Ship Model Kit

Seahorse Paper Models Now Available

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Ages of Sail has recently added a new line of paper model kits from the Polish publisher Seahorse. This publisher specializes in sailing era craft, of mostly less common subjects. Modelers who frequent online forums such as Papermodeler.com or ModelShipWorld.com will recognize the amazing work of the designer Tomasz Weremko, who has created many wonderful kits for the paper model publisher WAK. Tomasz has since stepped up his game, creating amazing kits and accessory sets through his own company, Seahorse.

Seahorse’s paper model kit of the Sao Gabriel, the ship of Vasco de Gama.

All the kits we sell are his complete sets, so they include not just the basic paper model kit, but also the accompanying laser-cut frames sets, masting sets, and any related sail sets, cannon sets, resin block sets, etc. We are hoping that by introducing them on our store, we’ll give Tomasz a wider audience that can discover and appreciate his amazing model kits.

If you’ve never built a paper model kit before, we recommend you start with a simpler kit. Seahorse kits are each classified by difficulty levels, from 1, the easiest, to 5, being very difficult. While they don’t currently produce any level 1 kits at this time, three of the kits we carry are Level 2 kits.

Vistula Barge

You might want to consider this 1/100-scale, late 18th century Vistula Barge. It has an easy hull shape, a single mast and sail, but plenty of detail to build into a very interesting model, about 20″ long.

 

For an investment of only around $30, this is an inexpensive way to check out the quality of these model kits. The only additional material you’ll need to supply is the rigging line, which is not provided in these sets. We suggest adding a selection of the finest Amati rigging line sizes we carry, such as 0.10mm, 0.25mm, 0.5mm, and 0.75mm natural hemp line (you can always stain them black if you need to):

Amati 0.10mm beige rigging line

Amati 0.25mm beige rigging line

Amati 0.50mm beige rigging line

Amati 0.75mm beige rigging line

Note, this is just a suggested sample of the line that we carry that may be helpful to your build. The exact sizes recommended in the kit instructions will vary, and are just a suggestion as well. You may also find that larger sizes, or commercially available sewing thread may be useful for some of the rigging needs. It all depends on the exact kit. But, the selection listed above should give you a good start.

Whichever Seahorse kit you try out, we think you’re in for an amazing experience! Check them all out here. Ω

On the Horizon

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There’s a new kit coming from Amati Models’ Victory Models line of fine wooden ship model kits. Can you tell what it is?

Watch for further announcements in the coming weeks!

Schooner Berbice Laser-Cut Kit from Shipyard by Jacob Cohn

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Our local customer Jacob Cohn shared these photos with us of his latest laser-cut card model of the American-built, Baltimore clipper Berbice. The exact date of her construction is unknown, but she was built as a merchant ship, and purchased into the British Royal Navy in 1780 in the West Indies. She was officially commissioned into naval service in July of 1781 as HMS Berbice.

Photos of the Berbice at the meeting of the South Bay Model Shipwrights group in Santa Clara, CA.

Jacob acquired the kit in June of this year, and has gotten this far in only a couple months, and the results of his work are beautiful! He’s posted his build in a build log on ModelShipWorld.com, under his screen name of SaltyDog here. The model itself is one of the 1/72-scale laser-cut card models produced by the Polish company Shipyard, known for their paper models of sailing ships, as well as their lighthouses and harbor structures.

As with several other subjects, Shipyard makes the Berbice in the 1/72-scale laser-cut card version that Jacob is building now, as well as a 1/96-scale paper model version that includes a simple quay port diorama.

Jacob is now just getting to the stage of adding cannons, masting, and rigging. We look forward to seeing more progress on the model. Will it have sails? That’s for the builder to decide when the time comes.

If you’re interested in building one of the Berbice kits or other Shipyard kit, you can find them at Ages of Sail here.

Shipyard’s HMS Wolf – An Admiralty Model

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Building HMS Wolf – Shipyard’s 1/72 Scale Laser-Cut Card Kit – Part 16 – Final?

Shipyard’s 1/72-scale laser-cut card model kit of the English 10-gun snow-rigged brig, HMS Wolf, is an amazingly detailed kit, designed with two masts, and a full spread of pre-cut sails. But, the rigging of any sailing ship model can be a tremendous challenge for any model builder. Here’s a model that has been built without all the rigging, focussing the observer on the shape and details of the hull, and the details of the decks, guns, and other features of the ship.

Placed on a fine walnut base and supported by brass pedestals, the model looks like a jewel on display…

HMS Enterprize – Another Kit for Detail Oriented Modelers on a Budget

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Do you love working in fine details? Do you love sailing ships? Are you limited in your workspace and tool collection? Is making a lot of dust a problem? No place to operate power tools? Do you have a very limited budget? If so, you might want to consider a modeling art form that’s been very popular in Eastern Europe for decades: Paper Modeling. Paper ship modeling offers a lot of benefits and flexibility that most ship modelers aren’t even aware of, and we have many paper model kits from one of the most renown kit manufacturers of Poland, that most people know of as Shipyard.

