ccoyle

I have the card version from Halinski -- a great print with very realistic chipping. It's depicted in the exact same livery as this kit's box art. The Shiden-Kai was a very capable and menacing-looking aircraft.

I have the card version from Halinski -- a great print with very realistic chipping. It's depicted in the exact same livery as this kit's box art. The Shiden-Kai was a very capable and menacing-looking aircraft.

I have the card version from Halinski -- a great print with very realistic chipping. It's depicted in the exact same livery as this kit's box art. The Shiden-Kai was a very capable and menacing-looking aircraft.

I started this evening one of my favorites of the Japanese Army much their version of the P-47 in my book just has that bulky look about it.I painted the interior colors Tamiya Interior Japanese Green 71 very close to MrHobby 23 letting that part dry overnight but I could not stop there.The fuselage builds like a ship model with three bridges that really align and stabilize the fuse.I also went ahead and started the tail,tailplane and the landing flaps the model just builds like many little sub-assemblies!I rather like!I will probably have the copit finished tomorrow.

Well done!

I have a card model version of this aircraft, but I don't have a molded canopy or turret for it. Scratch-building those bits looks a very daunting task!
 
If you have never read the novel Piece of Cake by Derek Robinson (I recommend it), one of the central characters meets his end in a Defiant. I won't disclose exactly how -- you'll have to read the book!

I have a card model version of this aircraft, but I don't have a molded canopy or turret for it. Scratch-building those bits looks a very daunting task!
 
If you have never read the novel Piece of Cake by Derek Robinson (I recommend it), one of the central characters meets his end in a Defiant. I won't disclose exactly how -- you'll have to read the book!

Here's some inspiration for you, Paul. This model is on display at the Channel Islands Maritime Museum. Steam schooners played a significant part in the history of Northern California's timber trade before modern roads made the transport of sawn lumber by truck more economical.
 

Here's some inspiration for you, Paul. This model is on display at the Channel Islands Maritime Museum. Steam schooners played a significant part in the history of Northern California's timber trade before modern roads made the transport of sawn lumber by truck more economical.
 

Here's some inspiration for you, Paul. This model is on display at the Channel Islands Maritime Museum. Steam schooners played a significant part in the history of Northern California's timber trade before modern roads made the transport of sawn lumber by truck more economical.
 

I have now decaled the stand. 

I think one singular flag is sufficient for this model's aesthetics, and not inaccurate. 
And with that, the Santa Sofia is finished. Honestly, I had lots of fun with this one and look forward to seeing it on my shelf. 

The flag I designed around the Afonso family crest is now on the ship. 

With that, we can piece together a narrative about the Santa Sofia: This would have been a ship owned by the noble Afonso family at around the middle of the 15th century, in Portugal. It would have been among a number of similar caravels and coastal vessels built for and used by the Afonsos, and this one might have been leased or rented out to fishermen who plied the coasts of Portugal, bringing up cod from the depths- a staple food, especially during Lent or other fast days. The Afonsos would have pulled in profits either as a flat rate, or more likely, a substantial cut of the profits from the fishermen's catch or the catch itself. 

This will be a waterline model of SS Wapama, built by Kaiser Shipyard #3 in Richmond California and launched in 1915. She plied the waters of America’s Pacific Northwest bringing lumber from the mills to markets in California. Passengers and general goods were also transported. I am using the Historic American Engineering Record drawings from the Library of Congress website. These drawings are scans of drawings produced by Don Birkholtz Sr. of Tri-Coastal Marine for the National Park Service. The TIF files were downloaded and opened in an old version of Adobe Elements. They were then cropped and converted to high quality PDFs. The PDFs were opened in a free version of Foxit reader and printed using the tile function. Lots of cutting and taping together. I wanted to use my 36” build board so the drawings ended up being 1/71 scale which results in a model approximately 36.5” LOA and because it is waterline, it will be about 17’ high. I had a very difficult time trying to source basswood plywood locally so I ordered 1/16” and 1/8” basswood plywood from Amazon that come in 12’ x 12” sheets. The 1/8” sheets were 7/64” x 11.75” x 11.75”. Overall it is of good quality. The bulkhead former is made from two layers of plywood and one layer of 1/32” basswood sheet which results in a thickness of 1/4”. The non-destructive tracing method was used to trace the plans onto the plywood. An awl was poked through the drawing and the resulting holes were joined together with a ruler and pencil. 
 

 

 


I’m using a retractable knife with the 1” black blades to cut the plywood so eight pieces of plywood were cut and then glued together.
 

 

 
 
Notches for the masts and Samson post were cut into the former and then 1/16’  plywood spacers were glued on each side to register where the bulkhead sit . They also box in the slots for the masts and post.
 


