The Ship Model Forum

greetings,
I don't know if this ship is under any other topics so please forgive if so. My plans are doing an what-if upgrade... but I am missing some basic information.. ie fill in the blanks type info before I can proceed..

1. I know she is based on Belknap design, but why did they decide to use a MK-10 launcher instead of BOX launcher for ASROC...
2. Why did she not get the ABL upgrade in the late 80's...
3. did they ever consider removing the older MK-10 and forward gun Mount for upgrade to either VLS and unmanned 5-inch mount that the tycho and sprunance class use.

One last thing is she a lot of wasted space topside that could have been used...

Mod Edit: For more on Truxtun, click here.

Available kits:
1/350 Truxtun by Iron Shipwright
1/700 Truxtun by Iron Shipwright

Gallery:
1/700
USS Truxtun (Iron Shipwright) by Christoph Mentzel
USS Truxtun by Mark McKinnis

1/350
USS Truxtun by Kenneth MacKenzie
USS Truxtun by Dave Becker

I have nothing to offer, but hope to one-day have the early US nuclear fleet built for my collection, so will follow replies and your project with interest.

- D-Boy

I served on her for 3+ years, as part of the decommissioning crew. There was, to my knowledge, no plan ever to upgrade Truxtun to VLS, Aegis or such. I served on 2 Nuke cruisers, and a Nuke carrier. Truxtun was, during my tour, the worst by far in material condition. In part I'm sure because they were planning to decomm her before any of the other cruisers were considered for decomm. I believe the Texas was decommissioned before Truxtun but that was only due to her being in the middle of a yard period when the decission came down. Below deck space was restricted in the areas you point out as basically bare. She didn't get the 80's upgrade because she was being considered for decommissioning even then. I was told that alot of its troubles was due to the keel being laid for a conventional ship first and then the decission being made later to make her a nuke. The whole boat was a bit cobbled together. I learned alot on the Tommy T but most of the lessons were from negative examples.

Note that the Mk 10 was modified in the Belknap design to have an additional ring in the magazine, so they eliminated an entire launching system and therefore the needed cost, weight, deckspace and personnel for it. Tommy T could not use the same weapons layout as the Belknaps due to needing the forward hull depth for reactor one - so they reversed the layout - Mk 42 fwd, Mk 10 aft.



She was put on the decom list as early as 1988.



Below decks was all wrong for this. The depth of the MK-10 magazine was below the helo deck, and any VLS there would have cost Helo capability (with the leaky and unworkable fantail hangars on the Virginia's, Tommy T was the only CGN with a workable Helo Hangar) Forward, there was no room to widen the location of the Mk 42, and aft of mount 51 was the 'front porch', below which was reactor #1 - so no hull depth there.

My exposure to the Mk45 was.....uh... non-positive. Tommy T had the last Mk42 in US Service, and that's one of the reasons they wanted to use her when they thought we may have to land in Haiti. Her Mk 42 worked, and worked well. I have one of the last shells she fired.

I swear there wasn't 40' worth of straight p-way in that ship. Her layout was essentially hull with two reactors dropped in and everything else stuffed around that.


I was aboard for her final cruise - but I didn't ride her up to Bremerton. I got helo ride off followed by a COD shot off Lincoln back to San Diego.

oldnavyguy, where were you? I was in OUTBOARD.

Just found a nice set of photos form the early 1980s on Flickr.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/enjoyeverysandwich/sets/72157612879102512/

On the bottom of page 2 there's a nice set of photos taken of their 1981 Christmas Services in the Helo Hangar that give a GREAT view of the entire interior!

Enjoy

_________________
Drawing Board:
1/700 Whiff USS Leyte and escorts 1984
1/700 Whiff USN Modernized CAs 1984
1/700 Whiff ASW Showdown - FFs vs SSGN 1984

Slipway:
1/700 Whiff USN ASW Hunter Killer Group Dio 1984

Another hull will be available in 1/96 by Scale Shipyard most likely late this year. I am building the master hull for SSY. If all goes well and should I hope, the hull and plans and many fitting will be ready late this year maybe around December.

Duane

_________________
Harry S. Truman CVN 75, George W. Bush CVN 77
Makin Island LHD 8, Oak Hill LSD 51
Vincennes CG 49, Port Royal CG 72
Cole DDG 67, The Sullivans DDG 68
Bainbridge DDG 96, Jason Dunham DDG 109
Arthur W. Radford DD 968, Kidd DDG 993
Chicago CG 11

The 1/96 scale of this hull is delay until 2015, I am still working on the master hull for SSY.

Duane

_________________
Harry S. Truman CVN 75, George W. Bush CVN 77
Makin Island LHD 8, Oak Hill LSD 51
Vincennes CG 49, Port Royal CG 72
Cole DDG 67, The Sullivans DDG 68
Bainbridge DDG 96, Jason Dunham DDG 109
Arthur W. Radford DD 968, Kidd DDG 993
Chicago CG 11

From the Navysite.de:
https://www.navysite.de/cg/cgn35class.htm


On photos I've do found the older 533mm Mark 25 torpedo tubes on the stern centreline (Where the VDS equipment usually located on modern ships) but I do not know where were the fixed 324mm Mark 32 tubes located. Can anybody help me?

Also do somebody know the original function of the deckhouse between the Bridge and the forward 5" gun turret?
Reactor covering? Allocated but never materialized missile storage and launcher space?