James H

Hi Glenn, what do you refer to? This is exactly the same as Speedy, so far. There sure is. As the stern keel post is only 3mm thick, I prepared the MDF by tapering it to just over 1mm in thickness (about 1.5mm), down from the original 3mm., through the deadwood area. The first planking layer is 1.5mm thick on each side, so I didn't want to add another 3mm onto the MDF thickness at that point as the pear planking will make up the the correct thickness. If I'd planked that area, I would've just had to sand it away and still thin out the deadwood area.

I've still been putting my exile from my day job to good use and pushing forward on this build. Next up was adding the 0.8mm ply bulwarks. As with anything like this that has to try to conform to various compound curves, it can be a little testy, but a 30 min soak in hot water certainly helps to ease it into position. A series of pinning and clamping persuaded it too, once glue had been applied. the upper bulwark MDF ears were only lightly glued to the ply as these will be removed in a later stage before fitting the laser engraved deck. First planking is done with lime planks, 5mm wide and 1.5mm thick. There's more than enough bulkheads to get a good even finish, providing you faired them properly too. It's all Prep Prep Prep. These planks were glued with PVA and also tapered as necessary. Once planked, a thorough sanding was given, making sure no steps, unevenness or other anomalies would show on the shapes of the finished hull. The 4mm x 1mm pear strips are now cut into short lengths for the stern and stern counter etc. The rudder post is temporarily clamped in position so that I can plank up to it on either side without any guesswork. The edges of this are then sanded flush with the hull sides. The pear 'master plank' is now fitted to each side. This isn't guesswork as there are laser cut marks on the bulwark that help you position this in the same place as the planking run for the wale. CA gel is used to glue into position as it gives some seconds to align things. A quick photo with a few deck things sat in position! The hull is now planked in pear from the master plank down to the keel. More as soon as I get time to edit photos!

She's coming along real nice. You'll have caught me up pretty soon 🤣

Welcome to MSW. Your work is exquisite.

Nah, don't bother. You can't see it even when you leave a grate off (well...barely!). It's certainly not going to impact on any construction anyway. 🤣

Is this a dry fit? Bulkhead 10 should be the other way round with the door opening on the port side, although I don't think it really matters.

Is this being released in sections? I note that is No.1

That's the easy bit done..........now? 😆

The full instruction manuals are also available too. Here's the one for Fifie: CLICK HERE

Love the design so far. How do you represent the bricks in the oven? Is the oven hood made from soldered brass?

But it looks fine! Don't beat yourself up!

I think so.

Well Ernie, imagine seeing you here! Sorry I didn't reply earlier. I've been planking a prototype!

If you have CA marks, just use some acetone or CA remover. You can also tack down the edges of an plates and wipe away the excess, followed by proper removal with acetone.

Another update. Again, these are selected images from the eventual instruction manual. This is a sort of abridged version and represent only a few of the pictures that will be published in that book, so I've picked key ones for MSW. Chris suggests that the first two (bow) and last three (stern) bulkheads are bevelled somewhat before installation, including the other bow cross-bulkhead pieces. This is a pretty sound plan as it saves a whole load of work when it comes to fairing the hull. I used the same methodology in my instructions. I used my Dremel for this, set at a comfortable 9000rpm. Once all the bow bulkheads and cross-slotted pieces were bevelled, I glued these into place. I'm sure this looks familiar to builders of Speedy! Also notice the doorway on bulkhead 10. This has a pear wood door fitted to it with a brass nail as a handle. I also fit the deck support pieces across each bulkhead. After gluing in the stern bulkheads into place, bulkhead #16 is bevelled along the top to match the sheer, and then the two long deck support beams are slotted and glued into position. This creates a really strong frame that stops the bulkheads bending, as well as being another great support for the deck that'll sit on top. One difference (of many) in this kit is the replacement of the MDF stern frames for more resilient birch ply parts. These are now glued into position. Many parts in this kit are replaced with alternative material ones, such as the lower mast tops which will now be pear, as well as the stern face itself. The stern counter remains in ply. The deck is now glued into position. This needs bending somewhat and then allowed to click into position. It only takes a minute or so to install the deck and it sits perfectly on all the beams, no exceptions... To protect the stern frames, the stern counter and stern panels are now glued into position. The keel is temporarily fitted with the supplied MDF clamps, so the counter can be correctly positioned. The hull is now faired. This only took me less than an hour, with the stern keel area being thinned out to about 1/3 it's original width to accommodate the planking which will then bring it up to the original thickness. I can sand that thinner too later, to accommodate the second layer of pear. The inner stem post is now glued into position and left to dry before I fit the ply gun port strips. That's it until I get more work done. I have built the cannon and capstan, but I'll not post those yet, for the sake of getting things in order More when I've done it!

