kit review 1:32 Fifie – The Scottish Motor Fishing Vessel by Amati

[James H]

1:32 Fifie – The Scottish Motor Fishing Vessel
Amati
Catalogue # 1300/09
Available from Amati for €220.00

 

 

 

The Fifie is a design of sailing boat developed on the east coast of Scotland. It was a traditional fishing boat used by Scottish fishermen from the 1850s until well into the 20th century. These boats were mainly used to fish for herring using drift nets, and along with other designs of boat were known as herring drifters. While the boats varied in design, they can be categorised by their vertical stem and stern, their long straight keel and wide beam. These attributes made the Fifies very stable in the water and allowed them to carry a very large set of sails. The long keel, however, made them difficult to manoeuvre in small harbours. Sailing Fifies had two masts with the standard rig consisting of a main dipping lug sail and a mizzen standing lug sail. The masts were positioned far forward and aft on the boat to give the maximum clear working space amidships. A large Fifie could reach just over 20 metres in length. Because of their large sail area, they were very fast sailing boats.

 

 

Fifies built after 1860 were all decked and from the 1870s onwards the bigger boats were built with carvel planking, i.e. the planks were laid edge to edge instead of the overlapping clinker style of previous boats. The introduction of steam powered capstans in the 1890s, to help raising the lugs sails, allowed the size of these vessels to increase from 30 foot to over 70 foot in length. From about 1905 onwards sailing Fifies were gradually fitted with engines and converted to motorised vessels. There are few surviving examples of this type of fishing boat still in existence. The Scottish Fisheries Museum based in Anstruther, Fife, has restored and still sails a classic example of this type of vessel named the Reaper. The Swan Trust in Lerwick, Shetland have restored and maintain another Fifie, The Swan, as a sail training vessel. She now takes over 1000 trainees each year and has taken trainees to participate in the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Races to ports in France, Denmark, the Netherlands, Ireland as well as around the UK.

Extract from Wikipedia

 

The kit
Fifie is packed into a large, heavy box that certainly hints that there’s a good quantity of material included to build this historic fishing vessel in all its glorious 1:32 scale. I do admit to particularly liking this scale, having built plastic models for many years and indeed for magazine publication. It’s definitely something I can relate to when eyeing up the various dimensions and features. Amati’s presentation is flawless and certainly stands out, with its large, glossy lid that captures an attractive view of the Fifie. It has to be noted here that the hull is usually fully painted, with green being common above the waterline, but this model was finished to show off the beauty of the walnut timber supplied in the kit. And why not! For those that don’t know, this kit, under the Victory Models label, was designed by Chris Watton. Many of you should be familiar with that name and his design pedigree. At 1:32, this kit is no shrinking violet in terms of size. Fifie is 700mm long, 470mm wide and with a height of 230mm (sans masts).

 

 

 

Lifting the lid does indeed show a box crammed with materials. Inside, we have several bundles of timber, plus a packet of timber dowel/strip/metal rod/tube, a thick packet containing numerous laser-cut sheets, another packet with plans and photo etch, and underneath the main timber, we have sail cloth and fittings packs. Thick foam is included to stop the main materials from banging around in the box.

 

Strip wood
Fifie has a double-planked hull, with the first layer being constructed from 1.5mm x 7mm lime strips. These, like many of the other bundles, are 600mm long, and very cleanly cut with no fuzzy edges Sixty-five of these are supplied. The same quality goes for the second planking layer, which is supplied as 90 strips of 1mm x 6mm walnut which is some of the best I’ve seen in a kit. There is little colour variation in these, and they look pleasantly uniform. I’ve always found Amati’s timber quality to be exceptional and this is no different. As well as elastic to hold the bundles some labels are also included to help identity the material.

 

Other strip wood is included (beech and walnut) for such things as deck planking, caulking (yes, caulk plank!), lining the various deck hatches, sheathing the deckhouse structures, rubbing strakes etc. These bundles are both taped and bound with elastic, with the deck planking having an identifying label also. Cutting is clean and precise.

 

 

Dowel and tube/rod

Various lengths of dowel is included for masting, false keel strengthening pins etc. and thicker strip wood for the timberheads. All is supplied in a nice uniform walnut colour….no nasty walnut dyes/stains in this kit! These latter lengths are also packaged into a thick clear sleeve, unlike the others. Note also various lengths of brass and copper wire, as timberheads well as some copper tube. Some mounting parts are included for RC conversion, but you will need to purchase other items to complete the model for radio.

