BUILD BLOG – USS Charles Adams – DDG 2
Guided missile destroyer, part of the Cuban blockade during the missile crisis: "Following commissioning Charles F. Adams took part in recovery operations for Walter M. Schirra's Mercury 8 mission. While engaged in this operation the Cuban Missile Crisis developed and Adams moved to the Caribbean Sea as part of the quarantine forces around the Island of Cuba."
The ship was decommisioned 1992 and remains at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on Donation Hold status. She is currently scheduled to be preserved by the Adams Class Veteran's Association in Jacksonville, Florida. For a donation or information, see here:
http://www.adamsclassddgvets.org/
Kit – 1/700 Dragon Premium edition
Review of the kit (by Kenny Loup [ GATOR ] see here:
https://modelshipwrights.kitmaker.net/review/2339" TARGET="_blank"> https://modelshipwrights.kitmaker.net/review/2339
For a more history of the ship, see here:
http://bozair.com/adamsmen/history.html
Choice of full hull or waterline choices, with main hill one solid piece. All main structural pieces cut and sanded
Assembly starts!
The instructions call for the building of structures by subunits, some of which “slide” against/into others, creating the superstructure. The whole assembly can then be “dropped” onto the main hull component. The problem with this assembly sequence is that any deviation or error can result in the superstructure not fitting onto the hull. Since most sub-units are made of 3 pieces (L,R, center) and mate with other, it is practically impossible to dry-fit the whole assembly with only two hands. If I encounter this build sequence again, I will build from the hull upwards, irrespective of instructions, ensuring a good fit between the hull and superstructure.
Bow piece; I scrapped off the molded anchor chains and sanded the area:
I also drilled (with the point of my Xcto knife since I don’t have drill bits that small) holes for the anchor chains to slide into the hull:
I then added some PE chains, leftover from a 1/72 scale armor piece… not fully accurate (on the small side) but looks better:
Major structural components in place:
Some gaps between levels. I tried filling the gaps with diluted Gator’s glue, an idea I found in Mike Ashley’s books in which he uses white glue to fill in gaps. Did not quite work; advantage of trying water-soluble glue as a filler, you can simply wipe it off if it does not work. I will fill the gaps with Mr Surfacer.
The next step was detailing the gun turrets. I added some PE doors, one of them in “open” position:
Gun radar … not fully accurate, the TMM Adams class PE fret is better. You could fix this one with more time by cutting several small pieces of wire, give them a 1/16” inch bend, and CA-glue to the tips of the array. If I have the time, I will see if I can accomplish that task. In the meantime, will have to stay as is.
Some super-structure in place, starting to look like a ship! My third attempt at small gap filling was using ZapA Gap and accelerator.This combination works pretty well, as long as I start sanding/shaving immediately after application of the accelerant. The filler stays malleable for a couple minutes, enough time to shave/sand flush. Here is the status of the super-structure:
The main sensor farm; few options of sensors are available, depending on the specific ship and/or deployment time. The Dragon Adams kit includes markings for vessels from 4 different countries. However, it is up to the builder to research and determine which set of sensors is specific for the particular ship being built. My choices were based on available pics from the 60s (time of the Cuban missile crisis, in which this ship performed sub picket duty), but my choices are probably not completely accurate.
The larger radar (SPS ?) was molded in solid plastic; I used the tip of a new blade to carve up the openings. Needs a bit of cleanup; not sure if I was successful in making the radar look better or at least better than solid throughout – opinions?
This is how the build stands as of now, …. To finish on time I will have to probably cut some corners, depends how my first foray into PE railings and radar PE bending goes this weekend!
Any comments or suggestions are welcome, either of the accuracy or construction type. Thanks for looking, cheers!
