HMS Mars 1781 by Aa-schipper - Caldercraft - Scale 1:64 - Dutch privateer

[Nipper]

Great to see you back!!

 

Since you've "been away", I've collected together all the things I need to build my Irene brig - a rather knocked about copy of Petrejus' book on Irene in English, a Caldercraft kit of HMS Cruiser, carronades from Vanguard, rope and fittings from Syren, and so on.  However, I'm still working on Sphinx and I reckon there's another two years at least to go before I start work on Irene.  No rush!

 

I too like to add crew to my models.  Have you thought about where to source your crew figures?

 

Nipper

[Aa-schipper]

Hello @Nipper, 

Thanks for your renewed welcome.

 

You mentioned Petrejus' book on Irene. I just received a second copy of the Dutch version of the book, which I bought online because I realised that my first copy missed all but one of the build plans on loose sheets. And now I wonder how many drawings there were in total, because mine are numbered, but not consecutively. However, since the highest number is 111, I doubt if there really were more than a hundred separate sheets? Maybe you can compare with your copy to see whether you or I miss some:

Evidently, the 'Extra' photo copies and the black-and-white photo do not belong to the original book. 

 

[Aa-schipper]

5 hours ago, Nipper said:

I too like to add crew to my models.  Have you thought about where to source your crew figures?

 

For figurines, I used several sources:

- Some old-fashioned metal models from Amati;

- From Vanguard Models (@chris watton) I obtained figurines of captain Lord Cochrane (as a stand-in for 'my' captain Pieter Hoogeboom) and of a crew loading a gun;

- In different 3D-print file sources on the net I searched for '18th century mariner', 'pirates' and similar terms and browsed through many pages with images of the available .STL files; I bought a couple that looked convincing and had them printed on a resin 3D printer by a kind acquaintance.

 

They're ready to be glued in place once I'm done with belaying the rigging on deck.

[Nipper]

1 hour ago, Aa-schipper said:

Hello @Nipper, 

Thanks for your renewed welcome.

 

You mentioned Petrejus' book on Irene. I just received a second copy of the Dutch version of the book, which I bought online because I realised that my first copy missed all but one of the build plans on loose sheets. And now I wonder how many drawings there were in total, because mine are numbered, but not consecutively. However, since the highest number is 111, I doubt if there really were more than a hundred separate sheets? Maybe you can compare with your copy to see whether you or I miss some:

Evidently, the 'Extra' photo copies and the black-and-white photo do not belong to the original book. 

 

 

[Nipper]

1 minute ago, Nipper said:

 

Sorry - I'm messing up your build log!  I hit the wrong button.

 

My copy of Petrejus came without the fold-out plans, like so many other buyers have found.  So I can't help you to create a complete list of the plans, unfortunately.  However, for my purposes, I think there is sufficient detail in the text and the illustrations to build the Irene accurately.

 

You're very lucky to have someone to print your resin figures.  I too have used the old Amati metal crew figures as they have some useful postures.  I also decapitated a couple to change the heads over in order to make them look different.  I had hoped that Chris Watton might design some crew figures to go with his new Surprise kit, but understandably, he has enough on his plate with producing just Aubrey and Maturin.

 

Nipper

[Aa-schipper]

On 9/9/2025 at 6:35 PM, Nipper said:

My copy of Petrejus came without the fold-out plans, like so many other buyers have found.  So I can't help you to create a complete list of the plans, unfortunately.  However, for my purposes, I think there is sufficient detail in the text and the illustrations to build the Irene accurately.

Hello Nipper,

Probably you're correct about most of the sheets: the book, and of course your Caldercraft kit, will give you enough information to build the ship. However, maybe the deck layout may be a part of the kit you want to change from the kit to get closer to Irene. Therefore, I attach scans of the two drawing sheets (in halves, because of their awkward lengthy formats) that show the wheel, hatches, pumps, capstan etc. Might come in handy for you or others. (And gives you a chance to learn some nautical terms in Dutch 😉.)

Irene deck lay out Petrejus.pdf

[Nipper]

2 hours ago, Aa-schipper said:

Therefore, I attach scans of the two drawing sheets (in halves, because of their awkward lengthy formats) that show the wheel, hatches, pumps, capstan etc. Might come in handy for you or others. (And gives you a chance to learn some nautical terms in Dutch 😉.)

 

This is so helpful!  Thank you for taking the time to do this.  When eventually I start my Irene build I know who to come to for advice!

In the meantime, I look forward to following your progress with Mars.

 

Nipper