chris watton Posted January 2 Share #1 Posted January 2 (edited) I thought I would start a new thread, as the original was getting a little too big. OK, for at least the next 5 years, I have my developments more or less already mapped out. The subjects cover a wide range of vessels from the 17th to early 19th Century. For 2023, I have three confirmed. The first is Indy (of course). I may add as an optional extra cistern/chain pump housings. This has been my largest development to date, taking well over a year of full time work, and having Jim make the prototype and taking the manual photo pics and text. If I were to do this, then Indy would have been a 2 year development. After Indy, I will have the American schooner Grecian (1812) almost ready, which I anticipate releasing in April/May. I have almost finished the mast and rig drawings, and profiles, so this may come together pretty quickly once Indy is released. From Wiki: Thomas Kemp of Baltimore designed Grecian with several innovations. She was pierced for 20 guns, though she never carried that many, and her gunports were unique, designed perhaps to save weight. She had a long, curving stem, and a shallow, less convex bow. Grecian's first captain was James Phillips, and under him she had made one voyage to France. She received letter of marque No. 944 in December 1813, under Captain Knapp. Not sure how much of that can be trusted, though, as she was not pierced for 20 guns, she has 18, with the fore-most being next to useless due to the distance between port and starboard (very sharp bow, so 7 per side being usable, in my opinion). It seems she had a mix of guns, being more standardised when in the British navy. What I have done is give enough guns for carronades, 6 and 4 pounders. I am sure the 4 pounders were used at the front, due to space issues, with the 6 pounders being nearer the middle and rear - so the modeller will have a choice of what to fit where. After this, I will start on HMS Surprise, and this should be released this year, assuming all goes well. And that's it for now.... ETA - My real love is frigates, as I have said before. If I had my way completely, the next five or six releases would be frigates from 32 guns upwards! But I cannot.... Edited January 19 by chris watton DocRob, KentM, scrubbyj427 and 49 others 47 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glbarlow Posted January 2 Share #2 Posted January 2 Thanks for sharing Your product road map for the coming year. mtaylor, chris watton, doxidad and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 2 Author Share #3 Posted January 2 There are the very first cut parts for Grecian - what is there may not reflect the end kit, though... BranPie, No Idea, Haliburton and 35 others 35 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markjay Posted January 2 Share #4 Posted January 2 Thanks for the update. I look forward to the release of the Grecian😁. hollowneck, Canute, AJohnson and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BranPie Posted January 2 Share #5 Posted January 2 Can't wait till James starts building that 😊 mtaylor, Canute, chris watton and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guyuti Posted January 2 Share #6 Posted January 2 Chris, Thanks for the update and the road map for the next year. More models to purchase and eventually build. The Grecian Sounds and looks amazing. Looking forward to the Surprise Regards Guy hollowneck, Canute, AJohnson and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrandpaPhil Posted January 2 Share #7 Posted January 2 I really like how your frameworks lock themselves into place, ensuring the hulls do not twist or warp. That is a great idea! chris watton, jpalmer1970, Malcolm Greig and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobG Posted January 3 Share #8 Posted January 3 (edited) Thanks for sharing your plans for the new models that you are planning to develop and release in 2023. I think the American schooner Grecian will be wildly successful especially on this side of the pond. All the best in 2023! Edited January 3 by BobG AJohnson, Ryland Craze, chris watton and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James H Posted January 3 Share #9 Posted January 3 2 minutes ago, BobG said: Thanks for sharing your plans for the new models you hope are planning to develop and release in 2023. I think the American schooner Grecian will be wildly successful especially on this side of the pond. All the best in 2023! Grecial sure has nice lines! markjay, GrandpaPhil, chris watton and 5 others 7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markjay Posted January 4 Share #10 Posted January 4 Just had a chance to to check out the Grecian in "The Search for Speed Under Sail". Oh boy, she has really sweet lines. Canute, mtaylor, chris watton and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 4 Author Share #11 Posted January 4 Second pre-prototype. This has a lot of bulkheads! Matt D, Archi, Oldsalt1950 and 42 others 40 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mugje Posted January 5 Share #12 Posted January 5 Looks quite big! What's the hull length? thibaultron and mtaylor 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 5 Author Share #13 Posted January 5 (edited) 2 hours ago, mugje said: Looks quite big! What's the hull length? Hull Length only - 505mm Overall Length with bowsprit and gaff boom - 878mm ETA - and I had better add - Scale - 1:64th Edited January 5 by chris watton Canute, mtaylor, thibaultron and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mugje Posted January 5 Share #14 Posted January 5 1 hour ago, chris watton said: Hull Length only - 505mm Overall Length with bowsprit and gaff boom - 878mm ETA - and I had better add - Scale - 1:64th Tnx! Nice size and shape...looking forward how this one turns out! mtaylor, markjay, thibaultron and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 5 Author Share #15 Posted January 5 4 minutes ago, mugje said: Tnx! Nice size and shape...looking forward how this one turns out! Me too! Canute, mtaylor, mugje and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 5 Author Share #16 Posted January 5 scrubbyj427, markjay, Malcolm Greig and 29 others 27 2 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oboship