New Trumpeter Carrier

These are all different ships...from a distance, no, but up close, definitely.

Essex - One catapult, early bridge, single 40mm Mk 2 on fantail, no 40mm galleries on starboard side, portside hangar deck catapult.

Yorktown II - Two catapults, extended bridge, twin 40mm on fantail, no 40mm galleries, no hangar deck catapult, instead replaced with 40mm guns. Yorktown kit also corrected some errors in the original Essex, such as the turndowns on the flight deck.

Franklin - Two catapults, no hangar deck catapult, extended bridge, relocated radar platform (and possibly a new array, from SK to SK-2), twin 40mm on stern, and 40mm galleries along the starboard side.

Of course, your aircraft are going to change as well...

Essex - F6F, TBF, SBD
Yorktown II - F6F, TBF, SB2C
Franklin - F6F, TBF, SB2C, F4U-1(after Jan. 45)

All three ships are the same class, true, but each represents different time frames of their careers, early war, mid war, and late war.

I should also mention that Essex and Yorktown both carried 5 radio masts during their careers, and Franklin carried 4 until January of '45, after which time she carried only 2.

Regards,

Jeff Herne
Modelwarships.com

I know that the kits represent 3 different ships. My question is, is the difference worth the release of a third kit. The side by side comparison done by Jeff Herne omits the fact that the Yorktown kit has the parts needed for the 40mm galleries on the starboard side of the hull. What one would need to turn Yorktown into the Franklin is an SK-2 radar and some Corsairs. If you have the PE for the Essex class you have the radar and the Corsair planes are available as and after market kit, 6 to the package. Lest you think I can't be pleased, let me say, the armor belt and the mooring bitts in the hull are fantastic. I also now have my ramps, hoo-ray!!!!

Robert,

The point of contention is simple...regardless of whether or not I 'missed' the 40mm starboard galleries in Yorktown, is that with all three ships on the market, consumers can choose which kit they want based on what ship they wish to model.

On top of that, you answered your own question...by stating what you needed to add to Yorktown to make it into Franklin.

My BIGGEST complaint about this perpetual release of ships from the same class is that Trumpeter could have put EVERYTHING necessary into one box, so we could have done ANY ship from the 1943 to 1945, and well into post-war with some ships. I would have been more inclined to purchase 2 or 3 of those instead of all these sub-variants. I realize it's 6 of one, half dozen of the other, but that one kit (with everything in it, sans aircraft) would have given Trumpeter the time, ability, and probably money, to do OTHER subjects that people want just as much... like an all-option Fletcher (square, round bridge, emergency AA fits, etc), a Sumner, Gearing, Sims, Porter, Benson, etc etc etc.

Fortunately, unless Trumpeter does a long-hulled Essex or a 27-Charlie version, I think this is the last of the Essex Class we'll see from them.

Jeff Herne
Modelwarships.com

For anyone who reads these messages, I was wrong in my word choice 'omits' in my reply to Jeff Herne's first reply. These rebuttals, in my opinion, are between a cheap buyer "me" and a seller. He has expanded upon my original and short comments about the need multiple kits. I would be happier to have Trumpeter release a single kit, with optional parts as opposed to multiple kits.

Well, in that, you and I obviously agree. I too am a cheap buyer...and it irks me that model companies will try to get as much out of the consumer as they can without picking your pocket. $150 Tamiya aircraft, and $100 Trumpeter aircraft carriers, without PE and aircraft, are simply putting this hobby out of reach. Obviously, we can still buy $10 Revell kits...so I guess it's a moot point.

But what ever happened to going the extra mile for the customer, the guy with the money??

Jeff

I believe that these multiple releases are unnecessary. The money spent on tooling for these sub variants could have been spent elsewhere to the benefit of the modeler AND the model company.