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Not my first kit, but first in 40 years! I started building this model that long ago, but 2 kids, and life interfered. I always told myself, "Tomorrow, tomorrow". Well. tomorrow has arrived. Now, if I can live long enough, I WILL finish her. These pictures are a start. Funny, I was having trouble taking good pics with my old camera(a Sony dslr), but picked up an older Nikon Coolpix, and man, what a difference! This is one beautiful camera. Only one problem. It shows warts and all. Looking at the pictures, I see every little flaw. Lots of paint touch-ups to do. I know I am not up to the standards of some (read any) of you, but I will give it my best!
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- Soleil Royal
- Heller
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While I’m new to MSW I am not new to model ship building. In my earlier life, I built two period sailing ships: Heller 1/200 L'indomptable and the Revell 1/96 Elizabethan Man ‘O War. Sadly, these did not survive the decades since I built them. My current project is the Heller 1/100 HMS Victory. While I say ‘current’ my story is similar to that of others in this forum. I bought my kit around about 1984 but a busy career and family life meant the project became an on-again off-again proposition. Clearly, more off than on. I am now retired and motivated to push this project to completion. The hull of my model is mostly complete but the rigging is a whole other challenge and I will need help. And lots of it. Ian Grant, who completed a fabulous rendition of this model has already been immensely helpful to me. A few pictures follow: . I’m told this is a 1st generation kit, C1979. I believe Heller is now into its 3rd iteration. Hard to believe but in 1984 this kit was $CDN180! I am re-doing the bowsprit standing and running rigging since I originally rigged it per the kit instructions. That is simply no longer acceptable 😊 I’m glad I completed most of the finicky painting - aft gingerbreads, balusters, coats of arms, etc. (quoting Billy Joel) “when I wore a younger man’s clothes” 😉 Good news is, while my eyesight isn’t as sharp as it once was, my hand is still pretty steady. I built this temporary enclosure to protect the model while also helping to keep it dust free. It still managed to collect dust! My main work area (I have another for sub-assemblies) looks quite ‘proper’ with the Brown Bess musket on the wall (I fashioned a whole new forestock for it), the contemporary picture of Victory in Portsmouth Harbour and the Victory crest. My wife says it looks like a shrine…and I’m ok with that too 😁 You can tell by this picture of my bar area that I’m all things ‘Nelson’ - the Britannia Triumphant poster, the rum ration cup with Nelson’s image, Nelson’s portrait (I also have a same sized portrait of Lady Hamilton) and the battle line serving tray. Since I was a very young lad, Horatio Nelson has always been my #1 hero. In my adult life I can honestly say I have never missed recognising Trafalgar Day (Oct 21st). Whether in quiet contemplation or a raised glass. Or both 😁
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Hello Everyone, While I’m new to MSW I am not new to model ship building. In my earlier life, I built two period sailing ships: Heller 1/200 L'indomptable and the Revell 1/96 Elizabethan Man ‘O War. Sadly, these did not survive the decades since I built them. My current project is the Heller 1/100 HMS Victory. While I say ‘current’ my story is similar to that of others in this forum. I bought my kit around about 1984 but a busy career and family life meant the project became an on-again off-again proposition. Clearly, more off than on. I am now retired and motivated to push this project to completion. I have poured through the building logs of several of the MSW members and am mind blown - while also a tad bit intimidated - by the quality of the builds and the amount of knowledge out there. I will need help. And lots of it. Many thanks in advance! Cheers, Malcolm
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- Victory 1:100
- Heller
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As I move into retirement (and the peasants rejoiced) I had wanted to spend some time focusing on rigging. Well, I was given this Heller Victory with the hull pretty much done. The backstory was the gentleman had passed away and this was picked up in an estate sale for next to nothing. His work was superior and once I saw the hull I decided this was a good subject for my goal. There was the inevitable broken components but that was largely confined to the royal masts and (of course) the jibboom. The accompanying box of parts was incomplete but I have another 1.5 of these in the stash (bit of a story there). I would have done some things differently (like the deck isn't painted) but for what I was going to use if for and for actual looks that was fine. I have a friend that already has asked to have it upon completion for his library at home, which is perfect. I have dissected the plans and have defined each and every line so am over that hump. I did notice some differences to actual practice. I have a set of the plans that Longridge uses in his book (thank you Uncle Leo) and have defaulted to that presentation where practical. For example the foremast stays did not include the Breast Backstay so I am adding that. Not going crazy or over the top but where it makes sense will make those changes (for example, will use the supplied plastic blocks). I looked through my stash of 'rigging' line and have chosen to use 6 types. The Heller supplied line is white and didn't want to dye. So this morning after getting the remnants of the broken pieces removed and things prepped, went ahead and primed the necessary replacements. I am using Vallejo acrylics. It will be interesting to see how close I can get to the existing yellow shade. I should be working on this at least 2 days a week at a minimum. My first task is to scratch some open and closed hearts for the fore and main mast stays. These seem pretty iconic and need to be there but aren't included in the kit. Stay Building My Friends, Mark.JPG.79990ac9a03ccb5863611932cf047da2.JPG)
