Calling all Los Angeles SSN-688 class fans

[Tracy White]

Sixth photo down on the Navsource page, but it's running reaaaaalllllllly slow for me right now.

[redoctober27]

Ah yes I see it now! Yeah I think ill go with what hobby bosses paint sheet thank you very much for the repliy Tracy!

[nipponrookie]

Here is a dry dock photo of SSN 703 in the "classic" black and red.

[Tom Dougherty]

Hello, what would be a classic paint job for a early 688 LA class during rthe hight of the cold war I seen your pics of Uss Greenville with red hull and black nose from the early 2000s and todays all black paint job. I'm wondering if hobby bosses paint job layout would be accurate for a 688 class during the cold war.

The subs were largely in the red halfway down, black halfway up. However, some subs were painted in all black as well. When you do paint the sub, mix a few drops of white with your black. Close up they are sort of a dull, very dark charcoal gray, mainly from the effects of salt water. Another few shots for reference.

[redoctober27]

Awesome!!! Thanks Tom Dougherty and nipponrookie !!! let the building begin!!! quick question for nipponrookie ... Do you know what year your pic is from? Thanks again you two!

[_viper_]

Well, it has happened again...

http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=70136

Glad to hear nobody was hurt (on another website I read that the San Jacinto spotted the periscope of the surfacing sub at 100-200m and ordered a full back but, as they use to say, these things don't exactly stop on a dime...).

Who's up for another scrapped sub/sail?

[Timmy C]

The collision seems pretty minor, actually - the Navy just posted a few pics of the sub and the cruiser today that don't show any visible damage:

San Jacinto:
http://www.navy.mil/view_image.asp?id=135720

Montpelier:
http://www.navy.mil/view_image.asp?id=135718
http://www.navy.mil/view_image.asp?id=135721

Edit: nevermind, it seems that the sub lost her vertical fin, since you can't see it above the water. Also, it seems that it was the cruiser's sonar dome that collided with the sub's stern: http://blogs.defensenews.com/intercepts ... /#more-832

[Heavy Melder]

http://www.hobbyboss.com/a/gb2312/news/ ... 2/899.html

Hobbyboss is doing another LA class1/350 kit, this time the USS Greeneville equipped with the ASDS.

[Tracy White]

Milk it one more and give me a DDS with a SDV Mk 8!

[Korras]

Hello

I�m building 1/350 USS Cheyenne SSN-773 from Hobbyboss kit and I have few questions.

Are there any differences between Cheyenne and other Flight III boats? I heard that she was used as test boat for pump-jet propulsion system later installed on Seawolf class. Does anyone know if she has a standard propeller or something like Seawolf or Trafalgar classes?

And is it just me or anhedral stern planes in Hobbyboss kit have a wrong shape?

[shmenezes]

Guys, I'm building my first submarines, and I want to build at least three of the Los Angeles Class, one of each Flight, I'm starting with a 688i ... While I was researching, I've found great info here, but I want to ask something: is there a 688i that I can finish in overall black, so to speak? My idea was to have different paint schemes for each Flight...

Cheers and TIA,

Sergio from Brazil

[Korras]

Hi Sergio!

Maybe this will help.

SSN-750 Newport News:
http://navsource.org/archives/08/750/0875003.jpg

SSN-753 Albany:
http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0875301.jpg

Unfortunately I do not know if this paint scheme was only for the christening ceremony or pernamet.

[Tracy White]

Great sleuthing; minor nitpick though. Newport News was the last of the Flight II boats and not a 688i. Still, that expands the "era" that could be done all black.

[shmenezes]

"Still, that expands the 'era' that could be done all black.

Then I think I'll build my kit as the the USS Albany...
Next ones will be Dallas and Providence... Any other info I need to know? I'm a submarine newbie...

Thanks and cheers from Brazil,

Sergio

[krgf15]

Is there any structural difference between flight 1 and 2 other than the VLS? I picked up the cyber hobby combo kit with the maryland and chicago, to get the Boomer. I also have the Riich and Hobby Boss 688's on the way, as I wanted to compare the 3 different styles. I wanted to build the Dragon one as flight 1, but the instructions only show for flight 2. Any takers?

[Tom Dougherty]

Is there any structural difference between flight 1 and 2 other than the VLS?

No. The VLS system does result in some modifications to one of the ballast tank risers, and if you look carefully at photos of Flight I's in the water, they tend to ride a bit bow high, whereas subsequent boats are more level in the water (due to the VLS installation and weight redistribution as a result). A ballast tank riser vent can be seen in the high resolution version of this photo: http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0872010.jpg It's halfway between the temporary platform and the waterline.

One other minor point: the first VLS boat was Providence (SSN 719). Her VLS installation was arranged differently from the subsequent VLS hatches. Basically, it was 3+3 on each side, whereas subsequent boats had 8 tubes on the midline and 4 outboard (4+2). You can sort of see it in the high magnification version of this photo: http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0871910.jpg

[krgf15]

awesome thanks!!

[Tom Dougherty]

I�m building 1/350 USS Cheyenne SSN-773 from Hobbyboss kit and I have few questions.
Are there any differences between Cheyenne and other Flight III boats? I heard that she was used as test boat for pump-jet propulsion system later installed on Seawolf class. Does anyone know if she has a standard propeller or something like Seawolf or Trafalgar classes?
And is it just me or anhedral stern planes in Hobbyboss kit have a wrong shape?

The Cheyenne was built with the standard "ring propeller" (regular propeller with a ring at the perimeter to protect the tips during artic ice operations). Although the prop is covered, you can see the general shape in the high resolution version of this photo: http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0877330.jpg There is clearly no pump jet on the hull at this point. Also, by the time the Cheyenne was launched, the Seawolf was well along in construction. Testing of the Seawolf pump jet was done primarily with the unmanned scale model sub Kokanee (LSV-1).

You can also see the anhedral pretty well in this photo, and yes, the Hobby Boss version is off. The front end has a curved shape, while the trailing end is straight. The cylinder at the end is a countermeasures dispenser.

[krgf15]

I just finished my Hobby Boss 688, I just did it out of the box so I can look at it next to my other 1/350 boats. I dont know how much better the Riich 688 is, but the Hobby Boss kit was so much nicer than my DML 688 that I threw the old kit away.

[Korras]

The Cheyenne was built with the standard "ring propeller" (regular propeller with a ring at the perimeter to protect the tips during artic ice operations). Although the prop is covered, you can see the general shape in the high resolution version of this photo: http://www.navsource.org/archives/08/0877330.jpg There is clearly no pump jet on the hull at this point. Also, by the time the Cheyenne was launched, the Seawolf was well along in construction. Testing of the Seawolf pump jet was done primarily with the unmanned scale model sub Kokanee (LSV-1).

You can also see the anhedral pretty well in this photo, and yes, the Hobby Boss version is off. The front end has a curved shape, while the trailing end is straight. The cylinder at the end is a countermeasures dispenser.

Thank you Tom. This helps a lot.

Does any one know if this black rectangle on the hull of USS Cheyenne is something unique to her. I don�t see anything similar on USS Greeneville pictures taken during her refit after collision with Japanese fishing vessel.

Is this drawing only an author interpretation or Cheyenne at some point in time was repainted in all black paint scheme?
http://navsource.org/archives/08/750/0877335.jpg