MartinB

Love your hull. Your hard work paid off. Classy
 
Regards
Martin

EJ, this is a fantastic build, wow!  I love your work on it.  I wondered about the wood in Corel kits (I have the Unicorn), but it looks really nice when on the model and finished.  Seeing your work actually makes me seriously consider building the Unicorn again (screw accuracy)...
 
Great job, you have a new follower!

p.s. As a helpful addition to my above comment. Google "HMS Endeavour replica" or "Cutty Sark Greenwich" under images.There are a lot of photos. Look at the size of the ratlines compared to the shrouds. You can hardly see them.
 
Cheers
Martin

As a regular (non OCD) modeler, I would suggest it is what the individual is comfortable with. However, I would think it is all to do with scale. At 1:70 something, the ratline thickness would be 0.20 mm to 0.30 mm thick (if memory serves). At that thickness you would be pressed to see the knot anyway (well, with my eyesight at least). Take a piece of cotton thread out of your partners sewing basket. Tie a clove hitch and pull it tight. Do ya see it?
 
Happy hitchin!
Martin 

p.s. As a helpful addition to my above comment. Google "HMS Endeavour replica" or "Cutty Sark Greenwich" under images.There are a lot of photos. Look at the size of the ratlines compared to the shrouds. You can hardly see them.
 
Cheers
Martin

As a regular (non OCD) modeler, I would suggest it is what the individual is comfortable with. However, I would think it is all to do with scale. At 1:70 something, the ratline thickness would be 0.20 mm to 0.30 mm thick (if memory serves). At that thickness you would be pressed to see the knot anyway (well, with my eyesight at least). Take a piece of cotton thread out of your partners sewing basket. Tie a clove hitch and pull it tight. Do ya see it?
 
Happy hitchin!
Martin 

p.s. As a helpful addition to my above comment. Google "HMS Endeavour replica" or "Cutty Sark Greenwich" under images.There are a lot of photos. Look at the size of the ratlines compared to the shrouds. You can hardly see them.
 
Cheers
Martin

As a regular (non OCD) modeler, I would suggest it is what the individual is comfortable with. However, I would think it is all to do with scale. At 1:70 something, the ratline thickness would be 0.20 mm to 0.30 mm thick (if memory serves). At that thickness you would be pressed to see the knot anyway (well, with my eyesight at least). Take a piece of cotton thread out of your partners sewing basket. Tie a clove hitch and pull it tight. Do ya see it?
 
Happy hitchin!
Martin 

So that's what a ships cat looks like. 

So that's what a ships cat looks like. 

So that's what a ships cat looks like. 

I agree, stick to satin or matte for a sheen. if you do end up with more gloss than you like you can knock it back with steel wool and wax. Below is a shot of my Enterprise a few months ago, the woods are mahogany and manzonia. The mahogany is finished with a combination of shelac, minwax stain, wood filler with dark brown dye. The manzonia is a dark walnut Minwax stain and the entire hull is finished with many many thin coats of boiled linseed oil, rubbed  out with 0000 steel wool and then waxed.
I know most builders prefer a water based finish since it does not change color over the years, but, I happen to like the way an oil based finish ages so I planed for it.
 
If you use a water based finish remember to use nylon abrasive pads ( scrubbies) rather than steel wool, the steel wool can get caught up and rust with a water based finish.
 

 
Sorry for the 'photobombing feline" but that was one of the better shot of the finish that I have.
 
Sam

In my railroading days I used floquil stains on basswood, (for water tanks etc), it worked really well. However, you may require a Hazmat suit to apply it!
Is furniture stain suitable for scale models, or, a model stain. Do not know the answer, just my 2 cents worth.
Cheers.
Martin

In my railroading days I used floquil stains on basswood, (for water tanks etc), it worked really well. However, you may require a Hazmat suit to apply it!
Is furniture stain suitable for scale models, or, a model stain. Do not know the answer, just my 2 cents worth.
Cheers.
Martin

In my railroading days I used floquil stains on basswood, (for water tanks etc), it worked really well. However, you may require a Hazmat suit to apply it!
Is furniture stain suitable for scale models, or, a model stain. Do not know the answer, just my 2 cents worth.
Cheers.
Martin

Hello all.
 
