Before we look at my models individually, there are a few that have an interesting connection.

Interesting Connections

RMS Queen Mary; HMS Curacao

Collision at Sea

The first one is the RMS Queen Mary and the HMS Curacao. HMS Curacao was the lead ship of the escort sent out to bring the RMS Queen Mary into port and met her off the Irish coast. Unfortunately, for some inexplicable reason both Curacao AND Queen Mary believed that they had the right of way due to their understanding of the rules of the sea. Curacao believed that she had right of way due to her being overtake, whilst the Queen Mary believed that she had right of way due to her being the larger ship. Unfortunately, Curacao was caught 6 feet from the stern, spun around and cut in half with enormous loss of life. As a result of this collision, a legal battle was fought (during a world war) between Cunard and the British Admiralty where blame was placed 2/3 with the Admiralty. Apparently very few people on board the Queen Mary were aware that they had sunk a 4,000-ton cruiser!

Battle of the Java Sea

Ill Fated ABDA Fleet

HMAS Perth (I), USS Houston, HMS Exeter, HNLMS Java and HNLMS De Ruyter

These five cruisers were sent to try and stop the Japanese onslaught against the Dutch East Indies. It was led by the Dutch Admiral K Doorman and was doomed from the start. Combining ships from four different navies, without any training or exercising together, with different battle tactics and you have a disaster in the making. Having said that, the allied crews fought bravely and suffered horrific losses with every single cruiser being sunk within three days of each other. Sadly, these and other allied ships have suffered from illegal salvage and all but a small amount of HMAS Perth still exists.

Royal Australian Navy

Battlecruiser

HMAS Australia – Indefatigable class

Builder John Brown & Co Ltd, Clydebank, Glasgow, Scotland

Laid Down 26 June 1910

Commissioned 21 June 1913

Fate      

Scuttled on 12 April 1924

Displacement    17,055 tonnes

Length  179.83 metres

Beam    24.38 metres

Draught 9.14 metres

Speed   25 knots

Armament

Guns    

8 x 12-inch guns

14 x 4-inch guns

2 x 18-inch submerged torpedo tubes

The RAN’s first and largest flagship. HMAS Australia was sadly caught up in the aftermath of the Washington Naval Treaty that saw so many ships scrapped in order to halt the naval arms race that was starting to worry the naval powers of the time. She had two sisters, HMS New Zealand and the ill-fated HMS Indefatigable, sunk with huge loss of life at the Battle of Jutland in 1916. There are many photographs of Australia being scuttled. I really wanted to show her with the torpedo nets as few people understand that this was a legitimate attempt at defending capital ships against torpedoes.

Seaplane Carrier

HMAS Albatross

Builder  Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Company Pty Ltd, Sydney

Laid Down 16 April 1926

Launched 23 February 1928

Commissioned  23 January 1929

Fate      

Transferred to Royal Navy in 1938

Displacement    4,354.49 tonnes

Length  443 ft

Beam    60 ft

Draught 16ft 3in

Speed   20 knots

Guns    

4 x 120mm guns

2 x 40mm pom-poms

4 x 3-pounder saluting guns

24 x .303-inch machine guns

Other Aircraft    9 floatplanes or amphibians such as Supermarine Seagull and Walrus (6 active, 3 reserve)

This was one of my early “Wannabe” models. I obtained some very dodgy plans from the Australian Archives many years ago. I always thought she looked amazing! So, when Profile Morskie put out plans for her as the HMS Albatross I jumped at the chance to build her. She had a very chequered career being laid up in 1933, only a few years after she was completed as Australia felt the impact of the Great Depression. Later, the Australian Government was able to talk the British Government into taking her as part payment for the purchase of HMAS Hobart and was incorporated into the Royal Navy until scrapped in 1954. She was a very challenging ship to build especially the two aircraft that I included.

Aircraft Carrier

HMAS Sydney (III) – Majestic class

Builder  HM Dockyard, Devonport, England

Laid Down 19 April 1943

Commissioned  16 December 1948

Fate      

Sold to Dong Kuk Steel Mill Co, Seoul, South Korea, and broken up 12 November 1973

Displacement   

15,740

Length  696 feet

Beam    80 feet

Draught 25 feet

Speed   24 knots

Guns

30 × Bofors 40 mm guns (18 single mountings, 6 twin mountings)

Aircraft carried: Up to 38 aircraft – Firefly and Sea Fury

Sydney was employed in many operations, the main one, as a carrier, was of course the Korean War where she operated in some of the worst weather conditions imaginable. There are photographs of her in a gale that destroyed a large number of Firefly and Sea Fury aircraft that were stowed on deck. I had a lot of fun building the aircraft which made up for the frustration associated with the drawings being incorrect and having views from other ships included that I had to research to find out if they should be included or not.

Breastwork Monitor

HMVS Cerberus

Builder  Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company, Jarrow

Laid down           1 September 1867

Completed         August 1870

Fate       Sunk as breakwater, 2 September 1926

Displacement    3,340 tons

Length  225 ft

Beam    45 ft 1 in

Draught 15 ft 6 in

Speed 9.75 knots

Armament         

2 × twin 10-inch rifled muzzle loading guns

2 × single 12-pdr bronze howitzers

4 × 4-barrel 1-inch Nordenfelt guns (1883)

2 × single Nordenfelt 6-pdr QF Guns (1890)

2 × single Maxim-Nordenfelt 14-pdr QF Guns (1897)

This is an historic warship as it is the only surviving example of a breastwork monitor. Cerberus is in Port Phillip Bay Victoria where she is sadly in a state of collapse as a number of attempts to save her have fallen through. She is a colourful example of the early Australian attempts at defending ourselves from the misguided belief that “The Russians are coming; the Russians are coming!”

Heavy Cruiser

HMAS Canberra – County class

Builder John Brown & Co Ltd, Clydebank, Scotland

Laid Down 9 September 1925

Commissioned  9 July 1928

Fate      

Lost in action on 9 August 1942

Displacement    9850 tons

Length  630 feet

Beam    68 feet 4-inches

Draught 16 feet 3-inches

Speed   31½ knots

Guns    

8 x 8-inch guns

4 x 4-inch guns

4 x 3-pounder guns

I have always felt sorry for Canberra as she was never given a chance and was always maligned for being sunk at the Battle of Savo Island. It is believed by many (including myself) that she was torpedoed and disabled by a torpedo from the US destroyer that was escorting Canberra. Whilst she was still afloat and could have been saved, the American Admiral ordered Canberra to be sunk if she was unable to steam. An incredibly sad loss to the nation. Even sadder, when her crew came home to Sydney, it was reported that people gave them white feathers as they believed that Canberra’s crew had acted in a cowardly manner during the action. Later it was clear that she had been overwhelmed by a massively superior force of Japanese cruisers and had been disabled just prior to her main armament opening fire. I really enjoyed making Canberra. I think the three funnels (made even taller than on Royal Navy County Class) makes her look old-worldly.

Light Cruisers

HMAS Sydney (II) – Amphion class

Builder Swan, Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd, Wallsend on Tyne, England

Launched 22 September 1934

Commissioned  24 September 1935

Displacement    6830 tons

Length  555 feet

Speed   32.5 knots

Guns    

8 x 6-inch guns

4 x 4-inch guns

4 x 3-pounder guns

4 x 2-pounder guns

Torpedoes          8 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

Aircraft Walrus amphibian

HMAS Perth (I) – Amphion class

Builder Portsmouth Naval Dockyard, England

Launched 26 July 1934

Commissioned  10 July 1939

Displacement    6830 tons

Length  555 feet

Beam    56 feet 8-inches

Draught 15 feet 8-inches

Speed   32.5 knots

Guns    

8 x 6-inch guns

8 x 4-inch guns

4 x 3-pounder guns

4 x 2-pounder guns

Torpedoes          8 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

Aircraft Walrus amphibian (of 9 Squadron, RAAF)

Modified Leander Class cruiser. Originally launched as HMS Amphion, Perth was purchased by the Australian Government. She spent time in the Mediterranean during WWII and was eventually sent to the Dutch East Indies as part of the ill-fated Australian, British, Dutch and American (ABDA) fleet that had been cobbled together in a vain attempt to stem the Japanese attacks on Allied territory. She participated in the Battle of theJava Sea and returned to Tanjong Priok in the Dutch East indies with the USS Houston where they refuelled and then headed west on their way to safety via the Sunda Straits. Unfortunately, they ran into the Japanese invasion fleet in Bantam Bay and after a fierce fight Perth ran out of ammunition for her guns. The fact that she wasn’t firing anymore emboldened the Japanese who closed in and sank her with a number of torpedo hits.

This ship was the one that first made me aware of the pathetic state of plans. British Admiralty plans were always drawn in colour, and if a ship was changed, modified, or refitted, these were drawn in a different colour, and the changed lines were hatched (crossed) out. Perth was modified and refitted. As such, the plans had three sets of lines, mainly around the 4” AA gun deck and between the funnels. Unfortunately, the person that drew the plans didn’t do any research and just arbitrarily picked the lines. This resulted in him having to make-up the crew shelter, as he couldn’t fit in the actual shelter.  I only found this out as I was given a set of beautiful, clear photographs of Perth and one of us was wrong! As I was nearly finished, it took me quite a while to work out the correct lines and make the necessary changes to ensure the accuracy of my model. Unfortunately, since then, most drawings of Perth have been copied from the incorrect plans.

HMAS Sydney (I) - Town class

Builder London and Glasgow Engineering Co, Govan, Glasgow, Scotland

Launched 29 August 1912

Commissioned  26 June 1913

Fate

Decommissioned 8 May 1928 and broken up

Displacement    5400 tons

Length  456 feet 10-inches

Beam    49 feet 10-inches

Draught 15 feet 9-inches

Speed   26 knots

Guns    

8 x 6-inch guns

1 x 13-pounder gun

4 x 3-pounder guns

Torpedoes          2 torpedo tubes

The ship that put the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) on the map, so to speak! As the RAN was only recently established, it was a huge boost to RAN morale to have Sydney fight and overcome the SMS Emden. I obtained these plans from the National Archives when they were still very cheap to purchase. As they had not been catalogued, I just had to take potluck, and managed to get enough to complete her as she was when she took on the Emden.

Destroyers

HMAS Parramatta (I) River class

Builder  Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co Ltd, Govan, Glasgow

Launched 9 February 1910

Commissioned  10 September 1910

Fate

Decommissioned 22 July 1919

Dimensions & Displacement

Displacement    700 tons

Length  245 feet

Beam    24 feet 3-inches

Draught 8 feet 6-inches

Speed   26 knots

Guns    

1 x 4-inch gun

3 x 12-pounder QF guns

Torpedoes          3 x 18-inch torpedo tubes

This was one of the new Australian fleet that sailed into Sydney Harbour in October 1913. She was part of the Royal Navy presence in the Mediterranean Sea during WWI. A very cute little destroyer and a pleasure to build. Mind you, I had a scare when I thought that I had built her to a set of plans that had been reduced to fit a page! However, I was relieved to find that she was ok.

HMAS Swordsman – “S & T” class

Builder  Scott’s Shipbuilding and Engineering Co Ltd, Greenock, Scotland

Launched 28 December 1918

Commissioned 27 January 1920

Fate      

Sold on 4 June 1937 and broken up

Displacement    1075 tons

Length  276 feet

Beam    26 feet 9-inches

Draught 10 feet 10-inches

Speed   36 knots

Guns    

3 x 4-inch guns

1 x 2-pounder pom-pom

1 x Maxim machine gun

4 x Lewis machine guns

Torpedoes          4 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

Other Armament            

2 x depth-charge throwers

4 x depth-charge chutes

Swordsman was one of six destroyers gifted to the RAN after WWI. The others included Tattoo, Tasmania, Stalwart and Success as well as the destroyer Leader Anzac. This is one of the many ships that I needed to research prior to and during construction as the plans I had were of a very poor quality and lacked the necessary detail.

