Need sugestions for next project

Japanese Carrier Zuiho

Austyn95 wrote:

Well i currently have three models under construction. All are awaiting a paint job for them to be completed. So since i like to plan ahead i was wondering if anyone had a suggestion for my next project. preferably a German, American, or Japanese battleship or carrier. Preferably 1:350 in size.

What time period is your preference?

What is your budget?

Resin or injected?

Fully detailed or OOB?

Before a coherent & rational suggestion can be made some information about your preferences, interests, resources, and capabilities are in order.

1930's to 1940's

Budget bout 80 or 90 dollars

injected i think

and i dont know what oob is. i'm new to this so ill just say fully detailed

Austyn95 wrote:

1930's to 1940's Budget bout 80 or 90 dollars injected i think and i dont know what oob is. i'm new to this so ill just say fully detailed

OOB means Out Of the Box, and as you are a NOOB I would recommend against a fully detailed model.  That generally means one or more aftermarket detail sets (usually photoetched metal) to replace molded details which are overscale or beyond the capabilities of the model manufacture medium are added to the contents of the box.

For a battleship which meets your criteria I think I'd recommend the Revell of Germany Bismarck.  Its German,  its a battleship,  its from the 30's-'40s,  its injected,  its within your budget, and OOB it can be made nicely.   However some of the injected details are over-scale, like the log fence rails.

Alternately any of the Tamiya battleship kits can be made.   They fit many of your criteria, but lack included details such as railings.

To get to a carrier you will need to look at the offerings of Trumpeter.   They begin to push your budget criteria. And since they don't include airwings that could end up being a budget buster.  

While they're not as sexy as battleships and carriers, look at a destroyer as an entry-level learner project for a NOOB.   It has the advantages of being less expensive than a large complex kit and have fewer parts (less of an Oh My Gosh factor).   The Tamiya Fletcher is a good kit for a ship beginner.  Build one out of the box, then build another with PE details and you will still come out around the top of your budget.

Ed Grune has some good points.  HOWEVER, based on your stated requirements and budget, I would heartily recommend the Revell 1/350 Bismarck, which can be had for about $80-$90, and is an outstanding battleship kit with many different paint-scheme possibilities, and if you want to get fancy, a lot of PE accessories.  If you really want to go cheaper, try one of the Trumpeter 1/350 kits, such as the South Dakota, or maybe the North Carolina, or perhaps one of the carriers, like Saratoga or Lexington.  If you look carefully, you can also find a Trumpeter 'HMS Hood' for about $80, and of course a Banner/Minicraft 'Arizona' can be had for around $40-$50m, or even less.  A LOT depends on what you are really looking to model, and what your experience level is like.  If you are a NOOB, then it might be a good idea to start out with something smaller and cheaper (as Ed Grune suggests), in order to get you more comfortable with the peculiarities of ship modelling.  The Tamiya 'Fletcher' destroyer is an excellent place to start.......

I have constructed three ships. And one of them happens to be a destroyer so i dont want to do one of those. And yeah i want the out of the box then. It shoul'dnt hurt for me to push my budget for a carrier. I'm sure i could come up wth and extra thirty or forty dollars by the end of the month.

 

Yeah i'm a noob at this but i can't start an expert

Hi Austyn,

I have seen Revell's Bismarck 1:350 built OOB. It's mostly OK except for the plastic railings which I think are very much off-scale and look terrible. I'd rather suggest you buy Tamiya's Bismarck which is cheaper than Revell's and you can use the difference in prices to buy PE Kriegsmarine Railing from Eduard (www.eduard.cz) for $14.95 a piece (I suggest you get 2 pieces since one may not be enough). An alternative would be Tamiya's Yamato 1:350 with Eduard's PE Japanese Ships Railing 1:350 ($14.95 a piece same as Kriengsmarine Railing).

If you can add up a little to your budget, then another alternative would be Trumpeter's North Carolina 1:350 with GMM's PE upgrade set which sells for $45. But this will be a tough task because of so much PE details:

http://goldmm.com/ships/gms350-34.htm 

Austyn95 wrote:

1930's to 1940's Budget bout 80 or 90 dollars injected i think and i dont know what oob is. i'm new to this so ill just say fully detailed

Using the 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby, you can get one of the Tamiya Iowa class battleship (USS New Jersey or USS Missouri) for $60 plus tax. You will have enough cash left for the Tom's Modelworks #3510 PE set, US Fast Battleship. The PE is usually $20 plus shipping. Shipping for PE are usually cheap unless the seller charges a flat rate.

Tom's PE may not be the best, but it fits your budget. The result should be very rewarding.

This missed one of your requirement: The Iowa class was built AFTER 1940.

Let us know what you decide.

Austyn95 wrote:

I have constructed three ships. And one of them happens to be a destroyer so i dont want to do one of those. And yeah i want the out of the box then. It shoul'dnt hurt for me to push my budget for a carrier. I'm sure i could come up wth and extra thirty or forty dollars by the end of the month.   Yeah i'm a noob at this but i can't start an expert

Well, if a carrier is what you really want, then my guess is USS Lexington by Trumpeter is probably the best choice for you.  It fits the bill for price (between $80-$100), and it is a good kit!  Alternatively, you could get Trumper's USS Saratoga, but I think I heard the Lexington is the better kit.  There are other carriers about in the scale, and Trumpeter makes most of them, but the others are a bit more pricey.  There are also Japanese carriers to be had in this scale, but they are waaay up there in terms of price (i.e. $300 or more!).  If price is a BIG problem, then you might want to consider something in 1/450 scale, as Hasegawa still cranks out the Akagi and Shinano for about $40.....

All of these are excellent suggestions.  I'm afraid that I would suggest the Revell 1/350 Bismarck or Tirpitz as offering the most detail for the buck. Either certainly builds up into a satisfying model without resort to the difficulties of working with photoetch.

Bill Morrison

i have already built an Iowa class so thats out of the question for now. But thank you everyone for you suggestions. I imagine my next project will be the Bismark. Then maybe the Saratoga