Models of USNS Lewis & Clark Class (T-AKE) Dry Cargo Ships

Short answer, No, especially in plastic - auxiliaries and support ships of any kind were scarce until recently, but 1/700 is coming alive with more WW II and a very few Cold War offerings.

Thanks for replying on this.   I thought the answer would be no.  I was contemplating building one for my company.  We have been involved as a subsuplier to the ship company that builds them. 

Thanks again.

Warbirdbuilder

Thanks for replying on this.   I thought the answer would be no.  I was contemplating building one for my company.  We have been involved as a subsuplier to the ship company that builds them. 

Thanks again.

Do you have access to a set of hull lines?  Superstructures are essentially blocks and can be easily configured and stacked.    The hull shape is often the driver on scratchbuilding a ship.   It makes or breaks the model.   

I'd have to check with our engineering department but I doubt it.  We are a pump system supplier and have no requirement for those kinds of details.     Will definately ask them though. 

Thanks for the input!

Looking at pics of this beast on Wikipedia, Ed is right as far as the boxiness of the superstructure, but the foward part of the hull is pretty plain Jane. That stern is nicely underswept, although it does appear to be just a simple curved shape ...

Haven't  gotten any feedback yet from my engineers.   I have done some web searches and there are tons of photos available during construction.   Maybe I will use those and the few dims I can get and do an "as close as possible" repro.   I'm sure no-body here will no the difference in hull contour etc..   I am the only model builder that works here.   Just thought it would be cool to have one here since we have had the fortune being contracted for all 14 ships.

There you go! Good enough is ... good enough! Slap some photoetch on the thing and they will all be awed.

Sounds like a plan.  Now I just have to get the time and motivation part down.   Still am in the middle of several aircraft builds and with my son back in school, time is limited.   I'll let you know when/if I do get it going though!         

You could ask Nassco in San Diego, They are the builders i believe.

        Here are two photos of a Lewis & Clark dry cargo ship. I think this vessel would make an interesting model. 

       Montani semper liberi !  Happy modeling to all and every one of you.

              Crackers                                

Jerome,   Correct,  Nassco/General Dynamics is the builder and also the buyer of our pumping systems.   Not sure if I am overstepping my legal limits by requesting these details from them.    Lots of confidentiality agreements etc. involved with Government contracts.   Might not sit well with the higher ups here.   Could be a way to go though.   

I agree!   Would be interesting and honestly probably not too difficult considering the vast amount of photos from fabrication thru active service.    Although I'd love to do it in plastic,  I think I would opt for carving a basswood hull and using styrene sheet and other media for the superstructure and other deck items.      Think this would be a nice attraction in my office here.    I keep all my models at home but this one would be at home here I think!

If I can get this project off the ground, I will definately post progress photos!

Planning 1/350 build.    

Did some quick math on this.    If web posted dims are accurate, they are 689 feet long x 106 feet wide.

I come up with 23.62" long x 3.63" wide @ 1/350 scale.      The only thing I'm not sure about is where the length is measured from.   All artist drawings seem indicate the part of the hull below the water line is a bit longer than the bow at top deck.

See this site.       http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ship/take-schem.htm

I would assume the 689 feet is the LOA - Lenght Over All, which would include the bulge under the bow that shows up nicely in this illustration from Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/dd/T-AKE-1LewisAndClark.jpg I would encourage you to stick with one of the "common" scales for the simple fact that quality PE is readily and cheaply available.

I actually took that very drawing and printed it.   After seeing what the printed dims were (7.87"),  I divided that into the 23.62" Dim.   The answer was 3.  I therefore photocopied it at 300% its original size.   I had to print out 3 separate sections and tape then together due to paper size available.    In my opinion it worked out perfectly.    The enlarged print measured almost exactly 23.62".   Close enough for me.       I'm getting inspired now!

You can also get the 1/450 sclae kit of the Nedlloyd Rouen by Imex. Its now called the MV Cape Knox (T-AKR 5082)

Now

http://www.msc.navy.mil/inventory/ships.asp?ship=44

Then

http://www.msc.navy.mil/inventory/ships.asp?ship=44

Mike T.

Mike,

Thanks for the links.  Is there a difference between them?   You noted "then" and  "now" but both links are showing identical photos.

Not familiar with the Imex brand.  I build aircraft mostly.   Looked up the model and it is on sale for only $12.99 @ hobbylink.com.  Seems awfully cheep for a larger scale model.    Are they a decent model company.

  Not sure if I will go this route though as I am doing this model to display at the office.    We have had the honor of being a critical part of the T-AKE project and building one would be a nice way to remember our ongoing involvement with these ships.

My only comment on IMEX is the scale - it is an "odd" scale so PE is not readily available, and it is the PE that can really add the "wow" factor to a model. Just my

Agreed on the scale issue.  Also since all my WWII ships are 1/350 I'd prefer to stay in that scale.   That way I if I ever bring it home from work, it will fit well with the others.

Thanks for the input!

I forgot to check my paste jobs, here is her in original civilian colors. It was one of the vessels I boarded for work when I worked in NJ.

http://www.scheepspraat.nl/nedlloyd%20rouen1.jpg

Good luck on the project you choose.

Mike T.

You can backcheck the scale by measuring the beam. That's what I usually do.

Have you noticed there's a major bug in the new forum in the subject line. DON"T use ampersands- they go crazy.

Thanks for clearing that up.   I like better in Navy colors.

Definately going to have to "clear the decks", pun intended, before I take a ship project on.

Thanks for the input!

No, hadn't caught that.  I am new at these forums so I'm not really up on the way everything works.

Thanks for the tip on the beam dims though!

We'll see if I can muster up the time to actually do this.   It would be a challenge for sure.

bondoman

DON"T use ampersands- they go crazy.

That's because html symbols use ampersand-description-semicolon for a notation.

Warbirdbuilder

Jerome,   Correct,  Nassco/General Dynamics is the builder and also the buyer of our pumping systems.   Not sure if I am overstepping my legal limits by requesting these details from them.    Lots of confidentiality agreements etc. involved with Government contracts.   Might not sit well with the higher ups here.   Could be a way to go though.   

Bondoman,

Nice idea!  Cheeper by the dozen.

Well, what happens is you spend so much time doing research, finding sources for the bits that are available, and making drawings, then fabricating the scratch stuff, that the hours spent in actually building are little in comparison.

Plus you may/ probably won't be happy with everything you do right off the bat.

I also have a rule of thumb which is that I give myself a value of $ 50/ hour, and when I look at something that would take me a long time to make, I seriously consider having someone do it for me.

You might find a woodworker or a foam shaper who was willing to rough shape your hull for $ 250. He'd probably charge you not much more to do two.

Hey, also the owners of your company would probably like to sign the letter sending the model to their best customer, so much so that they would let you build it at your pay scale.

Fortunately, I was once a woodworker by trade.  Still do it as a hobby or when a custom item is needed.   There was an article in Finescale some time ago where a person did a landing craft out of wood.   I might refer to it for some hull making ideas.

Honestly its not the task so much as it is the availability of free time.   As soon as my son went back to school, time has become scarce.

I find the biggest joy in modeling is the pursuit of an idea or plan of attack to solving a build issue.   Working the idea over and over in my head until I commit to action and then see what works and doesn't.     I love the challenge even though it isn't always cost efficient.

That's how I approach my woodworking, auto repairs, household repairs and anything else that comes my way.

I think I can attribute this analytical mindset to being a model builder since childhood.

Interesting idea to approach the boss.