Reviewed April 2016
by Timothy Dike
| The iron hulled Confederate cruiser Tallahassee
was named after the Confederate state capital of Tallahassee, Florida and
was built on the river Thames by J. & W. Dudgeon of Cubitt Town, London
ostensibly for the Chinese opium trade. She was previously the blockade
runner Atlanta and made the Dover-Calais crossing in 77 minutes on an even
keel considered an impressive speed for the day.
After Tallahassee was commissioned and prepared for sea, she was placed under the command of Captain John Taylor Wood, CSN. The officers and crew were all volunteers from Confederate gunboats on the James River and North Carolina waters. She made a spectacular 19 day raid as far North as Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Tallahassee destroyed 26 vessels and captured 7 others that were bonded or released. After the end of the civil war, she served as Susquehanna and flagship of the North Atlantic Squadron. She was decommissioned at the New York Navy Yard on January 14, 1868 and sold for scrap in 1883. Flagship has released his new kit that can be used to build the
Tallahassee from 1850 tp 1868.
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| HULL | |||||||||||||
| The kit is molded full hull style with nice surface detailing and a nicely planked deck. There is even a nice crest cast on the stern. The only real work you will have to do on this kit is to remove the resin runner along the keel. |
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| SUPERSTRUCTURE PARTS | |||||||||||||
| Funnels have hollowed out tops. The ship's boats, at first glance look a little strange. But are designed to use photo etch seats as well as yokes for the included oars. The pilot house and deck house are nicely cast with window and door trim. |  |
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| FITTINGS AND DETAIL PARTS | |||||||||||||
| The small parts include davits, block and tackle, deck winches, the rudder, and canon assemblies. The latter features separate cradles with gun barrels that can be aimed properly. |  |
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| METAL AND MISCELLANEOUS PARTS | |||||||||||||
| Cast metal vent pipes are included as well as metal anchor chain. Sheet and strip styrene are included to fashion some of the details. Wood dowels are included to fabricate the mast. |  |
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| A relief etched Brass photo etch fret is included with ladders, stanchions, rat lines, rigging, and even a ship's wheel. |  |
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| DECALS | |||||||||||||
| A simple flag decal is provided for the battle flag. |  |
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| INSTRUCTIONS | |||||||||||||
The Instructions are two legal size pages with assembly
notes on a third sheet. These are well drawn with a nice plan and profile
on page one and plenty of detail views on page two showing all the sub-assemblies.
Parts and assemblies are clearly labeled. These are clearly some
of the best instructions on the market. Virtually everything you
need is right here explained in a way that even a novice can understand.
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| CONCLUSIONS | |||||||||||||
 This
is a nicely done kit of the Confederate blockade runner Tallahassee.
Its large enough to allow you to add significant detailing. A welcome
addition to your 1/192 civil war fleet.
This is kit #FM19221 CSS Tallahasse/Atalanta (14.0" long) blockade runner It is available now for $160.00 US at Flagship Models via it's online ordering system. |
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