Revell Germany 1/146 USS Constitution vs Revell 1/196 USS Constitution

Revell boxings over the years have had errors with stated scales.  Constitution kits are among them.

There is a 1960s-era 1/146 scale Constitution kit by Revell which is different and larger than the 1/196 (1/192 on some boxes) kit.  It is precisely half-way in scale between the larger 1/96 scale kit and the small 1/196 scale kit.

The easiest way to identify the true 1/146 scale kit from the 1960s: that kit only has 5 waist gun deck gunports open.  The rest are molded closed. 

It's arrangement, detailing and decorations are very different from the small 1/196 scale kit.  The 1/146 scale kit's appearance is nearly identical to the large 1/96 scale kit. Think of it as the 1/96 scale kit's smaller sister.

Below is the boxart for three releases of that kit.  The original boxart is at bottom.  It is a lovely painting.

Click here for downloadable Constitution plans from the National Archives, available at no cost.

Not sure if this makes a difference, but the 1/96 scale that some of the Revell ships are/were offered in is exactly one half of the accepted scale of the "admiralty models" that were built back in the day. They were usually built to 1/48 scale.

Hi;

    Oh boy. This is an ongoing point of confusion for a lot of folks. I built the largest one( 1/96?) years ago and was somewhat taken aback when I was gifted one as the U.S.S. Constellation and boy, what an eye opener that was.

    Only in modeling do you find that. Why can't folks come up with a certain size and stick to it. Maybe they are trying to accomodate the market-place of space available for it too. 

CapnMac82

Imagine if a manufacturer released an ME-109 that was 1/49 or 1/52 and labeled it 1/48.

That has already happened. In the late 1960's or early 70's UPC released a 1/50th scale F-4 Phantom. It had movable flight controls, retracting gear, internal fuel tanks and engines and movable-openning canapies.  Horible cockpit detail though. Overall shape was not accurate and at 1/50 it indeed scaled out ever so lightly smaller than 1/48.  in the late 70's or early 80's Entex bought the molds, reboxed it, and advertised it as 1/48. Obviously smaller than actual 1/48.   

That is why I came here... to figure out the issue between the 1/146 scale USS Constitutioni and the 1/196.  I have both the 1/96 and 1/196 but had never heard of the 1/146.

To extend that thought, imagine if a manufacturer released that 1/49 or 1/52 Messerschmitt, changed the molds slightly to depict it as a triplane, labelled at 1/32, and identified it as Baron von Richtoffen's Fokker.  We would then have the airplane equivalent of Revell's USS United States, HMS Beagle, SMS Seeadler, CSS Alabama, Thermopylae, and Pedro Nunes, and half of Heller's sailing ship line.  Oh, well, the things we ship modelers must tolerate . . .

Bill

Only in the model ship world are we expected to tolerate this sort of thing.

Imagine if a manufacturer released an ME-109 that was 1/49 or 1/52 and labeled it 1/48.

Or an M4A4 Sherman in 1/48 and 1/72, but had a snap-kit in 1/66, except  it was actually 1/60, maybe.

Oh well, such is life.

It was my pleasure! I'm glad to help.

Bill

Thanks, Bill.

That sounds closer to 18" than the 15-3/4" listed on the box. That should put it a lot closer to the 1/196 scale listed.

The hull measures 11.8 inches from the tip of the prow to the furthest point on the transom.  The bowsprit extends approximately 5 inches beyond the prow.  The spanker extends approximately 3/4 inch beyond the transom.

Disclaimer:  Given that the model is not yet constructed, I dry-fitted the pieces in place before measuring.  Hence, my use of the word "approximately".  However, I measured the pieces in place and the measurements are very close.

Bill

The box indicates 15-3/4", but does not state whether that is the hull length or an over all. Doing the math based on the measurements I've found of the real ship it should be closer to 18-5/8" overall if the model really is 1/196 scale. Assuming the 15-3/4" measurement is an overall and a true measurement of the model, that would make it closer to 1/218 scale.

I don't know off-hand, but I will check after work today.

Bill

Thanks, Bill,

That pretty much jives with the information I've gleaned perusing other threads in the forum. What is the finished measurement from tip of bowsprit to taffrail of the 1/196 kit?

I have the Revell of Germany USS Constitution model that is listed in the box as being 1/146, and the Revell USA model stated to be 1/196 of the same ship in front of me as I write this.  They are identical in every way!  The two kits are the same size, they have the same number of pieces, and the same molded-on details.  They closely fit the rest of my 1/200 collection.  I even went so far as to dry-fit the port side hull half of the RoG kit with the starboard half of the RUSA kit; they mated perfectly.

It seems clear to me that both are 1/196 scale.

I have the old mid-sized simplified kit released in the 1970s that could fit in a collection of 1/144 kits, although it might be a little big. Perhaps that is the 1/146 scale kit, although it is no longer in production.

Bill Morrison

Gene, 

its hard to know abt the ratlines, sails etc as there have all been released so many times. The 1/146 kit instructions posted on the Revell site show cast ratlines. I wouldn't consider that a deal breaker so long as there's a trash can nearby. And it has a one piece deck Which is a plus.

others may correct me, but from the above instructions, this looks like a scaled up version of the 1/196 kit. Split gun ports and single piece complete masts. And it came out with a low price point as a "quick build".

Having built quite a few of the little ones, it's always a go-to for me.

Bill

Does anyone know which is the better kit? Is there a difference in castings or details or shroud/ ratlines? I built the 1/98 kit when it first came out.

GMorrison

Actually it sounds like the 1/146 is the "Quick Build"; the 1/196, or 1/192 is the original.

They are different in both size and parts.

I think the one you built earlier is the larger one too. Don't know about the #.

 

 

The 1/196 is the original. I have it and I'm working on it. The 1/146 has the revell star of black thread were as the 1/196 has two spools, one black one tan. And the 1/146 has 191 parts and the 1/196 has 159 parts. And the 1/146 is about 1 1/2" longer.

Actually it sounds like the 1/146 is the "Quick Build"; the 1/196, or 1/192 is the original.

They are different in both size and parts.

I think the one you built earlier is the larger one too. Don't know about the #.

Seems I may have found my answer perusing some of the other threads. Yes, the RG kit and the Revell 1/196 kit are the same kit. Apparently the one I built so many years ago was probably the "Quick-build" version. Off to ebay again...