yvesvidal

Jack, I bet it is pretty nerve wracking to start removing the bulkheads, from the finished hull. Will it hold? Will it just collapse on itself? I am anxious to see the results. Yves

This is literally a floating fortress..... It feels so much like these indomitable medieval castles. Yves

Jack, You are always exploring new way to build wood models. This is very interesting. Yves

Glad to see you start a new shipyard, Jack. And this is an excellent choice with plenty of room for extra details and features. I will be following with a lot of interest and passion. Yves

I suspect because of the weather. German ships were submitted to extreme cold weather in Northern Europe, whereas Japanese were always in the tropical islands. Yves

Beautiful and timeless boat. Yves

This painting reflects a Roman "Port Fluvial", which means a harbor located on a large river such as the Rhone in France. There are some huge underwater discoveries that were made recently in the Rhone river around Avignon or Valence (I cannot remember exactly) and they recovered from the bottom of the river, lots of Roman artifacts. A museum was opened for that matter. Technically, we would not have these big waves on a river, but I like your implementation much better. It gives a dynamic dimension to your model and diorama. Yves

Superb model Jack. Yves

Absolutely beautiful. There is a nostalgic beauty to these ships that is impossible to find with modern boats. I agree with you that the lights are too strong. You need to dim them quite a bit. Yves

Julie, What a great view to build your model. Yves

The kit that you are seeing on these pictures was purchased on the Costa Brava (Cataluna) about 10 or 12 years ago. Constructo stopped producing them a long time ago. Yves

I was able to locate a picture of the other kit in the Dioramas offering of Constructo: Yves

Folks, Here is a rather uncommon kit made by Constructo from Spain, at the scale of 1/20. It is a diorama rather than a boat in the proper sense of the term. Constructo produced two of these special diorama kits: the one that we are reviewing today and another one depicting another motor powered boat sitting on a pier, in a small fishing village of southern Spain. The kit is made at the scale of 1/20 which is regrettable in a way for us Anglo-American lovers of standard scales such as 1:24th. Unfortunately, both kits are no longer available and can only be found on the secondary or used market. The kit is complete and comes with a very heavy base made of MDF, back walls, all woods parts and a lot of metal parts with two figures in white metal. The instructions are very detailed and written in at least 6 different languages for the European and world market. This is a picture provided by Constructo of what the final fishing boat would look like if it was finished. However, before it gets completed in that lovely shipyard, here are a few close-ups provided by Constructo to show the amount of details that went into the kit. I hope you enjoyed this unusual kit from our Spanish friends. Yves

Well, I found this kit: http://www.squadron.com/v/vspfiles/photos/IT0857-2.jpg I agree that it is bigger than the original mini-copter that they used. I am not sure that it will fit. It is a good idea to try some planking to simulate the wood. Yves

Jack, I think both are gorgeous and serve their purposes. Yves

Ian, I am quite certain that with your skills and enthusiasm, you will not have any problems finding a job in that industry and help design the future marvels sailing our seas. Good luck and we all hope to see you back on this forum with your next project. Yves

I have the feeling that the HobbiesGuinea.com picture is the result of a skilled amateur building these seats by hand. There is no way a kit manufacturer could provide seats hand stitched like the ones on the picture, unless the kit was worth a small fortune. You could do the same by placing some thin foam or rubber, a layer of leather on the plastic shells that you have and hand stitching them yourself. Yves

There is probably nothing to follow, as I have no time to restore it, nor the desire to do that yet. I managed to find a small chopper at the scale of 1/48th which i believe will be more detailed than the one provided by Billing Boats. The ship would need to be thoroughly cleaned, sanded in some places, re-painted and lots of detail could be added. This was done with 30 years ago technology and paints and details are much better today than they used to be in the early 80's. If the urge to fix it sparks in my heart, then I will have a place to report the progress. Thank you for your interest. Yves

Popeye, Yes, I agree with you that the outside of the hull looked like metal. But it was made of wood and that probably explain why it sank so quickly when it was hit by that Chinese barge in the harbor of Singapore. Before being an exploration vessel, the ship was a mine-sweeper. There is a lot of information on the WEB about that famous vessel. Yves

Folks, This is a model that is not seen too frequently on this side of the pond: the famous and legendary Calypso of Jacques Cousteau. The model was produced by Billing Boats in the early 1980's and was offered with an ABS molded hull, lots of injected plastic parts, brass and some wood for the construction of the cabins and decks. The model was offered with all the parts and details (which was not the norm in the 80's) and could be radio-controlled. The model at a scale of 1/45 was close to 95 cm long, 33 cm high and 19 cm wide. I purchased the Billing Boats model in 1985, spending my first monthly pay on the kit and two Mabushi motors. I was working for IBM on the French Riviera at that time. This was my first big kit and I was (and still are) in love with that vessel and its legend. The pictures you are seeing below show the model after 30 years of almost no activity. The model would have to be seriously cleaned up and re-painted. I have removed a lot of parts (the crane for instance) as well as all the radio control gears (battery, receiver, servos, motors, switches and speed controller). That model, like his big sister, has sailed in a few places in the world: the Harbor of Cagnes Sur Mer (salt water) in the Alpes Maritimes in France, some lakes in the South of France near Toulouse, a couple of lakes in Massachusetts near Boston and Lake Lynn in Raleigh, NC. I built a sturdy box that was used to transport it and move it from Europe to the USA. As some of you may know, the Calypso was sunk in the Chinese harbor of Singapore, following a collision with a barge early 1986. One year later she was lifted from the bottom of the harbor and stored in a shipyard. Sadly, Jacques-Yves Cousteau died the same year. In 2006, the wreck was given to the Cousteau Society and after many years of transaction (French administration is heavy and slow), the restoration of the ship started recently. Calypso is considered as part of the French Patrimoine (like the castle of Versailles) and as such will receive governmental funding for its restoration and the assurance of a long and cared for life (hopefully...). Yves

Since you live near the place where Oysters are built, you should go to their plant and show them your masterpiece. Sailboat makers have a need for models of their boats, in small quantity and easily reproducible (you have access to the equipment). I know Beneteau for instance, sells some of their flagship boats as models for an hefty price. I think Jeanneau does the same and future or current owners have no problem paying 1-2K euros for a model of their beloved sailboat. There is also a very nice lady in Puerto Rico who makes models of current and modern sailboats and motorboats. Her prices are more affordable (a few hundreds dollars to a couple of K depending on the model) but her manufacturing process is more traditional (hand made). She comes to the Sailboat show in Annapolis, MD, every year. Yves

Iain, This is magnificent. Thank you so much for sharing. I love modern sailboats and enjoy tremendously your Blog. I toured the real Oyster yachts at Annapolis, during the October Sailboat show. They are very impressive but out of reach for the vast majority of human beings. Now, as far as you are concerned, you need to sail the real one. Yves

It is superb Jack. Most likely far too clean for a Viking ship.... Yves

Eccellente, magnifico Jack!!! Yves

This whole process is amazing (at least for me). I can see some potentials and opportunities for kit manufacturers, using these technologies. Laser wood cutting, as well as water cutting, has been around for a while and is not really new. On the other hand, creating the hull and other small parts the way you are doing it, with 3D cutting machines should allow to decrease the price of kits and improve the quality of the parts. There will always be a traditional way of building wooden model kits, but for modern boats I really like this approach. Yves