[rjccjr]

Hi All;
When the original Atlanta's were designed they weren't quite cruisers and they weren't quite destroyers. They only had two screws and a small rudder. The top speed was thirty two knots on a good day and they could not turn anywhere near as sharply. as a destroyer. They simply were not much use against submarines. The armament wasn't heavy enough and protection was minimal to challenge cruisers. They were top heavy to begin with and additions after the start of the war made the situation worse. If you look at photos of the center superstructure you can clearly see an indentation in the wall behind the wing turrets. At first you would think it was for clearance when the turret rotated, but it only goes half way up the height of the turret. It is actually to permit crew to pass behind the turret when it is rotated and was only one deck high. The superstructure in this area goes up three deck levels. This presented quite a challenge since the basic assembly needed to be a single piece on the sides. The original idea of going up one deck at a time had to be scrapped, so the old deck house was torn out. The first three photos show the partially completed replacement in place. The last shows the new section complete with insets before folding. To the left is a trial assembly, which is flawed. The one on the board fits quite nicely. Once this is in place, the after gun mounts will be tested along with fire directors. Te color difference is because the printer is low on blue ink. It really doesn't make much difference for the mock up stage.
Regards, rjccjr