1/192 USS Missouri BB-63, 1945

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:14 pm

June 2003 the model looked like this:

I decided to create masters and cast my own 5-inch mounts. My resin mounts were later improved by incorporating the gun captain's blast hood and replacing the resin barrels with brass barrels. I also mastered and cast Mk-37 Directors in resin. [Edit: all of the resin parts you see here have since been replaced with much more accurate and much better detailed 3D-printed parts of my own design.]

Much of the brass, but not all, comes from Gold Medal Models.

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:14 pm

Scratchbuilding USS Missouri BB-63, 1945, in 1/192nd scale.

Here are some in-progress photos of my scratch-built USS Missouri, 1945
Scale: 1/192 (1/16-inch = 1 foot)
Length: 55-1/2 inches (140.97 cm)
Plans: US Navy Booklet of General Plans from Floating Drydock
Photoetch: Gold Medal Models

Note: this model is NOT be being built from the vintage Sterling kit.

This model was my first entirely scratch-built model built from plans obtained from
the Floating Drydock.

Humble beginnings. I began building the superstructure in February, 2002
while deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan using plans from Floating Drydock
(I retired from the Army in 2006). After returning home and being reassigned
to West Point in June, 2002, I began framing the hull and casting turrets.

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:14 pm

Toms Modelworks photo-etch water tight doors are gems.

Foot rung installation. Installing foot rungs on the fire control towers is very tedious! Each rung is brass, bent to shape, then installed into two tiny holes hand-drilled with a pin vice.

Next steps:
New coat of Deck Blue 20-B
Reinstall photo-etch brass rails and ladders
Cast improved oxygen and acetylene bottles and install them
Build and install the 40mm Quadruple Bofors mounts
Mark the Bofors and their respective tubs with numbers (1,2,3...)
Install propellers and prop shafts
Build and install 20mm Oerlikons.
Finish detailing the masts

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:14 pm

GMM photo-etch brass set being installed. The stanchions on the Main Deck and on portions of the first superstructure deck are individually cut brass H-column sections made by K&S. Tedious to cut and install but they have the right three-dimensional look. She's nearly ready for paint.

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:14 pm

Turrets, gun mounts and painting essentially complete but before most details were installed.

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:14 pm

Installation of 36" Searchlights, Target Designators and other details.

Greg W · Post by **Greg W** » Fri May 04, 2007 9:58 pm

looks great Steve.

Greg W

Dino Carancini · Post by **Dino Carancini** » Sat May 05, 2007 7:43 am

Awesome Steve a huge beauty!

Dino

Post by **Dave Wooley** » Sat May 05, 2007 1:57 pm

Steve what a stunning piece of work . The results speak for themselves .

Dave Wooley

J. Soca · Post by **J. Soca** » Sat May 05, 2007 11:43 pm

WOW, it looks FANTASTIC.

Steve Sobieralski · Post by **Steve Sobieralski** » Sun May 06, 2007 4:36 pm

Beautiful work Steve. I have an 1/192 Iowa Class Scale Shipyards hull and a Don Pruel Baltimore hull that I hope to build someday. Are you marketing your fittings at all?

Dave Wooley-Finally got your book the other day from Amazon and am really enjoying it.

Laurent · Post by **Laurent** » Sun May 06, 2007 5:01 pm

Looks fantastic , indeed

Regards ,

Laurent

Post by **ModelMonkey** » Sun May 06, 2007 5:23 pm

Thanks again, gentlemen!

Yes, Steve, all turrets and fittings are available. Good luck with your builds!

Like you, I also intend to make a 1/192 Baltimore, USS Saint Paul actually, but after USS Saratoga CV-3.

Here's where the inspiration came to build Missouri:

Here are some photos I took of the official
USS Missouri builders model as it appeared
at the Smithsonian Museum of American History
in Washington DC in 1987.

The model now rests at the Navy Museum, Washington Navy Yard
in Washington DC.

Scale: 1/48
Length: 19 feet (228 inches -or- 5.79 meters)

The model was built by Gibbs and Cox Company in New York and
delivered to the Navy on 22 January 1951. See here for more
information about the model: http://www.dt.navy.mil/cnsm/show_01.html

The detail is superb. Her paint scheme is rather unusual in that she is
Haze Gray overall with very dark gray decks and interior splinter shields.

Jefgte · Post by **Jefgte** » Sun May 06, 2007 6:06 pm

Superb !!!

Fantastic work

Jef

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun May 06, 2007 6:08 pm

Steve Larsen wrote: Here's where the inspiration came to build Missouri:

Here are some photos I took of the official
USS Missouri builders model as it appeared
at the Smithsonian Museum of American History
in Washington DC in 1987.

I first saw the model in the Smithsonian in 1967 at the age of 17. Previously, at the age of 10, I had seen the 1/48 builder's model of the USS California at the San Francisco Maritime Museum. I blame my exposure to these two models for my incurable case of BSD (big scale disease).

Steve Sobieralski

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Jul 22, 2007 10:33 am

Nice work.

J. Soca · Post by **J. Soca** » Sun Jul 22, 2007 4:33 pm

Cool!!!!!!

U.S.M.C. · Post by **U.S.M.C.** » Wed Aug 01, 2007 9:36 pm

My favorite battleship!! Great job!

nick · Post by **nick** » Thu Aug 02, 2007 8:01 am

Amazing!!

Nick

Mike Reading · Post by **Mike Reading** » Wed Oct 15, 2008 9:58 am

Just found your web site, so dare say that by now your model is near complete, if not finished.

It looks excellent.

During the last 10 years or so I have been building, entirely from scratch, a 1:600 scale, waterline model of Missouri depicting her in her first commission.

It's a really challenging ship to model - thank goodness there are a decent set of plans of her and a goodly number of photos.

Good luck
Michael Reading
from East Sussex
England

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