 

 
 

 
After cutting the plywood with the knife I used the Ultimation sander to square up the sides.
 

 
Here is the former ready for the bulkheads to be attached.
 

 

 
Next will be prepping the board for mounting the former. Hope to see you then.
 

Moin, Peter!
 
From your description it sounds like you are living in Schleswig-Holstein somewhere? I was an exchange student in Aurich (Ostfriesland), but I was also able to visit both Kiel and Lübeck -- good memories!
 
Tschüß!

Moin, Peter!
 
From your description it sounds like you are living in Schleswig-Holstein somewhere? I was an exchange student in Aurich (Ostfriesland), but I was also able to visit both Kiel and Lübeck -- good memories!
 
Tschüß!

Moin (what means hello in northern germany),
 
my name is Peter, 60 years old, retired, living in north germany between north sea and baltic sea. I apologize for my bad english.
 
Short story long:
As child i assembled a lot of Revell and Airfix planes and tanks, but a Constallation (don't talk about…) and a Revell Bounty (bad rigging but as child i loved it), too.
45 years later…
One and a half year ago i startet h0 model railroad with Marklin trains. After lots of planing time i just building my layout in my work room/ computer room/man cave.  A railroad should (for me) having a personality, so i named the main train station fictional “Catfield”.
 
I was looking for something to store my tools, because my workplace is my computer desk from the time i worked from home and sometimes i need this space and the pcs. At OcCre i found the Workshop cabinet, that was what i was looking for. And then i saw the ships. Essex. Terror. Bounty. A BOUNTY! 
Quick look at my things-to-do-before-i-die-list: haven’t build a wooden ship ever
Now i want it. Want it so much.
I found this website, read a lot of build logs, watch build videos at youtube. I found a new OcCre San Marin for 1/3 of regular price. Looks good, but i like Essex and Terror more.
 
But it slaps my face, at the moment i have not the skills which are needed to build something what looks from a mile away like a ship. So no big ship.
Lot of builders say, start small. Sounds right, but building a boot which i don’t like feels wrong.
 
What to do? Maybe should go back to plastic kits. Yes, plastic, but what ship? A Bounty again sounds so sweet. And as i was looking for a cheap Revell Bounty i found an old wooden kit for sale, for the price of a bottle of rum. Bang, that’s it, a must buy. And now a Constructo HMAV Bounty, scale 1/110,  is on the way to me. Btw i hate waiting, lol. The constructo kit sounds pretty good for me, beginner level, which let me build up a lil bit of skills of wood work and rigging. If it goes wrong, it can go to the fire place and sail to valhalla, not much money loss, only time and sweat. If it will look ok, or better (i hope) it will become a special place in my work room. 
 
My work place is near the train layout, so i named the OcCre cabinet “catfield shipyard”.
Before i start building the ship i must do the wood work on my layout. And maybe the airship, so its an airshipyard, too. The Tatra truck, which is my favorite truck in the pc game Snowrunner, which i play at weekend nights with friends, waits too…but then.. 
 
So maybe in a month, or if my wife has plans, in autumn, i will start building my first wooden ship. Like the train layout, i am not in a hurry, it will take the time it needs.
 
I want to make a build log and i guess i will have a lot of questions, sorry for that.
 
Thank you for reading, have all a good time
 
Peter

I think you are missing the main point I was trying to get across in the other thread. The issue there was not the use of the gallery but rather the use of the build logs area. The function of the build logs area should be self-evident: it is an area in which members create logs of their builds in progress. Showing images of a finished model by itself, without any log of the build process, is not a build log and sidesteps the intended purpose of the build logs area. Members go to build logs expecting to see how a model is built.
 
Making use of the gallery is entirely optional. A modeler who finishes a build may exhibit images of the finished model in his or her build log, in the gallery, or both. There is no requirement that images of finished build log subjects be displayed in the gallery only.
 
The question of the functionality of our gallery is a subject that can be discussed, but the questions of when to use the gallery versus using a build log is not at all difficult.

Dear prospective ship modeler,
 
Welcome! If you're reading this, it's probably because you are ready and raring to get started on a first ship model. But before you do, allow me to share the following with you.
 
We get a lot of first-time builders on this forum. People who are eager to build a first ship model are attracted to the hobby for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you were captivated by a stunning model of the USS Constitution or the HMS Victory. Maybe you have a beloved relative who was a modeler. Or it could be that you just have a love of the sea, even if you've never sailed on anything larger than a rowboat. All of us came to MSW with similar motivations. Those of us who have been at this for a while not only love the hobby, but also love passing along our experience to new builders. It's a special treat to see a new modeler persevere through the joys and sorrows (and often tedium) of building a ship model and arrive successfully at the end of a build with a finished model to be proud of.
 
