catopower

I know I've got some other things in progress, and a couple of them are paper/card models. But, I've been trying to promote card model products for Ages of Sail, and I finally couldn't stand it any more, so I broke down and bought one of Shipyard's laser-cut card kits that I've been eyeing ever since it came out. In this case, it's Shipyard's 1/72-scale laser-cut card kit of the 10-gun snow-rigged (brig) sloop, HMS Wolf, 1754. Now, this has been something of a "closet" project, in that I hadn't posted any build log details, though I've been working on the kit since July 23. So, I'm going to maintain on this first page, an up-to-date photo of the build. Then, I'll go back to the beginning and share my build details from there, working my way forward. Someday, there will be a great convergence in the Universe, you will all feel a strange shift in the Force, and the build log will get caught up with the build... Photo taken 9/23/22: I bought Shipyard's 1/72-scale HMS Wolf kit from Ages of Sail. Officially, the US Distributor for Shipyard products. Yes, I do some work for Ages of Sail, and this build just shows how dangerous that situation is for me. But, I also build some things to make myself better acquainted with the products. At least that's my excuse for some of my partial builds. This build, however, has been so much fun and it's come along so nicely that I'm really looking forward to completing this model. In order to simplify this build log, I posted all my components photos into a kit review, which you can now find here:

Hi JDillon, I wouldn't worry too much about little errors here and there, especially if you are trying out new skills/features like joggled planking. It's why we have "first builds"! 🙂 It gets easier and better as you go. Might be too late to comment, but you know there's no reason the bulwarks planking has to be the same as the deck planking. In reality, they'd be very different looking after a while, even if they started off being the same wood. Plus, if you're painting... paint, as they say, covers a multitude of sins. Black is a very common color for early 19th century ships hulls, often with the sheer molding painted another color, so it's not so stark. Inside bulwarks were often white or green. But, similarly to what Chris wrote, it's your ship and you can paint it however you see fit. Many people like the look of natural wood, and like to just put a finish on it - a more stylized approach to ship modeling. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

LOL. I didn't know what this was, so I looked it up... Oh, that's what I have! I do wish I had an x-y table for it though.

I have a Vanda-Lay Acra-Mill Plus and the Drill Press. I did quite a bit using the setup when I was scratch building my Mary Taylor and Lively models. I set it up to scratch build my rigging blocks, to thickness sand a small number of small strips, and even used it cut planking strips. Everything that's been said about it here sounds correct to me. I had older Dremels and they worked just fine – don't know about newer ones. I think the best aspect of the Acra-Mill, etc., is that you can use them in a small space. So, if you're in an apartment, or just don't have workshop space, it's quite handy. Also, if you really don't need to do a lot of cutting, milling, etc., then it can be quite handy to have. However, after a while, it becomes a pain to have to take it apart to reconfigure it and put it back together every time you need a different set up. I still have mine, but haven't used it in years now. Myself, I never liked using a Dremel except for use as part of the Acra-Mill set up. Personally, I think the most useful item would probably be a decent micro drill press and X-Y table. Or, even just any micro drill press. As Roger suggests, I got a cheap one that was made in China, and it works great and gets more use than 3/4 of my other power tools. However, I got one with electronic speed control. Has worked great for 4 or 5 years now.

Hi Snug, I love the way this model is coming along. I really like your choice of finishes. It looks nice and it looks very real to me. I expect any day now to see "The Mummy" emerge from that cabin 😁 I have to thin out my stockpile of Woody Joe kits first, but this one will probably be my next purchase from them.

Another card model publisher which has been reviewed here on MSW is Seahorse. I wanted to learn more about this company and their products, so I went ahead and purchased their Armed Virginia Sloop kit. At 1/100 scale, the hull is pretty tiny at just about 7-1/2" long. I ordered some of the optional accessories, including the laser-cut gun carriage set, sails set, and laser-cut parts. The whole order cost me less than $25 shipped from Poland(!). In a matter of about three weeks time, this is where it stands... I'm still learning a lot about paper modeling, but this kit has so far been a very fast lesson. I'd only gotten it to try it out. But, it's small enough that I'm going to have to see it through to completion. Only thing is that it's been fairly easy up to this point, relatively speaking. Now, come all the tiny parts! I found that there are a few other optional accessory sets that I didn't see when I got the kit, so I went ahead and ordered those. They include the dowels set (in beech), resin cannon barrels set, and laser-cut blocks set. So, add another $20 to my project costs. I'm really hoping to see some of these Seahorse builds here on MSW...

