¹⁄350

USS Lexington (CV2) 1927-1942

Above: Thinning of hull around openings from inside.

Stage 1: hull

Kit parts: 1
Scratch parts: 217
PE parts: 2
Time: 22 hours

Overall impression: significant lack of detail. Considerable inaccuracy in scuttle positions, both in distribution and vertical position of rows which caused a little difficulty later installing the degaussing cables and the light AA gun sponsons at boat pocket positions. A large number of scuttles were missing from the port and starboard bows low down. When the moulded-on water throw-off strips were removed (they were not a feature of the Lexington class), the scuttles were revealed do be distorted to an oval shape by the moulding process in areas of significant hull flare.

•Thinned plastic behind all boiler room intake vent doors port and starboard to approximate shell plating thickness.

•Removed all scuttle water run-off strips, and drilled out to removal elliptical moulding distortion.

•Drilled missing scuttles where necessary, principally port and starboard bows at second and third deck (fourth and fifth rows), and below boiler room intake vent doors starboard side.

•Drilled out forward anchor chain hawse holes and mooring cable apertures at upper half-deck (boat pocket) level.

•Drilled blind holes for gas vents close to water line.

•Cut away accommodation ports on the port side, and added accommodation port doors starboard side.

•Removed misplaced garbage chute starboard side and replaced with 2 x 2mm styrene.

•Added longitudinal gas filling system pipe above belt port and starboard, shortened moulded-on gas filling system risers (four on port side and one on starboard side) and added two missing risers (starboard side), all from 0.5mm styrene rod (too thick, I know, but the thinnest available without resorting to stretched sprue). Added rectangular riser conduits using 0.75 x 1.5mm styrene. Added gas filling pipe for aircraft boom (not shipped) starboard side at small forward boiler vent door apertures.

•Enlarged height (top and bottom) rear two of six small forward boiler intake vent door apertures.

•Fitted boat lowering protection guards, reinforcing straps and brackets and lashing bars above length of belt port and starboard using variety of 0.25 x 0.75mm and 0.25 x 1mm styrene strip.

•Fitted degaussing cables port and starboard from 0.5mm styrene rod.

•Fitted degaussing cable guards below boat pockets using 0.25 x 0.75mm styrene strip.




Above: General view of additional hull detail.