For the first time here, a full hull non-N scale display model of the popular Great Lakes Towing Company’s 81-foot tug is now available. The model is nine inches long—the maximum I can print 3D with my current generation of printers—or about 108:1 scale.

Of course, full hull and waterline models are available in N and Z scale. The N and Z models are available with or without stands. Without stands they can be loads on freight cars or laid up on a cradle in a boatyard. In N scale the tugs are 6” (154 mm) long; in Z scale they are 4.4” (112 mm) long.

The Indiana is a member of a GLT class dating back to the 1930s. Fifteen of the class have been recently refurbished.

The 9” display model is $399 plus shipping. The display stand and brass pedestals and propeller are $75 additional. N and Z scale kits are $89 plus shipping; completed waterline models are $279 plus shipping and insurance; completed full hull model are $299 plus shipping, with pedestals and stands $50 additional.

History

From the company’s website: ”The Great Lakes Towing Company is a significant marine operations link in North America’s U.S. Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence Seaway marine transportation network –the fourth seacoast of the United States, an operating area that extends over 8,300 miles of shoreline, encompassing a water surface area of roughly 100,000 square miles. Towing Company services include ship assist, cargo transportation and logistics, ice breaking, and emergency assistance of every kind of vessel, barge, and marine structure.   No other towing company can match this range of service. The Company owns, operates, and charters a fleet of tugboats for service in over 40 U.S. Ports on the Great Lakes.”