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Old 02-27-2024, 08:50 AM
georgerutherford1861 georgerutherford1861 is offline
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1/700 CA-29 USS Chicago - modified waynemac Houston

Good morning everyone,

As Don so rightly guessed in my Mogami thread (I would have been disappointed if he had not figured it out, probably without references), my next ship project is a 1/700 USS Chicago. A sister ship to USS Houston, so far this one is 100% waynemac's design, the only changes I have made so far are to the color, the deck on this would have been stained to provide better camouflage from aerial observation.

This one is going together quite well so far, as I build it in my slow way. I have not gotten further at this point, any assistance identifying other differences between Houston and Chicago will be most welcome, as I presume there are probably some differences in the bridge area, as well as AAA armament.

Why Chicago instead of Houston? Well, the Solomon Islands campaign has fascinated me for decades, this grinding battle of attrition saw numerous air, sea, and land battles. USS Chicago was there at the start, taking part in the Battle of Savo Island shortly after the landings on Guadalcanal that started it all. She was sunk on 30 January 1943 by Betty-launched torpedoes near Rennell Island south of Guadalcanal. I fully enjoy learning about just about any ship that took place in this campaign, and would love to see some New Orleans cruisers and some of the older Japanese cruisers like the Furutaka, Aoba, etc. I know there are some really detailed versions out there, but my poor skill level and patience level needs something a bit more my level.

Doug
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1/700 CA-29 USS Chicago - modified waynemac Houston-chicago1.jpg   1/700 CA-29 USS Chicago - modified waynemac Houston-chicago2.jpg   1/700 CA-29 USS Chicago - modified waynemac Houston-chicago3.jpg   1/700 CA-29 USS Chicago - modified waynemac Houston-chicago4.jpg  
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  #2  
Old 02-27-2024, 11:28 AM
Don Boose's Avatar
Don Boose Don Boose is offline
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Glad to see this project underway, Doug. Especially as I have been immersed in the South and Southwest Pacific campaign for the past month or so.

Chicago is a historic ship that was a Pacific Sailor from the very beginning, its shakedown cruise having been to Hawai'i, Tahiti, and Samoa. And at the beginning of the war (February 1942), Chicago was seconded to RADM Crace's ANZAC Squadron. Somewhere in the Forum there is a discussion of the color "Chicago Blue," so named because the ship was painted that color in an Australian dockyard, if I am remembering correctly. You are no doubt familiar with this reference: Chicago II (CL-29)

Anyway, I will be tracking this thread closely.

Ganbatte!

Don
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Old 02-29-2024, 12:15 PM
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LouCoatney LouCoatney is offline
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Beautiful, and waynemac really got the bow right.
Excellent assembly as usual, Doug ... and re-coloring. VERY Chicago.
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Old 03-01-2024, 01:48 PM
georgerutherford1861 georgerutherford1861 is offline
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Thanks for the comments! Work will continue.

Don, I recently was able to acquire the Lacroix and Wells book on Japanese cruisers at a not so horrible price. While the true technical portions are a bit lost on me, it is interesting to see the interplay of national policy, technological advances, and evolving strategy that fed cruiser design. And I have not even gotten to the treaty era yet! Very similar in this regard to the Friedman book on US cruisers. I appreciate you recommending both of them.

Thanks for the Chicago references. I have not been able to find a lot on the origin of "Chicago Blue," other than a reference that it might refer to a color that Australian ships were painted when they were operating heavily with the US fleet. Perhaps they used the color of the Chicago as a reference when they were repainting some of those ships? I could be wrong there.

Lou, you are entirely right, the bow design really works out great in paper. I just had to slowly work my way up from the waterline, filing some off of the frame underneath in a few places to allow it all to come together. I need to try and get a decent picture of it, while not stellar my technique in this area does seem to improve with each build.

Doug
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Old 03-01-2024, 04:02 PM
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Doug -

I'd love to dive down the "Chicago Blue" rabbit hole, but can't at the moment.

The topic came up in a discussion while Wayne was developing his USS Houston model. Dutch modeler "Foute Man" (regrettably no longer posting in our Forum) wrote:

"The Anzac squadron was formed early february 1942. USS Chicago (CA-29) joined the squadron in february/march 1942.
I've read various articles about US Navy camouflage schemes and colours, and in those articles the authors claim that during her time with the Anzac squadron USS Chicago was painted in an unofficial (not according to US Navy standards) camouflage scheme called "Chicago Blue"....

- Was the blue paint used on USS Chicago in 1942 different from the official US Navy paint colours?
- If yes, was the formula to mix the paint based on US Navy paints/pigments, or was Chicago's paint colour a result of mixing Royal Navy paints/pigments? Or perhaps a combination of both?
- If yes, was Chicago used to evaluate camouflage schemes/colours, as was Perth?"
1/600 Australian light Cruiser HMAS Perth

There is a reference to "Chicago Blue" at the ShipCamouflage.com website: Royal Navy #3

Robert Wooley (another well-informed modeler we haven't see lately) provide a lonk to this site, which discusses the colors of HMAS Australia and discusses "ChicagoBlue" as a dark blue color applied to Allied ships serving with U.S. Navy forces in the South Pacific: HMAS Australia - RN Kent class cruiser

I'm in a time crunch just now, but will remain on the qui vive for more info.

Don
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