Hello! Sorry for the lack of uploads in a while. Ever since coming home for Winter break, I have been taking the opportunity to work on my model kits. Here’s a look at my full 1/700 warship collection so far! If there are any ships you would like to get a better look at, feel free to leave a comment or DM me!

From left to right:

-The first two are Kagerō-class destroyers built for the Imperial Japanese Navy in WW2. Only 1 member of the class, Yukikaze, survived WW2 and was surrendered to the Republic of Taiwan and renamed Dan Yang. Eventually being scrapped in 1970.

-Conte Di Cavour is the namesake ship of the second class of Italian Dreadnoughts. Completed in 1915, she and her two sisters, Gulio Cesare and Leonardo Da Vinci, saw little action and zero conflict in WW1. Da Vinci was sunk in an unrelated magazine explosion in 1916 and eventually scrapped. However, the two remaining Cavours were heavily rebuilt in the interwar period to better combat the newly created French Dunkerque-class Fast Battleship/Battlecruiser. They saw a longer, more efficient bow shape and removal of their central triple turret to allow for more engine space which greatly improved their speed. Both ships saw action at the Battle of Calabria and were present when the British bombed Taranto in July and November of 1940 respectively. Cavour was torpedoed and repairwork was not completed until after the Italians surrendered in 1943. She would be scrapped in 1946.

-USS Arizona (BB-39), probably the most infamous American battleship of WW2 was a Pennsylvania-class battleship commissioned in October 1916, initially operated from Norfolk, Virginia, with voyages to Europe and South America. Based in Southern California from 1921, she was modernized between 1929 and 1931, improving her armament and protection. After transporting President Hoover in 1931, she returned to the Pacific Fleet. In 1940, she was stationed at Pearl Harbor. On December 7, 1941, she was sunk during the Japanese attack, losing 1,177 crew members when a bomb detonated her forward ammunition magazines. The ship's wreck remains at Pearl Harbor to this day, becoming a memorial site in 1950, with the USS Arizona Memorial dedicated in the early 1960s as a tribute to those lost in the attack and the Pacific War.

-The Admiral Graf Spee was a Deutschland-class heavy cruiser or “pocket battleship" as the British referred to her, of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine, named after World War I Admiral Maximilian von Spee. Laid down in 1932 and completed in 1936, it exceeded the Treaty of Versailles’ 10,000-ton limit, displacing 16,020 tons. Armed with six 11 inch or 28 cm guns, the ship was designed to outgun any cruiser fast enough to catch it, with a top speed of 28 knots. As well as serve as a commerce raider. Graf Spee conducted patrols during the Spanish Civil War and participated in the 1937 Coronation Review. A few weeks before WW2 began, she was sent to the South Atlantic to intercept allied shipping lanes. Before the end of 1939, she had already sank nine Allied ships before facing three British cruisers at the Battle of the River Plate on December 13. After damaging the British ships, Graf Spee was forced to seek refuge in Montevideo, Uruguay. Believing false reports of overwhelming British forces, her commander, Hans Langsdorff, ordered the ship scuttled, leaving part of the wreck visible for years. Many parts of her have been raised and become museum pieces in Montevideo.

-HMS Warspite, nicknamed "Grand Old Lady." was a Queen Elizabeth-class battleship completed in 1915, serving in the Royal Navy during both World Wars. She participated in the Battle of Jutland, where she was hit in her rudder and led to issues that were never truly fixed, and routine North Sea patrols during WWI. In the interwar period, she served in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, often as flagship, and was modernized in the 1930s. In WWII, Warspite fought in the Norwegian Campaign, Mediterranean, and Italian Campaign, enduring significant damage including taking a 3,000 pound Fritz X bomb which blew a 21 foot deep hole in her keel, but continuing to serve, including during the Normandy landings. She earned a total of 15 battle honours over her 30 year long career. After decommissioning in 1945, there was a push for her to be preserved as a museum ship, but due to her age, battle damage and more pressing financial issues in a ravaged post-war Britain, the amount of time and money that would’ve been needed to restore her was not worth it. Instead she was ordered to be towed in order to be scrapped. But she refused to go out willingly so ran aground near Cornwall to make scrapping her a pain.