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Hello fellow shipwrights, i have, since i built my San Gabriel, wanted to build a Portuguese caravel. The kit should be here by Monday, so this is, for now, just a research log. My goal is to impress Woodrat and Steven (and myself) by only using firsthand, contemporary (or near-contemporary) sources for this theoretical reconstruction of a Portuguese caravel. This ship is based on the Heller Nina kit, which leaves a lot to be desired OOB, and this gives me a huge canvas for introducing historically accurate features into the build. My first order of business is to obtain a reliable feed of information. Or, i could just wait until Steven is done with his San Marco ship, and steal whatever rig he decides to use. This is what the ship should look like when it's finished:
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Another Heller Soleil Royal in 1/100 scale... but I started this 45 years ago as a freshman in high school. After 2 years, I had much of the hull assembled.. and then the model sat... I was too busy with sports and school, and then I went off to college in 1980. The hull sat as a "prison ship" in my parent's basement, and then my basement. Over the years, gun lids and other small parts fell off; I don't know why I never threw the model away. About a month ago, I somehow stumbled on this website and marveled at what people were doing with this kit! However, after not having done any modeling for 45 years, I decided that if I were to start with a new kit, I would start with the Heller HMS Victory. I told myself that HMS Victory would be my gift to me in the summer of 2024.... until one night last week, I took the Soleil Royal "hulk" down from storage. The thought occurred "what if??"... and I slowly manged to pull the poop deck free from the hull with no damage. Within two hours, I had broken the hull and the decks and - you name it - apart with basically no damage. Now what? I knew that I had to get the old enamal paint off, so a soft plastic brush and lengthy soakings in isopropyl alcohol got almost all of the paint off. In the last week, after studying what other people had done, I realized that I needed to create fenders, drill rope holes for gun port lids, etc. That's it... I devour the build logs of other people and realized the possibilties were practically endless. I am actually really excited - as if I feel like a kid again! The HMS Victory may have to wait a bit, as the Soleil Royal will help me develop some much needed skills.
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- Ship of the line
- Heller
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This will be the first time in more than 60 years that I will be building a model of a ship NOT built in the 1800s. It comes about because I am just finishing up a 1:15 radio-controlled model of the Norwegian designer/builder Colin Archer's prototype rescue vessel notably called 'Colin Archer' (a Billings Boat kit). In looking forward to my next project, I told my wife that I was thinking of a radio-controlled paddle wheeler. She said, "Why not do Columbus' ships and we'll put them on top of the book case - all lined up." A most interesting idea since it sort of implies long term display and I have never kept any model for more than 2 or 3 years. So I thought about it and decided that it was a great idea with two conditions. 1-- I would use a plastic kit as a starting point because I do not want to commit a huge amount of time to this project and 2-- I would use the 1966 book Columbus' Ships by Jose Maria Martinez-Hidalgo and edited by Howard I. Chapelle as my exclusive source. My intention is to modify the kit to match Hidalgo's informtion where-ever practical and use the kit's intrinsic information everywhere else. The second posting will describe how well the three hulls in Heller's kit match the hulls described by Hidalgo.- 18 replies
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- Santa Maria
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This set of build pictures took place over 15 years. I originally started the build back in 2006 and it kept getting shoved aside for other customer models. I'd get some free time and take her off the shelf, do a little work, stick her back on the shelf. I broke out the pictures by album: Hull, Deck, Cannons, etc. The model was completed this past spring, and she took a first place in the regional IPMS contest. The model was donated at a Silent Auction for Safe Harbor Battered Womens Clinic this past fall. As some of you may know, I lived in South Louisiana in Chalmette and was hit by Katrina, Although, I have over 800 pics of the damage from our old city, I'll post just a few of my home and old Model shop. Although I was above sea-level you can still see the water reach 7'5" on the wall, the workshop went completely underwater. I dug through the mud and salvaged as many model kits as possible, the Heller Chebec being one. I lost many fully rigged ships and many other models as well. 22ft of muddy water washed into our Parish (County to the rest of you). These are the pictures of the house after gutting and model workshop which I had custom built 16x10. After the storm we moved North by 30 miles to Lacombe, LA. into a new home, where I rebuilt a 10x20 model shop.
