coxswain

You're doing a great job here Ron, and a great service to 'less experienced' wood modelers (such as myself)!  Really appreciate your taking the time to show each step with detailed explanations and professional diagrams.   Steve M

Great job, LF!!  Steve M

Well, I believe you are in a bit of luck for at least the Jylland kit as it is presently on Ebay https://www.ebay.com/itm/Billing-Boats-Fittings-of-Denmarks-FREGATTEN-JYLLAND-OUT-OF-PRODUCTION-1960s/124556955626?hash=item1d002c4fea:g:h3IAAOSwzA9gEHnG  Mike's advice is good for the others as well, I've had good experience with Cornwall - I have taken a cursory look at the fittings for the Billings Dannebrog and found that most of them are still available from Billings, inter alia - check with MSW sponsor Ages of Sail also

Hi Alvin, and welcome to MSW - Bluejacket used to carry an excellent 1/96 scale solid hull version but it's been discontinued - every now and then one pops up on Ebay - of course, it's always buyer beware of missing parts/plan sheets/whatever - but at least Bluejacket is still around and active, you would be able to get just about all the parts you need and the owner, Nic, is on this site building the Red Jacket clipper.  Why not tell us a little bit about yourself - previous experience etc, and what led you to this site and the Flying Cloud in particular - the knowledge contained within this site and the members is second to none......Steve M

Beautiful aging effect on those copper plates, LF!

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1 hour ago, James H said:

I promise to work as quickly as I can

 

Yeah, right!!  That spot is either the biggest distraction or the biggest inspiration........green with envy......

Welcome Sundt - I've always been intrigued by these big Colin Archer kits - will you be sailing it or just static?  Steve M

You're doing a great job on this George - just like your Sovereign - I tackled these kits in the 60's, but not with the maturity or results you achieve - good to see them getting justice!  Steve M

Just a guess, but I would try a two part epoxy - worked very well on an outdoors project I had with plastic and metal............there should be a lot of people that know more than I..........Steve M

You've taken on three big jobs there, LF, I applaud your work ethic!  Your video looks great, BTW - thanks for taking the time to share all this, and I agree with your assessment of the kits.  Steve M.

They do look very nice, and they come with photo etch gun tracks to replace what you scrape off the kit deck to install them - I especially like the different color strips representing the planks, not just one monotone color.  Here is a YT video review https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWCeLakDC1E  and another deck worth considering is the HIS Model version - this link shows the different items they have available specifically for the Alabama, which includes pre-sewn sails among other things  https://www.hismodel.com/articles-category-13  one thing you might notice is that their decks include treenail detail.  I've been meaning to order one for a side-by-side comparison......Steve M

Having had a few of both of these I googled "Revell CSS Alabama vs Kearsarge" and got a few good hits.  This one at the Steel Navy website is about the best and shows references for their conclusions  http://www.steelnavy.com/Alabama&Kearsarge.htm   I purchased the CI stuff and Scale Decks, someday might even open the box......... although that's against my rules - well,  I meant to post this on Jonathan's Alabama log - sorry, but you guys brought it up!   Steve M

I can't really tell, but given the scale of your ship (1:61) and the average size of men back then (66") he should be about 1.1 inches in height, if that helps at all.........Chris Watton may be making some figures in 1:64 that also might be suitable for your purposes......You're doing a great job so far, BTW!  Steve M

My eyes don't work as well as they used to, but it seems steeper - tell you what - cut a piece of paper to this shape, and fold it in half - proof positive either way!  I've seen other MSW members do it many times with the older die-cut kits........  Steve M

P.S.  Hope it comes out well, you've come so far......a lot of work at stake here.....

I agree with the esteemed gentlemen of the committee - it's a good looking deck, especially when viewed from above, but you may wish to cut down on the gloss as ESF suggested.  In trying to get a sense of your feeling of something lacking, you may want to try adding the treenailing to the deck - it would tend to break up the broad expanse of the deck and would add some interest and not be too difficult at this scale - witness the MK tender Avos with and without the nail detail - in any case, the choice is yours!  Respectfully, Steve M

Good suggestions, all!  Would also be a great start for an 'after the battle' diorama - just a little tweaking here and there, put some crew to work cutting away spars/rigging, maybe add a few holes in the hull - one man's trash is another man's treasure.........in any case please keep us in the loop!  Steve M

You're doing a great job, mister master.......lots and lots of fiddly paintwork there 'master'fully done! Steve M

 - You're doing pretty well for a complete novice!  Regarding the sealing/waterproofing of the wood, I'm afraid I'm no help - I used to build and sail various plastic models that weren't designed for sailing, but of course, they weren't wood.  Try reading some of the R/C build logs and/or start a new topic on sealing/waterproofing.  Here is a link to the R/C builds here https://modelshipworld.com/forum/32-rc-kits-scratch-building/    There are lots of knowledgeable and friendly people here at MSW!  

Hi LB, best practice for those is to not use them anyway, they're overscale and too weak at the same time - try ages of sail https://www.agesofsail.com/ecommerce/fittings/other-fittings/eyebolts/amati-eyepin-am4703.html  these come in packs of 100 for about $3 and then there are the photo etched ones, you can get them from many places, and don't be afraid to use brass or copper ones, you can always chemically blacken or paint them.  Many of the guys here use wire and just loop, bend and glue on the underside of the deck.  Look at some of the plastic build logs here to get a lot of very good ideas, any of the Revell 1/96's or Heller 1/100's should be most applicable.........Steve M

But don't let me tell you what to do - you da boss on your own ship, and looks like Gregory has a good lead!  BTW - It really is all about the hokey pokey ;^)

Impressive, Mr. Voss!  Get yourself an extra ration of grog.........don't skimp on the pics, either  you've done more in the last few hours than I've done in the last ten years!  Steve M

Thanks so much for sharing this with us here at MSW - I've always wondered how this kit would build up and you've done it justice, and to think in only two years' time as well!  Do you have any future builds in the works?  Steve M

Wow!!  Clean, Sharp, Smooth and quite a few others are words one can use to describe this work!!  Steve M...........

Hi John - check from our own MSW  https://modelshipworld.com/index.php?/forum/28-card-and-paper-models/ and be sure to check some of the build logs - also, you may be able to troll the Ebay listings in plastic for something............Steve

Thanks for sharing, Paul!  There's so much of art in this technical hobby that there are nigh on to infinite possibilities that need to be navigated by a dilettante such as myself - the help is much appreciated!  Steve M