Old Heller tall ship kits

Sorry you got 'out-sniped!'  It does happen (and i promise it wasn't me that did it!!)  Check back with Ebay about once a week and another big Victory will pop up again, as they are very common (and try to get one of the older ones!).  If you REALLY have an interest in these kinds of ships, you might also want to keep an eye out for one of Boudriot's books, either at your library, or online.  They ain't cheap by any means, but they will tell you EVERYTHING you ever wanted to know about ships of the line, and the diagrams are absolutely fantastic!!

The Airfix and Heller H.M.S. Victory kits are identical, at least in terms of their plastic parts.  Some years back the two companies came under the same management.  More recently, both went bankrupt.  Airfix, now under the ownership of the British firm Hornby, has risen from the ashes.  I'm not sure whether the Heller label is being applied to any newly-molded kits lately, but some older Heller products are appearing with the Airfix name on them.

One big criticism of the Heller kit concerns the English-language version of the instructions.  That document is a disgrace to the hobby industry.  It apparently was written by somebody who (a) hadn't attempted to build the model, and (b) couldn't read French.  (The first clue:  he/she thought "le mat de misaine" was the mizzen mast.   It isn't; it's the foremast.  The mizzen mast is "le mat d'artimon.")  I don't think I've ever seen a 1/100 Victory in an Airfix box, but I have the impression that Airfix uses the same "translation."  (I hope not.  Surely it wouldn't be so difficult to find a bilingual person who could actually translate the original French.)

The instructions also include numerous silly goofs regarding the rigging.  (The people who designed that kit were amazingly talented artisans, but their understanding of how sailing ships work was sadly deficient.  First clue:  the kit provides no means of attaching the yards to the masts.)  Just about everybody who's taken on this project has found it necessary to get hold of at least one book, to make up for the deficiencies of the instructions.  (The ones by John McKay and Basil Lavis are outstanding, but I think my first recommendation would be the old classic The Anatomy of Nelson's Ships, by C. Nepean Longridge.  It contains, in addition to a fine set of plans and diagrams, verbal descriptions of how all the rigging lines work.)

I haven't actually examined one of these kits for many years.  Various discussions about it here in the Forum, however, have emphasized that the quality of plastic in more recent issues of it has been problematic.  There have been complaints of brittle, waxy stuff, severe warpage, and of "rubbery" spars that won't stay rigid.  I honestly don't know how old that American boxing, with the photo of the completed model on the top, are.  Maybe some other Forum member can help on that point.  Generally speaking, though, my inclination is to think - the older the better.

If you do a Forum search on the words "Heller Victory" you'll find several threads containing all sorts of tips for dealing with the numerous pitfalls awaiting anybody who takes on this project.  In many ways it's one of the best plastic kits on the market.  But it's an extremely advanced project, and not without its errors of accuracy and highly questionable design features.

Good luck.

well i tried to bid on the Victory on E-Bay (thanks for the advice) and ended up losing out by $2.50. Unfortunatley i was not at a computer when the bidding was winding down so i was not able to raise my bid and like i said i lost by $2.50. Oh well I still have another month or so of work to do to finish up my constitution so that will still give me time to find a Victory kit. I have found one online at a hobby store, it is an older kit for $155 US$, the kit has a picture of the actual model on the box and i don't know much about the Airfix/Heller Victories to know about any differences in the age of the kit or between the two partner companies. I read on a forum that someone said the Airfix kit was better but someone else said they are the same and made from the same molds, can anyone clearify this for me? Should I try to get an Airfix kit or is it exactly the same kit as the Heller?

thanks for everyones input

Lacy

I'm not sure if the Victory worth $150 - that depends on what parts are missing. If it is something really important, like masts or rudder or something like this, it's not worth it.

Royal Lous, if it's 1/200 model, doesn't worth anything. Well, may be $10.

Soleil Royal and Pamir may be worth something, may be not, but I wouldn't buy it close to retail - I'd rather by it retail than possibly damaged. They are easy to find. :)

Now, the truly interesting, in my opinion, kits: Chebec and La Reale. Mind you, though, they are interesting to me, because I truly love the look of those ships; I don't know their objective worth. For Chebec, I would absolutely buy it for the price, close to retail; the ship, in my opinion, is great. Currently, Heller Chebec goes for $120+ easily on eBay, and it's impossible to find in shops, at least for me, at least for any reasonable price. I'd say, under $100 it's a bargain.

La Reale - also very beautiful ship. It can be found for as low as $90, may be even less; but it can go for as much as $120 on eBay, too. If price is lower, and you have money you can spend, I'd took it. 

Oh, and as for methods of bargaining on eBay, "sniping" is not always the best strategy. Sometimes, it's worth to rise a bit the price of the item right from the start, from day one, so that "last-minute snipers" weren't interested; this way the final price, without last-minute "bidding frenzy", may be actually lower. But it is by no way a sure thing.

Oh, and sometimes you just get lucky. Right now, when I'm writing that, I've got two wonderful models for a song on eBay, really for a song, lost third to a sniper frenzy in the end and now waiting to see, if I'll be able to get the last one. :) I have a feeling that the same sniper who got the third one has his scope on this one too... But we will see...

Well, there is a Heller 1/100 scale Victory up for auction on Ebay right now.  The auction closes in about 4 hours, and the price is up to $128.00, and probably won't go for much more (but hold your bidding 'til the last minute!!).  There is always at least one of these on Ebay at any given time, and if you pay attention, ought to be able to get one for a lot cheaper than $150!

well i just spoke with the hobby store guy about the kits and he is asking retail for them. I understand the ratlines for Heller ships are made by the modeller with the rig provided but he did say the Victory was missing at least 2 parts. The other kits are the Pamir, Royal Lous, Chebec, La Reale, and the Soleil Royal. I guess all the boxes are old and trashed and it can be questionable if all the parts are there. He told me he would want around $150 or so for the Victory and around retail for the others. I was hoping to pick up at least 3 of the kits but at those prices i may just buy the victory unless i can find one that is unopened or in great condition or new elsewhere. So where would i look to find the Heller Victory 1/100 scale for under $200? I did see online a hobby store that specializes in old kits and they have the Victory in an unopened box for $155 so far that is the best price but with shipping on a box that size it would end up being well over $200

thanks, Lacy S.

Well, it all depends on which Heller kits we are talking about!  Some of these can be worth a pretty penny ($100 or more), and others ain't worth the box they came in!  Most, if not all of the Heller Tall Ship kits were produced originally by Aurora back in the day, so as 'collectors items' they don't have a lot of added value (the Aurora ones do).  Also, many of these kits were pretty bad models to begin with, and have not improved with age.  Another thing to note, I can't think of any Heller tall ship kits (other than the really tiny ones) that came with molded ratlines.  Instead, they provide a 'loom' to make your own out of thread (and a pain in the butt that is too!).  High value Heller Tall Ships kits include the 1/100 Victory and Soleil Royale (these go for about $100-150.00 on Ebay), the 1/150 Superbe and Gloriaux, which can be had for about $30.00 on Ebay, the 1/72 La Reale galley is a good kit for about $75.00, and the 1/50 Chebec goes for around $75-100.00 if you can find one.  All that said, since this is from an estate and many of the bozes are in bad shape, you might try to take advantage of it by offering no more than about $00.50 on the dollar!