Chinese Pirate Junk by Pavel Ternyuk - FINISHED - Amati - 1:100

[Pavel Ternyuk]

A few years ago I started building this model, but I quickly put it aside. Now I’ve decided to come back to it and finish it — and to share the process along the way. For me, this is a special experience, as I have never completed a build before.

 

I had stopped at the stage of partially planking the hull and decking.

 

I decided to simulate caulking in the deck planking using paint. As it turned out, this is not the best idea, as the paint soaks into the wood unevenly, resulting in blotches.

 

Simulating dowels using toothpicks also did not meet expectations. The toothpicks are too thick, and the dowels look unnaturally large for this scale. Therefore, I did not apply this to the main deck and decided to leave it without dowels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Pavel Ternyuk]

The previous photos were taken several years ago, and that stage ended with a fully planked hull and deck. To mark my return to this project, I decided to paint some elements of the hull in bright color. Mostly these are elements that seem to outline the model.

 

To install the anchor, I bought a thicker thread. I'm not sure about the scale, but it looks better than the thin one.

 

 

 

Edited Saturday at 01:38 PM by Pavel Ternyuk

[Pavel Ternyuk]

I filled the deck with various elements. The rigging of the cannons and carriages was done in a very simplified form.

 

[Pavel Ternyuk]

The masts were then assembled. I decided to paint their tops green to also outline the model.
I did not conduct any separate research, but in a dialogue with an LLM (so this may not be true) I found out that the green and red colors on the model can be explained in a few different ways.
- Red should be perceived as protection, which is suitable for the hull, and green as the color of life and growth, which is suitable for masts (as if balancing the base and the superstructure).
- The combination of red and green is in a saying meaning "too gaudy" (I found this a funny reference)

 

Next, I fitted the masts on the hull without gluing.

 

 

[Phil B]

Looks great Pavel.

Is this a kit or scratchbuilt?

[Phil B]

Disregard, I see the instructions 😁.

Phil

[Pavel Ternyuk]

13 minutes ago, Phil B said:

Disregard, I see the instructions 😁.

Phil

Still, thank you for the kind words.

[Pavel Ternyuk]

Next, the sails.

I couldn't sew the edges of the sails by hand and sent it to a local tailor shop. It turned out not very neatly, but that's the price of outsourcing.

 

Next, I lashed the sail battens to the sails by hand.

 

Next, I fitted the sails on the masts.

 

Next, a fitting on the hull. 

 

 

Edited Saturday at 02:43 PM by Pavel Ternyuk

[Pavel Ternyuk]

Now installing the masts and rigging on the hull.

 

 

[Pavel Ternyuk]

Last elements.

 

 

[Pavel Ternyuk]

A few final photos.

 

To complete the build, I need to make a stand, as the original one was lost.

[ruifac]

Great work so far. 

I'm considering getting this one as well.

What are your thoughts about it @Pavel Ternyuk?

Edited yesterday at 12:40 AM by ruifac

[Loracs]

It was my first build... I found it very enjoyable. I would recommend it to anyone.

[Pavel Ternyuk]

6 hours ago, ruifac said:

Great work so far. 

I'm considering getting this one as well.

What are your thoughts about it @Pavel Ternyuk?

@ruifac

Thank you for reading and for your feedback!

 

My thoughts on this model are as follows:

1. The kit
- The kit includes more than enough material.
- The assembly instructions leave much to be desired: they are not very detailed and do not explain a lot of things. With forums like this one, though, it's not a big issue.
- Some decorative elements are provided as stickers, which may deteriorate over time (I applied some of them early in the build, and after a few years they started to crumble and peel off. They probably need protection, e.g., a coat of clear varnish.).
- The kit comes with a nice-looking display stand (although it's funny that the box photo shows a different, more boring one).

 

2. The model
- For me, the scale was a bit too small (but that's my only downside).
- The model is quite straightforward to build, which is great for a first project — or for a quick, relaxing build if you already have experience.
- In my mind, sailing ship models are usually associated with European ships, so working on a Chinese junk felt fresh and interesting.
- The simplicity of the model has another side: the simplifications make you want to modify and upgrade it. I didn't dare to go that far, but I did consider, for example, making the cannon carriages out of wood (in the kit they are cast, just like the barrels) or improving the plastic ship's boats (planking them or rebuilding them from scratch).

 

Overall, I would definitely recommend this kit.

[Pavel Ternyuk]

2 hours ago, Loracs said:

It was my first build... I found it very enjoyable. I would recommend it to anyone.

 

You have an excellent build log! After seeing it, I regret not using black thread for the rigging. It looks great.

[Mirabell61]

Good work Pavel,

its a very nice kit you have chosen, when you got started. Beautuful work, I like to see another chinese junk on this forum

 

Nils

[Pavel Ternyuk]

1 hour ago, Mirabell61 said:

Good work Pavel,

its a very nice kit you have chosen, when you got started. Beautuful work, I like to see another chinese junk on this forum

 

Nils

 

Thank you, Nils! I appreciate the kind words.

[mrcc]

Look great!

 

What project are you going to tackle next?

[Pavel Ternyuk]

6 hours ago, mrcc said:

Look great!

 

What project are you going to tackle next?

 

Thank you!
Now I have started working on a Catalan ship by WoodyJoe at a scale of 1:30.