Subject: SMML VOL 2577 Date: Fri, 30 Jul 2004 05:12:15 +1000 SMML is proudly sponsored by SANDLE http//sandlehobbies.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS INDEX 1 Re Trip to Virginia 2 Re Trip to Virginia.... 3 Re Looking for a source for 1/350th parts 4 A proud brag 5 Virginia trip 6 Re Trip to Virginia 7 Virginia Trip 8 American History Tour through Virginia 9 Re Color of USS WARD 10 USS Saratoga 1944, 1/200th Scale 11 H-44 Hull Form 12 Re Mini Hobby Models brand 1/350th scale U.S.S. Arizona 13 Re Trip to Virginia ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- MODELLERS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1) From "Jerry Slagle" Subject Re Trip to Virginia >> My wife and I are coming on holiday to the USA next month. The management has allowed me to fulfill a little dream of visiting some of the Civil War sites in Pennsylvamia, Maryland and Virginia. << David, The Mariners Museum at Newport News is nice. I can't speak of the other locations, but maybe some of the other list members can give their input on them. There is a website for the Mariners museum at http//www.mariner.org/ which may help you decide on whether you want to go there or to another location. Hope this helps, Jerry ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2) From Ray Bean Subject Re Trip to Virginia.... Hi Dave.... As a Canadian , I have visited Norfolk, Newport News, etc....several times pretty much with 'saucer eyes' as there is so much to see that to confine this to a one day, one time visit will prove very exasperating. If you have not negotiated US Interstates, with all their overpasses, underpasses, high speeds, monitoring exit signs, this will be an eye opener for you compared to Scotland. The area is a mix of both Revolutionary War and Civil War comemmorate spots. I am NOT a civil war researcher, but I would think you would have to pick one spot like Gettysburg or Manassas historical sites for the day and just get there. Newport News and Hampton are shipyard town/cities.....there is no access to the yards to see anything old anyway. The Hampton Roads Naval Museum is located right in the Nauticus Center which has a huge collection of Civil War models...but their gift shop is a toy shop and expensive. Battleship WISCONSIN is berthed right next door and if you have never seen a WWII BB in sparkling condition, this is the one to see and admission is free for the main decks bow to stern. Just down the road at the Waterside you can take a Carrie B harbor tour which will take you out into HAMPTON ROADS where the famous Monitor Merrimac battle took place, but, its just an expanse of water with no commemorative buoy or anything X to mark the spot. I often wonder why someone doesnt build some pierside 11 replica of each of these nearby as that could be a great tourist trap.... The harbor tour takes you past the last pier of the NOB NORFOLK, and cameras are permitted with a good telephoto lens. But, in the Norlfolk, Newport News area there are , to my knowledge, no Civil War forts or historical sights. As you move up the Peninsula towards Washington, I remember seeing signs for a couple civil war battlefields.... but you may have to get out of that area and travel into Pennsylvania. Again, you are under a bad time constraint, traffic is thick and nothing is right alongside another so you may have to hit some websites and yahoo maps to find the civil war battle site that you want for the day. Hobby shops? Denbigh Hobbies I have heard is the only one to be at in the Hampton area....someone else will chime in and give you directions. Happy white knuckle driving. RDBean ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) From Bill Weckel Subject Re Looking for a source for 1/350th parts >> I am building 2 1/350 Enterprises. One of the kits ismissing an anchor so I am looking for somewhere to get anotherone, or a place that I can buy all new ones. I am also looking for places to get bombs, drop tanks and missiles. If I could get them all in one place it would be great, but I am not holding my breath. ) << If I were doing the "E", I would wait until Trumpeter releases their Nimitz. You'll be able to buy their aircraft, and if their WWII 1/350 planes are any indication, they should be far better than the older Tamiya aircraft. I would bet that they will have stores and ordnance included. From what I hear, they are releasing aircraft accessory packs for just about every plane from Vietnam to the present day. I don't like modern stuff, but I will be doing my ship, the Ike, circa 1990. I'm looking into a second mortgage now so I can buy the entire CVW-7 airwing ;-) Just my .02... Bill ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) From Ned Barnett Subject A proud brag Today, July 28th, marks the 90th anniversary of the start of World War I - The first world war began 90 years ago today, when on July 28th, 