Home-made Kits

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When I was still at sea, I was in the habit of building one model every voyage of two months. Because space was limited, I went onto miniatures many years ago, as there was always the problem of getting them home with me at the end of the voyage. I assembled all the parts and materials and packed them in a small plywood box. After the model was complete, I put it in the empty box to bring it home with me. The display case was then completed when on leave. Here are the component parts for the steam whaling barque Esquimax and the completed model.
Bob

Esquimaux parts.jpgEsquimaux.jpg
 
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Thank you Larry,
Yes I do. I consider steady hands more important than good eyesight. I use reading glasses when building, but no other visual aids.
Bob
 
Anja,
No, as the ice did not require any artistic talent :lol: The sea was clear acrylic sprayed with blue underneath. The ice was plasticine painted with white with jagged pieces of thick white plasticard stuck in it. I then painted the whole lot in white wood glue and sprinkled it with "snow" powder, purchased from a hobby shop. I have built two other Arctic ships, HMS Carcass (Nelson's 2nd ship), jammed in the ice off Spitzbergen and HMS Erebus (Franklin expedition) shown abandoned in the ice and snow. Here is Erebus. At the moment, I can't get the Carcass to upload, so I will close this post and open it again.
Bob
Bob
 

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  • Erebus 2 (Medium).JPG
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Third time lucky. These are both miniatures. Carcass only being about three inches long on the waterline. I built it very quickly for a specialist Nelson sale in London. But they said it wasn't suitable because no-one was interested in his smaller ships. So it was entered in a normal sale and went for an astonishing price, almost £800. It remains my greatest success in £s per hour building time. I didn't even like it much, as these Napoleonic type vessels appear quite ugly to me. I prefer the big iron and steel sailing ships of the late 19th century, although I realise that I am very much in a minority.
Bob
 

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Another speechless person here. I swear, I have never seen anything like this before. Stunning.
 
Hi Bob. Remember mer? I'm the Parker pen spotter. Beautiful miniatures again, and striking ice effect, although maybe it's a pity your wonderful handicraft is concealed under the ice. On the other hand, with the earth heating up, it's nice to enable future generations to remember what ice looked like. Love to see your work!

JP

PS.: you really should include some pen in your kit :D
 
Hi JP,
Yes, of course I remember you :D The beauty of an ice and snow on a diorama is that there is no need for great detail beneath it!!!
Wish the Earth would heat up a bit where we are :lol:
Same old pen is still going strong - it has lasted longer than earlier ones!
Bob
 
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