OK, the box says 1:56 scale but the hull length says it's 1:65 scale. It is also exactly the same length as the Mamoli wood kit I have. I bought the Revell America a few months ago when my interest in model sailing ships was rekindled. My first plan of action was to build the Revell hull with it's deck furniture and steal the masts, yards and fittings from the Mamoli kit. But after I opened the Mamoli kit I decided it is just too nice to steal part of it's contents so I may build it at a later date when I have a few planked hulls under my belt. So, I decided I just have to accept the inaccuracies of the masts and yards of the Revell kit and improve on them as much as I can. I was even planning on using the plastic sails. I have made it so the sails can be attached to the masts using every mast hoop instead of every fourth hoop the kit calls for. I finally laid out the mainmast on a flat surface and matched up the main sail prior to starting to attach it. Big problem, the sail is about 1/2" too short from the gaff to the boom. I checked photos and paintings of the America and in every case the sail is firmly attached to the gaff and boom all the way along their lengths. If it wasn't for the way the gaff and boom are attached to the mast I would either lower the gaff or raise the boom the appropriate distance and be done with it. But Revell, in their infinite wisdom, made a recess in the mast at both locations so it would take major surgery to fix the problem. I would do it without sails but the mast hoops were molded onto the masts and removing them is more work than I am willing to commit to. So now I am faced with finding some appropriate sail cloth and making my own sails, way outside my skill set. While typing this I think I came up with a solution, cut 1/2" off the bottom of the mast above the boom and splice it back together using a wood dowel inside to reinforce the joint. I'll need to make up my mind soon or put the model on hold for a while. The last time I did that was with the Revell Cutty Sark, just now coming out of hibernation after about 20 years. Well here are some images of my progress so far.
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