Lindberg Blue Devil Destroyer

Modeling Subjects Ships
1

This is the Lindbergh USS Melvin DD-680 ( the Blue Devil ), WW2 Fletcher Class Destroyer. Declaring this one completed and before the rivet counters jump it, artistic license applies. This is truly the most inaccurate hunk of styrene I’ve ever worked with, besides early Aurora kits. I bought it for the size and had gala plans of motorizing it and installing the R/C - which never happened. Just couldn’t justify dumping a few more hundred $$$ on this.

Main gun turrets and bridge (well, they could have at least come with the doors) are the only accurate 3-D printed pieces on it. Given all the negative issues with the kit, it still turned out rather nice. Weathering/scarring done using AK enamel washes and ground up artist pastels. There is an on/off switch that controls the searchlight and bridge battle lighting.

I spent hours setting up the motorized unit only to have it sound like a garbage disposal full of silverware. I gave up on that endeavor and dyked the power leads to it, leaving only searchlight and bridge illumination. I know the Melvin didn’t have two rudders, but this one does and frankly, I like it this way. I snagged this kit for $50. I’ve seen them on eBay for way more than that and sort of chuckle beacuse it is just not worth it. Anyway, this is what I did with it and it will make a nice shelf display.

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2

You’ve done some nice work! Especially considering the only resemblance the Lindberg Fletcher seems to have to the real thing is purely accidental [:D]!

3

You did a good job on it despite it’s lack of accuracy. sorry the running gear was of such poor quality .I know that in the 70s they did have decent motors and ran in the water pretty well .

4

Super! Best build of that kit that I have ever seen!

5

fuzznoggin, that turned out great! I agree with everything that people said about the inaccuracies of this kit but you did an awesome job with what Lindberg put into the box. Your weathering looks so realistic. I built this kit several years ago so I know of the “fun” that you had while building it. Thanks for sharing your work. Take care & stay safe. Happy holidays!

tjs

6

Convincing that pig’s ear to resemble a silk purse is complicated.

Amazingly, there’s a wide range of accurate 3d prints for the kit (none of which are inexpensive).

As a nit-pick, the amount of rust abve the main deck is a bit higher than any XO I ever had (or I, as Exec) would have tolerated. Fletchers have near 60 sailors in the Deck Divisions (either two or three Divisions–varied by ship & XO). One of their responsibilities was maintaining paint while underway. And, the ships did not lack for paint either.

7

I spent $100 on 3D printed turrets, props, and the bridge ( without doors ) and just couldn’t justify any of the other “inexpensive” 3D prints. My estimates would have shown at least an additional $200 in aftermarket greeblies and it just didn’t fit my budget, nor make any sense in dressing up this kit which also, by the way, would have needed to have the bow section reshaped. If this been a 1:72 Revell or Tamyia kit, then it would have been well worth the aftermarket enhancements.

My initial ambition was to apply the motorization and RC the beast to chase the alligator up and down the waterway with it. However, that never came to fruition so instead, I applied “artistic license” to it and brought some form of respectable life to her as if she had no time to be painted between action. I was very hesitant on posting this build to begin with and probably did so against better judgement. I agree with you on “convincing a pigs ear to resemble a silk purse”. Thats what this build was like.

Thank you for your service and your input.

8

Looks great!

Regarding the absence of doors on the 3D-printed bridge, there is a “method to our madness”.

Although the 175 ships of the Fletcher class, built in 11 different shipyards, were sisters built to the same basic design, there weren’t any twin sisters. No two were built exactly alike and their appearance and fittings changed frequently over their service lives. Each ship was a bit different in detail, including which type of doors were fit to specific locations, such as 5-bar condition Z and 7-bar condition Y, etc… Also, Lindberg offers two other ship kits in 1/125 scale, an LCT and an Admirable-class minesweeper.

So, to offer the modeler with as much flexibility with door configuration as possible, and provide doors for Lindberg’s LCT and minesweeper, too, we offer 1/125 scale US Navy ships’ doors separately in sets of 6 different configurations. That way, our 1/125 scale US Navy ship’s doors can be used in whatever arrangement of types the modeler needs, and on the rest of the superstructure, too, and on other 1/125 scale kits made by Lindberg.

Our 1/125 scale ships’ door sets are:

  • Set A, Pilot House
  • Set B, 5-bar condition Z
  • Set C, 5-bar condition Y
  • Set D, 5-bar condition X
  • Set E, 4-bar condition Z
  • Set F, 7-bar condition Y

As of this writing, each set of 6 doors costs $3. For those not familiar with our products, our 1/125 turret set costs $55, the bridge is $22. Turret sets are available in early configuration (for round bridge Fletchers) and late configuration (for square bridge Fletchers). The bridge is available in two different configurations. We also offer several other products specifically for the Lindberg “Blue Devil Destroyer” kit.

The door sets are available in other larger, popular scales, too, like 1/96 and 1/144.

If anyone ever has any questions about our products, please shoot us an email and I’ll do my best to answer.

Thanks again and well done! You really did a great job with the Lindberg kit!

9

Steve, you twisted my arm [:D]. I can still sneak in a set of doors on the pilot house without much effort. I’ll order those today! By the way, your turrets and ring bases kick ass!! Love the way they turned out on this.

10

Thanks so much! I’ll include a little something extra for you I think you’ll like.

Cheers!

11

Well done. You should be proud of her.

[:)] Bob

12

Which has always been a trick proposition. The Lindberg kit is incredibly tender, stability-wise as an RC. The “old school” (as in late 80s) answer was to epoxy a bit of brass angle to the hull bottom, so that a “balance keel” culd be attached for water running. The angle section would be a 3" bit of 1/2" x 1/2" with 3-4 holes through the vertical bit. The fin would be a flat bit of brass, with a lead casting on its bottom.

I have heard that folks have been successful with the new high mAH “rc car” style batteries, allowing for installng lead shot very low in the hull, giving better ballance than trying to use a taller battery.

I have a shipmate who cobbled up a “good at six feet” kitbash into a Gearing, whic hwas neat in pond (and hopeless in a pool, given the turning radius).

The blue devil hull will give a person a start (if only squinting-accurate) for building a 1/192 (1/16"=1’-0") scale Atlanta-class. Which is handy if a person has been gifted a bunch of 1/16" scalle “bits.” (And will build up as a “mothballed” version well enough, come to cases.)

We each try and do our best.

You took a big box of lumpy parts, and built a finished thing out of those. A silk purse? Perhaps demin, but the snap-catch works.

13

The Revell America came with a deep plastic pond sailer keel. Add weight.

I would say that those gun houses are well worth the money.

Is the era early 50’s? I did read up on DD 680.

Bill

14

One thing I really like is the bronze propellers. Most folks paint them brass 'cause that is what most instructions say [*-)]

15

I have no desire to do so, but others have gone with placing the rare earth magnets along the keel inside the ship. Then they can just “clip on” a heavy steel plate as an extended keel below the waterline for cruising in the pond. Just pop it off, and you can proudly display your model on a wooden shelf with the others. Little to no effort.

Bob