Which Vasa kit to start from?

Which Vasa kit to begin with?

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dockattner

dockattner

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Looking for some advice. I had settled on the Corel Vasa but am getting cold feet... The DeAgostini is out of stock (and no response from them) so that one's out. Notwithstanding the scale differences - should I begin with the Corel, the Billings, or the Mantua/Sergal before kit-bashing (which I am not skilled/experienced enough to do a whole lot of)? Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
 
They are all mediocre kits in my opinion, but would benefit with scratch details and using your own sourced timber planking.
I built the Billings Vasa 30 years ago and its full of plastic fittings and very poor quality timber .
If I was to choose, I guess the DeAgostini would be first choice, then Mantua Sergal number 2 choice.

Good luck with it, its a great ship to build.
 
I think much depends on if you want to create a model that is reasonably accurate to the original.From an accuracy point of view the Deagostini is good closely followed by the Billings as the Billings was reputed to have an accurate hull form.The Sergal not so but the Corel is way off in some respects.
If you want a nice display model, not massively concerned about the historical aspect and don't want lots of additional work,I would have to disagree with Brian and say Corel.Sergal would have pipped Corel to the post had it not been for the alterations they have made to their kits.Sorry,but I am not a fan of the imitation wood planking on the decks and dubious gunport design.At least you get planking material for the decks in the Corel kit and it does cost a good deal less than the Sergal.

Personally,I feel the best all round kit on the market at the moment is the Deagostini partwork but it also works out the most expensive.Have you contacted the publisher to find out how long before it is available again?

Kind Regards

Nigel
 
Brian077 said:
They are all mediocre kits in my opinion, but would benefit with scratch details and using your own sourced timber planking.
I built the Billings Vasa 30 years ago and its full of plastic fittings and very poor quality timber .
If I was to choose, I guess the DeAgostini would be first choice, then Mantua Sergal number 2 choice.

Good luck with it, its a great ship to build.
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Thank you for your thoughts Brian.
 
NMBROOK said:
I think much depends on if you want to create a model that is reasonably accurate to the original.From an accuracy point of view the Deagostini is good closely followed by the Billings as the Billings was reputed to have an accurate hull form.The Sergal not so but the Corel is way off in some respects.
If you want a nice display model, not massively concerned about the historical aspect and don't want lots of additional work,I would have to disagree with Brian and say Corel.Sergal would have pipped Corel to the post had it not been for the alterations they have made to their kits.Sorry,but I am not a fan of the imitation wood planking on the decks and dubious gunport design.At least you get planking material for the decks in the Corel kit and it does cost a good deal less than the Sergal.

Personally,I feel the best all round kit on the market at the moment is the Deagostini partwork but it also works out the most expensive.Have you contacted the publisher to find out how long before it is available again?

Kind Regards

Nigel
Click to expand...
Thank you, Nigel. I have sent several emails to DeAgostini but have not heard anything back. Maybe I'll try to call them directly. Do I understand you to say that Sergal uses imitation wood for the planking?
 
The Sergal kit now uses laser engraved plywood to represent the deck planking as well as laser cut ply gratings.This didn't used to be the case, you got ply sub decks and walnut planking strips to go over the top.The gratings used to be solid wood self assembly as most other kits.
The Mantua group revised their kits sometime early in the millennium to reduce production costs.

Kind Regards

Nigel
 
NMBROOK said:
The Sergal kit now uses laser engraved plywood to represent the deck planking as well as laser cut ply gratings.
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@NMBROOK Nigel, Is this the case on all the Mantua/Sergal kits? I just picked up a Sovereign on eBay, and I'm thinking I might be a bit disappointed. :confused:
 
Brewbrarian said:
@NMBROOK Nigel, Is this the case on all the Mantua/Sergal kits? I just picked up a Sovereign on eBay, and I'm thinking I might be a bit disappointed. :confused:
Click to expand...

