1/720 USS Ronald Reagan

[sammuel]

Good evening everyone,

I just started the kit and decided to go all out with a flight deck and all. I also have the GMM PE set for the kit. I'm a slow builder so this will be a long project. I will be constructing the waterline version with a water base in a case. Hopefully, I can get a commission bid on it or give it to a local shipmate that served on her.

Any input and construction advice is much appreciated. I do have a question right from the start. Any good leads or links to get 1/720 scale modern aircraft?

Thanks for the help.

[TRM]

Off to a great start! I recently pulled an odd-scale Wasp out...popped it back on the shelf after looking at the flash! LOL Looking forward to seeing your progress! As for the mini wingys, Trumpeter makes a pretty decent selection of modern AC's. Total Navy has some listed, but I think anywhere Trumpy can be bought, they can be found. www.totalnavy.com/aircraft.html (scroll down to the bottom of the page)

[panzerjager2]

Me and my friend are gonna be watching this lil gem develop
PJ2

[Leon]

Off to a good start Sammuel!

[sammuel]

Thanks for the input guys and the link. Work is moving along at the slipway. I will keep you updated in a couple of days.

[moramarth]

Once upon a time model ships were built to assist warship recognition, and the plans were drawn to 1:1200th scale (1:1250, if you were a Yank), and so the recognition models matched, and these were adopted by... wargamers!!!  (Sorry about the bad language ) Then people started making plastic kits, and wanted something more substantial with more detail, so they doubled up the dimensions and 1:600th was born, and eagerly embraced by Airfix and the like.  Others, like Heller, wanted to be even bigger, and went for 1:400th, but these were furriners, and (being metric) didn't understand the beauty of one inch representing so many feet.  They were followed by people like Frog, who should have known better.  But somebody (I think it was Revell) suddenly had a brainwave and started a series of kits which could be made full hull or waterline, and for this they chose 1:720th scale.  Now even some of the metric furriners (like Italeri) saw this was good, and adopted the scale.  But meanwhile, the Big Three (or Four) of Japan had decided to do every major warship of the IJN in WWII for the domestic market, dividing up the IJN between them so they didn't step on each other's toes, but agreeing to do it to a common scale.  Now they saw the 1:720th kits were good, but couldn't understand why it wasn't a simple multiple of 100 (if this sounds strange, look at how the IJN classified their naval gun calibres - it's still confusing naval historians...).  And so by dint of market forces 1:700th came to dominate the model ship scene and then spawned 1:350th scale.

Which is a long way of saying you're unlikely to find aftermarket 1:720th aircraft (unless some one is digitally printing them) and your best bet for a crowded flight deck is to consign the aircraft that came with the kit to the spares box and replace them with 1:700th items.  The Trumpeter items I've come across are moulded in clear plastic, which while somewhat brittle, means you air group actually can have transparent canopies just like proper kits...

Regards,

M

[sammuel]

Just undertook a cool project building 1/720 USS Ronald Regan. I'm also adding a hanger deck so I can keep the bay doors open and give it some life. I have the full GMM 1/720 PE set. I may need some odds and ends and I have extra PE from my modern ships in my parts box, but they are at 1/700.

Do you guys think it will be that much of a difference when viewing the completed model? This by no means at this time will be entered in any competition and should look awesome in my office...but you never know about a possible entry.

Any feedback would be extremely appreciated.

The photo shows the extension of the hanger bay with fire door/partitions. More to come.