I love the fact that because of the way they're designed, many of the kits feature some of the internal spaces, like the great cabin, and the space under the forecastle. Though it just means more stuff you have to detail at 1/96 scale(!).

Chris, maybe we can take up a collection for you? 😉

Hey Chris, your "cheap" is showing! 😀 In the world of ship modeling, $130 for all the accessories, detail sets, blocks sets is nothing. You made similar comments when I was sharing photos of my HMS Wolf kit. Anyway, how often do we spend money to buy kits or accessories to simplify construction, etc? (Don't actually count me, as I spend way too much on ship modeling! 😊 GrandpaPhil, I'm watching and learning!

Hi Allen, I agree with Mark's explanation. Many kit manufacturers have some way of getting around the need for cutting the rabbet for the garboard planks, which is probably why you've never really had to worry about it in your prior builds. I too have seldom found it necessary to cut a rabbet for the garboard strake for a kit model.

Hi Mark, Interesting question. I think Allan has it right. During battle, there's not much you can do. Everyone is busy in the fight, which is why I suppose they went to Battle Sail, reducing sail by brailing up the lower sails and such, which also reduces the amount of damage that the sails might take from cannon fire. I think it's only after battle that there's time to splice parted lines. And if there's one thing those sailors knew how to do, it was to splice ropes. Of course it's the Flying Dutchman. So, it doesn't actually need the sails to travel on the seas and send his victims to Davey Jones' Locker. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with!

You know, their navy has always been somewhat western-oriented. Not only were many (most?) early ships purchased from western shipyards, in the 1850s, the earliest navy learned their commands in Dutch. I'd actually be curious to find out how the instrumentation was labeled on ships built in England, etc.

Hello Bill, I say, if you like the kit, buy it, build it, make your neighbor jealous that he didn't build it when he sees your completed model! My first kits were Artesania Latina. The same is true for many others here. Kits all have their issues, none are perfect, but that doesn't have to keep you from having a great time building it. I find that Artesania Latina kits actually go together quite well, though I have no information on that particular one. If you have any questions as you're building it, you can always ask for advice on this forum. Good luck with whatever you decide!

I bought some UV cure glue off of Amazon, which included a little UV flashlight to cure the glue. Not expensive for the set, less than $20. Though I didn't end up using the UV cure glue for anything yet, the flashlight showed the Titebond residue on a model very well. All in all, a VERY useful tip – enough to where I really need to pass this along!

Sounds like it's worth trying out. Thanks for the tip!

Hi GrandpaPhil, I had trouble keeping the next layer nice and smooth on my last paper model. I don't have any advice for you, but there are definitely some ideas out there on the subject. Hope you have better luck than me!

Hi GrandpaPhil, congratulations on starting on HMS Mercury. I never finished mine, but it's still on the shelf, waiting for me to get back to it. I just have way too many projects, and I'm trying to clear them out finally, one by one. Isn't it cool how well these laser cut parts go together? I'll be checking in on your build. Good luck and hope you have lots of fun with it!

Well, not that this will help Edite any, as he was only online here for about 2 weeks. But, I managed to find my instruction booklet, and it does in fact have a basic description of belaying points. Takes a little understanding of basic nautical terms as there are no diagrams, just text. So, for what it's worth, there ya go...

Hey Snug Harbor Johnny, nice purchase! If I make another major Woody Joe kit purchase, this is kit I've been thinking I'd get. I've seen a couple builds, and it looks like a very interesting project. Only problem for me is that I actually have a huge stack of Woody Joe kits in my closet. I only just managed to finish a small one. Unfortunately, this only served to slow the rate of growth of the stack, not actually reduce the size of the stack. Looking forward to reading about your progress whenever you end up getting started! Clare

Hi Trevor, I just saw your model on your other topic regarding the Misticque. Again, a beautiful looking model! Pretty well all of the standing rigging is set up with deadeyes or some kind of tackle. I find that it's often best to set up the tackles, but to not secure them until later in the build, to give the rigging line time to stretch, as Chris mentioned – to relax, as it were. Sounds like it's done just that, and it may be necessary to re-rig those tackles. But, that can be done without having to re-do the shrouds and stays themselves, though it may mess with the evenness of your ratlines.

