SMS Seydlitz was a battlecruiser of the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy), built in Hamburg. She was ordered in 1910 and commissioned in May 1913, the fourth battlecruiser built for the High Seas Fleet. She was named after Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz, a Prussian general during the reign of King Frederick the Great and the Seven Years' War. Seydlitz represented the culmination of the first generation of German battlecruisers, which had started with the Von der Tann in 1906 and continued with the pair of Moltke-class battlecruisers ordered in 1907 and 1908. Seydlitz featured several incremental improvements over the preceding designs, including a redesigned propulsion system and an improved armor layout. As with the rest of the German battlecruisers that survived the war, the ship was interned in Scapa Flow in 1918. The ship, along with the rest of the High Seas Fleet, was scuttled in June 1919, to prevent her seizure by the British Royal Navy. She was raised on 2 November 1928 and scrapped by 1930 in Rosyth. SMS Seydlitz armament included ten 28cm (~11”) SK L/50 guns, twelve 15cm (~5.9”) SK L/45 guns, twelve 88mm (~3.5”) guns, and four submerged 50cm (~19.7”) torpedo tubes. The torpedo tubes are not included. Two of the 88mm guns were removed in 1916 and replaced with high-angle 88mm Flak L/45 anti-aircraft guns.

Master Model is a scale model metal detailing parts manufacturer located in Poland. Their lines include exquisitely detailed photo-etched and white metal replacement parts for aircraft and ships in the most commonly produced scales. This Master Model set provides a huge leap over any of the injected molded parts available on any 1/350 kit. Most ship gun barrels are over-scale due to the limits of injection modeling, not to mention successfully removing the sprue attachment points and sanding down the mold seams. [Please note that the green background photos are courtesy Master Model]. If you look close you can also see that the barrel tip flare is reproduced on the 88mm barrels.

Notable is the thin re-sealable pouches that Master Model uses that makes the parts easy to review and then stuff back into the re-sealable package securely. You will want to be careful handling these parts due to their small size, making them an easy sacrifice to the carpet monster. Another caveat is that the smaller gun barrels are really thin and can be accidently bent. I’ve had this happen before in 1/350 scale, but not to worry, it can be fixed. Placing the gun barrel in between a smooth flat set of tweezers will straighten out the tip. Just be extremely gentle so you don't break it when you gently roll it so that it is straight once again.

This Master Model set provides you with 30 turned aluminum and brass barrels, two metal paired barrel and ten resin parts. The ten 28cm SK L/50 guns are in aluminum with the remaining barrels in brass.

The ten 28cm SK L/50 guns will require you to be able to drill a 1.0mm (0.0394”, a #60 carbide drill bit is 0.0400”, a #61 carbide drill bit is 0.0390”) hole through the resin parts. The metal barrels themselves fit a bit loose in the resin parts, so you will need to be careful on making sure the completed assembly is straight. The resin parts are a direct replacement for Hobby Boss Part J4. I would note that clean-up of the resin parts is really not necessary since they will be hidden inside of the turrets. The twelve 15cm SK L/45 barrels are a direct replacement for Hobby Boss Part J20. Six of the 88mm SK L/45 barrels are a direct replacement for Hobby Boss Part K29.

The two deck-mounted 88mm Anti-Aircraft barrels will require careful following of the instructions. You will need to cut off the barrels of Hobby Boss Part J19 as shown in the instructions. I would use a photoetch razor saw to cut off the plastic barrels. You will also need to be able to drill a 0.4mm (0.0157”; a #78 carbide drill bit is 0.0160”, a 1/64” carbide drill bit is 0.0156”, and a #79 is 0.0145” carbide drill bit) hole to accept the machined brass barrels. I would recommend using a smaller drill bit than required and then move to the next larger size if needed. This will help ensure a tight fit. It is also critical to make sure the drill bit is properly centered in all three axes. Just follow the instructions and each gun barrel will only take a few minutes to complete.

Be sure to use your favorite thin CA (super glue) or epoxy, as the normal plastic glues or solvents will not react with the resin or brass. Due to the size of the parts, this is one set where you don’t want to use a gel, or thicker super glue. You will also want to be careful painting the parts to retain their sleek nature.

Highly recommended! This set is a super upgrade over the injected kit parts. These machined aluminum and brass barrels eliminate the need to deal with mold seams and sprue connections. They also present a more accurate barrel tip. This set would also probably enhance the resin Combrig and Iron Shipwrights 1/350 kits of the SMS Seydlitz. This excellent set will easily enhance your 1/350 SMS Seydlitz battlecruiser.

Thanks to Master Model and IPMS/USA for the opportunity to review this set.