USS Arizona BB-39 1941.

I always used masking tape or packing tape on larger ships...Scotch tape for the smaller ones

 

Thanks much. What I have done, and it is not as effective as your suggestion, is to use that green Frog tape that you can use for house painting and eye it as best as I can. Came out fairly good. I suppose I could have painted the black line after the red paint was dry, but I just didn’t do it.

 

I believe he's talking about the boot topping, not the plimsoll. at 1/428 scale, the plimsoll mark would be nothing more than a dot. Oh, and another thing; US Navy warships don't carry Plimsoll marks, that is for cargo vessels

 

On the subject of the USS Arizona, I've always wanted to do a series, all using the Revell kit. Starting with 1930's peacetime, then at Pearl, Dec. 41, then "Had She survived" . . . I do still have one of Her, as sunk, circa 1980's, but it's looking a bit worn.

 

What would your "Had She Survived" configuration be? Like Pennsylvania with the twin 5"/38s?

The configuration of the eight twin 5"/38 mounts on Pennsylvania and Maryland is intriguing. They were all on one level, one deck above the forecastle deck, in contrast to the superfiring pairs on more thoroughly reconstructed ships like Nevada or Tennessee. I suspect this was because they were base ring mounts; the lower mounts in pairs would be on the forecastle deck, which was a strength deck, part of the ships' structure. Putting the mounts all on a deckhouse would be easier than making penetrations of a strength deck.

The end 5" mounts 1, 2, 7, and 8 were further inboard than 3-6, which somewhat restricted their arcs of fire. All eight mounts are positioned above the former 5"/51 guns 3-10. The twin 5"/38s had handling rooms below the mount, which would be where the 5"/51 casemates used to be. Presumably the old 5" magazines were repurposed for the new guns, and I wonder if the original ammunition hoists might have been also.

This arrangement would have the further benefit of making your modeling easier You could use that part of the kit as is, just blank out the 5"/51 casemates and put 5"/38s above them.

 

Yes, Pennsylvania would be the basic guide, with influences from those reconstructed Pearl Harbor ships. Rather than just blanking off the casemates, I'd probably recreate boxy bases in those locations and then add 40mm and 20mm galleries where I could. As with Pennsy, She would probably lose the mainmast in favor of more structure / AA gun platforms. The biggest problem is locating scale suitable guns, 1/428 is an odd scale. What the heck, maybe I'll go 1/350 just for fun.

 

There was a drawing of a modified Ariz, but I can't remember if it was in the Stillwell book or one of the many others that I have...But, she had twin 5/38s and both tripod masts.

Don't know if it was conjecture or based on real Navy plans for the Ariz.

 

It was in the Leeward Publications, Ships Data, USS Arizona, Page 31 (actually) and I'm sure it was just an educated guess. The 5"/38 DP's are all mounted on the super deck / foc'sle deck rather than the boat deck, which would have made them cut away quite a bit of the structure and would have affected the hoists and outboard walkways. I'm thinking that I'll use my old 1/350 Missouri kit for the 5"/38's and rework the Arizona.

 

An "as-intended" Arizona sounds like a great project.

Some good news that may be a help to you: there are aftermarket products in 1/426 scale that may be a help, including 5"/38 Mk.32 twin-gun mounts, and a complete 1945 USS Pennsylvania superstructure. Link:
https://www.model-monkey.com/revell-scale-426

 

Here's what the 5"/38 Mk.32 mounts look like.