Trumpeter 1/200 USS Arizona BB-39

[commodore4]

Hello,I hope there are quite a few that have this will be glad to venture into something larger. Well, here goes. This is one big box full of plastic! The thing looks immense ! Well , compared to 1/350 it is ! Now , what you will find is many smaller boxes inside the big one .The hull and bottom are well protected with foam and non slip cutouts.The other parts ALL are bagged individually and they are VERY WELL molded. There are mold release pin marks ,but , most are well hidden or easy to remove. The P.E. that comes in the kit definitely NEEDS the detail-up set . Now here,s where I have to take them (TRUMPETER) to task. The P.E. in both sets is beautiful. It,s just that it is so much more delicate than any P.E. that I,ve used even on 1/350 scale ships.The stairs are a good example. When you fold the side rails to the vertical, then try to set the stair treads to the right angle they just shattered ! I had to buy a second set to get ones I could do this to . There is a lot of rails they didn,t include , such as the rails around ALL the stairwells ! Get a set of generic1/192 rails and cut them down for this duty .The joint between the hull and bottom is fairly tight . I did discover though , that when you use the four screws provided it wont fit as well as gluing it . The hull has four locators(two on each side) that does keep the two parts centered . The bow and stern fit fairly tight and there is no discernable edge to the joint . The parts of the superstructure units and masts are very well done .I only had to cut the locator pins off two parts on the forward 01 level (behind the CITADEL) to make everything tight. The deck is another issue you will want to deal with . There are hard visible seams running thwartships fore and aft .The seams fall BETWEEN the plank ends and fit well enough that very small amounts of filler will make those seams disappear without destroying the deck detail . OH , there is another player in the "detail-up" sets . their name is KA models.This set includes properly cut deck plank veneer It includes way more than the TRUMPETER sets . There is a big problem for those on a budget though. In my SQUADRON catalogue it lists for $226.99 REDUCED to $204.29 . It does include much more than you would think ,so it may be worth it . I scratchbuilt the rails around the turret tops and things like that .They have those included in this set .There are NO color callouts that I could use .My workshop has a very large supply of TESTORS "MODELMASTER" enamels ,so I have custom mixed every color I needed. I was going to use "TAMIYA" acrylic DECK TAN for the deck .It didn,t work well brushing it .I mixed my own, matching my mix to TAMIYA,S color .It looks great . There are some plastic parts on the after deck that are optional.They are an odd shape and go on either side forward of the turret BEHIND the deckhouse.I was informed that they should NOT be used . Well, there,s my LARGE thumbnail review of the TRUMPETER KIT of the U.S.S.ARIZONA in 1/200 scale .If you want more than I can fit here , feel free to E-MAIL me at gjgeracci@satx.rr.com commodore4

[Leftie]

Excellent Post. But you only scraped the surface of the problems of this model. That said, I extremely happy Trumpeter did the Arizona and hope they continue to give us the great ships of WWII.

But these models won't be perfect, they all will need extensive modifications but that what makes modeling so interesting. We all have to draw the line somewhere and as "this needs to be changed...and this is okay".

I'll confess I don't have the time or interest to fix the deck planking, increase the height of the forecastle or build a gutter around the perimeter of the deck.

More later I'm sure...

[BFR4570]

Thank you commodore4 for the concise, and accurate review.

ScaleDecks is also working on a wooden deck for this model. It is supposed to include the edge boards around various deck fittings, and around the exterior edge of the deck. I believe they are trying to get the engineering hatches more accurate, also. I hope so anyway. They are supposed to be much less expensive than the KA Set, because they will not include any PE. I think it is tentatively listed for $99.00. But that may change when they actually release it. It may be in available in several different styles. Check out ScaleDecks website for more info. They are a sponsor here. I am anxiously awaiting to see what they come up with!

White Ensign Models has also released their PE Set for this model, in case anybody didn't see John's announcement. Mine is on the way!

[Robin]

Thank you commodore4 for the concise, and accurate review.

