HMS Victory +++++ Finished +++++

[rob85]

Sounds like this kit is giving you some frustrations! The copper shouldn’t be to much of a challenge, as the other and yourself have said it will just be a brown/green as will ace weather, rather than a shiny copper.

 

this is taking shape though, even if one of the shapes is a bent mast! I cant suggest anything for the wood effect, not something I’m experienced in!

 

hope you get this one tamed.

 

Rob  

[825]

13 minutes ago, rob85 said:

Sounds like this kit is giving you some frustrations! The copper shouldn’t be to much of a challenge, as the other and yourself have said it will just be a brown/green as will ace weather, rather than a shiny copper.

 

this is taking shape though, even if one of the shapes is a bent mast! I cant suggest anything for the wood effect, not something I’m experienced in!

 

hope you get this one tamed.

 

Rob  

Rob,

 

I've almost straightened out the mask and I'll ignore any wood effect on the deck. Once I've measured up for the black, I'll organise some strips of black transfers. If that's successful, I can start assembling the remaining parts and hopefully finish in time. 

[Murdo]

Considering the size of this model, you probably can't get close enough to see any errors with the naked eye.

 

Ummm... Even if you could get close enough you probably couldn't see any errors with the naked eye.

 

[bianfuxia]

Looking good! It brings back fond memories, as this very kit was one of the first ones I ever built too! I think I had it when I was about ten years old. Keep up the good progress!

[PeterB]

I could never understand why some of this range of Airfix ship kits were full hull on a stand, and others like the first one I did (Golden Hind) were designed to gho on a "sea base" and were a sod to sticvk on with the glue I had in those days. Wonder if some were reboxing from another manufacturer?

 

Pete 

 

 

[CliffB]

I don't know how I've managed to miss this thread so far.  I'm glad that I've caught up now though!

Despite its small size, the kit's obviously providing a nice selection of challenges 

 

(as an aside, my earliest recollection of a plastic kit was the little Santa Maria built by my dad).

 

Cheers

[825]

On 4/18/2020 at 2:32 AM, bianfuxia said:

Looking good! It brings back fond memories, as this very kit was one of the first ones I ever built too! I think I had it when I was about ten years old. Keep up the good progress!

Thanks, moving along bit by bit. 

 

On 4/18/2020 at 10:32 PM, PeterB said:

I could never understand why some of this range of Airfix ship kits were full hull on a stand, and others like the first one I did (Golden Hind) were designed to gho on a "sea base" and were a sod to sticvk on with the glue I had in those days. Wonder if some were reboxing from another manufacturer?

 

Pete 

This one comes with a stand which is good as the hull below the waterline is fairly substantial. 

 

On 4/19/2020 at 6:31 AM, CliffB said:

I don't know how I've managed to miss this thread so far.  I'm glad that I've caught up now though!

Despite its small size, the kit's obviously providing a nice selection of challenges 

 

(as an aside, my earliest recollection of a plastic kit was the little Santa Maria built by my dad).

 

Cheers

Cliff, it is quite small but is quite detailed and not at all bad for a 60+ year old kit. Most of the challenges have been the flash on the masts and sails and my seriously bent mainmast. 

 

I had thought a lot about the hull sides and decided to use transfer strips.  Here's one side just done. I've soaked it in Micro sol and will leave to dry. 

 

 

Does everyone think it looks OK?

[PeterB]

Looks fine to me, though picking out the gun ports and stern windows will be a challenge.

 

Pete

[Ventora3300]

On 11/04/2020 at 23:42, 825 said:

I still have a couple of quandaries, how to paint the black lines on the hull sides. It's not really possible to mask the yellow due to the cannon barrels. I thought about painting black and then masking it. But it takes at least 3 coats of yellow to cover over the black. I'm toying with the idea of using transfer strips at the moment.

Looking good, 825. Thank goodness there is not a Royal Sovereign (with all that wood carving detail) at this scale because at least the Victory was very plain on the sides.

