review build Small Building Slip

[James H]

Small Building Slip
Hobbyzone
Catalogue # HZ-PSM2
Available from Hobbyzone for £25.79 (as of 11th July 2018)

 

 

My original intention for this review was to do something in the style of the waterline marking tool, but as I've already been asked to create a building guide for the Professional Building Slip which I will publish next week, I thought I'd put the style to practice for this article so that Hobbyzone has something that they can use to refer their customers to. This will be a comprehensive build review...almost like a manual for assembling this product. The product itself is packaged into a cardboard box and the materials within are wrapped in a LOT of bubblewrap to protect further. Furthermore, the contents within are also bound by masking tape to prevent them joggling around in the box.

All parts within are made from MDF which has been routed out, leaving only shall tags that can be cut through with nothing more than a craft knife. A number of parts have a white finish to one side. A small bag of hardware is also included. All you will need to assemble this is some wood glue, craft knife, and clamps.

 

Onwards with the build....

 

1. First of all, remove the MDF tags that held the parts into position on the boards. A craft knife is perfect for this. You won't need files etc.

 

 

2. Take two of the bolts and fit them in the main board. No glue is needed. Flip the board over and now glue the forward strip with the white edge, into the tabs at the front of the slip. Do the same with the small edge pieces. You may consider clamping these until set. Now, tale the narrow MDF slat which has the notches towards one end and glue this right up to the small edge pieces you just fitted. Those notches MUST line up with the ones on the baseboard. Again, clamp this until fully cured.

 

 

3. Take the remaining two strips and glue one on top of the other so that the notches line up. The parts will be stepped. Use a pencil to first mark the position and to make placement of glue more precise. When glued, clamp until set.

 

 

4. Take the parts shown here and glue them together. Please note the location of the hex indent. Clamp until set.

 

 

 

5. Fit the bolt, washer and nut into position.

 

 

 

6. Take the parts shown here and assemble in this orientation. Note that these are made as pairs, with the base fitting on one pair being opposite to the other pair.

 

 

7. Sit the moveable portion of the slip onto the baseboard and use the washers and wing nuts to secure. This portion of course is adjustable to the width of the keel. The other smaller parts, including the end stops and bulkhead clamps are fitted by simply pushing and twisting them onto the stepped edges of the keep clamp. You can use any of the features seen here in any way you like in order to assure yourself that everything is in alignment. A small tray at the front of the slip can be used for the unused parts, or modelling tools.

Enjoy the build and your next project you build with it!

 

In all, a nice and easy slip to build and one with quite a lot of flexibility when it comes to the shape of the vessels that can be constructed on it. The slip is designed for models with a keel length of 600mm, but 800mm can be built within it too. Maximum keel width is 5mm, according to Hobbyzone, but I'm sure you could squeeze another millimetre out of it. To give you an idea about keel thickness, the 1/72 HMS Vanguard from Amati/Victory Models has a 5mm thick keel, and that model is designed for a bigger slip than this! SO, in short, you should find this perfectly capable of handling just about every project up to a maximum of 800mm keel length.

 

My sincere thanks to Hobbyzone for sending this out for review here on MSW. To purchase directly, click the link at the top of the article, or head over to your local Hobbyzone stockist.

 

 

 

[Dave_E]

Hi All,

 

Getting ready for the first build (Amati Lady Nelson), who has built their first ship and wished they had started with a building slip? When during the build process is it most useful?

 

Dave

[glbarlow]

Take a look at the several Lady Nelson build logs on this site including mine.  None that I’m aware of use this building slip, if it’s still available. You certainly need a build board or cradle from the very start, but if a cradle is not included with the kit it’s something you can easily make yourself. It doesn’t need to be elaborate, just a place to set the ship while you’re working on it.
 

The build log of others are a great source for help and reference, especially for models like LN where instructions are sketchy, I encourage you to check them out and refer to them as you move along in your own build.

 

Welcome to MSW and best of luck building Lady Nelson

[Jasseji]

1 hour ago, Dave_E said:

Hi All,

 

Getting ready for the first build (Amati Lady Nelson), who has built their first ship and wished they had started with a building slip? When during the build process is it most useful?

 

Dave

i did use the big HZ Building slip actually on LN and Sphinx build, mostly wile assemlbing the bulkheads and then during first strakes of planking.

 

Now i actually think of pulling it iut again to help me with a few things

[CaptnBirdseye]

Personally, i couldn't get on with it as it didn't seem to hold the keel securely. Much preferred the bigger building slip from HZ.