 

 

MDF sheet items

Again, Amati has made extensive use of 4mm MDF for the hull false keel and bulkheads, and all are laser-cut, as are all individual wooden items in this kit. Cutting looks very precise with very little in the way of scorching, apart from very localised discolouration. I know many don’t like MDF as a material for our models, but MDF sands easily and is also warp-free, lending itself to a nice, true hull. You won’t see any of this when you start to lay planks. There are FOUR sheets of this material, and you’ll notice that there aren’t any parts numbers engraved on here. You will need to refer to the first two sheets of plans which contain the parts references.

A single sheet of 2mm MDF contains parts such as the four-piece deck, cleats, and the bulkheads and keel for Fifie’s single launch vessel.

There is also a single 6mm sheet of MDF (sheet 2698-B) which contains the four parts needed for the cradle. I’ve seen numerous sites which now sell this model claim that no stand is included with this model. Well, this sort of proves that statement incorrect. This is the same cradle shown on the box lid images. Of course, you’ll need a suitable MDF primer for this, and some nice coats of gloss lacquer to get the best from this.

 

Ply sheet parts

SIX sheets of thin ply are included for just about every other timber construction elements of Fifie, including the deckhouse, deck superstructures, keel sheathing, and bulwark capping strip. Again, all parts are laser-cut and will require minimal effort to remove any edge char.

 

 

Fittings

Two boxes of fittings are included in the very bottom of the Fifie kit box. Some of the weight bearing down has caused a small crack in the two vac-form fittings boxes, as you can see, but all parts within are absolutely fine. The first box contains the cast metal propeller, deck buckets, ship’s wheel, rigging blocks, life preserver rings and a whole load of beautifully smooth wooden balls for making the many buoys which sit on Fifie’s deck. These are perfectly circular, yet the ones on the box image are slightly shaped. Instructions show these as the balls, and you could perhaps opt to use a little putty to add some shape to these.

The second fitting box contains seven spools of rigging cord in both black and natural colours, nails, various cast fittings such as bollards, plus rudder pintles, anchors etc. Copper eyelets, chain and ferrules etc. make up the set.

 

 

Sail cloth
Should you wish to add sails, then enough material is supplied for you, in bleached white cloth.

 

Photo-etch

Very few kits come without photo-etch parts these days, and this is no exception, with TWO sheets of 0.7mm brass with a very high number of included parts. A quick scan around the sheets will easily identify parts for the mast bases, steam winch, engine skylight, capstan, deck hand pump, wheel assembly, herring shovel, tabernacle, mast rings, etc.

 

Acetate and card

I have to say I’m not entirely sure what the card/cartridge paper is for except for maybe general use, but the thin acetate is obviously for the cabin windows.

 

Instructions and plans

Without a doubt, Amati produce some of the very best instruction manuals to come with any model kit. For reference, check out my Orient Express Sleeping Car review and that of Revenge. Fifie is no different with a luxurious and fully-pictorial, 64-page publication. Whilst this isn’t perfect-bound as with the previous reviews, it is in full colour and produced to a standard that’s still far higher than many contemporary manufacturers, with each stage being shown under construction so you get a perfect idea about what is required at that point in construction. Text is also in English, or at least in the sample I have been sent. The rear of the manual contains a complete components list. 

Backing up this publication is a set of seven plan sheets. The first two of these are for identifying the various timber and PE parts. The others show general profile and detail imagery, as well as masting and rig drawings. Remember that the hull itself is built entirely from the photographic sequences so everything you see on these drawings is for external details.

 

Conclusion
I have to say that you get a lot of kit for your money with Fifie, and when I first asked Amati what they envisaged the RRP to be, I was quite surprised at this. Everything about Fifie is quality, from the packaging and presentation, to the beautiful, photographic manual, fittings, sheet and strip timber, all the way to the superbly drawn plans. I’m very surprised that the gestation period has taken so long for them to bring this excellent kit to market. It’s also a Chris Watton thoroughbred. If you’ve seen his previous designs, then you’ll be familiar with the format of Fifie, which was quite the different vessel for Chris to tackle, when everyone seemed to think he would only design fighting vessels, armed to the teeth with cannon. I must admit that Fifie did take me quite by surprise too. The very shape of this iconic and historic vessel is so homely and welcoming and for me, invokes images of those times when fishing communities were happy and thriving. Whether you’re a fan of Chris’s work or not, Fifie is most certainly a kit that you should consider dropping into your virtual shopping cart next time you visit your favourite online model ship/boat retailer, and of course, if RC is your thing, then this kit will also suit your genre!

