Should I, shouldn't I? —Advice needed for purchase of very old Revell model

Navsourse can be a gem, or a frustration.

Here's Haven, whih what appear to be Deck Gary decks

Then, this one, of Repose, seems to show the 100 and 01 Decks in Deck Gray, and the 02 and above decks in tha "wood" color.  (Which, frighteningly enough, seems to resemble the Sand Yellow + Rust color recommendation by Revell--unless those aew redwod decks, maybe?)

All of these VN era photos of Repose show here without the green stripe, which is curious.

Nino

Wasn't that "Modelmamm" that you bought from?

There is HOPE!

  There is  another listing:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/REVELL-1-471th-SCALE-HOSPITAL-SHIP-SS-HOPE-85-0007/164265293021?epid=16016798376&hash=item263ef974dd:g:UO8AAOSwe9Vb~7Ft

Shows as NEW too.  In fact, it looks like the original Listing, including the price,

 

Nino

Thanks, Nino. That's right, it is Modelma'am I'm dealing with. The eBay listing seems identical, so yes, there may be HOPE!

Bob

Bobstamp

Some days just don't go as planned...

 

Bob 

 

Wasn't that "Modelmamm" that you bought from?

There is HOPE!

  There is  another listing:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/REVELL-1-471th-SCALE-HOSPITAL-SHIP-SS-HOPE-85-0007/164265293021?epid=16016798376&hash=item263ef974dd:g:UO8AAOSwe9Vb~7Ft

Shows as NEW too.  In fact, it looks like the original Listing, including the price,

     Nino

Bob, have some patience to see what happens.

You can bet that the seller felt terrible for sending something different from what you had arranged. 

Was this Long Beach in the plain white box with just a paper picture glued on?  That was the wayRevell sent their Master Modeler Club offerings, many years ago.  Many years ago (but some less than "many many") I got a couple of those - a Long Beach and a harbor tug.  Don't think I have opened them yet.  I assume they have the right kits inside...

Some days just don't go as planned...

Following advice in this thread, I ordered a Revell model of SS Hope in hopes of building it as the hospital ship U.S.S. Repose, where I had surgery following my being wounded in Operation Utah in South Vietnam in 1966. Yesterday, our letter carrier called to say he'd left a package for me in our apartment building's mail room. I went right down there to retrieve it, and was pleased to see that it contained my SS Hope model. However...

When I opened the box, out slid a model that certainly wasn't SS Hope. It was the "atomic cruiser" USS Long Beach. I immediately sent a message to the dealer, via eBay, and he immediately apologized for his error and said he would get back to me. He did, several hours later, saying that he would "try" to find the SS Hope model, and that he wasn't sure it was worth having me return the Long Beach model, unless it was the only one he had in his stock! I'm sure that I'll eventually obtain an SS Hope model, but I am just a little irritated! Ebay sales don't always go smoothly, but I've never hae one that was screwed up that badly. And I may end up with a Long Beach model that I don't want.

Bob 

Great photos. Thanks for helping to figure out the colour question.

Bob

An additioinal Color pics; USS Repose, 1969.  Nice wood decks.

(Pics may not post here so links below.)

(You can click on the "x" of the "photo" and the picture will appear)

 http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/12/09121613.jpg

http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/12/09121617.jpg

Nice collection:

http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/12/1216b.htm

    Nino

I've never found more than a scarce handful of colour photos of any of the Haven-class hospital ships, but these links will show you two of the seemingly helpful ones:

https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/408983209895990399/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/26574751@N06/18502817304/in/photostream/

These photos both show yellowish decks.

This video shows a few images USS Repose with what appears to be a dark steel grey deck:

https://www.amazon.com/Hospital-Ship-USS-Repose-Corpsmen/dp/B0010VUY86

I remember how surprised I was when I went aboard an American cruiser at Yokosuka, Japan to deliver a message. Sailors were holystoning the wooden deck, which was a soft, light grey, perhaps with overtones of brown. I also remember getting chewed out when I leaned against a bulkhead waiting for an officer to reply to the message. We corpsman weren't always squared away!

Bob

Bobstamp

 Here's an aerial photo showing the barges that facilitated the transfer of wounded soldiers to Haven, obviously taken before the installation of the ship's helipad.