HMAS Anzac (I) – Kempenfelt class

Builder  Denny Bros Ltd, Dumbarton, Scotland

Laid Down 31 January 1916

Commissioned  27 January 1920

Fate      

Sold 8 August 1935, scuttled outside of Port Jackson 7 May 1936

Displacement    1660 tons

Length  325 feet

Beam    31 feet 10-inches

Draught 12 feet 1.5-inches

Speed   34 knots

Guns    

4 x 4-inch guns

2 x 2-pounder pom-poms

4 x Lewis machine guns

Torpedoes          4 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

A very unusual destroyer, having three funnels. Anzac was a destroyer leader and became the leader of the other five destroyers gifted to the RAN after WWI. All were scrapped around the end of the 1920s. I was lucky enough to get a good set of plans from the Australian Archives.

HMAS Waterhen – “V & W” class

Builder Palmers Shipbuilding Co Lts, Hebburn-on-Tyne, England

Laid Down 3 July 1917

Commissioned  11 October 1933

Fate

Lost in action on 30 June 1941

Displacement    1100 tons

Length  312 feet 2-inches

Beam    29 feet 7-inches

Draught 9 feet 8-inches

Speed   34 knots

Guns    

4 x 4-inch guns

1 x 2-pounder gun

Torpedoes          6 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

The V & Ws were the backbone of the Royal Navy between the two world wars. One of the famous “Scrap Iron Flotilla” destroyers that Dr Goebels mockingly called the Australian destroyers fighting in the Mediterranean Sea. Waterhen participated in the Tobruk Run that ensured the Australian “Rats of Tobruk” survived the siege of Tobruk. Sadly, she was bombed and sunk during one of these runs. Out of the five lent to the RAN, Voyager ran aground off Timor, Vampire was sunk with HMS Hermes near (then) Ceylon and Waterhen was bombed and sunk in the Mediterranean.

HMAS Stuart – Scott class

Builder  RW Hawthorne, Leslie and Co Ltd, Hebburn-on-Tyne, England

Laid Down 18 October 1917

Commissioned  11 October 1933

Decommissioned 27 April 1946

Displacement    1530 tons

Length  332 feet 6-inches

Beam    31 feet 9-inches

Draught 11 feet 4-inches

Speed   36.5 knots

Guns    

5 x 4.7-inch guns

1 x 3-inch gun

2 x 2-pounder guns

Torpedoes          6 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

Stuart was the Flotilla Leader for the V & W destroyers that we operated before and during WWII. She survived the war after a very long and successful career that included the Battle of Cape Matapan and the sinking of an Italian submarine. I used a very fine set of plans from the Australian Archives and photos to try and get her as close to how she looked during her time in the Mediterranean Sea as I really liked the look of her camouflage.

HMAS Arunta – Tribal class

Builder  Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Co Ltd, Sydney

Laid Down 15 November 1939

Commissioned  30 March 1942

Fate      

Sold for scrap in 1968 and sank while under tow in 1969

Displacement 1787 tonnes

Length  115.06 metres

Beam    11.13 metres

Draught 2.74 metres

Speed   36 knots

Armament

Guns    

4 x 120mm guns

2 x 102mm guns

6 x 40mm anti-aircraft guns

4 x 2-pounder anti-aircraft guns

Torpedoes          4 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

Other Armament             Squid triple barrelled anti-submarine depth charge mortars

I have always had a soft spot for the Tribals. They were beautiful looking ships and were never far from the thickest of the fighting. They were all named after tribes within the British Empire for example, Maori, Ashanti, and Punjabi. Arunta was built in 1942 and as such had her “X” turret replaced with a 4” AA gun. I cheated with this one as I purchased 3D printed main guns for her A, B and Y guns. 

HMAS Queenborough – Q class

Builder  Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson, Ltd, Wallsend-on-Tyne, England

Laid Down 6 November 1940

Commissioned 20 October 1945

Fate      

Broken up in Hong Kong, 1975

Displacement    2020 tons

Length  358 feet 9-inches

Beam    35 feet 9-inches

Draught 9 feet 6-inches

Speed   36 knots

Guns    

2 x 4-inch guns

2 x 40mm Bofors

Other Armament             Anti-submarine mortars

Queenborough was originally a destroyer thatwas converted to a fast Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) frigate. This included the removal of all her destroyer armament and replacing it with various ASW weapons including a Limbo mortar. I was still perfecting my method for hull construction and at this stage I was always ending up with a twisted hull! I well remember “untwisting” her and hearing the cracking of the wood.  Still all’s well that ends well…….

HMAS Anzac (II) – Battle class

Builder Williamstown Naval Dockyard, Melbourne

Laid Down 23 September 1946

Commissioned  14 March 1951

Fate      

Sold for scrap on 24 November 1975

Displacement    2214 tonnes

Length  115.52 metres

Beam    12.50 metres

Draught 3.89 metres

Speed   31 knots

Guns    

4 x 4.5-inch guns (in two twin turrets) – B Turret removed in 1965 and replaced by a charthouse / classroom

12 x 40mm Bofors guns

Torpedoes          10 x 21-inch torpedo tubes

Other Armament             Squid triple barrelled anti-submarine depth charge mortar

Anzac was an Australian modification of the very successful British Battle class that were named after famous battles such as St Kitts and Trafalgar. Anzac had a very active and successful deployment during the Korean War and served the RAN well during her lifetime. I think she looks very tough with her twin turrets for’rd and her massive suite of AA guns aft. Cheated again with 3D printed twin 40mm AA guns. The singles were hand built though.

HMAS Vendetta – Daring class

Builder  Williamstown Naval Dockyard, Melbourne

Laid Down 4 July 1949

Commissioned  26 November 1958

Fate

Decommissioned 9 October 1979

Displacement    2800 tons

Length  388 feet 6-inches

Beam    43 feet

Draught 12 feet 3-inches

Speed   30 knots

Armament

6 x 4.5-inch guns in 3 twin turrets

6 x 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun in 3 twin mounts

Torpedoes          5 x 21-inch torpedo tubes in a quintuple mount (removed by late 1960's)

Other Armament             1 triple barrelled Limbo anti-submarine mortar

I think the Darings were perhaps the most aesthetically proportioned destroyers ever built. The ill-fated HMAS Voyager was a sister to Vampire and Vendetta and was sadly lost in collision with HMAS Melbourne. Whilst the lattice mast was difficult to construct the model itself was very easy to put together as the plans were well draw (for once!). I really enjoyed building this. This is the second model of her as I also builtone for a friend who had a connection to HMAS Vendetta.

HMAS Vampire – Daring class

Builder Cockatoo Island Dockyard, Sydney

Laid Down 1 July 1952

Commissioned  23 June 1959

Fate      

Preserved as a museum ship at the Australian National Maritime Museum, Sydney

Displacement 2800 tons

Length  390 feet

Beam    43 feet

Draught 12 feet 9-inches

Speed   34.5 knots

Armament

Guns    

6 x 4.5-inch guns (twin turrets)

6 x 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns (later 2)

Torpedoes          5 x 21-inch torpedo tubes, pentad mount (later removed)

Other Armament             Limbo triple barrelled anti-submarine mortar

This is how the Australian Darings looked after they were modernised. I can’t decide which style I like the best. The RAN was actually going to replicate the “V & W” names and build four Daring class, but unfortunately it ran out of money and dropped Waterhen. HMAS Waterhen is now a RAN base in NSW.

HMAS Perth (II) –Charles F Adams class

Builder Defoe Shipbuilding Co, Bay City, Michigan, USA

Laid Down 21 September 1962

Commissioned  17 July 1965

Fate

Decommissioned 15 October 1999 and sunk as a dive wreck in Albany harbour.

Displacement    4850 tonnes

Length  133.2 metres

Beam    14.3 metres

Speed   30 knots

Missiles

Standard surface to air missiles

Ikara anti-submarine missiles

Guns     2 x 127mm (5-inch) rapid fire gun mounts

Torpedoes          Ship launched anti-submarine torpedoes

Sadly, HMAS Perth now lies in Albany harbour as a diving wreck. Ex naval personnel from WA put up a really good fight trying to save the ex HMAS Perth and have her tied up at Victoria Quay, but the deal fell through and she is now visible to only a few people. Perth’s career included participation in the Vietnam War where she received two commendations from the United States Navy.  When I originally built this ship, it took me 19 years to build. Reason? The plans were crap and Perth kept getting modified and refitted and changed (I think just to annoy me really…). I really liked the look of the DDGs. Whilst building this I had to draught my own detailed drawings of the director and the radars aft as the original plans were sooooo badly drawn. However, with persistence I managed to finish her off. I am happy to say that this current model took me far less time but still looks as nice.

Frigates

HMAS Perth (III) Anzac class

Builder Tenix Defence Systems, Williamstown

Laid Down 24 July 2003

Launched 20 March 2004

Commissioned 26 August 2006

Displacement    3600 tonnes

Length  118 metres

Beam    14.8 metres

Draught 4.5 metres

Speed   27 knots

Missiles

Mk 41 Vertical Launch system with Evolved Sea Sparrow missiles

Harpoon anti-ship missiles

Guns    

5-inch Mk45 Mod 2 automatic rapid-fire gun

4 x 50 calibre (12.7mm) machine guns

Torpedoes          2 x Mk32 Mod 5 triple mounted torpedo tubes

Helicopters         1 x MH-60R Seahawk

This was one of the ships that suffered major damage when I moved house in 2014. I put a number of ships’ superstructures into a box that I thought was secure in the trailer. Not so! When I got to my destination, I found that the box had blown out. Late at night, I traced my steps and found the box about 40 m from where I started. Sadly a few of the superstructures had blown onto the road and been run over!  ☹  Perth’s radar mount took a lot of work as I only had photos and no actual drawings to work from. I think the Anzac Frigates looked very handsome when first built. However, their later upgrades look like an “R” rated addition! I built Perth to finish my collection of RAN ships named Perth. Sadly, Perth was up on blocks at Henderson for a number of years. She is back in the water and again defending Australia.

HMAS Sydney (IV) – Oliver Hazard Perry class

Builder  Todd Pacific Shipyard Corporation, Seattle

Commissioned  29 January 1983

Fate

Decommissioned 7 November 2015

Displacement    4267 tonnes

Length  138.1 metres

Beam    13.7 metres

Draught 4.5 metres

Speed   29 knots

Missiles

Harpoon Block x 2

Standard SM-2 Block IIIA

Mk 41 VLS Launcher

Guns    

1 OTO Melara 3in (76mm)/62 US Mk 75

20mm Mk 15 Vulcan Phalanx anti-missile system

6 x 12.7mm machine guns

2 x Rafael Mini-Typhoon 12.7mm remote controlled guns (for selected deployments)

Torpedoes          6 x Mk 32 (2 triple) tubes

Helicopters        

2 x Sikorsky S-70B and 2 x Seahawks or

1 x Seahawk and 1 x Squirrel.

I love how the US Navy names its smaller ships after people, but unlike the Royal Navy, they make sure all of the person’s names are included, no simple Nelson or Hood. Not one of the most attractive ships to ever fly the Australian Naval Ensign, but quite a successful class for Australia. Built as a (USN) throw-away escort, the RAN had these as a major fleet unit. I had a lot of fun building the lattice masts and radar aerials. Unfortunately, when I moved interstate the removalists drop-kicked this model, and a few others, from NSW to WA! She had major damage to her masts and radar.

