Howdy Folks, Well, once again, we begin a new build as I continue down the "aircraft carrier road". Next in line is the USS Lexington or "Lexi Lady" or "Gray Lady". She had an interesting career with a sad ending, being sunk during the battle of Coral Sea, May 8, 1942. I will try to depect her as she might have looked in May of 1942 configuration and color. At 888ft and a scale of 1/350, I am still dealing with a model that is 33" long (so much for the small footpring idea). Kit is typical Trumpeter quality and I hope accuracy. I have have supplimented detail with an upscale kit of PE from Gold Medal Models, here in Washington State, US. I have been busy drilling out all of the portholes, something I like to do. Was happy to see the casting has proper "eyebrows" over the ports. Hull plating is lacking on the casting and truthfully, at this scale, it would be hard to see. I could mimic the plating with paint, not sure if its worth the effort. Dark grey hull color will hide alot. Getting used to that massive smoke stack island... what a monster, I wonder how it affected trim on the ship underway. Pictures I have seen show her really blowing some black smoke. So far so good. Cross members on the upper hull section are stiffeners to hold shape. I am having to add wood stiffeners on the lower hull half to achieve proper shape and alignment before joining the halves. So, here we go. Hope you all enjoy the process. Dennis