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and with respect to the curvature: perhaps I overestimated the curvature in Kortes picture, but This is what I referred to: Straight for the lower half, curved only the upper half starting some distance above the iron ring that holds it. I guess the love for curves did play a role in this design. Jan

Hello Keith, There is absolutely no boeier there. That is a small 'schouw', probably a tourist visiting Amsterdam, or a local owning a boat that he uses to sail on the Amstel. Boeiers are sailing ships for the larger (mostly inland) waters. The moats in Amsterdam are/were a bad place for sailing ships: you can't get into those without the help of a motor (or rowing/poling), and a boeier can't be rowed. The moats are for transportation purposes: getting your goodies from the harbor to your warehouse. And a boeier is not suited at all for any kind of transportation. So no: no boeiers or any other larger sailing ships ever were in the Amsterdam moats. Therefore a fairly large amount of the bridges have always been fixed bridges (apart from a couple of the bridges over the river Amstel, and the canals connected to the Amstel. And believe me: a boeier will never be able to pass a bridge as low as the one you showed . Jan

Hi all, did some googling, and there is no answer. Its tradition. I think Kortes (or Sperwers builder) slightly overdid: in most cases the lower half is not curved, and the upper part is, to such an extent that the cap is at 45 degree angle to the waterline (more or less) I guess that it goes back to the 15th centyry, when also mastheads had a curved upper part (as far a I know: just to please the eye) nothimg to do with bridges: the lowered mast is higher , and the flagpole is not fixed, and can be removed) Jan

Thanks, I can follow your line of reasonimg. as for looks: I don’t like the completely enclosed versions, the open and straight are better, but the B-version is my favorite. What is uours: from the beginning your working sketches used the A-version. Jan

Hi Dan, Good luck with your health! I guess your sydney-version will be better than the Canon-free download version? That one has stairs without even trying to do individual steps Jan

No, that was not the point I did not understand. I meant to say that when I look at that painting, I am struggling to see the back-end of the ship, so I don't understand how you conclude from that painting that there is not stepping in the superstructure. Even more: the superstructure just behind the paddle wheel does step back... Is there anything in the aerials made during the excavation that does give a clue in where the superstructure stood on the deck? Jan

Actually, I don't see how you can conclude on the stepping back aft based on an artist impression of the from side..... having said that: I like the stepped back version more thatn the other one. Although a profit maximizing owner perhaps disagrees.... Jan

Those are very nice birds! I like your attention to the very small details. just a question: you showed us a drawing in your fist post, but that drawing does not have this level of detail (at least not in the versions I know) Where did you get all the additional detail: from an other drawing, or did you just eyeball those on the basis of pictures?? Jan

And here are some pics of Smit Singapore: http://www.hobbyjan.nl/site/index.php?id=110&pagina=21 These are coloured pics. Jan

I guess that Smit Rotterdam had those copper coloured props. Still looking for a pic.... (which turned in something else due to heavy use, so: 'do you build 'as new', or 'at the end of her life'. Here is 'new', unfortunately in BW-photography Pic found here: http://www.hobbyjan.nl/site/index.php?id=109&pagina=1 jan

Hi all, I need to clean my desk, and to make some pics, but today the unthinkable has happened: I tied the last knot on my rigging. Now, I need to make some sawdust for the remaining stuff: I still need: - guns - gunport lids (including hinges, rings and ropes) - lanterns - anchors - anchorrope - anchor buoys - flags Not on the home stretch by far.... Jan

Hi Doris, I would happily believe anyone that tells me that you fotoshopped a real gun into your last picture Your mastery, not only of card, but also of paint is astonishing. Jan (pm to myself: scan the dictionary for more superlatives )

Don't panic: it is like a lego box, but a slightly more complicated one Buying second hand is a bit of a risk: the box already being opened can result in either missing, or damaged parts. Buying a kit that is already started, is also a risk: you start out with the problems an other person made. Having siad that: step 1: check the contents of the box (check it against the instruction booklet, which I hope is there, otherwise you have a BIG chalenge) step 2: read the instruction booklet (not hust the first step, but all of it, at least twice). You can also do this as step 0 Step 3: try to imagine where everything has to go (more or less) step 4 buy you some basic tools and materials. a small hammer, couple of pins (you know the long shapr ones, the missus uses when creating a new dress). Clothing peggs can be usefull as well as clamps. Buy something like a couple of sharp knives (the X-acto will do, don't forget the spare blades, as you will snap and damage a couple when going along). for glue: white wood glue, gives you plenty of grip, and plenty of correction time. Some modellersfiles (not the heavy metal workers version), and sandpaper (course and fine). Accept the fact that you will come to the point that your tools don't suffice, and buy when needed. No need to set up a full scale modellers workshop before starting your first. Don't set your standards too high. I don't know what you paid for this kit, but be prepared to think "ah well, it was only just for fun, and I had some fun trying". The 'next will be better thought' will never leave you, however high quality you will ever reach With respect to the model itself: it looks as if the frames are already glued to the keel. If so, make sure that the keel is straight, and than the frames are perpendicular to the keel. And then you are off, onto a whole new road: read the booklet, and sees what comes next. Remeber: it is very tempting to do things not in the order the booklet shows, but they are there (probably) for a reason. In all cases: don't forget to think ahead. What comes next, and how am I going to do it. In case of doubt or emergency: stop working, and give us a shout and a picture. Jan

Angling that part can be disrupting..... I should have done the same:cutting and glueing. I didn’t dare to do the steps jan

Looking wonderfull. the booms are around 10 milimeters? Jan

Hi Bob, Although I admire your knowledge and your equipment (guess you also use it for models, bur couldn’t find anything of that work here at msw), I wonder whether you make things more difficult than necessary: you can draw ideal lines, but I guess (never tried myself) that slightly less ideal would also work. The final fairing is done when frames are set up in the model so the use of a simple pencil and ruler and a basic set of curves should do for a beginner. I have even seen an admiralty type of model without lofting, using just station lines. Also Mccaffery uses such a method for his small-scale models: he cleverly builds up a layered block, and shapes it as if it were a solid hull modell. Requires some thinking and preparation, but it works without any curves or dawing let alone drafting. Jan

Problem with electrical tools: sometimes they tend to take too much in too short a period. just doing it by hand takes more time, but I find control a bit easier. Jan

Hi Grandpa, I guess that very much depends on the scale and period you are building. wooden cleats can be done in various ways: miling a strip of wood into the outer profile you need, and sawing off cleats in the width you need. or just forming them one by one froma strip that has the correct width and thickness. metal cleats, I never did one, but I guess that there are also various ways.... Jan

Thanks for the explanation!

Wow, it takes some time to realize the size of this ship. Can you tell how you made the sails? they lookvery convincing. Jan

You need quite a notch to get a strong connection. So large that it is visible (at least it was in mine.) using a parrel and a drop of glue was enough for my yards Jan

Hi John, that is deceptive: he has quite a number if things to do. Railing stanchions for instance. But, you’re right: less work than rigging ratlines for a three-masted man-of-war. Jan

That is quite impressive! Jan

Mamoli went down, not because of poor design, but because of fire: their productionfacility burned down. I guess that the square-business holds for almost all pre-laser kits....Mine (corel) wasn't much better. What I don't like at the Mamolis is that their research was lousy. Kits could have been much better representation of the ship without too much effort..... Jan

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