The Ship Model Forum

by **AndrexP** » Thu Dec 11, 2025 11:53 pm

Thanks for the reply and examples, Tracy!

by **Tracy White** » Thu Dec 11, 2025 12:13 am

Sorry everyone - every once and a while I stop receiving notifications about updates to the thread and I missed a couple of months.

Ian Roberts wrote: Sun Nov 03, 2024 6:21 pm
Charybdis wrote:Can anyone identify this piece of equipment on USS Lexington (CV-16) after her 1945 refit? Photos taken post war.
These are Mark 57 directors installed late in the war for auxiliary quadrant control of the 5" and 40mm guns aboard the larger ships. I guess based on the photos (and the CV-17 BOGP) that there were four directors in total aboard the Essex class carriers, which matches the cruiser and BB installations. Two are fore and aft on the island with two more fore and aft on the port side of the gallery deck level.

Correct - the Mk 57s were added in Lexington's March through May 1945 overhaul and upgrades, which also saw the addition of six quad .50 cal mounts and the Mk 63 Gun Fire Control system. I started a page on the Mk 63 a while back but stalled out on adding more. However, there is a sketch at the bottom specifically for CV-16 Lexington that shows the location for each director. Only two Mk 57s, both on the island.

AndrexP wrote: Sun Aug 31, 2025 1:06 pmI can find very few pictures showing side numbers for their VT squadron (VT-5), but it seems fighters were 1- or 2-digits while the only clear TBF photo I could find shows side number 121.

It evolved over time and I haven't been able to find any cohesive documentation at archives. Air Group 5 (and thus VT-5) were only on Yorktown until May of 1944 so I'll only speak to that. Using War diaries from January 1944 through May 1944 and the mention of aircraft lost of damaged. Numbers are single or double, i.e 1 and not 01, but nothing above 100. It appears that they all started at 1 or at least close to 1 and counted up to the maximum number of planes in the squadron.

I found these two photos of TBFs - note the plane numbers on the leading edge of the inboard wing sections and underside of the cowling.
https://www.worldwarphotos.info/gallery ... -yorktown/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File ... 278%29.jpg

VB has 4 through 7 with 34 SBD-5s assigned
VF has F-2 through F-35 with 37 F6F-3s assigned
VT has T-2 through T-18 with 18 TBF/M-1Cs assigned

No mention of the F6F-3Ns of VF(N)-76.

Kind of done in a rush, so please let me know if there are questions.

by **AndrexP** » Sun Aug 31, 2025 1:06 pm

Can any of you explain the aircraft side numbers on USN carriers c. 1943-1945? Or point to a reference?
I'm looking specifically for the Yorktown (CV-10) air group so I can ID my 1/350 aircraft and thus keep the aircrews from boarding the wrong planes.
I can find very few pictures showing side numbers for their VT squadron (VT-5), but it seems fighters were 1- or 2-digits while the only clear TBF photo I could find shows side number 121.

by **benjamin.marn** » Tue May 20, 2025 5:50 pm

Okay, its been a while since I've given an update on my 1/350 USS Boxer 1945 build. The long and the short of it is; I'm starting over. The kit I have will be finished as USS Hancock, and I will buy another Hancock kit and start Boxer from scratch.

I also reached out to the USS Boxer Veterans Association. Not only were they kind enough to give me membership status for free, even though I am not a Boxer veteran, but rather simply just the grandson of a plankowner, they also put me in contact with their archivist too. I got in contact with him, and he physically sent me original photos from 1945-1946, a vast majority of which I have never seen before.

Finally, I've started thinking about what shade of Measure 21 she was in once again. When launched on December 14, 1944, pictures show that she had her anti-fouling paint, boot topping and hull painted. Considering that she was already in the water with 5-N Navy Blue, wouldn't she have stayed 5-N Navy Blue even after the spring of 1945 memo announcing the revision to Measure 21? I mean, why go through the trouble of repainting a ship that is already in the water with fresh paint when you could just change over to the revised 5-N Navy Gray once the original coating of 5-N Navy Blue wore off? Were ships required to adopt the revised 5-N Navy Gray regardless of the condition of their current paint?

by **Iceman 29** » Wed Jan 01, 2025 9:26 am

In the hell of the USS Franklin.

