My Trumpeter 1/200 Arizona DONE! Free At Last...Free At Last!!!

Well, if it is any consolation, I think you did a "smashing" job with it.  Sorry, had to do that.  Seriously, you did an outstanding job with what you had to work with!  Great job and thanks for the pics!

Eagle90

I really admire what you have accomplished with this sow's ear, a veritable silk purse. I also like your treatment of the bottom paint, very realistic.

That is a beautiful build !

I am sorry to hear of the grief you went through to correct the kit design faults.

I will most likely buy the old Revell kit ( first built it in 1965 ) and whatever aftermarket may still be available for it.

I think she looks great.

 Over the last two and a half years I've noticed that many modelers started this Arizona, many WIP postings and very, very few are finished, I totally understand. Check it out. There was a beautiful Arizona being built by a guy named Park. Everything was beautiful. He bought every aftermarket wood and PE available. He's last post showed he installed the horizontal antennas upside down. Just enough to make you reach for the hammer. But that was a builder error. The unforgivable part about this kit is what Trumpeter could have easily gotten right and chose to ignore. This kit could have been perfect IF Trumpeter spent more time to get the details right. All of us would have gladly paid a $100 more to have An Arizona that was correct and didn't need hours and hours of scratch building corrections. Thanks Trumpeter, you saved me a ton of money. I was gonna buy your Bismarck and Hornet...but now...I don't think so.http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y43/leyhaw/scope_zps30f6ee5a.jpghttp://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y43/leyhaw/leftb_zpsc93069f0.jpg

I promised that I'd do a review of this kit here. Let me just tell you, If you want to know what needs to be corrected, just pick up any part of this kit. Don't get me wrong, on the surface this is a fantastic large scale Arizona. But the reality is, the paper USS Arizona is actually a better bargain and more accurate. Tough comments but absolutely true. As I said before...This is an R/C ship that Trumpeter wanted to pass off as a scale model. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Trumpeter made this kit but at $200 plus, they should have spent more time to get ALL the details right.

As I said in my earlier post, I came very close to taking my hammer and smashing this POS to death. Never in my life has I've been challenged to my limits. But this is the only kit I've built that I really wanted to beat into a small pile of plastic splinters. I've heard for years that Trumpeter aircraft kits had major issues, and now I know their ships do to. I'm done with Trumpeter. From now on, I'm building only kits like Tamiya makes.

Great build! By the way, Trumpeter is coming out with a 200 Missouri!

Very impressive build

Sorry. I'm having a hard time posting photos. more soon.

http:i2.photobucket.com/albums/y43/leyhaw/bleft_zps3ea4dacf.jpg

WOW!!!  That's AWESOME!!!

I was soooo close to using that hammer on that kit...And I'm not a violent man.http://