Subject: SMML14/07/99VOL606 Date: Thu, 15 Jul 1999 00:13:32 +1000 shipmodels@tac.com.au -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Re: Modifying the Tamiya HMS Hood 2: Lend-Lease ships. 3: Re: Subject: Battle of Savo Island 4: Re: Battle of Savo Island 5: Marines web site 6: Richelieu book & french books 7: Re: lend-lease routes to Soviet Union 8: Re: MB vs Viking Seawolf 9: Re: MB & Viking Skipjack 10: Re: USN Warship Camouflage Site 11: Re: ARII ship question 12: US IPMS Nationals SMML Lunch 13: Emden 14: WW1 naval website 15: Re: Modifying the Tamiya HMS Hood 16: Arethusa Class Cruisers 17: Re: Arii 1/600 Iowa's -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD INDEX 1: New at Research in Scale: 2: White Ensign Models E.mail Problems 3: WEM 1/600 HMS Hood Photo Etch -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: AllenFW2@aol.com Subject: Re: Modifying the Tamiya HMS Hood Have you considered using the Italeri 1/720 Hood instead? It is very detailed (much more so than Tamiya's very spartan offering) and portrays Hood in her early-mid 1930's guise. Yes, it is in the odd ball 1/720 scale, but that's about the only drawback. There's also the venerable 1/600 Airfix kit to consider as well...not as nice as Italeri or Tamiya, but it too would be much easier to modify than the Tamiya kit. If you still wish to pursue the Tamiya conversion, you'll have your work cut-out for you (literally...the mods require major cutting of 5.5" battery areas plus extensive bridge mods). Please contact me off-line, and I can arrange to provide you with photos/information (previously unpublished) on Hood which might be of use. Frank Allen Battle Cruiser Hood- The HMS Hood On-line Resource http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Workshop/2966/ (moving to "http://www.hmshood.com" very shortly) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: Suvoroff@aol.com Subject: Lend-Lease ships. >> As the Japanese held the Kurile islands (stretching all the way from Japanese Sakhalin to Soviet Kamchatka) right to the end of the war, I wonder how these ships/boats got there? Did the Allies sail convoys within sight of Japanese islands? << As the Soviets were neutral through most of the war in the Pacific, they no doubt picked up the ships at the West Coast and sailed them openly, running lights on and big red flags flying, back to Vladivostok. They were probably more in danger from US submarines than from the Japanese, who were kind of busy elsewhere... Yours, James D. Gray -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: "John Noory" Subject: Re: Subject: Battle of Savo Island I checked into the game Action Stations and found the following numbers: Chokai--900 rnds in fwd mag, 600 rnds in aft mag, 2,400 secondary rounds Aoba, Kinugasa, Kako & Furutaka--600 in fwd mag, 300 in aft mag, & 800 tertiary rounds Tenryu--200 in fwd mag, 400 aft mag, 200 mid mag Yubari--600 rnds each in fwd and aft mags I hope this helps. I have different stats from other computer naval wargames, but I tend to trust Action Stations. John Noory -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From: John Snyder Subject: Re: Battle of Savo Island According to Lacroix and Wells, _Japanese Cruisers of the Pacific War_, the A-class cruisers (the ships named in your question) had an ammunition capacity of 120 rounds per gun (maximum 126 rounds per gun) for their 20cm main battery. John Snyder Snyder & Short Enterprises The Paint Guys -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From: kenny_II Subject: Marines web site Hi, A while back the URL for the Marines web site was given so we could order copies of the magazines from here in the States. I had some trouble navigating the site, but after ten minutes or so I figured it out.... I can't read French. Can someone help me figure out how to order the Scharnhorst edition? Thanks, Tim -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From: HDente@aol.com Subject: Richelieu book & french books "Richelieu" by Sarnet and Le Valent is 456 pages, has 8 pages of color illustrations and numerous B&W photos. I have several copies on order, price not decided, but yes, it will be expensive, about $100 or more. Monographs are also available on the Surcouf, Bern et le Commandant Teste, Les Croiser Colbert, and Mogador. