Calling all Gato-class (SS-212) fans

[krgf15]

They are on ebay quite alot though. Im just really disappointed in the afv hulls. They should have fixed that by now...

[Tom Dougherty]

Im just really disappointed in the afv hulls. They should have fixed that by now...

Polystyrene injection molds are very expensive (>$100,000), and once the tooling is done, there is little incentive too go back and fix it. As I have said so many times, I have lots of plans, drawings, photos, etc. of submarines that I would gladly make available to kit manufacturers for free. It continually amazes me that with all of the research materials available today we still get gross errors in kits. If you are making a new kit, why not take the time to get it right before the expensive molds are made?

[rtheriaque]

Tom,

No disrespect intended, but there is 0% chance these molds are $100k unless they're building them in the US for some reason. A high end Chinese tool shop wouldn't charge more than $25-30k for the most complex kit that size.

I rarely approach six figures on significantly larger and more complex tools made over there.

[Tom Dougherty]

Interesting! Thanks! I was going by US figures from the early 2000's, and again, things are cheaper in China.
Still at $25-30K per mold, I don't think they will go back to correct the molds.

[chuck]

I am building riich model's 1/200 gato. I like to add some basic pressure hull top inside the upper hull that can be seen through the limber holes. Can anyone point me to a good illustration of what the pressure hull looks like under the decking, and a good cross sectional drawing around midship?

[chuck]

Nothing?

[aptivaboy]

Having crawled all over Cod several times and looked for details like that, I can tell you that not a lot is visible unless you are right next to the seam between the outer hull and the casing, and then looking up and in.

These links may prove helpful, as there are some pics of Batfish having some maintenance done, and the underworks visible. I hope this helps! Back in the day, there was a huge spread of pics showing her redecking and the details underneath. It was just a couple or three years ago. Some searches will probably turn them up.

Bob

http://www.subcommittee.com/phpBB3/view ... &start=270

http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_di ... page_3.htm

[aptivaboy]

Also, Pampanito looking forward towards the forward hatch pillar.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisd2006/3507950633/

[chuck]

Having crawled all over Cod several times and looked for details like that, I can tell you that not a lot is visible unless you are right next to the seam between the outer hull and the casing, and then looking up and in.

These links may prove helpful, as there are some pics of Batfish having some maintenance done, and the underworks visible. I hope this helps! Back in the day, there was a huge spread of pics showing her redecking and the details underneath. It was just a couple or three years ago. Some searches will probably turn them up.

Bob

http://www.subcommittee.com/phpBB3/view ... &start=270

http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_di ... page_3.htm

I am building riich's 1/200 gato, and want to make sure what can be glimpsed through limber holes are broadly accurate.

[merriman]

Some 1/32 scale shots of a very nice pair of GATO's seen at 6:45

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpHAocO ... CS&index=2

David

[fred_sirois]

Hello all. I'm starting a build of the Hobby Boss 1/700 Balao. I'm not too happy with the deck guns as supplied with the kit. Is anyone aware of aftermarket 4"/50 caliber guns and single 40mm guns? I think NIKO may have something for the 40mm, but I cannot seem to find anything for the 4"/50's. Strange, too, since they were extensively used on 4-piper destroyers as well.

[zotz]

Hi,
Can the USS Wahoo be built out of the 1/144 Trump Gato?
If so, which variant should I use?
Thanks

[Tracy White]

1944 kit is closer, but it looks like that kit has a different flood hole pattern than what I can see on her Navsource page. It looks to me like she had two 20MM AA guns aft one on the sail and one on the deck. The kit has a single 40mm on the sail and you would need to source two 20mm guns unless there was a change in guns not shown on her Navsource page. Might be other changes.

[zotz]

1944 kit is closer, but it looks like that kit has a different flood hole pattern than what I can see on her Navsource page. It looks to me like she had two 20MM AA guns aft one on the sail and one on the deck. The kit has a single 40mm on the sail and you would need to source two 20mm guns unless there was a change in guns not shown on her Navsource page. Might be other changes.

Thanks

[aptivaboy]

Can the USS Wahoo be built out of the 1/144 Trump Gato?

No, not out of the box. Wahoo was a Mare Island boat, and built to plans prepared by the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Gato was built by Electric Boat to their plans. While identical in performance, there were many noticeable visible differences between Gatos putatively of the same class - limber hole patterns, steel versus wooden deck sections, bow hatch locations, bridge arrangements, torpedo tube shutters, just to name a few. You can actually tell the difference between Mare Island/Portsmouth Gatos and their Electric Boat/Manitowac sisters simply by giving them very cursory visible examinations.

Anyway, the short answer is no, you cannot build the Trumpy Gato into the Wahoo out of the box. The long is answer is that yes, you can, IF you put in tons of time and effort and elbow grease. It can be done. Just be sure to do your research and really nail down the differences between the two plans, some obvious, some very subtle, like the curve in the fairwater from fore to aft, and the "squareness" of the roundover. I realize I will sound like an anal rivet counter, but I get perturbed everytime I see a Trumpy or Revell Gato passed off as a Portsmouth-planned boat. The two are not the same. For aircraft modelers, it would be like modeling a late model F-4E as the F-4H1 prototype, or an Allison-engined A-36 as a late model P-51D, the boats from the different plans are that different visually.

Bob

[NavyFan1]

Looking for any photos of Growler prior to her loss. Tried navsource, they only have the one shot from a distance. Especially looking for information on her gun armament; I have the Revell 1:72 kit and am wondering if it builds into an accurate 1944 Growler OOB?

[steinerman]

Greetings folks, Back the first of the month, I drove over to Muskegon, Michigan to see the USS Silversides, a WWII Gato class submarine. As I toured the ship and the accompanying museum, I took a lot of photos showing up-close detail of a lot of the ship.

I finally finished sorting and adding descriptions to the photos. You can find them here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/steiners_pics/albums

There are 286 photos in the album. I have reduced them in size in order to put them on-line, but if any of you would like the originals (approx 5MB each) send me a PM and I'll get back to you.

[Admiral John Byng]

Larry, thanks very much for the photos, they are incredibly useful and when I get on with my Revell Gato I will be referring to them regularly!

[Fivi_1241]

Evening, guys!

I've recently become interested in USN subs history and got keen on building Gato-class kit. To be honest, I got lost in all the modifications and modernisations done on those vessels, so I want to make sure that I buy myself a correct kit. I will build either USS Barb, Cavalla, Cod, Flasher or Tunny.
Based on what I saw at navysource.org and read here, I guess 1943 AFV Gato is correct for all 5 subs, and 1942 is correct only for early Barb and Tunny. Am I right?

Cheers,
Filip

[Tom Dougherty]

Just about everything you need to know about WWII submarine configurations.
Is present here:

http://floatingdrydock.com/guide%201a.pdf
http://navsource.org/archives/08/pdf/0829293.pdf
http://floatingdrydock.com/guide%203.pdf