Calling all Yamato (大和) and Musashi (武蔵) fans

[Rob Wood]

Rigging, 1:10 Yamato model at Yamato Museum in Kure

[prowannab]

Rob;If I may ask a ,Do you happen to have a photo of the underside of the deck near the boat launches? Also do you happen to have a release date for your book?

[Rob Wood]

I don't have a release date for the book. I'm trying to finish my 1:144 Bismarck, and I guess I got carried away with details, because I've been working on it, on and off, for nearly 10 years. I'm around 80% done. The Bismarck is my obsession, but I had an opportunity to travel to Japan last summer, and took it. I managed a day to myself, and took the bullet train to Hiroshima, and then local train to Kure. I just couldn't help myself. Who builds a model battleship that's 26.3 meters long?

At any rate, it turns out that I did shoot the underside of the deck in the boat wells:





I also shot HD video of the model. I grabbed a few screen shots for you tonight, but they're not very good as stills. However, they should help you get a handle on this area.

[prowannab]

Rob, You are the man! I've been looking for a good shot of that area for awhile. Thank you so very much.

[Dan K]

GREAT SHOTS!

[baseballbrat]

Thanks Again Rob for posting some of your photos! These are the best I have seen on the net!

[baseballbrat]

Rob, Have you ever considered to make a CD of your photo set and sell it to modelers?

[Rob Wood]

You guys are incredibly kind and encouraging! We scale modelers (and photographers, too!) tend to spend a great deal of time in solitude, and it's refreshing to share our work with people who appreciate it, and - especially valuable - are willing to offer constructive criticism. This type of environment - particularly this web forum Martin manages so conscientiously - offers an opportunity to hone one's skills, and speeds up the work of research. Imagine (or remember, if you're old enough) what it was like before the World Wide Web and broadband connections made this type of collaboration possible.

On putting together a CD for modelers: I hadn't thought of this, but it makes sense. It would be a great deal less expensive than publishing a book. Thanks for the suggestion. I'll carefully consider it.

On Jerry's question about circular versus hexagonal AA gun tubs: I am no authority on Yamato, by any means, but I would trust the Kure model as the single most accurate depiction of Yamato's post-1944 refit and AA upgrade. The museum staff and model designers took extraordinary pains to get this gigantic model right - even to the extent of going down to the wreck to shoot stills and video. If it exists on this model, I would be highly skeptical of any source that conflicts with it. On the other hand, absence of evidence is not proof, so if it's missing from the model, it does not necessarily follow that that particular fitting or piece of equipment was not installed at some point in the ship's career.

That actually brings up an important point, and it's a source of frustration for most serious scale warship builders: There is no way to know 100% what a working ship actually looked like in every respect, because ships - especially battleships - were incredibly complex and extremely large collections of weapons and equipment that were constantly undergoing modifications, always in secret. In fact, my research into Yamato - as skimpy as it has been - reveals that even as late as 1944, Jane's Fighting Ships listed the wrong dimensions for the Yamato class. Since all 3 members of the class were sunk (Shinano being the 3rd, but converted to an aircraft carrier), and because the Japanese were so secretive about these ships, it's not surprising to find so many conflicting pieces of information. Even photos only reflect a given moment in time. Not only were shipyard repairs, upgrades and refits done in secret, many were done at sea, and documentation of those modifications may very likely have gone to the bottom, lost forever.

To make matters worse, the victors, as they say, write the history of wars, and so much IJN documentation was destroyed - either deliberately or due to the massive Allied bombing raids - that we may never have all of our questions about these or other Japanese warships answered conclusively. As model builders, all we can do is collect what evidence we can, and then make our best guess and commit. If we don't, we'll simply never finish our projects. The same is true for the kit makers: at some point, they have to go with what they have, or never get to market. If indisputable documentation comes to light, or further research and forensic archaeology reveals new information, then kit makers can re-release their offerings. I suppose, also, that model makers can then tear into their finished models and correct them! Right.

So, my advice - which I rarely take myself - is to simply enjoy the process of model building, and not worry too much about accuracy. The truth is that every hour spent researching or talking about a particular subject is an hour not spent at the workbench.

Just sayin'

Here are two more detail shots of the under-deck supports at the boat wells:






Rob

[prowannab]

Well said Rob,well said. If you do create a CD, please let us all know asap.I would seriously be interested, as I am currently working on this big gal of the sea,and it will probably take a good bit of time to finish and your pics will definitely help out.

[baseballbrat]

Thank Rob for the kind words. Your photos are in at much greater detail then the books available in Japan on this 1/10 subject. I have 2 of them and the book doesn't go into detail, but just provides general subject matter. I have been collecting reference for quite awhile now, but all the information seems to be concentrating most on the legacy and demise of the vessel. No one to date has taken the time to do a highly detailed (rivet counting) publication to show the smaller parts of the ship. I imagine that if you take all the publications and put them together, you could come close to having something worth while, but at great cost. Using the 1/10 scale Yamato Hiroba to me is the best example of the most researched model to be found. The Japanese in this case would want this to be highly accurate thus making this the go to example to use as a modeling reference. Your photos show this detail that has been missing in most publications. Just look around on the internet and find nothing special on most sites. The books out their for sale are sold out or you just can't find them from here. The publications worth having are only 2, Yamato Anatomy of a Ship and Model Art's Super Illustration #745 which has been updated to represent the most current information from the wreck dive. It's unfortunate that Super Illustration #745 can't be found anywhere and hasn't been reprinted. Only the older Super Illustration can be purchased on eBay for about $40! The line drawing books seem to be the most accurate and the 3D CG books are good for perspective views to give a general idea of a real photo.