My Endeavour is finished at last and I must say that the result is much better than I expected , I had a break for one year because all the time went to rebuild our house. The kit has been a very good as a first kit to learn basic skills. The only "boring" thing were the endless filling and sanding to achieve the high gloss on the upper hull. But this model has inspired me too try to build with more "scratshing" and I will try to do it on my Sherbourne (will start a new topic soon).
I hope you will enjoy the pictures. They are not the best because they shot with the mobile phone. My father has promised me to take better photos later.
 
Jörgen     

I have a theory that may apply to Chris's post. When I started building my first log, I came to conclusion that my boat will never look as good as most of the builds on this site no matter what I did at the time. This led me to find myself at times thinking, "If I do this, I'll never be able to post the pics on MSW". Now that I have four kits under my belt I feel a lot better about posting to build logs. Unfortunately I do not have the time these days like I did 4 years ago to work on my builds. My Scotland Kit is over two years old now, still trying to get one whole day to sit down and get going on it.
 
These people may have finished their boats but chose not to continue the log because they felt it wasn't good enough to share. Some of the people on this forum are 30 plus year veterans at this hobby and they make such beautiful ships that it may drive away novices from posting.
 
Who knows where these build logs have gone, just saying my theory could be valid along with people just losing interest.

I have built two or three model boats, probably with lots of mistakes, and I certainly consider myself a beginner.
I have completed these models only by reading members builds on this site and trying to learn from them.
However I firmly believe that if a model is classified as suitable for a beginner then the instructions and plans should reflect this. In my limited experience this is definitely not the case. Instructions are very sparse and the plans very complicated.
If manufacturers say a model is for beginners then instructions and plans should be written with the beginner in mind. If that was the case then maybe more models would be completed and more people would carry on with this hobby.

Main mast dead eyes (left side) on place
 
Short video of present stage
 

My grandfather, Cedric Bristow, built this model abut 40 years ago. He intended to add sails but, my father said, wasn't able to because his hand became unsteady due to Motor Neurones Disease (also known as AMS).
 
He passed away several years ago, and I've inherited the ship, which is now in a rather sad state of disarray. I am determined to bring it back to the state in which he left it, and perhaps even finish it in his memory.
 
I admit to having minimal experience with ships and shipbuilding - especially if you don't count having read all the Hornblower and Patrick O'Brian books ever written - but I am a very competent knitter and sewer, so I've got some of the finger-skills I think I'll need plus an idea of how much patience and persistance it takes to see any good craft project through.
 
If you're reading this, I'm certain you'll have some advice you could give me. Please drop me a line to lend a hand!

Hello Primey,
 
Your kit is from the 1980's. I purchased the exact same kit in 1988. To my knowledge, the manufacturer no longer exists.
Looking good so far.

I feel for you Chuck and Dave, as I've noticed the same thing, and I have to think that these people are being completely unreasonable and not really thinking through what they are asking for.
 
I'm going to use Cheerful as a 'talking point', since it's my most recent purchase, and it's a great example, as I've put together the components very much like what they are asking for, yet it's a much smaller kit than what they are asking for.
 
Starter kit w/laser cut keel, bulkheads and stern frames.
All the mini-kits available.
Full timbering kit including pre-milled planking for the hull.
Guns and carriages.
 
All of that adds up to about $565 if you pay normal price, and does not include shipping.  Not included - more wood stock for the masting, all the rigging rope, fittings, stuff like anchors that kits normally include, and we are easily into the $650~$750 range depending on what all you add, and this is a 1/48 scale single masted cutter.  People that expect to get a 1/48 scale frigate kit using that quality of materials for under $500 are never going to get what they want.  It's simple math really.  If you want a 1/48 scale HMS Surprise that uses Boxwood or Pear instead of Lime & Walnut, and replaces bad generic fittings with high quality fittings, it is going to be $1000+ even from a large company.
 
What is really surprising to me is that people don't seem to consider the value of the purchase over the time spent building it.  The AVS took me 13 months, and probably 1200 hours to build.  So what if I spent $600+ on materials to complete it, that's pretty cheap 'entertainment', especially if you spread the 1200 hours out over a longer period of time like most people do.
 
Most plastic modelers (or at least the ones in my IPMS group) spend $50 per month easily on kits, and that's just the ones they actually build, not the ones that just get added to the stash.  At $600 per year, if you build a really nice frigate in 2 years, that's $1200.  Yea, it's all at once, but over time, it's the same as buying a $50 plastic tank model every month.  
 
You get what you pay for, and if you want a high quality model, you buy a high quality kit, which isn't going to be as cheap as a low quality kit of the same subject.