Many never-before-seen and remastered images.

807 crew members killed.

by **Charybdis** » Mon Nov 04, 2024 5:28 am

Ian Roberts wrote:
Charybdis wrote:Can anyone identify this piece of equipment on USS Lexington (CV-16) after her 1945 refit? Photos taken post war.
These are Mark 57 directors installed late in the war for auxiliary quadrant control of the 5" and 40mm guns aboard the larger ships. I guess based on the photos (and the CV-17 BOGP) that there were four directors in total aboard the Essex class carriers, which matches the cruiser and BB installations. Two are fore and aft on the island with two more fore and aft on the port side of the gallery deck level. The plans also show associated radar transmitter rooms below each installation (as Mark 57 required some alterations below deck to accommodate its associated radar set Mark 29.

I actually researched this system at length several years back and consolidated my findings here: http://shipbucket.com/wiki/index.php/Mk_57_GFCS

Thanks a lot, Ian. That's another mystery solved.

by **Ian Roberts** » Sun Nov 03, 2024 6:21 pm

Charybdis wrote:Can anyone identify this piece of equipment on USS Lexington (CV-16) after her 1945 refit? Photos taken post war.

These are Mark 57 directors installed late in the war for auxiliary quadrant control of the 5" and 40mm guns aboard the larger ships. I guess based on the photos (and the CV-17 BOGP) that there were four directors in total aboard the Essex class carriers, which matches the cruiser and BB installations. Two are fore and aft on the island with two more fore and aft on the port side of the gallery deck level. The plans also show associated radar transmitter rooms below each installation (as Mark 57 required some alterations below deck to accommodate its associated radar set Mark 29.

I actually researched this system at length several years back and consolidated my findings here: http://shipbucket.com/wiki/index.php/Mk_57_GFCS

by **StevenVD** » Sun Nov 03, 2024 6:05 pm

It should have looked like this, with the lines to the flag boxes as double ropes. This example is Intrepid from the Trojca book.

by **CV-17 Son** » Mon Oct 28, 2024 11:31 am

Doing a bit of preliminary research on the island rigging on the Bunker Hill. Is there any place where I can learn what all the lines were that were on her island the morning of May 11th? Or for any Essex class carrier of the day.....

THANKS

by **FFG-7** » Sat Oct 19, 2024 1:58 pm

according to the CV-17 USS Bunker Hill Booklet of General Plans 1946 I have on my computer, it is a "5 inch aux. director", which one I do not know.

by **Charybdis** » Sat Oct 19, 2024 10:23 am

Can anyone identify this piece of equipment on USS Lexington (CV-16) after her 1945 refit? Photos taken post war.

by **Guest** » Fri Dec 01, 2023 10:34 pm

DavidP wrote:would likely be on the Focsle deck bow or the main deck stern where the 5" practice loader is.

Thank you David!

by **egatlanta69** » Wed Nov 29, 2023 6:43 pm

Hello all. I am building a 1/350 model of the USS Lexington CV-16. One of my sources is Alan Raven's Essex Class Carriers book. On pg 94, a 40mm practice loader is depicted (attached). I can find nothing of this apparatus. Does anyone have any insights on this? Thank you.

by **Mike W** » Fri Nov 24, 2023 11:49 am

ModelMonkey wrote:
Mike W wrote:I have the Dragon 1/700 USS Lexington kit and I'm aware that you can make any late war short hull Essex class from that kit. Has anyone done a rough guide to make USS Essex in 1944, when she had her Light Grey/Black camouflage scheme? It occurred to me that it might be fairly easy to work out things like her bofors and radar fit but might be a bit harder working out things like all the galleries and parts for the island etc.

thanks
Mike
Good news, Mike, your new 1/700 scale USS Essex CV-9 island as it appeared from May, 1944 through 1945 is ready. Link:
https://www.model-monkey.com/product-pa ... -1944-1945

References indicate that the island was in this configuration during raids on Okinawa and Formosa and during the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

Excellent!

by **Tracy White** » Fri Nov 24, 2023 10:17 am

DougC wrote:One can see the hangar deck catapult of the Yorktown in action in the movie "Wing and a Prayer".

