chris watton
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Everything posted by chris watton
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Thank you! I appreciate it, scary and exciting time for me. Hope you like it, this has been one hell of a learning curve, and am sure things will become easier and more streamlined as I get used to it all. -
Finally have everything here and first 10 kits are almost ready, so the website is now live. Still negotiating with UPS for better tariffs, which should be sorted very soon. The website is all thanks to Steve Urwin, who has helped me more than I could have hoped. My wife tells me that she has really enjoyed the time it takes in making up the rigging thread, and didn't curse me at all.... lol https://vanguardmodels.com/ Right, I can now carry on with Speedy...
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Spent all day sorting all of the laser cut wood, phot etched sheets and wood strip. Here are a couple of pics of the strip and laser and PE sheets bagged up, ready to go in the first kit box. All of the wood strip will have its part number on the bag, so my wife tells me (she is packing the kits..)
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Thank you When we have all the parts together and bagged for the first kit, I shall take a pick of the contents and post it on here.
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Cheers Alert was of a much larger design, being the largest class of cutter. In fact, she was as big as some smaller brig-sloops (Speedy is only marginally larger). Even having 12 6-Pounder guns, instead of the usual 4-Pounders. ETA - Alert has a much finer hull, a lot less 'tubby' looking than Lady nelson.
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I now have all the parts with me to start making the Alert kits and the 160kg pallet arrived earlier today with photo etch and laser cut parts, It may take some time to sort the kits, a few days I think, but at least I now have everything I need (including Chuck's fantastic rope for the anchor cables), at last!
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Excellent work, it looks amazing! On a very tenuously related note, I have just watch a YT vid of the Russian 2nd Pacific Fleet 'Voyage of the Damned' I laughed so much at some points, well worth a watch if you have time for comic value alone:
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Thank you! Yes, regarding Vanguard, that is one of mine. (All of the Victory Models range is) I threw out the anchor hawse rope I was going to use for Alert and other models, I wasn't happy with the quality as it didn't really match with the rest of the rigging. With that in mind, I will use Chuck's thick rope for the hawse for all kits. So, I have the boxes made and printed in the Czech Republic, resin castings from Hungary, laser cut and PE parts, some wood and other fittings from Italy, pear and boxwood strip from Germany, rope from the US, manuals printed in the UK, and smaller rigging thread from the UK. A year ago I was convinced I'd never design, let alone produce another kit again!
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Not sure 100%, but the openings are mostly covered with the laser cut combings and shot garlands anyway. I thought it looked neater than just having the planks terminate to the edges.
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Just had a sample of a laser engraved deck for Speedy arrive. I know how difficult it is to get the planking right, more so on smaller vessels where the planks bend and taper at the extremes. The engraving isn't as heavy as they were on the Mercury, and look almost drawn on with a pencil, a lot more unobtrusive. This will be done on 0.8mm plywood. What do you think?
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Well done so far, deck detail looks good. One thing I would suggest (based on experience) is to apply masking tape to the bow platform decking, to protect it. This is because by the time you are ready to finally finish that area, the hull will have gone through a lot of abuse with the two lots of planking, gluing and sanding. If fact, it may be worth re-planking the front half round deck after you have completed the first planking. This is because the lighter first planking wood edges will be seen on the finished model, whereas if you re-plank after completing the first planking, the edges will be finished off with the same colour second planking.
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Always use a matt varnish.
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The sculpting's are 100% digital. The STL files are then passed onto my resin caster, who then 3-d prints the masters into tangible form which are then used to make the moulds for the resin production castings. These should be virtually identical in both size and detail to the 3-d printed master. So will remain at the required scale, in this case, 64th, and not something like 1:78th by the time they are passed onto the customer if using cast white metal..
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Cheers, I am not a fan of too many figures on scale models unless a diorama, but I liked the idea of having a known commander that is connected with the vessel that also helps shows the scale of the ship in relation to a person. I do plan to have a Nelson next, followed by Pellew. Having said that, it may be fun to have an able seamen figure and name him 'Jack Nasty Face'!
