Sovietskaya Germania - Soviet Germany, or Sovietized Tirpitz

[Sauragnmon]

Alright, I hit the starting block like a shot tapping my feet waiting for the build to start - no pics just yet, but Soon.  I've already got most of the deck brown done for the main decks - the helipad conversion putty is still drying, I removed and puttied the aft 15cm mountings - they're part of where the eight P-500 Bazalt tubes will be.  The forward four 15cm mounts have been bored out to fit the AK-130 turrets.  The deck flak gun holes have been puttied as well.  The aft 6 10.5cm gun positions have been removed and puttied to smooth out the deck, the last one due to turn into an SA-N-7 position.  I sanded down the hump to the catapults, it's more or less smooth now, the cat track has been puttied in, I also filled under the cat extensions on the wings to stabilize them more.  I'm debating whether I'll extend the broadside wings out more for the helipad - I think there's enough area for rotor sweep to bring the Ka-27/9's in as it stands.  S-300F launchers have been considered, if I can fit them they'll likely be on the aft part of the 01 deck somewhere.  I have a Top Dome kicking around I can put in place for that.  So far, so good.

[Sauragnmon]

Alright, some of the preliminary build's been started - Conversion's been working hard - I started midnight GMT on the First, the start date for the build, and this is where I've gone so far - the main turret is dry-fit, I was using it to check the positioning on the S-300F launchers.  Thankfully they're cold-launch, so there's not much problems with the launch, as well as the fact that they are revolver-launched, with only one tube actually opening for launch.  Pictures!







There we go - Questions, Comments, Queries, Rude Remarks Welcome.

[kidcurrie42]

Nice work so far, looking forward to your progress.

John

[Spey_Phantom]

looking good comrade 

[Joe C-P]

Looking good so far! 

[Taiidantomcat]

Great work!

[Sauragnmon]

Heh you guys think that's something - I did this all this morning before my shipment arrived with bits and things for aircraft, that led to the birth of a second project that's been quickly bashed with a sledgehammer - I'll post that puppy elsewhere.

Tirpitzski Update - Added the Top Dome radar, bulked out the mount so it looked better.  The Kite Screech radars have been fitted for the four AK-130 mountings.  The SA-N-7 Gadfly mounts have been fitted on the forward mounts, I've been looking at the positions to mount the Front Dome radars for acquisition and lock.  The Top Pair radars I'm debating where to put them - I'm thinking top of the Bridge, over the fire control units.  Palm Frond radars will be set up one on the bridge tower, and two off the back of the stack on the platform.  Bass Tilts, I have no clue where to put them as yet.





There we go - Questions, Comments, Queries and Rude Remarks are welcome.

[Taiidantomcat]

Rude remarks...umm Its all Wrong and the color is wrong... and yeah

Seriously though this is great, All the Soviet gear makes it look the part perfectly. Its downright impressive. I'm no ship expert outside the basics, but If i saw that in a display case I would think the Russians actually made a battleship I just hadn't seen yet. 

[Sauragnmon]

Considering I have contacts and have had discussions over Russian radar systems and their purposes with multiple folks over on the Modelwarships.com forum, one of which has commented here (Kidcurrie, aka John, Stand up and be acknowledged!), I'm not an expert, but I have the minds of people who've read up on the ships or been involved in recognition training on the subject of Soviet and Russian warships.  The fun concept will be where I'm going to put my Front Door radar for the P-500 Bazalts.  That's going to go... Somewhere.  I haven't figured it out yet.

Radar Systems to be installed:

Palm Frond x3 - Navigation Radars
Front Dome x6 - SA-N-7 Guidance Radars
Top Pair x1 - Air Search Radar, first step for both S-300 and SA-N-7 target acquisition
Front Door x1 - P-500 Bazalt targetting radar
Bass Tilt x4 - AK-230 Targetting radar

Radars Installed:

Top Dome x1 - S-300F Guidance Radar
Kite Screech x2 - AK-130 Targetting Radars

Yeah, I've taken inventory of what I need and I've got ideas on where I'm putting MOST of it.

[johnestauffer]

I like what you are doing.
Slightly OT - The Russians could have gotten the battlecruiser Gneisnau that was in the process of being refit for twin 15" turrets - the conversion was never finished, but I think the hull & superstructure might have been intact at war's end.
Also, the Germans gave the Russians one of the Hipper class heavy cruisers, with only 1 main battery (twin 8") fitted, but with most of the hull/superstructure in place.
After the war the got both the carrier Graf Zepplin and light cruiser Nurnberg (they sank the carrier in tests, and operated the Nurnberg for a few years)
From the Italians they got 1 battleship Guilo Cesare (which sank in the Black Sea a few years later) and 1 light cruiser of the  Duca D'Aosta class
The Russians also wanted 1 or 2 of the modern Littorio class battleships.
This gives an interesting number of actual ex-Axis designs for the Russians to experiment with and convert.
It would be interesting to see some of these designs in Russian colors with Russian equipment.

[Sauragnmon]

Well, there's a few problems on the concept for some of the ships:

Gneiseau - Tamiya produces one, you could do it, even have the 130mm guns on it - they had the twin 15cm guns fore and aft, a few other adjustments and it might be cool.  Just remember to get Scharnhorst.  Elevated Helipad concept anybody?

Blucher Refit - Russia reverse-engineers the 8" guns and turrets, replace the 10.5's with 57mm Quad mounts?  There's a thought.  100mm mounts might be too big, maybe 76mm twins.  Keep it potentially more of a gun cruiser at heart.

Graf Zepplin - 130's in place of the original guns, plus CIWS and some other modifications, put Fishbeds on the deck or other thoughts.

Nurnburg - Only available in Resin to start with, you could again do some of the things like Blucher.

Giulio Cesare - Not a bad idea, again it's only a resin boat though, just like pretty much Anything Italian in 1/700.

You can get anything in 1/700 scale and bash it with Russian gear - Pit-road produces a sprue with a lot of the Russian equipment in 1/700.  You can also get spares from the Dragon Kirovs, which come with two such sprues, in a slightly different form with some slightly different equipment.

I'll admit, it's tempting, Some of it.

[lancer]

Following this one with great interest. She's looking very good so far.

[ChernayaAkula]

Lookin' great so far! 

[lancer]

Amazing Detail work Saur...

[Sauragnmon]

Thanks Lancer - I've been working on some more of the paint and progressing the build - I compared the helipads up against my Udaloy and found them too small, so I cut out two square inch pieces of sheet and I've expanded/extended the helipad sections - I'm going to put a pair of sheet sections to brace them up along the outside as well, and drill a few holes for drainage of water so the ship doesn't pick up a list in heavy water.

RBU-6000 ASW Mortars are in place, behind the breakwater on the main deck, just below the forward CIWS position.

SA-N-7 launchers are in place, between the AK-130 turrets.

SA-N-9 positions have been put in place as well - filled the third set of turret rounds, and put those in place.  I'm going to have to drill and put in sections of sprue for the actual launchers though, as the square blocks you see on the nose of the Frunze actually don't have the launchers, nor do the flat boxes on the stern.  Only Big Pete has them fitted, and only the aft deck.  To compare, look at the launchers on a Udaloy, then notice - there aren't any actual launchers, or associated Cross Swords/Klinok radars on the forward section of the Kirovs - they're missing the radars and launchers.  The irony being, they ran short of Kinzhal/SA-N-9 launchers when fitting out the Udaloys, so they never fitted them to the Kirovs, until the recent refit of Big Pete's aft deck.

I fitted a Top Dome radar in place of the aft high-sitting Aft AA Director, had to bulk out the tower for it.

I'm working on it today, I should get some pics soon.