Any new WW I Battleship/Battlecruiser info ??

I have just read through this thread and can't offer much different to the above. As a long shot the 'Kitech' range of chinese navy vessels includes some that fought or at least survived through WWI. Handily, some chap has detailed the whole range here http://www.net4war.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=94

I have a couple of them and can (charitably) describe them as 'not entirely rubbish'. Indeed, there are a couple of nice kitbashed examples kicking around the web.

Will

I would love to see the WWI Battlecruisers in 1/350.  The Battlecruisers were involved in some of the most exciting chapters in WWI (Dogger Bank, Jutland).   The German Battlecruisers had lighter armament but were built to survive, pretty amazing warships.

The ICM König is a nice kit I'm working on it now.  The quality is decent and there are some nice PE sets for it (I'm using the Tom's Modelworks set).  There is mold seam cleanup to do on each and every part which are a bit more prominent than would you might expect from the more mainstream manufacturers.  The ICM Kit represents the SMS König as it appeared in 1918.  The torpedo netting and booms were removed during the 1917 refit so the fact that they are not included in the kit is correct and they should not be added unless you're converting it to it's earlier 1914 appearance.  

1/700 resin kits are vastly cheaper than 1/350 kits and offer a selection of ships that positively staggers the imagination.  The kits from Combrig are just gorgeous and are far superior to old retreads like the Airfix Iron Duke.  I would say that it borders on the impossible to build in one lifetime the available resin and plastic models of just battleships and battlecruisers in 1/700.  1/350 is really nice but when building capital ships you run out of room really fast.  You can put a whole navy in one display case with 700 scale.   WS

Another plastic kit that's worth consideration:  the Airfix 1/600 H.M.S. Iron Duke.  It's been around for a long time, but it's recently reappeared in the Airfix catalog - and Free Time Hobbies is taking "pre-orders" for it for less than $15.00. 

Even by modern standards it's not a bad kit.  As I remember, it suffers from two rather significant goofs:  the aftermost casemate-mounted guns in the secondary battery are there (those of the real ship were removed, and the embrasures plated over, almost immediately after she was commissioned), and all the secondary armament barrels have enormous, mysterious donuts mounted near their muzzles.  Critics have also pointed out that the muzzle flair on the main battery guns is a little too pronounced.  And, as is common among plastic warship kits, there's some question about what point in the ship's career the kit represents.  To get it absolutely right would take a bit of work, but the basis for a nice model is certainly there.  The generic sheet of photo-etched metal parts from Gold Medal Models would improve it considerably, and White  Ensign Models offers a pretty spectacular sheet of photo-etched details made specifically for it (or rather, I suspect, enlarged from White Ensign's own resin 1/700 kit).   

Well, I guess that depends.  It is the only game in town for a plastic WW1 Konig class ship in 1/350 and for that matter the only WW1 German Dreadnought in that scale as well.  The kit has some minor concerns that are fixable, such as the mast and of course the platforms and torpedo netting and a bit of a trial to fit the deck.  The mast and anti torpedo net platforms are offered by White Ensign Models.  WEM also offers a complete PE set as do the usual suspects.   I certainly didn't hesitate to buy a couple of them as they are pretty nice kits and really cheap compared to the new 350 offerings from the Japanese makers and even cheaper than the Trumpeter stuff.  WS

Wow. Higher then I thought for a Eastern Euro offering. For the subject matter, I assume it's worth the cost?

Free Time Hobbies has the ICM Konig for $63.99.  The kits appear from time to time on eBay also.   WS

What is the Konig running cost these days? Can you get them off of Ebay?

Hi Don,

Do you have the specific info on the PE set for the Emden? I am about to start it, was going to build it OOB and just learn rigging. Did a quick search for PEs and did not find anything.

BTW - The kit is sharp looking (for its age) and dirt cheap. A great entry into pre-WW2 ships (or any ships). The Konig family from ICM (and re-boxes) are also good.  You can also scrounge the old Alanger Potemkin (1:400 scale).

bondoman

There's the old Revell Emden as well, and Mikasa of course was in service until 1921 although Japan was not a belligerent.

Although not a battlecruiser (it was a light cruiser) the Emden from Revell-Germany is a pretty nice kit. I have won several medals at various contests with it.  The only problem is that the main guns do not fit in the turrets very well, be sure to check them before gluing deck on.  The fit on the rest of the kit is fine, and the detail is great.  There is a great PE set for it and even a great book published, "The Cruise of the Emden".

bondoman

There's the old Revell Emden as well, and Mikasa of course was in service until 1921 although Japan was not a belligerent.

I remember this kit from eons ago: Revell Emden.

They are simply reboxes of the ICM styrene kits.   WS

Are the Konig Class listed above from Aoshima made of Styrene?  Or are they resin with just an Aoshima label?

There's the old Revell Emden as well, and Mikasa of course was in service until 1921 although Japan was not a belligerent.

I was poking around there after reading another post. Being a naval novice, I'd prefer something more mainstream like Trumpeter or someone bigger. I'm not ready to shell out the big bucks for resin.

Nice to see that there is more variation then I thought, but again, I'm looking for styrene. Thanks.

Take a look at the Queen Mary and Invincible from Iron Shipwright.  If you don't like full hull models John at ISW will sell you a waterline version.  What more can you ask?  WS

I'd love to see the Jutland Battlecruisers in 1/350.

1/350

YS Masterpieces has produced a French battleship from the WW1 era called Bouvet.  Combrig has announced Sisoi Veliki which is an 1894 Russian BB from the Russo-Japanese war and is available for pre-order from Pacific Front Hobbies. The Konig class of WW1 German BBs are available from ICM and under the Aoshima label.  Also available are some of the Borodino class ships (Russian BBs of the 1905 era, one of which survived to serve in WW1), from Zvezda.  Also of that era is Combrig's Retvisan.  Royal Navy ships still available are Dreadnought from ISW, Invincible from ISW, Queen Mary from ISW, and for the USN there is Oregon from YSM, the cage mast version of Arizona from ISW, Connecticut & Illinois from ISW, Kearsarge & Maine from ISW, Michigan, 1911 New Jersey & Ohio from ISW, and finally the 1895 Texas is available from ISW.

In 1/700 there are far too many to list.  If you want a PDF of my database of 700 scale battleships, battlecruisers, coastal battleships and large monitors available send me an email with your direct email address as I cannot send it through the FSM connection.  WS