foxbat's stuff. last update 08/02/2026 USS North Carolina

[chrisswim]

Ohooooooo, aaaahaaa.
Very nice looking Sara. Pretty, if you don’t mind that comment for a warship.

[redleg]

She also has a closed bow, unlike the following classes, which makes me wonder why it was abandoned as it is way better in rough seas.

Posting a reply for Brigade Commander. He is still unable to post on the forum so I am serving as his RETRANS station.

The reason why Lexington & Saratoga had the enclosed bow was due to their coming from a build on the Lexington Battlecruiser hull. At the time the prevailing view was the carriers should be able to launch alternating from the hanger deck as well as the flight deck. Some were even completed with a single catapult on the hanger deck. It was not practical and ships were eventually no longer built with them. I am not certain if all ships eventually had them removed but feel safe saying most had.

[foxbat]

Please extend my thanks to Brigade Commander. I hadn't thought of it.
The British, with the Furious class, and the Japanese, with the Akagi, turned battlecruisers into carriers too, but with open bows. Different navies, different technical cultures probably.

[Hoth_902]

Foxbat,

Love your naval Vessels. Great work..

[foxbat]

Adding another battleship to my RN collection, the co-victor of the Bismarck, HMS King George V, as she would have appeared mid-1941.
And a big special thanks to GHQ on this one. The rear turret was missing, and they sent me the part with my latest order. So, their awesome policy stands also for us, overseas customers















Background pic courtesy of Grok. I'm very happy with AI generated backgrounds which are, all things considered, way easier to tailor to my whims than taking pictures the old way.

[pmskaar]

Great work on the KGV, Foxbat!

[chrisswim]

Beautiful looking KGV BB!!
If you need a member of the crew, let me know.

[redleg]

That looks awesome, Foxbat! Very nice work! And I like the background!

[panzergator]

That is very nice work. Patience and a good eye!

[foxbat]

Thanks gentlemen. Indeed, age has not yet too badly diminished my eyesight or hand coordination, so I can still indulge in my "metal crack" and paint models. Some AARs are making me consider diving back into 6mm, need to find a new rule set that suits me (or revert to good old Spearhead)
Meanwhile, I'm taking a break from carriers and adding to my Regia Marina units, this time the last Pola class cruiser and a few Soldati.

RM Zara under escort




A closer look at the cruiser (BTW, did I say I love painting these barber shop stripes? )

[foxbat]

And a closer look at RM Ascari

[pmskaar]

Excellent work on your Italian ships, Foxbat! Painting the barber pole stripes is "fun". I am happy that GHQ did the scribing on the decks.

I have a bunch of GHQ Italian ships to paint that I bought over 20 years ago when a game store was closing and selling off their stock. I still need to get around to painting them .... or at least one. My sole foray into painting WWII Italian ships was doing the Pola for GHQ.

[redleg]

Beautiful ships Foxbat, as always!

[chrisswim]

The ASCARI looks cute. Opps, looks great!
Sorry, lost my mind.
That is a story….

[foxbat]

Thanks, gentlemen. Need to beef up still my Italian forces with a few more units.
Since they might have to face these. Carriers, what the Italians were definitely missing...

The Illustrious served in the Med. That's the one that was responsible for Taranto, which was an astounding success for the Royal Navy. I did her with a deckload of Stingbags errmm, Swordfishes to illustrate the raid After that, she survived the "Illustrious blitz", a series of Luftwaffe attacks on Valetta harbor where she was hastily repaired after having suffered heavy damage. These armoured flight decks were not without a few advantages after all.



And a few daylights pics