-Completed in 1914, Derfflinger was a German battlecruiser and namesake of her class that served in the High Seas Fleet during World War I. She participated in several key operations, including the Raid on Scarborough, the Battle of Dogger Bank, and the Bombardment of Yarmouth and Lowestoft, culminating in the Battle of Jutland, where she helped sink two British battlecruisers, HMS Queen Mary and HMS Invincible but was heavily damaged herself. After repairs, Derfflinger saw little action, as the Germans shifted focus to U-boat warfare. The fleet's final operation occurred in 1918, but after the war, the fleet was interned at Scapa Flow, where Derfflinger was scuttled in June 1919 to avoid seizure by the Allies.

-HMS Rodney was a Nelson-class battleship commissioned in 1928, primarily serving in the Atlantic and Home Fleets. During the early stages of WWII, she hunted German commerce raiders, participated in the Norwegian Campaign, and escorted Atlantic convoys. Rodney played a key role in sinking the German battleship Bismarck in 1941. After a refit in the U.S., she escorted convoys to Malta and supported the invasions of French Algeria, Sicily, and Italy. In 1944, she provided naval gunfire support during the Normandy landings and subsequent offensives. The ship also escorted a convoy to the Soviet Union in late 1944. Due to extensive wear, she was placed in reserve in 1945 and scrapped in 1948.

USS North Carolina (BB-55), the lead ship of the North Carolina class, was the first fast battleship built for the U.S. Navy, completed in April 1941. Despite Washington Treaty limitations, the ship's armament was upgraded to nine 16-inch guns. An upgrade from the previous Colorado class’s eight. After Pearl Harbor, she was deployed to the Pacific, initially to counter the German battleship Tirpitz but was reassigned to the Guadalcanal campaign. There, she screened carriers and participated in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons. She was torpedoed by a Japanese Submarine in 1942 but returned to duty after repairs. North Carolina took part in key Pacific campaigns, including the battles of the Philippine Sea, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. After Japan's surrender, she assisted in Operation Magic Carpet. Decommissioned in 1947, unlike her sister ship Washington, North Carolina was saved by her namesake state and was preserved as a museum in Wilmington, which opened in 1962.

-Kongō was a battlecruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy, commissioned in 1913 after being built in the UK. Designed by British engineer George Thurston, she was one of the most heavily armed ships of her time. Kongō patrolled the Chinese coast during WWI and underwent two major reconstructions, the first starting in 1929 to enhance her armor, speed, and firepower, and the second in 1935, which modernized her superstructure and added catapults for floatplanes. By then, she was fast enough to accompany Japan's carrier fleet and was reclassified as a fast battleship. During WWII, Kongō participated in major Pacific campaigns, including covering amphibious landings in Malaya and the Dutch East Indies, as well as engaging in the Battles of Midway, Guadalcanal, the Philippine Sea, and Leyte Gulf. In 1944, while stationed at Truk Lagoon and various Japanese bases, she frequently responded to American air raids. On 21 November 1944, Kongō was torpedoed and sunk by the USS Sealion in the Formosa Strait, becoming the only Japanese battleship sunk by a submarine during the war. But the third British-built battleship sunk by a submarine after HMS Royal Oak and HMS Barham.

-HMS Prince of Wales, a King George V-class battleship, was commissioned in 1941 but had a brief and eventful service. She first saw action in August 1940, when she was damaged by German aircraft while still outfitting. In May 1941, during the Battle of the Denmark Strait, she inflicted damage on the German battleship Bismarck. She later escorted Malta convoys and was attacked by Italian aircraft. In her final mission, Prince of Wales attempted to intercept Japanese troop convoys off Malaya as part of Force Z. On 10 December 1941, three days after Pearl Harbor, she was sunk by Japanese bombers, alongside the battlecruiser Repulse. They became the first capital ships sunk by air power alone. A fate the Japanese would soon be familiar with. The wreck of Prince of Wales has unfortunately been illegally scrapped and desecrated.

