HMS Matabele - a Tribal-class destroyer

[De Ruyter]

Hello Dieter,

Thanks for your comments. I will do my best .

Well I continued to build the upper structure of the bridge. Until so far the fit is good. The only problem is that the instructions to build the brigde are on 5 different drawings on different pages of the instruction booklet. So the build is going to be a little bit slower than the Van Galen but that's no problem.

Ciao Andrew

[Don Boose]

Fine work on that bridge structure!

Don

[Jos]

Hoi Andrew, looking good.
Gr. Jos.

[marco1971]

Hello Andrew, very fine job with this structure! Looking very good!

Marco

[De Ruyter]

Don, Jos and Marco,

Thanks for the kind comments. I am also satisfied with the typical HMS destroyer bridge . Well the build continues. As with my plastic kits I never have I schedule In which sequence I build the ship. I just build some parts what I like to do at that moment. I am just not able to cut and glue 20 ammo boxes after eachother for example . So I started with one of the main 120 mm turrets. They look big for a destroyer. I also constructed the after deckhouse and it seems that I have to build a lot of boxes on the deck. So I made also a start with that.

Ciao Andrew

[De Ruyter]

Hi guys,

Again a small update. Not much time to build. With some patience I have build the funnel behind the bridge. The result is far more better then the funnels on the Hr.Ms. Van Galen. The pipes I had to made by myself. I used for the piper some styrene tubes. When heating them under hot water they are easily to bow in the right shape.

Ciao Andrew

[didibuch]

Hi Andrew,

you make good progress with your destroyer. The funnel looks very good.

Greetings
Dieter

[De Ruyter]

Hi Dieter, thanks for your kind words.

Well, the build is going a little bit slow, but still not much time. Before I am going to build the second funnel I decided first to build the middle section. It is the platform for the light Vickers AA guns, otherwise I was afraid that I didn't have enough space for painting etc. I was wondered that I didn't see any hatch or stairs to the deck in the instructions. So I put some stairs at both sites of the construction. I don't know if this is historical correct, but is seems logical for me.

Ciao Andrew

[Don Boose]

Fine work!

I recently read Donald Macintyre's 1971 book, The Naval War Against Hitler, which includes a brief description of the sinking of Matabele on 17 January 1942 while screening convoy PQ-8 to Russia. All but two of the crew perished.

Incidentally, not to make too great a diversion from the subject of this thread, but Donald Macintyre's books are all worth reading. He himself was a Fleet Air Army pilot who commanded destroyers and other anti-submarine warships during WWII, is credited with the destruction of six U-boots, and had one ship (frigate HMS Bickerton) sunk under him. He knew what he was writing about.

Don

[Michael Mash]

Hello Andrew,
That middle platform with the railing looks excellent.
Mike