What is next?

If you're looking for a reputable place that sells wooden ships, I'd try MicroMark.com

Little pricey but it's cheaper than bail money. Lol! 

Edit: I'm not familiar with any of your posted places. 

There is a place in Miami that has a free shipping thing going on for orders over $25. The sell wooden ship models by several manufacturers.

https://modelexpo-online.com/ 

As far as MegaHobby goes, if you mean MegaHobby based in Magnolia, NJ, website https://www.megahobby.com/ yes, they're reputable.

Both Micro-mark and Modelexpo have a lot of good kits but look them over carefully and don't just pick up a large ship with lots of sails. They can be very difficult for a beginner with no knowledge of woodwork. Pick a small ship with less difficulty until you get the feel for working with wood. There are a lot of differences but they are easy to handle once you get the feel for it. When you are ready and need help, the members in the ship section are there to help. We've all been there at one time or another. I've built quite a few wooden ships as you can see from my avatar. They have their own group of lessons to learn. Don't give up. Hang in there and the results will be worth your efforts.

If you need help, you can PM (private mail) me also and I'll be glad to help.

Jim 

Stay Safe.

Good morning.

It can't be stressed enough how important it is to learn the skills needed to build a wooden ship model. And it takes a completely different set of tools.

Your prioities should be;

1. Interest in the subject.

2. Level of difficulty.

3. Quality of the kit.

4. Cost.

I've bought things from "Premier' Hobbies. They are in the UK and the few things I picked up were fittings made by Jotika, which is a good company. their main supply of kits look to be from Billings. Thats a well known Danish company that makes a lot of smaller boat subjects at larger scales.

Megahobby is fine.

i've never bought from your last supplier. Looking over their catalog however, they sell what the late Dr. Tilley referred to as HECEPOB, or hideously expensive Central European plank-on-bulkhead kits. Mamoli, Amati, etc.

I was given a wooden model ship builders shop when he passed on. Looking over his collection of plans, photos and seeing a number of his builds in local restaurants, libraries and antique stores; I'd guess he built less than a dozen fully rigged wooden ships in the course of decades of retirement. it takes a year or more to do up a wooden Constitution, Soleil Royale etc. And you'll need to have it be there the whole time. 

Do contact Fox. I'd like to hear what he suggests, like his schooner there.

I hesitate to recommend anything. I have been very happy buying old Model Shipways kits (yellow box) on eBay. 

Most are solid hull.  Those give you just what it sounds like. You can plank over it if you care to.

Next are plank on bulkhead. Those are much more difficult.

Bill

Thanks folks for you prompt replay. GMorrison, allow me to answer your 4 questions:

Your priorities should be

    1. Interest in the subject. I enjoy building fully masted sailing ships, for some reason, I hold a strong interest on the complexity of the rigging of those vessels.

1. Level of difficulty. I believe I should be able to tackle a "intermediate" level of complexity, after building the Le solei Royal and heavily customizing the Black Pearl.

2. Quality of the kit. Good question, both of the kits that I have in mind are made by OcCre, they both are rated intermediate.

3. Cost. My present budget is around $200 for the initial purchase of the kit.

The 2 kits that I am evaluating are The Essex, and the HMS Terror, both of these kits are in the Megahobby web site. Should I attempt one of those or should I keep looking?

Again, thank to all you folks for your advise.

Joe.

Hi;

 I agree with the others here. But if you've NEVER built a wooden ship before, May I make a suggestion? One I have found that works well for the folks I teach in that media is the " Bluenose" a Fore and Aft rigged Grand Banks fishing Schooner. She has rigging, Yes, but it is much simpler for the Neophyte than a square rigged ship.

Wooden ships are a whole different animal, especially as regards to what is 'acceptable', especially in regard to instructions - many wooden ship kits come with essentially none, except a set of plans. It's expected that you know how to take miscellaneous pieces of wood, and put them together to make them look like ship things. It's your money and time, but you're on a path to sadness without considering things more carefully. There is a world of difference between plastic and wooden ships. 