-Scharnhorst was a German capital ship, classified as either a battleship or battlecruiser, depending on the source and the lead ship of her class. Laid down in 1935 and completed in 1939, she was armed with a comparatively small nine 28 cm guns in triple turrets. Though plans to upgrade to 38 cm guns were never realized, Scharnhorst operated alongside her sister Gneisenau in early WWII, raiding British merchant shipping. In her first operation in November 1939, she sank the converted ocean liner HMS Rawalpindi. The two ships also participated in the 1940 invasion of Norway, sinking the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and engaging battlecruiser HMS Renown, sister to the aforementioned HMS Repulse. In 1942, Scharnhorst made the Channel Dash from France to Germany and later joined Bismarck’s sister Tirpitz in Norway to disrupt Soviet-bound Allied convoys. In December 1943, during the Battle of the North Cape, she was intercepted and sunk by the British battleship HMS Duke of York and her escorts with only 36 of her 1,968 crew surviving.

-Roma was the third ship of Italy's Littorio-class battleships, built to counter the British and French fleets in the Mediterranean. Commissioned in June 1942, she faced a fuel shortage and spent much of her early service strengthening anti-aircraft defenses along Italian cities. After suffering significant damage from bombing raids in June 1943, Roma was repaired and deployed as the flagship of Admiral Carlo Bergamini for a planned attack on Allied ships during the Salerno invasion in September 1943. However, after Italy's armistice with the Allies on 8 September, the mission was canceled, and the fleet was ordered to surrender. While sailing to Sardinia, Roma was ambushed and attacked by German bombers using Fritz X radio-controlled bombs. A direct hit caused catastrophic damage, flooding her engine rooms and triggering a magazine explosion, which led to her sinking. She capsized and broke in two, with 1,393 crew members going down with her, including her Admiral.

-HMS Renown was the lead ship of her class of Royal Navy battlecruisers, originally intended as an improved version of the Revenge-class battleships. Construction was restarted during World War I under naval mastermind and certified madlad, Admiral Fisher's direction, the ship was completed in 1916, shortly after the Battle of Jutland. Renown and her sister ship Repulse were the fastest capital ships at the time but did not see action during the war. She underwent two major reconstructions between the wars, with the 1930s overhaul being particularly extensive. In World War II, Renown participated in key operations, including the search for the Admiral Graf Spee in 1939, the Norwegian Campaign in 1940, and the search for the Bismarck in 1941. She served primarily in Force H, escorting convoys and engaging in the Battle of Cape Spartivento. In 1942, she supported Arctic convoys before moving to the Eastern Fleet in 1944, where she participated in attacks on Japanese-occupied territories. After the war, Renown was placed in reserve and sold for scrap in 1948.

-USS Alaska (CB-1) was the lead ship of the Alaska-class "large cruisers" in the U.S. Navy. She was given this unique designation due to her having 12 inch guns that were far larger than the typical 8 inch guns of other nations’ heavy cruisers excluding Germany’s Deutschland class, but still smaller guns compared to her contemporary battleships like the North Carolinas, South Dakotas and Iowas which keeps her from being designated as a battlecruiser. She was commissioned in June 1944. Built during World War II, she was the first of two completed ships of her class, with Guam being the second. Initially built to combat Japanese heavy cruisers like the Myokos, Takaos and their own large cruiser concept the B-65. (Though their production was scrapped following the shift of production to build more aircraft carriers.) Due to her late commissioning, and most of her potential prey being sunk or simply nonexistent, she saw limited action, participating in operations at Iwo Jima and Okinawa in 1945, providing anti-aircraft defense, and engaging in shore bombardment. She also conducted shipping sweeps in the East China and Yellow Seas and assisted in the occupation of Korea after the war. Due to them being in an awkward grey area of having a crew amount and operation cost similar to that of an Iowa, yet without the same level of firepower, they were seen as surplus and Alaska was decommissioned in 1947, placed in reserve. She stricken in 1960 before being sold for scrap in 1961. The Alaskas were some of the prettiest American warships ever built but I can’t deny they were truly white elephants.

