DE KITS

Garth,

I know exactly what you're talking about in regards to cost!  It has gotten to the point that if you want to do the PE and barrels , etc... that you end up spending more on the aftermarket than on the kit itself.  

The Trumpeter kit makes into a nice model out of the box and I picked up mine for $20 with free shipping on evilBay about five months back.  Otherwise, I would go with the 1/240 scale Revell USS Buckley kit.  It might be old but Mike Ashey did a nice job on her in his book, Building and Detailing Scale Model Ships.  If my memory serves me right, I think he does not use any PE on her at all.  Again, evilBay would be your best bet on acquiring one.

In regards to the Linberg ship, I have never built one or seen one for that matter!

Hope this helps a bit,

Steve

The Trumpeter kit is outstanding! Coupled with the already mentioned after-market products, you can build an extremely impressive model.  The Lindbergh kit is a fair (at best) rendition of the Rudderow class. That said, I have seen some very impressive models built using that kit as a basis. It just takes a lot of work.

For example, remember the time in which the kit was first manufactured. Radar screens were solid pieces of plastic; in the case of this kit it is like a rectangular blob.  the 5" guns are molded in the gun houses as one piece.  20mm and 40 mm AA guns are quite basic.  Molded-on details can be quite heavy.  This kit was molded as a childrens' toy, but it does have many of the details and has many correct shapes and the profile is accurate.

I have this kit and am planning to do a lot of surgery to improve it.  The Trumpeter USS England is clearly the superior kit and is well worth the money.

Bill Morrison

docidle

Garth,

Depending on how much you want to trick your model out, personally, I prefer the Trumpeter 1/350 USS England.  The molding is nicely crisp and very little flash.  Gold Medal makes a PE set for her and Master Model makes barrels for the 3/50 in, the 1.1 and makes a complete set of 20mm guns that are tricky at first to build but make into an amazing representation with round barrels.

At this scale the length is 10.5 inches long and 1.25 inches tall.

You can get all these on evilBay.

Steve

Which one would you suggest?

I picked up the Delong at a show for $5.

uss delong of the rudderow class is 1/300 scale. uss riley of the rudderow class is 1/535 scale.

Gee, I dunno.................. Whatever one's the wartime DE.

Garth, which de as lindberg makes at least 2 of them at 2 different scales?

Thank you, Steve.

Yeup, I know that Trumpeter kit is da bomb.  

However, in addition to a space wise consideration - I also have a cost one too.  So, Trumpeter is not in the camera shot I'm afraid ....

'Yall know what I mean, Vern?" Ha Ha.

Garth,

Depending on how much you want to trick your model out, personally, I prefer the Trumpeter 1/350 USS England.  The molding is nicely crisp and very little flash.  Gold Medal makes a PE set for her and Master Model makes barrels for the 3/50 in, the 1.1 and makes a complete set of 20mm guns that are tricky at first to build but make into an amazing representation with round barrels.

At this scale the length is 10.5 inches long and 1.25 inches tall.

You can get all these on evilBay.

Steve