Solid hull kits are usually easier than plank on frame, as they are supplied in a basic shape that just needs final finishing. You need to learn a while new set of skills to do planking. My suggestion is something far simpler, like the Model Shipways Phantom pilot boat. It is a solid hull, and has actual directions with it. And there is an excellent free, even more detailed guide to building that kit, called the Phantom Practicum by Chuck Passaro that is out there on the internets. 

You're free to do as you wish, but if I had a nickel for every person who thought 'I'll jump right in and build a wooden 1/96 USS Constituition, even though I have little or no modeling experience or woodworking skills' and ended up with a pile of wood barely started before they gave up, I'd have made my fortune long ago. 

Based on the advises I have received from you folks, I decided to do a wooden model with a solid hull. The model I finally choose, was the Model Shipways MS2003 Dapper Tom, with an scale of 1:76

The Phantom pilot boat was interesting but I consider it to small, I am 76 years young, my eyesight is not as good as it used to be and my hands have a hard time working with very small parts, thus, I prefer to work on ships less than 1:100 scale.

The Bluenose is a nice looking boat but, after searching the Internet, I could not find one with a solid hull that was at least 1:100 scale.

I just odered the ship and I will start a build log for it, and again, I like to thank all you who took the time to advise me.

Joe

Hi Joe, 

In my opinion, The first thing you should do is make a copy of GMorrison's post, frame it and hang it in front of your bench. Everything he stated is right on target and a great way to head down the path of building wooden ships. A "warship" with lots of guns and sails is great but it takes a lot of time and patience to finish properly not counting the hours and hours of research necessary if you want an accurate model. Starting out with a solid hull ship with 1 or 2 masts, will give you the feel of what will be necessary on a larger more complicated ship. One example, just setting up the stays and  ratlines on a ship can be very frustrating. It took me years to get a set finished to my satisfaction.

I am no expert by any stretch of the imagination so anything I say is not the final word. A lot of what I have learned has come from the members on this forum. So, that being said, here is my  worth. Take it with a grain of salt or not. The two ships you have sort of settled on are OK but the rigging will give you nightmares until you get down the basics. As others have said, a solid hull ship is a good start. It will get you past the long process of planking. You can always plank it later with a thin veneer. My recommendations for a starting kit would be the ModelExpo Phantom or the 1854 Brigantine Newsboy. The 1910 Fishing Schooner Elsie and the Sultana are also good starter kits. They claim that they are beginner kits but you soon find out that they are quite difficult for a beginner (in wooden boats). The ship in my avatar is the "Scottish Maid" which I completed in 2 years. I think it is OOP as I have not seen it anywhere for sale. It was labeled as a "beginner" build. I messed up the planking a couple of times and ripped it all off and started over each time. The driving force behind that build was that my wife had picked out the boat for me to build for our mantle in the living room. SWMBO (she who must be obeyed) would not let me give up. If you would like to see the build pics, let me know.

You can tell I like to talk so I'll quit. If you want any more info or help let me know.

Jim 

Stay Safe.

Sorry about that, I had started this post before dinner and just sat down and finished it without checking the time.

Well I am back, sorry for the delay. I did purchased the Dapper Tom, the ship is smaller than I wanted, as I had explained before, the main reason I wanted a larger ship is so I can work with the little parts. I am 76, and my eyes and hands do not work as well as when I was 26.( I guess is why it is called old age)

I have run into several problems, some expected, some not, for example, on the instructions it says to make the water pumps and has an illustration of how it is supposed to look like, but, there is no reference  as to the size of it, and since I do no have a clue of how big the pump is supposed to be, I guess I have to guesstimate it.

I found that the instruction can be confusing an do no have sufficient detail to help a beguiner like me to understand what I am supposed to do. I am progressing, but very slowly.

Is the instruction on all wooden kits as vague as the Dapper Tom? Or it just this manufacturer. Well attached are some photos of my progress with this ship.

The deck was lay in using small strips provided in  the kit. The 2 items on the deck were also made, they are not perfect, but I hope it will do the job.

Well intill next time

Joe

Hi Joe! It looks like you are off to a good start. Don't try to rush it. If you see any problems or have any questions, just ask. That's what we're here for.

Keep up the good work.

Jim 

Stay Safe.

Oh, I almost forgot. My wife has a saying that I rely on to this day. Measure twice, cut once.  She's been a seamstress for about 40 years.