Who makes the Chapman Sloop kit?

[FoxtrotHotel]

Does anyone know a legit company that makes the 1/50 Chapman Sloop kit? (link removed by moderator)

 

This kit caught my eye, but all the vendors seem to be sleazy Chinese companies who probably pirated the kit, which is probably why it's only being sold on Ebay. However, I can't find any real company selling it. Who makes this? I'd like to buy it, but I don't want my money going to scammers or thieves.

[ccoyle]

You're right -- no legitimate manufacturers offer this as a kit. Most likely this is an unlicensed kit designed from a plan set. That's one of the ways that IP thieves can bring one of these to market. 

[FoxtrotHotel]

Any idea what this style of boat is called or what its more formal name is and what its real-world history is? Google only shows the Chinese company calling it a "Chapman" or "aquatic merchant", which I imagine is almost certainly wrong. Maybe that's derived from the original designer's name? I'm no expert, but it looks like some sort of medieval cargo ship used in the Mediterranean or somewhere else in Europe. However, I'm not finding anything remotely close to it in Google's image search.

Edited May 5, 2020 by FoxtrotHotel

[Chuck]

The kit is indeed pirated.  The plans were stolen from an author who produced them for a ship model magazine in the 1990's.   The plans were stolen from the author without permission.   No legitimate kit exists from the plans BUT....it is a relatively easy subject to build.  The plans are available for sale in copies of the magazine you can find online.  I own a set of these plans and they are so easy to use to scratch build it with some simple tools.

 

They were drawn by Peter Danks for Model Boats magazine in 1993.   It was the March issue.  Much like Model Shipwright magazine, this magazine routinely printed and inclused full sized plans in many issues.   These are easy pickins for slimey pirates.   Many of the kits these companies pirate are based on such plans froms the 70's, 80's and 90's.  I might also add that I have received official permission to use these plans to create a kit in the future if I choose to.   Its such an easy and attractive project I might just do that.  Although I would use my design for the skeletal and frame parts.   Its a little dated.

 

It is a model of a water Hoy.....You should build it from scratch!!!!  

 

Chuck

[FoxtrotHotel]

1 hour ago, Chuck said:

The kit is indeed pirated.  The plans were stolen from an author who produced them for a ship model magazine in the 1990's.   The plans were stolen from the author without permission.   No legitimate kit exists from the plans BUT....it is a relatively easy subject to build.  The plans are available for sale in copies of the magazine you can find online.  I own a set of these plans and they are so easy to use to scratch build it with some simple tools.

 

They were drawn by Peter Danks for Model Boats magazine in 1993.   It was the March issue.  Much like Model Shipwright magazine, this magazine routinely printed and inclused full sized plans in many issues.   These are easy pickins for slimey pirates.   Many of the kits these companies pirate are based on such plans froms the 70's, 80's and 90's.  I might also add that I have received official permission to use these plans to create a kit in the future if I choose to.   Its such an easy and attractive project I might just do that.  Although I would use my design for the skeletal and frame parts.   Its a little dated.

 

It is a model of a water Hoy.....You should build it from scratch!!!!  

 

Chuck

That's it! Searching "Chapman's water hoy" finds a ton of results. Thanks Chuck! It's good to know who to attribute it to.