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Airfix Golden Hind 1/72 with added rigging and details

johnlattanzio

johnlattanzio

Joined
Sep 12, 2025
Messages
92
Points
58

Location
Melbourne, Australia
So it begins.
I completed my first ship with added rigging details - HMB Endeavour. I learned an enormous amount, and could spend hours listing all the errors in the kit. Nevertheless, it looks OK if you are not an expert! 20251205_094700.jpg20251205_094719.jpg

Now I will start the Golden Hind - with HiS model decks, blocks, sails, etc. Wish me luck!
I will no doubt come here often seeking advice and help. And my initial task is to comb these forums reading advice from others who have already built this kit.
Cheers everyone!
 
Many thanks. For a first attempt, it is OK. I learned many things...
1) plastic deadeyes are really really ugly :-)
2) getting tidy seizings needs practice!
3) too much CA glue and rope may not lie at the right angle (matching the tension in the rope)...and hence it can look very very silly
4) keep the lengths of the strops EQUAL for lifts on either side...or it looks ugly!
5) check belaying points before installing masts. This is worse in this model as it was not intended that there would be ropes on deck. I ended up with lots of ropes tied to a rail and a ball of glue holing it all together :-)
6) the mizzen sail should have been tied to the mast before it was installed, which meant there was no space for doing that...
7) the ensign is, I think, too big and when blowing forward it seems to get in the way of the spanker/driver

There is more...! but this kit was intended to teach me and it did that. And it looks OK if you are not an expert :-)

So I am happy with it, all things considered.

Thanks for your kind words
John L
 
Yes. And seeking advice!
I am currently trying to decide on what colours to use. There is a lot of painting to be done first. I find that many examples are bright and gaudy and look ugly, to me at least. I am thinking of more subdued colours like these:
painting1.jpg

painting5.jpg

painting6.jpg

Then there is the question of how to paint the wooden areas. I have the actual wooden deck from HisModel and that looks great. But what about the other parts? I used oil paints for the wooden effects on the Endeavour and I think it looked OK:
Pic-0504.jpg

But Harry Houdini suggests lifecolor liquid pigments. Here is an example of his work on the Revell model of The Bounty.
Pic-0506.jpg

So I have ordered some of these paints to experiment with. Oils do a good job but they take forever to dry and the model is delicate to the touch until they are dried...

And I am also reading a lot about the GH before I start!

Any advice appreciated.

JL

P.S. I also have the His Model sails which look brilliant
Pic-0508.jpg
 
Hmm....will check out Harry's model, that finish looks good. Yep, HiSModel parts are great. I have some for the Victory and Endeavor. No wood decks yet from them though, was going to try my hand at making them first. Do you have some period ship reference books? and also check out Dan Fischers HMS Victory build thread. Although a different ship, he explains techniques that apply to all.
 
Thanks. I also have a Heller Victory, and basically I am working my toward that! It is scary though.... over 1000 blocks!

I have quite a few modelling and reference books now. Thanks for the ref to Fischer's Victory build. I will check it out.
JL
 
Also - Radimir (at HisModel) was fantastic with advice and patience and teaching me how to rig my Endeavour. He has knowledge, passion and kindness- a great combination :)

And Anthony Longhurst, Master of the Endeavour replica, was very kind in answering many of my questions and pointing me toward references for ship models in general, as well as the Endeavour in particular.

And my friend Chris, ex-Royal Navy and HMS Victory guide, who runs my local hobby shop, answered far more questions than was reasonable! Always patiently, and with a smile.

These people encouraged and helped me do the best I could - as I say, it is *far* from perfect but it was my first ship really. I owe them a huge debt. But perhaps their most damaging act of kindness is igniting my passion to do another ship, in more detail, and do it better. I fear an addiction in the making!
 
Nice start. Dan's thread is "To Victory and Beyond" on this site, he goes by Dafi, and also makes and sells 3DP and photo etch parts for the Heller Victory kit.
Will dig up some more info for you on modelling these great ships.
 
