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Posted by SanDiegoShipMan
on 10/11/2009, 5:56 pm, in reply to "MM Catalog"
72.220.65.150
Reviewing my MM lists brings back many memories. On about the last page of the MM catalog, under miscellaneous are listed many merchant ships. I provided Comet or South Salem originals to make these items: S301, S302, S310, S315, S319, S320, S321, S322 (South Salem), S323, S324 (South Salem). Some items were totally fictitious and made up of parts of models, for example, S315 (I'm not sure of the number). Made, as a suggestion from me, from an MM copy of a very damaged, incomplete and almost unidentifiable HIKAWA MARU. I didn't i.d. this one positively until about 2006! Note also that several models listed were changed out for a different master (including some merchant ships I listed). Example: The first Tribal offered was of an unknown (to me) Tribal model and the later one was a Framburg. Same with the Hunt I. Sometimes there were surprises. Often, buying MM models was like a box of chocolates--you never knew what you were going to get!
In regards to unauthorized masters--often unaltered, I received many models "on approval" and if I kept them I sent in payment with my next order. Many of these were models clearly were "unlawful" copies and I sent them back with a polite note to MM. Some disappeared from the MM list or never appeared on it. By the way, I usually wrote up my orders, with comments or special requests, on paper rather than use the MM order form. I started doing this because every time--yes, every time--I sent in the marked up order form indicating my choices, something was accidentally omitted and they had to send it separately. As this letter was usually returned with the models, I have a good archival stack of transactions and comments between myself and Hal spanning several years. Some of the information in this posting comes from those notes. No, you can't read them.
By the way, MM did an original DE RUYTER, Dutch cruiser and it is one of my favorites. Hal said it "was fun to make." Other MM originals were, near as I can tell, S34 Kauderer, Pine Island, and Maidstone, to mention a few. Ask me, and I'll tell you the unusual story of the origin of the S34 Kauderer.
Note that I would routinely send a master model, Comet, Framburg, etc. buying copies of it and had the original returned to me. Some of those items showed up on the MM list, but most were already there as MM's version with many additions that I didn't like because they were hard to remove. I got special orders made of unaltered Framburgs like the Algerine, Tribal, Hunt I, V-W, L, H, Charybdis rather than order the slightly altered model offered off the MM list. I ordered many, many copies of most of them and did a lot of custom-finished models in various camouflage paint, rig, etc. I don't recall sending anything larger that a CL (a Dido and a Charybdis) except for some larger merships, like a South Salem ARGENTINA MARU (a really nice model in its original form).
The only Italian Navy models I recall getting was a Copy Navigatori that I contributed and got back a few copies. Some masters, including Turbine, may have been made by MM (not sure). MM's S606 Capitani Romani and S990 Katori, both Delphin copies, that I discarded.
In the late 1970s, I sent in a Comet (with modifications) Bourrasque or Simoun to have it copied (it wasn't very good), but instead that model was returned with copies of another line's model of that ship. I still haven't identified its origin, but it was a good one. I found out about twenty years later that it looked sorta like a Delphin model I saw in a photo, not confirmed, however.
Most of the ships I got from MM were unknown as to origin, but I eventually found out that many were Framburg models and I filled many gaps in my collection with those, especially US, British & French late war cruisers, although I have since acquired several original Framburg sets of the big ships.
I bought several Saipan-Wright CVL models, another Comet master of the ship in the 1950s (one less funnel). S221 was from a Comet pre-WWII Wichita that I painted in Ms.12 (mod.) and S234 Des Moines (Salem) was an old Comet. Some models were modified by MM into similar classes. For example, an S15 Oakland was turned into a S14 Atlanta--not very accurate, but not too different.
Models I didn't buy were the WWI model ships you see on page 1, nor (with two exceptions noted above) did I buy any of the WWII battleships & cruisers of Italian, French, German, Japanese model ships by MM as I suspected . . . well, you get the idea.
--Previous Message--
: Here's the first page of a 4 page list. This
: gives you a good idea of the range of
: different items offered.
:
: [img] [/img]
:
: --Previous Message--
: I would agree. If someone could post a copy
: of the MM list, it would be much
: appreciated. As no monetary profit would be
: realized, it would be for educational
: purposes only;-)
:
: I too have acquired several questionable
: models over the years, often suspect because
: the quality of detail exceeded the quality
: of casting and assembly. They were often
: attributed to "European" makers.
: Some were said to be "Irish"
: castings. I have also gotten some
: "Marske" models, but they were
: clearly massive alterations of other makers
: ships (i.e. a AK into an AO. They might
: have been "one ofs", converted
: straight from other's hulls.
:
: Another category I've had a question on is
: on Konishi models and like types. Some I
: have are marked Konishi Models, while ones
: I've gotten directly from Tsutomu Konishi
: have no markings at all. Then there are
: "Konishi" like models from a
: company called "Mirco Ships" made
: in Japan. Are they related?
:
: --Previous Message--
: "if they possessed a copy of the
: original
: MM list"
:
: So where is the MM list?
:
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