I've built the Lexington kit twice. Once as Lex, and the other I back dated it to a circa 1940 Saratoga (this was before the Sara kit came out). I liked the model. While it's not 100% accurate (there was someone here who super detalied a Lex), it LOOKS like a Lexington and Saratoga when finished.
Here is what I posted over on the MW.com forums back in 2006:
"The model certainly LOOKS like the Lexington when completed. The biggest questions are with the configuration of the island. According to Robert Stern, in "The Lexington Class Carriers", when the Lex was scheduled to get her flag plot extended (this is the level above the navigation bridge), Lex didn't want the same open arrangement that Saratoga had (Sara's flag plot had been extended in the mid-30's). I don't have the text from the book with me at work - I'll look it up tonight and edit this post with what Stern says.
Anyway, it "looks" like Lex had her entire flag plot enclosed, with the forward portion enclosed by bulletproof glass and splinter shielding, which is how Trumpeter elected to depict her. What's definitely wrong here is the "open" portion of the platforms on either side of the flag plot level - they are the wrong shape and it didn't have splinter sheilding (which looks to be about knee high).
Additionally, the range finder was moved from the top of the navigation bridge to the top of the newly extended flag plot (the kit does depict this). There also appears to be another rangefinder or director on top of the spotting top in pictures. One thing I didn't try to correct: The island doesn't have the correct shape - the real ships had more of a curve to the back of the island (supposedly for aerodynamic reasons).
Again, what's been published is all we have to go on now, and using those sources I made some assumptions and finished my model following those quesses. I do not have any original source documents, my hunches were all based on secondary sources and discussions between myself, Tracy White and Ron Smith (both of whom are much more knowledgeable than I).
Here is a list of the things I did to the Trumpeter model:
•The lower hull is a little narrower than the upper hull, and needs to be widened using spreaders to get a snug fit. (I've heard from some modelers that didn't have this problem - test fit your hull first if you are building her full hull).
•My hull was warped, which gave me trouble when fitting the flight deck – I had to fit the flight deck one section at a time, which let to other issues (seams between the 3 pieces of the deck).
•I found the splinter shields for the 1.1 inch (28mm) gun tubs (the ones which replaced the 8 inch gun mounts) too shallow and replaced them with spare gun tubs from my YMW Lexington. Also, pictures clearly show bracing on the outside of these tubs. The YMW tubs have bracing, but I added more. I also deleted the Mk 44 director from the 1.1 gun tub directly in front of the island - it didn't look like the two 1.1s and the director could realistically fit in that tub.
•The splinter shields for the 20mm platforms in the boat pockets are too shallow. I replaced these with brass strip. These also had bracing on the outside of the tubs, which I added with plastic strip.
•As previously mentioned, the shape of the rear of the flag plot platform on the island is incorrect (it should flare out from the bridge), plus Trumpeter omitted the searchlight platforms on the roof of the flag plot. The searchlights should be bumped up a level and a pair of signal lamps added to the navigation level - you'll have to scratchbuild the searchlight platforms on the flag plot level. I also added a rangerfinder to the top of the spotting top - though my "quess" is that this may be a Mk 44 director for the 1.1 guns.
•The rear legs for the Trumpeter supplied tripod foremast look “stepped”, since Trumpeter elected to seperate these into two pieces per side. These legs should be continuous, so I replaced them with brass rod.
•The funnel cap is the wrong shape and too wide. Trumpeter molded this piece with “wings” that don’t belong there. The actual funnel cap was curved, not flat, and Trumpeter replicated the curve with these wings. Sand them back till they are closer to the funnel sides.
•The island is too far inboard from the side of the ship. I removed the molded on guides from the flight deck, re-scribed the flight deck and moved it to the correct position.
•The rudder has the right profile, but is the wrong width and shape when viewed from behind. I made it wider to more accurately reflect the correct shape.
Also prominently missing from the kit is the degaussing cable that appears to go all the way around the hull. Since I couldn't find any proper documentation for this, I elected to leave it off.
Do you have to make all these changes? Of course not. It's your model, and will build into an impressive model directly out of the box. However, "Queen of the Flat Tops" was one of the first books I ever remembering reading as a kid. After reading that book, I fell in love with the Lady Lex. I've waited my entire adult life for a 1/350 Lexington, so I eagerly bought the Blue Water Navy version when it came out. However, in my opinion, that version is only correct for the Lexington prior to her short March/April 1942 refit, and then only when you use the 8 inch gun mounts.
So, when Trumpeter announced a May 1942 version of the Lexington, I was probably the only person who was happy about it. Therefore, I went as far as my middle-of-the-road modeling skills would take me, and did the old gal up as best I could. I still have to complete the air group - but need to check to see if Lex's planes had white or black squadron markings on the fuselage before proceeding. The YMW decals have black markings, but I've seen some things that indicate they were white.
Eventually I plan to build the YMW kit - which is a magnificent model and is beautifully cast - as a waterline February 1942 version of the Lexington, in Ms 12. I know Wipers "Lexington-class" pictorial dates the picture of the Lex in Ms 12 as August 1941, but I think that's wrong. The planes appear to have red and white rudder stripes, which weren't in use in August 1941 - they were ordered painted on the planes in late December 1941/Janury 1942 (IIRC). (He also has a picture captioned as the "triumphant return of the strike group from the sinking of the Shoho". If you look closely, those planes are F6Fs with 1944 era markings).
Anyway - that's my non-expert take on the Trumpeter Lexington. It needs some work, but it is impressive when finished. Hope this helps. I'll be happy to answer any questions you have."