HMAS Yarra - Type 12 (Whitby) class

Builder Williamstown Naval Dockyard, Melbourne

Laid Down 9 April 1957

Commissioned  27 July 1961

Decommissioned 22 November 1985

Displacement    2200 tons

Length  370 feet

Beam    41 feet

Draught 17 feet

Speed   30 knots

Missiles

Seacat Guided Missile System

Ikara Anti-submarine missile system

Guns    

2 x 4.5-inch guns

2 x 40mm Bofors (later removed)

Other Armament             2 x Limbo triple-barrelled anti-submarine mortars (1 later removed)

One of my early builds that used RAN model plans. They were very basic drawings and introduced me to the exiting game of hunt the detail and find photos to help. I think the Type 12 group of three classes were very aesthetically pleasing with their raised bow and forward 4.5” gun.

HMAS Stuart (II)

Builder  Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Company, Sydney

Laid Down 20 March 1959

Launched 8 April 1961

Commissioned  28 June 1963

Decommissioned 26 July 1991

Displacement    2700 tons, full load

Length  275 feet 9-inches

Beam    23 feet 3-inches

Draught 16 feet

Speed   30 knots

Missiles

Seacat guided-missile system

Ikara anti-submarine system

Guns     Turret of two 4.5-inch guns controlled by an M22 Fire Control Radar

Torpedoes          Two triple barrel anti-submarine torpedo tubes

Bult this as I was asked to display RAN frigates that have been used over the years. As she originally looked very similar to HMAS Yarra, I decided to build her as she looked after her modernisation. Unfortunately, the plans I had were for the modernisation of Yarra. Gave me a lot of heartache ensuring the accuracy as there were many photos of Stuart, 99% of them being out of focus! I finally had her 90% complete and in her case when I decided to move her from one shelf to another. In doing so I knocked the case and in trying to save it, I smashed it into the carpet! She turned upside down and broke off of her stand and smashed the masts and radar etc. I did Sy Oh Dear and Golly Gosh!  😊

HMAS Swan (III)

Builder  HMA Naval Dockyard, Williamstown, Victoria

Laid Down 18 August 1965

Launched 16 December 1967

Commissioned  20 January 1970

Decommissioned 13 September 1996

Displacement    2100 tons

Length  372 feet

Beam    41 feet

Draught 15 feet

Speed   30 knots

Missiles

Seacat guided missile system

Ikara anti-submarine missile System

Guns     2 x 2.5-inch guns, controlled by M22 Gun Fire Control System

Torpedoes          2 triple-barrel anti-submarine Torpedo Tubes (added in 1984)

Other Armament             1 triple-barrel anti-submarine Mortar (removed in 1984)

This is the second model of Swan as I gave the original one away many years ago. I just had to include the little black swan that is on the main gun. Apparently, Swan won an event and was allowed to display it to show off. I think she looked very clean and sleek.

HMAS Culgoa – River class

Builder  HMA Naval Dockyard, Williamstown, Melbourne

Laid Down 15 July 1943

Commissioned  1 April 1947

Decommissioned 15 April 1954

Displacement    1537 tons

Length  301 feet

Beam    36 feet

Draught 12 feet

Speed   19.5 knots

Guns    

4 x 4-inch guns

3 x 40mm Bofors

Other Armament            

4 x 20mm Oerlikons

1 x Hedgehog

4 x Depth Charge Throwers

This was an early build. The drawings of the 4” AA twin gun were out of scale and it took me a number of years before I found out that this was the case. I discovered it when I commenced building another ship that had these guns and were drawn accurately. I then checked Culgoa’s and found the problem. One of my many claims to fame is that I painted about 3m2 of her sister Diamantina when I was in the RAN Reserve.

HMAS Yarra (II)

Builder  Cockatoo Docks and Engineering Co Ltd, Sydney

Laid Down 28 May 1934

Launched 28 March 1935

Commissioned  21 January 1936

Fate      

Lost in action against overwhelming Japanese forces 4 March 1942

Displacement   

1500 tons

Length  266 feet

Beam    36 feet

Draught 10 feet

Speed   16.5 knots

Guns    

3 x 4-inch guns

4 x 3-pounder guns

1 x 4 0.5-inch machine guns

Another ship that I wanted to build early on. Sadly, I had a very good drawing of her profile. It took me many years to finally get a good set of complete plans that I was able to use. I had a problem with her camouflage as I used a publication that gave me incorrect detail that I had to correct. A very smart and compact little ship. I have always believed that Rankin should have received the Victoria Cross. Captain Fegen of HMS Jervis Bay received his (posthumously) for an almost identical action against the German Admiral Scheer. Yarra’s action was, in fact, even more gallant (in my opinion) and should have been given the same medal.

Submarines

HMAS J1 – J class

Builder  Portsmouth Naval Dockyard, England

Launched 2 February 1916

Commissioned  25 March 1919

Decommissioned 12 July 1922

Displacement   

1820 tons (submerged)

1210 tons (surfaced)

Length  275 feet 9-inches

Beam    23 feet 3-inches

Draught 16 feet

Speed  

9.5 knots (submerged)

19.5 knots (surfaced)

Armament

Guns     1 x 4-inch gun

Torpedoes          6 x 18-inch torpedo tubes - 4 bow, 2 beam

The J boats were gifted to the RAN after WWI but due to the Depression they were very rarely used and spent most of their careers alongside the dock. I used the RAN modelling drawings but sadly for me they were very badly drawn and showed them before they were modified and presented to the RAN. Fortunately, there were lots of photos available, so I was able to build this one with the gun forward on a massive sponson. This is also one of my models that the WA Maritime Museum has on display at the Victoria Quay site.

HMAS Ovens – Oberon class

Builder  Scott's Shipbuilding, Greenock, UK

Laid Down 17 June 1967

Commissioned  18 April 1969

Decommissioned 1 December 1995

Displacement    2,070 tons

Length  89.9 metres

Speed   15 knots (submerged)

Armament

Torpedoes         

6 x MK48 torpedo tubes and encapsulated Harpoon anti-ship missiles

Perhaps the most successful diesel-powered submarine ever built. The RAN had many successful RimPac Exercises where they kept “Sinking” USN carriers during the exercises. There are two of these boats still around One in Darling Harbour, Sydney, the other here in Fremantle WA. I really like the clean lines of this class.

HMAS Waller – Collins class

Builder  Australian Submarine Corp, Adelaide

Laid Down 19 March 1992

Commissioned  10 July 1999

Displacement   

surfaced: 3100 tonnes

submerged 3407 tonnes

Length  77.8 metres

Beam    7.8 metres

Draught 7 metres

Speed   20 knots

Armament

Missiles McDonnell Douglas Sub Harpoon Block 1B (UGM 84C); active radar homing

Torpedoes          6 x 21 in (533 mm) tubes. Gould Mk 48 Mod 4/6/7; dual purpose; wire-guided; active/passive homing

Mines   44 in lieu of torpedoes

Physical Countermeasures           Decoys: 2 SSE

Electronic Countermeasures       ESM: Condor CS-5600; intercept and warning

Named after the heroic Captain f HMAS Perth, Hec Waller. Historically a very contentious class of submarines. Many an article was written about how bad these boats were. Having said that, they were still able to perform well in the RimPac exercises, and at one time were corralled prior to one of the scenarios. A very easy build that doesn’t look very startling, but still honours one of our most famous captains.

Corvette

HMAS Broome – Bathurst class

Builder Evans Deakin & Co Ltd, Brisbane

Laid Down 3 May 1941

Commissioned  29 July 1942

Decommissioned April 1946

Displacement    650 tons

Length  186 feet 2-inches

Beam    31 feet

Draught 8 feet 6-inches

Speed   15 knots

Guns    

1 x 4-inch gun

Machine guns

1 x Bofors

Other Armament            

3 x Oerlikons

Depth charge chutes and throwers

One of the 60 corvettes built in Australia during WWII. HMAS Broome had a very eventful career undertaking convoy escort and minesweeping activities. The HMAS Whyalla is preserved at Whyalla and provides a good understanding of how small these ships were! There were a number of different main gun arrangements.

Torpedo Boat

HMVS Childers

Builder Thornycroft

Decommissioned 15 September 1916

Length  118ft 2in

Beam    12.5ft

Draught 5ft 9in

Speed   19.5 knots

Armament

Guns     2 x Hotchkiss 1-pounder machine guns

Torpedoes         

2 x 14-inch torpedo tubes, one of which was fitted in the bows.

4 x sets of torpedo dropping gear

Another vessel that was purchased by the Victorian Government to provide naval protection against the ever-present Russian threat! Had a lot of fun getting the bow to the correct shape.

Gunboat

HMAS Gayundah

Builder  Sir WG Armstrong, Mitchell & Co, Newcastle-on-Tyne

Commissioned  May 1884

Fate

Decommissioned 1949

Displacement    360 tons

Length  120 feet

Beam    26 feet

Draught 9 feet 6-inches

Speed   10.5 knots

Guns    

1 x 8-inch BL 12-ton gun (replaced in 1899 but 2 x 5-inch BL 2.5-ton guns)

1 x 6-inch BL 4-ton gun (replaced in 1901 by 1 x 4.7-inch QF gun)

2 x 1.5-inch Nordenfelt guns

1 x .45-inch (5 barrel) machine gun

1 x 1-inch (4 barrel) machine gun

A Queensland purchase that was also there to defend against the dread Russians. A very unusual ship that is sadly no longer with us. I am always impressed by the amount of money the fledgling State navies were willing to spend to protect themselves.

Patrol Boats

HMAS Acute – Attack class

Builder  Evans Deakin and Co

Launched 26 August 1967

Commissioned 26 April 1968

Fate

Decommissioned 06 May 1983

Displacement    146 tons

Length  32.76 metres

Beam    6.2 metres

Draught 1.9 metres

Speed   24 knots

Guns    

1 x 40mm Bofors

2 x .50 calibre M2 Browning machine guns

One of a large class of patrol boat that served during the 1960s through to the 1980s. HMAS Acute was stationed at HMAS Leeuwin and was famous for intercepting some illegal Indonesian fishing boats and escorting them to Fremantle.

HMAS Fremantle – Armidale class

Builder Brooke Marine Shipyard, Lowestoft, England

Laid Down 11 November 1978

Commissioned  17 March 1980

Fate

Decommissioned 11 August 2006

Displacement    250 tonnes

Length  42 metres

Beam    7.15 metres

Draught 1.8 metres

Speed   24 knots

Guns    

40/60 Bofors general purpose gun

2 x .50 calibre machine guns

Fremantle served in a number of bases around Australia. I always thought that they were nice looking. Apparently, so the story goes, the Armidale class were supposed to have an awe-inspiring gun, but the RAN had lots of 40mm Bofors from WWII and were loath to let them go to waste, so they put the Bofors onto the Armidales.

Survey Vessel

HMAS Moresby

Builder  NSW State Dockyard, Newcastle

Laid Down 1 June 1962

Commissioned  6 March 1964

Decommissioned 13 November 1997

Fate Sold and renamed MV Patricia Anne Hotung

Displacement    2540 tonnes

Length  96 metres

Beam    13 metres

Draught 4.2 metres

Speed 19 knots

Armament

Guns     2 x 40mm Bofors (removed in 1973)

A long-suffering favourite that charted enormous swathes of the Indian Ocean and Australian

coastline. I recently obtained confirmation that HMAS Moresby was tasked with examining a site then believed to be that of HMAS Sydney during her oceanographic surveys of the WA coast. The first search was combined with HMAS Moresby’s visit to Geraldton on the 19th October 1981. From then on, as I understand it, she never ceased looking when in the area. I spent many years trying to find details of the deck under the flight deck and eventually ran across a gentleman who did have

photos that I could use. This model suffered catastrophic damage during her construction and

very nearly didn’t make it. However, I am pleased to say that she is still around.

