Subject: SMML VOL 1155 Date: Fri, 16 Feb 2001 23:53:54 -0800 shipmodels@tac.com.au -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1: Nautical v Statute Miles 2: Re: W.O.G.S. 3: Re: 1/350 Essex 4: Tamiya or ICM Essex Class 5: The shape of the world ... so to say 6: Re: U.S. Navy Yachts in France 1917-18 7: Re: Sea Lance 8: Re: Enterprise 1/350 hangar deck 9: Movie "Crash Dive" 10: American DDs at Normandy 11: Japanese ships 12: Re: the New Navy 13: Re: WOGS 14: USS Indianapolis 15: Re: Sea LANCE 16: Military finds refreshing change with new commander in chief -- The Washington Times 17: Tamiya Acrylic Color Mix 18: HMS Fearless 19: Re: WOGS 20: E-Boat Sites 21: Earth is not a perfect sphere 22: Re: Light Cruiser NAGARA 23: Australian Federation Naval review 24: Re: 1/350 Essex 25: 1:350 Enterprise hangar deck 26: ICM" Essex"??? 27: Des Moines and Duluth 28: Shape of the Earth 29: Nautical Miles etc 30: Safety Board Tells of Fight to Survive Sinking of Fishing Vessel Hit by Submarine 31: Re: USS Greeneville - Pentagon Bars Civilians From Submarine controlls 32: Re: Essex -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Model club & SMMLcon Infomation 1: Re: IPMS/USA Competition Handbook 2: SMML Lunch this Saturday 3: USS Cole pictures -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD INDEX 1: Re: Enterprise 1/350 hanger deck. Have you made one? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: "Tony Ireland" Subject: Nautical v Statute Miles Hi James, I enjoyed your dry humour when you said that you remembered from your training as a Surveyer that one Nautical Mile equates with one second of Longitude (Not Latitude) Actually, right on the Equator - and only there - one second of Longitude measures 101 feet 4 inches... (6,080 divided by 60.) But at Helsinki (60 N. Lat.) this shrinks to about 50 feet, and if a U.S. Nuclear SSN were to cruise in a circle at, say, ten knots and five miles off the North Pole and around it - beneath the ice - each second of Longitude would measure only a few inches. The sub would travel through all 360 *degrees* of Longitude around the globe in approx 3 hours and 9 minutes. I'm sure this was tried out decades ago, e.g by USS 'Nautilus' - to test their inertial guidance navigation instruments on board and keep the crew on their toes. I also enjoyed Steven Sliwka's post (Vol 1051). He says that a Statute Mile is shorter than a N.M. as it is based on flat land. Our ancestors certainly tended to prefer to dwell on flattish plains rather than precipitous mountains, but they seldom bothered to measure distances of more than a few miles. Their strip fields were hardly bigger than a bowling alley. Hauling a heavy 66-foot iron chain 80 times across Medieval England was thirsty work, like playing cricket on a 66-ft pitch. So taverns - and tiny villages - tended to be spaced every mile or so. They chose 66 feet probably because it was the longest chain that men could drag with the aid of a horse or bullock. The weight and friction of a longer chain would end up breaking links too frequently. Their choice of 80 Chains to a Mile was purely arbitrary. Maybe it was the maximum distance they could measure in a long summer's day. Hence the 5,280 ft length of a landsman's Mile is a purely accidental oddity, as meaningless as anything dreamed up by Monty Python, except that it was a nice round number that could be divided by three to give yards, then by three again to give feet, and then by 12 to give inches. But many other numbers would have been just as good. So it's useless to seek an explanation based on a Mile on flat land versus a Mile on the curved surface of the sea. There just aint no flat land, to begin with. Beyond about 10 or 15 miles on the Kansas wheatlands the Earth curves away out of sight over the horizon, just like the surface of the sea. Not because our eyes are weak. We can see details clearly on the Moon, which is 240,000 miles away. I'd have loved to see my forebears' faces, in their skin clothes and woad blue sun-tan lotion, if they could have seen what a guy named Eratosthenes was up to in Alexandria, Egypt about 225 B.C. He'd heard that the sun's rays shone down to the bottom of a deep well in Aswan around mid-June - but never in Alexandria, where his giant protractor showed the sun never rose higher than about 82.5 degrees at noon in mid-summer. So he knew he could measure the diameter of our planet. Snag was, he first had to measure the distance southwards to Aswan. No problem. Traders told him that it took their camel caravans fifty days to cover this distance. So he simply measured with rods, chains, and ropes how far they travelled out from Alexandria on the first day. Easy. His figure for the Earth's diameter was only 16% too large. BTW Alexandria harbour was where the battleship 'Queen Elizabeth', that I