Trumpeter 1/144 SSN-21 Seawolf
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History
The Seawolf submarine came about to counter the supposed increase in
Soviet naval forces during the Reagan years. The unfounded fears of widespread
improvement and expansion of the Soviet naval fleet, especially their
nuclear missile submarines, led the Reagan administration to press for
a new class of attack submarine. Originally capped at 29 submarines,
this was later changed to 12. Even still, these 12 boats would have taken
roughly one quarter of the entire Navy shipbuilding budget, all for a
ship that was designed to counter a threat that did not exist, made all
the more apparent with the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Politics aside, though, the Seawolf is definitely one impressive submarine.
Easily the quietest vehicle in the sea, it is estimated that the Seawolf
is quieter at 25 knots than its stablemate the Los Angeles class submarine
is tied up at pierside. The propulsion system, coupled with an outstanding
hull design, has the Seawolf operating 75% faster than the Los Angeles
class submarines before being detected. For weaponry, the Seawolf doubles
the number of torpedo tubes, and can carry the full gamut of surface
weapons such as the Harpoon and Tomahawk. While capped at three submarines,
the Seawolf class will perform admirably as an interim boat until the
true 688 replacement arrives.
The Kit
 As complicated a system as the Seawolf is, for those who want to build
a model of her, well, this kit is really quite simple. The kit comes
molded in the typical Trumpeter light gray plastic, with finely recessed
panel lines. The engineering of the ship is as you would expect, with
a couple interesting variations. A small decal sheet provides hull numbers
and periscope wraps.
The main hull is built up from six pieces, with the front and rear being
separate from the main center hull. All are split into top and bottom.
Once the hull is together, the rest of the assembly is quick and painless.
The fore diving planes are split into upper and lower pieces, and are
pegged to fit into the hull. The cruciform tail pieces are also separate
and split in halves, and are butt-joined to the hull.
 One interesting feature of the Seawolf is the ducted propulsion system.
This is made up of five pieces in this kit, and will look quite neat
when finished (although painting it will need to be done in steps). The
sail is in three pieces, with a separate top fitting onto the right and
left halves. All the various periscopes and antennae are separate, which
will greatly help in painting. The finished sail fits onto the hull,
and that finishes the model.
For painting, the Seawolf is the basic black and hull red. The instructions
suggest the upper hull be painted in engine gray, which is probably a
good balance for scale effect. The decals are very basic, but well printed,
and should pose no problems in application.
Conclusion
While most submarine kits are done to either 1/700 or 1/350, this big
kit in 1/144 really does a great job of showing of the attractive lines
of this powerful submarine. Its simple construction and painting makes
it a perfect weekend project. My thanks to Stevens International for
the review sample.
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