Calling all Essex-class (WWII configuration) fans

[jgrease]

I believe everyone is interested in pics of "in-progress" stuff. Please post when you can.

[Tracy White]

I have a late-war diagram of Enterprises lighting for flight ops I've been meaning to post... it was part of a general document for aircraft carriers so it may be applicable if you're interested.

[FlyingLow]

Yes, I am very interested.

[Tracy White]

It's part of a report; I'll post the whole thing this month on my site.
Got a couple of things ahead of it to finish first though.

[MartinJQuinn]

I don't go to HyperScale every day, so forgive me if this is old news. I just saw these pictures of a 1/350 CV-11 by Jean Barby. They were posted in the "Plastic Pix" forum on January 26th



There are more pictures over there, but the URL is hidden and I can't link the page up.

[Timmy C]

Martin, you can right click the background and go to Properties to find the link to that page:

http://www.network54.com/Forum/47751/me ... B+finished

[Stefan Buysse]

Hi,

I'm new here. I love this interesting huge thread and the fine efforts of you all.
I have a question. I hope I didn't overlook a discussion about it when I browsed through this thread.

I have a Dragon Essex (CV-9 itself) which I intend to build as in November 1943.
Looking at various websites I'm unsure about when USS Essex received the starboard flightdeck catapult. Navsource says this catapult was added in April-May 1943 after the shakedown cruise. I tend to believe this.

Some other sources indicate that the starboard catapult was added much later, maybe even similtaneously with the port one.
What do you think?

Cheers, Stefan.

[Tracy White]

Navsource is correct, but the TRACK was there when she was launched and commissioned. She never received a port cat during the war.

[ModelMonkey]

Jean Barby has complete a beautiful USS Intrepid CV-11 from the Trumpeter 1/350 kit. Here are some photos he passed along to be posted here on ModelWarships.com.

[ModelMonkey]

More photos of Jean Barby's USS Intrepid.

[ModelMonkey]

And more photos of Jean Barby's USS Intrepid.

[ModelMonkey]

Two more photos of Jean Barby's USS Intrepid.

[Guest]

Hi,

I have some questions about USS Essex and USS Hancock.

About the two 2x 20mm gun positions hanging off the rear end of the flightdeck on the USS Essex. Dragon parts C3.
I have seen them in the picture on Navsource that's dated "May 1943", so I guess I should have them on my Essex as in November 1943. I also looked at Chris Toops's beautiful model of a later in the war Essex and it doesn't have them, so they must have been removed during the overhaul that included the repainting in Measure 36-6-10D?
Can anyone confirm they should be there for a November 1943 model?

About those same positions on the USS Hancock. Trumpeter parts H9.
I figure the USS Hancock kept these positions longer than the USS Essex. Would I be correct in assuming that the Hancock still had these positions and the Measure 32 scheme in February 1945?
I looked at the pictures of the Kamikaze hit in April 1945 and it looks as if they are still present and that it's still the dazzle scheme. But, of course these aren't the clearest pictures.

Cheers, Stefan.

[Anonymous]

A thought on the Trumpy 1:350 kit...While working on the port side gallery deck I'm wondering how I should proceed with the flight deck overhang.

Very tough area to model. John Haynes' interpretation is more consistent with the AOTS drawings. Fine Arts Models are missing the catwalks.

Top photo and middle photos: Fine Art Models' interpretation
Bottom photo: here is how John Haynes modeled this area. Notice the catwalks between the girders.

[Stefan Buysse]

Stefan, what you see in the photos may be something other than 20mm platforms. IIRC from an earlier post by Tracy White, only Essex and Yorktown had those positions when built. Due to vibration problems on the platforms they were omitted from the rest of the class. I'll defer to Tracy to confirm that Hancock did not have them.

Thanks, Steve.

Now that you mention it, I also remember reading something about vibration problems. I'll go search through the thread to find it. I must be getting old.

Cheers, Stefan.

[Tracy White]

I think Lex may have had the aft 20mm galleries as well for a very short time, but certainly not during her time in the Pacific.

Vibration was a problem on those galleries on the "long flight deck" ships. This includes all of the short hulls. When they decided to shorten the flight deck on the original "long Hulls" (Tico, Hancock, Randolph) it was decided to put them back. When the flight decks were lengthened aft on these ships they were removed. Hancock never had her flight deck lengthened, however, and had those galleries throughout the war.

[Stefan Buysse]

I think Lex may have had the aft 20mm galleries as well for a very short time, but certainly not during her time in the Pacific.

Vibration was a problem on those galleries on the "long flight deck" ships. This includes all of the short hulls. When they decided to shorten the flight deck on the original "long Hulls" (Tico, Hancock, Randolph) it was decided to put them back. When the flight decks were lengthened aft on these ships they were removed. Hancock never had her flight deck lengthened, however, and had those galleries throughout the war.

Hello, Tracy.

Thank you for explaining that complicated story again .
That's my USS Hancock sorted out then, I hope.

How about the USS Essex? I looked up the position 37�N 74�E because that's what Navsource indicates for their May 1943 picture in which these galleries are clearly visible on Essex.
I think that's in the Atlantic, off the US East Coast. I wasn't sure when the shake-down cruise had ended and when she went through the Panama Canal.
Do you think these galleries were removed before November 1943?

Cheers, Stefan.

[Tracy White]

Do you think these galleries were removed before November 1943?

100% yes... I could give you a more definite answer as to date but I don't have time to go digging through my records until next weekend.

[Stefan Buysse]

100% yes... I could give you a more definite answer as to date but I don't have time to go digging through my records until next weekend.

Thanks, Tracy.

You're the guardian angel of all rookie Essex builders.
I think I've got what I need for my model.
If you're looking into that time period, maybe you'll come across the date when the USS Essex went through the Panama Canal.
I think she was the first of the class to go through there. The date could be a neat bit of trivia.

Cheers, Stefan.

[FlyingLow]

Hey everybody,

let me add some progress pictures of my Tico in 1/700.
I got my Hasegawa 1/700, Waterline kit pretty much by accident and after some study the ship really grew on me. I am building models for about a year, mostly WWII airplanes, I also did one fishing trawler, but this is my first "real" ship.

This is what I started with:


Hasegawa kit has no interior, so I had to scratch build the hangar deck:


Interior of doors is simulated using aluminum foil:


I enjoyed driling hundreds of holes into "beams"


Of course many doors were cut open:


Painting has begun:



Some very basic weathering also on the hangar floor, because of the angle much won't be visible anyway:


Next will be some serious metal work with Photo-etch, but since it is very busy at work, it will be slow progress. Any comments, hints, ideas are welcome.