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Hello fellow builders and lurkers, Though not quite new in modelbuilding, this is my first ever 18th century sailing ship. I am using Boudriot's 74 gunship as reference but I mainly try to get a feeling for the technics used for the scale and what I can and can't do. The build will be slow because I will try to not burn myself out on it. First of all, I used to colours that Heller suggested, but I am open to suggestions! The carriages are in the red that Heller sugests I cleaned the gunbarrels after I painted them, Maybe next time I'll do it before. I decided to divert from Heller's sugestion and painted the guns black and add a bit of gunmetal with drybrushing, still not sure if it looks okay Guns, Guns, Guns And Carriages The guns completed, only the small caliber has no drybrush In Boudriot's work I found the way the cannons are rigged. I think that on this scale the small blocks, tacks and cables are maybe not realy necessary but I did try to do some fitting for the heavy ropes. Not sure if this is the way to go. Again I am open to suggestion Cannon with rigging Next, I tried my hand on etching some planks in the lower deck. I am thinking of adding some interior instead of only the heavy guns. It is absolutly not my best work, but it was my first try on a place that is not clearly visible in my final work. I also braided the cables for the anchors, just to do something different. Etched deck and dryfit So, this is all I did last month, just to give you an idea about how slowly I am going . Tips and sugestions are more than welcome! Kind regards
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- Le Superbe
- Heller
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There's quite the story behind this one. This is a model I have walked past for years at my local hobby shop, before this event took place. I have a great uncle who lives in Reno Nevada that i rarely get to see. Well, my dad and his girlfriend went to see him yesterday, and i got to talk to him on the phone. He said he wanted me to build a ship for him to display at his house, and this is the story thereof. I was able to go to the model shop a few hours ago and pick this up. Another comment: The stated scale of the ship (1/150) is laughably inaccurate. This replica of a ~100 foot ship builds to around 19 inches. A 1/150 model of said ship would build to about 9 inches. The math computes to a scale of about 1/64, and to back that up, this is actually the same mold as the 1/64 Revell mayflower. I am impressed by the size, which i consider purely a canvas for extra detail that's impossible to put onto a smaller scale ship. As for painting, I will likely base the majority of the paintwork, especially the upper paintwork, on the box art as well as my Golden Hinde. Ready? Here we go!
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I guess we’ll find out if this forum has the patience for another Heller 1/100 Soleil Royal build log. This one will be focusing on changes, mods, upgrades, additions, styrene-bashing, and general mess-making in pursuit of something just a little different from the boxtop. Hello modelers—my name is John. I’m a lifelong plastic model kit enthusiast who never builds anything according to instructions. I first saw Heller’s 1/100 Soleil Royal when, as a commercial art student, I worked for a short time at Revell in Venice, CA, airbrushing backgrounds for box cover art. It was around 1978–79. One of the big shots had the unbuilt Heller kit opened on his desk. I was gobsmacked, and vowed to build the kit one day. Unfortunately, display space at home was scarce, and I knew that the model wouldn’t survive the irregularities and frequent moves of a twentysomething punk’s lifestyle. I kept putting off getting the kit until things got settled a bit. Now, 45 years later, I figure it’s now or never. In the half-century the kit’s been in production, it’s been controversial, an inspiration for a lot of palaver and condemnation. For a supposed “scale” model, there’s a lot that’s questionable about it, and if you aren’t familiar with the shortcomings, it’s because you haven’t read the other Soleil Royal build logs yet. However, the more I read and the more knowledge I picked up, the better this kit looked. I decided I could build an attractive representation of one of Louis XIV’s premier rang (first rate) ships-of-the-line from this kit. It would be impressive, if not wholly accurate. Many features would be exaggerated, but I’ve never had a problem with a certain degree of caricature modeling in small scales. I’m not a fine-scale modeler. I’m familiar with all the compromises accepted in other categories of modeling. Why not ships? Besides, I had decided my Soleil Royal would look different from the usual. I love to add stuff and change the detailing on kits. I haven’t found a kit yet I couldn’t customize. Here’s what I started with in November, 2022. The kit is beautiful, well-detailed and nearly free of flash and mold lines. State of the art when it was released