This is a collective question.  Looking at that photo, what color is the deck? 
Looks a little pale to be Deck Gray, but the contrast of all that white could be throwing off the contrast, too.

Or, is that a green deck?

These were often MSC ships, even with "USS" names, and they often were more merchant painted than USN painted.

One thing is for sure, the half-yellow half rust color called out in the Revell instruction sheet is flat wrong.

Hi;

 I know I am late to the conversation. I would definitely do the rail removal thing. REVELL always told you in the instructions to paint the "Rails- Walls"? silver? Who ever would paint warship or other vessel rails silver, anyway? Even on the S.S. Lurline in the seventies the rails were white with Wood cap-rails.

I learned that, thanks!

I missed the SS versus USS. 

Bill

G,

You were sot of correct when you said "Hope is a Comfort Class ship. Her sisters are Comfort and Mercy. They have no real resemblance to the Haven Class."

The deal is that we made a point to say USS Haven and SS HOPE, as SS HOPE was actually the former USS Consolation (AH-15), not to be confused with the Navy's USS Hope (AH-7).  You are certainly right that AH-7 was not similar to the USS Haven class.

Note - I capitalize SS HOPE because that was how it was painted on the side of the ship, but it doesn't seem to have been any kind of acronym and it was a part of Project Hope, so I should try to write it in mixed case just like the name of a Navy ship.

Best regards,
Rick Heinbaugh

ddp59

no problem. was the shipping cost $12 or are you doing pickup? you are the 2nd Canadian that i know off that served in Vietnam as i worked with 1 during the early 80's who was there with the 101st airborne.

Modelma'am knocked the shipping price down to $10. North Van's not far but I don't drive and don't want to risk public transit, even though BC has very nearly flattened the COVID-19 infection curve through social distancing and wearing of masks in public. 

I was still an American when I was in Vietnam, although I did not volunteer to go to Vietnam. I'd become a Navy hospital corpsman and was seconded to the Marines, which don't have their own medical personnel. About 10,000 Canadians did volunteer for Vietnam. Those who survived, even if wounded, receive no benefits, and their records were destroyed soon after the war. My wife and I emigrated to Canada in 1969 and are now dual Canadian-American citizens.

Bob

no problem. was the shipping cost $12 or are you doing pickup? you are the 2nd Canadian that i know off that served in Vietnam as i worked with 1 during the early 80's who was there with the 101st airborne.

ddp59

Bob, got an email from modelmaam about the shipping to Canada for that model.

"All updated now. Thanks for pointing this out

Bob"

@ddp59: Thank you for helping with this. The Hope model has been ordered and paid for.

Bob, got an email from modelmaam about the shipping to Canada for that model.

"All updated now. Thanks for pointing this out
Bob"

GMorrison

Nice piece of information.... 

 Here's an aerial photo showing the barges that facilitated the transfer of wounded soldiers to Haven, obviously taken before the installation of the ship's helipad.

One of the best items in my Vietnam War collection of stamps and covers is a Japanese postcard, posted by an American sailor from Haven after it had transited the Suez Canal on its way to drop off French Army survivors of the battle of Dien Bien Phu at Oran, Algeria and Marseille. Those prisoners had become POWs of the Viet Minh following the battle, which played a major role in ending French colonialism in Indochina.

Bob

i contacted him too but with a link to this thread & that you live across the harbor from him. that $12 shipping is from his "Hope" post.

@ CapnMac82 & ddp59:

I have sent a message via eBay.com telling the seller that I want to buy the SS Hope model, but have not yet had a response. eBay.com won't let me purchase it because the seller "May not ship to Canada." The same listing is not available on eBay.ca.

Bob

Scalemates scale is wrong for that model as i measured 2 have class models using my 2ft calipers that is both metric & imperial then did the calculations to get the scale.

http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/12/1215.htm

Bob, use CapnMac82's link to get the Hope for $26US as you can do local pickup from this area North Vancouver, British Columbia, V7R 2P8

SHIPPING TO CANADA -   $12.00

https://www.ebay.com/itm/REVELL-1-471th-SCALE-HOSPITAL-SHIP-SS-HOPE-85-0007/193294859821?epid=16016798376&hash=item2d01457e2d:g:UO8AAOSwe9Vb~7Ft

Nice piece of information, and the photo matches the artwork on the box. Good work.

