Reviewed by Timothy Dike
June 2012
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The CSS Texas was a 217 foot Ironclad ram launched in Richmond, Virginia in January 1865. She was the third of the Tennessee Class Ironclads. She was still fitting out when Richmond fell to Union forces. The Texas was taken by the US Navy to Norfolk Navy Yard and later sold in 1867. The Texas was represented the latest in Ironclad development for the South. The casemate was eight sided with a really low profile. The sloping armor would help divert projectiles away if they were able to score a hit on the smaller target. Although not finished her armament should have been like sistership CSS Tennessee II with four 6.4" and two 7" Brook rifles, and a presumably a bolted on spar torpedo. Flagship Models has released this new kit that can be used to build
the Texas as she would have appeared if finished.
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| HULL | |||||||||||||
| The hull on this kit is cast as in two parts split at the waterline. The upper hull includes the entire superstructure and features nice surface detailing. The lower hull includes nice planking and both parts will have minimal cleanup needed to finish. |
to enlarge  |
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| RESIN DETAILS | |||||||||||||
| The funnel is nicely cast with a hollowed out top. Propeller shafts are also cast in resin as are the small bits and chocks. The boats are nicely designed, but will need a bit of cleanup. The rifle barrels have hollowed out tips. The prop shafts and rudder are cast on a rather thick resin wafer and will require a little effort to remove. |  |
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| METAL FITTINGS | |||||||||||||
| The kit includes a length of real chain, and brass and plastic rod to fabricate some of the parts. |  |
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| PHOTO ETCH | |||||||||||||
| A relief etched fret includes davits, stantions, foldup anchor, boat deck inserts, and oars. There are also foldup ladders, and rigging detail. The fret is relief etched to give the flat parts some depth. |  |
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| DECALS | |||||||||||||
| The now standard Civil War era flag set is included printed on decal paper. These are sharp and well registered and you now have some extra flags for other projects. |  |
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| INSTRUCTIONS | |||||||||||||
The Instructions two pages with assembly notes. These are
excellent and among the best instructions in the resin ship business.
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| CONCLUSIONS | |||||||||||||
 Another
nice kit from Flagship. They continue to release more kits covering virtually
all the important ships of the North and South. This
is kit #FM19215 USS Texas for $85.00 US. You can order it direct
from Flagship
Models via it's online ordering system.
With such a simple shape the painting and weathering be what makes this kit standout. Not to worry, as Flagship has a line of How to CD's that will help you out in many topics from Building Resin Ships and Working with Photo Etch Parts to Making Realistic Water. |
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