Hi Gary,
You will find out that you are correct to say that you will know the name and function of every line and sail on a ship after building your first model. It is part of the research and learning experience, which will take up about 80% of the time in your build with construction making up the remaining 20%. If you want to learn fast, then post EACH and EVERY question you have, even the simple ones, on this forum and you will get answers literally in an hour or two. As for instructions, we can refer you to the books you need to buy to get started on the research. There are MANY Blue Nose builders from on this forum from beginners to experts who will be able to help you... but usually only if you ask specific questions. For general questions like "how do I plank a hull?", we will provide you some basic documents that are instructions on hull planking, and refer you to other books you may want to purchase. THE BEST tutorials for you are the build logs of Blue Nose found on this forum and others like Model Ship World. You can see how other builders outfitted their models and what techniques they used. As for missing parts, you will probably have to scratch build almost all of them. It is often difficult to obtain them from the original kit manufacturers, but not impossible. Besides, any parts you fabricate will likely be better quality than kit parts. Plus you should consider adding extra details to your model to make it more accurate and better overall. Kits are typically oversimplified and under-detailed. Some members may be able to furnish you with plans, or even copies of original instructions if you tell us who made the kit, and if the members have built that kit. Most of us retain the plans and instructions for models we build. Be prepared to spend money on books and tools. If you are "kit bashing" (superdetailing and upgrading the model with scratch build add-on parts), you will also consider replacing some of the wood with improved wood or wood you choose as a better option for color and appearance. Most of all, believe it when I say that building a model of this type is a long term affair, measured in months and years, not days, and the #1 item you need the most if you want to be proud of the result is PATIENCE. As a reference, my first model was at an advanced level, it took 2 years and 8 months to complete, being a 72 gun man-of-war with full sails. So, that is what you are getting into. Best wishes and post a build log as you go, for us to enjoy and comments on.