in 1974. Parts fit well and the few large pieces that were slightly warped (no kit is perfect) were fixable with a little work. The box was delivered in November. I stared at the pieces for a while and then started reading reference books, websites, and build logs. I learned a lot from other Soleil Royal build logs on this forum and others. I am continually delighted, amazed, and entertained by the work of Marc LaGuardia (Hubac’s Historian) and his correspondents. The work I’ll be showing off here is the direct result of the knowledge they have generously shared. I’m a metaphorical fig newton, standing on the shoulders of giants, or however it goes. I didn’t clip a sprue or squeeze a glue tube until February, but here’s what my project looked like in August, after six months work—finally ready for masts and rigging. (More beauty shots at the end of the post.) I propose to show how I got to this point in weekly posts that will also contain some hopefully-interesting-slash-useful history and background of the ship. There’s a lot of stray information (and disinformation) about this ship floating around, and I’m going to try and assemble all the important bits in one place. The prototype was a remarkable work of Baroque art as well as a weapon of war. A floating castle of death-dealing artillery decorated by the same artistes who built and filigreed the palace of Versailles. The dichotomy is delicious. SO WHAT IS BEHIND HELLER’S KIT? The model is patterned after an 1837 wooden ship model in Paris’s Musée National de la Marine, made by the skilled ship modelmaker Jean-Baptiste Tanneron. You’ll be hearing about the Tanneron model a lot. Copying it was a logical thing for the Heller mold-crafters to do, since it was the only well-known detailed representation of the Soleil Royal from historic times. One of the first things I did was tape together half the hull and propped it up to make a comparison photo. But copying the Tanneron model brought Heller problems. The first is the true identity of the ship. There were three ships built in Louis XIV’s time named Soleil Royal. The first was built in 1668–70. Hereafter, I’ll call that one Soleil Royal I. The second was a from-the-keel-up rebuild of the first ship in 1688–90. That’s Soleil Royal I(a). The third was a new ship built in 1692–93, Soleil Royal II. All three were 100+-gun premier rang three-decker royal flagships, extravagantly ornamented to reflect the glory of Louis XIV, le Roi Soleil, the Sun King. The Musée de la Marine is noncommittal about which ship Tanneron’s model represents. According to Heller’s literature, the kit represents the first two ships (considered as one), which met its fate in an encounter with an English fire ship in 1692. I’ve come to believe this is the wrong ship. Heller is partially to blame for the confusion, but in their defense, the Heller die-makers working in the early 1970s didn’t have the instant access to books and internet information we enjoy today, and the museum authorities they consulted were apparently not very helpful. The second major problem with the model is that the hull has too shallow a draft. According to surviving records, the 2400-ton 170-foot ship should have a draft of 24 feet. The Tanneron and Heller models—nope! Third, to compound the problem, the above-the-waterline dimensions are exaggerated. The gundecks have lots of headroom—eight feet, compared to the six feet on actual 3-decker warships. There would be very few cases of concussion by clumsy gunners going bonk on overhead beams if they sailed on a ship with Tanneron’s dimensions. Here’s the Heller model with a scale line drawing of another ship from the same time period, the Foudroyant: Aaaand… let’s quit there. Let’s not even discuss the height and width of the stern. What was Jean-Baptiste Tanneron thinking? Unfortunately, we can’t ask without a ouija board. It should be noted, however, that before the invention of photography, representations of historical objects in artwork (or sculpture, or modelmaking) weren’t anywhere near modern standards of accuracy. Living in an information-and-photography-saturated society, our attitudes about fidelity to prototypes have evolved a lot. For myself—I think the impression of a tall, castle-like warship is enhanced by Tanneron’s exaggeration of the proportions. And this is no modern interpretation. Have a look at the only eyewitness sketch of one of the Soleil Royals in action. Look how high the exaggerated sheer is in the drawing and compare that to the Tanneron model. Oh yeah! Both artists made this ship big, and high, and a true seagoing fortress. That should be the biggest takeaway from seeing artwork or a model of this leviathan. I think the Tanneron model (and the Heller kit) gets the point across nicely. So in the end, if you choose to build the Heller Soleil Royal, you’re really building a model of a 19th-century model, and it’s a caricature model anyway. For complete intellectual honesty, you should get out your wood-colored paints and wood-grain-duplicating techniques and make the model