ENDEAVOUR is one of the most graceful hulls ever built. The kit contains pre-cut lifts (in alternating layers of basswood and mahogany), a chamfered solid cherry backboard (6” x 23”), brass nameplate, plans, and illustrated instruction booklet. The modeler learns to glue the lifts, carve and sand them to conform to the true hull shape, finish the model and backboard, and assemble the completed model. ENDEAVOUR can be varnished, showing the decorative alternating basswood and mahogany layers, or painted as on the original yacht.
Guns of History by Model Shipways 1:16 SCALE During the 18th century, when wooden warships dominated the high seas, one of the most common naval guns was the mortar. The mortar was a muzzle-loaded cannon with a short barrel. Because the barrel elevation was fixed at a 45 degree angle, the carriage design was simple. All that was needed was a recessed wooden "baulk" that held the breech end of the gun. The trunnions were not used to vary elevation, but to spread the recoil over a greater area. The guns on deck were fixed to fire dead ahead, so the entire vessel had to be turned to aim. Eventually, the base was made to rotate, vastly simplifying and speeding the aiming procedure. Still, by modern standards, mortars were extremely inefficient, difficult to load, and short ranged. A typical broadside of a Royal Navy ship of the late 18th century could be fired only 2-3 times in approximately 5 minutes.
