Early US Battleships

[Don Boose]

I'm glad to see that David and Ted weighed in. I definitely should have mentioned them as among the top rank of modelers of 20th century warships.

I look forward to the subsequent discussion in this thread.

Don

[dto]

One problem with early US battleships is the distinctive cage masts originally installed on dreadnoughts until the North Carolina class, and retrofitted on earlier pre-dreadnoughts and armored cruisers. They are very difficult to replicate in a convincing fashion, as they are not simple cones but follow a hyperbolic curve.

A friend of mine who builds 1:700 scale plastic and resin kits disliked photoetched brass cage masts as inaccurate in profile -- he has since discovered Shapeways vendors who offer true 1:700 scale 3-D printed cage masts. But they are very delicate and expensive. The costs of similar cage masts in 1:250 or 1:200 scale would be excessive.

But there were some (long out-of-print) models of earlier US battleships with solid cones imitating the cage masts. H. G. Watkins once offered a line of early WWII era warships in the 1970s, but many were crude by modern standards (earlier print runs were on ivory Manilla cardstock -- you had to hand-tint the sheets before cutting!), and were actually intended for large-scale naval wargames. All are now fairly rare collector items.

David T. Okamura

[Don Boose]

David Okamura - Another of the great ship model builders!

Regarding cage masts, this thread started by Darwin may be of interest: Watkins Redraws

deckape, a retired U.S. Navy Chief whom we all call "Boats" is a great model builder who has built a number of cage mast battleships from scratch. I am not sure if he discusses his techniques here, but the threads are interesting, with good images of Boats's battleship models:
U.s.s. Maryland bb-46 1941
Battleship row scratch build

More on Watkins models, and a thread that introduces Papercut, another great 20th century ship modeler: HG Watkins 1977 USS Tennessee

No cage masts or battleships, but an introduction to eibwarrior, another of the 1900-1950 ship model builder tribe: USS Helena CL-50 - 1/200 Scale

I also failed to mention Padre, a U.S. Navy veteran who served aboard LMS R 536 (USS White River) during the Vietnam War and contributed to my book on U.S.Army amphibious operations, is a versatile model builder who has produced some superb ships, although I don't think any of the period you are interested in. http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/s...archid=3068749

Don

[dto]

Thanks, Don, but I'm afraid I've haven't done much model building recently due to family medical issues (Mom's been hospitalized since last October).

A skilled modeler can elevate an old H. G. Watkins kit into a true showstopper. See these examples:

M o d e l W a r s h i p s . c o m - G a l l e r y

(Be sure to examine both photos -- check on the left margin for the thumbnails.)

H.G. Watkins USS Oklahoma under attack - December 7, 1941

(A truly spectacular diorama!)

As for other means of replicating cage masts, I've even seen a magazine article in which wire was stretched around a loom mockup of the cage mast and glued at the intersections -- imagine trying to solder all those joints! But that was for a fairly large model, probably not very practical for the scales we usually deal with.


David T. Okamura

[Don Boose]

David - Thanks for bringing up Paul Helfrich. He is an incredibly productive and skilled model builder in all media (ModelWarships.com - Gallery), and a member of this forum.
http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/s...archid=3068792

Best wishes to you during this difficult time.

Don

[Michael Mash]

Regarding American Battleship Cage Masts:
Here is an image (from Navsource) showing a model of the USS South Carolina.
It clearly shows what the paper modeler is up against when replicating those masts.
Mike

[talls6]

Thanks Sakrison and CMDRTED. Specifically I was most interested in the USS Texas (BB-35) one of the Wyoming Class or one of the Delaware class.
Darren

[Scott K]

Here's what I was planning on using on my next build of the Watkins Colorado. I think Darwin used clear stock, but I don't have access to any at the moment.

Scott K.

[talls6]

Ok, Let me go back and say "Thank you" to everyone who is weighing in on this subject. I am enjoying the conversation and am now terrified to do anything with a cage mast......maybe a nice 1/96 scale river barge would be best.....seriously though it is great to see the knowledge base come out. I guess I know who to turn to when I actually start building whatever I decide to build. Now back to enjoying the discussion this is generating.
Darren

[Scott K]

It's not going to be any easier, but I've got an article in an old issue of Scale Ship Modeler that shows how to build a cage mast out of wire, basically the same way the Navy did. If I'm thinking of the right one, it was part of a series someone did when they restored the Navy's builder's model of a Lexington class battlecruiser (pretty sure it was Constellation). Again if I remember right, he replaced either solid or missing cage masts. I'll have to look for that issue. I've always wanted to try the technique, but not sure my fat fingers are up to it.

Scott K.