I actually bypassed this thread in order to ask a few questions, so I guess I should re-start here!
I'm Aaron, and have been modeling N scale railroads since around the late 90s. I model the Reading Railroad during the 1950s era, but have also been an avid modeler when I was a kid growing up, between the ages of ~7 through 15. I stopped building armor, aircraft and ships when I decided to go full railroad. I say modeler, but at that age I was merely into building, painting and at the earlier ages playing with the final product. It was an enjoyable hobby, but I didn't take it too seriously.
Model railroading is my true love, but for years I have wanted to build an LHA-4 USS Nassau, representing the time that my uncle was in the Navy from 1987-1990. This brought me to the site, as I have never taken modeling ship seriously until now. I want this model to define the essence of my modeling skill, which I would say is intermediate. I am by no means a professional, but I know my way around the modelers' workbench and most of the skills I have learned in railroads will cross over to naval models.
I would love to also do a model of the AE-21 USS Suribachi, but that may come at a much later date when I decided to tackle a scratchbuild/kitbash of a full ship...(not as doable as a locomotive...)
But for now, I'm going to focus on making the best USS Nassau I can make. And maybe work on some armor later on in life, as I did enjoy building the WWII tanks and armored vehicles.
Oh by the way, I'm in the Air Force, so there's definitely no bias towards the sister branches apparently!!!