Battle of the Coral Sea Group Build 4 May, 2017 - 8 May, 2018

PJ - stellar finish on the Kate.  I have yet to dive into the Japanese aircraft but this is inspiring!

keavdog

PJ - stellar finish on the Kate.  I have yet to dive into the Japanese aircraft but this is inspiring!

 

Thanks kdog! The Japanese had some really cool looking paint schemes, one in particular was a blue Dinah that looks incredible.

Great looking, Kate, pj.  Your workmanship is excellent.

It'll be difficult to choose a photo, but I'll do my best!

Thanks very much for being part of the GB.  It's been a pleasure watching your project come together!

I'll update the finished-roster right away.

Congrats PJ on your remarkable build.  Nice that you were able to add a little history about the aircraft.

Scott

Thanks Check and Scott. It was a fun build and ejoyed the painting.

After several false starts on various kits for this GB--and some spectacular failues in construction--I've settled on Tamiya's USS Hammann, DD-412.

Here are the sprues with parts.  Seems like a nice little kit.

Also picked up a set of PE for it, from Tom's Model Works.  The image below is from their website; saved me from getting out the camera!  

I've been working on it for several weeks, but haven't posted any photos till now.  I'll add some in a bit.

Thanks for looking.

A 1/700 DD with photoetch? What are yeh, nuts?

That's a great subject.

GMorrison

A 1/700 DD with photoetch? What are yeh, nuts?

That's a great subject.

Cool,

I was going to get this kit when I ordered the paint and SBDs for my Lexington project, but the place I was ordering from had it out of stock.  It will look good with your Yorktown or are you going to make it Simms?

Scott

I ran across the Tamiya Hammann from Tower Hobby a few months ago; it was the only one they had in stock, or I would have gotten two.  Found it by accident while looking for something else.

I see this month's Squadron flier has them listed, so maybe they'll be more widely available.

I'm building it as the Hammann.  I found more information about the camo measure for her than the Sims. 

Hopefully, I'll be able to put in a few hours tonight and tomorrow, and move things along.  Basically the painting is finished--I do need to shoot and post some photos.

Currently, I'm messing with the PE pieces.  

Hammann's hull and superstructure pieces.

These little tubes fit into holes in the hull and superstructure for mounting the guns.  Then, a base glues over the top of them.  The idea is to push the pin on the gun turrets through the base, where these tubes grip it and hold it, allowing the gun to traverse.  I haven't seen this kind of engineering before on a ship model.

Photo shows the gun turret base in position.

USS Hammann DD-412

Masking the hull for painting.  I sized the painting diagram on the back of the box, then cut out the masks from plain ol' masking tape.

Masking the superstructure for painting.

I used poster-tack for the irregular shapes, supplemented with masking tape. 

This is the base of the stack/funnel.

I used mostly WEM's and Sovereign's Colourcoats naval paints.  Colors are 20-B Revised 1942 Deck Blue; 5-0 Ocean Gray; 5-N Navy Blue and 5-H (early 1941) Haze Gray--which appears slightly more grayish-purple than late 1941 Haze Gray, which seems more bluish-gray.  I don't remember where I got the early '41 tins; can't seem to find them anymore:  just "late 1941 Haze Gray."  But they are clearly marked as early 1941.

Here is a timely find related to the battle...

USS Lexington has been found in her watery grave at the bottom of the Coral Sea after 76 years. For anybody wondering what some of her aircraft looked like during that battle, look no further... they are here to be seen as they looked that May morning... simply fantastic 

https://www.paulallen.com/uss-lexington-wreck-located-rv-petrel/

Hey CM, I am happy to see you making progress on the Hamman.  It does have a cool camo scheme.  I really need to get this kit.  The Hamman ran plane guard and anti-aircraft protection for the Lexington so it would be nice to have them both.  

stikpusher

Here is a timely find related to the battle...

USS Lexington has been found in her watery grave at the bottom of the Coral Sea after 76 years. For anybody wondering what some of her aircraft looked like during that battle, look no further... they are here to be seen as they looked that May morning... simply fantastic 

 

https://www.paulallen.com/uss-lexington-wreck-located-rv-petrel/

 

I wonder how hard it would be to put a Felix the Cat decal on a 1/700 Wildcat?

scottrc

 

 

stikpusher

Here is a timely find related to the battle...

