I have recently decided that I had obtained sufficient kits of sailing vessels of various types both plastic and wooden construction but Saturday evening while browsing through ebay plastic model listings came across this kit of the Bonhomme Richard. Prior to now I didn't even know the kit existed. I did a little checking through google images and decided the kit might make an interesting build so I made an offer of $30 and it was accepted + $9.95 shipping. from the images I found I doubt that I will be using the plastic shrouds and ratlines but the rest of the kit appears to be acceptable. I wasn't able to find any wooden kits to compare it with but have found a few build logs of some scratch built projects that are in early stages of construction. A little research has revealed that no one really knows exactly what the Bonhomme Richard looked like other than the fact that it was originally an armed French East India merchant ship that was given to John Paul Jones by the King of France to facilitate his raids on English shipping. Before setting out on his raids JPJ fitted and upgraded the cannon armament of the ship. The model seems to be a reasonable representation of a ship of the type and period. Reading about John Paul Jones when I was a teenager probably initiated my interest in sailing warships and the Navy in general. I look forward to receiving this model and discovering what it is that I have bought. I really need to quit browsing in ebay.
