Subject: SMML18/08/99VOL641 Date: Thu, 19 Aug 1999 01:03:57 +1000 shipmodels@tac.com.au -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Re: MISSING AT MIDWAY. 2: Yatch Alexander 3: Japanese Sub Attack Oregon 4: WSW Lutzow (1916) 5: Re: Measure 21 and deck details 6: Re: New England Vacation 7: Displaying Californias and Dutch IPMS 8: Re: New England Vacation 9: There's a true Texan in our midst! 10: Re: Wood/Plywood 11: Scuttling 12: Admiral Scheer colours 13: Re: Wood/Plywood 14: Measure 21 - deck details etc... 15: Re: BWN & C.I 16: USS Wisconsin BB-64 17: 1/700 Skywave FLETCHER 18: USS Enterprise (circa 1799) 19: Wood for shipbuilders 20: Re: Rodney/Nelson Book info 21: Fw: Darwin Award Nominee 22: WEM and Ark Royal? 23: Re: Sinking our own Cripples 24: Vegemite, and no relationship whatsoever with nautical subjects 25: Re: Blue Water Navy customer service-NOT 26: Re: Vegemite 27: Re: New England vacation 28: SMML international survey 29: Measure 21, 22 and deck details. 30: Re: Visiting New England 31: Photoetched AA guns 32: Re: Yamato/Musashi 33: Spray Paint 34: Re: book review bb63 & Teak deck 35: To find a WWII US Navy veteran 36: Bismarck beam -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD INDEX 1: Naval Base Hobbies has the SUBCHASER -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: "Clappsy, Jim (DF - PCC)" Subject: Re: MISSING AT MIDWAY. I don't know of any books to cover this subject. There is a very good article from US Nvaal History magazine. This article covers all 3 pilots to be executed by the Japanese at Midway: W.OSMUS, F O'FLAHERTY and B GAIDO. Osmus was a TBD pilot, Frank O'Flaherty was a SBD pilot and Bruno Gaido wa his gunner. In the case of the SBD crew, they were pickwed up by the Makigumo, her commanding officer told his officers that"I don't want to shoot or kill them with a sword. W got them from the sea, lets just throw them back in. 4-6 days later they were blinfolded and bound with ropes, they were tied to weighted fuel cans and then thrown overboard. The 3 officers were Kanda, Nakasawa & sato. All 3 of them were killed during the war. The fate of the Makigumo, she hit a mine off Guadalcanal and sunk in 1943. If U need any more more info, I will copy this article those who are interested. Or get the following books: A GLORIOUS PAGE IN OUR HISTORY AND MIRACLE AT MIDWAY. THANK JIM C -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: "J. London" Subject: Yatch Alexander Does anyone have information on the yatch ALEXANDER used by Prince Charles on his recent Greek Island holiday? Owner, tonnage, dimensions, when and where built, previous names if any and current colour scheme? From pictures on TV etc. she looks suspiciously like the former REGINA MARIS of the Lübeck Line later MERCATOR ONE an ill-fated Canadian cruise line venture backed by the Nova Scotia provincial government. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: Charles Stephanian Subject: Japanese Sub Attack Oregon I'm wondering if any list members know the type of Japanese sub (and aircraft) that was involved in the attack on Brookings, Oregon during WWII. Thanks! Chas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From: David Rinker Subject: WSW Lutzow (1916) I just got this kit from Pacific Front hobbies and it is gorgeous. However, instructions are sparse (ok, cuz the Warship review prepared me for this) and very illegible (not so ok since I usually can't makeout where lines are pointing--looks like a photocopy of a photocopy of a mimeograph). But I'm looking forward to it, it'll just be more challenging this way :) Now one of the instruction's omissions is paint scheme and markings. Can any one point me in the directions of some good photographic resources for WW1 German ships? Anyone have any favorite paints for ships of this era? I've got a pretty good university library at my disposal but I've only found a couple of potential sources so far. Thanks, David Durham,NC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From: Ross Bruce-QBR000 Subject: Re: Measure 21 and deck details Mark said >> I guess the DC ready racks should be painted the deck color, but the DC's? Should we be painting the "tops" of the DC's Deck Blue, or should they be a basic gray all over? Should the tops of gun barrels have the deck color and the rest the vertical color? << To follow up on Mark's comments I've seen pictures that shows that a lot of the times the DC's them selves were painted the deck color overall with the topside of the racks being painted deck color as well with the sides having the vertical pattern extended over them. The 5" barrels were a mixed batch having been seen going both ways. When they are painted the deck color extended down the side to about the 2-10 o'clock positions. More confusion to the subject Best, Bruce -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From: "Sheridan, John" Subject: Re: New England Vacation >> I will be spending three weeks in New England next month. I've got a