Build the Sovereign

[CPT_D]

Just curious to see if anyone has seen the TV commercial about building the Sovereign of the seas.  Apparently, the kit is sent in parts (monthly) for the hobbies to complete.  The catch is that the kit costs $99.99 a month for 12 months.

 

Is anyone doing this, or know anything about it?  In one way I think it's kind of cool, in that, it will bring more people to the hobby.  On the flip side, I wonder how many people will start this kit and never finish it?

[Ulises Victoria]

Not the SotS, but my very first wooden ship that I completed was the San Juan Bautista which I bought in weekly installments over 100 weeks.

 

Cons: 1.- It costs more than buying a kit; 2.- You can never be sure that the shipments will be completed until you receive the very last issue; 3.- It takes a long time to gather all the pieces materials and instructions.

 

Pros: 1.- For some people is easier to spend x amount monthly than over 1,000 Dlls in one installment to get a kit; 2.- The instructions come much much more detailed, as they give you one set of instructions per week. (or month, depending on your plan) (I got over 600 pages of instructions fro my San Juan Bautista).

 

Even at 2 vs 3, I think Pros win over Cons.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Ulises Victoria

[S.Coleman]

The bIggest issue I have.. Excuse the pun! Is once I start building I want to keep goin. Not enough supplied in each issue to keep you goin for a month. I don't think I have the patience to wait for next months issue!!

[Ulises Victoria]

Not wanting to start a debate here, but if this was true, Coleman, you would finish this ship in less than one year. That's a lot faster than most of us can achieve. 

 

Besides, if there is one thing you need in this hobby is Patience. 

 

Best regards.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Ulises Victoria

[catopower]

Well, regardless of the overall price in the end, I think this is a really wonderful thing. What other effort has made ship modeling visible to so many people all at once? I was blown away the first time I saw a TV ad for a ship model kit.

 

Sure, a lot of people will start and never finish. That's also true about people who spend 100s of dollars on a kit, only to have it sit unfinished in the closet for all time. That's why there's so much unfinished stuff available on Ebay. But this way, at least you'll figure it out before you buy the whole thing.

 

This is definitely a good thing. It's not for everyone, but I do like the expanded instructions as Ulises Victoria points out. That's one of the biggest complaints by Americans who buy European kits – limited instructions. 

 

Clare

[cristikc]

Hi Cpt_d, i also made San Juan Bautista and i have every week a small "heart attack" till the moment i found the magazine, with all the part.

An other problem was that i found parts with problems.

A second problem was that they give parts, and drawings, in a different order, other that it has to be (from some areas) and i had to wait some more weeks, or i found that i had some problems, when i used their order,  and i have to make some adjustments, at the end.

Also the price was high for that ship, i could buy a better kit, (full from the begining) at their price.

You can see my log for SIB (San Juan Bautista) and you can find what problems i had. All the best Cristi

[NMBROOK]

I subscribed to this model when it was launched in the UK.The marketing pictures were not of the complete partwork but something else.The number of differences left me disgruntled and I cancelled the subscription.The model I started building ended up being modified to such an extent that my log has been moved to the scratch section.About two inches of the bottom of the bulkheads is all that remains.

My advise would be to save up and buy the Sergal kit,I wish I had!

 

Kind Regards

 

Nigel