-Lead ship of her class, Richelieu was designed to counter the Italian Littorio class. In many ways it was like a scaled-up version of the preceding Dunkerque class. With both main batteries being arranged in a superfiring pair up front. Laid down in 1935 and launched in 1939, Richelieu was completed in April 1940, just before France fell to Germany. She fled to Dakar, where enduring British attacks aimed at forcing her surrender or destruction. After damage and repairs, the ship was transferred to Free French control in 1942 and underwent modernization in the U.S. In 1944, Richelieu joined the British Home Fleet before moving to the Eastern Fleet for operations against Japan, including the 1945 Battle of the Malacca Strait. She also participated in the liberation of Singapore and later operations in French Indochina. After the war, Richelieu was briefly active for training, then became a gunnery training ship in 1952, before being retired and placed in reserve in 1956. In 1968, she was sold for scrap and dismantled in Italy.

-USS Enterprise (CV-6), a Yorktown-class aircraft carrier, was launched in 1936 and was one of only three pre-WWII U.S. fleet carriers to survive the war. Known as "The Big E” and “The Grey Ghost,” she participated in more major battles in the Pacific than any other U.S. ship, including the attack on Pearl Harbor, and many other battles including Midway, Guadalcanal Santa Cruz Islands, Eastern Solomons, Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulf. Enterprise earned 20 battle stars, the most of any U.S. warship in WWII, and was the most decorated. Her aircraft sank the Japanese submarine I-70 in December 1941, the first enemy warship sunk by the U.S. after the war began. Despite being reported sunk three times, she continued to fight and ended the war with 911 enemy planes downed and 71 ships sunk. After the war, there were many efforts to preserve her as a museum failed, and she was unfortunately scrapped between 1958 and 1960. But her legacy lives on both in pop culture such as with the famous Star Trek ship and the US Military, where she has had successor carriers named after her. The second of which is currently under construction.

-Bismarck was the first of two Bismarck-class battleships built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine, named after Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Laid down in 1936 and commissioned in 1940, she was one of the largest battleships built by a European power. Bismarck's one and only offensive operation, Rheinübung in May 1941, aimed to disrupt Allied shipping in the Atlantic alongside the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen. During the Battle of the Denmark Strait, Bismarck and Prinz Eugen sank HMS Hood and damaged HMS Prince of Wales, but Bismarck sustained damage that forced her to abandon the mission. Pursued by the Royal Navy, Bismarck was crippled by a torpedo from HMS Ark Royal, disabling her steering. In her final battle, she was overwhelmed by British battleships and cruisers and was scuttled to prevent capture. Only 110 of her roughly 2,220 man crew survived. Her remarkably preserved wreck was discovered in 1989 at a depth deeper than the Titanic.

-Akagi was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy, originally laid down as an Amagi-class battlecruiser, she was converted during construction to comply with the Washington Naval Treaty. Rebuilt from 1935 to 1938, she was Japan's first fleet carrier and played a key role in developing the IJN's carrier strike force doctrine, which concentrated air power. Akagi's aircraft participated in the Second Sino-Japanese War and, as the flagship of the First Air Fleet (Kido Butai), led major operations in early World War II, including the attack on Pearl Harbor and raids across the Pacific and Indian Oceans. In June 1942, during the Battle of Midway, Akagi was critically damaged by U.S. dive bombers and scuttled by Japanese forces. Her loss, along with carriers Kaga, Hiryu and Soryu, marked a turning point in the Pacific War where Japan was now on the defensive. Akagi's wreck was discovered in 2019 by the Research Vessel Petrel.

