Thanks for the interest! I loved living in Vallejo during the early 80's. Unfortunately, after the local politicians threw the Navy out of the Bay Area, Vallejo fell apart and is a shadow of its former self. With all of the emphasis on naval shipbuilding these days, it would appear the move to shutter MINSY was . . . a bit premature.
As for personal model builds, my time is very limited. I'm designing highly-detailed 3D models of each class of Cold War US nuclear submarine. Each build takes about six months before I'm pleased with it and lock the 3D files down for later use. I typically give away the first build example as a gift for one of the guys in our local SubVets group who served aboard it.
Where pricing is concerned, decent models are not cheap. The usual pricing is between $65-80 an inch, and that's for a minimally detailed, wooden model lathed in the Philippines. Here are two 637 class examples from a pair of model makers to give you a more accurate price point:
SD Model Makers: (5-month delivery time) Their smallest version (12" long) runs $1200 before adding extras. Their largest 637 (1/80 scale) is $3590. This is as close to the scale of the model I have displayed in this thread, which is slightly larger in 1/72. Note the details are minimal.
https://www.sdmodelmakers.com/product/sturgeon-class-submarine-model-12-inch/
Squadron Nostalgia offers a 20" model for $425. Again, it's made of wood, so the detailing is minimal. Here's a link to their closest boat, the Richard B. Russell, which filled in while Parche went through her second Projects conversion in the 90's.
https://squadronnostalgia.com/product/uss-richard-b-russell-ssn-687-submarine-model/
I think this vendor would be a more economical way to honor your husband's contribution than what I could ever offer.
I've been offered some crazy money for my finished work and/or the 3D files I create, but monetizing this hobby of mine is about five years away at the earliest. Design work is prioritized over production. I do a little custom work on a-not-to-interfere basis, but those submarine-related projects are for our local SubVets STEM-outreach programs.
At the annual National Submarine Vets Convention three years ago, I took a 1/72 Nautilus (a little over four feet long) as a table decoration for the last night's awards ceremony. Afterwards, a bunch of former Nautilus crewman gathered around the table, and I asked them to throw stones at it and tell me how I could improve it. All said it was good to go, which was the best compliment you'll ever get from a submariner. One of the attendees offered me $5k for it, which I declined, since it was my first large build and a prototype. (I'm kind of a perfectionist.)
Now that I've developed a really good "recipe" for the way I construct my hulls, I need to go back and re-design both Parche and Nautilus for both 1/72 and 1/144 scale. Going forward, most of my work will be in 1/144 scale since it's more practical for shelf or mantle display. The 1/72 models are huge! (Perfect for RC enthusiasts, so I design a second version for that application.)
Stick around, I'll be posting more of my works in progress here.
CC
