For several weeks now, I have been working on a miniature of the British barque EARL GRANVILLE, that I began on the  11th March last.    Have been working very slow on this one as I have been taking advantage of the fact that I have now reached the age 65 and feel that from now on I can do what I want, when I want.      Presently swinging from intense modelmaking activity to leisure, to bone-idleness, writing and back to modelmaking again.

Today after completing an amazing 3.4 hours work on it, the EARL GRANVILLE is now ready for the riggers.      I find it sad that most model shipbuilders display little interest in this era (iron & steel square-riggers of the late 1900s).

 

All built from bits & pieces, total expenditure is confined to three lots of glue (superglue, contact adhesive & white wood glue).

 

Shouldn’t take long to rig it, few days if I get a move on, couple of weeks if I don’t.

Bob

 

I have now completed all the fore-and-aft sails and the standing rigging on all three masts.    All that remains is to fit and rig the ten square sails.    I have already completed the display case, carrying case and sea, although the sea still needs to be painted and my wife does that.

Bob

I have done quite a lot of work on the model over the past few days and have now set and rigged 8 out of the 10 square sails.    My wife painted the sea this afternoon.   Tomorrow, I hope to set and rig the two royals, and fit the model into the sea.   I made the display case a while back, so the whole thing should be complete by tomorrow afternoon.
Bob

Complted it at about 1600BST today.

Bob

Hi Colin,

Thanks.   At the moment, I am “becalmed!”    The EEC Distance Selling Regulations have virtually wiped me out because I cannot agree to their unrealistic rules and regulations!.   No longer able to particpiate in selling on the internet via my website, I have to rely on the twice yearly maritime auctions in London.    The last one on the 29th of April was hardly an outstanding success.    Had four models there, but only one sold.     Although it went for a good price (£720).   At the  sale before that, one out of three went for a very low price.      Fortunately, I have now reached the age of 65 and am getting OAP, so really wondering if it is even worth carrying on.    Will probably still build something, I can hardly stop after 50 or more years of model building, but they would soon fill up the house if I carried on at the rate I have built in the past (sometimes 16 or 17 a year).     My main outlets were once USA and Far East, but good old Europe has put the stoppers on that!     At sea on long voyages we used to say “more days, more dollars,” now I gues it is “Less work, less tax!”    In the short term, I am turning more towards writing.   It pays well and Eurppe still haven’t got vtheir claws into it (yet).

Bob