Royal Navy

Aircraft Carriers

HMS Hermes

Builder  Armstrong Whitworth

Laid down 15 January 1918

Commissioned 18 Feb 1924

Fate

Sunk by Japanese aircraft, 9 April 1942

Displacement 11,020 tons

Length  600 ft

Beam    70 ft 3 in

Draught 23 ft 3 in

Speed   25 knots

Armament         

6 × single 5.5” guns

4 × single 4” anti-aircraft guns

Aircraft carried: 20

The very first purpose-built aircraft carrier. Built for the Royal navy, she was sadly lost in early 1942 with HMAS Vampire after leaving Trincomalee in Ceylon. She had no aircraft and was ordered to leave for the British base in Diego Garcia but was found by Japanese dive-bombers and sunk with heavy loss of life. She was a very hard build as the gun decks were very badly drawn and took a lot of work to ensure that they fitted correctly. I thought it would look good to have an aircraft (swordfish) being taken down by the elevator. The other problem was that the drawings didn’t show the front of the massive foremast and had to be researched through photos.

HMS Eagle

Builder  Armstrong Whitworth

Laid down 20 February 1913

Commissioned  20 February 1924

Fate

Sunk by U-73, 11 August 1942

Displacement    22,200 tons

Length  667 ft 6 in

Beam    115 ft

Draught 26 ft 8 in

Speed   24 knots

Armament         

9 × 6-inch guns

5 × 4-inch Mk V anti-aircraft guns

Aircraft carried: 25–30

I really love this carrier! She is massive, built onto the hull of a Chilean battleship The Almirante Latorre. She was another major problem build as I was using Admiralty plans that were unfortunately very sparse and hard to interpret. There was also, initially, very little detail regarding the decks under the bow. Still I finally finished her and I think she looks really impressive. Eagle was in the thick of the fighting and was torpedoed and sunk during the famous Operation Pedestal Convoy that saved Malta, after three torpedoes rammed into her side. There are many photos on the net of her rolling over and sinking. There are also some photos that were in a camera that was immersed in sea water and eventually developed that are still very clear.

Battlecruisers

HMS Queen Mary – Lion class (sort of)

Builder  Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company, Jarrow

Laid down           6 March 1911

Commissioned  4 September 1913

Fate

Sunk at the Battle of Jutland, 31 May 1916

Displacement:   27,200 tons

Length700 ft 0.6 in

Beam    89 ft 0.5 in

Draught 32 ft 4 in

Speed   28 knots

Armament         

4 × twin BL 13.5-inch Mk V guns

16 × single BL 4-inch Mk VII guns

2 × single 21” Mk II submerged torpedo tubes

A half-sister to the famous “Cats” that included HMS Lion, flagship of Admiral Beattie. I think she is a beautiful ship. She was very impressive during the actions that included Heligoland and Jutland. At Jutland, due to mismanagement by Beattie, she was targeted by two of the German battlecruisers and eventually was hit on a turret. Up until then she had been savaging the Germans as she was the best gunnery ship in the fleet. It has come to light recently that it wasn’t due to the fact that she was a battlecruiser, but to the extremely dangerous practice of stacking shells and cordite throughout the turret!

HMS Repulse – Repulse class

Builder  John Brown & Company, Clydebank, Scotland

Laid down           25 January 1915

Commissioned  18 August 1916

Fate

Sunk on 10 December 1941 by Japanese air attack off Kuantan, South China Sea

Displacement:   27,600 tons

Length 794 ft 1.5 in

Beam    90 ft 1.75 in

Draught 27 ft

Speed   31.5 knots

Armament         

3 × twin 15-inch guns

6 × triple, 2 × single 4-inch guns

2 × single 3-inch AA guns

2 × 21-inch torpedo tubes

Known as HMS Refit due to both her and Renown being taken in hand for major refits due to information gained after the battle of Jutland. She was famous for being part of Force Z, the ill-fated battlefleet (of two) that were sunk by Japanese aircraft off the coast of Malaya. Repulse was refitted throughout her career and had decks and fittings added ad-hoc. Having said that I think she looked aggressive and ready to take on anything! She and HMS Prince of Wales (POW) dodged a large number of torpedoes and bombs and if POW hadn’t had her innards torn open by a rogue propeller shaft, they may have survived. Sadly, that was not the case and after POW was disabled, the Japanese aircraft concentrated on Repulse and eventually sent torpedoes from all sides. Building her took a lot of effort as the drawings didn’t show her amidships section where one deck overlapped another and was not drawn accurately. I love the look of the Walrus aircraft being hoisted aboard.

HMS Renown – Repulse class

Builder  Fairfield, Govan, Britain

Laid down           25 January 1915

Commissioned  20 September 1916

Fate

Sold for scrap, 19 March 1948

Displacement 27,600 tons

Length 794 ft 1.5 in

Beam    90 ft 1.75 in

Draught 27 ft

Speed   32.58 knots

Armament         

3 × twin 15 in (381 mm) guns

5 × triple, 2 × single 4 in (102 mm) guns

2 × single 3 in (76 mm) AA guns

2 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

This was the biggest model I had ever built when I finished her in 1985 and I loved the look of her! For the sake of accuracy, I drew the deck planks by hand. Unfortunately, I had used a black biro and left the ship by a window and over the years the ink faded away to nothing!  The plans were well drawn, and it took me just 5 months to do. Renown was a sister to Repulse and was almost identical for years. Then just before WWII Renown was taken in hand and completely changed. New engines, new superstructure and new AA guns. She chased and damaged the German battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau in atrocious weather, suffering more damage from the weather than the German ships. She was also deployed to the Indian Ocean to fight the Japanese.

Battleships

HMS Victoria – Victoria class

Builder  Armstrong, Mitchell & Co. Elswick yard

Laid down 13 June 1885

Commissioned March 1890

Fate

Accidentally rammed and sunk, 22 June 1893

Displacement    11,200 tons

Length  340 ft

Beam    70 ft

Draught 26 ft 9 in

Speed 16 knots

Armament         

2 × BL 16.25-inch guns

1 × BL 10-inch gun

12 × BL 6-inch guns

12 × 6-pounder guns

6 × 14-inch torpedo tubes

She and her sister San Pariel were very unusual ships. Victoria was rammed and sunk by HMS Camperdown off Tripoli in 1893. The admiral on board ordered a suicidal manoeuvre that was questioned by the admiral on the leader of the other column. He was overruled and Victoria was lost. Admiral Jellico was a junior officer on board and was nearly drowned during the sinking. When discovered, Victoria stands vertically with her bow buried in the ocean floor. The plans are brilliant and didn’t give me any grief. I love the various sponsons on the sides, including ones with spotlights.

 HMS Agincourt

Builder Armstrong, Newcastle upon Tyne

Laid down:          14 September 1911

Commissioned 7 August 1914

Decommissioned April 1921

Fate

Sold for scrap, 19 December 1922

Displacement 27,850 long tons (28,300 t) (load)

31,360 tons

Length 671 ft 6 in

Beam 89 ft

Draught 29 ft 10 in

Speed 22 knots

Armament

7 × twin 12 in (305 mm) guns

20 × single 6 in (152 mm) guns

10 × single 3 in (76 mm) guns

3 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

The most heavily gunned warship ever built with a total of seven main gun turrets. I believe that instead of naming the turrets “A”, “B” etc that her turrets were named after the days of the week, though I could be wrong (sounds kind of fun though, … I say Monday, open fire at will!!)

I have been a bit naughty as I really wanted to build her with her flying bridges still in place. I am not sure that she was actually commissioned into the RN with them still intact. However, I think there may have been a couple of days where that might have been the case. I must acknowledge the amazing help and assistance that the Turkish Museum in Istanbul gave me in supplying me with photographs of the amazing “builder’s Model” of her as the Sultan Osman-ı Evvel.

HMS Royal Oak – Revenge class

Builder: Devonport Royal Dockyard

Laid down:          15 January 1914

Commissioned: 1 May 1916

Fate       Sunk by U-47, 14 October 1939

Status:  Protected war grave

Displacement 30,450 tons

Length  620 ft 7 in

Beam    88 ft 6 in

Draught:              33 ft 7 in

Speed:  22 knots

Armament         

4 × twin 15 in (381 mm) guns

14 × single 6 in (152 mm) guns

2 × single 3 in (76 mm) AA guns

4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

A very impressive warship. She ended her life in a very sad action where she was sunk by a German U-boat in Scapa Flow where she was supposed to be safe. She sank with heavy loss of life, with many of them being very young sailors. I really enjoyed building her, especially the challenge regarding her anti-torpedo bulges. They were massive and required a lot of effort to get right. I really liked the markings of her aircraft, a Fairey III.

HMS Barham – Queen Elizabeth class

Builder  John Brown & Company, Clydebank

Laid down           24 February 1913

Commissioned  19 October 1915

Fate      

Sunk by U-331, 25 November 1941

Displacement    33,110 tons

Length  643 ft 9 in

Beam    90 ft 7 in

Draught 33 ft

Speed:  24 knots

Armament         

4 × twin 15-inch guns

14 × single 6-inch guns

2 × single 3-inch 20 cwt AA guns

4 × 21-inch torpedo tubes

A member of the most famous British battleships, HMS Barham fought at the battle of Jutland. She went through the mandatory refits and modifications between the wars. She was very active during WWII and was sunk by a salvo of three torpedoes. There is an horrific video on YouTube that shows her dying moments that was taken by an officer on board one of the other battleships. I think Barham looked really powerful and ready to take on anything. Originally, I was going to make her as built, but got sucked into the awesome look of the torpedo bulge that was fitted to British warships in the 1920s, hence my change. Unfortunately for me, I had a lot of trouble with the torpedo bulge trying to get the correct shape.

HMS Rodney – Nelson class

Builder  Cammell Laird, Birkenhead

Laid down           28 December 1922

Commissioned  10 November 1927

Fate

Sold for scrap, 26 March 1948

Displacement 34,270 tons

Length  710 ft 2 in

Beam    106 ft

Draught 31 ft 8 in

Speed   23 knots

Armament         

3 × 3 - 16-inch Mk I guns

6 × 2 - 6-inch Mk XXII guns

6 × 1 - QF 4.7-inch Mk VIII anti-aircraft guns

8 × 1 - 2-pounder anti-aircraft guns

2 × 1 - 24.5-inch Mk I torpedo tubes

I have always loved these two ships. They were unique capital ships that were criticised and ridiculed throughout their careers and after. However, given that Rodney was in such need of a refit, she still was instrumental in dispatching the Bismarck. She was never as good as Nelson during the war as a result of the cancelled refit that would have fixed her engines. I had a lot of trouble with her 4” AA guns and eventually had them 3D printed. I love the fact that the camouflage went onto the decks.

HMS Vanguard

Builder  John Brown and Company, Clydebank, Scotland

Laid down           2 October 1941

Commissioned  12 May 1946

Fate      

Scrapped 1960

Displacement    45,200 tons

Length  814 ft 4 in

Beam    108 ft

Draught 36 ft

Speed   30 knots

Armament         

4 × twin BL 15-inch guns

8 × twin QF 5.25-inch dual-purpose guns

10 × sextuple, 1 × twin, 11 × single 40 mm Bofors AA guns

The most impressive battleship ever built (I think). She was the last and best battleship ever built for the Royal Navy. During exercises with the US navy in the Atlantic in the 1950s, the American battleship had to heave to, but Vanguard was still able to steam through the massive storm. I love her lines and looks. Many long hours researching the open bridge as there was a lot of detail not included in any drawings.

