Loose Cannon Productions

USS Langley CV-1

Kit Number: 35

Reviewed by  Charles Landrum, IPMS# 26328

MSRP: $140 Available directly from Loose Cannon Productions:   Loose Cannon Productions   12384 E. Cedar Circle   Aurora, Colorado 80012   (home.earthlink.net/~loosecannonproductions/) I would like to thank Hugh Letterly for this review sample. I doubt anyone will proclaim USS LANGLEY a handsome ship; however her contribution to naval aviation cannot be disputed. Ungainly in appearance, the LANGLEY was a prime example of early 20th century steel engineering. Converted from the Navy collier USS JUPITER, LANGLEY carried the flight deck well above the main deck on a series of lattice girder support columns and beams. In fact nothing projected above the deck; the bridge was low and forward. She looked like a railroad bridge and earned the moniker "the covered wagon". She also did not carry many planes due to her size, despite the diminutive size of aircraft of the period; her hangar offered marginal shelter, and there was only one elevator. Still she proved to be a beneficial test bed, shaping the designs of subsequent carriers. By 1937, her time had passed and she was relegated to duty as an aircraft support ship. She was lost to Japanese aerial attacks early in the war. Along comes a kit to resurrect her legacy and provide a model that is more than out of the ordinary… This offering by Loose Cannon is the first time, as far as I know, that LANGLEY has been kitted in 1/700 scale; the only other kit is Iron Shipwrights in 1/350. Given the complexity of the flight deck supports, it is understandable why LANGLEY has had to wait for a cottage industry to tackle her. Loose Cannon's Langley is truly a multi-media kit, with three materials in the box - resin, photo-etched brass and basswood. In the box the kit makes a very favorable impression: crisp resin, cleanly etched brass and a finely laser-etched wood deck by Nautilus Models. Here is what you get for your money: In resin: A crisply cast one-piece waterline hull in gray resin. There are no miscast details or air bubbles, and only a hint of roughness near the waterline. In fact, most of the vestigial USS JUPITER is cast in one piece. Particularly nice are the deck fittings and light-covers. There is no anchor chain molded either, so that you can more easily add your own. The rest of the ship's structural components are equally cleanly cast from one mold, with just a thin layer of overpour holding them together. Some of the components are on pour blocks, but the rest just need the overpour lightly sanded away. Smaller ships details and her complement of boats (12 total including four whale boats, four 50ft launches and four 40ft officers' boats) are cast on a separate sprue in a lighter gray resin. These are again well cast, but I did find a few very small pinholes. There is also "flash" from casting that can be easily removed with a No. 11 blade. The detail of the boats is particularly nice for this scale. The air wing, 16 in total, is cast in the same light gray resin on a separate sprue. This includes four large Martin T4Ms, four Vought O3Us, four Curtiss F6C-3s and four Boeing F2B-1s. I found no flaws, but flash was present. However, they are very cleanly cast, more so than other resin aircraft that I have reviewed. All of the wings appear free of warp.

Basswood: The flight deck 1mm thick (.038 inches) and is laser cut and engraved. The wood is light in color with no noticeable grain pattern so it will stain evenly. The deck planking is very petite. Surface detail includes the elevator, catapults, deck lighting and miscellaneous fittings. If you want to lower the elevator, a second one is provided.

Photo-etch: This is a big sheet in 1/700 scale - it looks like one in 1/350! The sheet is single etched, with petite detail; there is little room to spare. The details are well marked with etched numbers to avoid confusion. This fret includes: Structural girder detail Support brackets Flight deck nets Palisades Railing Inclined ladders Rigged davits Reels Aircraft detail including struts, wheels and propellers And if that wasn't enough - crew figures!

The instructions come on nine 81/2 x 11 pages, printed on both sides. There is a lot of information present including: Ship's data Parts locators Drawings of LANGLEY by A.D. Baker III Aircraft drawings (some of which are obscure aircraft) References General instruction Assembly instructions (hand drawn) Locating instructions for details Painting instructions for the ship and air wing, though I recommend consulting a more specific reference for the aircraft markings. \ Overall these are a pretty comprehensive set of instructions that should provide enough reference to build the ship and its aircraft. Still, I prefer to have photos of the details to better understand function and location, but Loose Cannon has given you some helpful websites with photos as well. Given the complexity of the girder construction and alignment, experience in working with photoetch folding is a must. I would also recommend a slow but steady pace, using a slow setting CA to locate the girder structure so that it remains plumb and true. The aircraft assembly and painting will be a small project in itself. Have a good clean work area to avoid lost detail parts too. Also the wood should be treated equally on both sides, as humidity and temperature will affect its shape. Equal treatment to seal the grain will prevent warping or cupping. This is a very impressive offering by Loose Cannon productions. All of the components are very high in quality and appear to be accurate by my references. I am a little unclear on the hatch configuration and how aircraft might be parked there, but the photos of this area are not clear and indicate that the configuration in the early to mid 1920s may have been as depicted here. Regardless, this is a fine representation of such an important ship. I also have Loose Cannon's MIDWAY Class CVB and with this kit Loose Cannon has significantly improved its quality. For the money, given the quality and quantity of components, the ship is well worth the price as there is nothing more to buy except perhaps anchor chain. Once completed, it will be a conversation starter given the level of detail present. Strongly recommended!

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