Thanks - I hadn't heard of that movie before.

Wing and a Prayer, The Story of Carrier X

It's on Youtube and while I haven't found that scene yet, there is a neat little snippet showing sailors running around in the hangar overheads and ladders as well as a lot of other good footage in areas of interest.

by **Sutho** » Thu Nov 23, 2023 6:42 pm

lexington1709 wrote:
Sutho wrote:Has anyone else done that Pontos Advanced detail set for the Essex in WWII???

Great kit but poor instructions.

I have now constructed the island for 1943 with the quad bofor guns below the bridge but have the mast done for 1945!!!!

No clear indication in instruction what to do. Looks like some adjustments are necessary after all the hard work done.

It appears from photos that the lower catapults that were across the width of the ship in the hanger bay were removed.

I don't know what to do now. Retrofit the mast to 1943 or destruct the island and refit it to 1945.
What ship and time period?

It looks like I am doing USS Essex now in 1943.

I have to admit that Pontos detail up kit is great but also frustrating. One recent irritation is the deck masking to paint the stripes on the flight deck. The masking is not cut well and to get the deck numbers and lines you need a really sharp knife to cut the outline before applying it.

I did not have enough of my WEM paints to put the camo on. I could only do Navy blue. I am trying to keep my models in uniform paint and can no longer get they brand in Australia.

by **Tracy White** » Thu Nov 23, 2023 6:08 pm

Obvious typo is obvious?

by **DougC** » Thu Nov 23, 2023 11:22 am

One can see the hangar deck catapult of the Yorktown in action in the movie "Wing and a Prayer".

by **Tracy White** » Thu Nov 23, 2023 11:17 am

Sutho wrote:It appears from photos that the lower catapults that were across the width of the ship in the hanger bay were removed.

Only six Essex class carriers were ever fitted with hangar-deck catapults; Yorktown, Intrepid, Hornet, Franklin, Bunker Hill, and Wasp. Essex herself had an earlier H2 catapult (as opposed to the H4s her sisters had) on the flight deck for the entire war and never had a hangar catapult.

CV-10 Yorktown had hers removed during her Aug-Nov 1944 overhaul at Puget Sound.
CV-11 Intrepid's was removed in March-June of 1944 at Hunters Point
CV-12 Hornet is a little squirrelier; it was removed in phases but the outboard sections at least by February 1945
CV-13 Franklin's was removed in November 1933 at Puget Sound
CV-17 Bunker Hill's was also removed in November 1933 at Puget Sound
CV-18 Wasp's was removed during her April-June 1945 overhaul and upgrade at Puget Sound.

by **lexington1709** » Thu Nov 23, 2023 10:48 am

ModelMonkey wrote:
Mike W wrote:I have the Dragon 1/700 USS Lexington kit and I'm aware that you can make any late war short hull Essex class from that kit. Has anyone done a rough guide to make USS Essex in 1944, when she had her Light Grey/Black camouflage scheme? It occurred to me that it might be fairly easy to work out things like her bofors and radar fit but might be a bit harder working out things like all the galleries and parts for the island etc.

thanks
Mike
Good news, Mike, your new 1/700 scale USS Essex CV-9 island as it appeared from May, 1944 through 1945 is ready. Link:
https://www.model-monkey.com/product-pa ... -1944-1945

References indicate that the island was in this configuration during raids on Okinawa and Formosa and during the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

Great work, Steve!

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