That's not strictly true. I've spent years in the the plastic hobby doing promo, engineering solutions, test builds, mag work, and if a company has the opportunity to release a Fw 190A-5, A-6, A-8, then they will do, despite the variations being minor. Look at all the Bf 109 kits out there. Tamiya sell a 1:32 Spitfire Mk.IX, which is barely different to their Mk.VIII (retractable tail wheel etc.) This is a common approach to kit releases, and there is enough different in this release to merit so....certainly more so than many of those plastic models I helped build and promo.

@chris watton is best answering that.

This is such a fabulous build to follow through. It's what I aspire too. Some true craftsmanship right here...

If I've learned to do anything over the last decade, it's how to take photos 🤣 Thanks. I don't work in sequence. For example, I'm building the cannon now, and some deck fittings. I started those when I left the hull to one side to dry, so I just continued whilst I had dozens of parts cut on my bench. The black resin cannon are superb....don't need any real work to use them. I'll be spraying the carriages a little later.

Absolutely! I'd love to have weathered her a little but for the box, it was strictly a straight build.

Chris has just told me this kit is now available for pre-order. So a little earlier than I expected! https://vanguardmodels.co.uk/product/order-zulu-lady-isabella/

Afternoon! Ok, this one is going to take me a little longer than the prototypes of VM's Fifie and Zulu! I'll try to keep this updated as often as I can if there's some real interest. Flirt is based on the previous Speedy kit, but with some notable differences. The model itself won't have a launch as standard, and there are differences to the rig too, plus the deadeyes are replaced with pear wood heart blocks. She also won't be coppered below the waterline, instead being painted white. Before I kick off with the hull, I built the temporary cradle. This is only temporary as there's a clear acrylic one for the finished model, and I don't want to use that until I really need to. Onwards with the prototype! Again, these are photos that will eventually be in the instruction manual, and not regular bench build images. The regular kit will have 3mm MDF for the main hull components. I quite like this material. It's easy to sand and takes the nails and glue real well. There will be a Master Shipwright version where the MDF will be replaced with birch ply, but that will be very limited edition! There is actually a little birch ply in the standard kit, replacing the MDF stern frames. As you'd expect, everything just drops together, and those that are building the Speedy I'm sure would testify to. The bulkheads, minus the bevelled ones, are now glued in place. There are also two parts which support the lower deck ends. These are also now glued into place. One difference to Speedy is the replacement of the lower MDF deck with an engraved ply deck. This, as before, fits in four sections. With the deck in place, glue is brushed un the undersides. That'll give more strength, and some rigidity to the outer portions of the deck edges. That's it for the moment. I've been so busy that I've barely noticed I've been in isolation for over a month. It's one way to make the time fly! More soon.

Well, it's only my second update on this, but it's my last! She's all done. As it's for the instructions, I've had to work very quickly. The pear wood keel is now added to the hull. The things you see attached to it are some little MDF clamps that help keep everything in alignment whilst the parts set. The whole keel is then faced with more pear. This creates a rabbet into which you can lay the plank ends. Planking this hull in pear is very straightforward. I managed to lay 5 planks before any taper. With everything in situ, the rudder cable holes were opened up again and the hull sanded smooth. A sanding stick was used to level the top of the bulwarks prior to me adding the rubbing strakes. The top strake site at bulwark height. Onwards with the rudder! The wooden part has laser holes for the nails, and they fit perfectly with no need for drilling out. Amati's waterline tool is used to mark the model prior to the red oxide primer being applied. I've used Plastikote for this, with some filling prep work beforehand and rubbing down between coats. With the MDF bulkhead ears removed, the laser engraved deck is now installed and the pre-shaped timberheads fitted in place, followed by the bulwark rails. This is also supplied laser cut. This is a very prefabricated model, hence the reason I can build it in 2 weeks for the instruction manual (which will be far more descriptive than this!), plus edit the photos and write the thing! Now I can build the deck fittings, such as the wheel unit, fish hatches, steam winch, companionway etc. The Fifie has two masts, and the foremast is supplied as square section rod which needs rounding and tapering. The mast ring is used to make sure the top is the correct diameter. Rigging blocks and rig anchor points fitted the hull and bulwarks. And the model is finally completed with her sails. This is a very simple kit that still looks beautiful when finished. The rigging is dead simple and there's nothing in construction that anyone should find hard. In all, I think it's perfect for a newcomer, but if you just like fishing boats, then you'll like this! Hope you like it as much as I enjoyed building it. Right....on with HMS Flirt!

Looks real good. Will you include the barrels as part of the kit? Any other internal extra like those too?