few days to devote to whatever I want to,so the question is, what's of interest with regard to museums, exhibits or other places of interest for a fellow ship modeler. I won't get to NY but everywhere else is fair game. << Here's a few places for you to visit: Fall River Massachusetts: USS Maasachusetts (South Dakota class battleship) USS Joseph Kennedy (Gearing Class Destroyer) GDR Hidensee (East German Corvette) USS Lionfish (Balao Class? Submarine) Quincy Massachusetts: USS Salem (Des Moines Class Heavy Cruiser) Boston Massachusetts: USS Constitution (Old Ironsides) USS Cassin Young (Fletcher Class Destroyer) Beaver (Boston Tea Party Ship) Plymouth Massachusetts: Mayflower Newport Rhode Island Naval Underwater College Middletown Rhode Island USS Iowa USS Independence ? John Sheridan Visit my USN Ship Camo site at: http://home.earthlink.net/~jrsheridan/ I am not a Member of the Lumber Cartel (tinlc) and I am not Unit #631 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From: "Jens H. Brandal" Subject: Displaying Californias and Dutch IPMS >> I am in the process of planing my next project, putting two 1/350 Californias side by side on the same base. snip, snip Lastly, and I am probally opening a can of worms, should they be full hull or waterline? << I'm not going to tell you what to do, but for such a display, I would prefer the full hull method. I like to see ships in their natural environment, hence the preference for a waterline model on a sea base - basically a representation of a full size subject. The display you are talking about here would never occur in real life, so displaying them as waterline models would look odd. Displaying the ships full hull makes for a more "abstract" presentation - you're presenting a model rather than a "scaled down impression of reality". I know there is a thin line between these meanings, but I guess you know what I mean. >> The Dutch IPMS is a relatively small group, mainly aircraft. Armour is, as said, mostly another group, who apparently did not agree with the IPMS, mostly due to the magazine, which is mostly aircraft, no armour. << Welllllll, that probably reflects what the editor receives. The late eighties and the early nineties was a rather dull period as far as the Norwegian IPMS Magazine was concerned. The editor had a hard time filling the pages, and an easy job editing material - there simply was none. In the editorials he reminded the members that if all they wanted was to see articles on aircraft, then by all means do not submit any material. What you're saying sounds really familiar. On the other hand, it could -and I simply cannot emphasise "could" strong enough - be that the editor is favouring articles on aircraft, which is extremely unfortunate. IPMS is about making plastic models in general, not favouring aircraft or any particular type of model even though it seems to be a widespread belief in the specialised modelling clubs. IPMS as an organisation does not discriminate models, but it does happen that individuals representing IPMS abuse the powers given to them by the members to turn things "their way". >> However, the number of ship modelers remains very small, << I'd hate to say this in such a forum, but I think that is definitely the case. Based on my impression from several modelling competitions and modelling clubs, aircraft and cars are widely popular, with armour ranking pretty much on a par with aircraft. Ships are "down there" with sci-fi and figures. I may be wrong though. Hah, what else is new :). >> My guess would be that ship modeling in the Netherlands is some kind of an undiscovered country, which may change now there is a SIG. << Evert-Jan, your best argument would be to underline the fact that if the dikes burst, shipmodels are the only ones that will save themselves - all others will sink! Sorry, couldn't help... Jens Hi Jens, et al, You've touched briefly on a subject that all club magazine Editors face, ie: you run with what you're given as a general rule. This can at times, lead to magazines which have the same authors & the same subject matter. I cannot emphasise this hard enough, that if you want articles on your favourite subject - either write one OR supply the editor with material so that hopefully she or he can put an article together. Sometimes, all it takes is some photos & captions to bring along say more ship articles for example ;-). That's what I did in the beginning, I supplied what is sometimes the hardest thing to find - cover pics. What you have to remember that if you belong to a club that puts out a magazine, the magazine belongs to the members & can either reflect the club as a whole or the small percentage who write & submit articles. Regards, Shane Asst Editor APMA Magazine -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From: louellet@uism.bu.edu Subject: Re: New England Vacation Allan ARSALAS@aol.com wrote: >> I will be spending three weeks in New England next month. I 've got a few days to devote to whatever I want