USS England
by Timothy Choi

1/350 USS England DE-635 (Trumpeter)

This is Trumpeter's 1/350 scale kit of the USS England, with GMM's photoetch set for the class. It is supposed to depict her attacking and being attacked by an IJN submarine. The plume of water is a pale imitation of a deck gun shot splashing an exploding under the water surface.

The MS 32 paint scheme is based on a very grainy picture sent to me from Mr. Jack McLaughlin (Many thanks to Tracy White for directing me to him), which shows the England moored in Sydney on October 14, 1944. The picture was originally taken by a late Chief using a pin-hole camera, which was transferred onto video some six decades later and shown on television, whereby a photo was taken of the television image, and this image was what I worked with. It is the only known picture in existence of the England in this camouflage scheme.

Having compared the picture (which shows the starboard side of the ship) with all the camouflage templates that the Navy Historical Centre had of the Buckley class and finding no exact match, but most closely resembling design 3d, I chose to use the 3d port design for the unshown port side of the ship.

This is my first time working with aftermarket PE, and railings in particular.

Modifications:

• The molded-on chocks were drilled open.
• 20mm gun barrels cut off and replaced with electrical wire - iron gun-sights from GMM's PE set were not used as Trumpeter's shoulder rest imitated the Mk14 computerized gunsight somewhat well, and given the time period, I had thought the computerized sights would be relatively common.
• Bridge windows drilled open.
• Torpedo deck railings cut down to allow torpedo launcher to aim outwards.
• 1.1" PE seats and base piece had to be shortened, as it would not fit inside the gun tub otherwise.
• GMM's PE arbors replaced all of the molded-on plastic ones...this was sheer insanity.
• Kit's overly basic searchlights covered with tissue paper...er...tarp.
• Cable reels'core made from thickish copper wire wrapped with thin electrical wire.

  Paints used: Polly Scale 5-L, 5-O, Gunship Grey. Gunze Sangyo Black, Wood, White. Random interior spray cans for the water colour.

  Water made with acrylic gel, slow-dri.

  Plume/splash made with cotton ball.

  Timothy Choi
  

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