Calling all USS Yorktown CV-5 fans

[TOMLABEL]

PS, anybody have their copy of Cressman's That Gallant Ship handy? I think that photo is in the book.

Mike you are correct - Page 52 (bottom). Reads "Yorktown underway at sea en route to 'Point Luck', as seen from Portland, circa 31 May 1942. 80-G-32585".

Kelley

[Elvis965]

For that second picture, it seems as though the deck of the island is painted a dark color Possibly all horizontal surfaces?. Would that also be mahogany?

Steel decks would have been dark gray, not mahogany.

Bob

[robertmelvin]

I received my Infini-models Yorktown set for the Merit kit as well as the flight deck set today and have to say that I am beyond impressed to the extreme!!!

Actually, I'm pretty overwhelmed by how many areas are covered in such great detail that aren't even shown in the photos posted by Infini-models in the Manufacturer's section of the forum. I can really see that a lot of time went into researching this set and I hope my modeling skills are on par to even do this set justice!!!

I'd like to call out Tracy White (as he is referenced in the EXCELLENT color instruction guide) for providing what must have been tons of research materials and thank him for this and all the time he must have spent with Infini-models to make sure all was done to a very high standard I thought not possible or feasible!!!

I've waited a very long time for a great 1/350 scale kit of the Yorktown class to finally be done and Tracy and Infini-models have just added the very sweet icing on the cake!!!

A BIG THANKS!!!

Kelley

I have to concur. I just got mine a few days ago and have now had time to examine it. It is truly fantastic. I only hope that my skills are up to doing it justice.

Bob M.

[Par429]

Hey all-
I've been studying all the pics I can find that were taken during the Midway battle. In the pic below, is that a folded American flag?


Other pictures taken at Midway show she was flying a large American flag from the foremast and a smaller flag from the aft mast. I can't find a clear picture of the aft flag other than the above. Was Yorktown flying two American flags at Midway?

Thanks,
Phil

[Michael Vorrasi]

For that second picture, it seems as though the deck of the island is painted a dark color Possibly all horizontal surfaces?. Would that also be mahogany?

Steel decks would have been dark gray, not mahogany.

Bob

Careful here guys. Steel decks were dark gray prewar. If wartime, the decks would be Deck Blue 20-B and the wood flight deck would be Norfolk 250-N blue stain. The OP mentioned SA radar, indicating a wartime rig. Well, we are still not sure what that antenna really is, however, it is on the starboard side of the funnel, towards the forward end.

[Elvis965]

Careful here guys. Steel decks were dark gray prewar. If wartime, the decks would be Deck Blue 20-B and the wood flight deck would be Norfolk 250-N blue stain. The OP mentioned SA radar, indicating a wartime rig. Well, we are still not sure what that antenna really is, however, it is on the starboard side of the funnel, towards the forward end.

Charybdis was asking about the deck color in the second pic Martin posted. The overhead one that was pre-war.

Bob

[Michael Vorrasi]

Careful here guys. Steel decks were dark gray prewar. If wartime, the decks would be Deck Blue 20-B and the wood flight deck would be Norfolk 250-N blue stain. The OP mentioned SA radar, indicating a wartime rig. Well, we are still not sure what that antenna really is, however, it is on the starboard side of the funnel, towards the forward end.

Charybdis was asking about the deck color in the second pic Martin posted. The overhead one that was pre-war.

Bob

Roger that. If he is doing a prewar build, than no antenna. He did refer to the SA (maybe?) antenna on the funnel. That would be wartime only,hence my confusion.

[Vlad]

Quick one (hopefully). What are the locations of the directors for the 1.1" quads on Yorktown at Midway? Thanks

[Michael Vorrasi]

Quick one (hopefully). What are the locations of the directors for the 1.1" quads on Yorktown at Midway? Thanks

Yorktown did not have director controlled 1.1" quads. They were manually aimed. There were plans to upgrade to both director control and 40mm's for CV-5 but she was lost before this could occur.

[Vlad]

Quick one (hopefully). What are the locations of the directors for the 1.1" quads on Yorktown at Midway? Thanks

Yorktown did not have director controlled 1.1" quads. They were manually aimed. There were plans to upgrade to both director control and 40mm's for CV-5 but she was lost before this could occur.

Aha, that explains why I had so much trouble finding them in any pictures oh well, one less thing to worry about! Thank you!

[DavidK]

I thought this book came out in late July, early August (I thought I read a review of it already). Now I'm having trouble finding one. Vols. 43 and 45 were on sale at Nationals... Has there been a delay in publication of 44?

