Ship
Models for the Military
US Manufacturers of Ship Models
during the World Wars
by Fred Dorris |
 |
Daley Publishing has released a new book written by Fred Dorris that covers
the history of US ship recognition models during WW2. The book includes
background on the first known models in the various scales. Emphasis is
placed on the common scales of 1/1200, 1/500 and 1/600. While printed silhouettes
were helpful, having a 3D ship model to view from different angles was
the best way to go. The recognition models and sets are highly sought after
by the collectors today. This book includes histories of manufactures such
as Bessarabis, Comet, Van Ryper, South Salem, Cruver, and Framburg. Also
covered are the companies that developed after the war such as Authenticast
and Superior. Listings of the ships produced by those companies should
be helpful to collectors as well as a list of recent auction prices some
have been sold for.
There are reprints of some of the training manuals dealing with the
proper use of recognition models that I found very interesting. I have
a lot of Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) manuals and always wondered
where they got the models for those illustrations. ONI plans for some of
those models is also included. Especially interesting was the section on
the Sub Attack Teacher Models, where Comet 1/1200 models were placed on
motorized carts to simulate ships traveling at different bearings. |