to,so the question is, what's of interest with regard to museums, exhibits or other places of interest for a fellow ship modeler. I won't get to NY but everywhere else is fair game. << There is a lot to see in this area. You can visit the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Navy 8-> in Boston, Quincy, and Fall River. Boston has the USS Constitution (a must see) and the USS Cassin Young (DD 793, Fletcher class). Also in the Charlestown Navy yard is the Nantucket II (WLV 613) lightship. In Quincy, just south of Boston, you have the USS Salem (CA 139) a Salem/Des Moines class heavy cruiser. The web site is: http://www.uss-salem.org/ In North Quincy at Marina Bay is the lightship Nantucket I (WLV 612) which I believe is only open on Saturday afternoons. Then further south is Fall River's Battleship Cove where the USS Massachusetts (BB-59), USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. (DD850 Gearing class FRAM), USS Lionfish (SS-298), Hidensee (ex-East German, Soviet-built missile corvette) and PT 617 & PT 796. The Battleship Cove web site is: http://www.battleshipcove.com/ This web link: http://www.bb62museum.org/usnavmus.html has listings for hundreds of nautical museums in the United States The USS Salem information is out of date, so refer to the link above. Have fun. If you plan on visiting the USS Salem, let me know what day and you might get a few smmlie tour guides! Larry Ouellette louellet@uism.bu.edu Volunteer, USS Salem (CA 139) United States Naval & Shipbuilding Museum Quincy, Massachusetts http://www.uss-salem.org/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From: "Doremus, Mark" Subject: There's a true Texan in our midst! Tom E. wrote >> ..notice how international our list has become. There were postings from the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark, Poland and even Texas! << He must have taken the same 7th grade Texas History class I took. It kept overlooking the fact that Texas joined the United States of America in 1845. While it is true that Texas operates it's own Navy, it is not truly a sovereign nation. Mark Doremus Married to a Texan and father of two Texans -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From: tom Subject: Re: Wood/Plywood Kelvin writes: >> What are the suitable common woods (read inexpensive) available in a Canadian/US lumber stores that can be used for building fairly large (up to 6 feet long) RC boats. I have a fairly well equipped home workshop (table saw, band saw, scroll saw, bench sanders, etc.) to cut the wood to any dimension. The regular 2 in x 4 in spruce studs warp if sawn to 1/2 inch thick strips for "bread and butter" hulls. Oak is too hard. I am not too sure about Basswood, if it will stand up to water immersion. For making frame type hulls how suitable is 1/8 inch thick x 4ft x 8ft mahagony door skins if I seal the outside with fiberglass and the inside with laquer varnish? << Kelvin: Lumber warps due to differential expansion and contraction along the growth rings caused by changes in moisture content. Average "kiln-dried" lumber is not good enough for your needs. You need to pick through the lumber pile taking only knot free boards with clear straight parallel grain and then air dry it for a long time (how long depends on the humidity where you live but here in California I would say 3 months in our dry summer for 2x4s) before ripping in into smaller sizes. I use readily available birch and redwood for making half-hull models... they are soft enough to carve easily and the contrast at the waterline between the light and dark woods looks great. "Philippine mahogany" doorskin it is not really mahogany but actually luaun. I have used it once on a kayak and had really bad luck, basically a boat with maybe 120 hours labor in it was trash... all so I could save maybe $120 on plywood. Luaun comes with one really thick inner ply and two very thin exterior veneers. The inner ply is low quality filler, the glue is not waterproof and it can delaminate where you bend it and turn to mush where it gets wet. Avoid luaun, consider going mailorder to get okoume plywood which is an African plantation grown wood loved by sadder-but-wiser wooden kayak builders. Best regards, Tom Kremer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From: "chenyangzhang" Subject: Scuttling Hi Kevin For the situation you describe, I think the factors that come into play are time, resources and a bit of national pride. Firstly damage to a ship needs to be assessed and a decision made as to whether the ship can be saved. In the case of badly damaged ships this will tend to be can escorts be spared to get her back to port and is it worth bothering. If you have to sail a badly damaged ship which might sink accross hostile waters without escort you might want to scuttle her rather than give your enemy a chance to sink her later on (for example HMS Manchester). If the engines are damaged then the question of sparing escorts (to tow) becomes even more vital. The