served in in 1944, was sunk by Italian frogmen - plus her sister ship 'Valiant' - at the end of 1941. Quite a story. The guy I'd have liked to meet in Alexandria about a century later revelled in the glorious name of Poseidonius. Obviously a born seaman. Probably carved model boats and sailed them in Alex. harbour. Ought to be official Patron of the SMML... He thought old Eratosthenes's notion of distance-measuring was a load of camel er.. dung. So he quizzed all the skippers there about how long it usually took them to sail north across the Med. to the island of Rhodes. And back again. Estimating the speed of the trading vessels, he came up with the length of his base line - about 360 miles - shorter than the camel trip. He sighted on the star Canopus - 7.5 degrees above the horizon - as the sun set at Rhodes, then compared this with similar sights at Alex. His result for the Earth's diameter was only 11% too large. So let's hear it for the sailors! This Olympic Record stood for nearly 1,000 years, till one of Saddam's ancestors had a go in about 820 A.D. near Baghdad. No mucking about with camels or ships. They started their measurements with six barley seeds laid end to end to make an inch. Then 24 of these inches made an Ell - a bit over two feet. Then 4,000 ells made one Mile - much longer than a Statute Mile. They measured with wooden rods a long base-line across the semi-desert, then took star sights. Their result was only 3.6% too big. This record stood for 800 years until the first scientific survey of France about 1650, which got Isaac Newton interested in apples. Trust Napoleon to get in on the act 150 years later, bequeathing to us the Metric System that nobody likes in the U.S. of A. apart from a few stuffy scientists and astronomers... Cheers, Tony -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: Les Pickstock Subject: Re: W.O.G.S. I was always given to understand that this term was coined in Egypt in the 19thC and stands for "Working On Government Ships". But as has been said it is now a very derogatory term and is not in polite use. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: Billgior@aol.com Subject: Re: 1/350 Essex to all on the smml page who think that tamiya is building a 1/350 scale uss essex class aircraft carrier it is not going to happen. my name is bill giordano i have worked in the hobby industry for 30 years i am curently working for rider's hobbies in taylor michigan, i was at the chicago show in october which is the biggest show of the year every company is there includeing tamiya. i met them and talked to them, includeing mr. tamiya. they told me they are not planning to do anymore 1/350 scale ships because there profit margins on them are so low, they also told me that uss essex class aircraft carrier was never being planed. so there you have it so don't get your hopes up. also yes icm does have it on there future list of ships they want to do but they still have not done the1/350 scale hood as of yet no one has even seen it i taled to them also in chicago they only had the box art there. i also am made to understand that they made money with the 1/350 konig battleship but that the second one did not do so well. also i just got the new mmd catalog for 2001 which is the sqadron shop and the icm hood and the japanese cruisers are no longer listed for 2001. so i don't no what is happening but it does not look good. i thought i would share that with you. so lets keep are fingers crossed. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From: Rod Dauteuil Subject: Tamiya or ICM Essex Class Hello all, Just one thought on the topic---I won't believe it until I see it. Rod -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From: "Edward F Grune" Subject: The shape of the world ... so to say Craig was asking about the shape of the earth. I believe that I've read that the earth is an "Oblate Spheroid". That is a sphere that is flattened slightly at the poles. I would describe it as more closely resembling a tangerine than an orange, and definately not pear shaped. Ed Mansfield, TX -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From: "Edward F Grune" Subject: Re: U.S. Navy Yachts in France 1917-18 Dave was asking about photos & information on US Navy yachts during WWI. The US Naval Historical Center has been running some photos of Great War cargo ships, tugs and patrol boats. The current additions to the online libary include the Patrol Yacht HARVARD (SP-209). See the link below to the USNHC. http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-h/sp209.htm Ed Mansfield, TX -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From: mumfordlibrarian@netscape.net Subject: Re: Sea Lance The boys might want to select a new name for their design study, see below. XMGM-52B Sea Lance The submarine launched anti-submarine