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From: tom Subject: Re: lend-lease routes to Soviet Union Martin Aigner writes: >> Navis Magazine's June issue (Task Forces special feature) details the strength of the SU's Pacific Fleet as of August 8., 1945. This includes: 11 ex-US lend-leased frigates (various classes) 18 ex-US lend leased ocean-going minesweepers (various classes) 20 ex-US lend-leased subchaser-type boats 45 ex-US lend-leased Elco/Higgins type boats. As the Japanese held the Kurile islands (streching all the way from Japanese Sachalin to Soviet Kamchatka) right to the end of the war, I wonder how these ships/boats got there. Did the Allies sail convoys within sight of Japanese islands? << It wouldn't have been the "Allies" per se if the boats sailed with Soviet crews under the Soviet flag... Japan considered the Soviet Union a neutral country until the Soviet Unions declaration of war against Japan in August 1945. Tom Kremer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From: Lisa and Bill Wiseman Subject: Re: MB vs Viking Seawolf I haven't seen the MB kit but the Viking kit at my local dealer is of less than average quality. There are lots of bubbles and sink holes in the casting. The direction sheet is all but unreadable and overall quality of the kit is poor. That's why the dealer has had it sitting in his showcase since last fall. Can't justify the bucks for a kit that is going to need a whole lot of filling and sanding just to fix casting flaws. I don't know if it's the individual kit or if this is indicative of the production run. We had a discussion several months ago re: Viking's Alvin DSRV. I have, apparently, an early production run kit of the Alvin which was complete and of better than average quality. The hollow hull casting is clean and only needs some help on the bolt heads. Others have kits that are missing decals and parts and had poor or nonexistant direction sheets. Judging from the previous discussion on Viking's Alvin you could conclude that each kit is an individual and probably should be inspected carefully before purchase (if possible). As for accuracy, of the Viking kit, I didn't bother to look too closely at it after I saw all the air bubbles and sink holes. As for MB, I haven't heard anything either way about the kit. Good luck, Doc Wiseman -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From: SHIPMDLR@aol.com Subject: Re: MB & Viking Skipjack I would buy the MB Models Skipjack. I have never seen the MB or Viking model but MB Models reputation for producing EXCELLENT model kits keeps them in good standing with me personally. I have never built an MB model that wasn't (for the most part) excellently cast with no missing parts and with excellent instructions. MB also does a lot of business with the US Navy which would give them access to the most accurate plans. Viking however, has a bad reputation for leaving out parts and less than perfect casting quality. The accuracy of some of their kits leaves some to be desired as well. They also have a reputation for sending out model kits missing photo etch and decals, sending them later after they are delivered. In short I have never built an MB Model I didn't just love and I've built 8 of them. Take it for what it's worth. Rusty White Flagship Models Inc. http://www.okclive.com/flagship/ "Yeah, I want Cheesy Poofs" -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From: Bradford Chaucer Subject: Re: USN Warship Camouflage Site >> I have just finished a rough-cut of the USN Warship Camouflage site. I will be polishing it up and adding new data over the next several weeks. It is located at: http://home.earthlink.net/~jrsheridan/ Comments and discussion are welcome........just please, be gentle.... << John, I don't have to be gentle, You have the start of a great site and a tremendous service to the modeling community. I hope that you are planning a table that breaks out the various "Measures" into their actual colors, and in the future even a cross reference to commercial lines of paints. Regards, Bradford Chaucer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From: "chris" Subject: Re: ARII ship question Matt - The ARII 1/600 Iowa Class battleships are of their modern configurations..... I have to say though, they are not of the best detail..... something I found quite suprising after purchasing some of the ARII 1/700 scale Ticonderoga and Spruance Class Destroyers / Cruiser kits..... I found the 1/600 scale kit almost toy-like as compared to the 1/700 scale kits...... I have since found an older Revell 1/720 kit of the USS New Jersey (courtesy of the Joe Renya listing found through the Navismagazine link) in the "modern configuration" that has better detailed basic parts which I intend to add some even better detail using some spare ARII / DML parts (namely the Harpoon launchers and the CIWS mountings.....) when I get around to constructing said kit, one of these days...... Hope this helps..... cn -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From: Duane Fowler Subject: US IPMS Nationals SMML Lunch Hello All, John Snyder and I will be at the US IPMS National Conference next week and would like to host (figuratively speaking) an SMML lunch. Last year's lunch went quite well and a great time was had by all. Look for the two swabs wearing the dixie cups for information. One will be showing his age inthe US Coast Guard's former dress uniform, and the other will be in the uniform of the other maritime service. (Trivia question: How can you tell the difference between the two?) Best regards, Duane Fowler -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13) From: "Arjun Sarup" Subject: Emden Hi, The Emden was beached on Cocos Is. Is her wreck still visible? Maybe the RAAF could do a photo recce... Anyone know if the island is inhabited? Arjun Sarup Mauritius -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14) From: "Bob Pearson" Subject: WW1 naval website Greetings all, For those bemoaning the fact that the naval side of WW1 is under-represented, I offer the following URL. http://www.ukans.edu/~kansite/ww_one/naval/n0000000.htm Regards, Bob Pearson Managing Editor / Internet Modeler http://www.internetmodeler.