Amati Gunboat “Arrow” Build – The Sails Again

It’s been a while since I posted about the Amati American gunboat “Arrow”. As you can see in the photo below, I have the model mounted on a cherry wood base that I cut and routed the edge.This photo is from a ship model meeting back in March of this year, and shows the sails installed with the final rigging lines going in.

 

Unfortunately, I am not one to leave well enough alone. The kit plans show two reef bands on each sail. Also, the sails turned out a bit small for the lateen yards. Finally, I didn’t like the run of the brails, the ropes used to haul the edge of the sail in and up into the lateen yard.

New OcCre Flying Dutchman Kit, Pre-Order Special

This looks like a really fun ship modeling project. I mean… ghost ship, cutaway interior, internal lighting – you can do anything with this kit, since it’s not an historical ship.

Get creative… as it the whole thing weren’t creative enough. How about some luminescent paint under black lighting, tattered sails with a small fan blowing on it? Anyone got a 1/50 scale skeleton for a helmsman?

Ages of Sail

For centuries, sailors on the high seas have told tales of a strange ghost ship, veiled in a ghostly light, never able to make port and doomed to sail the seas forever. 

And while legend says the appearance of the phantom ship portends doom, the sighting of the new Flying Dutchman kit from OcCre is a sign of many hours of enjoyment in store for you.

Check out OcCre’s Youtube video introduction to their latest kit…

The kit is available right now as a Pre-Order Special, that includes the kit, the customized stand, and OcCre’s new lighting kit, all for the special pre-order price of $379.

The kits are expected to arrive the first week of October, and pre-orders will be shipped out ASAP.

Get your’s at Ages of Sail here: https://www.agesofsail.com/ecommerce/flying-dutchman-combo-set-(occre,-1-50).html

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Building HMS Wolf – Shipyard’s 1/72 Scale Laser-Cut Card Kit – Part 7

As I mentioned before, apparent progress on the HMS Wolf model has slowed significantly, due to the fact that everything I’m doing now is essentially off the model. I’m now working on various sub-assemblies, and some of these I’m starting to do out of order.

The next parts that actually need to go on the ship are the sweep port covers and the four deck hatches. I painted and then assembled the sweep port cover, which simply requires adding some very thin black paper parts for the hinges. This was rather slow going, as the hinges are very tiny and very delicate. One has to be extremely careful not to lose parts, as there are no spares provided in the kit. I apply Aleene’s Tacky Glue to the sweep port cover with a thin brush, then use the tip of the brush to grab the hinge and to set it in place on the  it on the port cover.

On the Horizon: HMS Indefatigable from Vanguard Models

Wood ship model builders rejoice! I’m finally posting something that’s not about paper ship model kits.

Vanguard Models is also giving us all reasons to rejoice with their upcoming release of the Indy, the 44-gun razee frigate HMS Indefatigable.

So, now’s a good time to re-watch the Horatio Horblower TV series, and/or re-read C.S. Forester, or maybe even take on one of the smaller Vanguard Models kits, in preparation. Possibly even take on one of the many kits that were developed by Chris Watton for Caldercraft’s Nelson’s Navy series or Amati’s Victory Models line.

I can see I’m going to have to take on one of these very soon, given the popularity of these kits.

Ages of Sail

With the release of the cutter HMS Alert, the Brigs HMS Flirt and HMS Speedy, then the royal yacht Duchess of Kingson, and finally the frigate HMS Sphinx, the Royal Navy ships available from Chris Watton’s Vanguard Models continues growing in size and number.

The latest work in progress is now the 44-gun razee frigate, HMS Indefatigable, a ship with not only a very active history, but also one famous for its appearance in C.S. Forester’s Horation Hornblower series.

