Posted by John M
on February 26, 2009, 9:03 am, in reply to "Ships Windows"
82.29.20.24
Portholes are best tackled by drilling small holes. Their positions need to accurately marked out. I usually apply a thin strip of masking tape along the hull and mark onto this with a sharp pencil. The tape also helps the drill from "kicking" especially on white metal. Len Jordan resin models often have rows of portholes cast into the moulding. Sometimes these are so fine that a coat of paint tends to obliterate them. I like to drill them out to a very slightly larger diameter to allow for the layer of paint.
Rows of windows on upper decks are more tricky, especially the modern square or rectangular style. My own preference is to make up my own waterslide decal strips of windows. You can create neat strips of windows using a word processor using full stops for round windows and port holes. My version of MS Word lets you insert various "symbols" which includes variations on squares and rectangles. You can adjust the size by altering the font and the spacing using the space bar.
Its also worth having a close look at Letraset rub down sheets of lettering. Some of these have dotted lines to separate the alphabet characters, and this "scrap" can be used for applying windows to models.
The old fashioned way is to use a mapping pen or similar and mark portholes using Indian Ink. This method seems to work best on scratchbuilt wooden hulls. I'm afraid I don't have the skill and patience required but I do like the delicate look of models done this way.
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