kit review 1:85 Fram - OcCre

[James H]

1:85 Fram

OcCre
Catalogue # 12011
Available from OcCre for €199,99

 

 

Fram ("Forward") is a ship that was used in expeditions of the Arctic and Antarctic regions by the Norwegian explorers Fridtjof Nansen, Otto Sverdrup, Oscar Wisting, and Roald Amundsen between 1893 and 1912. It was designed and built by the Scottish-Norwegian shipwright Colin Archer for Fridtjof Nansen's 1893 Arctic expedition in which the plan was to freeze Fram into the Arctic ice sheet and float with it over the North Pole.

 

Today, the historic ship resides at the Fram Museum in Oslo. It is one of the most visited and renowned museums in the city. This prestigious museum is a must-see for travellers interested in polar exploration and maritime history, as it provides a unique experience combining detailed information, immersive exhibits, and the chance to closely admire the resilient vessel that once braved the Arctic and Antarctic ice fields. The Fram Museum has become a world-renowned landmark, reflecting the legacy of adventurers like Fridtjof Nansen and Roald Amundsen, whose feats helped broaden our understanding of the most remote regions of the planet.

Abridged from Wiki and OcCre

 

The kit

Fram is packaged into OcCre’s medium size generic box that has an opening to see the parts tray, plus a product label secured to the top of the lid. The package is quite sturdy, which I always good for shipping. With the lid off the off, the box contents are accessed by pushing open the sides and then opening the formed card flaps which hold the various parts in place to stop them rattling about. There seems a modest number of timber parts in this, relatively speaking, but the model itself when complete builds up as below, with this image showing the size of the finished vessel.

 

All timber materials are supplied in a shrink wrapped cellophane sheet, protecting them and stopping them rattling around in the box. Fram is constructed in the standard plywood POB style. A dozen bulkheads are laser cut into a single piece of ply. Note that there's no part numbers engraved. These are shown on the plans, so it's a good idea to write the ID on each of these key parts.

 

The main deck is split into two to represent the split level nature of the ship. Other parts you see here are for the lower deck access door housings, poop deck stairways, etc.

 

On this ply sheet you will find the cradle for building and displaying Fram. This will need a good priming/sealing and paint/stain to make it suitable for actual display purposes. Bow and stern filler parts are included on this sheet.

 

 

Fram's false keel is supplied in a single piece on this sheet.

 

 

We are now onto actual timber sheets, and here you will find keel parts and various gunwale sections.

 

 

Whilst there are some deck fitting elements on this timber sheet, the rest of the parts sheet, and the accompanying ply sheet are concerned with the building of the four ship's boats, which are identical. These are constructed in very much the same way as others that you may have seen me build on my prototype work. This involves creating a framework over a base. The frames are then planked before the base is removed, leaving you with a little boat.  

 

 

Three bundles of strip wood are supplied, along with brass wire. The first hull planking layer is lime, followed by the darker, second layer of sapele. The wood is nicely cut and is of consistent quality throughout. All bundles are supplied with elastic ties to keep them together.

 

 

If you like adding sails to your models, then there is a full suite of thirteen here, all pre-stitched and ready to fit. The colour of these is cream/off-white, so could be fitted to the model without any extra colour treatments. All sails are supplied flat, packed into an OcCre envelope.

 

Another envelope is supplied in the package. This includes TWO brass photo-etch sheets, plastic mesh sheet for deck fittings, fabric sheet for boat tarpaulins, and eight spools of rigging cord in both dark and natural. 

 

 

There is a single fitting box with this kit, chock full of components in both bras and cast, along with rigging blocks, brass pins, brass wire, and more rigging cord. A printed Norwegian flag is also included. All rigging blocks and other machined wooden parts, such as barrels, are also found in this component box.

 

Fram is bundled with a set of paper instructions, totalling 44 sides of colour-printed sheets which show Fram being built in a series of photographs. Included in the sheets is a parts list, parts map, rigging drawings, and plans. If you like to watch build videos, then this is also covered by OcCre. Click THIS link to access the Fram videos on their YouTube channel.

 

https://youtu.be/UmquIiY-UjE?si=g4mQPVGyqvv-eTJp

 

 

 

Conclusion

OcCre have certainly been surprising the modelling community with their recent releases, and this was one that we didn't see coming until it was almost upon us. From a builder's perspective, I would say this was aimed at the advanced beginner/intermediate modeller, and to that end, this should serve its purpose perfectly, with plenty of detail throughout, including all of those sails, should you wish to add them. 

 

 

My sincere thanks to OcCre for sending out this kit for review/build on MSW. To purchase directly, click the link at the top of this article. 

 

 

WAIT!!!! 

That's not quite it. We have also been sent the paint set for this kit. This can be bought from OcCre for €29,99 via THIS link. This set contains the following:

 

• Sapele wood dye
• Satin varnish
• Grey
• Light green
• Red
• Dark brown
• Black
• White
• Judea bitumen
• Primer

 

Paints and primer are supposed to be 20ml, although my grey and white bottles are larger in size. The varnish and dye are 50ml. These also appear to be acrylic, and I'm not sure whether any of these can be passed through an airbrush. You would need to dilute, possibly with distilled water, and test them first. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For now, here are some completed images of Fram...

 

 

 

 

[Consitution]

Interesting to see Occre releasing another polar exploration ship and they have another release Sunday evening 

[Consitution]

I see Occre have released the Black Swan 

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  Too bad they did not scale this the same as their Endurance model (1:70 nominal).  Then both ships could be displayed together for comparison.  Perhaps the smaller 1:85 size was done to get the kit cost under $200 USD ($199 is really about the same thing - but marketing focuses on the leading numeral) as the Endurance now lists for $249.

[clearway]

bought this a couple of weeks ago - looks like they have modelled her as she now appears in the museum- there are options to alter her depending on which era you want to depict though that could be opening another can of worms!!!!

 

Keith