-HMS Hood was a Royal Navy battlecruiser (or fast battleship if you are based) and the only completed ship of the planned Admiral-class, commissioned in 1920. Design flaws revealed by the Battle of Jutland led to revisions during construction, but the remaining ships were canceled in favor of new designs. Hood remained the world’s largest warship for 20 years and was nicknamed "The Mighty Hood." Between 1920 and 1939, Hood conducted global training and diplomatic missions, served with the Mediterranean Fleet during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War and the Spanish Civil War, and returned to Britain in 1939 for repairs. Plans for a major rebuild were canceled due to the outbreak of World War II, leaving her vulnerable to modern naval threats. During the war, Hood patrolled the North Atlantic and later joined Force H, participating in the attack on the French fleet at Mers-el-Kebir. In May 1941, she and HMS Prince of Wales were sent to intercept the German battleship Bismarck and cruiser Prinz Eugen. On May 24, Hood was struck by a one in a million shot causing a catastrophic explosion that ripped her in half and quickly sank the ship, killing all but three of her 1,418 crew. Two official inquiries concluded that an explosion in Hood's aft magazine caused her destruction, though alternative theories persisted. The wreck's discovery in 2001 supported the magazine explosion theory, though the exact cause remains uncertain due to the extensive damage.

-Second of the Yamato-class battleships, Musashi was commissioned in 1942 and served as the flagship of Japan's Combined Fleet and underwent extensive trials before deployment. In 1943, she operated from Truk, conducting unsuccessful searches for U.S. forces. Throughout 1944, she transported troops and supplies, surviving a torpedo attack that required repairs and upgrades to her anti-aircraft defenses. During the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944, Musashi saw no direct combat. However, in the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea during the Leyte Gulf campaign on October 24, 1944, she was sunk by an estimated 19 torpedoes and 17 bombs from U.S. carrier-based aircraft due to her being hit on both sides which led to counter flooding and caused her to remain afloat longer. Over half her crew survived. Her wreck was discovered in March 2015 by a team led by Paul Allen.

-Yamato was the lead ship of the Imperial Japanese Navy's Yamato-class battleships, the largest and most heavily armed battleships ever built. Along with her sister ship *Musashi*, she displaced nearly 72,000 tons and carried nine 46 cm (18.1 in) guns—the largest ever mounted on a warship. Designed to counter the larger U.S. battleship fleet, *Yamato* was laid down in 1937 and commissioned in December 1941, shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. As flagship of the Combined Fleet in 1942, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto directed operations from Yamato during the failed Battle of Midway. In 1943, Musashi replaced her as flagship, and Yamato spent much of the year moving between the Truk and Kure naval bases. After being torpedoed by a U.S. submarine in December 1943, she was repaired and upgraded with additional anti-aircraft guns and radar. Although present at the 1944 Battle of the Philippine Sea, she did not engage in combat. Yamato’s only surface action came during the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944, where she helped sink the escort carrier USS Gambier Bay and fought the big-dick energy U.S. destroyers of Task Unit "Taffy 3" during the Battle off Samar. However, the Japanese fleet retreated after mistaking U.S. escort carriers for a larger force. By 1945, Japan's navy was crippled by fuel shortages and heavy losses. In a final, desperate move, Yamato was sent on a one-way mission (Operation Ten-Go) in April 1945 to Okinawa, intending to beach herself and fight as a stationary fortress. On April 7, U.S. carrier-based bombers and torpedo planes overwhelmed her, focusing attacks on her port side correcting their mistake from her sister Musashi. After sustaining around 12 torpedo and 6 bomb hits, Yamato capsized and exploded, killing most of her crew. Her wreck, split in two, was discovered in 1985. (She was later raised and equipped with flight capabilities and a Wave Motion Gun.)

-Design A-150, also known as the Super Yamato class, or Shikishima to any World of Warships players, was a planned successor to the Yamato class of battleships. Intended to surpass all other battleships, they were designed to carry six massive 51 cm (20.1 in) guns in three twin turrets—the largest ever planned for a warship. Design work began in 1938–1939 after the Yamato class and was nearly complete by early 1941. However, Japan shifted its focus to aircraft carriers and smaller warships as World War II approached. Nothing of the Super Yamato ships made it past the drawing board, and most design details were destroyed near the end of the war so any design made from outside sources likely take many creative liberties. But from the little we know, it’s likely they would have looked nearly identical to the Yamatos apart from the larger guns.

