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She who must be obeyed has pointed out many times that I have so many kits and sets of plans that I will be well into my second century by time I finish them all.  Finally had to admit she is right.  Over time I will be posting several kits and plan sets for sale.
I think I have set prices at a reasonable level but offers will be considered.  Trades might be possible but I would really rather sell everything.  Prices do not included shipping.  If you don't see what you are looking for let me know and I will see what I have in that stash.
Kits:  All kits are 100% complete and in excellent condition
3.  Panart Lynx  $160

 
Plan Sets:
1. Sidewheel Steamer "James M. Donahue" 1875 Smithsonian plan # 16-41.  13 sheets (3 17x22, 10 17x35)  1/8" scale.  Printed on heavy paper.   $65 ($130 from Smithsonian)
2. Tern Schooner "William Bisbee"  1902 Smithsonian Plan # HAMMS 8-62.  3 sheets (1 17x22, 3 17x35)  3/16" scale.  Printed on heavy paper.  $15

3. Centerboard Schooner "Virginia" 1879 Smithsonian Plan # HAMMS 8-23  10 sheets (4 17x22, 6 17x35) 3/8" scale.  Printed on heavy paper.  $50

 

She who must be obeyed has pointed out many times that I have so many kits and sets of plans that I will be well into my second century by time I finish them all.  Finally had to admit she is right.  Over time I will be posting several kits and plan sets for sale.
I think I have set prices at a reasonable level but offers will be considered.  Trades might be possible but I would really rather sell everything.  Prices do not included shipping.  If you don't see what you are looking for let me know and I will see what I have in that stash.
Kits:  All kits are 100% complete and in excellent condition
3.  Panart Lynx  $160

 
Plan Sets:
1. Sidewheel Steamer "James M. Donahue" 1875 Smithsonian plan # 16-41.  13 sheets (3 17x22, 10 17x35)  1/8" scale.  Printed on heavy paper.   $65 ($130 from Smithsonian)
2. Tern Schooner "William Bisbee"  1902 Smithsonian Plan # HAMMS 8-62.  3 sheets (1 17x22, 3 17x35)  3/16" scale.  Printed on heavy paper.  $15

3. Centerboard Schooner "Virginia" 1879 Smithsonian Plan # HAMMS 8-23  10 sheets (4 17x22, 6 17x35) 3/8" scale.  Printed on heavy paper.  $50

 

I believe the Dallas kit is based on the standard 51ton revenue cutter design.  Howard Chapelle shows this design in one of this books.

We had a question the other day about that site being blocked from a member in the UK.   It was working here in the States but not from the UK.   They may very well be "open" but the restrictions by not just governments, but companies like credit cards may block any transfer of funds. The situation is still developing and more sanctions may be coming. 

Hello JayBee, I am myself a long time and could say an experienced modeler. Styrene and resin ships (some of them heavily modified). Airplanes and the occasional armored vehicle (WWI tanks with interior), figurines mostly medieval and Napoleonic. But wooden ship models is a new ball game and I started last year myself. I would recommend something simple to start with good instructions. Myself I started with a Vanguard fishing boat, it allowed me to practice on planking (double planking), painting wood, "easy" rigging, finding out the different tools that I need, and a lot of posted material of modelers who build the same model with good advices. Indeed I was interested by such ship as the Bounty or Endeavor but resisted the temptation and I do not regret my choice.

Here's what I use.  I've made up probably 20 or more of them.  The jaws grasp the bulkhead or frame.  The notched end slide over the plank to press it in place.   I don't have a photo of it in use....   
 
These are simply a wooden clothes pin (or peg to those east of the big pond).   The wood pieces are removed, cut, and then installed back on the metal spring flipped 180 degrees.  I do usually, line the gripper end (on the right) with some sandpaper so it doesn't slip off the bulkhead or frame.
 

I didn't mean to jump into this build so quickly after finishing my Endurance, but today was one of those dismal grey days on which it's nice to slip into the basement and sit at my worktable. The kit arrived a few months ago, so I had already unpacked and inspected everything. But it was good to come back and check everything again while I got myself sorted and organized.
 
