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With the 8 month long build of County Class Cruisers coming to an end, it's time to move on. HMS Griffin - H31 will be the next, using the Atlantic models HMS Glowworm as base kit. HMS Griffin was one of 8 "G" Class destroyers, the most famous of which is HMS Glowworm due to it's fatal David and Goliath encounter with Admiral Hipper. Griffin was launched in 1935 and took part in the Norwegiain campaign early in the war before being transfered to the Mediterranean. She was transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy in early 1943 and renamed HMCS Ottowa, seeing action at D-day and surviviing the war only to be scrapped in 1946. The G-Class was similar to the D and E classes before and the H and I classes that came after. Here are some pre war pictures that highlight her graceful lines She'll be portrayed in a paint scheme that she wore in lat3 1939/early 1940. There's a profile in Raven's "Warship Perspectives - Camouflage volume One". I've not been able to corroborate this profile with any wartime photographs. I have presumed that the colours are 507C and 507A (darker). There are pictures of her sister ships Garland and Grenade for a similar time period that closley resemble the type of scheme and this rather simple 2 colour scheme was common at early war. If anyone does have pictures - I'd be delighted to see them. Raven mentions that HMS Garland wore a visual IFF symbol on her foredeck consisting of a Type C1 RAF-type roundel. He postulates that others may have worn similar and this is a conceit that I'll use - Griffin will have a C1 roundel. It will add visual interest References will include the aforementioned book , my favourite of the whole series and the hardest to currently come by. I do hope that Dick @dickrd and @Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies will have a go at a more up to date publiction at some stage to highlight their wealth of research and re-interpretation of many wartime colour schemes. So let's examine the kit first which comes as HMS Glowworm. I'm not aware of any major structural differences between the 2 vessels. Glowworm comes with Pentad torpedo tubes which she alone trialled. Micromaster supply quad tubes. It's my first Resin kit and my first Atlantic models offering. The moulding is top notch and the hull comes as either water-line or full-hull - your choice. I'm going for waterline and like Berwick - she'll be at anchor There'll be a Micromaster 45ft launch alongside for visual interest - Thanks to Tom and Richard E for pointing me the way of steam tug Simla which is tempting but I feel will detract from the overall impact of Griffin. Those of you who are familiar with Peter Hall kits will appreciate the style of line drawn instructions and comprehensive Photoetch.... The superstructure parts are resiin and the smaller detailed parts - white metal Micromaster will have a big look-in including with more detailed replacement 4.7in guns Pennant numbers will come from the Atlantic models decal sheet And I obtained an Xtradecal sheet of C1 roundels - the only one that does a "C1" roundel that small. Sadly the C1 roundels are significantly out of register. I've ordered another sheet to see if it's replicated and if it is I'll have to think of an alternative There are some immediate problems apparent with simple dry- fitting - the Micromaster turrets impact the superstructure overhang........ And the first order of business will be to shave and remove the bulwarks on the superstructure as they appear on the bridge part - the reason being that the superstructure spans across several generic destroyer classes I don't expect any other major problems. If anyone has any serious qualms about the (unsubstantiated ) colour scheme or the IFF roundel, now's the time to shout! Thanks for looking Rob