standoff weapon, Sea Lance, was intended to replace SUBROC, although it was cancelled while in full scale engineering development phase. Sea Lance was to carry the newly developed Mark 50 Advanced Light Weight Torpedo (ALWT) payload and the development program included an option for follow-on, nuclear bomb payload variant. Sea Lance incorporated a digital guidance system similar to the inertial guidance system used in ADCAP. Sea Lance was capable of deep launch from a submarine torpedo tube with one of the two warhead options. The missile then is buoyed to the surface in a water-tight container where the solid propellent rocket motor ignites and delivers the weapon the target area at supersonic speed. At a point above the suspected target area, the warhead detaches form the rocket and parachutes to the water. Upon contact with water, the torpedo warhead assumes its search and attack pattern. The deployment of Sea Lance was intended to complement the capabilities of the ADCAP torpedo by providing a stand-off option whereby an enemy submarine can be incapacitated from a distance well beyond the maximum engagement range of the ADCAP torpedo. In addition, Sea Lance was to provide expanded engagement opportunities against high speed transiting and evading submarines. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From: KelDQ@aol.com Subject: Re: Enterprise 1/350 hangar deck Go here: http://www.modelwarships.com/index1.html Click on Features and find my article on building the Enterprise. I'm sure there are better ways, but you can see how I did it. Also, I've heard rumors of somebody doing a resin drop in hangar deck for the Tamiya kit, I think it was Tom's Modelworks. Kelly Quirk -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From: "Edward F Grune" Subject: Movie "Crash Dive" Hello SMMLies and movie trivia buffs. Last evening, while surfing through the channels on the satellite dish, I came across the movie "Crash Dive" with Tyrone Power in the leading role. I was unable to sit down and watch the whole thing. As the name suggests, its submarine flick. And it was filmed during WWII. Power was a PT Boat hero transferred to the submarine service. In the first half hour or so there was an exterior shot of the waterfront area at the submarine base in New London. Sailing across the background of the scene was a 4-pipe destroyer in a marvelous MS 12 (splotch) camouflage pattern. The colors apeared to be dead-on blues & purple-grays. My question is; was Crash Dive originally filmed in color or was it shot in B&W and colorized? If it was colorized - they did a good job on hitting the colors. I might have to rent a copy of the film to catch another peak at this ship and to see if Tyrone saves his ship, singlehandedly wins the war, and gets the girl before the ending credits roll. Ed Mansfield, TX -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From: Summers David Col 56 MDG/SGPMI Subject: American DDs at Normandy Please forgive an avalanche question, but.... I'd like to know the names of American DD's in and around the French coast May-June 1944. Where were the American combat ships based while waiting for the invasion? Did they sit in harbor late May, waiting for the balloon to go up? --Or orbit as a fleet in the deep sea? Or did they patrol in and around the Channel--perform some useful service? Thanks for any help. David Summers -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From: FrederKappes@netscape.net (Friedrich Kappes) Subject: Japanese ships Who can help? Kamoi (japanese seaplane carrier) dates and pictures of all conversion, esp. the reconversion to an oiler in 1943 Kyodo Maru: date of commission, speed Kanko and Kanrin: date of commission, career Maiko: date of commission as Macau T15 and T51 (Japanese MTBīs WWII) in service since? TIA Friedrich The FriedrichFiles http://sites.netscape.net/friedkappes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From: Roland Mar Subject: Re: the New Navy Just a couple of thoughts. I am not averse to "low end mix" vessels, nor to unorthodox hull forms. Indeed, we have been rather slow in adopting new technologies in hull and propulsion systems. However, there are some questions that must be answered and some drawbacks that must be accepted in reference to the design noted. First of all is the obvious one of survivability. The COLE and the STARK took major damage, and the vessels were saved. With a crew of 13, and one can assume that with any damage that would be ship threatening there would be casualties, damage control would probably not be possible. We are looking at a situation similar to the old PT boats. Second, there is the question of support. Like PT's and like the PGHM's which we used to have, the need for tender/base support must be factored in. I assume that most of the systems would be modular, which