force commander should be asking himself can I spare other ships from my mission and if I do what are the chances of success. What is clear is that this was not always a consideration and some ships were sunk rather too quickly. There is also a question of whether the resources are available to, for example, put out a fire or stop flooding (HMAS Canberra). If not and the damage is likely to get worse then it would probably be pointless trying to save the ship. It is also better to scuttle a damaged ship (which you cannot repair immediatley) than leave it to fall into the hands of the enemy. In 18th and 19th century warfare ships often changed sides. They would be defeated in battle and damaged but were repaired and recommissioned by the victorious navy. WW2 is slightly different but this did happen (German and Italian use of former French warships). Scuttling also sounds better than being sunk - it's a decision made by your side not by the enemy and you can claim that the ship wasn't sunk by your opponents. This last case has led to the odd lie being told (Bismark). Attempts were often made, time permitting to tow badly damaged warships to base but these didn't always work. Quite a few destroyers foundered on the way back (HMS Brazen). It was always a difficult decision for any force commander and on occaision this may have led to over-hasty scuttlings when the ship could have actually been saved. Scuttling a damaged ship though is different to such scuttlings as the French fleet at Toulon or the High Seas fleet at Scapa which were to deny the enemy valuable resources and to restore national pride. Chris Langtree -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From: "Reynaga, Tim@EDD" Subject: Admiral Scheer colours Hello all. I'm working away on the Heller Admiral Scheer and plan to depict her in the late war overall blue scheme depicted in Robert Stern's Kriegsmarine book. The rendering shows the ship in profile, with the decks not visible. Does anyone have any specific color recommendations for both the hull and the decks? Were the decks even painted? Thanks. Tim Reynaga -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13) From: Darren Scannell Subject: Re: Wood/Plywood Kelvin askes: >> What are the suitable common woods (read inexpensive) available in a Canadian/US lumber stores that can be used for building fairly large (up to 6 feet long) RC boats. << Hi Kelvin, A friend and I are currently working up a bread and butter hull using pine. It will be used as a plug for a fiberglass mold, but I have seen it used successfully with a layer of fiberglass on the outside. I have used balsa successfully with fiberglass resin inside and out (no cloth-it's held up for 20 years!) and I have seen basswood and door skins used. Fiberglass seems to cover a multitude of sins. Darren Scannell Bowmanville, Ontario -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14) From: "Jeff Herne" Subject: Measure 21 - deck details etc... Guys, Measure 21 is the simplest camoflauge measure to replicate... Ms 21 consists of 5-N Navy Blue on everything vertical. Since depth charges are round in nature, they are painted overall 5-N as well. This is substaniated in all photos I have where depth charges are visible. The exceptions to this rule would include: a.) Ships that are actively depth charging, and new charges haven't been painted in matching camo colors. A hypothetical example: USS Kidd is painted in Ms 22, upper surfaces 5-H Haze Gray, and takes on a new load of depth charges from her tender that are painted in 5-N... It is easier to list the things that should NOT be painted over in 5-N, this would include: fire hoses and nozzles, ropes and lines, antenna connection points (ceramic brown or black), floater nets, 20mm gun barrels and breeches, 40mm recoil springs (usually, on some museum ships they've been painted over). Other items include canvas casing bags on 20mm mounts, where applicable. Things that WOULD get painted that you may think wouldn't, can include, radar arrays and ECM antenna, this varies, some tech orders I have clearly state that you may or may not paint certain parts of the arrays. Other items include porthole covers, porthole glass, brass fittings, electrical junction boxes and conduits, life rings, watertight door dogs and wheels, and blast bags. Basically, ANYTHING that is capable of reflecting light should be covered in some manner. If you compare 5-N and 20-B, they are fairly close colors, especially in scales like 350 and 700. I do not think anyone will bother you over whether your depth charges are 5-N or 20-B... Any questions? Jeff -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15) From: Tom & Jane Dunbar Subject: Re: BWN & C.I Please do not confuse BWN with "cottage industries" as it appears to have been done. Cottage Industries(William Blackmore) is extremely reliable. Yes, both BWN and C.I are out of South Carolina. Hope the air is clear! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16) From: Mike Settle Subject: USS Wisconsin BB-64 Hi, All, Good news! According to the 17 Aug edition of The Virginian-Pilot newspaper, the battleship Wisconsin has found a home. The BB will be berthed on Norfolk's downtown waterfront. The US Congress provided 4 million dollars for the move, with the US Navy covering the rest of the estimated 5.8 million dollar total cost. The move will not take place for 12 to 16 months, that being the length of time needed to dig a space and construct docking piers and an underwater bulkhead to shore up the foundation of Nauticus, the complex alongside which the Wisconsin is to be berthed. The Navy will continue to own and maintain the Wisconsin. It is projected that the main deck and a couple of compartments will be open to the public. Mike Settle I am not agent #1908 of the non-existent Lumber Cartel (tinlc)tm -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17) From: BSteinIPMS@aol.com Subject: 1/700 Skywave FLETCHER Regarding the weapons fit of the USS KIDD, it may help to know that this FLETCHER class destroyer went through three weapons refits during WW II. In the last fit as of August 1945, the ship carried five 5"/38 calibre enclosed gun mounts, three twin 40mm Bofors (one on top of the aft deckhouse on the O2 level, and two on the O1 level below and forward of the bridge), two quad 40mm Bofors on the O1 level on the amidships deckhouse just aft of the forward stack, and finally, twelve 20mm Oerlikons in six twin mounts: two on the fantail and four on either side of the amidships deckhouse in the waist. If you have the interest, you can access the Web site of the KIDD and see her in this configuration at: http://www.premier.net/~uss_kidd/home.html. You can also take a photo tour of the KIDD via Paul Jacobs' Web site "Warship" at: http://warship.simplenet.com And have fun. Bob Steinbrunn Minneapolis Louisiana Naval War Memorial--USS KIDD Nautical Research Guild -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18) From: "Ray S. Katzaman" Subject: USS Enterprise (circa 1799) Ok you old salties, Need your assistance in obtaining some history on this ship. Name is the USS Enterprise built around 1799. Two masted schooner or sloop. About 10 to 12 guns on spar deck. Your assistance will be more than appreciated. Write to my email adress: mailto:rskcnk@swbell.net. Thanks, Ray S. Katzaman -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19) From: "Shaya Novak" Subject: Wood for shipbuilders The premier wood company for model shipbuilders is in Bronx, NYC Albert Constantine and Sons. phone 718-792-1600 They are the best they have everything! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20) From: "Satin, Michael N. (SHEP)" Subject: Re: Rodney/Nelson Book info >> I just bought new book from Polish AJPress with HMS Nelson/Rodney battleships (view HMS Hood review at Warship home page). It's absolutely great, 80 pages, dozens of photos (many full page), detailed drawings in 1:400, color profiles with a wild Admirality camouflage scheme... But for most of you there is one problem - it is in Polish... << Thanks for letting us know Damian! I could use some good info on Nelson. Anyone know where I could get a copy of this book, preferably in the US? Thanks!! Michael Satin -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21) From: "Kenneth H. Goldman" Subject: Fw: Darwin Award Nominee Since the land down under has a place named after the same bloke, I thought this nominee for the Darwin Award would be appropriate. As some of you know, the Darwin awards go to the individual who is most creative in deselecting him or herself from the gene pool - the biggest problem with the gene pool being there is no lifeguard. Ken Goldman THE WALRUS AND THE CARPENTER http://www.wman.com/~khgold/ -----Original Message----- Sir, Thought you would get a kick out of this. This is no sea story. We're ... aboard the Peleliu doing 11th MEU's SOCEX. Just before sunset Friday, a Jetski pulls along side the Peleliu and shouts at a Sailor on deck and asks which way to Catalina Island (Oh by the way, we're 35 miles from anywhere). He sees the Sailor point in a direction and starts to head-off. What he failed to realize was the Sailor was pointing at him and telling his friends to come look at the moron on the Jetski. Fortunately, realizing this "would be contender" for the Darwin Award had a good chance of winning, the Captain of the Ship turned the Peleliu and gave pursuit. Finally, gaining the rider's attention, he returned to the ship and was directed to park his trusty chariot in the well deck. As it turned out, he was part of a group from Newport Beach that was headed to Catalina Island. During their trek, he and another rider got separated from the pack. Oh, where was this second rider. Hmmm. Well he'd run out of gas and left adrift by the guy we picked up. The balance of the evening and early morning hours were spent launching a SAR effort with the Coast Guard to find this wayward gent. He was recovered just