Unfortunately, many of those eager new members also turn out to be last-time builders as well. There are lots of reasons why a first-timer might give up. Building a nice ship model requires the learning of many new skills, a not inconsiderable amount of tenacity, and usually a significant time investment. Some new modelers get bored, others get overwhelmed, and some get overtaken by things like career changes, cross-country moves, babies, sudden illnesses -- that life stuff we all have to deal with occasionally. We understand those things happen. We get it.
 
This post, though, is written for a particular kind of first-time modeler: the modeler who takes on more ship then they can handle. Unfortunately, this kind of modeler is all too common. Bewitched by a clipper ship or sailing man-of-war, this kind of newbie believes that they can jump right in and build something similar.
 
Allow me to use an analogy. I'm not a pilot, but I love old warbirds. Suppose I go to an airshow and, having been awed by the spectacle, decide to go out and buy a P-51 and take her up for a few high-g maneuvers. All with no flying experience, mind you. I don't have to tell you how that first flight is likely to end up.
 
Sadly, many of the newcomers to MSW have a similar experience with model ships. They come brimming with pluck and determination, convinced that they can build a Constitution or Victory. In most instances, these bright-eyed neophytes wind up like the over-zealous new P-51 owner -- dead. Well, unlike the pilot, the would-be modelers are probably still alive, but their dreams of nice model ships have certainly gone to a better place.
 
Now, before I go any further, allow me to make a few things perfectly clear. Am I saying that a new modeler should never attempt a complicated model or that newcomers never finish such models? No, I'm not saying that. There are a few modelers who have attempted such projects and completed them, so it is certainly possible. But those modelers are very few in number. And we don't have any rules about what kind of model you can or can't build around here. If you absolutely, positively have to have a crack at a three-decker or frigate, then have at it. We'll be glad to help you along the way. But just be aware ahead of time how much of a challenge you are getting yourself into.
 
Let me throw some numbers at you to illustrate my point. One of my jobs here at MSW is to comb through old build logs and edit the titles of completed builds to show that the model has been finished (it makes searching for finished models easier). Obviously, as I sift through the builds I find many unfinished ones. On just one page that I was recently checking, I found twelve unfinished build logs started by first-time builders. In ten of those build logs, the new builder never made it past completing the hull of his ship. In the other two, the builder never started the model at all. Nine of those twelve modelers are no longer active on this site. I did not include among those twelve modelers any who gave a life-got-in-the-way reason for suspending their build. They're simply twelve modelers who eagerly started their project and then, usually quite early on, just gave up and quietly disappeared without giving any reasons why.
 
Those twelve builds all had one thing in common: each modeler had chosen a model that posed significant challenges for a first-time builder. Some of those models would have been a challenge even for a skilled builder. Simply put, they doomed their attempt at modeling by choosing a model that was over their head.
 
All of us ship modelers know how real the temptation is to skip an entry-level model and go straight for lots of guns and lots of sails. But here's the whole point I want to make: seriously think twice about caving into that temptation. The evidence speaks for itself - literally hundreds of abandoned build logs begun by modelers who bit off more than they could chew. Many of them not only abandoned their build, they also gave up on the hobby entirely.
 
It didn't have to be that way. Making a good start by honestly appraising your skill level and deciding to go with a simple first model is one of the surest ways to success in this hobby. Most true beginner models -- those actually designed for beginners and not merely labeled as such -- don't require a lot of money, time, or expensive tools. In a few weeks you'll know if this hobby is for you without having gotten yourself worked up over a model you couldn't realistically complete. And you know, most of us here enjoy watching the progress on a relatively 'easy' model, like a small sailboat, just as much as we enjoy watching the progress on an HMS Victory -- especially when we see those models being finished and proudly displayed.
 
And you know what? Success breeds further success. 
 
For more information on choosing a first model, check out the NRG modeling resources page.
 
Choose wisely, enjoy the journey, and I look forward to seeing you complete your first build log.
 
Respectfully,
Chris

This is a review I originally published as part of another thread back in 2014. I have updated some of the comments to reflect the current status of the companies mentioned in the review. Enjoy! 
 
When I bought this kit back in 2014, Freedom Song Boatworks were still in business, but they have since folded. One of the reasons I wanted to get hold of a FSB kit was to compare it to a Midwest Products kit. Interestingly enough, Midwest is also now out of business (UPDATE: Midwest kits are now manufactured by Model Shipways). Kits from both companies still turn up on eBay, although since far more Midwest kits were made and distributed, they remain much more common on auction sites.
 

