Cool, I'll have to post a WIP when I get to it.

Sweet!  It's a fun little kit...I hope you decide to take it further than I did...there's plenty of room for mods and customization....

Dave,

I just picked up from evilBay an 1/60 Imai Junk for a sweet price.  You inspired me to try my hand at it so it might have to get bumped up in the queue since I cannot think of any aftermarket stuff I need.......... except blocks, line and......

Steve

Thanks, you guys!  

Yeah, Steve...too bad the Dave Cave is quickly running out of room for more ship models!  I need to find some off-site moorage!

Beautifully done my Friend......Cheers Mark

Dave,

Very nicely done.  She is a gem to behold and another great addition for the Dave Cave!

Steve

Thanks, Arnie and Jtilley!

All those old Imai molds must be sitting in some warehouse somewhere...somebody should fill 'em with some plastic and get them on hobby shop shelves...

Another really superb model.  Several great models based on old Imai kits have shown up on this Forum.  I sure wish some manufacturer would notice, and bring back the full Imai line.  

David;

Superb outcome. Not that any of us would expect less from you.  The colors you chose for the sails are perfect from my viewpoint, even though I really liked the red on that other build, this is better. Looking forward to your next WIP.

David,

Another well done project! I believe you've done a remarkable job with this kit - especially, and as usual, in your talent for painting plastic to look like wood.

I too have the Imai Golden Hind in my stash. Maybe one of these days....

Mike

Very well done.  You are a very talent modeler.

Well, I put in a couple hours of modeling work yesterday, and got the Junk finished!  Less than two months ago I started this project...not that I spent a ton of my spare time working on it, it's just an easy build...recommended for anyone who wants a quick break from any tedious projects!

Anyway, here's some pics of the finished product:

Port side full view...dig the sails! She's a bit top-heavy and would very much like to tip over! Starboard view...you can see some of the rigging from this side...if you can, try to look at the sheets or clews, or whatever they would be on this kind of ship...there's one line that runs from the rear railing, and basically threads through all the lower sails to the front...unusual: Here's the stern view...notice the lower hull/transom area still has that cavity above the rudder: Here's a closer shot of the foremast rigging...mostly this kit includes just halyard, braces, stays, and "lower braces"? for rigging... All in all, it was a fun build, and a nice change of pace. I will mention again that the instructions are not great, there are contradictory rigging diagrams, and unclear steps...but a little thought on the part of the builder and it can be deciphered. Thanks for watching! Now I'm excited to jump right into my next build...got the Imai Golden Hind sitting here next to my desk! Dave

Sounds cool Dave!  Thanks for following my Nina/Pintao build.  I am going to put my two cents in for the Imai Mayflower.  I do not own that kit and it looks really cool, but the dolphins on the transom are a bit much.....

Like Arnie, I can't wait to see the finished product.

Steve

Bated breath here David.

Well, I got the sails on last night, and the standing rigging (which basically amounts to a few stays)...the sails look weird!  They're big, and trippy-looking, almost cartoonish with their dramatic scalloped shaped and texture...

I'll withhold any more pics until it's finished, which will probably be this weekend...the rigging is pretty simple.

Just don't be shocked by the apparent caricature of a ship!

Thanks, Steve!  It's true, there's not a lot of readily available reference material that I've found for Junks.  No biggie, everyone here knows by now that I'm not a huge stickler for purist authenticity  :)

Much as I like this model, I do find myself looking forward to something more...challenging, I guess.  My plan is to spend the rest of this year building my two remaining "big" imai kits (Mayflower and Golden Hind)...but if the timing is right, I think I can start off 2015 by digging into one of the "huge" Heller kits...

By the way, I'm totally digging your Nina and Pinta builds...I learn a lot by watching your work!

Dave,

She is looking mighty fine!  You are doing an excellent job on her.  I have no idea where you can find anything on the rigging of junks, although GM or Prof Tilley probably do.