look as if it were carved from fine hardwoods; a model of Tanneron’s model. That would be a commonsensical approach. Fortunately for me, I have no common sense when it comes to models. I want have fun detailing, painting, and rigging a plastic model ship. Here are more photos of my progress up to August, 2023. Not much gold leaf on my version of the ship. After some reading, I don’t believe there was a great deal of gilding on the prototype. Figuring out what to paint the ship, based on surviving descriptions, old artwork, historical painting practices, and antique models, was a major part of the research. Paint choices and decorations will be discussed in later posts. Deck furniture got changed. Many trips to Ikea. Much time was pi—ah, productively spent—rigging tiny guns and rebuilding tiny boats. Guns were either replaced or rearranged and drilled out to the right calibre. Colorful gunport lids will be installed as soon as I finish the channels and shrouds. 104 guns were mounted, same as the ship had in the period I’m trying to model (very early 1700s). The waterline got raised to squeeze in a few more feet of draft. Quarter galleries got entirely rebuilt to better resemble a surviving historical drawing. I believe that the enclosed “bottle” quarter galleries on late 17th-century French warships had removable panels—whether for weather or for war. I left the upper gundeck balcony open to demonstrate this. Most of the ship’s gilding is up high—out of the way of waves and wear. Wasn’t happy with the too-big kit-supplied figures, plus, I needed a few new ones to match the drawing of the quarter galleries I was referencing, so I sourced new figures from the Shapeways 3D-print marketplace. Figuring out all the ship’s iconography was a deep research rabbit-hole, but a rewarding one. For the curious, the figures on the forward edges of the quarter galleries are Kronos, “father time,” (starboard), and his consort Rhea, mother of the Olympian gods (port). The other two figures are replacements for the kit’s too-large allegorical figures of America (port, with feathers) and Africa (starboard, with elephant-head headdress). The figures were “dressed” with additional sheet styrene. Next week we’ll get the project going by seeing what mods and additions were made to the hull, plus background on the three Soleil Royals and the whys behind which one I’m modeling. I invite discussion in the meantime. Happy modeling 'till then!
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- Soleil Royal
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SOLEIL ROYAL - HELLER 1/100 (side project) At the moment I am refurbishing part of the house including my humble workroom. So atm I haven't technically been doing any major construction work regards to my kit. This is a big project but A SIDE ONE for me as when my workroom and other refurbish are bk to normal I will be starting a main project in wood. I actually started this a few weeks ago but didn't want to start a build log for obvious reasons, plus the fact even now I still don't have a true picture of where I will go with this, other than the fact I will be to a certain extent heavily improvising on her, which I have started. I wanted to have wooden decks throughout so I meaured the sizes of the planking on the decks, calculated how much I needed and bought in 80 x1metre lengths 3mm x 0.5mm lime wood. The planking has gone really well and I have now finished it all, I also stained this with a Dark oak stainer. The Hulls I was unsure about but went with the kit instructions using Humbrol brown yellow and a lot of drybrushing, this came out darker than expected but realising this was because the mouldings of my kit Hulls are solid black(I used the same brown yellow on my complete Royal Louis but since that mould was in white hence the colour originally close to what it should be). That said I was quite pleased with the darker finish and it gave it more of a weathered look. I thought the bottom of the Hull needed to be slightly darker though so I used a Humbrol Dark brown wash over the brown yellow and it really came up to what I wanted. I have also drilled holes in the hull sides for the addition of pulleys for the Gunport Hatches. Atm I am now just building and painting the guns. I've finished the 24lb(x24) and have just started the 18lbers. I was originally thinking to replace them all after sales but found it well nigh impossible to get the correct type of gun and in 4 different correct sizes, so I've had to stay with the kit supplied ones. I have also bought in relevant wooden Deadeyes(triangular), cloth flags and rigging thread. Looking a bit further forward I want to replace all the masts and yards with wood other than that I don't know exactly where I will go with her, other than keep painting and weathering parts, I may well add other things like metal anchors and Rudder chain etc... Apologies for the long intro and in hindsight I probably should have posted earlier, but this will be a long drawn out build a bit like this post lol... On to the photos.....