Monitors

HMS Abercrombie – Abercrombie class

Builder  Vickers-Armstrongs, Newcastle upon Tyne

Laid down           26 April 1941

Launched            31 March 1942

Commissioned  5 May 1943

Fate       Scrapped at Barrow 24 December 1954

Displacement    7,850 tons

Length  373.25 ft

Beam    89.75 ft

Draught 11 ft

Speed   12.5 knots

Armament         

2 × 15-inch guns

8 × 4 in AA guns

16 × 2-pounder "pom-pom

20 × 20 mm guns

Heavy Cruisers

HMS Exeter – Cathedral or York class

Builder  Devonport Dockyard, Plymouth

Laid down           1 August 1928

Commissioned  27 July 1931

Fate

Sunk during the Second Battle of the Java Sea, 1 March 1942

Displacement 8,520 tons

Length 575 ft 1 in

Beam    58 ft

Draught 17 ft

Speed   32 knots

Armament         

3 × twin 8 in (203 mm) guns

4 × single 4 in (102 mm) AA guns

2 × single 2-pdr (40 mm) AA guns

2 × triple 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

Aircraft carried: 2 × seaplanes

Aviation facilities:             2 × aircraft catapults

Light Cruisers

HMS Monmouth – County class

Builder  London & Glasgow Shipbuilding, Govan

Laid down 29 August 1899

Completed 2 December 1903

Fate

Sunk at the Battle of Coronel, 1 November 1914

Displacement    9,800 long tons

Length  463 ft 6 in

Beam 66 ft

Draught 25 ft

Speed   23 knots

Armament         

2 × twin, 10 × single BL 6-inch Mk VII guns

10 × single QF 12-pdr 12 cwt guns

3 × QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss guns

2 × single 18-inch torpedo tubes

HMS Arethusa – Arethusa class

Builder  Chatham Dockyard

Laid down           28 October 1912

Commissioned  August 1914

Fate

Damaged by mine, 11 February 1916 and wrecked

Displacement    3,568 tons

Length  436 ft

Beam    39 ft

Draught:15 ft 7 in

Speed   28.5 knots

Armament         

2 × single BL 6 in (152 mm) Mk XII guns

6 × single QF 4 in (102 mm) Mk V guns

1 × single QF 3-pounder 47 mm (1.9 in) anti-aircraft gun

4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

HMS Curacao – Ceres class

Builder  Pembroke Dockyard

Laid down           July 1916

Commissioned  18 February 1918

Fate      

Sunk in collision with RMS Queen Mary, 2 October 1942

Displacement    4,260 tons

Length  450 ft 3 in

Beam    43 ft 5 in

Draught 14 ft 8 in

Speed   29 knots

Armament         

5 × single 6 in (152 mm) guns

2 × single 3 in (76 mm) anti-aircraft guns

4 × twin 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

HMS Neptune – Leander class

Builder  Portsmouth Dockyard

Laid down           24 September 1931

Commissioned  12 February 1934

Fate

Sunk 19 December 1941 by mines off Tripoli

Displacement 7,270 tons

Length  554.9 ft

Beam    56 ft

Draught:19.1 ft

Speed   32.5 knots

Armament         

8[1] × BL 6-inch Mk XXIII naval guns

4 × 4-inch (102 mm) guns

12 × 0.5 in machine guns

8 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

Aircraft carried:

Supermarine Walrus

HMS Gloucester – Town class (Batch three)

Builder  Devonport Dockyard

Laid down           22 September 1936

Commissioned  31 January 1939

Fate

Sunk by German aircraft, 22 May 1941

Displacement 9,600 tons

Length  588 ft

Beam    62 ft 4 in

Draught 20 ft 7 in

Speed   32 knots

Armament         

4 × triple 6-inch (152 mm) guns

4 × twin 4-inch (102 mm) dual-purpose guns

2 × quadruple 2-pdr (40 mm) "pom-pom" AA mounts

2 × quadruple 0.5-inch (12.7 mm) Vickers AA machine gun mounts

2 × triple 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

Aircraft carried: 2 × Supermarine Walrus flying boats

HMS Penelope – Arethusa class

Builder  Harland & Wolff, Belfast

Laid down 30 May 1934

Commissioned 13 November 1936

Fate

Sunk 18 February 1944 by torpedoes from U-410, while returning from Naples to the Anzio beachhead (415 lost)

Displacement    5,220 tons

Length  506 ft

Beam    51 ft

Draught 14 ft

Speed:  32 knots

Armament

August 1940 configuration:

3 × 6-inch (152 mm) dual guns

4 × 4-inch (102 mm) dual AA guns

2 × quadruple mount QF 2-pdr (40 mm) "pom-pom" AA guns

6 × 20 mm Oerlikon single AA guns

2 × 0.5-inch quadruple machine guns

2 × 21 in (533 mm) triple torpedo tubes

Aircraft carried: One aircraft (later removed).

HMS Hermione – Dido class

Builder  Alexander Stephen and Sons (Glasgow, Scotland)

Laid down 6 October 1937

Commissioned 25 March 1941

Fate

Sunk 16 June 1942 by German submarine U-205

Displacement 5,600 tons

Length 512 ft

Beam 50.5 ft

Draught 14 ft

Speed 32.25 knots

Armament         

Original configuration:

10 x 5.25 in (133 mm) dual-purpose guns (5x2),

5 x 20 mm (0.8 in) single guns,

8 x 2 pdr (37 mm/40 mm) pom-pom guns (2x4),

6 x 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2x3).

HMS Spartan – Bellona (modified Dido) class

Builder  Vickers-Armstrongs, (Barrow-in-Furness, UK)

Laid down 21 December 1939

Commissioned 12 July 1943

Fate

Sunk 29 January 1944 by a Henschel Hs 293 from a German aircraft off Anzio, western Italy.

Displacement 6050 tons

Length 512 ft

Beam 50 ft 6 in

Draught 14 ft

Speed   32.25 knots

Armament          8 × QF 5.25-inch (133 mm) dual purpose guns (4x2),

12 × 2-pounder anti-aircraft guns (3x4),

12 × 20 mm anti-aircraft cannons (6x2),

6 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2x3)

HMS Charybdis – Dido class

Builder  Cammell Laird, Birkenhead

Laid down 9 November 1939

Completed 3 December 1941

Fate

Sunk in Battle of Sept-Îles on 23 October 1943

Displacement 5,600 tons

Length 512 ft

Beam 50.5 ft

Draught 14.3 ft

Speed   32.25 knots

Armament         

8 x 4.5 in DP dual guns,

10 x 20 mm (0.8 in) single guns,

6 x 20 mm (0.8 in) twin power-operated guns,

2 x 21 in (533 mm) triple Torpedo Tubes.

This was a very unique ship along with HMS Scylla. The Dido class had the same main armament as the secondary armament of the new "King George V" class battleships. Due to a shortage of these mounts Scylla and Charybdis were given 8 x 4.5-inch guns in four mounts. They were known as the “toothless terrors”. It was appropriate that they were the two as in ancient times the straits of Messina were thought to have an evil whirlpool and monster. So, people were said to be caught between Scylla and Charybdis (rock and a hard place). Charybdis was sunk due to the Commander assuming that the Germans wouldn’t cotton on to the Charybdis and her consorts following the same procedure and course every time. So, when she went on patrol for the third time, the Germans ambushed them, sinking her and the destroyer HMS Limbourne. I had major problems with the main guns as I have been unable to find proper drawings for them, and sadly, I couldn’t get any 3D printing done! I believe that the novel HMS Ulysses was based upon HMS Scylla.

Destroyers

HMS Hardy – “H” class

Builder  Cammell Laird and Company at Birkenhead

Laid down           30 May 1935

Commissioned  11 December 1936

Fate      

Beached, 10 April 1940. Later capsized and became a total loss.

Displacement 1,478 tons

Length  337 ft

Beam    34 ft

Draught 12 ft 9 in

Speed   36 knots

Armament         

5 × 1 - QF 4.7-inch Mk IX guns

2 × 4 - .50 cal machine guns

2 × 4 - 21-inch torpedo tubes

20 × depth charges

HMS Onslow – Emergency Destroyer “O” class

Builder  John Brown & Company, Clydebank

Laid down           1 July 1940

Commissioned  8 October 1941

Fate      

Scrapped, 1980

Displacement    1,570 tons

Length  345 ft

Beam    35 ft

Draught 13 ft 6 in

Speed   37 knots

Armament         

4 × single 4.7-inch (120-mm) QF Mark IX guns on mounting CP Mk.XVIII

1 × single QF 4-inch (100 mm) gun Mk.V on mounting HA Mk.III

1 × quad QF 2-pdr (40-mm) "pom-pom" mount Mk.VII

6 × single Oerlikon 20 mm guns

1 × quad 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tube for Mk.IX torpedoes

4 × throwers and 2 × racks for 70 depth charges

HMS Fife – County class DDG

Builder  Fairfield Shipbuilding

Laid down 1 June 1962

Commissioned 21 June 1966

Fate

Sold to Chile on 12 August 1987

Displacement 6,200 tonnes

Length  521 ft

Beam    52 ft

Draught 20 ft

Speed   30+ knots

Armament         

2 × twin turrets with 4.5-inch guns Mark N6

2 × mountings for Oerlikon 20 mm cannon

1 × Twin Seaslug GWS.2 SAM

2 × Quad Seacat GWS-22

2 × triple 12.75" torpedo tubes

Aircraft carried: 1× Wessex HAS Mk 3 helicopter

Frigates

HMS Antelope – Type 21

Builder  Vosper Thornycroft

Laid down 23 March 1971

Commissioned 19 July 1975

Fate”

Sunk by Argentine bombs on 24 May 1982

Displacement    3,250 tons

Length  384 ft

Beam    41 ft 9 in

Draught 19 ft 6 in

Speed   32 knots

Armament         

1 × 4.5-inch gun

2 × Oerlikon 20 mm cannon

1 × quadruple Sea Cat SAMs

HMS Scylla – Leander class

Builder  Devonport Royal Dockyard

Laid down           17 May 1967

Commissioned  12 February 1970

Fate

Sunk as an artificial reef on 27 March 2004

Displacement:   3,251 tons

Length 372 ft

Beam41 ft

Draught 19 ft

Speed   28 knots

Armament         

1 × twin 4.5-inch guns

1 × quadruple Sea Cat anti-aircraft missile launchers

1 × Limbo anti-submarine mortar

Aircraft carried 

1 × Westland Wasp helicopter

Corvettes

HMS Bryony – Flower class

Builder  Harland and Wolff, Belfast, Northern Ireland

Laid down           8 April 1940

Completed         16 June 1942[1]

Commissioned 15 March 1941

Fate

Struck   1979

Displacement    940 tons

Length  205 ft

Beam    33 ft

Draught 11.5 ft

Speed   16 knots

Armament         

1 × BL 4-inch (101.6 mm) Mk IX gun,

2 × .50-inch (12.7 mm) twin machine guns,

2 × .303-inch (7.7-mm) Lewis machine guns

2 × stern depth charge racks with 40 depth charges

HMS Hedingham Castle – Castle class

Builder  John Crown & Sons Ltd

Laid down 2 November 1943

Fate

Scrapped April 1958

Displacement    1,077 tons

Length  252 ft

Beam    37 ft

Draught 10 ft

Speed   16.5 knots

Armament         

1 × 4-inch (102-mm) Quick Firing Mk.XIX High Angle/Low Angle combined air/surface gun

1 × Squid anti-submarine mortar

1 × depth charge rail, 15 Depth charges

2 × 20 mm twin anti-aircraft cannon

6 × 20 mm single anti-aircraft cannon

Gunboats

HMS Cockchafer – Insect class

Builder Barclay Curle

Laid down 1915

Fate

Broken up 1949 at Singapore

Displacement    625 tons

Length 237 ft 6 in

Beam 36 ft 1 in

Draft 3 ft 11 in

Speed   14.0 knots

Armament         

2 × BL 6-inch Mk VII

1 × 3-inch (76 mm) AA gun

1 × QF 2 pdr. naval gun

8 × .303 British Lewis guns

HMS Grey Shark – Grey class

Builder  Hawthorn Leslie & Co. (Hebburn-on-Tyne, U.K.): Metropolitan Vickers

Laid down 28 Mar 1941

Commissioned  30 Apr 1942

Fate

Sold on 13 October 1947

Displacement    175 tons

Length 145 ft 8 in

Beam    20 ft

Draught 5.5ft

Speed   35 knots

Armament         

Final arrangement:

1 × 3-in (76.2 mm) gun

2 × single 6-pdr guns

2 × twin 20-mm Oerlikon cannon

2 × 21-inch torpedo tubes

Submarines

HMS Holland 1 – Holland class

Builder Vickers Maxim shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down 1900

Commissioned 1901

Fate

Lost while under tow, subsequently raised and on display at Royal Navy Submarine Museum, Gosport

Displacement    107 tons

Length  63 ft 10 in

Beam    11 ft 9 in

Speed   7 knots

Armament         

1 × 18-inch (450-mm) torpedo tube

up to 3 torpedoes

One of the very first Royal Navy submarines. Apparently, when a crusty old admiral first saw the submarine, he stated that the crew were pirates and the submarine very un-English, or words to that

effect. Holland I was lost in the Thames and was salvaged in the 1981 and is now on display at the Royal Navy Submarine Museum at Gosport. I had never built anything so small

before, and it was a real challenge to get the hull the correct shape.

