Alan P Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Managed to fit this in while waiting for the paint/plaster of paris to dry on the big U-Boat! It's the Revell reboxing of the original Matchbox 1/700 Indianapolis. It was my Christmas (2013!) present from my brother in law. Indianapolis was one of only two Portland-class heavy (8-in) cruisers. I depicted the ship on its last mission - it's just cranking up to full speed having left the Golden Gate bridge behind on 16 July 1945. The ship set two records on this last journey which still stand today - one commendable, and the other tragic. It still holds the record for the fastest surface crossing (just under three days) from San Francisco to Pearl Harbor (Captain Charles McVay's orders were to "make all speed" to Tinian, and he didn't disappoint!) After another record-breaking seven-day run to Tinian the ship dropped off the uranium "gun" for the Little Boy atomic bomb, and made for Manila. Enroute it was torpedoed by the Japanese submarine I-58. 300 of its crew went down with the ship, the remaining 880 went into the water. Through a series of administrative bungles, the US Navy did not record either the distress calls or the delayed arrival of the ship, and as a result its crew drifted in the open for four days, losing 560 more men to exposure, thirst and shark attacks. It remains the US Navy's worst single-ship disaster at sea. Used the WEM set for the Tamiya Indy, scratchbuilt lots of extra details, including all the splinter shields for the gun mounts, added Niko Model 5"/25 guns and quad 40mm Bofors and rigging from copper wire (a tip picked up from ShipbuilderMN - thanks, Bob ) Painted in Tamiya acrylics to save time, but would have rather used enamels as the acrylic went on a bit thick. The big question surrounding the Indy on its last voyage was the colour of the decks - Deck Blue 20-B or Natural wood/Deck Gray 20? I opted for grey on this and chickened out of the natural wood, but when I tackle the Academy 1/350 version I might rethink that. Very simple kit, but I'm glad I made it look a lot busier, it's every bit as good as the Tamiya version once it's all dressed up! Again, comments and questions welcome 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Head in the clouds. Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Nice build and the story adds something too, always sad when lives are lost to something as simple as a communication cock up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Lovely work as always. Stephen 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfqweofekwpeweiop4 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 That's very impressive considering the kit! As to the deck colour question, I would rule out natural wood, as I'm pretty sure the USN didn't stop painting the decks until after the war ended. So Blue or Grey decks, you would need to know when she was refitted before she sank, as that's when she would have had a new coat of paint. The earlier in 45 or indeed 44 she had her last refit, the more likely it would be Blue. thanks Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan P Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 Thank you very much That's it Mike. Her refit was in June and July of 1945, hence the possibility of a grey deck. Noone seems to agree on a definitive answer. As for the natural wood, again it is possible if the deck was partially replaced that the whole deck would have been holystoned back to teak and not stained as the deck colours were changed. I don't know if the grey was produced as a wood stain, as after August 1945, all decks reverted to natural teak. Edit: just had another look at Alan Raven's article, Deck Gray was a paint not a stain, so it's less likely the deck would have remained unpainted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jockster Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Either way, that's a nice build, really like how you've brought some life to an old kit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invidia Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Great result from a basic kit, very impressive 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfqweofekwpeweiop4 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Thank you very much That's it Mike. Her refit was in June and July of 1945, hence the possibility of a grey deck. Noone seems to agree on a definitive answer. As for the natural wood, again it is possible if the deck was partially replaced that the whole deck would have been holystoned back to teak and not stained as the deck colours were changed. I don't know if the grey was produced as a wood stain, as after August 1945, all decks reverted to natural teak. Edit: just had another look at Alan Raven's article, Deck Gray was a paint not a stain, so it's less likely the deck would have remained unpainted. The complications are that some yards will have still had older paint stocks to use up and I know some did. So it's a case of pick what you think is best! thanks Mike 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stesca Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Very, very nice, looks great on this base. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billydick Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 Yes base is interesting - it's polystyrene foam isn't it? BillyD 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan P Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 Thanks again, glad you like it. The base isn't finished yet, it is indeed polystyrene but needs to be framed in with wood strip. I'm currently working on a kit that's a lot older than I am! There's a lot of pleasure in rehabilitating a really old kit to modern standards using all the benefits of today's aftermarket products! Thanks again, Al Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfqweofekwpeweiop4 Posted January 17, 2015 Share Posted January 17, 2015 I've got the Tamiya Indianapolis and the HP Models Portland (1942) in my stash but I'm on a bit of a RN fix at the moment! thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlCZ Posted January 18, 2015 Share Posted January 18, 2015 Wow, very nice "Indy" from old kit - and with many precision details in this small scale.... Indy is my favourite WW II US ship, i have it too in 1/700, but from Tamiya and your build is very inspirative ! I admire peoples that have patience & skill for work with many tiny P.E. parts.... It is a very dynamics dio ! Well done ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BerndM Posted January 18, 2015 Share Posted January 18, 2015 Thats probably the best Matchbox Indianapolis i have seen so far, great work, very neat on a realistic looking water base. Congratulations ! Capt. Mc Vay was one of the tragic figures of the USN, as the loss was tragic as well 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 18, 2015 Share Posted January 18, 2015 Very smart 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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