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- soleil royal
- Heller
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Some time ago I received the Le Superbe kit in 1:150 scale from Heller. Since shipbuilding modeling has always intrigued me a lot, I decided to take a shot and assemble this model as best I could. While I have some experience with plastic models, I've never built a sailing ship, so I don't plan on doing a lot of modifications. This will be a very long report, assuming I have enough persistence to complete the build. As someone who lives a busy life and always in a hurry, I try to build slowly and carefully, getting as much enjoyment as possible from the process itself. Since I only build when the family is already asleep, I have a lot of quiet 🙂 However, this also causes a difficulty: I can't afford to tinker with the model as often as I would like. The man who writes the instructions for Heller should probably change profession, although just deciphering the diagrams is fun in itself. So far I'm terrified of the rigging stage, but I'm trying to solve one problem at a time. Wish me luck and persistence. I also thank you in advance for all your advice and tips. Regards, Piotr
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- Le Superbe
- Heller
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Hello, my parents paid for the kit today and I decided to prepare the thread here in advance too since I've been in a research phase for a month(since I never did sailing ships before, I prefer to know my subject and where I'm going). I made a short list of modification (bound to change overtime) of my model after seeing builds of both 1669 and 1693 SR (I like seeing builds of the ship for inspiration, no matter the model company, scale or time period choosed by the builder, I can stil lget something useful for my 1669 SR), here it is: -The more I think about it, the more I might do it as a waterline, it'll make correcting the stern easier and I can still use heller stand, no obligation for a diorama -New figurehead/ornaments/moldings -Incresed breadth so I can incorporate 6 windows with a door as described in the original royal louis description on gallica -increase decks size using plastic/styren sheet -new flags -1 more chase gun on both sides of the bow -openning the original heller quarter gallerys (I find it funny they are on the boxart, but not on the kit) -more detailed and incresed gun breadth, inspired by Hubac build -ornament (such as fleur de lys) on the opened port lid (I don't think I'll open all of them) -2 more guns on the stern For the color, I think I'll go for a full white hull with blue stern and forecastle, ocher, touches of gold and red . I got a edition without a new notice, I wonder is it necessary for the build or not? I like the other boxart too: http://hellerpassionmaquettes.blogspot.com/2007/01/le-soleil-royal-vedette-de-la.html Thanks for fellowing my build and helping me on my research and getting it right! -
my interest in polar exploration vessels continues! seen this on a popular auction site and couldnt resist😁. While i will be using the kits hull and superstructure i will be replacing the masts and yards with walnut dowelling and will use model aircraft tissue for the sails (first time doing this so heres hoping)! Everything was in the kit except for the stand and transfers and the seller had printed out a copy of the Zvezda instructions who took over this kit! Pic 1- box art pic 2 and 3 inside the box pic 4- progress so far and plastic kit lower masts pic 5- superstructure sub assemblies pic 6- with walnut lower masts cut to length The hull was warped and needed a lot of clamping while the glue set -probably down to where the kit was stored and the box looks like it was under a bit of weight- there are a few ejection pin marks to cure on some of the roofs but overall mouldings are good. Take care all Keith
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- Pourquois Pas
- Heller
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Ok all my MSW friends that were there with me, and for me, during my HMS Victory build. I will soon be pulling the plastic off my next adventure the Heller 1/100 Le Soleli Royal. Both of these Heller models grabbed my attention when I first saw them. I had an incredible experience building the Victory. I could not have done it without all my friends here on MSW. Please feel free to begin filling this blog with your suggestions and advice. It will probably be a couple weeks before I start it. I must first build the display case for my Victory.