Hi Eric
The majority as far as I am aware,Sovereign definitely so as recent logs of this kit show the ply scribed decking.It all depends how old your kit is.Mantua never announced these changes so the timeframe is only what I have managed to deduce.This was a phased change and I believe they worked through their range slowly.They also introduced Balsa for the first planking.

Kind Regards

Nigel
 
Nigel,
agree with your comments, but the Corel kit is 1/75 scale, whereas the Mantua kit is 1/60/ scale. I prefer the larger scale to add more fine details.
The printed ply deck is no big issue as you can lay your own timber over the top of it.
 
Thank you Nigel and Brian. I have read about some shortcomings of the Corel hull and castings (and various other details). Does the Sergal kit solve those problems? Are the Sergal castings better than Corel? Basically I'm wondering which is the better starting point for someone who does not have experience customizing/correcting a deficient design (assuming the DeAgostini kit is not available). I really do appreciate any help/advice I can get from more experienced builders...
 
Hi Dave,
I was aware of your stunning work from your build log. You have skills I aspire to. If I went with the Corel could you highlight for me the most significant changes I would need to make to bring me within the 'circle of love' of the Vasa modelers 'guild'? I love the lines of this ship and the story behind it. And I would love to post my work for feedback. But don't want to wander too far afield from the standard of excellence I see in the ship modeling community. I'm not beholden to absolute historical accuracy. Neither do I want to be that guy who completely rejects what we know know about the Vasa (Fred Hocker's work) with my head in the sand. Thanks for any help you would be willing to provide.
Paul
 
Any 1/75 kit that can accept these gorgeous wooden carvings available from China would be tempting even if it requires a fair amount of scratch work and improving in other areas. I doubt that a 1/48 kit would ever appear in the future though. Would be good If they could be scaled for all Wasa kits.
www.ebay.com.au

Swedish WASA Vasa 1/48 /75 Carving decorations Pear Wood Wood Model Ship Kit | eBay

We also support this with boxwood version, this carving pieces very difficult to production, generally need 2 week to waiting for production, but the carving is great, this is best and only carving for vasa you can get on market.
www.ebay.com.au
 
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NMBROOK said:
The majority as far as I am aware,Sovereign definitely so as recent logs of this kit show the ply scribed decking.It all depends how old your kit is.Mantua never announced these changes so the timeframe is only what I have managed to deduce.This was a phased change and I believe they worked through their range slowly.They also introduced Balsa for the first planking.
Click to expand...

I had no idea their quality went downhill so to speak, thank for pointing that out. If I look for one of their kits I'll definitely look for an older release.
 
dockattner said:
Hi Dave,
I was aware of your stunning work from your build log. You have skills I aspire to. If I went with the Corel could you highlight for me the most significant changes I would need to make to bring me within the 'circle of love' of the Vasa modelers 'guild'? I love the lines of this ship and the story behind it. And I would love to post my work for feedback. But don't want to wander too far afield from the standard of excellence I see in the ship modeling community. I'm not beholden to absolute historical accuracy. Neither do I want to be that guy who completely rejects what we know know about the Vasa (Fred Hocker's work) with my head in the sand. Thanks for any help you would be willing to provide.
Paul
Click to expand...
I did write to the vasa Museum and acquired a set of plans. They were far more detailed with the rigging plans from the kit. This was also my first attempt at using treenails. I think they did add a lot to the overall look of the completed model. I'm hopping that even skilled modelers understand that you work to the max of your acquired skills. Everyone is elevated each time they complete a model. You learn what works and what does not and move forward. To only value the perfect model dismisses 99 % of the models shown on this site. In the end the question is are you happy with the result? I know from experience that very few models are ever sold but remain in the family as a tribute to the loved one that built them. I have altered or omitted an aspect of the build because of my skill level or my view if artistic license. The people viewing my models don't count the number of belaying pins in a rail or if even the correct line goes to that pin. I have never built a ship to 100% historical accuracy but to my skill level. So far anyone who has stood in front of one of my ships has been impressed and ask how did you do that? I don't think I'm in the minority as a builder to just produce a completed model people like to look at.
 
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