Billing's description states: "A flat-bottomed boat from Provence. Vessels of this type were commonly used along the Rhone River for transporting building timber, tiles from Arles and fodder. The runs were eventually extended to include the southern coasts of France. The boats disappeared, however, as railway transport became widespread." This is a bit too simple for a historian like me, so I've been doing some preparatory research. The kit is of a fictional boat based on the tartanes and allèges that ran freight on the lower Rhone River, then along the coast in both directions as far as Sète in the west and Toulon in the east. (Coincidentally, two of my favorite places in France are Montpellier and Hyères, which are very close to Sète and Toulon, respectively.) The "allège d'Arles" is a celebrated boat in the Bouches-du-Rhône, particularly noted for hauling local tiles from Arles. While Billing comments that these ships were superseded by railway transport, steam-powered barges were the more direct culprit for the decline of these ships. However, the tartanes and allèges were part of a centuries-long development of sail-powered freight ships designed for the specific challenges of the Rhone River. Their flat bottoms, in particular, were essential for navigating through the shallow stretches of the river.
 
Here are a few images that I'm using for inspiration. The first is entitled "Allège en chargeant dans le port de Toulon" (Allège loading cargo in the port of Toulon). The second is a woodcut by Jean-Jérôme Baugéan and the title translates to "An allège from Arles descending the Rhone River." The third is a much earlier woodcut by Pierre-Jacob Gueroult du Pas entitled "Allège d'Arles, pour le transport de bois" (Allège from Arles, for transporting wood). Finally, there are two paintings by Antoine Roux of allèges d'Arles.
 
 
 
The kit comes with the usual variety of planks and plywood. The three thicker pieces of plywood seem to be of decent quality, though the laser-cutting left a lot of marks on the backside. The thinner piece (lower right with the main deck piece dominating) looks like single-ply plywood; it's very thin and badly warped. I have it sitting between two boxes in hops that it will flatten out. If not, maybe an iron on low heat will help? In addition to dowels, the planks are made of poplar and obeche. There's also a roll of sailcloth, which means I'll be making my own sails for the first time.
 

 
The instructions—available for free on Billing's site, which I appreciated when I was trying to decide what to build next—are what I've come to expect from most kits. The text instructions are very limited and assume prior experience building model ships (a note to any raw beginners: don't be scared off; MSW provides a great knowledge base for figuring out what the instructions aren't telling you!). The photos in the instructions are in black-and-white and of just okay quality. The diagrams are a single large sheet, accompanied by a single sheet with templates for the sails. Per my usual approach, I've hung the plans on the wall above my worktable.
 

 
In addition to the wood and sailcloth, there's a small plastic package with rigging thread, hardware, a ribbon (for a pennant on the mast), and the lifeboat. The rigging thread seems to be in three diameters, though I'll need to take a closer look to be sure; it's also much better quality and more rope-like than I've worked with on any of my prior kits. The lifeboat is plastic and comes in two pieces; I do not plan to use it. The hardware looks like it's all decent quality and is definitely usable.
 

 
In addition, you'll notice I picked up four dozen barrels from ModelExpo/Model Shipways. My plans for the kit are:
 
This kit is primarily about improving my skills. I'm particularly looking to get better at planking both the hull and the deck. I'm hoping to go without paint for the first time. I'm hoping that the wood will look good enough that I just need satin varnish, though I'm also fine with using wood stains if I need. After my experience with the Endurance, I'll probably do a little bit of kitbashing and upgrading. For example, I'm going to build this as a fully loaded freight vessel, hauling a load of wine. (Coincidentally, a couple years ago, I gave my wife an artistic map of the Rhone Valley wine regions, along with some sample bottles...there's definitely some inspiration there.) Rather than placing the lifeboat and its cradles over the cargo hatch, I'll leave it open and fill the hold with the wine barrels.  This will also mean planking the lower deck. My goal is something that looks a bit like the first Roux painting above...though I'm not sure yet if I'm ambitious enough to add the other two masts from the painting.  
I notice that Ben87 started a buildlog for this kit last year and that RDDP mentioned they are working on this, too. Hopefully, we'll have a nice little community as we work on this together!
 