So Revell didn't do so bad there. 

This is a never-ending story!

According to Wikipedia, "SS Hope was a hospital ship operated by Project HOPE. This vessel was originally a US Navy hospital ship, USS Consolation (AH-15)." Consolation, according to Wikipedia and several other sources, was a Haven Class ship, and the first hospital ship to be fitted with a helipad, during the Korean War. Previously, when patients were transported to the ship by helicopter, the helicopters landed on barges next to the ship and lifted aboard by crane, obviously not the most efficient way to get critically wounded soldiers into the ship's operating rooms. The idea for the helipad came from a surgeon who was on Consolation's medical staff.

Bob

Revell, although not uniquely; had a terrible habit of renaming kits and reissuing them without much regard to accuracy.

Hope is a Comfort Class ship. Her sisters are Comfort and Mercy. They have no real resemblance to the Haven Class.

A nifty site to visit is scalemates. They are a member driven data base, usually quite accurate, of kits, histories of same, reviews, very often pdfs of the cartoon pages, and aftermarket parts available.

Bill

Bobstamp, You have the best guys on the site advising you & I think , buy it is the word. I have at least 5 or 6 p-51's in my cabinets that belonged to my CO in WW2 & I have looked forever for Ralph Parr's F-86 decals in Korea. Neverer found his or Glenn Eaglestons F-86 decals. Definetly give txhe decals a coat of Decal coat by Microscale.

                I've been around a long time & still build models a lot. Some things you only see once.

                                         Gene

Thanks to everyone who has responded to my original post. I've learned more about these Haven-class models than I knew I needed to know! I decided to order the S.S. Hope kit from the seller in North Vancouver, but there's a hitch: the listing says he may not ship to Canada, even though he lives only a long stone's throw away from me. OK, a VERY LONG stone's throw, across Coal Harbour, but if just one smallish apartment building weren't in the way, I could see North Vancouver from my living room. When I tried to buy it anyway, eBay.com informed me that it wasn't available to me because I live in Canada! I've written him to express my interest. 

Until I joined FineScale.com, I wasn't aware so many iterations exist of many models. I wasn't aware of S.S. Hope at all. The decals shouldn't pose a problem; I've been designing and printing my own, and as GMorrison wrote, the crosses and green stripes could be painted. 

I'll let you know what happens regarding the eBay Hope kit in question.

Bob

Because the 1960 kit will probably have bad decals.

Repose will only need the name and hull number, you can mask and paint the crosses stripes etc.

Scalemates lists this as 1:471

https://www.scalemates.com/kits/revell-h320-169-haven--178933

And they list the kit (as SS Hope) as in production as recently as 2008, so I'd not spend extra for the box art (which often drives the collector's market).

The USS Haven kits appear to all have crosses and green stripes, which are essential parts of USN hospital ship markings

They have a set of the 1968 instructions:  https://www.scalemates.com/products/img/3/1/4/111314-11-instructions.pdf

Looks like the Hope kits had only crosses for decals.  You get a helo, too.

I have no idea why the instructions say to paint the decks half Yellow sand and half rust red.  I'd be inclined to NATO Medium Green or Deck Gray.

I also have no idea why what look to be LCVP on the fore hatch have what appear to be bench seats in them, either.

You might want to look at this, it's in Vancouver:  https://www.ebay.com/itm/REVELL-1-471th-SCALE-HOSPITAL-SHIP-SS-HOPE-85-0007/193294859821?epid=16016798376&hash=item2d01457e2d:g:UO8AAOSwe9Vb~7Ft

IF it fits your need (and it sounds like it), the time is right (for you), the thing is nibbling away in your mind to "build me, build me". Then whats stopping you? Yes, you can wait for the "get a better price" in some indetermanit time in the future. But do you want to?, if not, go get it.  Besides if you find another model of the ship and it less expencive you can get that one too. Then you can have fun rebuilding it into a better version ----Fun Awaits. 

ddp59

Nino, the Haven class hospital ship model is actually 1/482.484 scale not around 1/470 scale.

 

 1/482!   Even better!   Love that scale range. Thanks for the update.

   My new rant:  Remove Revells plastic similated "railings"!

      Nino

Revell:  Hope, Haven, and Repose.  All good.