ScaleDecks is also working on a wooden deck for this model. It is supposed to include the edge boards around various deck fittings, and around the exterior edge of the deck. I believe they are trying to get the engineering hatches more accurate, also. I hope so anyway. They are supposed to be much less expensive than the KA Set, because they will not include any PE. I think it is tentatively listed for $99.00. But that may change when they actually release it. It may be in available in several different styles. Check out ScaleDecks website for more info. They are a sponsor here. I am anxiously awaiting to see what they come up with!

White Ensign Models has also released their PE Set for this model, in case anybody didn't see John's announcement. Mine is on the way!

BFR4570,

I have the White Ensign's PE set and I feel it covers everything you need for the Arizona. Adds to kit very nicely. Now I just need ScaleDecks to release their wooden deck.

Robin

[commodore4]

I do hope you will forgive me if the MINI-REVIEW didn,t cover a lot more.I am not good at staying within numerical guidlines when it talks about character count. There,s more about the model I could say , but , I don,t know where to start over . I will say that the seam between the hull and bottom will disappear with some wet sanding and the boot stripe WILL cover it . The Guns have the same problem many warship models have. The "blast bags (BLOOMERS ?) Are made of the same styrene as everything else ! So you can have moveable barrels (if that,s your thing) and NO blast bags or fixed barrels and blast bags . The various gun tubs and splinter shields do need some thinning to look accurate ..I would suggest if you choose to use the plastic mast parts you glue them together and let them sit for at least two full days before working with them . I, Because this is a client,s model changed out those parts with the right sized brass tubing There is a somewhat noticeable amount of weight when they have all the parts on them . NOTE : Remember there was no AIR CONDITIONING in 1941 for the older ships . Leave most if not ALL of the deck hatches open .Use .010 wire to create the support uprights for them .You will not ,unless you get two sets of P.E. have enough hatches for all the openings .You can trim the kit hatches and they will look fine . Just sand down the edges on the bottom of the hatches . Don,t forget this is a nuch larger model so try to have a good referrence to guide you and -I have it on good authority that on that morning the ship was a faded dark sea blue in color except everything above the searchlight flats . This was washed out LIGHT haze grey .You can find pictures of the model in the MEMORIAL and she is in these colors along with the three ORANGY -RED turret tops . I believe the turrets so painted were one, two and four . I hope that this helps you . commodore4 P.S. Try to remember the hatches and scuttles are hinged on the forward side . I saw a really beautiful H.M.S. RODNEY scratchbuilt model get shot down in points and it was SCRATCHBUILT in 1/200 scale .Why ? The hatches on some locations were on backwards!! It,s little things like this that will make or break your model ! .

[Guest]

Almost finished with my Arizona. Here's my thoughts on the Trumpeter kit:

All and all it's awesome and well worth the price of admittance. There are some things I didn't like, but they were easy to fix.

I had the most difficulty with the seams on the deck and the PE railings and stairways (from the extra Trumpeter detail kit... a must have).

I suppose it was necessary for the deck seams to be where they were, but it was a PITA to putty and rescribe them. I guess I could have done a wooden deck, but I wasn't about to pay another 100 bucks for one!

The PE was [i]way[/i] too soft, but about 1/2 way through I found out they were much easier to deal with if they were painted first.

The detail below the waterline is nonexistant. There is so much going on up on deck that maybe it doesn't matter that much, but it would have been nice for Trumpeter to consider the bottom of the boat too.

It's also strange that there was nothing provided with the kit to keep the main guns on without gluing them so they could be moved.

I guess no kit is ever perfect, but there were more things that I liked than disliked

[Jim21680]

I think I need to order this kit soon. I have no plans, desire, or ability to build it right now, as I'm still working on the Alabama, and the money tree in my yard isn't harvesting like it used to. However, I have no doubt that its something I want to build at some point in the future, and I want to make sure I get one while they're still available. For the time being, this is a $200 expense that I can wholeheartedly justify.