Review 1/350 Hasegawa Uss Gambier Bay Super Photo Etch Detail Set Has72145
Hasegawa 1/350 USS Gambier Bay CVE 73 Kit First Look
By Michael Benolkin
| Date of Review | December 2010 | Manufacturer | Hasegawa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subject | USS Gambier Bay CVE 73 | Scale | one/350 |
| Kit Number | 40047 | Principal Media | Styrene |
| Pros | Very nice detailing | Cons | Nothing noted |
| Skill Level | Basic | MSRP (USD) | $149.95 |
Kickoff Expect
The USS Gambier Bay (CVE 73) was a Casablanca-class escort carrier, one of 50 built over a two-year period between 1942-1944. The Casablanca-class carriers, like its CVE predecessors, were built upon lighter designs and less powerful engines which made them too slow to operate with the fleet carriers. Nevertheless, these 'jeep carriers' were essential for providing air back up beyond the reach of the fleet carriers besides as providing in-theater replacements equally needed.
The USS Gambier Bay saw numerous gainsay actions in its operations in the Pacific including support of the Philippine invasion in September 1944. Operating with USS Kitkun Bay (CVE 71), the Gambier Bay provided air support for the Marines that went ashore. When their task was ended, these carriers, long with their destroyer escorts, escorted the invasion armada to Leyte Gulf.
At Leyte Gulf, the USS Gambier Bay joined 17 other escort carriers and numerous surface combatants to support the invasion of Leyte. The Imperial Japanese Navy responded with 1 of the largest surface actions of the war. Admiral Sprague divided his fleet into iii chore groups with Taffy 1 north of Mindanao, Taffy ii off the entrance to Leyte Gulf, and Taffy 3 (including USS Gambier Bay) off of Samar. The Japanese fleet was divided into three prongs attacking from the north, middle, and south. Admiral Halsey, in command of the faster armada carriers, blunted the set on of the center prong and accounted them ineffective. The following day, the southern force besides came under attack by US forces and was seriously damaged. Halsey took his carriers and went later the northern strength. Unbeknownst to Halsey and Sprague, xx IJN heavy combatants, including the battleship Yamato, emerged undetected from the San Bernadino Strait and left Taffy 3 with the job of holding off this threat until reinforcements could arrive.
The six escort carriers launched everything they had at the oncoming Japanese while the destroyers laid smoke screens to provide some cover. The destroyers fought the Japanese battleships and cruisers with their v-inch guns and i fifty-fifty conducted a mock torpedo attack on a Japanese destroyer squadron breaking up that action. All the same, iii U.s.a. destroyers were hitting at indicate-bare range and sunk by the Japanese armada. The escort carriers each had one five-inch gun mount on their stern and these were as well brought to affect the Japanese equally they pursued the fleeing carriers. As the cruiser Chikuma airtight to v miles, it started landing shells on the flight deck of the Gambier Bay. When the carrier went expressionless in the water, 3 Japanese cruisers closed to point-blank range and shot upwardly the ship until she capsized and sunk. USS Gambier Bay was the only US carrier to exist lost to surface action.
As Taffy 2 drew close enough to the battle to become its aircraft into the fight, USS St. Lo was sunk by numerous kamikaze hits, the Japanese fleet disengaged from the remnants of Taffy 3 and withdrew. Badly shot up, the remaining ships continued to press the battle, and seeing the Japanese of a sudden withdraw, one sailor near Admiral Sprague yelled "Dammit boys, they're getting abroad!"
Hasegawa has been producing an interesting array of ship kits in 1/350 including their impressive Akagi aircraft carrier, Nagato battleship, the Soya Antarctic ascertainment ship, and a number of smaller IJN combatants. This is their get-go US transport subject and is a very interesting selection of subjects. While other manufacturers take tackled the Essex and earlier classes of Usa aircraft carriers in 1/350, nobody has addressed the 'jeep carriers' in 1/350 styrene. Several Casablanca, Bogue, and similar class escort carriers have been produced in resin, merely this is the first Casablanca-course kit in plastic. It is interesting that DML has released their own 'jeep carrier' in plastic, but focused for at present on the Independence-class.
Well hither is Hasegawa'due south USS Gambier Bay kit in one/350 calibration and I must say, they've done a nice job! I didn't know quite what to wait in this box since I haven't seen any of Hasegawa's previous transport kits, but if you're concerned about over-engineering or over-complex associates, don't worry. There is some nice engineering in this kit to make it a pleasurable build, merely you lot won't be bulding the head or galley below decks where you won't ever run into your piece of work. Hasegawa actually laid this kit out well.
According to the specs, in that location are 458 parts in this box, all in styrene with the exception of a very fine chain to exist used for the anchor bondage. When built, the kit will exist 17.6 inches (447mm) long. Molded in light gray styrene, this kit is presented on nineteen parts trees, plus three modest trees of clear parts and the aforementioned anchor chain.
Construction starts with the hull and here is where I get impressed right away. There are v frames that simply plug into holes molded inside both hull halves to provide strength to the model. Two of the frames also accept receivers for the brandish stands that plug into the lesser of the model. This is a very overnice characteristic so yous won't hear that hull snap open when handling the model later in the build process or taking information technology to contests.
As mentioned above, there are over 450 parts in this box, but every bit you lot can run into in the images to the right, most of these are pocket-sized details that include guns and their gun mounts, boats and life rafts, flight deck structural frames, and a simple superstructure.
The aircraft compliment in this kit includes:
- 6 10 FM-2 Wildcat
- 3 x TBM-1C Avenger
The kit provides two sheets of decals, one specifically for the Gambier Bay's unique markings, the other is a generic air wing decal sheet that provides 3 unlike types of national markings to cover the early on, mid, and late war designs (all except for Functioning Torch, which doesn't employ here anyway).
The instructions provide an excellent pigment reference for the ship to replicate its Measure 32/15A design. Pigment references in the instructions are for Gunze (GSI) paints, but we'll put up a color profile with the various paint alternatives and scale effect colors besides.
With a street toll of around $129.99, this is a adept example of what happens to kit pricing when the U.s. Dollar is weak against the Japanese Yen. Nonetheless, Hasegawa took the wise approach of offer the bones kit and then different super-detailing options for more advanced modelers equally split up items. The basic particular set provides photo-etched handrailings and prophylactic nets which the advanced particular fix adds radar mast, radar, ladders, props, and nameplate, likewise in photograph-compose. The advanced detail set does non include the railings and netting of the basic set. I really interesting feature is the wooden deck which comes pre-colored and is cocky-adhesive. If you want more shipping on your deck, Hasegawa too has an aircraft fix with 12 aircraft including 3 x SBD-five Dauntless, 6 x FM-2 Wildcat, and 3 x TBM-1C Avenger.
This is a actually nice looking kit and imagine that we'll be seeing other releases of this kit to correspond others of the Casablanca-course. Kudos to Hasegawa for taking on this previously disregarded portion of naval carrier aviation in styrene.
My sincere thanks to Hasegawa United states for this review sample!
Source: https://www.cybermodeler.com/hobby/kits/has/kit_has_40047.shtml
Post a Comment for "Review 1/350 Hasegawa Uss Gambier Bay Super Photo Etch Detail Set Has72145"