How about a black fine tip felt pen for the hull lines? I have still to buy one but others rave about the Molotow paint pens. I have used a permanent marker pen before for some fine details - still need steady hands, though!

[825]

1 hour ago, PeterB said:

Looks fine to me, though picking out the gun ports and stern windows will be a challenge.

 

Pete

Pete, Airfix provide a beautiful transfer for the stern which is made by Cartograph. I know that definitely wasn't in the 1956 boxing. For the gunports I think a wash (after sealing with some varnish) should bring them out sufficiently in this scale. 

[AdrianMF]

Marvellous idea with the transfer strip! And a wash for the gun ports (after varnishing) sounds like a great idea too.

 

Regards,

Adrian

[825]

6 hours ago, AdrianMF said:

Marvellous idea with the transfer strip! And a wash for the gun ports (after varnishing) sounds like a great idea too.

 

Regards,

Adrian

Thanks Adrian. 

[825]

Remember that seriously bent main mast. Well repeated dips in boiling water and the application of pressure to straighten it up has got it almost straight. 

 

 

Black stripes on the starboard side down now as well. Not much more to go to complete the hull and once I've cleaned up,and painted the main mast it's pretty much an assembly job from here on in. 

 

[JOCKNEY]

2 hours ago, 825 said:

 

 

Seeing your Firebrand Torpedo next to the victory i couldnt help but notice the similarities of colours.

Although I would imagine the victory type torpedo would have been quite difficult to launch !

 

Keep up the great work, I've loved the Victory ever since i went on it as a nipper on one of the Navy Days at Portsmouth. 

 

Cheers Pat

[rob85]

Nice work on that mask and the cunning plan with the transfers. Completely agree a wash will fill in the details you need to paint round the guns and bring it together nicely. 
 

Rob

[825]

20 hours ago, JOCKNEY said:

Seeing your Firebrand Torpedo next to the victory i couldnt help but notice the similarities of colours.

Although I would imagine the victory type torpedo would have been quite difficult to launch !

 

Keep up the great work, I've loved the Victory ever since i went on it as a nipper on one of the Navy Days at Portsmouth. 

 

Cheers Pat

Thanks Pat, we used to have a family annual pass for the Royall Naval Dockyard in Portsmouth so not only got to wander round the outside on a few occasions but it included a full tour. It was great to see the interior. A bit later 825 junior went to Uni at Portsmouth so we did visit regularly, but I think we only went to the dockyard once in the three years. The security is a lot tighter now so it's not so easy to wander around. However, you can still see the masts from the area around the dockyard and harbour. 

 

Hadn't related the colours until now. Well spotted. 

 

18 hours ago, rob85 said:

Nice work on that mask and the cunning plan with the transfers. Completely agree a wash will fill in the details you need to paint round the guns and bring it together nicely. 
 

Rob

Thanks Rob, it has come out quite well. It isn't that big so the imperfections don't really show too much. 

 

There's now a couple of coats of matt varnish on now and that pulls the different paints and transfers together. 

 

 

And the masts on now. The mainmast still keeps wanting to bend but hopefully the sails will straighten it out. It does look as if the foremast is at a strange angle but it looks OK in reality. 

 

 

Feels like one's on the home stretch, or more appropriately, the final tack, now

Edited April 26, 2020 by 825

[825]

Now with the sails on. 

 

 

This doesnt really do this transfer for the transom justice. I'll try to provide a better one as it's absolutely exquisite. 

 

[825]

Ship is finished now. Added the last couple of bits, painted them and generally touched up the paintwork. Then I added the flags, and gave the sides a dry brushing of Humbrol 53, Gunmetal. It's not strictly correct as the cannon were black and the gun ports lined with red, but it's brought out the guns as well as picking out some of the remaining details. 

 

 

 

 

And hopefully a better view of the transfer on the stern. 

 

 

Only problem is these close in shots do show where the paintwork could be better. 

