1/48th Scale GATO SS-212 Hull Kit for Nautilus Drydocks

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  • thor
    SubCommittee Member
    • Feb 2009
    • 1448

    1/48th Scale GATO SS-212 Hull Kit for Nautilus Drydocks

    Bob Martin has asked me to push forward with an all new 1/48th WWII GATO SS-212 Museum quality kit. I had been considering such a kit for nearly 20 years, but the scale of the effort always made me turn to less daunting projects. Well, the time has come to get going on this project. The project actually started several years ago with Paul Crozier and Jeff Porteous, but due to my work activities I was not able to focus enough attention on the effort to keep it going. Bob and I discussed this project many times over the last year, and he finally convinced me to push forward with it being that there really has never been a proper kit of this boat presented with this amount of attention to accuracy and detail. I have been slowly working on a new Seawolf SSN-21 kit and that kit will still progress, but progress on the Seawolf has been slow due to my attention turning to GATO. The first step in the generation of a kit of any new subject is to gather as much information as one can muster on the subject. There is a TON of information available on the WWII GATO class submarine, but in order to find correct information on a very specific boat such as GATO herself, you have to dig a lot deeper. I reached out to Randy Fagan at the Floating Drydock and he was very excited to help out with the project. Randy has been an excellent resource and I highly recommend his company. He has been most willing to help me locate all of the drawings and plans I need to successfully complete this project. I have a collection of nearly 50 drawings and have been adding to the list weekly. This is in addition to the excellent Floating Drydock PDF plans book for the GATO/BALAO class and dozens of other books & publications.

    Initially this kit was to be of WAHOO. I have since reconsidered and will start with the lead boat out of the Electric Boat yards which will give the modeler the widest selection of boats to choose from. The kit will initially be offered with the early, as launched conning tower and deck with mods available after initial release of the kit.

    The CAD has been started, but I have found several areas that need further investigation to assure accuracy.













    Regards,

    Matt
  • thor
    SubCommittee Member
    • Feb 2009
    • 1448

    #2


















    Regards,

    Matt

    Comment

    • thor
      SubCommittee Member
      • Feb 2009
      • 1448

      #3
      Now moving to actually placing early structural markers on the hull skin:









      Regards,

      Matt

      Comment

      • thor
        SubCommittee Member
        • Feb 2009
        • 1448

        #4
        If you look close you can see where the deck overlay CAD shows my upper casing is a bit too narrow. I have ordered additional plans on GATO(1942) to see if this the deck CAD is incorrect, or if the hull CAD is in error. The plans are on the way so we should know in the next two weeks where the corrections must be made.

        Regards,

        Matt

        Comment

        • thor
          SubCommittee Member
          • Feb 2009
          • 1448

          #5
          Here is a quick run-down of the history of SS-212 GATO:

          From: Dictionary of American Fighting Ships, Vol. III, 1968, Navy
          Department, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Naval History
          Division, Washington, D.C.

          GATO (SS-212)

          dp. 1,526 (surf.), 2,424 (subm.);
          l. 311' 9";
          b. 27' 3";
          dr. 19'3";
          s. 20.25 k. (surf.), 8.75 k. (subm.);
          cpl. 60;
          a. 1 3", 4 mg., 10 21" tt.;
          cl. GATO

          The first GATO was laid down 5 Oct 1940 by the Electric Boat Co.,
          Groton, Conn.; launched 21 August 1941; sponsored by Mrs. Royal E.
          Ingersoll, and commissioned 31 December 1941, Lt. Comdr. V. G. Myers in
          command.

          After shakedown training at New London, GATO departed 16 February 1942
          for Pearl Harbor via the Panama Canal and San Francisco. On her first
          war patrol from Pearl Harbor (20 April-10 June 1942), she unsuccessfully
          attacked an converted aircraft carrier 3 May before being driven away by
          the fierce depth charging of four destroyers off the Marshalls. On 24
          May she was ordered to patrol the western approaches to Midway, taking
          station 280 miles westward during that historic victory.

          On her second war patrol (2 July-29 August 1942), she patrolled east of
          the Kurile Islands toward the Aleutian chain. She obtained four torpedo
          hits with unconfirmed damage to a ship 15 August 1942 and terminated her
          patrol at Dutch Harbor, Unalaska. Her third patrol (4 September-23
          December 1942) included operations off Kiska; then she steamed via
          Midway and Pearl Harbor to Truk atoll, where her attack 6 December on a
          convoy was broken off by aerial bombs and a severe depth charge attack
          by three destroyers. This patrol terminated at Brisbane, Australia, 23
          December 1942.

          During her fourth war patrol (13 January 1943-26 February 1943), GATO
          torpedoed and sank transport KENKON MARU 21 January; cargo ship NICHIUN
          MARU on 29 January; and cargo ship SURUYA MARU on 15 February-all off
          New Georgia, Solomon Islands. On her fifth war patrol (19 March-6 June
          1943), she landed an Australian Intelligence party at Toep,
          Bougainville, 29 March 1943, and evacuated 27 children, 9 mothers, and 3
          nuns, transferring them 31 March to SC-531 off Ramos, Florida Island.
          During a submerged radar attack approach 4 April 1943, between Tanga and
          Lihir Islands, she was shaken so violently by three exploding depth
          charges that she returned to Brisbane for temporary repairs 11 to 20
          April. GATO landed more Australian commandos at Toep Harbor 29 May,
          transported more evacuees to Ramos Island, and then reconnoitered off
          Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands before putting in at Pearl Harbor 6 June
          1943.

