this model has fairly good detale for it size. the pices are easy to work with but there is some very small pices so care should be taken went remove them from the stem. the pices go together well but one must have care with the small pices the decals give you two ships numbers and names. but with a number decal sheet a great number of this class can be built. For in is the most common config of this class.

Enjoy building this model. It looks like Tamiya used the same mold for the ship's main deck for both this ship and the Fletcher as I had to remove the shielding for the 20mm guns on both port and starboard sides due to the changes made for the later ships. Parts seemed to fit well together, just a bit tricky with the smaller parts such as search lights, etc due their size and my big fingers. Using this ship to be part of a planned diorama with a destroyer tender (using a Japanese sub-tender) and 3 or 4 US destroyers tied up alongside in a harbor setting. Have ordered the USS Livermore and Benson to use with the Cushing. I also had to purchase a small drill bit set as some holes need to be drilled before attaching some of the AA guns.

I bought this ship in a store a few years back, and just completed this recently. I was very pleased! It flew together in a matter of hours, and despite many small pieces it turned out great. I am very new to the hobby, so I thought it was great. Experienced hobbyists might find it too easy, but I don't know. The only downfall I saw was that there is a lack of detail on the deck itself. The open parts of the deck are rather bland, and some railings or rigging might have been nice. Also, there is a wall portion that needs to be cut off the main deck, and it's not easy to do; it also leaves 'scarring' on the deck. However, as I said, I am not very good at modelling and so that might be my own fault. Overall, I love it. It's not expensive and looks beautiful on display.