I agree with you about the Corel line.  I started using it on the Thomas and needless to say..... I took it all out because of the fraying and when waxed looked pretty cheesy.

Steve

I've taken a few more progress pics today, after getting the anchors installed, and the bamboo "bumpers" outside the bulwark.  For some reason, the lighting at my desk is making everything look very reddish with the iphone camera...the colors aren't actually this red...I'll need to figure out how to fix that.

Anyway, here we go:

The anchors are unlike anything I've used before (like a lot of stuff on this model!)...they have holes near the head, and at the base...since the instructions are super-vague, I kind of used my imagination and ran the rope through the upper hole, and tied it off at the lower one...makes sense, since it's how they would get the anchorhead up onto the deck to secure it. By the way, the line I used for the anchors is some Corel hemp stuff I got from MS...though it's thoroughly waxed, it still keeps fraying...the more I think about it, the more I realize I need to score a bunch of line from that Syren company I've been hearing about! Here's the bamboo bumpers...bundled them up, held in place with clothespins, wrapped a few times with line, held the line with clips and tied it off with some darker, thinner thread. Wrapped the line around the railing a few times, and voila! Here's the finished look of the bumpers... All that's left now is the rigging...should go pretty quickly...although, as I may have mentioned, the instructions are vague, the pictures are terrible, and my interpretation of the rigging will probably be...creative! Thanks for looking!

Dave,

You have done an amazing job of blending the oils on the Junk, well done!

Steve

Thanks for the kind words, everyone!

Arnie, don't be too surprised when you see that the wedge is left totally open!  Haha

I'll be sure and post a close-up of it for ya!

Good times!

Dave

That is an incredible kit, and an awesome build.

David;

You have truly mastered the technique for making it look like real wood/bamboo. I am interested to see how that empty wedge comes out. (weird, weird,weird!)

This thing is awesome!

If you want to make it a modern junk just stick on a VHF radio antenna, a satellite T.V. dish,  registration numbers on the bow that look like the were painted on with spray paint, and some modern navigation lights.  ;-)

David_K

Well, I dry-fitted the "transom" for this ship, here's a pic:

As you can see, it's very much open in the wedge-area aft of the rudder post...there will be two guns mounted within the middle "window area", and also a big "gunport" that will be open in that area, but below that...nothing.  Seems weird, right?  And the instructions/parts do not indicate any other construction down there...although, the ship's boat will be suspended from the rear of the ship also, so that area will be pretty obscured...just makes me go Hmmmmm?

I saw those pics from the Benno's Forum when I was doing some reference-searching...that dude did a great job!  I like the red on his sails, for some reason...

Dave

Spoiler Alert!

In the swashbuckler story "Soldier of Fortune" by Gann, our hero has a 40mm Bofors cannon hidden in there that he uses to enable an escape from PRC patrol boats.

I have a few progress pics...assembly is pretty straightforward.  

Top view of deck Foredeck with tent and anchor windlass Starboard view These are the winches for the boat davits...Note that the instructions did not mention putting any line on them, but I figured it out... Quarter deck canopy, in this pic you can see how I trimmed the caprail so it will fit next to the inboard pinrail...much better. Just need to add a few more parts, then it's just rigging...and mounting those big, clunky molded sails...I hope the masts are up to the task! Thanks for looking! Dave

Thanks!

Steve- Now that you mention it, the Santa Maria did have a sloppy transom fit...nothing a few rubber bands and some CA couldn't fix, though!  

Gamera- The finish is a hybrid of acrylic paints, thin black wash, and oil paints...I'm going to spray the whole thing with Dullcote later.

Dave

Wow, very neat and different subject. And fantastic job - I love the wood finish you've done.

By the way, red sails were not restricted to orient.  Apparently there is a preservative that was widely used that made the sails red in color. I am building a Great Lakes schooner that apparently had red sails- they were quite common on the lakes.