| The Iron Shipwright 1:350
scale USS Tennessee is a two-piece
full hull model depicting the ship in its 1944 fit. One of two Tennessee
class battleships (the other was California),
Tennessee survived Pearl Harbor with minor damage, unlike California
which was was sunk. California was refloated and both ships subsequently
underwent a radical overhaul. They were rebuilt from the deck up, and gained so much
extra beam (16 feet) they could no longer transit the Panama Canal. The Iron
Shipwright kit depicts Tennessee in its post-rebuild form, so if you are looking
for an early war, cage-masted Tennessee, this kit is not for you. The
rebuilt Tennessee class somewhat resembled South Dakota class
ships. They had a central citadel crowded with 40mm, 20mm and 5" gun armament
and lost the 1920s "look" characteristic of the battle fleet at Pearl.  The Iron Shipwright kit can be built either as a post-rebuild (1944) Tennessee
or California. And the modeler also has the option of constructing a USS West Virginia (1944). The West
Virginia, sunk at Pearl, was also raised and radically rebuilt. The end result was a
battleship identical to the new Tennessee class except for main armament and a
few 20mm mounts. The kit includes both the 14" triple turrets of the Tennessee
class and West Virginia's 16" twin turrets.
USS West Virginia July '44 in measure
32/7d
The Tennessee kit, available
mid-February 1999, will include the Profile Morskie USS
California book. Price will be $290 (waterline) or $325 for the full-hull
version. Shown below are the major resin parts. The etched brass, instructions and smaller
resin parts (40mm and 20mm AA guns et al) will be added to this preview later in January.
For further information contact Iron Shipwright.
Commanders Models, Inc.
Iron Shipwright Series
551 Wegman Road
Rochester, NY 14624
Phone: 1-888-IRONSHIP (1-888-476-6744)
Email: dparis@eznet.net
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