--Originally Posted 10/25/13--

Not only are the states of Nevada and Arizona right next to each other, but Nevada BB36 was very close to Arizona BB39 - both in appearance, and as historic witness to Pearl Harbor, during which Nevada was the only BB to get underway, trying to make good her escape:

This is a bit of photo-fabrication enabled by a pre-war side-view of Nevada off Oahu (see below), simulating what she might have looked like, escaping on 12/7/41 (except for the SOC SeaGulls, which would have been OS2U KingFishers), had she managed to clear the harbor on that fateful morning.

In reality, of course, Nevada had to be beached almost immediately:


Click on Image to EnlargeThis of course is her classic pic, bow down on the sand inside Pearl Harbor, to avoid her sinking right in the middle of - and very probably completely blocking off - the channel, while trying to escape and taking heavy damage, as she was.

Also present at Pearl Harbor, her sister Oklahoma capsized to become (again, next to Arizona, which was deemed completely unrecoverable) the second most-difficult salvage case, and though she was finally righted and raised afterwards, never returned to front-line service.

Nevada, on the other hand, was modernized to fight on:


Click on Image to EnlargeLike the other, modernized USN "Old BBs" including Texas and Arkansas, etc., Nevada went on to provide highly-acclaimed fire support to invasions at D-Day, Iwo Jima (as seen here, on 2/19/45) and Okinawa. Making her - especially in addition to her Pearl Harbor exploit - another ship which was, IMHO at least as historic as Texas, if not more so.

Instead of being preserved, however, immediately post-war Nevada played an additional, if far less-remembered, role as Ground Zero for the Able nuclear-bomb test:


Click on Image to EnlargeSuperficial appearances aside, here seen on 7/11/46 Nevada had yet again "almost got away" - remaining afloat, hull integrity undiminished, and in fact surviving quite well - including through the subsequent, Baker test. However her doom had nevertheless been sealed - with superstructure dangerously radioactive, and morevoer by now being irredeemably obsolete - she was left moored as a target for weapons tests/training, until finally sunk by aerial torpedoes.

Of course, Nevada (or her sister, Oklahoma) is one of- if not the prime candidate for bashing from a Revell Arizona:


Click on Image to EnlargeAt left, our "life-proportionally-sized" overlay comparison best-fits a plan (overhead) view Nevada drawing - once again after (significant) correction to come into agreement with an orthogonal beam-on historical photo (center), to define four kitbashing options as follow:

- From Revell ARIZONA => 15.5" LOA, 1:451 scale NEVADA
- From Revell (ex-FROG) ROYAL SOVEREIGN => 12.5" LOA, 1:558 scale NEVADA
- From Airfix WARSPITE => 10.7" LOA, 1:653 scale NEVADA
- From Airfix IRON DUKE => 10.3" LOA, 1:682 scale NEVADA

At right, the largest two of the above are "graphic-dryfitted" - suggesting how to bash Nevadas at near-perfect 1:450 and 1:550 scales from the Revell Arizona and (ex-FROG) Royal Sovereign molds, respectively. Note how very close is Nevada (in plan-view, anyway) to both of these kits: the Revell Arizona kitbash appearing feasible in just 4 sections - leaving 3 small leftover pieces (blue-gray), and the Royal Sovereign even easier - apparently able to do the job in only 3 sections, with two large, continuous pieces remaining, which could only be of further use. Although significantly over-extended (green) around the peripheries of both the bow and stern, correction of the Royal Sovereign mold in these areas (particularly the bow) would be far easier (even fun!) than may first appear - requiring simply the cutting and pinching/bending-in of some thoughtfully-chosen lengths, and the chopping-off of others, along the upper hull. (If anybody wants to see this in more detail, I would be happy to demonstrate it, with further drawings and/or pics of the real thing.)

To print this kitbash drawing at life-size, print this full-resolution version at 170.42 dpi (as labelled in the linked graphic, but not in the above).

I hope that gives you some ideas - and possible option to build for this upcoming 12/7 anniversary of Pearl Harbor.


Cheers,

- Matty