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia-- initiating what would become a world-wide conflict that would last over 4 years and take nine million lives. It was a conflict the likes of which the world had never seen, embroiling 15 nations and 65 million people, and fought with weapons unprecedented in their power to maim and kill. With that in mind, on Friday, July 30th, the History Channel will feature (on Modern Marvels) a program World War I Tech - I'm on that program, not only as a "talking head" expert (military history is my passion), but also as an off-camera historical consultant ... my first opportunity to do that. The program will air at 10 p.m. Eastern and Pacific, and again 4 hours later (and certainly other times thereafter). It has a whole segment (with some fascinating file footage) on WW-I Submarines. I encourage one and all to check it out. And if you like it, let me know what you think (if you don't like it, I guess I'd better hear that, too). Thanks Ned ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) From Kurt Van Dahm Subject Virginia trip The Mariner's Museum in Newport News, VA is probably the single best (if not the best it sure is the largest) maritime museum in the US. It houses the artifacts from the USS Monitor which ties in to you Civil War interests. Take care, Kurt ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6) From "keith bender" Subject Re Trip to Virginia Hi SMMLies, To Dave Griffith, The Mariners' Museum in Newport News, VA has the turret and a bunch of other things from the USS Monitor on display. Now the turret is still in a tank and will be for a few more years I understand but it can be viewed. Also the rest of the museum is very good as well, there you have it, my worthless two cents, does anyone really care. KTB ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7) From "Stephen Cowardin" Subject Virginia Trip David, I was born and raised in Richmond which has numerous battlefields, museums (including the museum of the confederacy), forts, plantations, and foundries along the James River. All within a couple hours of Appomattox, Petersburg Chancellorsville, Bull Run, Cold Harbor, etc. etc.. (It is still possible to dig up Civil War relics providing one knows the landowner and it isn't the federal government) However, there is nothing quite like that trip to Tidewater. Lets start in Williamsburg which has been retored to a working colonial capitol. One could spend days there. Travel to Jamestown and see replicas of three circa 1600s sailing ships and the settlers fort.The famous mothball fleet of mostly WWII merchant ships lies just up the river as well as the Army Transportation Corps' array of small vessels on the James. Or take the other direction to the York River where the navy's ordinance is stored while the ships are at home in Norfolk. These are the same waters in the Chesapeake Bay where French Admiral De Grasse's fleet lay at anchor sealing Lord Cornwallis' fate at Yorktown. It is in the Chesapeake that the Battleship Texas rests along with a few Japanese seaplanes and more, where Billy Mitchell proved that aircraft could sink a German battleship and further down where at least one German u-boat penetrated our harbor defenses to view Norfolk's fleet, lay its mines, and leave as undisturbed as it came. The bay is a sailing delight. Newport News boasts its shipbuilding facilities and the famous Mariners museum with its outstanding models (incl. the exquisite Crabtree models) and exhibits including everything from an authentic Venetian gondola to a WWII German midget submarine. Down the street from that is the War Memorial of Virginia with uniquely displayed exihibits ranging from the revolutionary war to Iraqi tracked vehicles. It displays numerous naval cannons as well as one of the few (3?) surviving German 88s, and a cold war era Atomic Cannon. A short hop to Hampton is Fort Monroe which is a pre Civil War era fort that guards the entrance to Hampton Rhoads. From there one can overlook the waters where the Virginia (ex. Merrimac) and Monitor slugged it out to a draw and in it see the cell where Jefferson Davis was incarcerated after the fall of Richmond during what Richmonders refer to as "the recent unpleasantness". Take the tunnel to Norfolk and immeduiately come on Willoughby Spit with all its beach houses. It was created by a hurricaine in the 1870s and sits on a small body of water across from the largest naval base in the world. The carriers and fleet can be seen from one's own car along with numerous landings and takeoffs from NAS Norfolk. A boat tour is also available from either Hampton or Norfolk. In Downtown Norfolk there are numerous large ships in and out of the harbor and many drydocks including the highly secret drydocks at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmout where boomers are covered from view. At the waterside you will find Nauticus a marine