 

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Santa Leocadia – A Kit for Detail Oriented Modelers on a Budget

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Do you love working in fine details? Do you love sailing ships? Are you limited in your workspace and tool collection? Is making a lot of dust a problem? No place to operate power tools? Do you have a very limited budget? If so, you might want to consider a modeling art form that’s been very popular in Eastern Europe for decades: Paper Modeling. Paper ship modeling offers a lot of benefits and flexibility that most ship modelers aren’t even aware of, and we have many paper model kits from one of the most renown kit manufacturers of Poland, that most people know of as Shipyard.

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An Amati Greek Galiot Build – A Customer Update, by Will G

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One of our customers sent us some updates of his build of Amati’s Greek Galiot kit. This is a 1:65 scale kit of a type of Mediterranean vessel from the early 19th century that was powered by sail and oar. This vessel resembles a xebec in many ways, but this warship is armed with a pair of forward firing cannons, while xebec carried broadside guns. Amati’s kit measures a little over 21″ when complete.

We received many other photos, but these show what the planking process on this model kit looks like. This is a single-planked model kit, so our builder added his own balsa wood filler blocks to give support to the hull planks, a technique that many ship modelers use to assure a smoother curvature to their model’s hulls.

We’ll be looking forward to more updates on Will’s Greek Galiot in the future. In the meantime, if you’ve got photos to share, please send them along to us at blogger at agesofsail.com.

Learn more about this Amati kit at Ages of Sail!

New Kit from OcCre – The Black Swan Pirate Ship

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“Cisne Negro!”  The call from the lookouts that would strike fear in the hearts of the captain and crew of any Spanish galleon that sailed the Caribbean waters. Cisne Negro… The Black Swan.

During the golden age of piracy, the Black Swan sailed the perilous waters of the Caribbean, leaving behind a trail of fear and admiration. Under the command of the ruthless Captain Tom Leach, this legendary ship raided Spanish trade routes and boldly faced fleets that tried to stop it. Its dark silhouette and black sails billowing in the wind were symbols of defiance, freedom, and adventure.

 

 

Now, you can build this fearsome looking master of the open seas with the latest kit from OcCre of Spain! The Black Swan model is a 1/75-scale wooden model ship kit that features a plank-on-bulkhead construction using laser-cut framing, high quality wood strips. The kit includes all the necessary wood strips, dowels, cannons, fittings, rigging material, pre-sewn sails, and pre-printed flags. Printed and well illustrated instructions will guide you step-by-step through the build. Continue reading →

New Vanguard Models Kit – HM Brig Harpy, 1796

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After the Holidays, we’ve had a long wait for our latest shipment from England’s Vanguard Models, but it finally arrived yesterday, and we couldn’t be happier. Or, should we say Harpy-er? With this shipment we received the latest kit to come out of Chris Watton’s Vanguard Models company, and it’s amazing. This is the Royal Navy vessel HM Brig Harpy, 1796.

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An Amati Greek Galliot Build – Planking Update, by Will G

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Our ship modeling neighbor Will G., here in San Lorenzo, CA, sent us a brief update on his build of the popular Amati Greek Galliot kit. This early 19th century warship featured three lateen-rigged masts, and a pair of forward-firing cannons at the bow. As a type of galley, the ship could also be maneuvered by oars, allowing it to operate in dead calm, and to aid in quick maneuvering.  Will had built the framework of the ship and was working on some of the basic details in his last email to us.

He pointed out that this model is built with a single layer of planking, something fairly common for some of Amati’s smaller ship model kits, like their Swedish gunboat kit and others. In order the help give the planking a nice smooth curvature, Will used small blocks of balsa wood to fill in the spaces between the bulkheads. This was then sanded down to make a nice, smooth curve to the hull, and to form a nice support for the hull planks. Even so, he says that planking, particularly at the bow, still had its challenges.

The balsa wood used as filler is very soft and is easy to file to shape, in this case, using a coarse emery board. He used one of the hull planks to check the fairness of the curve, and to make sure the balsa didn’t stick out anywhere. Balsa wood for these purposes is not something we carry at Ages of Sail. So, we recommend checking your local arts and crafts supply store, such as Michaels, or Hobby Lobby.

For the small amount of deck planking done so far, Will explained that he edged the deck planks with pencil to simulate caulking and to get the planks to stand out a little. He says he considered doing this with the hull as well, but decided against it.

Will soaked the planks to be able to impart a slight curve to the hull planks, which is needed at the bow. It also helps keep the planks from breaking or splitting when bending them around curves.

To hold the hull planks into place, he used a variety of plastic spring clamps where possible. But, where the balsa block were put in place, he could use simply office push pins.

Will says his work is far from perfect, but he’s enjoying the build. We think the work looks wonderful, and we’re looking forward to more updates on this project!

Those of you who are interested in learning more about this Amati kit, can find more info on our web listing here: https://www.agesofsail.com/product/greek-galliot-wooden-boat-model-kits-amati-165-2/.

Special thank you to Will G. for keeping us posted on his work.

Do you have some build photos and information to share? Be sure to use the comments section below to let us know! Ω