James H

I promise that as soon as the stuff lands, I'll do some photos and they'll form the start of a Build Log that I'll link here and in my signature. The kit is scheduled to be here on Monday, so you can bet by the end of that day, or Tuesday, there will be a proper log for it. Work on it won't start for about a couple of weeks after that as I'll be going away, but at least you'll see the materials and it'll be 'official' 😆

It's there now. The product didn't want to show on a specific kit category, but now it's sorted. You can pre-order! https://vanguardmodels.co.uk/product/order-164-hms-flirt/

I do have some news for you on this. Amati have now shipped the Victory out via DHL, and it should be with me on Monday. I'll then post some pics etc.

It's frustrating. They have all the stuff being kitted, but they are also very busy with fulfilling orders post-lockdown too. But hey, we've waited for 7yrs, so I suppose another week or so doesn't matter.

Welcome to MSW, Tom. You'll soon have plenty more to see about that Victory kit here. Are you planning a build before Victory?

I'm on hiatus until a large parcel turns up from Italy. 😆

I spent the last weeks bending Chris's ear about stuff. You've him to thank for Flirt 😆

I want one of those lathes too, with the extension bed.

Pretty much. I've been doing book and magazine work for about 10yrs in a lot of international titles, but that was in plastic modelling. I just needed to adapt it to wooden ships, which takes up far more space 😆

Well, this is it folks, it's all done. It's taken me just under 11 weeks from start to finish, and that's around 10 days longer than I planned, simply because I've had to re-learn rigging again. The last time I did a fully-rigged warship was about 13yrs ago, so I was just a little rusty. I rigged this model in about 12 or 13 days, in total. I actually re-learned swear words that I'd also long forgotten. I have cut corners, there's no doubt, but that's more through necessity as I know Chris needed to get this kit sorted. Ordering the boxes is by far one of the longest jobs when it comes to wait times. But I can tell you that the model will now be available in early August (tentatively), and in standard and Master Shipwright editions. Please ignore the strange rear shroud line in this first photo. They don't cross. It was just me moving blocks etc. And here is the finished model, in various angles. Remember that the launch is only in one shot for effect as that will only be included in the Master Shipwright edition, and not shown on the box art. And here's the manual's cover... For me now, it's a very short break before I plough into the Amati Victory which I've just been told is being kitted for me at this moment. Hope you liked the Flirt build! I know it's abridged, but you can see the full manual in the kit

If you like those type of ship, then go for it. OcCre's kits are well presented with good instructions and some of their range have videos too.

Ok, I've had a play with your settings. See if that works now.

Will the sails be pre-stitched as shown?

Definitely! I'll follow that build, without a doubt.

I think you'd be ok with one strake. Don't beat yourself up over it. Pretty sure there were so many variations in stuff with the strakes. You'll love that pear when under varnish. Under polyurethane it looks great!

No, the box says it's 230mm wide. The height is 470mm.

You'll have about 2yrs from when I start to build this, to it being released, so you'll need to make sure that money is well looked after!

I think that sometimes, because the model is something like 'Victory', large and expensive, there is a tendency to call it 'Expert', when in fact, if you've built a few smaller models, you could probably tackle it. Sort of like 'Intermediate'.

Sorry to hear about the death, especially at this awful time too. Lovely work on Speedy. I'd be real pleased with that. Certainly nothing there that I can point out for anything.

I hope you'll enjoy the build. Any questions about it, and maybe anything I've not shown or later stages, feel free to ask.

There'll be more than one manual too. Maybe 2 or 3 manuals, depending on how Amati format it. I will try to make it as foolproof as possible, and Chris's design is such that it lends itself to ease of building. I think if you've got a few other kits under your belt, this is within a modeller's reach. Oh, and...

It is quite surprising just how high that waterline does go, but it's correct. There's very little space between it and the strakes.....enough for the white boot and some bare wood above it. Nice to see this coming along!

I have the 31 sheets of plans. Parts should be with me in the next week.

Dang, your second planking is better than mine was! What a great job you've made. Sand her nice and smooth and make sure you at least fill in any slight gaps below the waterline area (if any).

Now now! My dye mix looked right at the time! 😆