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Hello from La Rochelle, France

MattInFrance

MattInFrance

Joined
Aug 16, 2026
Messages
40
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Hello from sunny La Rochelle in France! Absolute beginner here. My name's Mattijs, but most of the English-speaking world is going with 'Matt' (and I totally understand)
While I have done modeling in the past, mostly plastic models as a kid (without the patience to properly paint and assemble them), and a wooden doll's house for my mother (the Beacon Hill from Greanleaf, quite the monster), the last 15 years have gone without doing anything modeling-related whatsoever, unfortunately.
That is until the video game AC Black Flag Resynched came out recently, which meant (apart from playing it) I watched some videos about it on YouTube, resulting in a rabbit hole of suggestions of videos of sailing games, followed by videos of old sailing ships, and finally ending up at the video 'Building the HMS Surprise Wood Ship Model Episode 1' (Sorry Alex, I am not doing the all-caps) by AlexModeling.
Oh my, that looks absolutely fantastic. And so much fun to do. I love working with wood (apart from the Beacon Hill mostly in scale 1:1 (12 inch = 1 foot) such as the dash and center console in my kit car), so I really want to give this a try myself. I ordered, and my kit should be arriving today. I think I already have most of the basic tools, and I even found some rope as spare rigging line in case the kit doesn't come with enough:

20260818_114105.jpg

I have heard that it is best to 'buy tools when you need them', so that's what I will do.

Anyway, nice to meet you all!

Matt
 
Mattijs - Welcome from Philadelphia USA! You will find a friendly and helpful community here, all of us focused on this great hobby of making wooden boats. Please enjoy all of the resources here, especially build logs, group builds, forums for every subject, and historical designs and plans. And when you're ready, sharing a build log of your current work will help you connect with other experienced builders on this site.

One question that many beginner modelers should ask themselves is: What kind of boats, vessels or ships do I like? Do you have any particular areas of interest - many here like to build highly detailed British (French, Spanish, Dutch...) ships of the line from the 1600's to 1800's. On the other hand, many here (like me) enjoy doing "out of the mainstream" builds, like working fishing and lobster boats, boats by one designer, like Capt. Nat Herreshoff, or boats tied to one historical era (I build 17th century Dutch ships in paper). Here we enjoy boat builds of all sorts and sizes.

Wishing you fair winds and following seas!

Ignatius
 
@Ignatius27 is hitting the nail on the head: what kind of boats, vessels or ships DO I like? Right now I *think* that I like to build historical sailing ships. The ones with lots of masts, rigging, and cannons. The HMS Surprise or Indefatigable are about as modern as I'd like to go for now. Somehow, a Curry Sark or Amerigo Vespucci do not really interest me. But a Santísima Trinidad, Santa Ana, or Soleil Royal, that is the ultimate dream. Not the Vasa though, it does not look very stable to me, it might fall over.
 
MattInFrance said:
@Ignatius27 is hitting the nail on the head: what kind of boats, vessels or ships DO I like? Right now I *think* that I like to build historical sailing ships. The ones with lots of masts, rigging, and cannons. The HMS Surprise or Indefatigable are about as modern as I'd like to go for now. Somehow, a Curry Sark or Amerigo Vespucci do not really interest me. But a Santísima Trinidad, Santa Ana, or Soleil Royal, that is the ultimate dream. Not the Vasa though, it does not look very stable to me, it might fall over.
Click to expand...
Mattijs - I just saw Amerigo Vespucci sail into Boston Harbor for Sail250 last month and she is a beautiful (and big) ship, but I agree she is not for everyone's taste. The Santissima Trinidad is also a beauty, and I would easily have have her in my build queue, but I like 17th century Dutch ships better, so my stretch builds are The Batavia, the Nieuw Haarlem, and the Drommedaris. One recommendation is to start with a smaller masted sailing ship with less of a rigging challenge - like the Sharpie Schooner or the Chesapeake Bay Skipjack, both intro level kits from Midwest.

To avoid frustration, I would not recommend a build that requires tying shrouds and ratlines from scratch for your first wooden ship build. One estimate for the Santissima kit from Artesania Latina is that the builder must tie over 1000 knots for the ratlines alone.

Another recommendation that many members on SoS have built is the 3-build set from Model Shipways. Each of the 3 ships (Grand Banks Dory (level 1), Norwegian Pram (level 2, and Muscongus Lobster Smack (level 3) are designed to teach you the basics like planking, simple rigging, fairing, adhesives and painting in a progressive manner. I believe they had a deal where you can send them a picture of one of your completed models and they will gift you your next build.