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15) From: "chenyangzhang" Subject: Re: Modifying the Tamiya HMS Hood Hi Mark It's quite an involved project. These are the basic steps 1 Remove all WW2 AA and the tubs and walls for them. Also the platforms for the .5 inch machine guns and pom pom. 2 Rebuild the rear tower to its original configuration and add the rear coning tower and boiler room vent. 3 Add 4 4 inch HA guns 4 Rebuild the radio shack between the funnels, there was a searchlight platform there in 1920 5 Remove all directors and radar except the directors on the forward conning tower and control top 6 Remove all Carley floats and add various boats (some will be included but you will need to find others for example the 50 foot steam pinnace and the 45 foot Admirals barge). Most boats will also need to be repositioned. 7 Add the 5.5 inch secondary armament. This will mean making 2 openings per side in the forward superstructure and bays as the Tamiya model represents the Hood with these plated over. 8 Add a torpedo lookout position and searchlight platform to the foremast just below the control top. You'll also probably need to modify the forebridge and other parts of the bridge structure 9 If its early 1920's you'll also need to add flying off platforms to B and X turrets. These are just some of what will need to be done and as you can see its not an easy conversion. Raven and Roberts in British Battleships of World War 2 and the Anatomy of the Ship series on the Hood will supply you with all the information you need. Chris Langtree Oh yes you'll also need to straighten up the funnels. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16) From: "chenyangzhang" Subject: Arethusa Class Cruisers Hi Clyde Aurora was completed without a catapult and Penelope (by July 1941), Arethusa (by April 1941) and Galatea (by January 1941) had lost theirs quite early on. I have seen photos of Aurora in camouflage in the Imperial War Museum (Foxhill collection) and maybe someone will have photos in their collection. Whitley has a couple of Penelope in camouflage in Cruisers of World War Two. Chris Langtree -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17) From: "Shaya Novak" Subject: Re: Arii 1/600 Iowa's To Matt Melchert. Those ARII Iowa's are current configuration. With the Mod Weapons 1/700 from Skywave and Photoetch it's a great kit. Shaya We have them at http://www.modelshipbuilding.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: HDente@aol.com Subject: New at Research in Scale: Buckley Class Destroyer Escorts---Many Photos, each class member is documented with camoflage and markings listed. the first chapter includes drawings of profile, internal profile, platform deck, main deck, deck houses and bridges.---$32.00 Warpaint Griffon engined Seafires--Color and markings, scale plans, photos---$18.00 Kits in 1/700 scale Kirov Borodino, 1904----39.00 Modelkrack Novgorod 1871--Round coast defense ship---$14.00 Peresvet 1898-- Russian Battleship------------$28.00 Suvorov 1902--Russian Battleship--------------$27.00 Miyake 1899 Japanese Cruiser-------------------$19.00 Yashima Japanese Battleship--------------------$27.00 Shipping $4.00 Our Address: Research in Scale, 205 Maryland Ave, Paterson, NJ 07503 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: "Peter Hall" Subject: White Ensign Models E.mail Problems Hi folks, Here is an IMPORTANT message for anyone wishing to place an order or to contact White Ensign Models by E.mail. Due to WEM installing a new computer and also new software, a few problems have been encountered with re installing the internet connections. Dave and Caroline are still struggling with it, in fact. Until further notice please send all Orders, Messages etc, for WEM through my E.mail address, which is: mailto:adz29@dial.pipex.com and I will forward them on post haste. Cheers Peter Hall pp White Ensign Models -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: "Peter Hall" Subject: WEM 1/600 HMS Hood Photo Etch Hi Everyone, Just a quickie to let you know that the new photo etch detail set for the Airfix HMS Hood kit has arrived and, 'looks absolutely stunning' as Caroline put it. This set includes the Aft end Crane and Catapult, and all other relevant parts to fit the kit out as Hood appeared in the early 1930s. The retail price is £16.13 British Pounds and is now available. Please note Due to Temporary E.mail problems please place orders through me at: mailto:adz29@dial,pipex.com Cheers Peter Hall pp White Ensign Models -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume