New member looking for kit advice

[JDillon]

Hi all,

Thank you all for allowing me to join. In London in the UK. New to the hobby although always wanted to do it since visiting the HMS Victory as a child. 

 

I am asking this so to avoid making newbie mistakes, could someone please advise me of a good ship for a first build. Looking at a caldercraft one as it seems to be a good quality brand and easy to get delivered. I have no prior experience, no tools yet or spare bits to fabricate missing or scratch built items. 

 

I did meet a lovely 91yr old man whilst carrying out a fire safety inspection the other day that had several impressive builds in his home, he was willing to tutor me should i need help or advice. ive looked at possibly the HM Cutter Sherbourne or HM Schooner Ballahoo or HM William wooden sort of ships?

 

Thank you 

[ccoyle]

Hello, J, and welcome aboard.

 

The early Caldercraft releases, while good kits, do not have extensive instructions. Another UK manufacturer that offers several suitable beginner-level kits with great instructions is Vanguard Models.

 

One of the best ways to scout for good beginner kits is to browse the kit build logs section. Look for any build log that is tagged "first build." Clicking that tag will pull up a list of all first-time build logs. Then look for those that are tagged "finished" -- that will show you which kits beginners were actually able to complete.

 

Enjoy shopping for your project!

[Ryland Craze]

Hi J and welcome to Model Ship World.  Chris has given you good advice.  You mention that you have no prior experience, so you definitely need good instructions to guide you through your build.  I would also start out with a simple kit to get use to building a wooden kit.  You can download the instructions of many of Vanguard's kits by going to this website: https://vanguardmodels.co.uk/

 

Good luck on whatever kit you should decide to build.

[Bill Morrison]

Hi, Chris,

 

Mondfeld has written an excellent book on ship modeling in which he offers advice that runs contrary to most. While most advise that you start simply and work up in complexity, he recommends that you start with a ship that holds your interest and learn as you build. He states that you are more likely to finish the model of such a ship rather than a simple one that holds no interest.  This is what I recommend. But, I am in the minority, but this is how I grew in the hobby.

 

Welcome to MSW!  It is a great place for learning as you grow!

 

Bill

[allanyed]

Welcome to MSW!!    Shipping may be an issue, but you cannot go wrong with the three vessel beginner series designed by David Antscherl, modeler extraordinaire, and a member here.  They are available from Model Shipways.   https://modelexpo-online.com/Model-Shipways-Shipwright-3-Kit-Combo-Series_p_5465.html

 

These will teach you great habits and techniques that will serve you well as you move on to more complex vessels.

 

Allan

[CaptnBirdseye]

Hi J

My advise would be one of the builds from Vanguard, maybe one of the fishing boats like Lady Elenor would be a good primer. The thing you have to bear in mind is that the subject matter has to be of interest to YOU, otherwise you will just lose interest in it. The main benefit of Vanguard is that Chris (owner and designer of Vanguard) is a member of this forum! 

The only other piece of advice is start small and take your time. Oh, and enjoy - It's a hobby after all

[Mercator]

First welcome to the site. From across the "pond" I will recommend a Vanguard kit, specially one of their fishing boats (Lady Eleanor is a great one to start), double planking, quality material,

over the top instructions, and many build and advises on this site on those models. And of course been made in England no exorbitant shipping costs.

[HardeeHarHar]

Hi J, and welcome aboard.

As you can see, you get a lot of good advice on the forum, but it may differ such that you don't get always get a consistent answer to your question.  Without a doubt, most if not all the experts think there needs to be considerable thought put into the ship selected for a first build, with respect to both complexity and subject matter interest.  But from there it takes some time to understand how each model differs in complexity and what it has to offer with respect to your personal interests.  For me ( a total newbie), I started with a relatively simple build (HMS Bounty's Jolly Boat by Artesania Latina), and it took me over a year to finish. I amassed a lot of tools and materials while doing it, and learned quite a bit a long the way.  The subject matter was of interest, but it was the learning and application of new knowledge and skills that held my attention through to completion.  My second build is much more complex and challenging, and what is holding my attention is still learning and the developing and application of skills, with a good dose of interest and admiration in this relatively unique bomb vessel.  It's going on two years now....slow and steady....and I still have the hard stuff to do.  The MSW community can and does offer a lot of assistance and encouragement to new builders to help them progress through to a finished model the builder can take pride in displaying in your build log and your home or office.  Take your time, browse the forum a lot, ask questions, get several opinions, make a solid decision, start a build log, seek more encouragement and advice, and enjoy an awesome hobby!  If I can help, I will =)

[BenD]

As everyone else has been saying, look into Vanguard Models. The large color instruction books in these kits will be incredibly helpful to a new builder.

 

You were also looking into Caldercraft kits. I did my first build the HMC Sherbourne a few years back. It wasn't a hard kit but it did require a bit of determination. 

[Bowline]

I am enjoying the Vanguard "Erycina" a ketch rigged fishing vessel, but, all the fishing vessels from VM are worthy. The fishing history is interesting and very relevant to your part of the world - Barking and Billingsgate, which could give you the drive to finish it and put it into a display.

