Scuttle Butt

Thank you all for this warm welcome! That would be a solid 190km from here 😬

A heartfelt "servus" (which is soemthing along the lines of "hi there!") from Augsburg / Germany! My name's Jonas. I am a teacher for English, Arts and Crafts and some minor CAD, and a father of three little ones. Currently,after a building time of about two years, I am in the process of finishing my first ship model, Mantua's President. The reasons for this lengthy build are mostly the birth of two of my kids, a thorough renovation with moving houses and my cat using the original plan as a makeshift loo, restricting me to the sup-par building manual that came with the kit. I am truly happy to get this one off the bench, but I will finish it before moving on to Vanguard's Cutter Alert. I've had modelling in me for my whole life, starting with plastic kits, then moving on to Tabletop Gaming (doing more painting than playing). I there started sculpting miniatures as a freelancer, ending up doing 1/72 historical work mostly. My teacher education forced me into taking a break there. I've always had a knack for working with wood and ships, so, in the end, the step towards building wooden model ships was just a matter of time. I really, really enjoy this hobby, not least because I've found the great support of the local shipwrights who welcomed me with open arms to their table. Without them, I wouldn't have made it through the President. I am looking forward to reading, asking and - moste of all - learning from all your posts and feedback! Cheers, everyone! Scuttle Butt

So, here I come in, just taking a break from rigging my very first ship-model. I came from a background of plastic modelling and - most intensly - sculpting historical miniatures in 1/72 for some time, but also fantasy. Working as an atrs and crafts teacher, I love making and therefore had been on the lookout for "my" niche in modelling - until I struck gold with modelships. So, I got started, enthusiastically. Over the last two years, I've built the Mantua President. It took me so long as I managed not only to squeeze my fabulous children #2 and #3 in this time frame, but also the renovation of our new house which I was very much involved in. I've throughout had great support from the local shipwrights, who very much encouraged me to most of all just finish that thing. This model had much light, but also deep shadows for me. Light: It has been fun to built and does make a nice decorative ship in the end. I've learned extermly much with this build and also got to know my preferences in building and historical area. That IS quite something. And, best of all, I'm just about to finish that thing. Shadow: I was slowed down mostly due to the manual and the factthat my cat at one point declared the large plans of the set as his loo. Without the large plans, it has been a real drag, as it misses crucial information and features photigraphs of the poorest qualitiy you can think of. Rigging drove me downright crazy and I now settled for maing a "simplified" version, just to get it done. I'll then start my next build right away: The Vanguard HM Cutter Alert. Flipping through the manual and rummaging through the box brought tears of joy to my eyes. My adivce to fellow newbies would therefore be: Mostly, don't let your cat use your plans as their loo. Nothing good ever comes from that. Still, I'm loving this hobby and am more than happy to have found it!