This 1/64-scale wooden ship model kit has been under development by Chris Watton for some time, and the prototype model is currently under construction by ship modeler James Hatch. You can read about the the build progress on the ModelShipWorld online forum here: https://modelshipworld.com/topic/30665-hms-indefatigable-1794-prototype-by-james-h-vanguard-models-164/

According to Chris, he’s hoping for a December release of the new kit. But, it will depend on when the prototype model is completed, at which time, he…

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Building HMS Wolf – Shipyard’s 1/72 Scale Laser-Cut Card Kit – Part 6

Shipyard’s HMS Wolf laser-cut card kit is moving along, but progress seems slower. The details take time to add and they’re not as obvious from photo to photo. However, I’ve completed the rudder and just need to add it to the model. Also, if you look closely at the photo here, you can see the most obvious addition are all the timberheads at the forecastle rail as well as the posts for the swivel guns. Lastly, did you spot the channels at the sides of the hulls?

Building HMS Wolf – Shipyard’s 1/72 Scale Laser-Cut Card Kit – Part 5

The Shipyard 1/72-scale laser-cut card HMS Wolf build continues with details and lots and lots of little parts and a couple issues trying to follow instructions. Apparent progress has slowed somewhat, since hull construction is complete and I entered a phase of hull detailing. Still things are really flying along in comparison to wooden model ship building, and I managed to add the stern gallery with it’s decorative columns and windows.

Site Issues

Wasenmodeler site is back up after some minor issues that took me nearly a week to discover!

Wasen Mokei 和船模型

Apologies to any followers who discovered they couldn’t get to my website here. Minor issues with the domain hosting that I didn’t notice, following a billing change that just happened to coincide with the renewal of the wasenmodeler.com domain name. Everything was taken care of last week, but I hadn’t noticed that all domain name services got reset in the process. In fact, I didn’t even know there was an issue until it was pointed out to me this morning.

But, all is well now. No major issues, and we’re good for at least another year!

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Building HMS Wolf – Shipyard’s 1/72 Scale Laser-Cut Card Kit – Part 4

This HMS Wolf kit is moving along so quickly that I’ve hardly had a chance to stop and get caught up with the build log. I’m so far beyond what you’re seeing here, so I’m going to minimize my writing and try to close the gap between build log and current model a bit.

The third layer of the hull is pretty much actual, individual hull planks. There are two sheets of thin, laser-cut card stock, one for each side of the hull.

Vanguard Models’ HMS Speedy and Copper Sheathing

One of the victims of an apparent copper shortage, or maybe it’s only a copper sheet shortage. Not sure which. But, looks like Vanguard Models has had to modify their HMS Speedy kit to include copper tape, rather than photo-etched copper sheet.

Apparently, Ages of Sail’s current stock of Speedy’s are kits that still have the copper plates, but I don’t expect these will last long.

Ages of Sail

If you haven’t heard the news, there’s apparently a worldwide shortage of copper that is affecting the ability for some companies to source thin copper sheets. As a result, Vanguard Models has altered their HMS Speedy kit, which included photo-etched copper plates for the hull. Their new HMS Speedy kit, dubbed version 3.5, now includes a supply of adhesive backed copper tape instead.

Fortunately, for those who really want the kit with the copper plates. We still have two of the original HMS Speedy kits in stock, with the photo-etched copper plates included.  But, after these two are sold, all future HMS Speedy kits will be the 3.5 version with the copper tape.

We’ll make sure our product listings make this change very clear when it does happen.

Click here to purchase HMS Speedy

For those not familiar with this kit or the product line. The kit is one of…

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Wowed by Shipyard’s Laser-Cut Card Models

At this point in my build of Shipyard’s 1/72-scale laser-cut card model of the 10-gun snow-rigged sloop of war HMS Wolf, I’m behind on keeping my build log up to date. But, I can’t let that get in the way here. Here’s the thing, I am so in awe of how incredible this kit is, that I have to state, categorically, that I’m absolutely building not only the Papegojan kit I have, but the HMS Alert kit, and the Le Coureur kit, and that I’m absolutely going to find the money to buy and build the HMS Mercury kit.

Shipyard’s 1/72-scale HMS Mercury, laser-cut kit.