-The next two are both USS Missouri (BB-63). She is an Iowa-class battleship and the last battleship ever commissioned by the United States Navy. Completed in 1944, she served in the Pacific during World War II, participating in the Battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and bombarding Japan. On April 11, 1945 a Kamikaze plane crashed into her which caused minimal damage and zero casualties except tge pilot. Commanding officer, Captain William M. Callaghan, gave an order for the pilot to be given a full military burial at sea the following morning. Missouri is most famous as the site of Japan's surrender on September 2, 1945, officially ending World War II. After the war, she undertook diplomatic missions and served in the Korean War (1950–1953), conducting shore bombardments and acting as a flagship. Decommissioned in 1955, she was placed in the reserve fleet. Missouri was reactivated in 1984 under the 600-ship Navy program, receiving modern upgrades, including cruise and anti-ship missile systems. She served during the Gulf War in 1991, providing naval gunfire support in Operation Desert Storm. In the January of that year, During gunfire support operations to harass Iraqi troops in Kuwait in preparation for a potential amphibious landing, the USS Missouri (BB-63) was targeted by an Iraqi Silkworm anti-ship missile. Through the deployment of infrared flares and chaff, the missile's guidance system was disrupted. The missile passed closely behind the Missouri and was subsequently intercepted and neutralized by destroyer HMS Gloucester (D-96). Decommissioned for the final time in 1992 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1995, Missouri was donated in 1998 to the USS Missouri Memorial Association. She now serves as a museum ship at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Berthed adjacent to USS Arizona, they both symbolize the beginning and ending of the United States’ involvement in World War II.

-the H series of battleships for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine, designed to meet the requirements of Plan Z in the late 1930s and early 1940s. The initial design, H-39, planned for six ships with 40.6 cm (16 in) guns and diesel propulsion, essentially expanding on the Bismarck-class. The H-41 design improved on H-39, featuring larger 42 cm (16.5 in) guns and reinforced armor. Later designs, H-42 and H-43, further increased the main battery to 48 cm (18.9 in) guns, and the H-44 design called for 50.8 cm (20 in) guns, with ships ranging from 277.8 m (911 ft) and 56,444 tons to 345 m (1,131 ft) and 131,000 tons, capable of speeds over 30 knots. Due to World War II, none of these ships were completed. Only two H-39 ships were laid down, but construction was halted in 1941 and the steel was scrapped. The remaining ships' contracts were canceled, and later designs never progressed beyond planning. However the 16 inch guns designed for the H-39 battleships were later reused and developed into coastal artillery guns named Adolf guns. Of the four made, only one remains in Harstad Norway. Due to them being cancelled so early, none had any concrete names. But Hutten, Berlichingen, and Friedrich der Große are a few of the most likely choices from the little we know.

-USS Montana was the namesake ship of the Montana-class which were a planned successor to the Iowa-class for the U.S. Navy, designed to be larger, better armored, and more heavily armed at the cost of speed. Approved during World War II, they were intended to have twelve 16-inch guns in four turrets, up from the Iowa-class' nine guns. Unlike previous battleships, the Montana class had no treaty limitations, offering superior armor and anti-aircraft capability, and would have been the largest and most heavily armed U.S. battleships, rivaling Japan’s Yamato-class. Work on the Montana-class began before the U.S. entered the war, with the first two ships approved in 1939. However, the success of carrier combat, particularly after Pearl Harbor and the battles of Coral Sea and Midway, shifted focus to aircraft carriers and other vessels. As a result, the Montana-class was canceled, and the Iowa-class ships, already in progress, were completed instead, becoming the last U.S. battleships commissioned. However the Montana’s engineering layout later went on to influence the Midway-class of aircraft carriers.

Hopefully this summer I will be able to make use of the air compressor I got for Christmas to airbrush future models.