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| 1/700 USS Lexington CV-2 and USS Saratoga CV-3 (Fujimi) |
| Just a very little research reveals that the Fujimi
Lexington represents a hybrid appearance. It most closely resembles the
ship as she was between March 1937 (forward flight deck widened and AA
gun platforms fitted at the four quarters) and October 1940 (3-inch singles
added to AA platforms and between bridge and stack, replaced by 1.1-inch
quads in August 1941). However, the fire control positions abaft the stack
most closely resemble the arrangement following the removal of her 8-inch
battery in April 1942. But even then, it is inaccurate, as is the bridgework
generally. Of course, between 1937 and 1940 her aircraft complement was
pure biplane, apart from the Douglas TBD-1 Devastator torpedo bombers.
So the planes you get with the kit provide nothing more than basic raw
material for recreating these.
Given all this, I made the model up as her sister, Saratoga, as she appeared in 1937. I thought that the Lexington at the time of her loss would make an interesting comparison, so I put another Fujimi kit through the mill. Both models needed extensive bridgework remodelling, but it wasn't until later that I discovered that the aft end of the bridge superstructure should have tapered to a point - it is not rectangular. Oh well, maybe for my plans for Saratoga in 1945 (another interesting comparison). These were the first ship models I ever built as an adult. I did the Saratoga in 1986 and the Lexington ten years later. The Saratoga has been through a divorce, two births and three house moves. No wonder she is showing signs of wear and tear! You can see it in the photos - missing and bent aeroplane wings and lifeguard 'netting'. This was all before photo etch after-market sets. So the CXAM aerial array was hand drawn, and photo copy reduced onto self-adhesive film which I applied to clear acetate. Thought it worked quite well. The 1.1-inch quads on the Lexington don't look very good. I converted them from 40mm quads from another kit. Recently I bought a photo etch set from WEM, but threw it away in frustration after several failed attempts to put even just one together. How do people do it? Now I'm not even bothering to replace the 0.5-inch machine guns with the WEM set I also bought. I've learnt my lesson - too small, too fiddly, can't do it, won't do it. Can I have my money back please! However, I'm trying to get my hands on the new resin 1.1s from Combrig. |