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Just received a pic of the 3-d printed 64th scale Cochrane figure. I will keep the base as they will be resin cast (more expensive than white metal, but next to no shrinkage, which I think is important) , so if people want to fix directly to the deck, the base can be filed off.
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I am waiting for final invoices to come in, no price yet, but I am aware that it needs to be reasonable..
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That is beautiful!, and looks perfect to me. I will get some 48th figures done, not quite yet, as I have to watch my pennies, I have budgeted enough or the development of the first three kits, and after this, I am hoping I sell enough to invest all profits back into the rest of the developments I want to do. Quite close. I did have to make a couple of compromises to ensure less experienced modeller's wouldn't end up pulling their hair out, but nothing that any experienced modeller wouldn't be able to change, and certainly nothing major. All fittings and lines were taken from the book. Would be great if it weren't enough! Brilliant!
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Just had an email from the box printing company, Alert boxes are now ready for me to pick them up..
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Just thought I'd mention that I am developing Speedy as she probably appeared under the command of Cochrane in the early 1800's and not as launched in 1782. I think this excellent painting (which I purchased a signed copy of) shows her quite well in her later guise, with a few later mast and rig implementations (flying jib boom, iron bands only on lower masts and dolphin striker)
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Hi, (Just back from day job..) I do not want to do pre orders until I have everything for the kit here with me. It should take no more than a week to have everything here, and we can start putting the kits together, but I do not want to add a pre order until I am certain of release/shipping dates. The kits will be available to order via my new website (Thanks to Steve Urwin, a long standing MSW member): https://vanguardmodels.com/ This will grow as more products are added - there will be the figures available in a couple of month's time, Speedy by September I hope, along with more fittings (18 foot cutter kit in 64th, copper plates (PE) and maybe scale hand pumps (PE for scale detail), and some wood strip. But for now, I am working all hours I can on the brig sloop Speedy and then, when the Alert materials arrive, I shall have to switch to that, but all other times, I am trying my best to get more kits out as quick as I can (which still isn't quick due to the amount of work, even for the smaller kits). I sometimes think it would be nice to have someone else build the prototype kits, but then I realise this is an important part of development, as I can identify major problems and deal with them on the fly. Right now, I think it's bed time.. Cheers, Chris
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OK, will get some 48th scale figures done too, but after the first batch.
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Thank you guys, I am told the laser and PE are being shipped to me within the week, so will be able to start to put kits together by the end of next week (if my boxes turn up..) I had the Speedy captain figure done, and plan to have Nelson and Pellew done too, in both 64th and 72nd scale.
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I always use cyano for stuff like that. However, if all else fails and I am unhappy with the result, I resort to using thin card or thick paper for the rudder straps, painted and cut to the appropriate colour/thickness, and applied using PVA wood glue. This method probably give a much better scale appearance, too (depending on scale, of course - large scale stuff should be fixed using pins anyway). This is why I stopped using copper/brass strip for the blackened iron mast straps, black cartridge paper does a much better job in both ease of application and appearance. the same applies (sometimes) to rudder straps. In my own humble opinion, of course..
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Here are some more pics of the manual and, another delivery today. I received the cast resin parts for the Alert, the large drum winch (which was originally designed using many parts in laser cut wood and PE, but decided against as it was quite complicated to build up), and the smaller mast bitts winch. Also, a sample of a 24 pounder cannon for Bristol.
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Thanks Ben, I did read that the poop was shortened to just aft of the mizzen (Frigates of the Napoleonic Wars, Robert Gardiner). It states that another gun port was worked into the quarterdeck bulwarks, I am assuming they would be at or near abreast of the main mast, and a carronade would have been fitted, as the recoil isn't so dramatic. I may do a half port, and keep the original levels of the plans, as that looks better. On the Alert front, I had my instruction and plan manuals arrive today (A3 size), and they look better than I ever dared hope, looks quite 'classy'. Having said that they weren't cheap. One thing that I always hated with instruction manuals is the minute size of the text, you will have no problems trying to read the text in this..
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