Thanks for the encouragement Roger. I must admit the result so far (and it's far from finished) resembles a mass of burnt plastic and needs some closer inspection to see it is as accurate as I can make it? Fortunately, as previously mentioned somewhere, the forward ammunition store did not explode as intended so although the ship was 'gutted' by fire and secondary explosions, much of the fwd section remained recognizable!!
Smoke - no! I've never mastered all these quirky uses of cotton wool etc but my wife suggested a joss-stick or two might add some realism (and improve the natural environment of the room) until I explained we did not sit around on cushions, dressed in kafkans, savouring the intoxication of paint and glue! (Despite Dave's obvious addiction?).
Doing this in 1/700 is a bit of a cop-out but I wasn't prepared to sacrifice my Airfix, Heller or Academy large(er) scale models (Nor could I afford the amounts of water needed?) It's all an experiment for me but you shouldn't expect too much excitement when I eventually bring it in.... if ever!