Just saw the news this morning on Model Ship World that Chris Watton’s Vanguard Models site is now fully functional and his new HMS Alert kits are available for sale.

The 1/64-scale cutter model measures 637mm long and 517mm high – that’s about 25″ long and 20″ high – and sells for £180.00 plus shipping, or just under $230.

You can order the kit here: https://vanguardmodels.com/h-m-armed-cutter-alertstatic

Mr. Watton says that he’ll now be working on the next project, the brig HMS Speedy.

Last week, I got fed up with knocking over little bottles of CA glue and finally tried to do something about it.

I’ve been using these small 1/2 oz. bottles of BSI brand cyanoacrylate glue (i.e. super glue), and I’ve found that they are very easy to knock over. It wouldn’t be so bad, except that I find the vapor inside the bottles seem to be very sensitive to heat, and expand easily when warmed. If left open, the resulting pressure increase manages to push the glue out and into a puddle on the workbench.

One thing I started to do was to keep the glues in the base of a small compartmentalized parts box. This works, but you have to keep the parts box nearby at all times when using the glue.

Recently, I left a bottle out on the bench and didn’t realize that I’d knocked it over…

I just saw an exciting post on Woody Joe’s Facebook page today. Woody Joe is developing a new 1/120-scale wooden model kit of the USS Susquehanna, one of the famous kurofune or black ships of Commodore Perry’s squadron that sailed into Edo Bay in 1853 and 1854 to force a trade treaty with Japan.

These are photos posted on Facebook by Woody Joe of their prototype. There are many details that need to be worked out yet, so there is no word yet on pricing or availability. But, it is clearly a plank-on-bulkhead kit of the 3-masted barque-rigged paddlewheel steam frigate. At 1/120 scale, the model will measure about 34″ long.

Again, no price is set yet. But, based on their kits of similar size and detail, my guess is that it will run somewhere around 45,000¥ or about $400. We’ll see how close I come to the actual total…

The Peruvian 4-masted bark Uniòn will be sailing into San Francisco harbor early Friday morning to dock at Pier 17 where it will be open to visitors all weekend. The steel-hulled ship measures 378-feet overall and is reportedly the largest sailing ship in Latin America. It’s a relatively new vessel, having been commissioned just over 3 years ago.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the ship will be open for visitors on Saturday and Sunday, April 27 and 28, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

You can read the Chronicle’s article on the ship here. There are some great photos from the ship’s San Diego visit in a blog here. For facts about the ship, check out the Wikipedia entry. Ω

I’m something of a collector of ship modeling books – Well, of kits and tools and supplies too, for that matter. But, the books provide the most inspiration and learning, so they’re particularly important. Plus, they’re a nice distraction from time to time. And, you never know, maybe I’ll actually build the subject matter of the book at some point.

Today, my copy of David Antscherl’s book, The Greenwich Hospital barge of 1832, and methods of building open boats, arrived in the mail.

Many of us are familiar with David Antscherl’s other works on the excellent Swan-class sloop series and his book on the Fireship Comet and others, all published by Seawatch Books. He’s so prolific that I can’t keep up with his publications. But, this book was, frankly, the least expensive, and of a very different kind of subject, so I thought I’d go ahead and get it.

Those of you who have been building models long enough should recognize this company. While they’re primarily in the railroad model aftermarket business, they make a few products that many ship modelers have used including the well-known ‘Chopper’ products. The owner recently announced that for personal reasons, the company will cease operations on August 30, 2019.

There is always the chance that someone out there will buy the company. But with the kind of products including gear pullers, arbor press, detail sander, brass bending press, and specialty tools for railroad models, it would take someone with skill and knowhow to keep the product line going.

Of course, we’ll see second hand products on Ebay and at our local ship modeling clubs for quite some time. But, it is always sad to see a hobby industry fixture like NWSL go.

For now, the company is still in operation, so if you are…