This is my Revell 1/131 model of the USS Defiance (Asheville-class patrol gunboat) which I completed a few weeks ago.
I added a number of extra details, including:
- side railings (made from very thin fuse wire)
- rigging wires (made from fishing line)
- anchor chain (made from thin brass chain)
- clear turret dome (actually made from a 1/72 bomber astrodome!)
- 40mm AA gun reticle
- doors and handles on the deck storage boxes
The boat is more or less painted according to the box art and instructions, with some moderate weathering. The kit only has decals for the Defiance (although there were quite a few boats in the Asheville class) so this was obviously the only choice markings-wise! I'm not sure which date/period the markings and paint scheme are for (the box art shows a Vietnam setting) or if they were the same throughout the boat's service life.
Though it's a fairly basic kit (moulds date back to the early 80s I think) and an odd scale, it's not a bad model when finished, particularly with added details such as the railings. It's also one of the very few "large scale" (relatively speaking!) modern warship kits available, though Trumpeter seem to be branching out into this area now with their 1/72 Vosper, 1/200 Sovremenny destroyer, and various 1/150 to 1/200 Chinese warships.
I recently picked up a cheap Trumpeter 1/150 kit which appears to be of a modern Chinese missile corvette (the instructions and box text are 90% in Chinese, with no history or info in English). It's of a similar level of detail to the Revell Defiance, so it'll be interesting to see how it turns out when built. Finding reference photos will be a bit harder though.