The Ship Model Forum

The easiest fix I can think of is to visit one of our sponsors and buy replacements.

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Martin

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday." John Wayne

Ship Model Gallery

Oh I agree and will be getting a set once one is available. I'm just speaking for those who don't want the added costs but still want to improve their Ranger in some way!

One thing I dig about this kit is that as a training carrier, I can do pretty much whatever I want for the flight deck population.

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Tracy White -Researcher@Large

"Let the evidence guide the research. Do not have a preconceived agenda which will only distort the result."
-Barbara Tuchman

I have the Trumpeter in 1/350 and have been doing a little research. The kit is purported to be in 44 fit. There are exceptions of course, but nothing a large stash of aftermarket won't correct. Looking it over, the dazzle camo is kind of intimidating. The splinters go over the stacks and would cause a lot of time to do as well as all the other areas on the ship. I see that she finished the war in measure 22. I assume this was painted when she went from Pearl Harbor to San Diego for training new pilots. This would make painting a little easier. The question would be, did she retain all her equipment as shipped in PH or would any of it be landed if she was only going to stay in California waters. Not many pictures available.

Jim Johnson

For S&G's I compared the new Trumpeter 1/350 Ranger CV-4 hull against the hull of the Hasegawa Junyo (for size only, NO comparison for beauty of molding) and was really surprised that the Ranger is a tad larger than the Junyo.... I guess I would have thought Ranger smaller based on operational usage. Just throwing that out.

The model looks reasonably good with no overt warts that I can see; and looks to be build able to pretty much any year between 42' and 45' with no real problems. I'd say a bit more towards 42-43' as I cannot see a catapult in the deck, but that would be an easy add. I'm not a certified Ranger expert however.



Regards!

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-Rob <><

From what you see in the kit, do you think backdating the ship to 1942 fit, or even earlier to pre-war (e.g. getting a pre-war air wing from Trumpeter's 1/350 carrier plane offerings or from the 1/350 Saratoga kit) would be that hard?

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"Haijun" means "navy" in Mandarin Chinese.

"You have enemies? Good. It means you stood up for something in your life."- Winston Churchill

I'm going to NARA in a bit and am thinking of pulling Ranger's departure reports, which should list all work done during an overhaul. That should help with figuring out precisely what needs to be done to make any time period buildable. Also (slowly) working on her air wings and aircraft complements for the entire war.

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Tracy White -Researcher@Large

"Let the evidence guide the research. Do not have a preconceived agenda which will only distort the result."
-Barbara Tuchman

Hi all,

Just curious, what would it take to backdate this kit into an Operation Leader (Bodo) configuration? I've been looking into the big USS Ranger book but so far haven't been able to pin down any AA changes.

Thank you!

Bob

As an aside note.

Sometime after the Anti-Kamikaze program got underway in April 1945, there developed a major problem with supplying all of the quad 40-mm mounts required for various ships not planned to get them when production of the 40-mm mounts were planned months before. Also, the production of Mk 4 "light-weight" quad 40-mm mounts were being phased in to replace the earlier quad 40-mm mounts in production and wasn't fully up to speed yet.

To get quad 40-mm mounts for several FLETCHERS, USS RANGER was stripped of her six quad mounts in I think July 1945 since she was a "training" carrier.

I have a couple of aerial views of USS RANGER (CV-4) in 1942 and in 1944.

This view shows USS RANGER (CV-4) on 18 August 1942 prior to Operation Torch.




Here is an overhead view of USS RANGER (CV-4) taken on 6 July 1944 off Norfolk after her overhaul and refit at the Norfolk Navy Yard, just prior to her departing for Pearl Harbor. By this point her 5-in guns have been removed. This view shows the locations of her 40-mm and 20-mm gun armament.

Some views of Rangers in dazzle.

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Martin

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday." John Wayne

Ship Model Gallery

Just curious, is there any dedicated aftermarket coming for this 1/350th kit? Flyhawk? Pontos?

Thanks,

Bob

I would like to build this ship in her early war fit as she ferried P-40s to the Med. A deck full of P-40s would be nice!

Bill

I've started my Trumpeter Ranger.
I intend to do it for Torch (November '42).
Using Cressman's book with Friedman's as supplement (CV design history).
My overall conclusions:
Mostly '44. Don't know how they could say this is '42 and only way I can see them issuing a '44 kit is to do a '45 leaving a lot off. Nice if they'd add some but don't expect it---actually, I don't think they'll issue another because of the error in this one marketed as '42.

Some surgery required. Initial standout is gun tubs fore and aft.

Aftermarket required: 1.1" AAs (40 mm cut down are still too big), .50s, F4Fs, one TBF, catwalks for starters.
Haven't seen L-4 in 1/350 so that seems a scratchbuild candidate.

I'm doing some assemblies now that don't need rework and some that are not clear in the instructions (like funnels). Also will help mark where color changes, for example hanger deck to weather decks outside hanger sides.

After viewing comments above:
Can't cut down another ship kit----too much difference in size.
Any period of Ranger is doable because changes were as extensive as Lexington or Saratoga for example.
Kit parts breakdown makes leaving off things easy with minimal mod.
More complex changes like rounddown are not hard--I changed Sara's and it turned out to be easy with PE saws, sanding, and very little filler.

Going to try a test image here, but don't be surprised if you don't see one. Don't really know how.
Well, not working. Any advice on photos?

If it's this kit:

That is the '44 version. Some places (and maybe even Trumpeter) have it mislabeled at 1944. I was unaware the announced ACTUAL '42 version had been released yet.

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Martin

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday." John Wayne

Ship Model Gallery

Martin,
You are correct about the box art showing '44.
The box, instructions, and coloring insert do not specify any period.

However, the advertising, Trumpeter information, and distributor information all identify this kit as '42 (no particular point in '42, during which Ranger had significant mods for a modeler).
Also, advance info identified another kit number as '44.

So, based on information, this one was only identified as '42. Then when the box art was released the situation became unclear. Now we know it really is an attempt at '44. Details plus Ranger having additional significant (to modeler) mods in '44 make it imprecise and a mix o' mods.

BTW,
as a Ranger enthusiast I ordered the kit at first opportunity---did not get the surprise til I saw the box.
Looked inside and decided not to take it based on planes and gun tubs---felt it might be too much mod.
Fortunately hobby shop quickly sold it and another.
Did more research and looked at in-box review and decided that with the aftermarket items I'd have to get anyway it was easily do-able to make it in Torch configuration.
I also contacted Trumpeter through their web site asking when other kit would be released and what it would represent----no reply.

What color should the deck of the hangar deck be? Was the deck blue of the outer galleries on the hangar deck level carried into the hangar through the openings that are on either side of the ship just aft of the island? And in addition, were the bulkheads of the hangar deck white?

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On the ways:
1/350 AFV Club LST

It depends on the period. Hangar deck should be #20 Deck Gray. The boarder would be the base of the roller doors, but I can't tell you how precisely it was followed. The bulkheads and overheads were white for the majority of the war, but there is strong evidence that they were silver through 1941 and some part of 1942. We have no documentation yet to give us a firm date or proof of this yet, but photographs for Yorktown, Enterprise, and Wasp at least strongly support it.

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Tracy White -Researcher@Large

"Let the evidence guide the research. Do not have a preconceived agenda which will only distort the result."
-Barbara Tuchman

Thank you Tracy

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On the ways:
1/350 AFV Club LST

USS Ranger (CV-4). Captioned as December 1941. Photo 80G-64765, US National Archives

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Martin

"Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday." John Wayne

Ship Model Gallery