ccoyle
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Everything posted by ccoyle
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Ahoy, Zuko! I wrote a brief reply to your post in the other thread. My very first plank-on-bulkhead kit was Model Shipways' Katy of Norfolk, which is essentially the same ship as your Swift. I also had read Mastini's book before building it; don't worry about not comprehending some parts -- they will make more sense after you get started. I was hesitant in the beginning, too, because I expect a lot from myself and tend to get frustrated if I don't meet my own standards (which, BTW, are not nearly as high as the standards reached by some other builders around here). I mentioned kits by Midwest Products in my other post. I built two of them before attempting Katy, and I can vouch that they are super confidence builders. Swift is a good entry-level product, but if you should still find yourself balking, and you don't mind delaying Swift for a month and parting with another $40 or so, snag one of the Midwest kits off of eBay. They will set you up nicely. I can particularly recommend the Chesapeake Bay Flattie.
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Zuko, your concerns were pretty much addressed in every way by the old Midwest Products line of kits. They spelled out exactly what tools were needed to complete a kit, and their instructions were exhaustive. They were also classified by skill levels from 1-4. They were nearly foolproof kits. Fortunately, there's still a good number of them floating around in cyberspace in case anyone is interested. As for the rest of the "beginners" kits out there, they run the gamut from really well-designed with the beginner in mind to "you gotta be kidding me." Doing one's diligence with regards to pre-purchase research is key, and happily there are a lot more quality resources online these days (such as MSW) than there were not so long ago. The AL Swift has a good completion rate among beginning builders, so you have as good a shot as anybody at finishing it. Good luck ... and yes, it is supposed to be fun!
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That's a sweet stash for $100. Hope you get a buyer soon. -
Caldercraft HMS Mars suitable for a beginner?
ccoyle replied to Kwoolf's topic in Wood ship model kits
That kit has much to recommend it. It has less rigging than many square-rigged subjects and is devoid of tricky ornamentation. It does not have the detailed instructions that a beginner might expect. HMS Badger would be better in that regard. However, while it will be a challenge, I would not say it's beyond the abilities of a determined beginner.- 1 reply
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Some of the cordage on the winch and railings looks sorta new-ish. Looks like somebody already had a go at replacing some stuff.
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I'm not familiar with that kit, but I like the subject. Good luck and enjoy!
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Are you working with printed parts?
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Ahoy, Adrian. If I understand you correctly this will be a cut-away model. I edited your title for you to reflect this. I'm fond of the Flower class, since I built the 1/100 Modelik kit using this very book as a reference. Good luck!
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Your sofa gives us some idea of the size of your works. I had assumed they were rather smaller. In the spirit of smaller warships, I'd love to see your version of the USS Samuel B Roberts (DE-413) charging the IJN Chokai at the Battle Off Samar, hint hint. A distant cousin of mine served aboard the Sammy B and survived the encounter.
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Ship-it, I split off your last post and moved it to the kit build logs forum. Good luck with your build!
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Hello, Ship-it. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but our forum has very strict rules regarding Chinese-manufactured kits. Please read through the pinned topic on this issue by clicking here. Kind regards, Chris moderator
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What you need to know about Caldercraft is that the "thin" instruction booklet is typical for all of their early products, of which Cruizer is one. If you want something a little more substantive, you might consider Pickle, which is a later kit. But, keep casting around, and don't be too hasty about making a decision. There are some other kits being produced these days whose instructions are supposed to be pretty good. OTOH, we have some good planking tutorials here at MSW that can get you through that first planking job.
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I'm not an expert on paddlewheelers by a long shot. I did Google a few photos -- didn't see anything similar to your model. In fact, didn't see anything with square paddlewheel boxes. But there are others around here who are more knowledgeable on this subject than I am. When your model arrives, try starting up a topic in the research area. The mouth of Humboldt Bay is indeed narrow and kept the entrance out of sight for many years. To this day, passage across the bar is tricky, and the north and south spits are littered with ship wrecks, the most infamous being that of the USS Milwaukee (C-21), which grounded in 1917.
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Interesting. I have never seen a model quite like that one, so I can't speak to either its authenticity or value. That'd be a subject for a maritime art appraiser. But I'm intrigued by the possible link to Humboldt Bay, since I grew up in that area. However, the vessel looks like it has a pretty low freeboard; if so, it would be ill-suited for the SF to Eureka route. It looks better tailored for lake work.
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Well, you got my curiosity piqued -- now I want to see it, too!
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USS Livermore (DD-429) was a Gleaves-class destroyer. She served in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, mostly on convoy duty.
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I was just reading about HMS Torbay and Astute today.
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I totally agree with the "off the beaten path" sentiment. Ah, yes, it is indeed a great feeling, but the word we're searching for here is "finished." Congrats, Don -- she really does look fine.
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Aha -- I see that at least one of your model's mysteries has come to light. Now at last we have this project in the right forum. Megow's Models was a manufacturer of wood model kits from 1929 to 1949. They offered a wide variety of subjects -- ships, vehicles, aircraft (both flying and static). You can read about Fred Megow and his company here, and you can see a similar Megow kit for sale here. So you do have a bit of modeling nostalgia there!
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Jim, I have enjoyed viewing all of your work thus far, but I confess I am particularly enamored of your depictions of the various steel-hulled vessels. Your paintings of various kinds of patrol craft, escorts, and auxilliary vessels especially seem to me to do an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of the era.
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Being able to successfully keep discus is quite an achievement. You should leave the fish pic in. (P.S. I used to keep and breed African cichlids in 22 tanks in my basement, which was too much work!)
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