Shipbucket

I would go with the 40mm twin Bofors myself.

The boats could be landed with a later refit. The space taken up by them could be replaced by 40mm guns or 20mms in large galleries, all with associated directors.

Also, it doesn't appear to me that your ship has light AA directors (Mk.51s, Mk.57s, etc). These are critical for directing your light AA against lots of incoming attacks.

I would stick with the straight funnels so this drawing doesn't just become a redesigned Atlanta. I would swap the position of the searchlight tower and the aft funnel, though, and probably make the searchlight tower taller while you're at it.

A late-war refit would likely see the bridge substantially cut down to improve sky arcs for light AA. They would also probably reduce the height of the searchlight tower and add some communication gear to it as well. The USN added radio DF loops and big broadband radio antennas to the searchlight platform on Brooklyn and I believe a similar modification was done to the New Orleans class as well.

Realistically you won't see 3"/70 RF guns until post-1945 period.

If you need a way to launch boats, add a boat crane similar to the one on Cleveland and Brooklyn to the amidships boat handling area. Place two P&S on each side of a funnel.

Your as-built variant can show a lot of rigging and wires, but by the time 1945 gets here you're going to see a substantial reduction in overhead wires. Maybe even limited to halyards between the main yard and the flag bag at the bridge and a few long range HF wire antennas between the mast and the top of the funnels. I believe they reduced rigging so much because it would impede AA fire.

I would also draw on a transom stern.

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USN components, camouflage colors, & reference links (World War II only)

Re the Hazemeyer, agreed, and IIRC the British got their hands on the system when Dutch warships escaped from the German occupation. The problem with the Hazemeyer was its sophistication; sure it was well in advance of anything on the Allied side, but it tended to suffer breakdowns. Postwar, the British opted for a simpler twin 40mm unit with the radar direction seperated, and wasn't that derived from the Hazemeyer anyway?

I believe I may have corrected any minor glitches that y'all pointed out?

Anyhow, I decided to keep the 20mm, at least on this "as built" version, but I replaced the twin 40mm Hazemaeyer with the Quad 40mm. The fore and aft wires are still on because, as stated, this is the "as built". I figure they would probably disappear quite quickly when they went into action, and from then on were not used.

OK, anything glaring I may have missed? Because, if not, I'm going to start on the earlier 6" armed version that this was based on. Yeah, I know, I'm kinda doing that backwards.
EDIT: Earlier image removed. Replaced with current image further down this post.

COLONIES CLASS LIGHT CRUISERS
WINDWARD ISLANDS CLASS
Windward Islands (1937)
Nova Harberia (1937)
New Brikken (1938)
Nastic (1938)
Laird Islands (1939)
Puhau (1939)
Receland (1940)


NEWYDD ARWR CLASS
Newydd Arwr (1940)
Leegesia (1941)
Whitefall (1941)
North Bartow (1941)
New Skokomish (1942)
Devons Island (1942)
Rhall (1943)
Sevia (1943)
Tega Cay (1944)


GRAYSON ISLANDS CLASS
Grayson Islands (1941)
Tyr Gwyrdd (1941)
South Bartow (1942)
Penneforthe (1942)
Guemes (1943)
Vaughn (1943)
Louth (1944)
Severn (1944)


GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Displacement: 10,636 full load
Length: 605’ / 184.4 m
Beam: 66’ / 20.1 m
Draught: 23’ / 7 m
Propulsion: Steam Turbines; 4 Boilers; 4 shafts
Speed: 33 knots
Range: 11,000 NM @ 15 knots
Complement: 1260

AVIATION FACILITIES:
2 x Catapult
2 x Mallard Seaplane (Mallard is the GH version of the SOC Seagull)

ARMAMENT:
Windward Islands Class
12 x 6” (4 x 3)
12 x 4.7” (12 x 1)
28 x 2pdr (3 x 8; 4 x 1)

Newydd Arwr Class
12 x 6” (4 x 3)
12 x 4.7" (6 x 2)
28 x 40mm (7 x 4)
28 x 20mm (14 x 2)

Grayson Islands Class
20 x 5.25” DP (10 x 2)
28 x 40mm (7 x 4)
28 x 20mm (14 x 2)

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"Anybody remotely interesting is mad in some way." - The Seventh Doctor

crap.

just noticed a couple things I missed. The revised davits, and directors for the light AA guns.

Ah well, back to the ol' drawing (key)board

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"Anybody remotely interesting is mad in some way." - The Seventh Doctor

You'll also need to enlarge the aft sponsoons because while the current one can take the gun itself, it's not big enough to allow the ammunition party to work. I'd also drop it down a bit so the crew is protected by the guntub and the ammo party doesn't have to heavy the ammo above their heads.

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“Close” only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nuclear weapons.
That which does not kill me has made a grave tactical error

Worklist

Source Materiel is always welcome.

Good observation, and thanks!

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"Anybody remotely interesting is mad in some way." - The Seventh Doctor

One more thing. The rangefinder you've fitted on the mast isn't going to work. They work just like a periscope which means the operator has to sit straight below it. See Novice's HMS Dido for a typical installation

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“Close” only counts with horseshoes, hand grenades, and tactical nuclear weapons.
That which does not kill me has made a grave tactical error

Worklist

Source Materiel is always welcome.

I've delayed in asking, but, Zephyr, are you from the Evergreen state?

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"It is better to type nothing and be assumed an ass, than to type something and remove all doubt." - Me

Originally, yes. Born in Aberdeen, raised in a small logging town on the peninsula between Olympia and Bremerton. Spent lots of time in Bremerton in my youth ogling the ships, even went on board the Missouri a couple times, back before they stole her and sent her off to Pearl. Both my brothers and my mom still live in WA.

So what gave me away, besides the fact I named my fictitious country "Grays Harbor"?

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"Anybody remotely interesting is mad in some way." - The Seventh Doctor

Well, I could always hang the poor bloke underneath in a swing.

Or move it to a better location. I'm open to suggestions on that better locale. I've got the open bridge there, plus the gun directors, so I'm kinda at a loss as to where to put it. Thats the only reason it ended up on the mast. (didn't know about the operator having to sit under it.)

stupid question... Colo made this recomendation - but I can't seem to find Mk.51 or Mk.57 on any of the parts sheets, either that or I'm looking on the wrong sheet or wrong place. umm... what did they look like, and is there an example I could see?

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"Anybody remotely interesting is mad in some way." - The Seventh Doctor