USS Lexington has been found in her watery grave at the bottom of the Coral Sea after 76 years. For anybody wondering what some of her aircraft looked like during that battle, look no further... they are here to be seen as they looked that May morning... simply fantastic 

 

https://www.paulallen.com/uss-lexington-wreck-located-rv-petrel/

 

 

 

 

I wonder how hard it would be to put a Felix the Cat decal on a 1/700 Wildcat?

 

I wonder how hard it would be to make that Fighting 3 decal in 1/700...?

Thanks for posting the link, stik.  Great subject; very remarkable discovery.

Here's a link I found with the combat reports from the Lex regarding the battle.  Makes interesting reading.

https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/logs/CV/cv2-Coral.html#pageD1

Scott:  decals that small will ruin your eyes! 

And speaking of small, here's Hammann's hull painted up.

Next thing I did was install the hatch covers.  Kind of tiny.

Tamiya didn't put much detail into the gun turrets or superstructure--no molded doors or ladders.  Tom's Modelworks thoughtfully provides these in PE, so that's what I'll attempt next--if I don't lose any of them.

Progress photo:

Progressing well CM.

Thanks, Scott.  Spent today adding rigging to the mast, using stretched sprue.  Looks like the top of the superstructure would interfere if I waited till later.

Some progress on Hammann

Been working mostly today on the stern.  Couple of issues I need to resolve.  The life raft fixture blocks the site for one of the K-guns, so that will have to be relocated.  I found a couple of other builds of Hammann on the web, and both moved this K-gun--but neither one moved it to the same place.

Other issue is that ladder coming off the front of the end superstructure.  I think it's going to interfere with the torpedo tube.  If it does, I'll have to eliminate the ladder.

Fine work CM.

Thanks, Scott.

I spent all day yesterday attaching rails around the hull.  The PE set included netted rails, so I used them around the bow.  They're a little heavy, but give an unusual look.

Test-fitted the torpedo tubes, and it looks like they'll clear the ladder.

Currently working on a permanent base, since this thing is so small, I don't think it can be handled without one.  

One miraculous thing happened today.  I lost one of the life rafts days ago.  Today my wife was sweeping the kitchen floor, so I looked in the dust pan before dumping it.  And there it was!

That was luck.

Are there PE depth charge racks as well?  Not that I wish the torture on anyone to try to fold a 1/700 scale depth charge rack.  But I'm crazy enough to try it.  

Yeah, Scott, the PE set came with depth charge racks, and I did add them.  It wasn't too bad folding them and placing them.

What I wasn't and still am not sure about is whether they're the right type; although the instructions stated that all ships of the Sims class had them.

The PE set from Tom's Modelworks included this style:

not this style:

Odd that the above photo shows a drum-type depth charge in the gun, but those tear-drop shape charges in the rack.  I think those are later war developments than the drum type.

I had to cut out the bottom rail from some of the PE railings, to clear some little protrusions along the edge of the hull.

The netted deck railings from the PE at the bow were a little heavy and ponderous in this scale.

But I noticed in photos that many of the Sims class destroyers had them; they just weren't quite so obvious.

Check, that is looking to be quite good progress on your ship.

I had to look up those depth charges with the fins, not seen those before.  They appear to be the type IX and were introduced 1943.  Can't find more exact date, whether it be early, mid or late in the year, so I'd say you are fine with the standard barrel shape charges.

The colour photo apparently from a museum ship, so I guess they just displaying different types:

http://www.ussslater.org/tour/weapons/dpthchrg/dpthchrg.html

... and a bit more info on depth charges:

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WAMUS_ASW.php

regards,

Jack

Jack is right. Mark 9, way later than Coral Sea.

Thats a thrower, not a cylindrical DC.

Kind of a sh#t storm story, but when Hammann went down at Midway, her DCs which were fused blew up and killed most of the crew still in the water.

Pause to remember.

Thanks, Jack and Bill.  The PE instruction sheet mentioned the difference in depth charges.  Unless someone makes an aftermarket set, I don't know how the finned type could be reproduced easily; maybe with putty.

I have to admit, I didn't put any depth charges in the racks.  The bars forming the cages are so thick, it's hard to see into them, and the ship's rail blocks them even more.  I did put the PE aft depth charge racks around the kit pieces, so those are loaded.  Haven't installed them yet.

I've seen a photo of Hamman's stern as she goes down; it truly does give pause to think about it.