Evangeline comes in a box about 18" long by about 3.75" square.  There is a color photo of the prototype model on the box.  The contents were packaged neatly. I can't say for certain, but I always got the impression that FSB was a cottage industry, and this is certainly reflected in the kit's design, materials, and packaging.
 

The kit comes with three plan sheets showing hull construction details, hull top and side views, and sail plan.  The plans are nicely drawn and easy to understand.  At 1/24 scale, you can see that the kit produces a fair-sized model. There are two two-sided sheets of simple instructions and a one-sided sheet of basic wood modeling techniques. This of course pales in comparison to what's found in any Midwest kit.  No parts list is included.
 

Evangeline's hull bottom and sides consist of four pre-cut pieces of pine.  All other sheet parts are printed and must be cut from two sheets of balsa, one sheet of pine, and one small sheet of ply.
 

The kit's strip wood and dowels are of good quality.  One of the dowels is slightly crooked, but considering the age of this kit, I'm not too surprised by that.  The included sail cloth has a nice, fine weave.
 

The fittings include various kinds of wire and cordage, eye pins, nails, aluminum tubing, brass portholes, and 'blocks' that are actually plastic (or perhaps ceramic) beads. As you can see, there is a very small quantity of parts and materials here, which reflects both the smallish nature of the craft being modeled and the simplified design of the kit.
 
So, what are my impressions?  Overall, I am satisfied.  I knew up front that the kit builds straight out of the box into a simplified version of a Tancook whaler and is intended for beginning modelers, and I also knew about the printed parts, so I'm not shocked by those features.  My only disappointment is with the plastic beads for blocks -- those will absolutely have to be replaced, but fortunately there are not too many of them.  The rest of the kit components are of good quality -- no complaints there.
 
As I said in the introduction, one of my reasons for purchasing this kit was to see how it stacks up against comparable offerings from Midwest Products (of which I have built two and have a third in my stash).  There is, IMO, no comparison between the two when it comes to considering their suitability for first-time builders.  Midwest Products kit instructions are the gold standard for kits of this sort - they are extremely detailed, profusely illustrated, and as fool-proof as kit instructions are likely to be.  The two sheets of instructions offered by Freedom Song are well below that standard.  The other big knock against Freedom Song is the large number of printed parts that must be cut out.  Seriously - printed parts is ancient kit technology.  If I'm going to shell out the $59.95 MSRP for this kit (Note: all prices mentioned in this review are listed 2014 prices; keep this in mind when bidding on any eBay offerings), I expect all the parts to be at least die-cut, same as Midwest kits are.  Additional style points must be deducted for the plastic beads for blocks.  I cannot fathom why the more usual wooden blocks were not included, or even plastic or cast metal blocks.  And lastly, we should look at pricing.  The most expensive MSRP for any kit in Midwest's beginner's line is $89.99.  Four of Freedom Song's similar kit offerings are listed at $99.95.  When you consider what you get from Midwest for significantly less money, the choice is pretty easy.
 
However, there is a final point to be made.  Freedom Song does offer several kit designs that are not available elsewhere, of which Evangeline is but one example.  For a modeler wishing to build one of these designs, or for someone intending to super-detail the basic model, Freedom Song kits are certainly acceptable. Be advised, though, that if you want to keep an eye out for FSB kits on eBay , you may have to wait a very long time for one of these uncommon models to turn up.
 
Cheers!

I'm a big fan of these early American historic pieces, so I was happy to see this kit become available. Printed it out.. sealed the colors with "Future" clear polish. Was impressed by the clear diagrams, and the option of building the barrel in two different ways. Built over 10 yrs ago. Build log here.. 
https://www.papermodelers.com/forum/ships-watercraft/13261-turtle-submarine-1-12-heinkel-model.html

10 concept for the diorama
 
This part of a build for me is the most fun.  I want the completed effort to be a prop for telling a story. The first question is what story.  I am not fully sure yet and what follows is some of the thought process. I find that laying it out and trying to discuss it helps my process to find the way.  Some may say this is backwards, but I want to figure out the size of this endeavor.  I already have two 7-foot models and that is out.   If I just want to show the model sailing, we go say 2 widths by 1.5 lengths for starter.  If fully rigged that means 28 inches by say 5 inch hull or 6 inch yard arm.  That could mean 42 inches long 10-12 inches wide.   Wow. Still a bit big.
 