and navy exhibit where the battleship Wisconsin is on permanent display along with numerous hands on displays. These are my favorite haunts and there are numerous places of interest that I haven't mentioned that are real treasures depending on your range of interest. I hope this helps. Steve Cowardin ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 8) From EDWARD GRUNE Subject American History Tour through Virginia David Griffith was asking about cites in the Tidewater Virginia area for his upcoming American History Tour. I'll try to give you some non-naval suggestions. I'll let others guide you to Denbiegh's Hobby shop and the like ... While your theme may be the American Civil War, there are several sites in the Tidewater Virginia which should make your list. As a member of the British Empire, you may want to go see the Jamestown colony where it all started, then go see Williamsburg, where it developed, and then Yorktown, where we upstart Colonials thumped Lord Cornwallis (with the help of the French) and 'turned the world upside down'. (That was the tune the American Fifers played while the Redcoats stacked their weapons). Fort Monroe, across Hampton Roads from the Norfolk Naval Base is an excellent example of US Coastal Defenses in the 19th century. Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy was held there after his capture after the Civil War. All up and down the James Peninsula are various Civil War battlefields. Cold Harbor was the site of a large and bloody battle. It is often overlooked due to its proximity to the Richmond area battlefields. Farther west are Richmond and Petersburg. The Museum of the Confederacy is in Richmond. The movie 'Cold Mountain' featured the mining and the explosion that created "the Crater" in Petersburg. This was an attempt by Union engineers to break the Confederate defenses at Petersburg. A couple hours west of Richmond is Appomatox where the Civil war ended. Its is out toward the mountains and out of your way if you are working your way up the coast. If you do choose to go to Appomatox - stop in Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home in Charlottesville, VA. North out of Richmond is Fredericksburg. This river-crossing was the site of several important battles in and around the city. As you move up into the Washington DC area there were several skirmishes in the area, and two major battles at Bull Run. Mount Vernon, George Washington's home is just down river from DC. The Custis Mansion is on the grounds of Arlington Cemetery across the river from DC. The Custis Mansion was Robert E. Lee's wife's family home. As far as Washington, you could spend a week there. I won't go into it. There's more for you to see and do. Beyond Washington, there is Harper's Ferry. The abolishionist John Brown captured the Federal arsenal there in an attempt to start a slave uprising. It failed, John Brown was captured, tried and executed. Colonel Robert E Lee let the US forces which crushed the rebellion. How about that for irony! Just beyond Harper's Ferry is Antietam. It was the single bloodiest day of the whole war. In tales of missed opportunities, the cautious General McClellan could possibly have ended the war two years earlier if he had pursued the retreating General Lee's forces back across the Potomac into Virginia. Further up, into Pennsylvania is Gettysburg. The high watermark of the Confederacy. This is perhaps the largest battle fought during the war - and it all happened due to an accidental encounter by scouting forces. From Gettysburg, go east toward Philadelphia. Site of the Declaration of Independence and The Constitution. I hope these suggestions give you some ideas. It will be a full trip. Enjoy yourselves. You may want to check into purchasing a National Park Service pass which will allow you entry into the parks without having to pay fees at each individual site. Ed - a transplanted Texan from the East Mansfield, TX ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9) From Jeffon10@cs.com Subject Re Color of USS WARD WRT Blue paint on USS destroyers prior to 7 Dec 41, please see DESTROYERS, by Anthony Preston, Prentis Hall, 1977, page 75 which shows USS DRAYTON (DD 366) in blue in 1941 which shows a very light gray or white on her mast. Also, shows DESRON 3 (including USS CLARK = DD361) and some of DESDIV 6 in what appears to blue in Oct 1941 in San Diego. Jeff F ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10) From "Vess Irvine" Subject USS Saratoga 1944, 1/200th Scale I just saw the pics of this September, 2004 release in 1/200th scale of a new cardstock model from GPM. Paint scheme is in dazzle camouflage. See the alpha build pictures at www.gpm.pl. This puppy must be huge. Well, if you are to spend six months on one model, one could do worse in choosing a subject. Personally I would prefer the 1930s version with the cruiser guns, maroon flight deck and an