Here are a few to be going on with.....
Modelling Tudor Ships, RK Battson.
Look for on amazon, abe books, ebay, etc. Long out of print.

Rigging Period Ship Models, Lannarth Petersson. ISBN 978-1-84832-102-1

WWW.bestshipmodels.com galleones model ship plans section

and on this site.... Section on Plans, plan sets, monographies, look for author eugen.t december 7th 2020, Golden Hind
 
europapete said:
Here are a few to be going on with.....
Modelling Tudor Ships, RK Battson.
Look for on amazon, abe books, ebay, etc. Long out of print.

Rigging Period Ship Models, Lannarth Petersson. ISBN 978-1-84832-102-1

WWW.bestshipmodels.com galleones model ship plans section

and on this site.... Section on Plans, plan sets, monographies, look for author eugen.t december 7th 2020, Golden Hind
Click to expand...
I was able to get a cheap copy of Batson's book. Even claims to be new! I have Petersson's book, which is very helpful. And thanks for pointing me to bestshipmodels.com! I did not know about them. Grazie!
 
johnlattanzio said:
who runs my local hobby shop, answered far more questions than was reasonable! Always patiently, and with a smile
Click to expand...
Local hobby shop…. You have an actual local hobby shop!?

I remember them only from the last century. Ah, to have one of those somewhere less than a days drive away..

I’m talking UK here,by the way.

J
 
Yeowch! Where abouts are you Jim? When I lived in York many moons ago, it was Monk Bar Model Shop, which I believe is still there, and the model shop down Fossgate, which has now passed.
 
Jim Fortnam said:
Local hobby shop…. You have an actual local hobby shop!?

I remember them only from the last century. Ah, to have one of those somewhere less than a days drive away..

I’m talking UK here,by the way.

J
Click to expand...
Yes I am lucky...and the shop is great. It is Models and Hobbies 4U - link here. On Saturday Chris clears out a large table and lots of locals, adults and kids, come in and work on their models together. It is a great community. Someone takes coffee orders, someone else cooks cakes or buys some. Great time. Every Saturday...

Here is a little info about Chris :-)
"After leaving the Royal Navy, Chris landed in Australia & bought Forest Hill Toyworld, from there he went to Hearns Hobbies for 15 years before taking over Models & Hobbies 4U (the night the GST came in!). Chris is an Ex-Crewman off of HMS Victory & help build & still crews on the Tall Ship Enterprize hence his specialty is Wooden Ship Models. Being from Biggin Hill in the UK & having served in the Fleet Air Arm, his other area of expertise is Plastic Model Aircraft."

He is very generous with time and advice and in fact he got me hooked many years ago! I had been reading about WWII history and I was wondering if/why Tiger Tanks really were as effective as they were portrayed in a game I had been playing. I thought "I will build a model! A good way to learn how they work..." So I looked for a hobby shop in the Yellow Pages (remember those?) and phoned:
Me: Do you have a model of a Tiger Tank?
Chris: Tiger I or II, with Porsche or Henkel turret?
I was out of my depth but he had one, complete with interior. So I built that. My first model since I was a kid! That was about 1995... He asked me to bring it back when done as he had not seen one completed. He was kind and said it was good. I said "But the picture on the box is much better." He said "It has been weathered." I asked what that meant, and hence the whole addiction began!

I have gotten pretty good at weathering over the years, I think. Here is a Kettenkrad, and inside (hidden in the picture) is a detailed engine so I added some pics of that too :-)

Pic-0522.jpg
Pic-0519.jpgPic-0520.jpgPic-0521.jpg


I have always been interested in ships and asked him about a wooden model. He said "Be warned! You assemble plastic kits, but you build wooden ships."

So I have started the journey toward a good ship model, plastic or wood, by starting the Endeavour. Next is the GH, once I decide on the paint scheme!
 
well, you very obviously come with ready made skills! This will be a doddle for you. When you are comfortable with doing the rigging, I will introduce you to the fascinating world of World War One aviation modeling!
 
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