would help in maintenance; but you would have to have the appropriate logistical tail. Factored into the cost would have to be the tender support. To the best of my knowledge, with the exception of 2 submarine tenders [AS], we have scrapped our entire tender fleet and depend on civilian contractors. Since these are designed to be close in "streetfighters", I rather doubt that the average contractor wants to be at the sharp end of things. Third, are the weapons and sensor systems noted actually in existence or are they purely theoretical? This adds to the cost and deployment timeline. The days when you could push through a vital weapons program from concept to development in time spans measured in months are long gone. If we had to develop Polaris again, it would take 20+ years because of the added costs/weight of the paperwork. Fourth, there is the matter of transit time at 15 kts. In these days of 100 mile EEZ's, if I was your average rogue state dictator I would be watching movements far out to sea. If I saw a flock of SEALANCE's heading for my waters, and I had already made the decision for an armed confrontation, I would give strong consideration to taking them out while they were relatively helpless. Conversely, if matters were still in the balance, the relatively slow approach would be a wonderful form of psychological pressure on said dictator. Finally, there is the problem of legality. Granting that international law is frequently the codification of the power of the strong over the weak, what would be the status of weaponry/sensors deployed on the seabed or surface of water granted by the international community to the exclusive control of the littoral state [EEZ]. The deployment moves somewhat beyond the concept of "right of innocent passage". This is not to say that the concept should be dropped, by any means. If it can be made to work in a cost effective manner and it fits with our strategic needs, let's do it. Simply that the drawbacks must be examined and accounted for and/or accepted. One problem facing our military is a lack of innovation. Junior officers are afraid to come up with something new, for it puts their career at risk. Even if the defense budget, which apparently is not going to grow to any great extent in the foreseeable future, does not allow this to go into production; the intellectual leavening this kind of thought experiment provides can only be beneficial. Besides, it opens up the possibilities of modeling some really neat new ships! Roland Mar -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13) From: CA139JOHNF@aol.com Subject: Re: WOGS >> The original abreviation, WOG, meant Westernised Oriental Gentleman and was NOT a derogatory term at all. It has, unfortunately, come to have a lot of VERY nasty connotations << Perhaps I am a little foggy, but, I seem to recall many years ago reading in a book about the building and early operation of the Suez Canal, the term was used to describe locally hired labor. The term ment "Worker on Government Service". I do hope this isn't another hole in my knowledge base. I was rather worried during the recent "mystery cruiser" postings. 8>0 John Frohock USNSM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14) From: "J. London" Subject: USS Indianapolis Can anyone tell me what planes Indianapolis carried at the time of her loss? Michael London -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15) From: "JAmes McCormick" Subject: Re: Sea LANCE Intersting article, I couldn't help but make some comparisons between it, and my former ship, USS Pegasus. Pegasus class was intended for close in support as well, a few of her problems were lack of life support(we had a very very small galley, and our freezer was microscopic. Lack of berthing- a flaw in design that was never overcome. From an engineering standpoint, we were a burden to the Navy, the Taxpayer, the Nation, and Modern Man (acccording to Cinclant). The hydrofoil system was just too exoctic for everyday use. Twin hull Cats? Crew of 13? I dunno, Idunno..... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 16) From: JRKutina@webtv.net (John Kutina) Subject: Military finds refreshing change with new commander in chief -- The Washington Times http://www.washtimes.com/national/default-2001215225333.htm -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 17) From: johnny chen Subject: Tamiya Acrylic Color Mix Hi Everyone! I've been lurking here and at SteelNavy for about two months now, as well as searching for informative websites and I still have not found the definitive answers. So I need your extreme indulgence. I'm using Tamiya acrylic paints and to some extend some basic color of Gunze Sangyo spray paints (because I have no other access brands such as Humbrol, Testor, etc.). Which Tamiya code to you use to produce modern USN