I am thinking about winter rig, no topgallant masts and no flying bridge boom.  That knocks off 3 inches in length and four inches in height.  So, let’s try some stuff
 
1-2. these photos show the winter rig on a cutting board with planks laid out for a potential size.  The second photo adds small boats in the water / or on the ice which will be likely . the size is 32 wide by 16 inches deep for starting point.  
3-4 here we start the fun.  I have a bunch of Styrofoam from a tv hanging around to play with before it goes to the dump.   I cut out the shape of the hull and stuck the vessel into the ice.   This is interesting but not the real story of the 10 years of Antarctic and arctic sailing and wintering.  We know they survived 1836 Hudson Bay and 1845-46 at Beechy island.  They went into and out of the ice.   Sea ice in Hudson Bay nearly ruined them. Bay ice at Beechey was fine.  We know that to survive they removed the top gallant masts and the flying jib boom and built tents over the deck.     These next photos follow a process.  When I built my schooner Bowdoin diorama the story was coming out of the ice way up in Greenland in July 1924.   I am thinking more of HMS Terror going into the ice in fall 1845.
5 I bought a cheap piece of acrylic that came 12 by 19 inches.  It is a task, but I got it cut out, so she can sit at the rough water line. There is no texture in the acrylic, so I am not satisfied. I have seen how to fix that on U tube but what an ordeal.   
6 I surround her [ almost] in the forming ice.  The harbor at Beechey Island is huge. I was surprised by its size when visiting there last August, and the complete surrounding by land that would  protect a winter ship or fleet from the moving sea ice.     
7 by playing around with ice above and below the water we still get to see the hull.  There will be no bottom at this scale so either ice or blue paint could fill that view.  
8 this process solves the issue of not wanting to remove the rudder and prop😀  
9 looking from above I think I am moving toward a story.  The acrylic has no texture, and it was too small.  I need to have more of an open lead that they are in.  I will go back online. I am sure I will find costs have skyrocketed since I bought the 24-inch piece of textured acrylic  I used for Bowdoin.  But we all know there is little fiscal responsibility when it comes to modeling the story. Cheers 
 

Greetings everyone,   
 
I am posting my build so far on the OcCre Corsair.  I started this kit a couple of months ago and been kind of lazy to take pictures of the build due the holidays and other family issues.  I am currently on the 2nd planking stage of the build.  This is my second build after I completed The King of Mississippi last year.  I am finding this kit nice and it has been fun.  So fixes I have noticed needed to be done.  Here are pictures of my project and its progress so far

Hi Folks, I know it's been a while since I update the progress of the USS Panay - so adding some photos here for those that are interested.   I still have a far amount of work to do but I'll get there eventually!
 

@Jeff59 - The hull modifications have not YET pushed me over the edge... Stay tuned.  Speaking of temporary insanity - Great to see your progress on the Bismarck.
 
@md1400cs Thanks for keeping up with my build.  I appreciate the encouragement.
 
 
More Starboard Well Deck Bulwark Detail
 
I’ve made progress on the Well Deck.
 
Details have been added to the interior of the bulwark:


Sliding bolts, bulwark stay rods, etc. will be added at a later stage. I’ll likely utilize the KA PE versions of the rigging pad eyes.
 
The exterior has also been refined a bit.
 


You can see the doubling strake is in place as well as doubling plates.  These plates are only the underlying beds at this point… I will come back and add a top layer to these using the thinnest styrene sheet that will include the rivet pattern.
 
Additionally, the coping strip has now been extended across the new piece using .10” x .20” Styrene strip. This is also added along the top edge of the Fo’c’sle wash plate that was recently added. 
A bit tricky to keep it straight along the edge – a small metal ruler was a useful guide while gluing.

More fun to come.
 
Cheers,
Evan

Fo’c’sle Railing Detail
 
Before proceeding I need to attend to another detail up forward… 
 
Around the Fo’c’sle there should be a lip that extends above the deck.  It serves as a wash plate and supports the base of the railings.  This is not accounted for in our kit, but I think KA or Pontos includes a solution in their photo etch offering.
 
We can see it in the detail of the Father Browne photo referenced earlier:

First, I’ll file down a bit of the existing edge of the Trumpeter kit -just down to the existing coping strip.  This will allow the new strip to be seated down a bit to be even with the deck.


Next, I’ll chisel away the kit coping strip.  This'll be added back later:



Everything is now prepped to add a strip of angle styrene:

I’ll extend it the length of the Fo’c’sle for now… I’ll eventually need to trim it back to allow for the details that affix to the very front of the bow.



 
Lastly, I’ll need to add the new coping strip to the very top outer edge of the angle strip. This should all align a bit better to the actual ship than what Trumpeter has in place.
 
Cheers,
Evan