mtdoramike

It's looking very good. Matter of fact, it looks just like the Latina Victory at this stage.

I got a little more progress made on the hull plating. Mike

Stunning work, I can almost smell the whale blubber boiling Mike

It sounds to me like you are new to ship modeling and if this is the case, I would opt for a simpler model like a smaller plank on bulkhead kit. Plank on frame kits are rare if they actually include the frames being cut out for you. That is something that you will have to do yourself and is as close to scratch building as you can get. Now plank on bulkhead kits have the keel and bulkheads cut out for you.

She looks very nice and great work on her. I'm thrilled to see that you are getting around to finishing the model. It really deserves to be finished and displayed proudly. There are a few Marine Model kits that show up on ebay every now and then. They were a very good company back in the day. Mike

I always liked this particular kit. It looks like a fun project to turn into a radio controlled boat. If not mistaken, there was a representative of this model used in the movie Body Guard starring Whitney Houston. Her son in the movie was floating this boat around in their pool. Mike

Also, make sure and do a thorough inventory of the kit contents as I found a few pieces missing from my AL Victory kit like the whole photo etched brass sheet containing hammock stays.

That looks suspiciously like the same way the AL Victory build starts out. I have been curious if Artesania Latina didn't just revamp the Victory kit to make the Santa Ana. But either way, I love the ship and can't wait to follow along on your progress.

Something isn't quite right with the transom decoration for the top section of the stern. As you can see from the picture, mine has a flame on the left section where a British flag should be represented. So either I have an old version of this kit or a newer version or they mistakenly put in the wrong transom decoration. I'm not sure which it is. But it's different than what the instruction manual shows.

I made a little more progress today on the Vic.

Oh boy, I can't wait. Plenty of Pictures please. The Santa Ana is one of my favorite models.

Ooooops, let me make sure I try and answer your question. I have seen the instructions for both kits and can tell you that DeAgostini's instructions are a bit more detailed and suited for a modeler with less experience. They actually show you how to achieve certain things where as AL instruction just says do this or that. Now as far as the plans go, the AL Victory comes with the plans downloaded onto a CD. So you will have to have a computer or take them to a printing place and have them printed out for you for about $20.00-$30.00. I guess it would be nice if you need that extra help, but you will end up paying about 3 times what you can get that same kit for else where. f I were going to pay over $1200.00 for a Victory kit, I would opt for the caldercraft version. BUt all in all, it comes down to how much you are willing to spend because both kits are still considered advanced level kits.

If you can find the AL Victory cheaper than $567.00 good luck, if not than check out Oakridge Hobbies. They also have free shipping. That is where I got my AL Victory from.

Here is the latest update on the Vic progress. A little bit of work done to the stern.

Thanks for the heads up, I will keep the link for future ventures, but since this Vic will be painted, I will be using cheap dowel rods from my local hardware store. Thank you for your kind words as well. Mike

I would really like to see if I can get Lawrence to add his opinion or review of this same kit since he also built it and made a few minor changes or additions to the kit and see what he thinks of the kit over all. I think it would be beneficial because unlike me, Lawrence is a bit more of a purist than I am. I'll send him a copy of the link and see if he has time to add his views here.

Here is my middle of the road assessment of the Artesania Latina HMS Victory kit. 1. Packaging was very good, everything was taped down so nothing much moved around until the box was opened. 2. Materials supplied were excellent or at least above average for a mid level priced kit, the woods were some of the best that I have used, not dired out to the point of splintering. The castings were quite clean and needed very little touching up or smoothing out. The brass etched parts where very clean. There were at least one dowel rod that was warped like a snake, which was supplied for the Main mast. But since it's going to be painted, I will supply a much cheaper dowel rod. 3. There were a few missing parts, which once contacted Artesania Latina shipped out to me within about 5 weeks. So that wasn't too bad considering they didn't ask for a kidney or anything. 4. Now as far as the supplied model kit being historically accurate: well, that would be up to speculation and what time frame you want the ship model to represent. But as it sits now in the Portsmouth Harbor, I would have to say not quite. It is closer than some of the other manufactures, but the transom is a bit off with the arch of the windows on the stern not being quite as pronounced as it should. The stern decoration is a might bigger that it should be, which didn't allow for some of the molding and detail to be used and lets face facts, that is one of the stand out trade marks of the Victory as with most ships. 5. Ease of build: that is up for debate I'm sure from different modelers, but to be, it's a fun and at times challenging build, which could be even more challenging depending on whether or not you want to tackle the not so accurate issues like the stern windows. 6. Is This kit historically accurate? not so much, but it could be with additional work, time and materials I'm sure you could make it an exact replica. But for me, it's close enough for government work. BUT, I"M NOT A PURIST, I'm a realist and build ship models not as museum quality nor have I ever stated any model that I have ever built as museum quality. I build display pieces with little changes or additions to suit me. 7. Would I buy this kit again: YES, in a heart beat, but not at the retail price. But I would be happy and was happy to pay $567.00 for the kit with free shipping and feel it was worth every cent. Disclaimer: Now these are just my observations of the Artesania Latina HMS Victory kit and should only be viewed as such. I will give a final review of the kit and the build upon final completion.

Thanks Lawrence, I will also be building and donating a display case for the Vic as well. So I know the quandary

http://www.ci.mount-dora.fl.us/index.aspx?nid=195This is a link to the City Library where the Vic will eventually be displayed. They have a few pictures of her when I first starting building her.

Here is a couple of updated photos as she sits today.

To me, that is all part of the hobby. I usually leave a bit of blood some where on every model I do. I have tried gloves, but I lose that feel that I need.

I think it looks beautiful.

I was thinking while working on the Latina Victory this morning, here is an American building a British war ship by a Spanish kit manufacture This made me chuckle.

You have two listed on Ebay

Hi Paul, I have actually been waiting on missing parts from Latina before going any further with the review to give them a chance to make things right, which they have. I was missing the main sail as well as the entire brass sheet, which had the 90 some odd hammock cranes attached to it. Now, it took about 5 weeks to get the issue straightened out with latina. But they sent the parts without charge. So hats off to Latina. So far, I don't have any real questions about the kit. I pretty happy with the kit and it's progress for the price.