1.600 WW2 British AA Cruiser

[Richard Welling]

/media/tinymce_upload/10080f562f4adfd1cf12eeee62ff99ea.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/f9525b83f4ad36bb0b9856acbcb7a8e3.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/85478eee8881494542d31bec6f196ca6.jpgIn the past, I had taken a 1/600 HMS Ajax hull and shortened it to 510 feet and made a Dido class AA cruiser.

Was not pleased with the result, although I still have the hull and some of the parts in a box somewhere.

I always liked the Arethusa/Dido class, a very elegant and attractive design with the twin raked funnels and masts and the relatively streamlined superstructure.

So, here is another what if ship, a WW2 Modified Leander class AA cruiser.

By keeping the 555 foot length and 55 foot beam of the Leander, (45 feet longer and 5 feet wider than the Dido class) it is possible to add a sixth 5.25 DP twin mount and additional AA.

12 x 5.25 DP, 24 x 40mm (4 x 4, 4 x 2) 6 x 20mm (2 x 2, 2x1) 8 x 21" tt.

The 1/600 HMS Ajax is another very adaptable Airfix kit, although it is harder to find these days.

There are about a dozen of various configurations in my collection. I have built it as a Modified Leander (HMAS Sydney/Perth/Hobart) several times.

[KiwiKev]

Agree with this idea, I'd like to build HMNZS Royalist, and the Ajax hull would be about the only one that makes sense. If I ever see one, made up or kit, I'll grab it.

Royalist had the straight funnels, only 4 turrets, 3 x STAAG, and the Mark 6 directors. Interestingly enough I believe there was an idea to fit 7 5.25 inch turrets to a town class derivative, so your 6 turret idea isn't that far fetched.

[KiwiKev]

Here's my drawing so far of the Royalist layout. As fate would have it, just as I was about to convert one of my Tiger models to this end, I managed to buy an Ajax online. Not sure what to do now. The trouble is I wouldn't mind building Ajax as Achilles. They also threw in another Suffolk model that I wasn't really after but this could convert to Exeter, so the Battle of the River Plate is now doable in total, as Graf Spee is still available, and as a kiwi kid that was always a bit of a legend to me.

So maybe I'll stick with converting the Tiger kit, bit this will mean adding two extra shafts and a cruiser stern, so a little extra work.

[KiwiKev]

Work in progress on a 1:600 Dido class cruiser conversion. I've used the 1:600 Tiger kit as the basis for the hull. Not ideal as it needs shortening, that's not so hard, but also a reduction in beam which can be quite tricky. Also needs a cruiser stern added, and the two missing shafts added. The grey portions of the new deck are scavenged from a spare battleship kit, and with the deck planking etched in will represent those limited parts of the deck on this ship (HMNZS Royalist C89) that were planked, presumably in areas where official receptions and functions were held. Rest of the deck is steel painted green-grey. This photo shows the original Tiger hull and deck, and as cut down to represent the Dido hull.

[Sailorman]

Interesting conversion. will watch the build progress.

[KiwiKev]

Prototype 5.25 inch turret. Dimensions copied as much as possible from those on my 1:600 KGV model. I may bring the barrels in a tad closer together on the "production" version. It also needs the turret captain's window fitted on the surface between the barrels, and other details added. The window was an addition to the standard turret and allowed local control with a deflector sight.

[KiwiKev]

Scratch built forward superstructure, bridge, Mk 6 director, and turret sitting in B position. One of 3 STAAG mountings sits between the turret and the bridge. The WEM photo etch lattice main and fore masts for Tiger are virtually identical to what was fitted to Royalist, and these will be used on this model with slight adjustments. The enclosed bridge windows were masked and painted before too much extra detail was added. Badly painted bridge windows on post war models really detract from their finish, and I was determined to ensure a tidy job of these before progressing too much further.

[KiwiKev]

Work in progress. Forward superstructure basically complete apart from lattice masts and some life rafts to add. Currently trying to get the hull and fittings finished. In this shot can be seen the armour plate and bilge keel added. Out of shot further aft are the additional scratch built shafts that should have come with the original Tiger kit but didn't. Luckily my kit had two extra props for some reason, so we at least have the full complement of them. I also drilled out the tabs on the top edge of the hull that I presume were supposed to be fair-leads. Well they are now!!!

[KiwiKev]

Just a thought, this ship was originally a WW2 cruiser, but is actually depicted here as modernized in the 1950s, hence the Mk6 directors and STAAG mountings, and the lattice mast from the WEM RN post war set. The foremast dry fitted here was intended for the Tiger kit and needs a slight extension. The main mast aft of the funnels will need an even greater height extension but there are enough lattice sections in the WEM set, so something suitable should be able to be assembled.

[Ratch]

Looking ship shape and Bristol fashion

[KiwiKev]

The WEM photo etch fore mast. This is basically the Tiger lattice mast with an extra section glued on the top and some other additions. Very fiddly but provides excellent results. The main mast was even more of a patch up job, requiring 3 extra sections as it was very tall and slender in Royalist to get the type 960 search radar nice and high and clear of obstructions.

[KiwiKev]

Some of the smaller bits scratch built. I modeled the 5.25 inch mountings on the similar ones provided in the Airfix KGV kit. The twin 40mm STAAG mountings were very heavy units that included the radar, gunnery computer, and hydraulic stabilization equipment on the mount. Some apparently even had diesel generators on the mount. This made them completely independent of ship's power, a true self-contained CIWS. They were generally considered too complex and unreliable and soon disappeared from most RN ships, replaced by Seacat. Probably a pity as STAAG was a better all round weapon that could engage crossing targets. Groups of life raft canisters and a cut down motor launch round off the items here.

[Kenneth ONeill]

Wikipedia quotes Seacat as having a range of 50 to 5_000m (or maybe a bit more guided but unpowered) What I can't see is any mention of the Circular Error Probable for the proximity fuze and warhead.. The L/70 Bofors 40mm could double that range but has a CEP of ~0.

[KiwiKev]

Wikipedia quotes Seacat as having a range of 50 to 5_000m (or maybe a bit more guided but unpowered) What I can't see is any mention of the Circular Error Probable for the proximity fuze and warhead.. The L/70 Bofors 40mm could double that range but has a CEP of ~0.

Anecdotal stories from people on Royalist suggest that STAAG was VERY accurate, radar guided and capable of engaging crossing targets. The radar and gunnery computer were on the mount so there was no bore-sight offset and less misalignment potential. The main problem seemed to be reliability of the 1950s electronics operating on the same platform as the guns due to the shock of firing. The same era electronics could be quite reliable though. The C-130 Hercules operated WW2 vintage auto-pilots right up to the mid 1990s, and they were amazing analogue devices. They could be interfaced to Inertial and GPS. I think the only reason they were replaced was because people were embarrassed by the fact they were still using "steam-driven" valve technology. I set a system up on the bench 20 or 30 years after it last had power on and it worked perfectly. Do that with modern electronics and it would almost inevitably fail.

[Kenneth ONeill]

Yeah. My point here is that STAAG has to be super accurate because you have to hit what you're shooting at in order to do any damage.

[KiwiKev]

Completed model; HMNZS Royalist;

[Sailorman]

That is one nice build! Well done!