air group of yellow wing biplanes; plus a big "E" for "efficiency" on the funnel. But I am not complaining. Also check out the new Schleswig Holstein on this same web page. Pretty marvelous for 11 Euros plus shipping (a bit pricy at this store). ..../V ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 11) From David Wells Subject H-44 Hull Form Fellow SMMLlies One of my on-going projects is an attempt to build a model of the German "paper" battleship H-44, arguably the most insane battleship ever designed. In the current incarnation of this project, I'm using a Heller 1/400 scale Tirpitz hull and main guns, and Revell 1/570 details to make a 1/570 H-44. The overall numbers work out quite nicely. The problem of the moment is that the hull form of H-44 is somewhat different from that of the Tirpitz, and the minimal diagrams that I have don't have an adequate description of the hull below the waterline. I'm using Breyer's "Battleships & Battlecruisers 1905-1970" and Dulin & Garzke's "Battleships Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II". Problem #1 4 shafts vs 3 shafts. H-44 would have had 4 shafts instead of the usual 3. The stern was thus a bit broader. This was not a huge problem, since I could easily widen the stern, but the form is clearly different. The diagrams I have show a keel that extends further aft than that on the usual German 3-shaft ships, but that doesn't tell me much. Is this some sort of German "twin skeg" arrangement, like an Iowa class? I suspect not, but I can't tell from the diagrams. To my eye, the most likely answer is just a very long single keel extending aft between the two inner shafts and rudders, but I can't tell for sure. Problem #2 The bow. The later H-class plans did not have the usual bulb bow. There seems to be some sort of notch cut into it. I don't know why this should be. My initial guess was a set of torpedo tubes like a German WWI battleship, but some of the diagrams indicate a set of torpedo tubes further aft. Any ideas? "There seems to be something wrong | David R. Wells with our bloody ships today" | Adm. D. Beatty, May 31, 1916 | http//home.att.net/~WellsBrothers/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 12) From David Wells Subject Re Mini Hobby Models brand 1/350th scale U.S.S. Arizona Hi Ray. "Ray Mehlberger" wrote >> I just went to the Hobby Lobby's 1/2 price model kit sale this week. They had this Mini Hobby Models brand 1/350th scale U.S.S. Arizona kit. I bought it. Being predominantly an armor and aircraft modeler, I don't know a lot about ship kits. I would like to get some feedback on what is thought of this particular kit accuracy?, detail?, any problems? and what accessory sets might be available for it. << I'm afraid I don't have any direct answers for you, but in general, you can look up ship kits on Rajen's List. http//www.quuxuum.org/rajens_list/shiprevs.html Unfortunately, nobody has reviewed the Trumpeter/MHM Arizona yet, even in the upcoming Version 6.4. (I just started work on 6.4) So, if anybody out there HAS built this kit, please let me know. I'd love to include your review in Version 6.4. "There seems to be something wrong | David R. Wells with our bloody ships today" | Adm. D. Beatty, May 31, 1916 | http//home.att.net/~WellsBrothers/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13) From "donaldpmorgan@juno.com" Subject Re Trip to Virginia David If you're in Pennsylvania, visit the Gettysburg battlefield, just west of Harrisburg. While in Gettysburg, visit a facility called "The Electric Map" This is an ampitheater, with a relief map spread out on a platform about 20 feet square. Small peanut lights are embedded in the map, and as the narrator describes the action during the 3 day battle, these lights illuminate to show the action. The main lights in the ampitheater rise and dim to simulate day and night. As I recall, the whole show takes abour 45 minutes. See this first, and then visit the battlefield. What you see in open country will than make a lot more sense. One other thing to see is the Gettysburg Wax Museum. This takes over 1 hour to wander through. It's filled with a lot of life size dioramas....sometimes using live manikins. When these turn and speak to you, it can scare you out of your skin as they don't warn you ahead of time. Enjoy your stay in the US. During Sept., my wife and I will visit Williamsburg, VA to attend a reunion of my outfit from the Korean "Police Action" of 1950. It will be interesting to see how many of my old comrades have gotten old, fat, and bald-headed like me. Regards Don Morgan ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Check out the SMML site for the List Rules, Backissues, Member's models & reference pictures at http//smmlonline.com Check out the APMA site for an index of ship articles in the Reference section at http//apma.org.au/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of Volume