 

VERY highly recommended!

 

My sincere thanks to Amati for sending out the sample kit you see reviewed here. To purchase directly click the link at the top of the article to take you to Amati’s online shop or check out your country’s local distributor. Plans are also available from Amati, for €21.00

 

 

 

 

[ccoyle]

Another home run by Amati!

[Kevin]

Chris Watton, it gets my vote

[FredEckhauser]

I am a novice model ship builder.  Would this be too advanced for me to undertake?  Thank you. 

[vossiewulf]

17 hours ago, FredEckhauser said:

I am a novice model ship builder.  Would this be too advanced for me to undertake?  Thank you. 

Considering the Lady Nelson instructions consist of about two pages of "stick all the stuff in the box together", you'd already be way ahead of my choice with the instructions you get with this kit. And with minimal rigging and what looks like relatively straightforward planking, I think it would probably make a good choice.

 

If you want the argument against, it's pretty big and has a fair amount of fiddly-looking deck detail, you'll need patience for those. And if you're not just a novice ship builder but a novice making stuff, you might want to start even easier with like the Model Shipways rigged longboat.

Edited April 10, 2019 by vossiewulf

[James H]

I think that as long as you have some modelling skills, this could be a good first choice for a wooden model kit.

[JohnDonyatt]

Just started planking the MDF carcase. Great material, being rigid and laser cut with amazing accuracy.

My 15th model and highly recommended.

However, considering that Amati market Fifie as a rc model why did they include NO proper drive shaft NOR a working propeller??

[Torrens]

Interesting looking kit, although the wheelhouse looks too small relative to the hull. I know the scale is 1:32, but what is the full-size length and beam in metres or feet?

[chris watton]

10 minutes ago, Torrens said:

Interesting looking kit, although the wheelhouse looks too small relative to the hull. I know the scale is 1:32, but what is the full-size length and beam in metres or feet?

The wheelhouse was designed according to the real plans exactly. It was a small structure, as the originals didn't have a wheelhouse at all. It is only when they stuck in an engine they added this. (They originate from pure sailing vessels)

 

The name I gave this was Rob Roy, it was also on the (now blank) nameplates that appear on the sides of the model. I think Amati was worried about copyright over the name, although I have no idea why.

[Torrens]

4 minutes ago, chris watton said:

The wheelhouse was designed according to the real plans exactly. It was a small structure, as the originals didn't have a wheelhouse at all. It is only when they stuck in an engine they added this. (They originate from pure sailing vessels)

 

The name I gave this was Rob Roy, it was also on the (now blank) nameplates that appear on the sides of the model. I think Amati was worried about copyright over the name, although I have no idea why.

I'm familiar with ring net boats and Fifies, having sailed as a guest on the former when they still fished Loch Fyne, etc, and I've sailed on the restored Fife Reaper (owned by the Scottish Fisheries Museum). I know ring net boats (derived from Fifies and Zulus) came in different hull lengths, and many had very small wheelhouses - often with only enough space for just one crew member, but in this kit the wheelhouse looks exceptionally small. Be interesting to see the plans from which the kit was based. 

[chris watton]

18 minutes ago, Torrens said:

I'm familiar with ring net boats and Fifies, having sailed as a guest on the former when they still fished Loch Fyne, etc, and I've sailed on the restored Fife Reaper (owned by the Scottish Fisheries Museum). I know ring net boats (derived from Fifies and Zulus) came in different hull lengths, and many had very small wheelhouses - often with only enough space for just one crew member, but in this kit the wheelhouse looks exceptionally small. Be interesting to see the plans from which the kit was based. 

The drawings were based on plans from James Pottinger (also other drawings of like vessels), with whom I liaised with when developing the model. This was 12 years ago now.

[Tim Moore]

James: just wanted to say thanks for the work you do in your reviews of this and other kits - your consistent and straightforward approach is exceedingly helpful.

[Torrens]

On 11/24/2019 at 6:43 PM, chris watton said:

The drawings were based on plans from James Pottinger (also other drawings of like vessels), with whom I liaised with when developing the model. This was 12 years ago now.