Next steps: prepare and assemble the spine, flat bottom, and keel pieces.

Hi Everyone,
 
as this is my very first build, please have patience with me if I do something wrong, and point it out such that I will not make that mistake again! As for the era of the ship, I bought this model because I liked the style of the ship, I loved sailing on a flat bottom ship before, so I have a preference. But the model kit does not tell me anything about the era in which it belongs. I did some research but could not find any information on it besided the model page written up by Billing Boats. The description tell me that these ships whre decomissioned when rail transport was introducted in france, therefor I chose this era to put the buildlog into.
 
After opening the box and reading the instructions (which isn't all that much or elaborate), I really wanted to get started.
 

 
Examaning the box content:

 
Everything seems to be present, looking at all the parts it looks doable for a beginner, so far I'm happy with my choice. The only thing that is annoying me a bit is the fact that you by a wooden scale model kit which has a lifeboat on its deck, but they provide you with a plastic injection mold replicate of that lifeboat... That one may have to go and might get replace with a home made version out of wood.
 
I wanted to make the build easy on myself so before I started putting anything together with glue I had to improvise a way to make sure the Keel and Bottomplate would be put together straight on a small scale (for normal woodworking I have special clamps for this). But some childhood goodies helped me out here. Lego is one of the few small things I have lying around that I am sure of that the angles on it are as close to 90 degrees and you can get.

 
The Keel requires (you cannot see this on the image) a small strip of wood at the bottom to make it complete. Clamping it all together firmly to allow the glue to set properly.

 
Lets let that set properly and continue onwards tomorrow!
 
If you have any tips and or tricks, let me know!
 
Kinds regards,
Ben

Try:
 
https://www.modelmotorcars.com/scalehardware/

I have full set of plans I got from the Smithsonian when I was building the Philadelphia. I got the plans because I wanted to detail the build including full sails, rigging, and the fascine protective barriers made from wood bundles. These plans were apparently used to construct the reproduction.
I came across them while I was cleaning up my stash.
 
I am willing to gift these for the price of a mailing tube and postage to anyone who is interested in a detailed build of this model. They were not cheap! PM me if interested.
Here is what mine looks like using these plans:
 

Modelers Central is coming out with a James Caird model kit in 2022.  Details (although not many) can be found at https://www.modelerscentral.com/modeling-hub/james-caird/.  Looks like a good, realistic representation of the Caird, with a cutaway hull to show ballast, crates, supplies, etc., in the crowded boat.
 
james
Maine

I've been working out the formulas for the Gutermann E thread and I have some pictures to show. I purchased the color card and bought every color that I thought would look like rope. I like this thread quite a lot. It's easy to work with, has zero fuzz, low shine, and is very strong. It's also a quarter the cost of cotton thread and I don't have to treat it with book-binders PVA. This should make my synthetic line of rope more affordable. 
 
On the left we have pale beige. In the middle we have tan which is very close to my cotton tan color. On the right we have a golden brown, I think it's close to manila hemp. The tan I'll get into production for sure. The other two however need some testing onboard some models before I go any further.

For the standing rigging colors we have the usual suspects. Black on the left. Very dark brown in the middle. Dark brown on the right, It's actually a little darker than what is in the photo as I turned the brightness up a bit. I like them all to be honest and will probably have them all available on my store.

Here is a 2.4mm cable I made with the tan color. Very crisp detail with no fuzz!

I'm going to put the dark brown and tan into production and I hope to have them online by early next month. I'm also going to look into other types of thread for the lighter colors. Amann Serafil I hope has some good options but the color card still need's to arrive. 
 
Thanks for looking in! 
 

After Bligh and his crew arrived in Batavia from Coupang onboard their schooner "Resource" both the schooner and the launch were sold on October 10 to raise cash.

