Battlecruiser: Fast Battleship Haruna (Super Drawings in 3D)

I wanted a modeling book about the Haruna, but I was having trouble finding out enough information about the specific contents of the two main books on the subject to help me decide which one to get. So I ended up buying both of them. Now, in hopes of helping someone else make the best choice for their needs, I’ll give a description of both:“Battlecruiser – Fast Battleship Haruna” (Super Drawings in 3D). This book starts out with 10 pages of narrative description about the Haruna’s design and specifications. Nearly all of the information is about her initial construction as a battle cruiser. (Incongruously, the associated illustrations show the ship in her guise as a fast battleship.) This chapter includes 19 separate tables packed with very specific detail about her dimensions, armament, complement, etc. Though a few of these tables include data from Haruna’s several reconstructions, the main body of text barely acknowledges that these reconstructions even took place, much less provides any information about them. There is an endnote that states “More information concerning the ship’s modernization is presented in a separate chapter” . . . but, there is no such chapter. FYI, the tabular units are given in metric measurements.The meat of the book is the 68 pages of color photographs showing what the outside of the ship looked like in the fall of 1944, at the end of the refit done following the Battle of the Philippine Sea. Dozens and dozens of images show an incredibly realistic virtual rendering of the Haruna from pretty much every external angle you can possibly imagine (with the exception of a bottom-up view of the keel). The detail and clarity of these images is nothing short of breathtaking.However, there is an odd disconnect between the narrative beginning and the pictorial bulk of the book; the Haruna looked so different between being a battle cruiser and being a fast battleship that she might as well have been two separate ships; but there is little to no bridge to fill the gap between the battle cruiser narrative and the fast battleship pictures.Finally, there is a pull-out poster showing black-and-white line drawings of the ship as a whole and of various locations, such as the pagoda tower. The drawings are in 1/350 scale, which is helpful for anyone building a model of the ship in that scale who wants to compare their work against what the finished product should look like.“The Battleship Haruna” (Topdrawings). This book gives a single page of narrative description about the Haruna’s service life, in both English and Polish. Following are 22 pages of black-and-white line drawings of various portions of the outside of the ship, as she appeared in the fall of 1944. Unlike the Super Drawings book, which focuses on certain areas but shows everything in the background within camera range (as would happen if someone had been standing on the actual ship taking pictures), these drawings show the various sections in isolation, allowing the reader to more clearly focus on just those locations. There are also close-up views of each level of the pagoda mast, both in isolation and as part of the structure as a whole.The book comes with three pull-out posters. One of them shows color images of the entire ship from the port, starboard, and top sides; while the reverse side of the page shows an elevated view from the starboard quarter, showing the ship (as the caption puts it) “in all her glory.” These images are in 1/360 scale, a curious choice given that a model kit of the Haruna is available in the “close-but-not-quite” 1/350 scale. The other two posters show black-and-white line drawings of the port, starboard, and top sides in 1/200 scale. Of all the materials contained within the two books, these latter two posters are the best for showing how the rigging was mounted.Conclusion: I really can’t say which book is “best,” as they serve related but slightly different purposes. The Topdrawings book is more helpful in guiding the modeler through the steps of building the pagoda mast and other external features of the ship. But the Super Drawings book is far better in showing what the Haruna actually looked like, in as close to “real life” as anyone who didn’t walk her decks is ever likely to get. If one must choose between them, I would say that the Topdrawings book has the edge as an aid to actually building a model of the ship (though both of these books are excellent resources for such a project). But in my case, now that my model of the Haruna is complete and on display, the Super Drawings book is the one that I still enjoy thumbing through, while the Topdrawings book has served its purpose and now rests on my shelf.

See my review of Cruiser Chikuma.

This book like others in the series provide a great reference for model builders. The book includes a little operational history as well as all drawings are computer 3D rendered and very detailed.

A beautiful textbook of armoured shipbuilding in the early mid twentieth centuryA good read for people interested in this subject and a propulsion to new areasreally good

Internationaly unknown subject but well done resarch and super detail illustration as always if I can wish more I like to see moretop drawing views.

It's ship modeller's book. Love the deluxe printing. Excellent details that let you see details what's not found on normal plans, to really spice up your model. Would have given 5 stars if it were to incorporate the original as built configuration & various rebuilt throughout her life, maybe not in indepth detail as the final configuration, but may be just the bridge area so that we can see the progress. But in all a very satisfying book.

Beautiful series of Books! Just awesome!

Very good reference

Wie nahezu alle Bände der Serie "Super Drawings 3D" bietet auch die Folge "Fast Battleship HARUNA" auch die gewohnten 3D Ansichten mit detaillierter Beschreibung und Darstellung vieler Einzelheiten. Damit ist auch dieser Band wieder eine Fundgrube und exzellente Referenz für Modellbauer und Hobbyhistoriker. Das Schiff scheint wieder vor dem Auge auf zu erstehen.Aus meiner Sicht sehr empfehlenswert.

Como todos los productos de esta casa muy bien realizado y fiel a la historia. Una nueva forma de ver la Historia.

all of these 3D ship books are great, if a little brief. If you can get them at the issue price snap them up, as some tend to rocket up.