To start building the submarine model, many measurements need to be taken and plotted out on a flat surface. Bearing in mind that the model would be over 3 metres long, it would need to be built in sections, especially as my kitchen table is just 1.2 metres long.

So to start this off, I bought three MDF panels, each just over 1200mm long and 600mm wide. These were covered with paper from an A0 roll, taped at the back. The Centreline was measured and marked out along their length. I ended up with three boards that looked like this:

I then marked out a piece of A3 paper for the 1:350 model, and drew a centre line. I placed the model's top hull half against the centre line and drew around it with a pencil. The outline was marked off at 5mm intervals and each interval was numbered - from 0 to 99. Later on I transferred this to the boards as a reference.

Each 5mm interval at 1:350 equals a 35mm interval at 1:50, so next step was to mark out the boards with the intervals 0-99.

From this framework, measurements could be checked and plotted. Some re-work will be required to get the curves correct.

Bow Section

Middle section

Tail Section

in the tail section you can see I have added some detail that is not on the model the tail section will need some fettling before it is ready to build upon.

The next step is to plot the base of the sail - I have marked roughly where it ends on the tail baseboard.