TallBlondJohn

Beautiful models and great write-ups, thanks

I'd love to see your Enterprise, the paper deck would work well on a carrier. Sort of hoping you didn't really build this in 3 1/2 hours... Did you scan the parts to get the deck plan, or measure it all out?

Oh god, prepare to feel inadequate... (as a GF said to me once)

Paper - that's brilliant and much better than wood in this scale. What glue are you using?

Much better photo, doesn't she look good. Only thought - a CIWS on each bridge wing sponson would have enhanced the balanced look. Still very very pretty - unusual for the time period

Very nice. What kit and how did you do the paneling? Thanks John (currently nervously awaiting a covid test result)

The small rangefinders are probably air defence sights, or maybe searchlight sights (probably both). Beautiful work.

Please do if you can - not least as I have this to do at some point. The Revell kit is not a good place to start but I think its all we have in 1/72. When I do mine I expect to replace most of it using a 1/48 Eduard DH2 kit as a guide.

Very nice. I remember this one fondly from my childhood, lots of weapons and easy to paint. Wrong stand of course but let's just move on shall we

She does look good. The weapons fit still gives my historicity OCD heebie-jeebies but who cares? Did Tiger have any searchlights? Apart from signalling lamps I'm not sure modern ships use them.

Me too, could well have flown that and not nearly crashed it - unlike one of my cadet-mates who had a small panic attack. Funny story.

The Dukes do, aft of the VLS. But your platform idea sounds good, should look cool (which is what matters)

Looking very good. Perhaps the Exocets would be set to launch sideways like Harpoon to clear B turret? If your carpet monster is big enough to eat a 6" turret that's quite worrying - but then again its Western Australia so anything is possible I suppose.

107 Squadron apparently (flyingmachines.ru)

Interesting drop tanks... or maybe long range cruise missiles?

Superb. I now want one. Airfix, see to this immediately. Thank you.

Ripping Yarns, Tomkinson's Schooldays, the games board: SHOOTING The following boys have been shot...

Aha, you mean World of Warships: Yes this is a close match to the Friedman plan. To be picky, no way these ships would ever have lasted long enough for Seawolf and even Exocet is unlikely. I'd just drop a 6" turret and scratch build the extra 3" pair as that is one of the designs that was considered. MRS = Medium Range fire directors. There was one for each 3" pair, so 12 secondary battery directors in total. I think the picture above has them as those small round things just ahead of each main 6" director. For a modernised version, Seaslug would be fun and appropriate for the 60s. Maybe drop some 3" for Seacats and both X and Y 6" in favour of a Seaslug and two radars? Like this but 3 turrets forward (Shipbucket design). The missiles would come up through X turret's barbette for loading into the launcher in Y position. You are right, no TT by this time but you have to make the space.

Hi Jeff. Do you have Friedman's British Cruisers: Two World Wars and After? (If not, its well worth getting, its a treasure trove of material). Page 267 has a plan view of design ZA (ZA and ZB were generally the same layout as Z, just slightly different tonnages from different weight distribution). Your layout above is very close - there is a narrow deck extending back from your C turret all the way to X turret. A single crane behind the forward funnel serves the boats stored on this deck between the funnels. There is another deck on top extending the forward superstructure (which is very narrow to give the 4 AA directors good arcs) to under the funnel, and a matching narrow deck after carrying the rear funnel, mast and 3" directors (one AA director per turret, plus one MRS per pair). Your superstructure parts look too wide, but I'm sure you can justify that if you want to (more room needed for radar operators etc). Oddly the funnels are slanted like a town, not vertical like a colony or Tiger. There are eight 3" as you have them, but the middle pair are a deck higher on sideways extensions from the funnel deck level. Two whaleboats on davits abreast of the forward mast and a pair of quad torpedo tubes (!) on each side (maybe the RN had been studying Japanese cruisers) on each side of the crane/boat area. Personally I'd build it with 4 6" twins, it will look better and more room for the huge magazines required. Per Friedman P.373, design Z2, Z2A, Z2B and Z2C had 4 turrets. There were 3 and 5 turret designs as well, with slightly different dimensions. Some even had quad 3" for max dakka. If such a ship had survived to the Exocet era then Seacats would have replaced some of the 3" and possibly Sea Slug in place of a 6" turret - maybe even two, one at each end if you can cram in the fire control (Shipbucket has some GW25 designs with 6" and Sea Slug). There would need to be room for the big magazine and loading system. No TTs by then. Helicopter deck?

Yes - was that Airfix or just hard work?

Very tidy - what did you use for masking the camo?

The Airfix Belfast - there are various inaccuracies but an easy one to fix is the turrets, they are too shallow. If you glue some plastic sheet to the top it helps them look right. But its a great fun build- so many guns!

Beautiful. Would love to see your other sailing ships.

Add at the end, varnish, poke out the windows and then use Krystal Klear to add the windows? Decals or not this is how I always do windows this small, saves masking