Haze Gray and Deck Gray? Also Royal Navy's modern hull gray and its deck gray? Is it called Light Admiralty Grey? On my last Type 42/C project, I used 2 parts Light Grey XF-65 and 1 part Flat White with a drop of X-4 Blue, for my hull grey and "lighten" XF24 Dark Grey for my decks. Was I near the actual color? Photo references from books are of a little help since they vary a lot. Please enlighten me (or maybe there are others lurking for the same info). Thanks. JT -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18) From: "Edward Brown" Subject: HMS Fearless Paperback (A4 size 44 pages) specific to Falkands time frame exists entitled: Falklands '82 HMS Fearless at War - 100 days in the life of an Assault Ship. written by various members of crew and published by Bourne Press, Bournemouth - no ISBN. Essentially "school mag" type publication but good value. No plans but plenty of onboard photos of Fearless including Y turrret, a full deck park at Ascension and Vertreping from deck park. Photos of aircraft on board include Harrier refueling, Chinook, Sea Kings and two Argentian helicopters. Also includes photos of damage to Sir Lancelot, Sir Tristam and Sir Galahad. Edward -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19) From: "Kelvin Mok" Subject: Re: WOGS >> The original abreviation, WOG, meant Westernised Oriental Gentleman and was NOT a derogatory term at all. It has, unfortunately, come to have a lot of VERY nasty connotations << I just got back on after the SMML shutdown and missed the earlier discussion. The term WOG (above explanation is correct) comes from British colonial India where the social climbing locals would so immerse themselves in the ways of the British raj that they would eschew anything to do with being Indian. This went to the extent of adopting full anglo-saxon names, refusing to learn Hindi or whatever the Indian dialect they were born into and speaking only in the best Etonian english. If you heard them from behind a wall you could have sworn he was an Englishman. Had all the mannerisms of an upperclass Englishman too. There are still lots of them around although somewhat out of place in post independence India. Kelvin Mok -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 20) From: Felix Bustelo Subject: E-Boat Sites Hello All, I had a question come my way - does anybody out there in SMML Land know of any internet sites covering E-Boats. Any info would be appreciated. Thanks, Felix Bustelo International Maritime Modeling URL: http://members.tripod.com/~Febus65/imm.htm Hi Felix, IIR, Dave Krakow has or had an E/S-Boat message board. But I can't lay my hands on the url at the moment :-(. Shane -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 21) From: "Steven Sliwka" Subject: Earth is not a perfect sphere Somebody mentioned that they read the earth is not perfectly spherical (round is a 2-dimensional term). It isn't. It bulges at the equator (IIRC, it's something like 25 miles/33 kilometres, not much). I've actually read that in several places. Steve -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22) From: SteveWiper@aol.com Subject: Re: Light Cruiser NAGARA >> Several years ago, I had a copy of plans of the IJN light cruiser Nagara (Nagara class) by Miyukikai (Myco?) in 1:200 scale. << All the MYCO Plans are available thru Pacific Front Hobbies @ www.pacificfront.com or @ (541)464-8579. Steve Wiper -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 23) From: "Martin Lamb" Subject: Australian Federation Naval review Dear SMMLers, Does anyone have information regarding the fleet review to be held in Sydney in October for the RAN's 90th Anniversary? I only found out about it on the following web site. http://www.seawaves.com/navcall.htm Thanks. Martin Hi Martin, I only found out a snippet last week myself. It's being held in mid October, which means we'll be cutting short our planned trip to the UK later this year. The fleet will be reviewed By Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. From the info I have, the Review is part of the year long celebration of Australia's Federation. At the moment I have no info on which Navies or which ships will be attending. But if it's aything like the 75th Anniversary & the Bicentennial Naval reviews, it will be magnificent. Sydney Harbour is a great venue for Naval Reviews. Regards, Shane -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 24) From: "Keith Bender" Subject: Re: 1/350 Essex Hello SMMLies, Well here we are again on the 1:350 Essex. I would love a few of those but I'll believe it when I see them on sitting on my work bench and then I may not believe it. But I will keep my fingers crossed & my toes. KTB -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25) From: "Jens H. Brandal" Subject: 1:350 Enterprise hangar deck Yes, I have made one - well, at