Thanks again for sharing your photos with all of us. Just let us know if you wish to copy them to CD and sell them. I'm in for sure!!!

Jim

[Rob Wood]

I've been discussing the idea of producing a DVD on Yamato with my wife, primarily focused on helping model builders build an accurate model of the ship. She's encouraging me to explore the possibility, so I've decided to seriously investigate the market potential for it. I'm guessing it's pretty small, but that's not a major consideration. What I'm more concerned with is maintaining control over my work. A paper book is more secure than a DVD of digital files.

I am moving cautiously here.

On a human interest angle, according to what I learned by spending the day in Kure, this huge Yamato model was built in an attempt to recapture the "glory days" of Japan, when Yamato represented the pinnacle of national pride and "kickassedness." That's why it's so large. Japan has no WWII battleship museum ships, so this massive model takes the place of those. At the museum that day, I was one of a handful of non-Japanese visitors, and the only American all day. But there's a sort of strange twist to this attempt to relive "the good old days," in that neither the museum nor the city of Kure wish to glorify war, or the militarism that led to Japan's disgrace in defeat, but still wants to be proud of the mighty battleships produced there. The tourism money is significant, also: everywhere in Kure you see Yamato posters, signs, and trinkets to buy.

So, how do they reconcile the fact that the Yamato was arguably the mightiest battleship of WWII (certainly the largest and most heavily armed), but not glorify the IJN or the Imperial war machinery that brought ruin and death upon so many?

Like this:



Interesting, don't you think?

Rob

[prowannab]

Yet another most likely silly question. Would anyone happen to know if the railings along the perimeter of the ship is rope or chain?

[baseballbrat]

Rob, I think due to the subject matter, you shouldn't have a problem. I would copyright your material if possible, just so you have something to go on in case of any issues. Maybe protect the disc from duplication. Your content is only going to be used for reference for modelers, so yes it will be a very narrow group of people that will be interested, so pitting this on a disc would be the least costly to produce. Putting it in book form will require a book publisher along with all the headaches of editing and choosing the cheapest way to print to get you a profit. Also you have to order a lot of copies to make the printing cost reasonable for you and your customers.

You could just decide to sell it to your modeling friends on this forum. The guys here will have the respect to keep your product safe and use it for their own projects. This way you can feel safe about where these photos are and how they are being used. Just a thought!

[Rob Wood]

OK, how much do you think people might reasonably expect to pay for a model-builder's DVD about the Yamato Museum 1:10 model?

On the perimeter railing question:

The 1:10 model uses stanchions and chains. Considering the standard approach among the navies at the time, it's reasonable to assume that the chains could be removed for repair and replacement, and the entire perimeter railing system designed to be laid down on the deck before action, or before firing the main guns for practice.

I didn't focus on the railings during my photo shoot, but I got a few half-way decent shots of them. You'll notice that there is a hand clamp in the shot, which I'm certain - given the level of meticulous detail on the rest of the decks and superstructure - are scale models of the 1:1 original. I can see them at regular intervals along the perimeter, so they must be some sort of quick disconnect:

[baseballbrat]

Rob, Sent you a PM

[Timmy C]

On photo CD pricing suggestion: consider Ray Bean's USN photo CDs as a point of reference - $26 including shipping within North America: http://www.stillmotionsphotographics.co ... &cat=27957

[baseballbrat]

On photo CD pricing suggestion: consider Ray Bean's USN photo CDs as a point of reference - $26 including shipping within North America: http://www.stillmotionsphotographics.co ... &cat=27957

The price is fair for the subject matter. Me personally, you have to consider subject matter first then determine a price that will encourage modelers to purchase this. In my case so far, I have the premium Tamiya 1:350 kit, 3 different full PE Sets, all the FIne Molds Gun Sets, 2 Wooden Decks, and 21 Japanese Reference Books and still don't think I have enough. I was willing to spend $$$ to make the project as accurate as possible. I would say most modelers are not willing to spend as much as I did, but that's just my personal choice to do so.

I think you just have to hit a agreeable price that will encourage them to purchase without any doubt. I hope everyone here will knock this idea around and find the best way to get this out to the public. I can tell you now, no one on the internet has this kind of collection of Yamato Hiroba photos at that kind of detail level.

Let's help Rob make this successful.

[Dan K]

Just FYI, Model Art or Model Graphix released a photo CD of this model when the museum first opened. I have it around somewhere; can't remember what I paid for it, though.

[prowannab]

Rob; once again thank you very much for the photo and advice ,very helpful. As far as the cd price goes, I would love to tell you that $20.00 would be a great price, but with the detail and size of your photos and not to mention you have over 1000 photos and a video. My conscious tells me that $40-50 would be a fair price. Givin that a book with not so great shots and really not that much more to help "me" with as far as building this beautiful ship sells for $ 20 -100.

[baseballbrat]

Just FYI, Model Art or Model Graphix released a photo CD of this model when the museum first opened. I have it around somewhere; can't remember what I paid for it, though.

Dan If your CD has a cover Jacket, please take a photo of this and post it here. I might be able to get this in Japan from a friend. Thanks! Jim