Posted January 5 Share #17 Posted January 5 Thanks for sharing the first impressions of Grecian! That model will be even slightly longer than Cruiser and Jalouse! It will be an interesting build of an impressive schooner. As the Indy for me is regretfully out of the question (not enough space to build/display and most likely beyond my skills 😒...), I am very curious to see the prototype (and price idea) when available. Grecian is surely an option for me to get another VM kit! Best regards Uwe thibaultron, markjay, mtaylor and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 5 Author Share #18 Posted January 5 9 minutes ago, Oboship said: Thanks for sharing the first impressions of Grecian! That model will be even slightly longer than Cruiser and Jalouse! Grecian is surely an option for me to get another VM kit! Best regards Uwe I sincerely hope so! lol Cruiser is 100 foot along the deck, Grecian is 95 foot, so not a lot in it. I suspect the price will be around the same as Speedy. Oboship, markjay, jpalmer1970 and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oboship Posted January 5 Share #19 Posted January 5 That sound promising! Looking forward to it! mtaylor, Canute, markjay and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 12 Author Share #20 Posted January 12 For Grecian, I decided to do an optional extra, a 20 foot cutter to go on the deck. For this skill level, the PoB boats can be a challenge for some, so I have taken the 20 foot 3-d printed cutter and added laser cut parts to fit inside, making the process a little easier for those who prefer that option. The pic shows the laser parts placed/dry fitted, and not glued. Also, today I received the fittings and more fragile laser cut sheet box. This fits within the main box, protecting the parts further when in transit, as the main MDF hull parts are very heavy. thibaultron, Edwardkenway, mugje and 29 others 28 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vane Posted January 19 Share #21 Posted January 19 Good luck with the new thread, looking forward to follow it! markjay, mtaylor, Beef Wellington and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beef Wellington Posted January 19 Share #22 Posted January 19 Looks like a very interesting subject. I'm loathe to post this because of clogging up this thread...but, I wonder if it would make sense to start a new thread specific to each new kit project? Hopefully that will keep people on topic and focused, and reduce the inevitable back and forth with parallel development activities, pet peeves etc. chris watton, AJohnson, mtaylor and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 20 Author Share #23 Posted January 20 59 minutes ago, Beef Wellington said: Looks like a very interesting subject. I'm loathe to post this because of clogging up this thread...but, I wonder if it would make sense to start a new thread specific to each new kit project? Hopefully that will keep people on topic and focused, and reduce the inevitable back and forth with parallel development activities, pet peeves etc. This thread just updates you guys on what I am up to, there are separate threads/build logs by Jim Hatch which concentrate on each of the new kits. mtaylor, Vane, Canute and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glbarlow Posted January 20 Share #24 Posted January 20 As Chris notes, these posts already exist in the form of James' build logs for each model. Canute, thibaultron and mtaylor 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 31 Author Share #25 Posted January 31 OK, designs for the Baltimore privateer Grecian have been completed, and here are some pics of the 'quick and dirty' build I do, to check final designs. I do mean quick, as this time last week, it wasn't even planked! With that in mind, please note that I have literally threw the bits together on this without too much clean up. All this is for is to check all laser cut designs, to make sure all fit as they should - and if they don't, they are removed, a new part cut and re applied. I have included a lot more ordnance than she ever carried, but if I just included a couple of 4 pounders and a couple of x 6 pounders, I am sure that wouldn't go down so well. So what I have done and will include is a choice. There will be 12 x 18 pounder carronades, 8 x 6 pounder long guns and 4 x 4 pounders. I have gone with a mainly carronade armament, plus a pair of 6 and 4 pounder cannon - but the modeller can change this if they so wish. I will also include a 3d printed 20 foot cutter hull and the laser cut floors, thwarts and oars to go with it. I have included a couple of pics showing its size in relation to Sphinx and Speedy - the latter looks very tubby when sat next to the very sleek schooner! DonSangria, Jorge Hedges, Guyuti and 39 others 33 2 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guyuti Posted January 31 Share #26 Posted January 31 (edited) Really cannot wait for this to be released, great job. The Grecian's lines are stunning. Regards Guy Edited January 31 by Guyuti thibaultron, Canute and chris watton 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcweir Posted January 31 Share #27 Posted January 31 All three of them are beautiful. chris watton, AJohnson, mtaylor and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldsalt1950 Posted January 31 Share #28 Posted January 31 Looks really nice Chris. I assume once this is done you'll be moving on to Sophie. With that said, you know people are going to be clamoring for a Jack Aubury figure to captain her. Jim chris watton, Canute, thibaultron and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris watton Posted January 31 Author Share #29 Posted January 31 9 minutes ago, Oldsalt1950 said: Looks really nice Chris. I assume once this is done you'll be moving on to Sophie. With that said, you know people are going to be clamoring for a Jack Aubury figure to captain her. Jim No Sophie, just Surprise. thibaultron, mtaylor, Canute and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldsalt1950 Posted January 31 Share #30 Posted January 31 Silly me, getting my ships mixed up. Jim Canute, mtaylor, hollowneck and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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