* there is no copyright on any images in this review
Let's face it...How many of us have been disappointed with the cannons supplied in the kits? Personally, I found that manufacturers don't pay enough attention to cannon details. Often, the carriages are out of scale and made from cast metal. Barrels are poorly designed and don't represent the correct era. The rigging materials are not supplied..., there could be more reasons why they don't look good to you. In general, they still can be used but...If we want something more to scale and more authentic, we want to look for the upgrade.
Part 1
Greeting all, it's been a while since I made a kit review, and today I have a chance to present you the upscale naval cannons sets. That's right, those are not typical kits, they come in sets and can be used interchangeably which gives more usability and flexibility over traditional kits.
Because it is not a traditional kit review, it makes me scratch my head, how should I organize this review? Frankly, I still don't know...but enough intrigues, let's begin.
-Packaging-
To get started, the image below will help to identify most of the parts the British naval gun is made of. I have mentioned the Brit (English) style because the French (Continental) naval guns are different. The major difference is how both countries breech the guns. The French passed the breeching rope thru the carriage, while the Brit tied the breeching rope around barell's button.
Wow, there are so many parts, but don't worry remember them. Save this image handy and use it when required. The good news is that now, with those mini-kits we can employ most of those parts on our models, including rigging.
-The sets: Barrels
What are those sets? Each set contained parts to make a complete cannon. Set of CNC-turned brass barrels, Set of pearwood (yea, you hear it right - pearwood) carriage parts, and set of PE parts. For rigging, there will be sets of blocks and rigging ropes. There are 5 distinct and diffident sizes of barrels that dictate the size of the entire cannon. The sizes are 50.0mm (the largest), 45.00mm, 40.00mm, 35.00mm, and 30.00mm (the smallest).
Each size comes with 4 barrels in the bag. Also, accompanied by the barrels, you will find a piece of wire to make a trunnion (don't know what the heck it is, look up at the image), There is more than enough for all 4 barrels.
Let's check them in more detail starting with the largest size 50.0mm. I like the style and how they turned out.
...and 45.0mm barrels. They are a bit different pattern, but really handsome-looking barrels. BTW, the trunnion holes are drilled below the centerline (yea!!) in all barrel sizes.
...and 40.0mm, and a bit different pattern
the next one is 35.0mm barrels
the last one is the smallest - 30.0mm
All barrels are made from brass and turned on a lathe using CNC technology. The trunnion hole was drilled below the centerline and the reinforcement rings complete the barrel patterns. For the most part, I am happy with how they look, at the same time, the pattern could be improved specifically at the muzzle and breeching\button parts. If you own a metal lathe, you can modify barrels in a way you like them.
Barrels review verdict: I will give
(out of 5 stars)-The sets: Carriages
The carriage sets also come in a plastic bag with all parts required to make 4 complete carriages for all 5 different sizes (same as barrels). All parts a Pink Pearwood boards of different sicknesses free of knots and imperfections. Parts are Laser-cut and easily separated with a sharp hobby knife. Let's see those in detail (thanks to Macro).
Each set included two boards: the thicker board contained both Hind, and Fore axletrees, Fore and Hind tracks (wheels), and Quoin imitation. The thinner board is presented with brackets (sides), a transom, and a bolster. Because carriages sets are absolutely the same, just different sizes, I will show only some but will give details in macro images so you will have an idea of their quality.
With a first look, I can see some vivid differences from other manufacturers. Premade holes for Gun Tackle rings and the hole for the Breeching ringbolt. Also, tracks are represented with bolt imitations. The laser marks on axletrees are the guidelines to position brackets, and transom marks are the fairing lines. Below are some details and macro images.
The board from the back
In my opinion, the carriage sets are exactly what Dr. prescribes. The pearwood will nicely fit into most kits' interior and with a bit of oil, will give a nice warm color. All parts fit well and require some charr removal (if desired). Axletree ends requires rounding so the tracks can be fitted. The entire assembly looks great. As an improvement, I would love to have a laser line dividing carriage brackets into two parts, shouldn't be a major redo, IMHO.
Carriage review verdict: I will give
(out of 5 stars)PE parts next stay tuned ...
