than the sum of the parts.
I'm confused about the debris field, though. It appears to be streaming from the hole in the hull of the sunken boat, but there's little rhyme or reason to the stuff...wine cases next to large caliber artillery shells in open cases, a bicycle, helmets, and oter personal gear and sundry other things, which, taken as a whole, seem to be more than could have been accomodated by the boat.
There are parts of the sunken boat that look to be encrusted with banacles, suggesting it's been underwater a while, but the debris has not of this.
The positioning of most of the crew says they're all going for a swim if there's the slightest swell.

Al,
I am no nautical seaman (but I have been reading a lot of naval fiction lately), but I would guess the boat sank recently (during the war obviously) and the barnacles you are seeing on the boat are below the waterline (correct?) so those were there when it was afloat.

Also I thought the remark about the life-preserver was insightful but what were life-vests made of back then? Surely something underwater for months would become so waterlogged it would eventually sink especially at the depth (increased pressure and density of water).

I am curious as to the construction of the underwater part, it would appear to have a film on the glass to give the impression of milkiness, but I am guessing that Rhodes can open the top again to make changes or corrections if needed.

Cheers,
Jim

I guess I do not possess a calibrated eye for picking up on all the "flaws" others have pointed out. This diorama is simply amazing to me!

Simply fantastic ! The barnacles were there obviously before the boat sank (only on the lower sides), but I have the feeling its lying there for some time. All the floating debri is gone, and the wooden boxes filled up with thing sand will not float. I think only part of the laod left the ship anyway, much more ammo crates ,etc.. lying inside. An amazing dio and very well done !

Johan

Ditto,

such a beautiful piece to just look at and take in, when i look at any dio i know its not real but when a really good one comes along it will make me imagine and feel something that actually could have been and this one takes me there, all the way.

Ron.

Firstly, I really like this diorama and it's simply stunning in it's construction, presentation and subject matter. The amount of detailing and scratchbuilding is phenomenal and it's a top notch bit of work and I really like it.

Secondly, as far as the items that should float up from the wreck, it's possible that the kisby rings (life rings) that have been attached are old and already unserviceable as floatation devices because they're been tied to the hull as fenders to rest along the rubbing strake. When this boat was on the surface and in service, they were being used to provide protection to the boat and dock when it's alongside so it's possible they were useless as floaters to begin with. Even if they did still float at one time, it's possible they've been submerged long enough that they've become waterlogged and are now weighted. Most every solid object in the water will eventually sink if it's in the water long enough. The only exceptions would be items that are filled with air and remain airtight or have air spaces in them that aren't waterlogged yet. The kisby ring attached to the starboard side of the wheelhouse should have floated to the surface because they're designed to do that, unless it snagged or was prevented from doing that in some way. It's likely now waterlooged like the rest of them. I really don't see any items on the wreck or in the debris field that shouldn't or couldn't be shown the way they are.

One of the things I really like about this diorama, is all the questions it makes us ask and the things we wonder about...... It's really good!!



Bob

What I was looking at are the things which appear to be more or less globular near the yardarm. Initially, due to the lighting and angle, I thought they were part of what appears to be a sail on the yard, but on closer examination, there are some near the 20mm. Maybe they're some sort of floats that have been barnacle encrusted, so I'll retract that comment.
I also noticed this is a tracked vehicle, so I'll also praise what seems to be some spectacular scratchbuilding, too.

......Also, I've never seen this type of amphib vehicle before, what is it?

edit: A little googling turned up this..... looks like it might be it?

http://www.geocities.com/pentagon/2833/heer/amphibious/lws/lws.html

Based on what Rhodes had written when he first posted the 'sunken' portion of the dio, I thought that he was going to make the entire submerged section with Envirotech. Upon closer scrutiny ( I first looked at this at work and can only 'glance'), it appears that he created a box effect. I was wondering how he "poured" so much resin over such diverse detail without getting any bubbles!
This will be a nice one to see 'in person' I hope that it will be at the so.cal shows

Cheers,
Charles

I dont give a hoot about the facial expressions, thats still pretty dang impressive!! Thanks for sharing!!

Superb stuff!
Makes me want to search the detail just looking for any errors which would make him human after all!
To me the skin of the shark exposed to air shouldn't look as wet as it does. There. That's it.

Very very nice work, superb attention to detail and some sharp animation to the figs.
As to the LWS, there was a resin kit of this released during the 90's by a Japanese firm thats long since disappeared, and if one of them turns up on ebay they fetch a very pretty penny indeed..