[mtaylor]

My observation is.... get the kit you would love to build even Victory.  Then after getting it, open and box. After realizing it's the deep end of the pool, put it in the closet and during the learning, take it down occasionally for motivation. The ModelExpo series seems like a good place to start or some of the others that have been mentioned like Vanguard Models.

 

You're next step.... take the advice given about starting simple.  The first kit I bought was Billings Vasa.  Took one or too looks and put it up on the shelf and then started on a simple kit and went from there. After some simple models, I felt comfortable trying the Vasa.  This was back before internet forums such as this so basically, I was on my own.

[flutlo6180]

Hi J. Welcome aboard! I'm finding that mistakes are all part of the learning process, and you've landed in the right place to get advice and solutions when they do arise.

[JDillon]

Just a quick thank you to all your help, I looked at Vanguard, however they do not show the difficulty level on the website but i will try them for my next build. In love with the Sphinx

 

I've opted to try a do the Occre Polaris. It seems to have a few other beginners trying it as a first, plus its a nice looking ship and probably a good foundation ship. I have found some good build logs from others and have a good idea of where others have gone wrong.

 

Just curious to know if the Polaris is based on a real vessel? Cannot find any info and the USS Polaris of that ere was a screw vessel and the other a Liberty ship. 

 

PS really impressed with the members on here, go USA.

Edited September 1, 2022 by JDillon
spelling

[James H]

18 minutes ago, JDillon said:

Just a quick thank you to all your help, I looked at Vanguard, however they do not show the difficulty level on the website but i will try them for my next build. In love with the Sphinx

 

I've opted to try a do the Occre Polaris. It seems to have a few other beginners trying it as a first, plus its a nice looking ship and probably a good foundation ship. I have found some good build logs from others and have a good idea of where others have gone wrong.

 

Just curious to know if the Polaris is based on a real vessel? Cannot find any info and the USS Polaris of that ere was a screw vessel and the other a Liberty ship. 

 

PS really impressed with the members on here, go USA.

 

All the fisher from Vanguard are designed for pure beginners. That was the premise of their design, but still to have loads of detail you wouldn't see on a beginner model. The materials are also higher quality that you normally see, with pear being standard. I can't help with the Polaris or advise it one way or the other. 

[consitution]

The Polaris was purchased by Earnest Shackleton and modified to become the Endurance.

Occre also have the endurance as a kit 

 

 

[ccoyle]

1 minute ago, consitution said:

The Polaris was purchased by Earnest Shackleton and modified to become the Endurance.

 

Yes, but that's not the subject of the OcCre Polaris.

[JDillon]

Would be nice to find the origional vessel in the history books or internet that the Polaris was based on. Would be nice to see what improvements can be made to it.

 

PS Quick one, Noob questions: has anybody build with sails that can be furled and un furled?

[ccoyle]

3 hours ago, JDillon said:

Would be nice to find the origional vessel in the history books or internet that the Polaris was based on.

 

Some European kit makers have a penchant for producing kits that are based on a type of vessel rather than a specific ship. They then give the ship a fanciful name and make up an equally fanciful history for it. It's often difficult to figure out where exactly they got their source material.

[allanyed]

4 hours ago, JDillon said:

PS Quick one, Noob questions: has anybody build with sails that can be furled and un furled?

Welcome aboard!  Looks like you have selected all Caldecrraft kits which has a good reputation.  But, as you are new to the hobby, you may want to consider starting with simpler vessels that will teach you great habits and techniques.  There are numerous posts here at MSW with advice and opinions on which are good beginner choices.    

Allan   

[consitution]

On 9/1/2022 at 4:39 PM, ccoyle said:

 

Yes, but that's not the subject of the OcCre Polaris.

Jdillion asked if there was any information available on the Polaris and I provided this information 

the Polaris would be an excellent first build and knowing that an amateur builder could improve his skills and move on to the more complex ship endurance would be most rewarding for a first time builder or any builder for that matter

[allanyed]

On 9/1/2022 at 10:25 AM, JDillon said:

I've opted to try a do the Occre Polaris

Good luck with that.       

 

Edited September 3, 2022 by allanyed

[bigcreekdad]

You might consider Caldercraft's Pickle. Great instructions! My only regret was copper plating it. Just doesn't look right for me. 

[Keith Black]

48 minutes ago, bigcreekdad said:

My only regret was copper plating it. Just doesn't look right for me. 

 It's hard to get copper plating to look right. This model of the Morgan is the most realistic copper plating that I've seen. 

Edited September 19, 2022 by Keith Black

[Jaager]

On 9/1/2022 at 10:25 AM, JDillon said:

've opted to try a do the Occre Polaris

Take the following as unverified suspicion - not fact

OcCre Polaris is probably a fantasy as far as representing an actual ship.  The source of the lines may be a real vessel - but one without marketing value.

My observation of various OcCre product build logs - and the frequency of the same wrong detail choices - leads me to believe that the company plays fast and loose when it comes to actual shipbuilding practice.   If you start with OcCre and you later have an interest in being historically accurate,  you may have to unlearn a series of bad habits and bad practices.

[Knocklouder]

HELLO  J,I can't help with which model, but lots of people here can and will help you lots. I pick the Santa Maria  from  Amati  then ordered five more ships and one in a bottle,  be careful of the buying bug it will get a hold on you Lol anyway