USS Missouri

I know I briefly posted pic of this build in another thread and kinda discussed the kit briefly but i felt that it could use its own thread because im still doing some work on it to pass the time until i find another kit to build.

So to give you all a brief summary I recently built a 1/535 Revell Battleship Missouri that i found on clearance at the local hobby lobby, having alittle more experience under my belt now i was a little skeptical about the abnormal scale after my experience with the USS Arizona kit that is similarly odd scaled.

fearing a low quality kit i wasn't sure i wanted to waste my money but being that it was only 7 bucks and i needed something to pass the time i figured i could use the kit as practice for other skills i wanted to try in future builds such as Measure Type ship camo and naval combat diorama.

Originally i was considering maybe making it damaged like it was struck in battle but the past Navy in me didn't feel right about taking a Ship of that caliber and history and making it look like a combat casualty.
So currently I'm building the seascape base for the ship, in the pictures above I'm using a polystyrene board used for I think floral arrangements.

I heat the surface with a heat gun and this melts a thin layer and solidifies the top so it's smoother and less crumbly.

After I traced the out line of the ships hull and carved about 1/2" depth shadow of the ship so when it's on the base the hulls below the water to the water line.

Following that I use the heat gun again to sculpt the board in gentle waves by melting areas whichs causes the foam to contract.

Finally I took aluminum foil slightly crumpled and layed it over the board this gives it the smooth water like surface look.

urumomo said:

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I think it wouldnt be exciting enough to model 20mm round damage lol It would have to be like a legit casualty.

Or at least simulate it taking fire in some sorta battle maybe idk, there's a lot of cool dioramas out there of some of axis battle ships get hit hard by torpedos or surface fire

Ha ha , I didn't submit that as a build idea ,
it had just been uploaded 4 hrs ago so I thought that it was serendipitously apropos .

https://www.usswisconsin.org/wp/collision/

This accident actually made the ship a different beam length then all the others of her class when they took the bow of another ship being built to replace hers. Now this would be a cool mock up if I only had a a Fletcher class destroyer kit and pictures of her damage to boot we might be able to make the Missouri into the Wisconsin an have something interesting

The key to this is finding the Fletcher kit in a close enough scale to make it look proper enough

It didn't change the Wisconsin's dimensions .
They saved the bullnose and used the bow section from the Kentucky
There is a link to the repair on that page ---> https://www.usswisconsin.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Bow-Transfer.pdf

It's amazing a 2000 ton Fletcher inflicted that much damage to that Iowa Class and didn't sink
The Eaton :

urumomo said:

It didn't change the Wisconsin's dimensions .
They saved the bullnose and used the bow section from the Kentucky
There is a link to the repair on that page ---> https://www.usswisconsin.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Bow-Transfer.pdf

It's amazing a 2000 ton Fletcher inflicted that much damage to that Iowa Class and didn't sink
The Eaton :

View attachment 94101

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I gotta find the source now but there is something out there stating this accident made the ship slightly longer then the others of her class, I believe we're I heard It discussed was that same battleship NJ museum director, it is the only one of the class different length then the others with no explanation for why except for the fact her bow was transplanted from the Kentucky after the accident

The beam is the width .
IDK , maybe she is slightly longer but I don't know why that would be .
See if you can find out -- if so by how much and if it's at the waterline or maybe the bullnose ended up a bit farther forward .

Nice work

I am currently working on the USS Iowa and USS north Carolina in the same camo scheme

urumomo said:

The beam is the width .
IDK , maybe she is slightly longer but I don't know why that would be .
See if you can find out -- if so by how much and if it's at the waterline or maybe the bullnose ended up a bit farther forward .

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So now that I'm awake, I've been digging threw everything I can find trying to find a credible source discussing the length. I decided the best course of action would be to reach out to the New Jersey's Museum Director himself to see if he can point me to some information.

Unless I've been Mandela Effected I'm hoping to find you some information on this what I do know and miss spoke earlier is the overall length I miss labeled the beam on the Iowa's is 887.3ft long all except for one of the ships is 887.3 with the abnormal ship being 888' oddly enough the information I'm finding is the New Jersey is the longest with a lot of sources putting it at 888' which really makes me feel like I'm losing cause that makes what I believed was accurate wrong so yay now I'm gonna have to fact check my own memories

urumomo said:

The beam is the width .
IDK , maybe she is slightly longer but I don't know why that would be .
See if you can find out -- if so by how much and if it's at the waterline or maybe the bullnose ended up a bit farther forward .

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Ok so I gotta an answer that explains both perspectives on this, officially the Navy references the New Jersey as being 887'7" long while the rest of the Iowas we're referenced as 887'3". According to the New Jersey Museum Director there is no official explanation for this discrepancy how ever it is often rounded up to 888' for the New Jersey in some sources.

In regards to the Wisconsin there has been debate over her length being 887'11" after grafting of the Kentuckys bows section, but this isn't official an comes from the crew of the Wisconsin who like all ships crews have a pride in representing their ship as biggest and the best a kinda sorta D*** measuring contest.

So depending on who is telling it the ship may or may not be 887'11" or 887'3" and never have changed. With that being said are only solution to this debate would be to go out to the Wisconsin and bring a tape measure, unfortunately I believe your closer to her then me so. Let me know what you find out lol

Well , I'm going with they are all the same length .
They were all built from the same plan so I doubt the keels would vary by more than an inch .
a 4 inch difference in the claimed 887ft 3 in ( ignoring the Wisconsin's claim ) is a four hundredths of a percent difference .
Well within acceptable values for cumulative errors during fabrication .

urumomo said:

Well , I'm going with they are all the same length .
They were all built from the same plan so I doubt the keels would vary by more than an inch .
a 4 inch difference in the claimed 887ft 3 in ( ignoring the Wisconsin's claim ) is a four hundredths of a percent difference .
Well within acceptable values for cumulative errors during fabrication .

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Lol I was looking forward to you measuring for us all so we can set the records straight. But I imagine your right with the variables the New Jersey being the only ship officially listed as 887.7 it's probably just a slight issue in manufacturing that gave it those 4 inches.

As for the Wisconsin who knows for sure the crew came up with it being 4" longer then the largest officially measured ship some how or it became a Sea tale that they told but it is interesting I'm sure there are plenty of other random facts/arguments out there regarding other ship classes.

That longer measurement for the New Jersey could just be straight up wrong too .
It happens .
Who knows who did what and how that number was arrived at .

urumomo said:

That longer measurement for the New Jersey could just be straight up wrong too .
It happens .
Who knows who did what and how that number was arrived at .

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Could very well be. My wife says if the person measuring was a guy they tend to always round up.

A I just finished painting the base layering Tamiya sea gray, sea green, dark sea blue, clear blue, clear green, clear. And clear varnish.

urumomo said:

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The answer is 3/4 of the price of a new Ford carrier if they go nuke or 1/2 the price if they go gas turbine.. and alot of investment in new tooling of manufacturing facilities