Monogram (now Revell) UDT Boat with "Frogmen" WIP

[Jeffry Fontaine]

The old Monogram UDT Boat with "Frogmen" kit is quite primitive by current technology standards but still the only model [affordable] of an actual LCP(R) in a useful model scale.  Not sure what the real scale of the kit is but it is somewhere in between 1/32nd and 1/35th scale and it looks like a Higgins' LCP(R) which is alright by me.  The kit comes with a pair of machine guns and associated hole in the deck featured at the fore of the boat.  I was not overly impressed with the weapons or the hole in the deck and opted to discard this feature.  It might have been relevant to the younger modelers back in the late 60s when this kit was first released and I suspect the one-piece hull was an important feature for the "bathtub naval flotillas" where this model probably spent most of its in-action/play time. 

I removed the janky gun tub holes by filling them in with some flat scrap plastic.  I also replaced the coaming in those two areas to fully cover the new gap.  Once again that HO scale lumber came in handy.  The oddly shaped white bits on the underside of the deck are recycled blood sugar test strips.  Hate to see plastic go to waste and I had salvaged a few of these over the years and finally found a use for the things as a sort of retaining feature to hold the scrap plastic discs in place as the glue cured.  I opted to leave the things in place instead of trying to remove them since they are not interfering with the other parts that are located in that area forward. 

I did not bother to make an image of the deck before filling the holes in as it is rather obvious what was done to change the features on the model.  The only nagging issue I have at the moment is that the HO scale lumber/planks were not as thick as the original kit coaming but I am not going to try and change it now that the CA glue has cured.  I like the look achieved without the gun mounts as it gives the coxswain/helmsman a better view across the bow and to the port and starboard which would have been obscured with the guns in place.  I have considered mounting weapons along the sides of the boat which was done on other amphibious craft during the Vietnam war but will cross that bridge when I get further along.  Not much space in the boat as it is so there is that to be considered.  I am also undecided on the small rubber inflatable boat that was a key feature for discharging and recovery of swimmers at speed as it is a rather clunky arrangement that includes a large support structure that is quite fictional but integral to holding the small boat in place next to the hull of the larger LCP(R).  I am at this point considering not having the inflatable boat deployed but instead stowed on the larger craft.  It would certainly help in covering up some empty space on the larger model. 

[Frank3k]

I had this kit as a kid and was a great bathtub and pool ship. I bought one when it was re-released, knowing that it's nowhere near modern standards.

Your gun tub fix looks good; it looks like a field mod (which it is, sort of). Maybe put some bolt or nail heads/holes. You can also add a wheelhouse like the one in the Monogram 1/48 RAG Boat.

Found this build.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

I had this kit as a kid and was a great bathtub and pool ship. I bought one when it was re-released, knowing that it's nowhere near modern standards.

Your gun tub fix looks good; it looks like a field mod (which it is, sort of). Maybe put some bolt or nail heads/holes. You can also add a wheelhouse like the one in the Monogram 1/48 RAG Boat.

Found this build.

The "bathtub flotilla" was a large organization that occupied many household bathtubs back in the day before we all realized that taking a shower was much quicker and the bathtub flotilla faded away except for the memories in later years. 

Thanks for finding that link to the LCP(R) Command and Control Craft, that guy did a great job on making an overhead structure to fit his model.  He too quickly abandoned the kit parts for the weapons and gun shields and rightly covered over the offending hole in the deck. 

As far as adding rivets or in this case very tiny bumps to the surface of the deck per your suggestion.  I had not considered that since a lot of that field work would have been ad hoc and in the case of small craft/wooden boat repair there was a layer of canvas laid down to seel the hole from water intrusion and any surface feature standing proud of the deck surface would have been an issue for quicker wear and tear by abrasion.  I hope with a good coat of paint that the filled in areas will disappear from casual view.  As an interim fix I do have some blanking plates from the Monogram B-29 kit for the Silverplate nuclear bomb carrier version that would have been even more useful for filling the holes.  Maybe on the second UDT Boat (I have two of course) that approach can be taken. 





***Edit to correct spelling error -- jjf

[LemonJello]

Interesting work underway here.  I look forward to more progress reports.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

I managed to do a bit of detail work on the very plain vanilla small inflatable rubber boat that is included in the Monogram UDT Boat kit.  This is the small boat that is attached to the side of the LCP(R) to aid in launching and recovery of the UDT swimmers.  The bottom of the inflatable is very plain and I could have ignored it but I still had a stack of HO Scale planks so I opted to craft a floor of single planks laid on the long axis of the boat and then added some stiffeners across these to hide some gaps and seams.  I regret assembling that small boat prior to attempting this detail work as it was kind of cramped working in that tight space with two fingers holding a plank and trying to set it down straight without getting glue all over the surfaces. 

Attached images show the floor installed in the small inflatable rubber boat.  First image is a view from above.  Second image is a right side view and the third image is the left side view.     

[Jeffry Fontaine]

Second installment of WIP. 

In addition to the details added to the small inflatable rubber boat I was also quite busy making some gratings.  These gratings are what you would normally see on some boat decks in and around the steering wheel.  This featue would be most often seen now in sailing vessels where the ships wheel is located in an open cockpit exposed to the elements and the grating would be installed around the deck in this area to provide a surface to stand on that allows water to drain down through the grating and into the scuppers and discharged overboard.  I made three different size gratings from the remaining supply of HO Scale lumber.  Three of these gratings were crafted from the smaller dimensional lumber which I think is supposed to represent HO Scale 4X4 (10cmX10cm) beams.  What ever they are the things went together easily with minimal trimming to create three gratings that I am still trying to find a purpose for.  The same process was repeated with the larger HO Scale planks to create three larger gratings.  The one odd grating started out slightly larger but I trimmed it down by two planks so that it would fit inside the forward section on the UDT Boat right in front of the ramp.  Not sure if I will actually place it there but it is now sized to fit that space.  The other option is to place it at the steering station so the Coxswain has something to stand on besides a bare deck surface. 

[Frank3k]

The raft looks good and so does the grate. You're making me want to take a look at that old kit!

[finsrin]

The raft looks good and so does the grate. You're making me want to take a look at that old kit!

Liking what you accomplished here.   Nice bit of bashing, result looks RW to me.       Rare for you to do floaty build !
One or two UDT boats in stash.   Made me realize using narrower plank stock can make sizable 1/72 versions of boat and raft.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

The raft looks good and so does the grate. You're making me want to take a look at that old kit!

.
The Bathtub Flotilla Returns! 
I never had the kit when I was younger, I had seen it built and liked what I saw but living in the Aleutian Islands meant that a lot of those neat things available in the lower 48 were alway out of our reach and unavailable on Adak.  The crafts store operated by the Post Exchange had only a few items and what few models that came in were quickly snapped up.  Empty shelves in the model and toy section was a constant reality.  When I finally got out on my own by joining the Army there was even less opportunity to enjoy building models and by then that Monogram UDT Boat was out of production.  When it was finally released again I was quick to acquire the kit as I had an interest in it along with the just as rare PCF Switft boat in 1/48th scale. 

The one advantage of working with that HO Scale lumber was that it was already cut to a useful length so there was no real demand to cut anything to a different length during construction.  The gratings were all quite easy to construct and adjusting the size after it was built by simply removing one or two sections worked out very well. 

[Ramba]

The Revell Warthog Halo vehicle and now the Monogram UDT boats, it's good to see you working on stuff and posting again. The decks are looking good.