after sunrise. When asked how he was feeling he replied "I'm one happy dude." We took an informal poll and unanimously voted these two gents must have vasectomies. No need for that gene pool to continue! I can neither confirm nor deny, but it was said that before the Ship's Captain would allow the first rider aboard, he wanted confirmation whether or not he was part of the MEU's exercise problem. V/R, Stock -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22) From: crofoot@bfm.org (Crofoot, Christopher) Subject: WEM and Ark Royal? SMMLies, Is it my imagination that somebody said WEM might be doing a detail and PE kit for Airfix's 1/600 Ark Royal? I picked one up just because of that hope. Caroline???, is it true?? If so... When? And please tell me it's going to have some decent "stringbags" in it! Chris Crofoot -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 23) From: crofoot@bfm.org (Crofoot, Christopher) Subject: Re: Sinking our own Cripples While not an expert, I think there were two reasons to sink our own damaged vessels. One: Possible salvage by the enemy. The Hornet was sent to the bottom by our own torpedoes because of an approaching surface force that was stronger. With little time to salvage the ship she was destroyed rather than let her fall into the hands of the Japanese who may have had more time to salvage her. Additionally there are intelligence concerns... If an enemy managed to get onto an abandoned vessel they could compromise codes, movements, plans, technical journals, that would be better off at the floor of the ocean. We managed to do that to the German Uboat, U-505. That effort helped the allies read German orders because the Nazis never realized she had been captured. Two: Tradition and Honor. As far as I know, it is a mark of failure to surrender your vessel to the enemy (at least in US Navy tradition). Better to fight your ship until it sinks from under you than surrender it...even against impossible odds. Witness the Navy shunning the captain and crew of the US intelligence gathering vessel captured by N. Korean forces in the 60's. (the name temporarily escapes me). Chris Crofoot -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 24) From: "sctrtrash" Subject: Vegemite, and no relationship whatsoever with nautical subjects Dear SMMLies: As an American traveling in Australia for 5 weeks, I developed a taste for Vegemite. I can only express in terms familiar with American tastes. Hence, ergo, to wit, it tastes like gelled and congealed Geritol. It is very good on toast with a lot of butter, and a thin spreading of Vegemite. If spread like peanut butter, it can be a little tart and assault the taste buds, but if spread thinly, with a lot of butter on toast, it is palatable, and enjoyable. I have seen Ausies, lather it on thickly, and devour it with relish, laughing at the American disdain for the pasty substance. Milo however, is another product that gets little or no press coverage, that is on a par with Quick, or Ovaltine. G'day, dijahaveagoodweegend? Ididwith"Aeroguard"! L8R MMM New Richmond WI With gentle Canadian Zepyr's making for an exquisite week so far. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25) From: "Aylin Kececi" Subject: Re: Blue Water Navy customer service-NOT Here are a few words regarding the subject matter. I did try to do business with the mentioned manufacturer. I ordered one batch of products (not just naval but other modeling rlated items as well) and to queries (such as papers and invoices) didn't get any response. After I wired the money it took them months to send the parcel with missing parts. Did not get an invoice and had trouble with the customs. Further did noteven try asking for replacement parts. That was my first and the last attempt to do business with them. It would be easier to import or buy from retailers rather than directly, thus avoiding any trouble. By the way, we were shaken with measure 7.8 according to Richter scale, here in ISTANBUL. Thousands of dead. I was in the city. We had about 250 after-quakes since then, some measuring 5.5. This is an experience I would NOT wish for anybody. Good health to all, ALP -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 26) From: Ross Mac Donald Subject: Re: Vegemite Hi all, I've just arrived at this list and thought I could help the vegemite issue. There is a beer produced here in sunny Brisbane, Australia, that is just what you need on a hot, sunny Sunday after chasing Crocodiles and subjugating Buffalo. Now this beer is clearly a superior beer as it is consumed icy cold straight from the trusty Kelvinator and has the most delightfully simple name of XXXX. (pronounced "fourex" for uneducated heathens) and is an extremely useful beer. Not only does it have the usual endearing properties of beer (makes supermen out of mortals/chicks look better/everyone gets freindlier/promises are made), but it has many by-products. Gas, more beer ingredients, something else which I can't (hic) remember and