HMS A1 – “A” class

Builder Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down 19 February 1902

Launched 9 July 1902

Fate

Lost, 1911. Wreck rediscovered 1989.

Displacement 190 l tons

Length  103.25 ft

Beam    11.9 ft

Speed 11.5 knots (surfaced)

7 knots (submerged)

Armament          2 × 18 in (450 mm) torpedo tubes (bow, four torpedoes)

HMS E19 – “E” class

Laid down 27 November 1914

Commissioned 12 July 1915

Fate

Scuttled 8 April 1918 at Helsinki to avoid capture

Displacement:  

662 tons (surfaced)

807 tons (submerged)

Length  54.86 m

Beam 6.86 m

Draught 3.81 m

Speed: 

15.25 knots (surfaced)

9.75 knots (submerged)

Armament         

2 × 18-inch (450 mm) bow tube

2 × 18" beam tubes

1 × 18" stern tube

(10 torpedoes)

1 × 2 pdr deck gun

A very famous class of ship. The E-11 made her way through the Dardanelles into the Sea of Marmora and sank a number of Turkish warships and merchant ships. The Royal Australian Navy purchased two of the original E class, AE1 and AE2. AE1 was mysteriously lost with all hands in 1914

and has only recently been found off the coast of the Duke of York Islands in Papua New Guinea., whilst AE2 was made famous when she got through the Dardanelles and sank a number of Turkish vessels before being herself sunk. The WA Maritime Museum has a replica of the AE2 conning tower with the starboard side depicting it during her war service and the port side as she is on the sea floor. This is the second model of the “E” class; the original is on display at the WA Maritime Museum.

HMS K4 – “K” class

Builder  Vickers, Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down 28 June 1915

Commissioned 1 January 1917

Fate

Sunk, 31 January 1918

Displacement 2,010 tons surfaced

2,607 tons submerged

Length  339 ft

Beam    26 ft 6 in

Draught 20 ft 11 in

Speed: 

24 knots surfaced

8 knots submerged

Armament         

8 × 18 in (460 mm) torpedo tubes, (4 beam, 4 bow)

8 × spare torpedoes

2 × 18 in torpedo tubes fitted on deck (later removed)

2 × BL 4 in (100 mm) Mk.XI guns

1 × 3 in (76 mm) gun

HMS Swordfish

Builder  Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Greenock

Laid down           28 February 1914

Commissioned  28 April 1916

Fate      

Sold for scrapping in July 1922

Displacement 947 tons

Length  231 ft 3.5 in

Beam    22 ft 11 in

Draught 14 ft 11 in

Speed 18 knots surfaced

10 knots submerged

Armament         

2 × 3-inch (76 mm) guns

2 × 21-inch (530 mm) torpedo tubes (bow)

4 × 18-inch (460 mm) torpedo tubes (beam)

An experimental submarine used to decide on the suitability of steam power in a submarine.

After the “K” class debacle Swordfish was converted into a patrol boat. Nothing to see

here, move on! She was quite a challenge to build and is shown here prior to her conversion with her very unusual bow configuration with two torpedo tubes one above the other.

HMS R4 – “R” class

Builders Chatham Dockyard, Kent

Built       1917–1918

In commission   1918–1934

Displacement   

427 tons

Length  163 ft

Beam    16 ft

Draught 11 ft 6 in

Speed

9.5 knots surfaced

14 knots submerged

Armament         

6 × 18 in (457 mm) torpedo tubes (forward)

12 × 18-inch torpedoes

HMS L52 – “L” class

Builder: Armstrong Whitworth, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne

Laid down 16 May 1917

Launched 18 December 1918

Fate      

Sold for scrap, September 1935

Displacement

980 tons surfaced

1,170 tons submerged

Length  235 ft

Beam    23 ft 6 in

Draught 13 ft 2 in

Speed 17 knots surfaced

10.5 knots submerged

Armament         

6 × bow 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

2 × 4-inch deck guns

HMS M1 – “M” class

Builder Armstrong Whitworth, Vickers

Launched            9 July 1917

Fate      

Sunk in collision, 12 November 1925

Displacement   

1,620 tons surfaced

1,977 tons submerged

Length  295 ft 9 in

Beam    24 ft 8 in

Speed 15 knots surfaced

8–9 knots submerged

Armament         

1 × 12-inch (305mm)/40 cal Mark IX gun with 50 rounds

1 × 3 in (76 mm) Mk II HA anti-aircraft gun

4 × 18-inch (450 mm) bow torpedo tubes with 4 reload torpedoes

I built the M1, M2 and M3 many years ago and gave them to my nephews and nieces for Christmas a number of years ago. They are an amazing looking class of submarine and I just had to build them again. M1 was the only one to retain her 12” gun and was sadly lost when struck by a merchant vessel during exercises. It was only confirmed when the ship arrived at her destination and they saw some unusual paint on her hull. I think it must have been a distinct shock to have a 12” shell lobbed at you and you have no idea where it came from!!

HMS M2 – “M” class

Builder Vickers

Laid Down 1916

Launched 1919

Commissioned

Fate

Sank during exercise, 26 January 1932

Displacement   

1,620 tons surfaced

1,977 tons submerged

Length  295 ft 9 in

Beam    24 ft 8 in

Speed 15 knots surfaced

8–9 knots submerged

Armament         

1 × 12-inch (305mm)/40 cal Mark IX gun with 50 rounds

1 × 3 in (76 mm) Mk II HA anti-aircraft gun

4 × 18-inch (450 mm) bow torpedo tubes with 4 reload torpedoes

As above, however, she was converted into a mini aircraft carrier, having a Parnell Peto (a very small aircraft) housed in a hangar built into the vacated gun mounting position. The crew used to try and beat their record for surfacing and launching the aircraft. Sadly, on her final cruise the crew opened the hangar door to soon and she sank backwards with the loss of all of her crew. I had a lot of trouble with the shape of the hangar and the launch machinery, but all’s well that ends well!  😊

HMS M3 – “M” class

Builder Armstrong Whitworth, Newcastle Upon Tyne

Laid Down 1916

Launched 1919

Commissioned 16 March 1920

Fate

Sold for scrap, 16 February 1932

Displacement:  

1,620 tons surfaced

1,977 tons submerged

Length  295 ft 9 in

Beam    24 ft 8 in

Speed 15 knots surfaced

8–9 knots submerged

Armament         

4 × 21-inch (533mm) bow torpedo tubes with 4 reload torpedoes

100 Type B mines

This was the only one of the trio to survive. She was converted into a minelayer and although she was not a success herself, the minelaying machinery and apparatus was a success and was used in other minelaying submarine later on. Building her was a lot of fun, especially getting all of the air vents the right shape and number! They were very small and numerous. The rest of the build was quite straight forward.

HMS X1

Builder: HM Dockyard Chatham

Laid down 2 November 1921

Launched 16 November 1923

Commissioned December 1925

Fate

Scrapped, 12 December 1936

Displacement:  

2,820 tons surfaced

3,700 tons submerged

Length 363 ft 6 in

Beam     29 ft 9 in

Draught   15 ft

Speed  

19.5 knots surfaced

9 knots submerged

Armament         

6 × 21-inch (533 mm) bow torpedo tubes

2 × twin 5.25 in (133 mm) guns

When I first saw this submarine, I just knew I had to build her. That was many years ago and it took me a long time until I had the finances to be able to afford to purchase a set of her plans from the Greenwich Museum in the UK. However, the plans were very hard to interpret and she took a long time to build. I think it amazing that a submarine was built that was almost a mini cruiser with turrets!! I think she looked really great! I enjoyed drawing the numerous vents and then printing them onto decal sheets and finally onto the submarine.

HMS Olympus – Odin class

Builder Vickers Armstrong Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness, England

Launched 30 June 1926

Commissioned  1 April 1927

Fate      

Lost in action on 10 September 1939

Displacement   

1,835 tons (submerged)

1,420 tons (surfaced)

Length  275 feet

Beam    27 feet 7-inches

Draught 14 feet 9-inches

Speed  

9 knots (submerged)

15.5 knots (surfaced)

Armament

Guns     1 x 4-inch gun

Torpedoes          8 x 21-inch torpedo tubes (6 bow tubes, 2 stern tubes)

The “O” boats had a tumultuous career where they were mostly engaged in the Mediterranean Sea. However, the very first Royal Navy submarine lost during WWII was Oxley, sunk by mistake by HMS Triton, another Royal Navy submarine. Olympus herself was mined near Malta in 1942. The “O” boats served with distinction during WWII, suffering a number of losses due to enemy activity. I had a lot of trouble making the dividing plate between the port and starboard forward torpedo tubes. This is the second model of this submarine that I have built, the original one is displayed at the WA Maritime Museum.

HMS Upholder – “U” class

Builder  Vickers Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down           30 October 1939

Commissioned  31 October 1940

Fate

Sunk 14 April 1942

Displacement – 540

Length  191 ft

Beam    16 ft 1 in

Draught 15 ft 2 in

Speed 11 1⁄4 knots surfaced

10 knots submerged

Armament         

4 × bow internal 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes, 2 external

10 torpedoes

1 × QF 3-inch 20 cwt gun

HMS Stratagem – “S” class batch 3

Builder  Cammell Laird, Birkenhead

Laid down           15 April 1942

Commissioned  9 October 1943

Fate

Sunk, 22 November 1944

Displacement 879 tons

Length  217 ft

Beam    23 ft 9 in

Draught 14 ft 8 in

Speed 15 knots surfaced

10 knots submerged

Armament         

7 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (6 × bow, 1 × stern)

1 × 3 in (76 mm) deck gun

1 × 20 mm (0.8 in) AA gun

HMS Trenchant – “T” class batch 3

Laid down 9 May 1942

Launched 24 March 1943

Commissioned 26 February 1944

Fate      

Sold to be broken up for scrap on 1 July 1963. Scrapped at Faslane

Displacement

1,290 tons surfaced

1,560 tons submerged

Length  276 ft 6 in

Beam    25 ft 6 in

Draught 12 ft 9 in

Speed  

15.5 knots surfaced

9 knots submerged

Armament         

6 internal forward-facing 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes

2 external forward-facing torpedo tubes

2 external amidships rear-facing torpedo tubes

1 external rear-facing torpedo tubes

6 reload torpedoes

QF 4-inch (100 mm) deck gun

3 anti-aircraft machine guns

One of the numerous “T” class of submarines built for the Royal Navy. She achieved fame when she sank the Japanese heavy cruiser Ashigara in June 1945. She was also successful in sinking a German U-boat in 1944. Quite an amazing fete. I had a lot of trouble building her due to the tight turns incorporated into her hull! Normally I would have built one of the class that is still on patrol (sunk), but given Trenchant’s affiliation with Fremantle, I decided to build her. The camouflage is my best interpretation from the few photos of her in and around Fremantle.