Do you know what the dimensions of the full size vessel was in feet and inches?

[chris watton]

4 minutes ago, Torrens said:

Do you know what the dimensions of the full size vessel was in feet and inches?

Sorry, I no longer have the plans, this was designed over 12 years ago when I worked for Amati in Italy.

[James H]

8 minutes ago, Torrens said:

Do you know what the dimensions of the full size vessel was in feet and inches?

 

Is this a kit you plan on buying? I'd love to see a build here. I'm too busy to do it at the moment. 

[Kevin]

it would look great with my St Nectan, being the same scale

[glbarlow]

On 11/24/2019 at 12:22 PM, Torrens said:

wheelhouse looks exceptionally small.

Is that really something to quibble about?  I’m sure for a heavily used boat like this there were lots of variations.  Let’s just enjoy looking at something different.  
 

My question though is where do the cannon go?🤣😂

[Torrens]

14 hours ago, glbarlow said:

Is that really something to quibble about?  I’m sure for a heavily used boat like this there were lots of variations.  Let’s just enjoy looking at something different.  
 

My question though is where do the cannon go?🤣😂

It’s not a quibble, but a perfectly legitimate observation - in this case based on practical, sea-going experience on Scottish fishing boats. If you’re happy for a model to be inaccurate, that’s your choice, but don’t criticise others if they are of a different opinion.

[James H]

2 minutes ago, Torrens said:

It’s not a quibble, but a perfectly legitimate observation - in this case based on practical, sea-going experience on Scottish fishing boats. If you’re happy for a model to be inaccurate, that’s your choice, but don’t criticise others if they are of a different opinion.

 

Let's not use this review as a vehicle for who is right and who is wrong.

 

Chris clearly stated that the kit was developed using James Pottinger's drawings, and other drawing material too. James is very au fait with these vessels. You are of course allowed to disagree with him, but this topic isn't the place to do it. 

[Justin P.]

This looks gorgeous!

 

[glbarlow]

2 hours ago, Torrens said:

model to be inaccurate,

I wasn’t criticizing simply stating you don’t know that it isn’t accurate. It is, as you said, just your opinion. I have practical road going experience with cars, that doesn’t mean I can spot size differences of a particular model from a photo. Chris responded to you that he copied and followed actual plans and that it was accurate per those plans. That is answer enough.
 

Since I doubt the model will be modified based on your opinion I suggest this is not a kit you want to buy. 

[Tim Moore]

On 4/19/2020 at 12:42 PM, James H said:

 

Is this a kit you plan on buying? I'd love to see a build here. I'm too busy to do it at the moment. 

I purchased the kit after reading your review...it’ll be my next project after I finish the Bounty rigging.

[James H]

4 hours ago, Tim Moore said:

I purchased the kit after reading your review...it’ll be my next project after I finish the Bounty rigging.

 

I hope so! The Fifie has such classic lines, and Amati's powered Fifie is a lovely design with nice materials.

[musky]

Looking at the plans on this posting for the Amati FIFIE, I cannot believe this vessel is 470mm wide. Is it , in-fact this wide ?

thank you

Donald.

[James H]

9 minutes ago, musky said:

Looking at the plans on this posting for the Amati FIFIE, I cannot believe this vessel is 470mm wide. Is it , in-fact this wide ?

thank you

Donald.

No, the box says it's 230mm wide.

 

The height is 470mm.

[John Allen]

Everybody retract their claws, the sun is shining birds are singing and we all woke up on this side of the dirt.

[PJG]

This kit will be my second build, hopefully getting under way in the next couple weeks. I've gone through the contents of the big, hefty box and everything looks top-notch as James indicated in his review (the primary reason I bought it). I'm trying very hard to stay disciplined and finish my whaleboat but the temptation to dig in is hard to resist. Courage! I'll also be doing a build log on this boat if anyone is interested in how a relative rookie tackles the job. 

[Charles Green]

The video that accompanies this post shows several glimpses of pilot houses.  Some are not much bigger than a telephone booth.  I would say the comfort of the pilot was secondary to deck-room for the crew.  

[James H]

1 hour ago, PJG said:

I'll also be doing a build log on this boat if anyone is interested...

 

Definitely! I'll follow that build, without a doubt.

[musky]

PJG,

 Have just ordered this kit. Don’t know when it will arrive with the current problems with orders and postage but I would be interested in your build log.

Please let me know when you start.

thanks

 

Donald