VEGEMITE. Now it follows that, being made from such a superior product, it must BEAT THE HELL OUT OF MARMITE! And that, my freinds, is Vegemite. Oh, better get another beer...... Rossco Hi Rossco, Well, at last!!!, something good comes out of XXXX. Must have something to do with all the cane toads up there ;-ş. Shane - ducking for cover ;-) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27) From: BSteinIPMS@aol.com Subject: Re: New England vacation Allan wants to know what to do in New England. Well, for starters, go to Boston. That should keep you busy for a month. Just across the Charles River from downtown Boston, in Charlestown, is the Boston Navy Yard. The USS CONSTITUTION and the Constitution Museum are there, as well as one of the three remaining FLETCHER class destroyers left, the USS CASSIN YOUNG, DD 793. Both are run by the US Park Service, and the tour of the CASSIN YOUNG is especially interesting. Just south of Boston in Quincy is the cruiser USS QUINCY, and you can check out this ship's Web site at: http://www.uss-salem.org Bob Steinbrunn Minneapolis -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28) From: Cataldo Torelli Subject: SMML international survey Hi Shane, What about a SMML international survey focusing in Town and Country ? Just an idea. Cataldo Torelli. Madrid, Spain. Hi Cataldo, Sounds good to me. It's been about a year since the last survey. Shane -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 29) From: Cataldo Torelli Subject: Measure 21, 22 and deck details. Hi Mark, A point on this very interesting threat: There's a photo of USS Ringgold (DD-500) wearing MS 22 (Squadron Signal Fletcher DDs in action, pg. 21) with that seems Deck Blue on the upperface of the rear quintuple torpedo launcher, but NOT on the forward one. The rest of the gear seems to be painted according measure especifications. Gun barrels are overall grey and DC's on K-guns seem Deck Blue. Regards, Cataldo Torelli. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30) From: "Leverett L. Preble" Subject: Re: Visiting New England Starting south and working northward. There is Groton Conn. where you can see Submarines, Mystic Conn Has Mystic Seaport a whole village devoted to sailing vessels. In Mass. stop at Battleship Cove Fall River and see the USS Mass. and a DD, PT, sub and models. Half way between Fall river and Boston is the USS Salem A heavy cruiser. In Boston(Charlestown Navy yard) is the USS Constitution and a Fletcher class DD. In Cambridge at MIT is a tiny, ship model museum. In Maine at Bath there is a Maritime Museum and way up north at Castile? Maine, at the Maine Maritime Academy, there is another. The best are Mystic, Battle ship Cove and the USS Constitution. This list is off the top of my head. I would be interested in other places to visit. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 31) From: Mike Connelley Subject: Photoetched AA guns Howdy: Tired of thick, out of scale light AA guns? Wondering what to do with all that left over photoetched railing? I devised a solution to this problem while working on my 1/700 Yamato. Although the kit is top quality, the 25mm tripple AA gun barrels are still way too thick for the scale. I was considering replacing them with the most impressive WEM set (I feel somewhat obligated to promote their product since this technique may cut into thier sales), but that wouldn't help me with the 24 shielded mounts. Glueing 150 little bits of wire didn't sound like too much fun either. So here's what I did. It just so happens that the spaces between the rails left over from the railing for my just finished Arizona kit in 1/426 scale exactly matches the spacing between the guns of the 25mm tripple mount in 1/700 scale! I checked and some of the railing on the GMM 1/700 PE set for the Yamato also works here. First get some straight and sharp (preferably new) wire cutters and clip off the plastic gun barrels. What's left on the part will end in a little point, so file it flat. Take some of the spare railing and trim it so it's like an E. Apply a little CA glue to the plastic part and glue the open end of the E to the part so that the back of the E faces outward. Keeping the barrels together like this cuts down on the number of parts you gotta glue, and also gaurantees the guns are all straight and at the same elevation, not to mention giving you something bigger to grab onto and to see. Let the CA dry fully. Then with your sharp wire cutters clip the back of the E off and *PRESTO* perfect photoetched gun barrels. Just make sure you clip the ends of the gun barrels straight. My first few attempts it seemed like the barrels were slanted to the side, so I glued the guns into place on the superstructure (to anchor them to something I could hold) then nudged the barrels into the right angle with the tip of a #11 blade. Glueing the E the other way around may present a few problems. You'll be able to see the PE connecting the barrels. Also if there are remnant stubs of railing