Featured Boat; USS Indianapolis (CA - 35)

USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was a Portland-class cruiser of the United States Navy. She holds a place in history due to the circumstances of her sinking, which led to the greatest single loss of life at sea in the history of the U.S. Navy. On 30 July 1945, shortly after delivering critical parts for the first atomic bomb to be used in combat to the United States air base at Tinian, the ship was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58, sinking in 12 minutes. Of 1,196 crewmen aboard, approximately 300 went down with the ship.

The remaining 900 men faced exposure, dehydration, and shark attacks as they waited for assistance while floating with few lifeboats and almost no food or water. The Navy learned of the sinking when survivors were spotted four days later by the crew of a PV-1 Ventura on routine patrol. Only 317 sailors survived.^[2] Indianapolis was the last major U.S. Navy ship sunk by enemy action in World War II.

Heavy Cruiser

Scale: 1/125

Length: 59” Height: 20” Breadth: 8”

Price: $1450

Shipping: $185

 

Featured Boats: Hercules

The Hercules was built in 1907 by John H. Dialogue and Sons, of Camden, New Jersey. She was built for the Shipowners' and Merchants' Tugboat Company of San Francisco, as part of their Red Stack Fleet. After completion, Hercules was sailed to San Francisco via the Straits of Magellan with her sister ship, the Goliah, in tow.
For the first part of her life, Hercules was an ocean going tug. Because of the prevailing north-west winds, sailing ships often employed Hercules and her sisters on journeys north up the coast from San Francisco. For example, in 1916, Hercules towed the C.A. Thayer to Port Townsend, Washington. On return trips back down the coast, Hercules often towed log rafts of Pacific Northwest timber, to Southern California mills. At other times, Hercules was employed towing barges to other ports on the West Coast and to Hawaii, and in transporting equipment for the construction of the Panama Canal.
In 1924, Hercules was acquired by the Western Pacific Railroad. For her new owners, she worked shuttling railroad car floats across San Francisco Bay from Oakland and Alameda to San Francisco. She worked in this role until 1957, when she was replaced by the diesel-powered train ferry Las Plumas. Hercules was kept in a stand-by role to the new ferry until 1961.
The California State Park Foundation acquired Hercules in 1975, and the National Park Service took over her restoration in 1977. In 1986 she was designated a National Historic Landmark. She is now one of the exhibits of the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park and is to be found moored at the park's Hyde Street Pier.
Hercules from the TV show Tugs is based on this vessel.

Tug Boat

Scale: 1/4 M: 1:48

Length: 38” Height: 21” Breadth: 7”

This model was built by Vaclav Niedermertl, a master model maker. Vaclav has spent most of his life building ship models and has received numerous Bronze and Silver Medals in both his homeland of the Czech Republic and in Vienna where he won the Silver and Bronze medals of Europe from NAVGA.

The Model you see here is entirely scratch built using only Wood, Museum Board and a pulp based compound. EVERYTHING is made by scratch/hand. Each boat that Vaclav makes is custom order, which means it will take 2 - 4 months to build.

Price: $350

Shipping: $55