Reviewed by Timothy Dike
|
The SS Pocahontas Seam was a EC2-S-AW1 Liberty Type Collier launched in April 45 to help replace the war time losses and older obsolete ship types. Designed to carry coal this ship was one of the forerunners of today's bulk cargo haulers. By world war two, most ships burned fuel oil, but coal was still very much in demand for generating power on shore. These ships had their engine rooms located aft and the bridge located forward between three of the five holds. These colliers had a sleek design with the typical topside clutter like winches covered up and protected from the sea. Twenty four of these ships were built and named after major American coal seems. After the war these ships were taken over by private companies and served on hauling coal well into the modern era. Pocahontas Seam served under many name such as Medford, Osprey, Andromeda, and finally Slavianka. She was scrapped in 1972. Loose Cannon has produced yet another unique ship with their 1948 rendition
of this important Collier. This kit could easier be used to build the Pocahontas
Seam or any of the other 23 ships in her class as built or with minor updates
the same ships in later years.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
| HULL PARTS | |||||||||||||||||||||
| The hull is cast in waterline style with cast on cargo hatch covers and the lower superstructure as one piece. Port holes are drilled out and there is a large deck winch cast onto the bow area. Casting is pretty good overall but some cleanup will be needed here and there. | Click images
to enlarge |
||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
| SUPERSTRUCTURE | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Bridge levels and superstructure parts are cast on a thin resin wafer along with boat davits and other fittings. The funnels, ships boats, and other fittings are cast on resin sprues. These parts have some minor flash that needs to be cleaned up before use. Note I removed some of the parts from the resin wafer to more clearly show their shapes. |  |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
| DECALS | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Two decal sheets are included, one with the ships names, flags, and funnel markings. The other with additional names and flags. |  |
||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| PHOTO ETCH | |||||||||||||||||||||
| A brass photo etch fret is supplied with railings, ladders, and various platforms. Rigging and even a few brass sailors are also included along with a length of brass rod for the masts. |  |
||||||||||||||||||||
| INSTRUCTIONS | |||||||||||||||||||||
The instructions are ten pages with exploded assembly views
showing the various sub assemblies. A color painting guide and prototype
photos are also included.
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Conclusions: | |||||||||||||||||||||
Loose Cannon East has turned out another obscure ship subject. This one would fit in with your late war merchant ship fleet, or as a more colorful post war merchant ship. This is kit Kit #94 SS POCAHONTAS SEAM - Post WWII Liberty type collier - resin, decals PE listed for $60.00 US, a fair price for a complete kit with photo etch . Check the Loose Cannon page for details on this and other kits. |
|||||||||||||||||||||