Hello Edite, First off, beautifully done model! Corel's Misticque has always been a favorite of mine, in terms of appearance. I haven't built it, but your build is pretty inspiring. It is a subject that's on my ever-expanding to-do list. I do have the plans set for the model, and I see nothing in the plans at all that indicate the belaying points of any of the lines. So, this is a bit of a mystery, and your call for help is completely understandable. Some lines appear to be numbered, but there's nothing in the plans that show where they specifically tie off. Alan's suggestion for a book on xebec rigging might be one possibility, though I've never personally seen a book specifically on xebec rigging. Also, since the Misticque is not a pure xebec, but rather a pollaca xebec, that complicates thing further. However, many people have built this kit, and they managed with the rigging somehow. So, I'd suggest checking for build logs here, and maybe contacting them directly with this question. Last note. I lost my instruction booklet, so I can't check that. But, is there a possibility that there is some small diagram in it, possibly at the back, that shows some kind of belaying plan?

Thanks Tim. Very kind of you! I'm thinking it's actually going to be very simple, as it's slated for a pretty small case. So, just a boat on the canal, maneuvering up to a landing along a stone wall. Something like that. Gives me a chance to add some basic diorama elements. Now, as for the V108, I started painting the screws bronze. But, before I mount these, I need to add the struts and stuff for the propeller shafts. Also, aren't propeller shafts unfinished steel? I have brass rod in the right diameter, but I decided to hunt for some stainless steel rod in the right size. I found some pretty easily on Ebay. I think they're used for axels on RC vehicles. They weren't expensive, as long as I was buying short ones – less than $14, with tax, for a set of 10, and free shipping from within the US. Should have them by the end of next week. While I'm waiting for those, I'll use the brass rod I have for place-holders to get the alignment of all the other parts straight.

Hi Jan, Tim is just teasing me about building something other than a Japanese subject. But, thanks for the comments on the kit. I'll be lucky if people notice the kit design issues instead of my construction issues! Tim, yeah, I guess I'm taking a vacation break. 😁 But, last night I did spend some time planning out details for a little Edo canal diorama that I want to do for one of my Japanese boat models. Guess I can't really stay away from them!

I'm on it!

I've been trying to get some work done on another project, and then I recalled the problem with paper models... Building paper models is like eating potato chips: Once you get started, it's hard to stop! As I recall, that's the main reason I set this project aside. I'll still have to do that from time to time, but this is not that difficult a project, and it really shouldn't take very long to complete, so I'm motivated to see it through to completion. I decided it was time to deal with the ship's propulsion. Looks like I'll just use brass rod for the shafts. That's actually indicated in the instructions. But, first, I needed to make the extensions that come out of the hull and partly house the shafts. I don't know what the correct term is for these. I tried to roll the printed paper, but had a very difficult time getting not only a tight roll, but also a difficult time getting the pair to match. That is, they were slightly different diameters. It has to do with the difficultly of rolling the paper. I decided to reprint the parts on thinner stock paper. To save on ink, I copied the parts sheet pdf, and managed to crop the parts sheet down to just the area on the sheet that I needed. This printed out fine on the thinner paper, in my case, 28lb, instead of the 65lb card stock I used for the main parts. I rolled the tubes with the help of a piece of thin brass rod, and the pair seemed to come out just fine. Here they are with some of the parts I started pre-assembling... But, looking back, I noticed that printing on the thinner paper was actually what the instructions said to do. In the future, I might just make several of them, then pick out the best looking pair. Finally, I decided to tackle what I considered to be the most intimidating assembly of ship of this type, the screws. This entails rolling a piece with petals, then gluing together the petals to form the hub of the propeller, then gluing on each of the propeller blades at an angle. But, the process ended up being far easier than I had anticipated. I formed the rolled hub on the end of a small dowel. When dry, I put glue on the petals and then carefully rolled the end against the cutting mat. The end results were actually pretty good, and I ended up with the ends nicely rounded. Gluing the blades turned out to be pretty much a non-issue. I made sure to angle them differently for each of the screws, as they would be counter-rotating on the real ship. Then, I touch each blade with a tiny amount of thin CA. This made the screws very sturdy. As the printing on the blades are only on one side, the screws are going to have to get painted. Now, do I go with matching the color of printed paper? I do I break out some bronze paint and do the whole thing?