Kumano (Mogami-class cruiser)

**PacificWind** · #1 12-26-2019, 05:27 PM

HMAS Australia is finished, Christmas is over,... and now I've got something like 10 days off. Isn't it a great time to start another ship(from scratch, obviously)?

So, this time it's a Japanese ship.
Kumano, a Mogami-class cruiser. Completed in 1937, sunk at Santa Cruz, Zambales, Philippines in November 1944.
Whole history of this ship can be found here:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cruiser_Kumano

Scale 1/1000. Just like my HMAS Australia and USS Maryland BB-46.

Of course, like always, I will rely on various blueprints and WWII photos.
I'm not sure about the ship's configuration yet, but for sure I'm not going to build it in its initial configuration. It has to be from 1941-1944 period.

Today I did the first step and prepared the deck. Deck is always the first thing I need.

**PacificWind** · #2 12-27-2019, 11:47 AM

Here's some progress with Kumano.
As you can see, I did the hull frames.

**akula06** · #3 12-27-2019, 12:12 PM

Clean lines! I can't wait to see the final

**PacificWind** · #4 12-28-2019, 11:39 AM

I'm continuing my work on Kumano's hull.
Japanese ships had a very distinctive look, completely different from American or British ships. This fact makes this project a little tricky in some aspects. Here's the first example, a truly Japanese hull. I put a lot of effort to make it look right.
Of course it's still unpainted, without details and without deck.

**PacificWind** · #5 12-29-2019, 04:24 PM

So, here're the decks.
These were also unusual but very characteristic for Japanese WWII destroyers and cruisers. I can't remember what kind of material it was but I think I've heard it was something like huge anti-slip mats.