ModelWarships reveiw

WSW 1/700 Potemkin

1905 Russian Battleship

Commissioned in 1903 the Potemkin was a pre dreadnought designed to counter the other capital ships of that era. She had four 12" main guns in two twin turrets, with sixteen 6" in single casemate mountings around the hull. As a member of the Black Sea Fleet she was not at Tsushima Straight when the Russian fleet was soundly defeated. However she suffered a far less honorable fate being the subject of a mutiny that saw her taken over by her crew, together with the torpedo boat #267. The mutiny ended when the new crew was unable to find a port to replenish their supplies and eventually they abandoned their ship in a Romanian harbor. The Potemkin served through the first world war and eventually became the stage for a movie about her infamous mutiny before being scrapped in the 20's.

Having not seen many WSW kits, I didn't know what to expect when this kit arrived. Upon opening the box I was pleasantly surprised. The hull is very nicely done with impressive details cast in place. There is realistic deck planking and stairwells that disappear into the lower levels. There are several brass rods cast into place for the bridge supports, a nice touch.

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The superstructure parts are crisp and sharply molded with nice planking detail. The funnels are well molded with cast on vents. The turrets look really nice, even with the cast on gun barrels. Cranes and boat davits are finely cast. Extra brass rod is included for making the secondary gun barrels. The only decal in the kit is a paper flag. As an alternative you can get some nice flags from Dunagain decals.

The Instructions pretty basic, but sufficient for a kit of this size. A few 3D views showing the assembly would be nice.

As a bonus Torpedo Boat #267, that was a partner in the mutiny is included. A simple kit, consisting only of a hull and two extra guns, this will make a nice diorama for your Black Sea Fleet.

Conclusions:

A nicely detailed kit with great casting, simple enough for someone who hasn't built that many resin kits It is detailed enough to not require major surgery to build into a great replica. If I had to complain it would be the lack of a photo etch set. This kit lists for $48.00 and you can find it and other WSW Models in the latest Pacific Front Update. Thanks to Pacific Front Hobbies for the review sample.