mtdoramike

28 minutes ago, rshousha said:

I painted the hull, as well, and ended up using that thin mahogany for a zillion other models. For example, it worked beautifully as the outside surface of a large model of a stagecoach. 

 

Rick, I saw a Corsaro II built with all natural wood and much prefer the painted version you did. To me, it fits the model much better than the wood look.

I noticed while looking through the box contents, I noticed quite a lot of mahogany veneer and after breezing through the instructions they indicate that the hull can be finished in natural wood by using the thin mahogany veneer. But that isn't going to work for me. I will paint the hull. Now it also has colors listed if the builder prefers to paiint the model. But like most who know me will tell you that I look at lists and instructions as a suggestion and not a rule. So we'll see how that goes.

I have also pondered turning the Corsaro into a functioning R/C model with just the motor and prop being operational. But after looking at the height of the masts, it might be prohibitive requiring way to must ballast to stay upright. Like a mentor of mine told me years ago "never make something more difficult than it has to be" and "and if you are trying to turn a static model into an R/C model, revert back to rule #1 because there are plenty of other options that are made for that purpose". So it might be best to heed those words of wisdom.

47 minutes ago, CDW said:

Have you ever built a Lindbergh Blue Devil destroyer? It crudely represents a Fletcher class destroyer and is suitable for RC. It’s somewhere around-about 3 feet long when completed.

No, I've never built a Lindberg kit, although I have seen several Lindberg kits converted to R/C. They make pretty decent Radio control boats. 

Now that I''m pretty much finished with the Big Mo, otherr than making a nicer stand for it, I can look back on building it fondly. I try to stay away from historical ships and boats unless I have an itch or hankering to build a certain model, which I did with the Trumpeter 1:200 scale battle ships. No particular ship in mind, just one that needed a little time and love. But now that I scratched that itch, I don't plan on building another one, although I enjoyed it, I prefer wood. But I dislike saying never, which is a long time. So all I will say is stay tuned, you never know, like I said, I dance to my own drummer.

I know, but I preferred the red painted props to blend in rather than sticking out. I usually try to put a disclaimer on my build threads just for those purist out there. If you are looking for museum quality, you have happened onto the wrong thread. Unfortunately for those who are, you will be highly disappointed because I dance to my own drummer. You will never get a museum quality model out of a kit no matter what the box says because they are a dime a dozen and nothing special. I build shelf queens, to look pretty and if radio controlld to be functional. Now if I were building for a client on commission basis, I put this disclaimer right up front, but I also try to stay within bounds as much as possible to stay true to the representation of the model. But if I'm building for myself, all bets are off and when I'm done if some one is interested in it, great, if not, she will always have a home.     

Very shorly, within the next couple of days.

Well the USS Missouri (Big Mo) is pretty much finished. 

Thanks for the blow by blow Navy, I was curious how you can make a boat with a 3d printer. This is awsome. 

The Corel Corsaro II is was an adoption from a fellow modeler, who decided to offer it for someone to finish it. So I adopted her with the anticipation of finishing her and hopefully turn her into a grand lady of the sea. Stay tuned for periodic updates. I'm finishing up on the USS Missouri adoption and will make the Corsaro my next project.

I have a great starting point here to finish her up. Most orphans I adopt are not nearly of this quality, I usually have to rip it apart and start over, but this is from a master modeler, so I expected no less.

Oh boy, I'm definately tuning into this build. Ted, I'm finishing up on the Trumpeter Missouri now and found the best glue foe me was Tamiya Plastic cement in the orange labeled bottle. I used some scrap plastic from the kit and glued a few pieces together and placed them in water for a month to test out whether it would work for the under water portions of the build and the pieces were fused together and didn't come apart in the water. 

I'll adopt it, funds sent this morning and make her all she can be especially since I have John's Corsaro to live up to.

Thanks Reg.

This is a very genrous offer, I would love to take the opportunity to finish it as well. But I just recently adopted a couple other orphans. I'm afraid my wife would probably give me the boot if I adopt another without finishing up a few. But just for the heck of it, what is shipping to 32757? to give an idea of the shipping cost. 

I use Chrome and it works for me just fine, but I had to have some cookies with my milk because it ask for them.

Yeah, don't be shy, we like a good Wappen. 

Yeah, aint looking forward to it. When PE works, it works great, when it doesn't, it doesn't.

Thanks Craig, I have a few other things to do then on to the PE railings.

I have 4 more pages of instructions before the big Mo is done.

Well the USS Missouri aka: Big Mo is coming along nicely. It's coming down to the wire. I have had a love hate realationship with the brass PE etching. When it works and installs easily it's great, but when it doesn't, it's one of those days. 

what is the shipping to 32757? I would be willing accept it.

mike

Chris is right, I have built a few Le Clerc Kits in my time and although great finds if kit collecting, but kits of today are a bit better, at least better fittings. I have sold one of these finished kits in the past and received $200.00 for one of them, the other I built as a gift for a friend. The difference between your model and the one I built were the sails. I used sail cloth and not wood. To me, your model is worth what someone is willing to pay you for it, which in my estimation would be a couple hundred dollars on a good day. To me, it makes a nice shelf queen especially with the wooden sails, which allow the sails to appeared billowed as if in full sail, which is very hard to achieve  with cloth sails.

If it were my model, I would restore it and charish it just due to the painstaking efforts that someone went through just on the wood sails alone. 

absolutely beautiful work

8 hours ago, DARIVS ARCHITECTVS said:

It is not necessary to scratch build to make a beautiful model.  No one said that.  It IS necessary to scratch build to build a historically ACCURATE model of HMS Sovereign of the Seas.

I would lean more toward Scratch building to be museum quality versus historically accurate.They would not be cookie cutter produced models. Historical accuracy is always questionable.

On 4/26/2023 at 2:20 PM, allanyed said:

I agree Michael, great results are often the exception rather than the rule.   On the other hand this is not exactly a team sport so it is up to the individual builder as to what he/she finds to be acceptable.

Allan

If I built soley for myself, I would agree with you, but I don't. I build for others and after building well over 200 models over the past 25 years, the vast majority from kits, I haven't found any kit that didn't produce an acceptable model. Now were they museum quality? nope, you can't get a museum quality model from a kit, no matter what you do. They are a dime a dozen and shelf queens. Now have I come across a few kits that needed a little changing to make it acceptable to me and the new owner? Yep, but few and far inbetween. To me, it's more the research of the subject that produces the best representation rather than the kit itself.    

Boat building can actually be a team hobby, 35-40% (and growing) of the models that I have built were actually orphaned kits or builds that were started by builders with good intentions but short of the follow through. Kind of like tag your it, then I finish what they started and make them all that they can be even to the point of rebuilding what they had done to make it acceptable. 

1 hour ago, ccoyle said:

 

We know this is true! 😄

Amen brother!

Well at $400.00 for an SOS kit, that was a steal of a deal even back then. I build mainly by plans, instructions are at best confusing and at worst down right misleading.