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- Le Soleil Royal
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Hi I joined this forum a few months ago and after reading other ship builds I decided to do one myself. This is my first time doing this and would like any help from other members will be appreciated. I've already stated and I know it is going to take along time. -
So at the encouragement of others on this site I have decided to start my own build log. I've been a lurker on other builds for a while now, especially Dafi's and Bill97. I'm going to have a ton of questions and need a lot of advice so as to avoid hijacking those threads I'll ask here. I'm hoping to provide enough of a step by step on this build to help others, as others have already helped me immensely. I'm not certain my work will be as good as theirs though. Before I begin I'll give a little background on myself. I've been out of modeling for over 30 years and just recently got back into it to spend more time with my teenage boy. We started building the Revell 1/72 Gato together and it accomplished exactly as I was hoping, much needed quality time together. His interests quickly turned to airplanes so he abandoned me to work on his own projects leaving me to finish the Gato by myself. We sit together though with him on his airplanes and me on my boats. When I was a teenager I started the 1/96 Uss Constitution and got to the point of rigging when my little brother and his friend decided to take it outside and use it for a BB gun target. In my memory I remember the build being museum quality. In actually it probably looked like it was built with construction adhesive and crayons. I've always wanted to try my hand at building a tall ship again and after finishing the Gato I was looking for another kit and came across the Heller Victory. I watched a ton of videos on YouTube and decided to give it a go. I live in a rural part of Utah in the U.S. so everything I do has to be mail order. The kit arrived in the mail and I quickly thought I might have but off a bit more than I can chew. Especially after looking at Hellers instructions, if you can call them that. I definitely want to make the best model possible so I immediately ordered the Dafi etch set. I ordered all except the grates. It arrived in the mail yesterday and it is absolutely amazing. I'm not necessarily worried about making an exact historical replica. I just want it to be close for the casual observer and look good. I've begun the kit now and will post pictures in the next post of my progress. I'm still working full time as a law enforcement Officer so I won't be able to work on and post a much as others, but by little steps I'll finish the kit. I look forward to all of the help, advice and especially encouragement that I've already seen from this group. -
I actually began building this model in 1978 but it's spent most of the time since then languishing in a box packed with Styrofoam peanuts as I moved around the country. Now it's complete at last freeing me up to finish other incomplete ships. My apologies for the mediocre photos. Best Regards, Gary
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After an 18 year paternity leave I am returning to model ships with Heller's 1/150 scale Le Superbe. I am a British-born Canuck who spent many days in the 1980s at the https://www.historicdockyard.co.uk/ waiting for the ferry to my grandparents on the Isle of Wight, and am a fan of all things RN/RCN. I will be completing the kit as HMS Spartiate as I imagine she may have looked at Trafalgar. For colours I plan to use this excellent model of HMS Vanguard, as I like the blue side railings, red on the stern, and the yellow ochre sides (rather than the orange used until recently on HMS Victory). The instructions are in French, but they have an English list at the back. Still, as a good Canadian I have a smattering of French language buried away from my university days that may prove useful. I've chosen HMS Spartiate as my goal as she was one of the approx. twenty French Téméraire-class captured by the British, but one of only two that served with Nelson at Trafalgar. She then went on to serve as British flagship to the South Atlantic squadron well into the 1830s. A good, long history of service, unlike the actual Le Superbe.
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I have just discovered the excellent and highly informative construction report from safemaster about the "Real" from Heller. Since I am currently working on the same model but have quite a different display intent, it might be interesting for some if I post a construction report here. I built the model about ten years ago, and since then I have actually managed to save the extremely fragile ship undamaged through several moves. In the meantime, however, I've seen myself a little fed up with it, and while researching the Internet, I had an idea for a far-reaching modification. Here are some pictures of the model as I built it ten years ago. It can be clearly seen that I have chosen much paler colors than safemaster. Otherwise, in my opinion, the similarities between our models predominate. I'll go into that later. Schmidt
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OK my MSW friends. I am going to need a kick to get me started on my Heller 1/100 HMS Victory. I know it is going to be a long and enjoyable process so I have to eventually get started. I got the kit a good while ago but have only removed the plastic wrapper and peeked inside. Meanwhile I continue working on a previous build but see the box containing that beauty setting there in my peripheral vision. I have spent countless hours reading the build log of other Victory builders. That may be part of my reason for delay. Each time I have my mind set on how I want to proceed once I start I see an idea or technique someone has used and think “Wow that is what I want to do!” So I guess my concern is doing something a certain way then later seeing a better way and being disappointed. My initial internal debate is the process used to paint the hull, especially the stern? I think by far the design of the stern and the paint scheme is so distinctive on the Victory. You see it you know it is the Victory! So beautiful! If you are now building, or did in the past, what was your method to apply the black and yellow ochre.