least started one. The floor is 2mm styrene which I glued together and added two tongues of plastic to reinforce the joint. The tie down pads were marked by drilling 0,1 mm deep dimples in a computer controlled milling machine at work (12 mm between the pads at 45 degrees off the centerline). The walls are 1 mm sheet styrene extending from the floor to the upper levels of the hangar deck openings. The hangar deck is rectangular with the dimensions given in the Detail and Scale book on the CVN-65. The space in between the hangar and the exterior of the hull apparently being taken by spaces, for workshops etc, but it does look greater than what the photos show. The floor will be fixed in place supported by 2 mm wide Evergreen strip glued around the inside of the hull 2mm below the openings of the hangar doors. I took measurements of the floor required to brace the hull the same time, but I will need to look for the drawings later as I'm packing to attend the IPMS Norway Nationals in Oslo this weekend. I can take some pics next week and perhaps I can post them on the SMML website? Jens Hi Jens, They would be welcome. Plus any photos you take at the IPMS Norway Nationals as well ;-) Shane -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 26) From: "D.Przezdziecki" Subject: ICM" Essex"??? 1/350 scale "Essex" from ICM?? Who cares?? ;-) They have been promissing 1/350 "Kniaz Suvorov" for ages and now it looks as somebody put a pressure on them that WW II stuff is more important!! A real tragedy here!!!! I do know that all of you WW II fans will not be happy until you have ALL the major and minor ships in ALL versions that existed, even if it's just one additional AA gun but have some understanding for people interested in REALLY IMPORTANT stuff ;-). Regards D.P. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 27) From: "James Kloek" Subject: Des Moines and Duluth One thing to keep in mind about the plan to make the Des Moines a museum in Duluth is that Duluth has a population under 90,000. That is probably not enough to provide enough people to pay to go through her to make such a thing financially viable. There is a Great Lakes ore carrier ship museum there now that is not overwhemed with tourists. I also heard a scheme to put her north of Duluth in Two Harbors. Two Harbors has around 5,000 people. What were they thinking? Admitedly the North Shore of Lake Superior gets a lot of tourist traffic, both summer and winter, but how likely are those snowmobilers to stop on their way north in the winter to shiver on deck of a cruiser? Summer in Duluth is nice if it falls on a weekend. I think the ship will be better off in a place with more people and a longer season. The citizens of Duluth and Jesse were just being realistic. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 28) From: Joel Labow Subject: Shape of the Earth Last time I checked the correct description of the shape of the earth is an 'oblate spheroid', meaning that the pole-to-pole diameter is shorter than the diameter which passes through the equator. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 29) From: "Tony Ireland" Subject: Nautical Miles etc Hi all, The replys concerning the nautical mile question have been interesting. I was wondering about the shape of the Earth. Some one wrote that the Earth isn't really globe shaped. So is it shaped like say in comparison to orange or pear? It's certainly not pear-shaped. More like an orange that a small child has sat on. This is because the Earth is rotating at an alarming velocity. e.g. Folk at the Equator are hurtling eastwards much faster than the speed of sound - viz just over 1,000 miles per hour - although folk in Scandinavia at c. 60 N.Lat are loafing along at only 500 m.p.h. enjoying life in the Slow Lane. Hence the laid-back lifestyle of Norwegians who settled in Minnesota... Since the interior of the Earth is extremely hot and softened, the centrifugal force caused by this spin around the Polar axis has gradually made the Equatorial belt bulge outwards a bit. At the Poles this force decreases to zero, allowing the polar regions to sag inwards a trifle to compensate. So the Earth is very nearly a sphere - but slightly flattened at the top and bottom. This means that a Nautical Mile starts off 6,080 ft in length at the Equator, but increases a trifle in the Arctic and Antarctic - but not enough for polar bears and Emperor Penguins to notice. This centrifugal effect is seen far more dramatically in the outer giant planets, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus. It's because they are simply huge balls of light-weight frozen gas that squashes outwards far more easily. Jupiter is very bright at night here in Auckland at the moment, and I'm relieved to note that my old eyes can still see three of its 12 satellites through my 7x50 binoculars. Jupiter is c. 11 times the Earth's diameter, and the swirling clouds at its equator do a full rotation in ten hours at an incredible speed of 27,880 m.p.h.. Life in the Fast Lane, indeed... As someone who failed Math exams monotonously all through my school days, yet was told I'd gained the highest marks in Navigation in the twenty-odd years of the S.A.T.S. 