[MartinJQuinn]

It was released in April. Review here.

[Bob Dedmon]

Working on the 1/350 Yorktown CV-5, I'm looking for some (any) photos of the lift mechanism for the midship elevator. I'm intending to open many of the roll up doors and that detail should be visible the many books I have on the subject neglect this bit of information, and Navsource isn't much better.

[Tracy White]

All you'll really be able to see would be the two hydraulic pistons and tracksthat came out of the elevator put and connected with the bottom of the elevator platform. I sent a couple of pictures in to Navsource last week that should be online soon that shows the AFT elevator pistons, otherwise the best photo I know of online is this one on CV5Yorktown.com.

[Bob Dedmon]

thanks Tracy

[Tracy White]

The CV-5 Booklet of General Plans available on Maritime.org should also help with placement, if you don't already have a copy.

[Michael Vorrasi]

It was released in April. Review here.

Hi Martin,

Just re-read your review and comments regarding the Sept. 9, 1941 photo on page 42 (accessible in the review). I'm not so sure that she is in Measure 1 being repainted into Measure 12 as Steve theorized. If the date of the photo is correct, believe it is Measure 2, the predecessor of Measure 12, as interpreted for carriers. Measure 12 had just been implemented in Ships-2 of Sept 1941, so the January 1941 measures would still be worn throughout the fleet as of that photo date. I've been studying that shot and I am convinced that very dark lower hull is not a shadow or fresh Sea Blue 5-S, but is actually 5-D. It is too dark to be the Sept 1941 Sea Blue 5-S of Measure 12, and Navy Blue 5-N wasn't being substituted for 5-S in existing measures until at least the end of 1941. Middle band color would be the Jan. 1941 version of 5-O and top band color would be the Jan. 1941 version of 5-L. That might make this the first Measure 2 carrier photo I've seen. Just food for thought. Anybody have opinions on that shot? I know Dick J pointed it out a while back regarding that very light top hamper, but this is a better close up of it. We thought it was a Measure 12 variation at the time, but that very dark hull doesn't add up. Way too dark. Measure 12's Sea Blue 5-S would not be that dark even if fresh. It would need to still be wet as of that date! (See any CV-8 commissioning shots for the contrast between 5-S and 5-O in original fresh Measure 12.)

PS, the photo appeared in Cressman's That Gallant Ship, years back and much smaller, and if memory serves, it was billed as a December 1941 shot. A Sept. 9, 1941 positive ID puts it in a whole new light. My copy is not handy, so if someone has theirs nearby, if you can check the date Cressman gave, that would be great.

[TOMLABEL]

if you can check the date Cressman gave, that would be great.

Cressman "That Gallant Ship" page 46.

"Yorktown along side Pier 7, NOB Norfolk, on 9 September 1941".

I think you are correct Mike, that lower band looks too dark for 5-S even with the sun shining on it.

TOMLABEL

[skrakow]

Gentlemen,

Several authors praised the smartness of the strike launch timing of Yorktown at Midway: Launch the VS/VBs first, as the need most time to gain altitude and reach target. Bring up, spot and launch VTs next. While they assemble, spot the fighters and launch them with a bit of a delay, as those are the fastest planes. This way, the full strike force will meet and assemble en route or better close to target. Supposedly Yorktown was the only one of the three carriers at Midway to have figured out the positive aspects of such a scheme. The other two would launch VFs and VS/VBs, let them assemble and circle the ship to wait for the VTs to launch (burning precious fuel while circling), and then leave together for the target area.

However, reading the Yorktown action report for the Coral Sea:

https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/sh ... Coral.html

apparently the more 'conventional' sequence must have been used: On May 8, '42 Yorktown launched its first strike consisting of a total of 39 planes in a matter of 15 minutes. In such a short time span, am I correct to assume that the full strike must have been spotted on deck, with the fighters up front, scouts/bombers behind, and the VTs at the very end of the flight deck?
Can somebody please confirm that? Would anybody have a listing of which planes participated in this strike?
Surprisingly little is being released about Coral Sea as compared to what have been published here about Midway....

Thanks and Best regards from Germany,
Stefan Krakow

[DennisJP]

Working on the 1/350 Yorktown CV-5, I'm looking for some (any) photos of the lift mechanism for the midship elevator. I'm intending to open many of the roll up doors and that detail should be visible the many books I have on the subject neglect this bit of information, and Navsource isn't much better.

http://www.navsource.org/archives/02/020843.jpg


this picture is of Hornet. Maybe try to find a picture of Enterprise and compare.