Good luck, and feel free to ask questions of this community when you start your first build. Looking forward to seeing your craftsmanship!

www.modelexpo-online.com

Model Shipways Shipwright 3 Kit Combo Series with Tools, Glue and Pain

Learn to build a fine wood boat and ship models. Start with an 1800's traditional fisherman's Dory at Skill Level 1. Included are 24 pages of instructions, tools, paint, and glue for your first build. Continue at Skill Level 2 with a fully planked historic Norwegian Pram. Finally, the Muscongus...
www.modelexpo-online.com www.modelexpo-online.com
Good luck!
 
Thanks for the tips, @Ignatius27 ! There is fortunately a huge amount of information available, lots here on the forums, and also (for the more 'modern' audience that 'does not read') on Youtube, for example. I read through some of the thread in the beginners section, especially the one started by @Daaveyboy . Lots of useful information in there, including the classic (?) set of three beginners models, starting with the Dory.
However, I really don't want to build a Dory right now, it's got no rigging and not a single cannon! To get into the mood, I ordered this diorama kit:

20260819_103107.jpg
 
Fine, it does not have rigging (although the cannon is held in place with blocks and ropes, so...) but it has a stonking big cannon! It has some wood in it, some painting (I like the cannot in red), and keeps me busy while deciding what to get next. I am *really* thinking about the Vanguard Sherbourne...

The glasses, pipe and glass are a bit suggestive, though...
 
MattInFrance said:
Fine, it does not have rigging (although the cannon is held in place with blocks and ropes, so...) but it has a stonking big cannon! It has some wood in it, some painting (I like the cannot in red), and keeps me busy while deciding what to get next. I am *really* thinking about the Vanguard Sherbourne...

The glasses, pipe and glass are a bit suggestive, though...
Click to expand...
Mattij - Given the popularity and challenge of this kit, I think the Vanguard Sherbourne 1763 may be an EXCELLENT first build for you. It looks like a great kit from a highly regarded kit company with many build logs here on SoS that you can tap into.

It has a reasonable 1/64 scale, so for your first build you will have a good sized build at bit more than 51 cm. This will allow you to add more deck furnishings than what comes with the kit should you wish (gunpowder kegs, sailor figurines, coiled lines, etc.). The rigging is noted by the manufacturer as "as easy as possible for the novice" and yet the displayed model will need some precision work on your part: to develop good contrast between the standing rigging and the running rigging, to rig blocks and stays correctly, and to show off the ship's precise rigging geometry.

The Sherbourne is a well-documented warship where you can do alot of primary research about her and her service in the English Channel - combatting privateers and smugglers (many sailing out of Dunkirk) - if you wish. As there are no sails in the Vanguard kit, you may wish to do some "kit-bashing" if you want to display her with a set of furled sails or, if you are adventurous, a full sailing rig.

Also, consider that the Vanguard kit is a double-planking hull plan, with limewood as the first plank level and pear wood(!) for the outer planking. Again, a nod to superior materials that come with this kit.

And, best of all, YOU get to decide the Sherbourne's "establishment of guns" or "ordinancing:" the kit gives you the choice to install either 20 cannons/guns (8 x 3-Pounders and 12 x Half-Pounder Swivel guns), or if you prefer historical accuracy, you may fit her out with only 14 cannons/guns (6 x 3-Pounder carriage guns and 8 x Half-Pounder Swivel guns). So right there, the Sherbourne is connecting with your interest in how British war ships were fitted out and armed. For thorough research on this topic, you may wish to go to the Royal Museums Greenwich and look up the Royal Navy's "Establishment of Guns" historical documents going back to the 1600's so you can accurately assess how she was armed in 1763 or at any other time in her service. Here's a link to a collection of documents relating to the British establishment of guns around 1677, which you may use as a starting point to research how her ordinance was established in the period 90 years hence.

Papers relating to the establishment of guns and mens, 1677 | Royal Museums Greenwich

www.rmg.co.uk www.rmg.co.uk

Good luck!
 
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Thanks Mike! I feel very welcome here already. I even made a start with that French 18th century cannon kit, and I must say, it's 'interesting'... I thought it was a simple beginner's kit, but the first recommended tool in the manual is an electric wood lathe! What? The kit also introduces you to the wonderful world of model ship building: missing parts, parts that don't fit and have to be modified, and questionable instructions (the Dutch instructions are both hilarious at times and obviously auto-translated). And of course the model on the box doesn't completely match the instructions, and the instructions don't totally match what's actually *in* the box. In other words, it's a great learning opportunity!
 
Welcome from Maryland, USA, to a wonderful hobby. My professor son ran a program for several years in your beautiful city for his students from Pittsburg (Kansas) State University. He loved the city, cheese and wine!
 
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