'General Botha', I have a sneaking envy for the Khoisan or Bushmen folk in the wastes of the Kalahari. An anthropologist in S.Africa once told me that for the 50,000 years or more they've lived throughout southern Africa as hunter-gatherers, their mathematical system was simply 'One, Two, Three, A Lot.' Cheers, Tony -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30) From: JRKutina@webtv.net (John Kutina) Subject: Safety Board Tells of Fight to Survive Sinking of Fishing Vessel Hit by Submarine http://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/13/national/13HAWA.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 31) From: JRKutina@webtv.net (John Kutina) Subject: Re: USS Greeneville - Pentagon Bars Civilians From Submarine controlls http://www.nytimes.com/2001/02/16/national/16SUB.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 32) From: Chris Rogers Subject: Re: Essex Jeez Cant wait to see this thing Errrrrrr isn't it a ww2 thingamajig a wooden decked thing for landing aircraft on I guess you guys have worn this strand out now chris Oz -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Model club & SMMLcon Infomation -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: SHIPMDLR@aol.com Subject: Re: IPMS/USA Competition Handbook Yeah it's true. After two years, it finally made it into the IPMS/USA web site for all to read and download. Aris Pappas told us it was in the works, but I hadn't heard a word in months until bang, there it was for us to read. I got an advanced "preview" of the handbook several day ago, but I didn't want to say anything until it was officially on the site. I think everyone will find it is all I promised and then some. One thing I noticed about the document is it is so well written and easy to read. Ken and Ralph really did an excellent job! It will be an invaluable tool to anyone interested in judging and how we judge models in the National competition. Also very useful info includes, why we judge the way we do, and why we use those *%^^$#@" flashlights. So if you have ever had any questions about IPMS/USA National judging criteria, how judges are picked, the rules we must live by, why we pick up models to judge them (I don't want to get into that again), or anything else dealing with judging models in IPMS/USA competition, just go to the IPMS/USA website and click on the competition handbook icon. Rusty White Flagship Models Inc. You can now pay using your Visa / MasterCard http://okclive.com/flagship/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From: "Mike Dunn SMML Webmaster" Subject: SMML Lunch this Saturday Guys & Gals going to the FAA...... Seeing as there is a restaraunt on-site, who is interested in trying to make up a SMMLie Lunch party? I'll be around & about (look for the guy with an SMML t-shirt & a digital camera ;-) ), so let me know - or I guess we could try & meet up at the WEM stand! Mike SMML Webmaster -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From: Shane Subject: USS Cole pictures Hi, I have lost the name of the SMMLie who submitted the Cole pics late last year in the "crash of 2001". Could he get back in touch with me please. Regards, Shane -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TRADERS, ANNOUNCEMENTS & NOTICEBOARD -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From: Timothy Dike Subject: Re: Enterprise 1/350 hanger deck. Have you made one? >> Has anybody scratch built the hanger deck for the Tamiya 1/350 Enterprise, if so how did you do it and what materials did you use? Any information would be greatly appreciated. << Kelly Quirk has done that a time or two, and the results are fantastic. He did a buildup article on ModelWarships.com detailing the process. There are some inside shots that show the whole process before the flight deck was added. He makes reference to the Detail and Scale book on CVN-65, that you may want to find a copy of. The direct link to the feature is http://www.modelwarships.com/reviews/ships/cv/cvn65/350/cvn65.html. Timothy Dike Webmaster and Editor ModelWarships.com http://www.modelwarships.com/index1.html -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Check out the SMML site for the List Rules, Backissues, Member's models & reference pictures at: http://www.smml.org.uk Check out the APMA site for an index of ship articles in the Reference section at: http://www.tac.com.au/~sljenkins/apma.htm -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume