1/700 USS North Carolina Progress

I would love to give an ETA on this ship, but I don't have an accurate number because I haven't really built in 1/700 before. Trumpeter released this kit as a scaled down version of the 1/350 USS North Carolina.

For a Chinese company, I am very impressed with the details straight out of the box. The kit retailed for $25, and I picked it up for around $22 many years ago. There is no photo-etch included, but you do get some decently molded cranes, aircraft, and a base with the kit.

There are many challenges associated with building in 1/700 scale. This is not a scale for beginner or intermediate model builders. There are parts smaller than half the height of my thumbnail, and they wish to not cooperate around 75% of the time. Many, many tried will be needed to get parts just right- but the scale, depending on the manufacturer of the kit- rewards you for your efforts. It really does.

I will have to upload pictures later, but the deck detail is great. I have finished assembling the bridge and it looks fantastic; even the radar support is well molded. This kit has shown some flash occasionally, but it isn't something that cannot be fixed quickly. Already I have made personal modifications to the ship, such as reinforcing the radar support and filling in some unused peg holes, and remember- for historical accuracy, I really do not care if the ship isn't 100% accurate.

I've begun sanding down the hull, and either later or tomorrow I will add the rest of the deck details, then get the deck assembly (with the hull) into paint. I will use an overall gunship gray as a primer, then possibly 1-2 more coats to finish the job, with a pin-strip water line (black) and then a dark red for the lower hull. Know what? I might do that in reverse order for convenience. After that, I will hand paint the deck myself a tan. Problem is, I need to go buy some deck tan...

1/700 isn't a favorite scale of mine, but I have no qualms building in it occasionally. Maybe once or twice a year, if that. I really like the detail, but the size of the parts makes the project a difficult build.