on the back of the E then it'll stick out and be too obvious. Also, glueing the E on the way I described above allows me to maximize the number of guns I can do with a given length of railing (important when doing 50 mounts). Give this a try, I'm glad I did! It really makes a big difference. If you have any questions please email me. Cheers Mike Connelley -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 32) From: Johan Myhrmanl Subject: Re: Yamato/Musashi Hello! Jon Parshall wrote: >> The standard deck plans that we all see (according to what Bill Jurens of Warship International told me once) are all basically descendants from of a set of rice-paper tracings that are sitting in the National Archives. << The Gakken IJN book 20 on the Yamato has a foldout color photograph showing 1/100 scale drawings of the Yamato/Musashi on yellowish paper. The drawings are dated February 7 1944 and show what looks like modification changes in red and blue ink. I have been wondering what this is. My Japanese reading abilities are far from beeing able to understand the details. But could this be the drawings from the National Archives? Foeth wrote: >> One more question, are there *good* references on the Shinano? I thought it might be fun to take a Tamiya 1/350 hull and scrap away, some day. I do not mean the Garzke and Dulin drawings, but something slightly more substantial. << The recent Gakken IJN book 22 is on the Shinano and Taiho (the book was released some 3 weeks ago at 1600 Yen). The information in the book is mostly on the Taiho as more information exists on her. For the Shinano the main information is: Some 11 pages of color photographs of a 1/300 scale model plus a 4 page photo fold out showing a print of the ship enlarged to 1/500 scale. A 4 page fold out drawing of the flight deck with details of the gun posistions. Two fold out drawing around 1/700 scale with sideview/topview and deck drawings showing layout details of 3 different deck levels. There are also several hull cross section drawings showing the general construction and layout. Finally extensive line drawings show the shape of the hull. A few and poor pictures and a lot of text in Japanese. As a bonus, there is a color fold out of IJN carrier camouflage information from the US Naval inteligence. I'm aware that my resent inputs (albeit few) to SMML has been related to Gakken's series of books on IJN ships. I'm in no way related to this publisher. But these books pop out about every second months and always amazes me when it comes to the information they manage to squees into one volume. Often quite rare photographs and drawings. If you have an interest in IJN ships, these books are worth getting. Best Regards Johan Myhrman -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 33) From: Andy Anderson Subject: Spray Paint Can anyone tell me why there isn't a can of Hazy gray out there. I sure hate hooking up my spray gun to paint a small piece for my ships. But I bet the Paint Guys have the answer. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 34) From: Lim Chan Hiok Subject: Re: book review bb63 & Teak deck Incidentally, how would you rate the Plan Book from the Floating Drydock? I'm planning a BB-63 myself in the near future and am contemplating purchasing that reference. Definitely a must. I like the layout which starts from the bow working towards the stern and then working upwards. Photos are clear and useful. The only downside is the photocopy/printing is not clear on some very small/minute details but not a big deal here. hiok -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 35) From: Cataldo Torelli Subject: To find a WWII US Navy veteran Hello, A few months ago I received an e-mail from (I think) a veterans group. They are looking for a person who served in a WWII US Navy destroyer or destroyer escort. It's called Torelli (I can't remember the first name). Maybe he's family with my father. Well, I didn't pay much attention to that e-mail and I've lost it. Is there a web site or e-mail address to make a contact with the veterans group ? Thanks in advance, Cataldo Torelli. Madrid, Spain. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 36) From: KDur597268@aol.com Subject: Bismarck beam Hi - The question came up here a little while ago concerning the beam of certain Bismarck models. I had heard that the Tamiyacademy kit was a bit lacking in that dimension so I was wondering about the Heller. Evert-Jan posted what should be the correct dimensions, and while waiting for my replacement non-warped hull halves I did a little home dry-dock work on the existing halves - did the same on Prinz Eugen BTW, fit like a watch - and lo and behold, it scaled out perfectly! In case anyone was interested. Ken D -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: "Shaya Novak" Subject: Naval Base Hobbies has the SUBCHASER For the Glenco Subchaser go to the "Patrol Boat" page at: http://www.modelshipbuilding.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume