http://www.dragonmodelsusa.com/dmlusa/prodd.asp?pid=DRA1021
http://store.spruebrothers.com/Product14965
Any more information or preview on Dragon’s first ship smart kit?
A week ago on Model Warships:
http://www.modelwarships.com/reviews/ships/dd/dd-484/350-dr/dragon-review.html
WOW! I want one of these!
Just now put in my order.
Wow it even includes 1/350 scale figures!
I’d like to see them release some sprue’s of squids “milling about smartly”
Steve Backer’s SteelNavy review of the new Buchanan by Dragon
“The DML Buchanan is a superb kit. Wait…that’s not right… the word superb is too pale, too vague, too understated for this kit. Simply put, this kit is the best injected plastic kit that I have ever seen. I have not seen every plastic kit ever produced but among those that I have seen, none provides the level of detail of the DML Buchanan.”
Note that statement is not just best injected plastic ship kit, it is best kit. Period.
http://www.steelnavy.com/DragonBuchanan1942.htm
Steve offers an extensive summary of the genesis of the US Navy destroyer force following WWI, followed by a summary of the naval battles of the Solomons Islands. Steve’s article needs to be read to understand the history of this important class. Then he examines the kit, with photos of not only the sprues, but individual parts on the sprues.
“Verdict
Dragon has long been known as the producer of the most detailed, injected plastic armor kits in the world. Now, DML has extended this commitment to world class excellence to the realm of 1:350 scale warships. You want the best in the world? The Dragon 1:350 scale USS Buchanan 1942 kit is simply the best detailed injected plastic warship kit yet produced in that scale.”
Mine is on order. I can’t wait for it to arrive. I’m sure that I will be buying two or three more
Do the PE frets contain the ship’s railings?
Not basic kit, but there will be a version that does… I’m blanking on what Dragon calls these releases though… premium edition maybe. [sigh]
The basic kit contains brass details, but not railings.
The Dragon/Cyberhobby Upgrade set includes PE railings, both with & without canvas dodgers. It also contains MK37 fire control radar details
http://www.dragonusaonline.com/ItemSummary.aspx?ItemCode=CHC3830
The special upgrade set is available at a special early-bird sales price of 2.00 USD if you order the Buchanan direct from Dragon/Cyberhobby
Thanks guys!
All we need now is the mask for the camo [8D]
The link may be of interest to those planning to attempt the camo.
http://www.destroyerhistory.org/benson-gleavesclass/ussbuchanan/index.html
Has anyone compared this kit to the Tamiya USS Fletcher? I have been hearing for a long time that the Tamiya Fletcher sets the standard…
Drools–AWESOME!!!
Yes, Tamiya set the standard a long time ago and the world passed them by. Not only Hesagawa and Dragon are bring out new kit with much better details. The new destroyer kit most watched is the 1:144 USS Fletcher to be released by Revelle Monogram later this year.
/forums/882343/ShowPost.aspx
Actually trumpeter surpassed Tamiya on the Fletcher Class Destroyer. I recently got hold of the USS The Sullivans and it actually is better than the Tamiya offering with the addition of building either the 1943 configuration or the 1945 configuration. And the Gleaves Class was a WWI build Destroyer (basically a precurser of the Fletcher).
I don’t know, as I have heard a lot of bad reviews of the Trumpeter destroyer, and was just about to plump for a Tamiya, when word came out here about this new one from Dragon! In any case, after looking at the available photos (pretty amazing detail!), I have decided on the Dragon Buchanon and now have it on pre-order…
…and this is particularly good, as will be able to ‘do her up’ as USS Aaron Ward, which my uncle served aboard at Guadalcanal (and got pasted by just about everything in the Japanese inventory that night, from battleships, cruisers and enemy destroyers too!)…
I’ve ordered a set of 1/350 figures from greatmodels.com. They’re tamiya stock number 12622. Cost $8.60. I think they’re IJN sailors,but in that scale, I think you could get away with a little “artistic license”. Off hand ,I don’t remember how many swabbies there are in the set,but there is a respectable number. They haven’t arrived yet,so I can’t vouch for the quality ,but for that price ,it’s worth a look.
From the photos it appears the Tamiya figures look like flat gingerbread men. Most have taken ap pass on them after seeing the pictures. L’Arsenal is still the best out there.
Of course, at that scale you could just super-glue a bunch of ants on the model, paint 'em white and give 'em little ‘dixie cup’ hats for effect!