knightyo

That's actually perfect. If you decide that you've sanded too much off, it's easy to reapply. I applied/removed acrylic to the hull of my Nina for a long, long time until I finally ended up with the look that I liked (applied different wash "layers" with slightly different colors as well. You might be able to get a pretty nice effect by applying washes of greys/greens/browns, showing not only the standard wear of the black, but also the effects of a boat that has been in the water with sea life). As Baker mentioned, it would probably be best to practice on scraps first. It's all your personal choice, however. The model is looking great! Alan

Hi James, I would also fill the spaces between the bulkheads with blocks of wood (balsa would be easiest), and sand to shape. It would then be easier to see the curves with the eye, and also far easier to plank those areas. Alan

That must be the intro to the fight scene.

Yes! With a flashlight whilst also swearing. Now THAT would be an authentic scene.

You will have to let us know when this moving comes out. It will really be fun to see the ship modeling part, knowing that you helped! It makes me wonder if any of the cast will be drawn to the hobby as a result of seeing your models, the process, etc. (Your Speedwell is looking absolutely stunning) Alan

Hi Loracs, I think your door frames are good as well! I was just thinking that the doors themselves might look better if you made them out of wood as well. Although then that would also require you to create hinges, etc. It never ends how much detail we can put into these projects. Alan

This gave me a good laugh. I guess the good part about it is that a guy would never keep bits and pieces and assorted sawdust on his is table; he'd clean everything up after each session, resulting in a nice and uncluttered work area. The only wood I'd never work with is ebony. I've used it once, and vowed never again. Your project looks fascinating, and I do hope you continue to post your progress. I think a lot of build logs eventually get a comment the builder isn't thrilled with; it's just a function of so many different people from so many different backgrounds/demographics, etc. I've noticed my own posts are different in tone depending upon the time of day and the amount of caffeine in my system. I think the pros of having so many positive and helpful posts however, outweighs the cons of occasional posts which come across as off key. Alan

I love the addition of the inlays! They look great. I'm wondering if you want to do the same type of thing with the doors? The inlays are so well done that the doors almost detract from them. I only offer this as an opinion that is probably not held in the majority. I am a master of going down rabbit holes and never finishing my projects. Alan

Same here. I think I've even asked about them before, and was told the reason as to why they were no longer available. Of course, I've forgotten the reason. Alan

I agree with this recommendation as well. Alan

Welcome from Oregon, land of eternal sunshine. What? Alan

Chuck, just brainstorming here, but I loved the look of the framing/shadowbox you had on the Confederacy. If you provided that as an option on the POB, that might appeal even more to builders, as it could still have the look of a fully framed model as well. Kind of the best of all worlds for a lot of modelers. Alan

It almost feels like someone who is confident enough to tackle a POF would also be the type of person who would loft and cut their own frames. I'm thinking you might have a larger pool of potential customers if you don't supply the wood, but do offer all of the templates needed for someone to cut their own frames, with very detailed instruction on how to cut/shape the difficult areas (full-color photos/instructions, sexy book cover, etc). I'll bet you could net out higher if you sold books at 300 bucks a pop (and low time investment in printing) instead of full kits at 2 grand (and a lot of time burned in creating material).. I could also see a lot of modeler's requesting a book (or set) as a Christmas gift from their spouse at 300 bucks a pop, but would not have success in asking said spouse to drop a couple grand for a kit. If you found the right publisher and right mailing list, you might hit the jackpot. I've got a number of expensive books in my collection, but have no intention on creating the models; I just love having the books, looking at the photos, and knowing I could build the model some day if I ended up with an unexpected bonanza of free time. If I were to tackle a POF, I could see myself paying for instructions/templates, but not the actual wood that I could cut/sand/shape myself. The wood type is a limiter as well. There would probably be people who might be interested in the kit, but only if it's in swiss-pear, etc. At this point in the game, if it were me, I'd create one or two kits and market them here and on your website, knowing that they would probably eventually sell, and then just replace them in stock one at a time as they do sell, so you could eventually recoup your investment, and also have a nice, random income source for as long as you want. I think that in theory, with the right marketing, you could go either way; it would just be far less time consuming to create books than kits. EDIT: I would also absolutely offer this as a POB kit. 2nd EDIT: Also as a miniature navy board project. lol Alan

I hear that. Over in Brownsville, the air has cleared considerably; it was absolutely disgusting for a while tho. I hope your other life things are able to resolve. It's frustrating when life mandates that no modelling can be done. Alan

The Pacific Northwest is pretty easy living. We escape (mostly) most of the natural disasters the rest of the U.S. has to contend with, and it's pretty laid back. Alan

To me, only about one out of every hundred models looks better with figures unless exceptionally well painted/placed. Even then, it seems like figures on a model take away from it's elegance. I'm probably in the minority however, and fully acknowledge that I have strange tastes. I also admit that I've just purchased figures from Chris at Vanguard Models; not sure if I'll ever place them on a model, however; they were just too cool not to purchase. Alan

I was initially surprised at the depth of oil canning effect in the photos, but now that I think about it, with sides that are basically flat, the waves hitting them head on would definitely have more of an impact as opposed to hulls which are more rounded/curved; just such a strange ship. Greg, I love what you did with the internals in the hangar; the flag looks great in there. Alan

Thanks Steven

Still working on the binnacle project. The below is a contraption I've basically carved out of pewter which I figured could plausibly pass as a lantern base. the "bolts" loosely resting in each end are just pieces of wire that have been rounded off/compressed to simulate round bolt heads. Once the piece is finished, I'll blacken everything. As I'm looking at the photos however, it feels like the piece might be too thick, and overpowering the cabinet. I might work on reducing the thickness of the piece as a whole. The lantern hook is just small gauge wire. I have a little concern about the strength of this hook over time, however; it feels like something should be added before final installation. The lantern shouldn't actually be pulling the hook down a lot however, as the lantern will also be supported by it's own wires coming in from the backside of the cabinet. The last photo shows the fairly complete lantern. I just need to snip some excess wire off on the handle/chain. The light itself looked like a supernova emanating through the panes when activated; to try and remedy this, I've applied some back acrylic to the panes which will hopefully dim the light quite a bit and maybe make the light look more authentic; sort of a candle-blackened look. Alan

I agree with the coffee table idea. That is too awesome to be placed in a box. Alan

The build would be more exciting and memorable for you if you skipped the labeling process. It's really looking great so far! Alan

I've found that this also applies to yardwork as well as modeling. Alan

This model looks fantastic! It's stunning to hear that this is your first model. Alan

This was absolutely fantastic information, Bob. Thank you! Alan

Hi Bruce, I'm in the same boat. Also using swiss pear, also going to shellac and nervous about the strength of some of my very small yards. Alan