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I decided to do a quick build of a 1/600 Queen Mary 2. I'm going to try to build all the 1/600 ocean liners available before I move back to the larger scales.
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Hello friends in the as unsolvable closed thread about TERRIBLE - here the link to all that are interested: we figured out very important content about the close relative of SOLEIL ROYAL 1668 - the ROYALBDUC later rebaptisted to REYNE/REINE. The renaming may also been gone aside withba more sorber decoration. This realtionship was announced by Marc with the followingbsimple few and important words: "As a side note: La Reyne is the closest known corollary to Soleil Royal. Same yard, same designer, built a year apart, and only slightly shorter in length and breadth. The sheer presence of SR would have been very similar to this vessel. Perhaps, she was a little bit taller at the stern in 1670, if she carried a poop royal deck." In stead of a repetition of the development of the knowledge let us jump into the important points we do have as evidence and knowledge: Sometimes you can trust in Wikipedia more https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_ship_Royal_Duc_(1668) than in a 26 year old book of Jean Boudriot who's discriptions show a 76 gun ship. On page 319 we do finde some information we do not got presented unter the First Sunking's Navy at the very beginning. So the key documents of ROYAL DUC are the following tetralogy: and as scaled(!!!) drawing of the transom. The pure amount of details in these 380 year old drawings is incredible : The galliin is very Dutch innstyle with its V-shaped structure and the figure head shows a horse riding man with a (kind of duke's crown or) contemporary stylish turban. There are a four circle round gunports for the VIII pounder guns of the backdeck. When we do walk along the hull aft we pass the cathead coming to the fenders and stairs This pictures of four tiers of gunnery's muzzels gives an impressive picture of the pure force brought to the battle line by ROYAL DUC in her two beattes she fought. She took part in the two beattes of Schoonveld on the 7. and 13. VI. 1671 (N.S.) and as LE REYNE thevship took part in the a beatte of Texel on 21. VIII. 1673. Under both names she acted as flagship of Vice-Admiral Jean d'Estrées. Turning to the quater gallery there arebstraight structured of an (fake?) window enclosed single tier with lozenge lead structure. The very first window is/can be used as a gunport. (In the middle of the Anglo-Dutch-War this may have been a secret information... were the vdVs spys in their second profession?) The deck above the nicely shaped and figured roof isn't integrated in a kind of bigger artwork and so the officer's accomodation only got a pair of luxuriously framed windows. The coat is usualy ermine (stoat/short tailed weasel) in heraldic symbolism looking like this: Allways black on a white background - not to be confused with a fleur-de-lis! When we look at this vdV ink paintung we do recognize easily that foreward looking gunport in front of every battery deck below&beside the gallion. The wide gap between the piercings through the hull is very interesting. These for now I do hope on a cooperation with Cederic due to support e ach other. ROYAL DUC had hat the following armament : LD 16 × XXXVI ryl. frc. pound 14 × XXVIII rfp MD 30 × XVIII rfp UD 26 × VIII rfp F'c'st'l&QD: 18×VI rfp ,Here both views added to each other. ROYAL DUC's scilpturing program was more elaborated than the one after her rebaptism. So I have to look for differences like a hawk to figure out what ship is infont of me on the paper.
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Starting my New Build of 2021.... The "ROYAL LOUIS" 1/200 - Heller. The Drawing of the Hull, the distribution of the artillery and rigging were drawn from a description of the ship's lines by Comte d'ESTAING dated 25 September 1772. The building plans were prepared by the famous Naval architect MR, OLLIVIER. The ROYAL LOUIS was a first rate ship, it was armed with 120 cannons, including 32 x 36 calibre guns each weighing nearly 5 Tonnes. In 1779-1780, ROYAL LOUIS was a lead ship of the Blue-White Squadron, which was part of the so-called "Comte d'ESTAING" America Squadron. Prep work done to Hulls inside and out to make the paintwork more applicable. Cannon carriages started, 4 different sizes, 40 done only another 80 to go, then on to the Cannons themselves. This will be the most time consuming painting within the kit itself, even more so than the stern gallery architecture. 648 parts plus alterations, Big job ahead, quite probably replacing the masts with wooden ones as well. Happy modelling everyone Staysafe and take care 🤺🤺🤺⚓⚓⚓
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