          GATO was routed onward to the Mare Island Shipyard for overhaul;
          returned to Pearl Harbor 22 August 1943; and conducted her sixth war
          patrol (6 September-28 October) via Truk and Bougainville in the
          Solomons to Brisbane. En route on 19 October she attacked a convoy,
          scoring hits for unknown damage to two large cargo ships. Her seventh
          war patrol (18 November 1943 10 January 1944) took her north of the
          Bismarck Archipelago. On 30 November she made a coordinated attack with
          RAY, sinking the cargo ship COLUMBIA MARU. She rescued a Japanese
          soldier from a life-raft on 16 December; then attacked a convoy in the
          Saipan-Massau traffic lanes 4 days later to sink cargo ship TSUNESHIMA
          MARU and scored damaging hits on another freighter. After 2 hours of
          dodging depth charges, she finally evaded her attackers; surfaced and
          headed for Tingmon, the most likely course of the damaged cargo ship.
          GATO discovered a live depth charge on her deck at the same time that
          two enemy escorts headed in her direction were sighted. She outran them
          while disposing of the unexploded depth charge by setting it adrift, on
          a rubber raft. Although she did not overtake the cargo ship, she did
          sight a convoy. On 2 December her chase was foiled by a float plane
          finally driven off by her gunners. She concluded the patrol a Milne Bay,
          New Guinea, 10 January 1944.

          GATO departed Milne Bay 2 February 1944 to conduct her eighth war patrol
          in the Bismarck-New Guinea-Truk area. She sank a trawler off Truk 15
          February, transport DAIGEN MARU NO. 3 the 26th, and cargo ship OKINOYAMA
          MARU NO. 3 12 March. Two other trawlers were destroyed by her gunfire
          before she returned to Pear Harbor 1 April 1944.

          On her ninth war patrol (30 May 19422 June 1944) GATO took Vice Admiral
          Charles A. Lockwood to Midway; completed photographic reconnaissance of
          Woleai Island served on lifeguard station for air strikes on Truk 11 to
          18 June, and terminated her patrol at Majuro atoll. On 15 July 1944 she
          was underway on her 10th war patrol taking lifeguard station for the
          carrier-based air strike on Chichi Jima, during which she rescued 2
          aviators. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 2 September 1944, proceeded to
          Mare Island for overhaul and then returned to Pearl Harbor.

          On her 11th war patrol (28 January-l3 March 1946) GATO patrolled the
          Yellow Sea as a unit of a coordinated attack group which included JALLAO
          (SS-368) and SUNFISH (SS-281). She sank a coast defense ship on 14
          February and cargo ship TAIRIKU MARU on 21 February, then returned to
          Guam. She departed on her 12th war patrol 12 April 1945, taking
          lifeguard station in support of the invasion of Okinawa. On the night of
          22 to 23 April she had a brief contest with two Japanese submarines and
          narrowly missed destruction as well-aimed torpedoes came close. Between
          27 and 30 April she rescued 10 Army aviators from shallow water near the
          beaches of Toi Misaki, Kyushu. She returned to Pearl Harbor 3 June 1945.

          On her 13th war patrol GATO departed 8 July for lifeguard station for
          air strikes on Wake Island and then off the eastern coast of Honshu. She
          received word of "Cease Fire" 15 August while making an attack approach
          on a sea truck; steamed into Tokyo Bay the 31st; remained for the
          signing of surrender documents on board MISSOURI 2 September; and then
          departed the following day via Pearl Harbor and the Panama Canal to the
          New York Naval Shipyard, where she decommissioned 16 March 1946. She
          served for a number of years as a naval reserve training ship at New
          York and later at Baltimore, Md., until her name was struck from the
          Navy List on 1 March 1960. She was sold for scrapping 25 July l960 to
          the Northern Metals Co., Philadelphia, Pa.

          GATO received the Presidential Unit Citation in recognition of daring
          exploits during war patrols four through eight and 13 battle stars for
          service in World War II.
          Regards,

          Matt

          Comment

          • ccontrol
            SubCommittee Member
            • Mar 2012
            • 186

            #6
            Shut up and Take My Money! First in line. Dibs!
            What a great and mighty undertaking Matt, cannot wait to see one, preferably on my bench.

            Steve O'Connell
            SubCom Lone Star

            Comment

            • lhdockyard1
              SubCommittee Member
              • Dec 2011
              • 281

              #7
              Matt
              I have all the plan books and plans that Maryland Silver used to provide. If memory serves they had at least a couple plan books on the Gato class. If you still need more information let me know and I will see what is in the collection.

              Don
              Loyalhanna Dockyard/Taubman Plans

              Comment

              • thor
                SubCommittee Member
                • Feb 2009
                • 1448

                #8
                Thank you, Don! That is very kind of you. I may take you up on that.
                Regards,

                Matt

                Comment

                • thor
                  SubCommittee Member
                  • Feb 2009
                  • 1448

                  #9
                  Guys,

                  If you are interested in this kit, please direct your kit request and interest to Bob Martin of the Nautilus Drydocks. I am producing kits for the Nautilus Drydocks at Bob's request. I am not selling products as a vendor. Get a hold of Bob and he will get you all set up. Thanks!
                  Regards,

                  Matt

                  Comment

                  • jefftytoo
                    SubCommittee Member
                    • Mar 2003
                    • 918

                    #10
                    Wow, Matt, this is Big News! Sam Reichart just brought me up to speed on this this morning. Godspeed your efforts! "Good luck and good hunting!" Best wishes, Jeff

                    Comment

                    • tmsmalley
                      SubCommittee Member
                      • Feb 2003
                      • 2376

                      #11
                      Congrats Matt. Can’t wait to see it at an upcoming SubRegatta!

                      Comment

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