Hello,
My name is David, but I go by Jake. I am a 60 yr old man, who has been modeling since I was 5 yrs old. My father was a avid Modeler, from before I was born, right through untill he passed away, a couple of yrs ago.
My father was a person who... Didn't fuss with a model for weeks, he was a... Proflic Modeler. He was a carrer military man, and when I was 5 or 6, while stationed in Okinawa, and shipped literally 200 + models back home.
I am a newbie to wooden ship models... But have spent a lot of time while working on models, doing scratch-building, and super detailing.
I am retired, but spent my professional carrier in the computer industry, the last 1/2 as a systems engineer... So I am used to... Problem solving, and attention to detail.
A little while ago, someone gifted me the Model shipways Niagara model. I did a bunch of research, bought some tools, & books (I am impressed with Mastini's Ship Modeling Simplified book).
While this was a great gift, it was not the wooden ship model I really wanted to build... You see, my grandfather actually worked on one of the restorations of the constitution (I have built Revell's 1/96 model of it).
I have, for yrs, wanted to build this ship in wood. When it was first announced, I read about the Model Shipways Constitution model, in Finescale Modelers Magazine . I never got it, but always wanted it. I decided, before I start the Niagara, I would see about getting the Ms Constitution kit. Two weeks ago, I won a complete Ms Constitution kit, on ebay, for $225.00 (a great deal, I believe).
So, while this is my 1st wooden ship... Making me a newbie .. And I know many people start model projects, and get frustrated, and walk away... I am thinking, hoping... My 50 + yrs of modeling experience, along with my... Professional life experience of... Problem solving, and attention to detail, coupled with my motivation of completing this particular kit, to pass down to my son, to hopefully pass on to future generations, will give me a... Better then average chance of completing this kit.
Jake