HMS Affray – Amphion class

Builder Cammell Laird Birkenhead

Laid down 16 January 1944

Launched 12 April 1944

Commissioned 25 November 1945

Fate

Foundered 16 April 1951

Displacement   

1,385 tons surfaced

1,620 tons submerged

Length  281 ft 9 in

Beam    22 ft 6 in

Draught 17 ft

Speed  

18.5 knots surfaced

8 knots submerged

Armament         

one 4-inch (100 mm) gun

one Oerlikon 20 mm cannon

three .303-calibre machine guns

ten 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes (four bow, two bow external, two stern, two stern external), 20 torpedoes

The last Royal Navy (hopefully for ever) submarine to be lost. Tragically, she was sailing down the Thames when she inexplicably sank with the loss of her entire crew. When the wreck was discovered her Snorkel mast that is used to allow the diesel engines to run whilst the submarine is at periscope depth, had broken off. At the time it was assumed that this had caused her loss, although there is speculation as to when it broke off. Whilst building Affray I had the pleasure of visiting HM submarine Alliance at Gosport and the photos I took allowed me to accurately replicate the unusual shape of her hull.

HMS Trenchant – Trafalgar class

Builder: Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering, Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down 8 May 1980

Commissioned 28 April 1984

Decommissioned 14 July 2012

Displacement

4,500 to 4,800 tons Surfaced

5,200 to 5,300 tons Submerged

Length 280 ft

Beam 32 ft

Draught 31 ft

Speed   Over 30 knots

Armament         

5 × 21-inch torpedo tubes with stowage for up to 30 weapons:

Tomahawk Block IV cruise missiles

Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes

HMS Repulse – Resolution class

Builder Vickers Shipbuilding Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down 12 March 1965

Commissioned 28 September 1968

Decommissioned 28 August 1996

Displacement:   surfaced 7,500 tons; submerged 8,400 tons.

Length  425 ft

Beam    33 ft

Draught 30 ft 1 in (9.17 m)

Speed:  surface - 20 knots; submerged - 25 knots

HMS Vanguard – Vanguard class

Builder Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd, Barrow-in-Furness

Laid down 3 September 1986

Launched 4 March 1992

Commissioned 14 August 1993

Displacement

15,900 tonnes, submerged

Length 491 ft 10 in

Beam 42 ft 0 in

Draught 39 ft 4 in

Speed   In excess of 25 knots submerged

Armament         

4 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes for:

Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes

16 ballistic missile tubes for:

16 × Lockheed Trident II D5 SLBMs (carrying up to 48 nuclear warheads)

An amazing submarine! Huge and, compared to other submarines I have built, quite easy, although she took quite  a while as I used to work on her during my stint at the WA Maritime Museum where I used to show people how I build my ships. I thought it would be useful to actually have a model of one of her missiles as, apart from these, she looks quite toothless!

Royal Yacht

HMY Britannia

Builder  John Brown & Company

Laid down 16 June 1952

Commissioned 11 January 1954

Decommissioned 11 December 1997

Status:  Museum ship open to the public

Displacement    5,769 GT

Length  412 ft

Beam 55 ft

Draught 15 ft

Speed   21.5 knots

This is the second rendition of HMY Britannia. I built the first one around the time that Prince Charles and Lady Diana were married and presented it to the then Governor of Western Australia, Sir Richard Troubridge.  As a result of this I was given a guided tour of the Britannia when she berthed in Fremantle. It was an amazing experience!! Just before I completed the model, HRH and the Duke stayed in Government House. Sir Richard asked if I could drop off the model to show the Queen. Of course, I jumped at the idea. When I picked it up a few days later, it was slightly damaged. Sir Richard mentioned that the Duke had apologised. I was quite chuffed (proud) that my model had been reviewed by such an illustrious couple. I really enjoyed making her. Having said that, the photo is of the second build of her that I have retained in my collection. 

Landing Ship Dock

HMS Intrepid – Fearless class

Builder  John Brown & Company

Laid down 19 December 1962

Launched 25 June 1964

Commissioned 11 March 1967

Decommissioned 31 August 1999

Fate

Towed to Liverpool for scrapping September 2008

Displacement 11,240 tons

Length 520 ft

Beam 80 ft

Draught 20 ft 6 in

Speed   21 knots

Boats & landing craft carried:     

4× LCM (9) landing craft in dock

4× LCVP landing craft on davits

Capacity:             

Normal capacity 380–400 troops, up to 700 troops for short periods

15 tanks

27 vehicles

Armament         

2× Sea Cat

4× Oerlikon KCB 30 mm cannon (2 twin mounts)

2× Oerlikon GAM-B01 20 mm cannon

Aircraft carried: Up to 5 Westland Wessex helicopters.

Landing Craft

LCT1062 – Landing Craft Tank Mk IV

Builder Tees-Side Bridge (Middlesbrough, U.K.)

Laid down 1941-42          

Launched 11 Oct 1943

Fate

Scapped

Displacement    595 tons

Length  187 ft 3 in

Beam    38 ft 9 in

Draught 3 ft 8 in

Speed   8 knots

Armament

2 × single Oerlikon 20 mm cannon or 2 × single Bofors 40 mm guns

One of the many amazing and vital “little ships” that ensured allied victory in the D-Day landings in 1944. I really had a lot of fun building this, especially the Sherman Tank. I have toyed with the idea of putting more tanks etc on board. Maybe someday.

Minelayers

HMS Abdiel – Abdiel class

Builder  J. Samuel White, Cowes

Laid down 29 March 1939

Commissioned 15 April 1941

Fate

Mined and sunk, 10 September 1943

Displacement 2,650 tons

Length 418 ft

Beam 40 ft

Draught11 ft

Speed   40 knots

Armament         

6 × QF 4-inch guns

4 × QF 2-pounder AA guns

8 × 0.5-inch Vickers machine guns

156 mines

Fleet Oiler

HMS Blue Rover – Rover class

Builders                Swan Hunter

Built       1968–1974

In commission:  1970–2017 (RFA)

Displacement 16,160 tonnes

Length  461 ft

Beam    63 ft

Draught 24 ft

Speed   19 knots

Armament         

2 × Oerlikon 20 mm guns

2 × 7.62 mm machine guns

Aircraft carried: Helicopter deck but no hangar

Naval Sail

Roman Bireme

Length 80ft

Beam 10 ft

I was looking through my plans one day when I came across the plans for this bireme. I mean, really, you can’t go past this, now can you? A really fun ship to build. Not at all like everything else in my collection. Of course, I got impatient with all of the oars, but it looked really cool in the end. It is amazing to look at this model and compare her to the battleship HMS Vanguard. Both were the ultimate naval weapon in their day!!! We certainly have come a long way.

Revenge – Race built Galleon

Builder  Mathew Baker at Deptford Royal Dockyard

Launched            1577

Fate      

Captured 1 September 1591

Ran aground in the Azores soon afterward

Displacement 440 tons

Length  140 ft

Armament         

Forty-six guns:

20 heavy guns on the gundeck

26 other pieces

Merchant Ships

Cheops Royal Barge

Displacement

Length 143ft

Beam 19.5 ft

Fate

Preserved in the Giza Solar boat museum

A friend of mine who is heavily into Egypt and all that goes with it was talking to me about this ship. He mentioned that he had a book that had plans of her. I just couldn’t resist! It was actually quite challenging to build. Of course, the colours are just a guess as to her appearance all those centuries ago. I did build another one for my friend. He was quite pleased with the model.

15th Century Cog

Built 14th Century

General dimensions

Displacement 30 – 200 tons

Length 49 - 82 ft

Fate

Unknown

This is the vessel that the 13th Earl of Warwick, Sir Richard Beauchamp sailed in when he went on pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1408. When I saw the plans of this in a modelling magazine in the 1980s I just had to have them. I loved the intricate sail and the fact that she is clinker built. This is the second rendition as I gave the original away in 2012. This was an interesting challenge and makes for a very colourful and unique model.

Glasgow Topsail Schooner

Built 1826

Displacement 100 tons

Length 85 ft

Fate

Unknown

One of the many worker bees that were found all around the British Isles in the 19th and early 20th Century. I was unsure as to putting sails on her or not but decided against them in the end. I think it helps to view the deck and overall looks of this ship.

Loch Ard iron clipper ship

Builder Charles Connell & Company Scotstoun

Launched 1873

Displacement 1,693 tons

Length 263ft

Beam 38ft 3 in

Fate

Wrecked 1 March 1878.

I have, for many years wanted to build a clipper ship and have plans for the Cutty Sark and Thermopylae but really wanted to build something different. I eventually found plans of this famous wreck from the Victorian coast. I had a lot of fun going cross-eyed doing the rigging! Very handsome looking ship with a very sad history. Only two survivors were found the day after she sank having come too close to the coast during a very foggy and dangerous storm.

Kinabalu

Builder Ardrossan Dry Dock & Shipbuilding Co Ltd, Ardrossan

Launched 1914

Commissioned  27/10/1914         

Fate

Whilst on a voyage from Jesselton to Sandakan with livestock and general cargo, wrecked 29/09 1940 on Batu Mandi Rocks, north of Jesselton British North Borneo. 

Displacement 429 tons

Length 150.4 ft

Beam 26.0 ft

Draft 10.65 ft

Speed

12.5 Knots

A very unusual and appealing little ship that tickled my fancy when I saw the plans in Model Boats. Given her size and of no historic consequence, I was amazed that there was information regarding her history and her demise. I really enjoyed building her.

SS Great Eastern

Builder J. Scott Russell & Co., Millwall

Laid down 1 May 1854

Launched 31 January 1858

Completed 1859

Fate

Scrapped 1889–90

Displacement 32,160 tons

Length 692 ft 

Beam 82 ft 

Speed 14 knots 

Capacity 4,000 passengers

Crew 418

I have always been impressed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. What an amazing engineer. He almost single-handedly championed the explosion of the British railways into the hugely successful arm of the British economy. However, his most impressive fete was to design and build the largest ship ever to be constructed in 1859, only being surpassed by the RMS Titanic in 1912. Getting her launched was a trial and took many months to achieve due to dodgy workmanship by the actual builders I loved working on her, especially the challenging paddle-wheels. What a sight she must have been!

RMS Queen Mary

Builder: John Brown and Company Clydebank

Laid down           1 December 1930

Launched            26 September 1934

Fate

Museum ship 9 December 1967 (retired)

Displacement    81,961 tons

Length 1,019.4 ft

Beam    118 ft

Draught 39 ft

Speed 28.5 knots)

Capacity 2,139 passengers: 776 first (cabin) class, 784 cabin class, 579 tourist class

Crew:    1101

The Queen Mary was built in the 1930s with a subsidy from the British Government as a lot of the shipbuilding industry was being sent to the wall and the fear of another war was already starting to worry people. To have had the Queen Mary cancelled would have led to thousands of workers being stood down so that was the reason for her being subsidised. I think she is a magnificent looking ship but is a real nuisance to transport the model due to her size! Some very interesting things about the Queen Mary: I think she was the last ship to have a dummy funnel to make her look faster. This trend was, I think, started by the Titanic. She really only had three operational funnels, but the public thought that the more funnels you had, the faster the ship was, so Queen Mary’s third funnel was included to accommodate this belief. Also, during one of her trips transporting American GIs to the UK she was sailing through a huge gale when she was hit by what is now termed a rogue wave that pushed her to within a couple of degrees of completely rolling over. This would have drowned more than 15 thousand GIs and would have had a huge negative impact on the build up to Normandy and D-Day. Years later someone heard about this and this resulted in the original “Poseidon Adventure” with Ernest Borgnine. Most of the on-board filming was actually filmed on board the Queen Mary as she is now a floating hotel/reception centre in Florida. I used the detailed “Anatomy of the Ship” book to build this model.