Picked up a cheap Oral-B 500 toothbrush on ebay and made an oscillating detail sander from it.  Pulled the bristles out of the head and glued a small piece of sandpaper on it.  Tried it out on the hull of a model I am working on and it worked great.  Produces a nice smooth surface.  I am not going to trying using coarse sandpaper with it as I think it would be to aggressive.  The head oscillates at a high rate.

I am actually sometimes wondering, whether kits do not make the task of building too daunting.
 
If well designed, everything should fall into its place, but you really have to be able to follow the ideas of the designers in addition to understand the ship itself. That's a double task.

Check the sponsors listed on the right side of the home page of this site.  Some good sources there.

Check the sponsors listed on the right side of the home page of this site.  Some good sources there.

Check the sponsors listed on the right side of the home page of this site.  Some good sources there.

Check the sponsors listed on the right side of the home page of this site.  Some good sources there.

A pointed bow is easier to plank.  You might want to take a look at Model Shipways "Willie L. Bennet" Skipjack kit.  A good introduction to building models of sailing vessels.  Great instructions.  Here is a link to a build log. 
 

A pointed bow is easier to plank.  You might want to take a look at Model Shipways "Willie L. Bennet" Skipjack kit.  A good introduction to building models of sailing vessels.  Great instructions.  Here is a link to a build log. 
 

I use a 3 drawer wooden art supply organizer.  Just the right size for xacto knife handles and blades.  Available in 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 10 drawer versions.  Take the time to apply wax to the drawer runners to ensure smooth operation.
https://www.displays2go.com/P-22078/Art-Supply-Organizer-3-Beechwood-Drawers
 
Also available from Amazon and Jerry's Artarama .
 

Another good series are the Richard Delancy novels by C. Northcote Parkinson.  His other books are great reads as well.

The only thing I ever read about him that might be controversial is that some of his reconstructions of design details were considered very speculative.

Several somewhat unconnected thoughts:
 
There is no American maritime history researcher that even comes close to Chapelle.  He spearheaded the documentation of local American Sailing craft large and small.  He realized and followed up on the fact that the Royal Navy had in its archives dozens of drawings for captured American sailing ships.  He was an excellent draftsman and produced hundreds of drawings.  Even with his interpretations and reconstructions models built from these drawings are more accurate than 90% of those built from mass market European POB kits. And, regarding USF Constellation he was 100% right!
 
I would not consider him to have been uneducated.  While he was not a graduate of one of the “Big Three” Naval Architecture Programs (MIT, University of Michigan or Webb Institute) and might not have been qualified to design the SS United States, I believe that he had completed the Westlawn Correspondence Naval Architecture Course.  His writings indicate clearly that he understood sailing vessel design; a subject not taught at the University of Michigan when I was a student there in the1960’s.  Sailing yacht design was considered to be an art, not a science.
 
Any Naval Architect will tell you that the basis for any ship design, full size or model is an accurate set of hull lines.  Chapelle’s drawings were based on old drawings or half models, so he often had to correct for distortion in his source materials.  Furthermore, no two Naval Architects will produce exactly the same lines drawing from the same input data. This happens because of “fairing.”  In plotting curves, there will always be points that don’t line up or don’t match in all three dimensions.  The drafter must, therefore, adjust his drawing to produce a fair surface and no two drafters will do this the same way 100% of the time.  How many different “original” lines drawings exist for the Yacht America and which on reflects the actual vessel.
 
L. Francis Herreshoff was not particularly well educated in the traditional sense.  He was Dyslexic and his father, MIT educated Nathaniel Herreshoff, sent him to a local Agricultural School with the idea that he would manage a farm that the family owned.  Instead of completing the program he effectively ran away from home and got a job as a draftsman with W. Starling Burgess. He learned yacht design on the job.  In fact Nathaniel Herreshoff was not a Naval Architect.  His degree from MIT was in mechanical engineering. Olin Stevens also was not a University educated Naval Architect and has written that late in his career had trouble understanding the new CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics ).  
 
Roger