I am trying to get into this hobby it looks like so much fun but I first have to build a ship I was thinking about the USS south Dakota or the USS Wichita any advice?
Easiest way is to order a kit from here. The engineering is done and the guess work is removed from building. Listen to the people who have done the hobby for a while and resist the new and shiny things. Stick with what works. https://www.southjerseyshipyards.com/products/ship-kits
Also, go hang out with @Bob and the fellas at Port Polar Bear. you anywhere near Minneapolis? they can help you a ton.
Hey BTW there are no 3d printed hulls for SoDak...... YET. But that SJS list is constantly growing. for example, I'm doing two hull forms for SJS right now that are pet projects of mine. they're not high on anybody's priority list, but there are enough people interested to be worth Will T's time to make them available. I recently bought SoDak plans with the intent of making a hull form for myself/SJS. it may take a while but that *will* become available one day in the near future. I'm sure PPB will advise you to consider Wichita for a first boat. I think she's a cool boat too. you're not alone. The Fargo/Cleveland class hulls were derived from the Wichita/Brooklyn hull. the big difference being that the Wichita/Brooklyn hull is 62' (5.17" in 1/144) beam, while the Cleveland/Fargo hull in 66' (5.52" in 1/144) beam. which is outside of the ruleset tolerance. @bsgkid117 would it be feasible to take some sandpaper and sand your Cleveland/Fargo hull down to tolerance for a Wichita? max allowable beam would be 5.17+.125" (5.295")
I don't have a USS Wichita kit on my site, but my Cleveland/Fargo kit is broadly similar. They're a little too wide to technically be battled as a Wichita, you'd be off by like a 1/8" vs the maximum allowable error in the IRCWCC rules. Being in Minnesota you are in proximity to a great larger battling group in the form of Port Polar Bear. Definitely check them out and dont be afraid to reach out to @Bob above. My Cleveland kit can produce the following ships with superstructure modifications: Cleveland class Fargo Class Bulged Brooklyn Class (USS Savannah 1945) Theres no real competitive advantage between these 3 ships, its just for personal aesthetic flavoring. SJS offers a ship kit combo discount as well, so any purchase of a ship kit alongside internal components you would need to build said ship, automatically includes a $5 per component discount.