Ohio

Builder Sun Shipbuilding

Laid down 7 September 1939

Launched 20 April 1940

Commissioned in the British Merchant Navy on 10 July 1942

Fate

Sunk by naval gunfire practice on 19 September 1946

Displacement    9,264 tons

Length  515 ft

Speed 16 knots

Armament         

1 × 5-inch low-angle gun (aft)

1 × 3-inch AA-gun (bows)

1 × 40 mm army Bofors abaft the funnel

6 × 20mm naval Oerlikons

This was one of my first ships that I started in 1985 but couldn’t complete until 1992. The original plans that I obtained did not have the layout of the many transfer pipes that festoon the deck. It was only when the Malta Maritme Museum in Malta kindly sent me photographs of their model that I was able to complete the model. I have always been impressed by the story of how Ohio was able to survive such massive punishment and still manage to limp into Valetta Harbour to ensure Malta’s continuing stand against the Axis forces pounding the island on a daily basis. It’s quite sad that she was used as a post war target, rather than be saved as a memorial or museum ship.

Dutch Navy

Light Cruisers

HNLMS De Ruyter

Builder  Wilton-Fijenoord, Schiedam

Laid down 16 September 1933

Commissioned  3 October 1936

Fate

Sunk by torpedo in the Java Sea 28 February 1942, from Haguro

Displacement:   6,545 long tons

Length  560 ft 8 in

Beam    51 ft 6 in

Draft      16 ft 9 in

Speed:  32 knots

Armament         

7 × 150 mm (5.9 in) guns (3x2; 1x1)

10 × 40 mm (1.57 in) Bofors anti-aircraft guns (5x2)

8 × 12.7 mm (0.5 in) Browning machine guns

Aircraft carried: 2 × Fokker C-11W floatplanes

HNLMS Java – Java class

Builders Koninklijke Maatschappij de Schelde,

Built       1916-1926

Commissioned  1925

Displacement:  

6670 tons

Length  509 ft 6 in

Beam    52 ft 6 in

Draught 20 ft 5 in

Speed   31 knots

Armament         

10 × Bofors 150 mm guns

8 Java x Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns

8 × Browning .50 machine guns

Aircraft carried  2 Fokker C.XI-W floatplane

A very WWI looking cruiser with her single 6-inch gun mounts. Java’s sister Sumatra was

sunk as a block ship during the Normandy D-Day landings. Java was obsolete when WWII

was declared but served faithfully in the Dutch East Indies until sunk during the Battle of the

Java Sea. Java was hit by a Japanese “Long Lance” torpedo and sank with heavy loss of life.

It is sad to note that these two Dutch warships have been salvaged without the permission of

the Dutch Government that views them as War Graves and there is nothing left today but the indentation on the ocean floor.

HNLMS Tromp – Tromp class

Builders Nederlandsche Scheepsbouw Mij.

Built       1936–1940

Commissioned  1938

Displacement    3,350 long tons

Length 432 ft 11 in

Beam 40 ft 9 in

Draught 14 ft 2 in

Speed   32.5 knots

Armament         

Tromp:

6 × 150 mm (5.9 in) guns (3×2)

4 × 75 mm

8 × 40 mm (4×2)

2 × 20 mm

6 × 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes (2×3)

Aircraft carried 1 × Fokker C.XIW floatplane (Tromp)

This was the first Dutch warship that I built. The plans were OK I suppose, but still required

a fair amount of work to ensure accuracy. This was my first foray into the intricate world of

Dutch AA guns. Tromp had a sister ship, the Jacob Van Heemskerck that fled to Great Britain

when the Netherlands was overrun. She didn’t have her main armament and so was given

British guns. Tromp was damaged in the Battle of Badung Straits and was sent to Australia

for repairs. For the remainder of the war she undertook mainly escort duties in the Indian Ocean.

Submarine

HNLMS O22 – O21 class

Builder  Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde, Vlissingen

Laid down           20 November 1937

Commissioned  10 May 1940

Fate

Sunk North Sea 1940

Displacement 990 tons

Length  254 ft 11 in

Beam 22 ft 4 in

Draught 3.95 m (13 ft 0 in

Speed 19.5 knots surfaced

9 knots submerged

Armament         

4 × 21 in (533 mm) bow torpedo tubes

2 × 21 in stern torpedo tubes

2 × 21 in (1×2) external-traversing TT amidships

One of a large number of submarines that the Dutch possessed before and during WWII.  The O22 was deployed to the North Sea after escaping to the UK after the surrender of the Netherlands. It is assumed that she hit a mine. This is the second build of her, the original, is in the WA Maritime Museum.

United States Navy

Heavy Cruiser

USS Houston – Northampton class

Builder  Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia

Laid down           1 May 1928

Commissioned  17 June 1930

Fate      

Sunk in the Battle of Sunda Strait, 1 March 1942

Displacement    9,200 tons

Length  600 ft 3 in

Beam 66 ft 1 in

Draft 16 ft 4 in

Speed   32.7 knots

Armament         

9 × 8 in (203 mm)/55 calibre guns (3x3)

4 × 5 in (127 mm)/25 calibre anti-aircraft guns

16 x 1.1-inch (28 mm)/75 calibre anti-aircraft guns

2 × 3-pounder 47 mm (1.9 in) saluting guns

6 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

Known as the “Galloping Ghost of the Java Sea”

Aircraft carried: 4 × SOC Seagull scout-observation floatplanes

Known as the “Galloping Ghost of the Java Sea”

I have always wanted to build the Sunda Straits ships. For many years I have had HMAS Perth. When the WA Maritime Museum informed me that they were going to have a display of the Sunda Straits Battle, including information regarding HMAS Perth and USS Houston, I volunteered to make USS Houston. Being a US Navy ship, the subtle differences in the deck fittings amazed me as I had always built British/Australian ships and they were all of the same style. Took me a while to identify where things went. Her huge gun turrets are awesome, but apparently are not armoured turrets as with British and Australian ships but is more of a gun house. Another difference is that whereas British and Australian ships can elevate their gun barrels individually, Houston’s guns are fixed together in each turret.

German Navy

Light Cruiser

SMS Emden – Konigsberg class

Builder  Kaiserliche Werft, Danzig

Laid down           1 November 1906

Commissioned  10 July 1909

Fate      

Disabled by HMAS Sydney and grounded off the Cocos Islands, 9 November 1914

Displacement    4,201 tons

Length  118.3 m

Beam    13.5 m

Draft      5.53 m

Speed   23.5 knots

Armament         

10 × 10.5 cm (4.1 in) SK L/40 guns

8 × 5.2 cm (2.0 in) SK L/55 SK L/55 guns

2 × 45 cm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes

The famous German raider that created havoc in and around the Indian Ocean in the early part of WWI. Successes included the sinking of the Russian cruiser Zhemchug during the Battle of Penang and the shelling of the Madras oil fuel tanks. A very interesting ship to build with the large number of rings around the three funnels and because I am used to British/Australian fittings and ideas that are different to other navies. This ship was displayed at the Princess Royal Fortress Military Museum in 2018.

Archaeological Model Building

Sydney Kormoran

As mentioned earlier, I have always been drawn to the loss of HMAS Sydney and the engagement with Kormoran that resulted in that loss. When I built the Kormoran I wanted to demonstrate to the public just how and why Captain Burnett and the Executives could have been fooled. Ever since the loss of Sydney, the ship and her crew have, in my opinion, been relegated to the naughty corner for being conned. However, Detmers was, I believe, the most cunning of all the Armed Merchant Captains. His was the only ship that had the underwater torpedo tube angled aft. Thus, when Sydney parked herself on Kormoran’s aft starboard side, she was in the position dictated by the Admiralty. My model, therefore, was built with the starboard side as she would have appeared to the Sydney, and the port side as she was immediately prior to the commencement of the battle. During the construction of the Kormoran I was lucky enough to discuss the battle with the gunnery officer of one of our frigates (sadly, I can’t remember which one) who stated that the view of the Kormoran from the Sydney, even at such close quarters could have made it extremely difficult to identify any minor anomalies. In building the Kormoran, I substituted the sectional drawings of another similar merchant ship, as Kormoran’s had been destroyed during a bombing raid.

Regarding the model of the wreck of Sydney, I was provided with footage of the 2015 survey of the wreck. This I was overwhelmed by the evidence of the massive amount of damage that she sustained! I think they counted over 40 hits each side. The carnage that would have resulted can never be fully understood. Having said that, the surviving crew of Sydney did not give up, but continued to try to save her and return to Fremantle. One can only imagine the reception she would have received had she reached port. A lot of the damage that is evident was received during her descent to the ocean floor. For example, the aft (I think) funnel draped over “Y” turret. The gaping hole where the forward funnel had been and the collapsed forward structure that would have resulted in her slamming into the ocean floor. It was discovered that when Sydney did hit the bottom, she “bounced”, pivoting on her stern, and swung to starboard. During talks with the Museum staff, it was suggested that it would be important to demonstrate this and thus, the enormous size of the model! By creating the model, future writers, researchers can look at how the ship was, even when the wreck has deteriorated (which will happen over time) and possibly work out the sequence of events leading to her coming to rest on the ocean floor. It can also be used to demonstrate that Sydney was not an obsolete warship, as some have speculated, but a very brave, well fought RAN ship that deserves a better rap than she currently labours under.

Submarine Explorer

The Union’s Response to the Confederate’s Submarine CSS Hunley

Many people know the story of how the United States Confederate Navy developed and used the CSS Hunley to sink a Union ship. In recent years, the Hunley has been found and raised. What very few people know is that the Union Navy replied with the very first “proper” submarine, the Submarine Explorer. This craft was built too late to see service and was utilised in the pearl diving industry around the Panama coastline. Unfortunately for the crew, they suffered from the “Bends” as they were diving at such extreme depths (for those days) that they developed what was then called “Caissons Disease”. Named after the many workers who suffered the Bends whilst working in the deep caissons used to build bridges in England. I was recently asked to build a model of the Submarine Explorer to capture the amazing features of the very first workable submarine. To be honest, she looks like an ugly slug! However, I am making her so that her Port side will be as is, whilst the starboard side will show all of the internal workings of her. This will include the conning tower, propeller rank and compressed air pipes and controls.

Fremantle Diorama

For many years I have wanted to build a diorama of Fremantle as a submarine base. I finally got around to it. However, I also wanted to include the SS Ondina and so the diorama is of Fremantle harbour in 1944, rather than any particular date within that year. Call it Artistic Licence if you must  😊

Anyway, the ships in the diorama are the following:

SS Ondina

HMAS Bonthorpe

USS YMS

HMAS Heros

HMS Maidstone

USS Anthedon

HMS Storm (RN “S” class)

HNLMS Zwaardvisch (RN “T” class)

HMS Telemachus (RN “T” class)

HMS Tantivy (RN “T” class)

USS Sandlance (USN Balao class)

USS Hardhead (USN Balao class)

USS Hawkbill (USN Balao class)

USS Pampanito (USN Balao class)

The submarines are just a sample of the submarines that undertook a patrol form Fremantle in 1944.

Maidstone and Anthedon represent the Royal Navy and US Navy in their roles as submarine tender/depot ships that were used to repair and supply the submarines based in Fremantle.

HMAS Bonthorpe was an auxiliary minesweeper based in Fremantle during the war.

HMAS Heros was one of the ships sent out to look for survivors of HMAS Sydney after her loss in November 1941

USS YMS was one of a large class of minesweepers that were based all over the world including Fremantle.

SS Ondina is a famous Dutch Shell oil tanker that was attacked by two Japanese Armed Merchant Cruisers whilst being escorted by the HMIS Bengal. During the battle, the Ondina was severely damaged by torpedo and gunfire but survived and managed to sink one of the Japanese ships. After abandoning ship, the crew was fired upon and eventually chose to return and board her. However, during the fight the secret code books had been destroyed so the crew could not signal anyone and so no-one knew what had happened until the Ondina turned up near the WA coast.