 

Last job is to decide upon upon a suitable paint for the stand. I did toy with rigging it like I would have done at 10 with some black thread from the sewing box but sanity prevailed. 

 

 

[rob85]

shes looking great, and you were right the sails have sorted the masts right out.

 

great work getting her together!

 

Rob

[Ray S]

Lovely work @825, this kit certainly scrubs up very well (droopy mast notwithstanding!), and you have made a great job of it. I do not remember the transom transfer from 1970, but then again, I cannot recall what was on the transom in the plastic either!

 

All the best,

 

Ray

[825]

On 4/29/2020 at 8:50 PM, rob85 said:

shes looking great, and you were right the sails have sorted the masts right out.

 

great work getting her together!

 

Rob

Thanks Rob, she's not perfect and if I had more time and patience there's more that could be done, thinning the sails and adding some rigging would be a start but I've done and she looks OK. 

On 4/30/2020 at 7:26 PM, Ray S said:

Lovely work @825, this kit certainly scrubs up very well (droopy mast notwithstanding!), and you have made a great job of it. I do not remember the transom transfer from 1970, but then again, I cannot recall what was on the transom in the plastic either!

 

All the best,

 

Ray

I think the transom transfer is a recent addition, the transfers are printed by Cartograph and good quality. It's a long time ago and I never built the Victory so this is recollection from it sitting on a stand somewhere. I don't think there were transfers originally with the kit. I think in its original presentation as a Series 1 bagged kit, there were flags printed on the back of the instructions which were to be cut out, folded and glued onto the various masts and flag pole. I have no idea if there was one for the transom but it could be a possibility. The back of the ship as moulded is flat and smooth (within the bounds of a 65 year old mould) and it doesn't look like it was ever anything but. 

 

I've painted up the stand after a bit of tidying up, using Citadel's Skullcrusher Brass which gives a nice bit of style to the presentation IMHO. I found a small flaw in the paint after the transfer was on, naturally, and it will have to be touched up before the final photos. But almost done. 

 

Edited May 8, 2020 by 825

[ArnoldAmbrose]

Gidday 825, very good job of the model, and well done repairing the mast. 

1 hour ago, 825 said:

I have no idea if there was one for the transom but it could be a possibility.

Regarding discussions of earlier versions of this kit in previous posts my brother and I did one of these many decades ago. I recall it being of white plastic and a waterlined kit, with a plastic sea to set it on. I also recall some kind of sticker/transfer for the stern galleries. Whether it was a transfer I can't recall, but I think we cut it out and glued it on. How successfully I can't recall. HTH.

     As I said, well done with the build. Regards, Jeff.

[PeterB]

Hi Jeff,

 

One of the things that always puzzled me slightly with the Airfix range of small ships was why some were full hull and on a cradle, and others were "waterline" and on a sea base - like the first one I ever built which was the Golden Hind. Can't remember which sort the original Victory was. My favourite was HMS Shannon - built it at least twice. I do wonder if at least some of them were "bought in" from somebody else's range hence the different approach?

 

Just dug out my copy of Arthur Ward's book on 50 years of Aifix and it looks as if the only full hull kits were the Revenge, Mayflower and I think the Great Western - Cutty Sark, Golden Hind, Shannon, Santa Maria, and Victory seem to have been waterline on the sea base. It seems, according to Ward, that a buyer for Woolworths suggested Airfix make a Golden Hind having seen one selling in the US as a "kit in a bottle". Originally it was going to be full hull and in a box, but Woolworths would not accept the proposed 5/- price so it ended up as waterline and was the first Airfix kit in a bag, reducing the cost to an acceptable 2/-. Woolies had been selling the Airfix Ferguson Tractor in a box, but that too was now bagged and sold at a reduced price and the rest is history.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited May 8, 2020 by PeterB

[825]

The Victory has been sitting finished for the last month and popped aside on a windowsill as I got on with some other projects. A bit lax of me not to put her in the gallery but that will be rectified now.