Vic Smeed’s Legacy

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

I think most, if not all, the regulars on here are fans of Vic Smeed and consider that he is best remembered for his huge output of model boat and plane designs over nearly 60 years – a legacy to be proud of.

However Vic himself didn’t quite see things that way. When I edited the Model Boats 60th Anniversary Commemorative issue in 2010 I sent him a copy. I had a very nice reply from him in which he was very gracious but obviously slightly disappointed that there had not been more coverage of the competitive model boating scene under the auspices of the MPBA and MYA in the UK and NAVIGA internationally. He had been very much a prime mover in these areas over many decades.

Vic had a fair point, but at the time the priority of the MyHobbyStore management was to shift magazines. To the 2010 readership, the earlier days, when much of each issue was taken up with competition results and rankings, regatta reports and national and international conferences and rule making etc, were already a distant folk memory. Such activities were now only followed by a small minority of enthusiasts who no longer contributed to or bought the magazine. The plans however still seem to attract an enthusiastic following, not only for their intrinsic quality but because they offer many older modellers the opportunity to reconnect with their childhood – a bit like my current intentions with Silver Mist!

Tony Hadley’s excellent biography of Vic in the 2015 65th Anniversary Special went a long way towards putting Vic’s place in the modelling universe into better perspective and his accompanying list of all Vic’s known model boat plans is an essential asset to anyone considering building a Vic Smeed design.

It still seems to be available in digital format:

https://pocketmags.com/eu/model-boats-magazine/65-years-of-model-boats-special?srsltid=AfmBOopM4DGcyNBFGNrqOsjE6B8HGsdM9-n6ljcMmsMUTVmvnxxaQmv5

I suppose it is the way things pan out sometimes. You put immense efforts into what you think is important only to find that you are remembered for something else!

Colin

[Tony HadleyParticipant @tonyhadley]

Thank you Colin, it was a pleasure to write this for yourself for inclusion in the “Special Edition” which was superbly edited by yourself.

I started researching Vic’s designs during a period of illness and his designs are still interesting today. A few other designs have “crept out of the woodwork” since the magazine went to print, but that’s the interesting part of research such as this.

Good to read the copy of the magazine is still available today albeit in digital format.

Sadly, Dave Milbourne who updated Vic’s “Twinkler” design for the magazine is no longer with us. His contribution was enormous. He was struggling with the winter weather to get on-the-water photographs at the time and I offered to get the train to Nottingham to help. Fortunately a window of opportunity arose in the weather and a family member or relative was able to help him. R.I.P. Sir.

At the end of the penultimate paragraph, I wrote the following line – “What Vic did for model makers, I can’t see anyone repeating” and this still stands today (my thoughts).

Tony

[Chris FellowsParticipant @chrisfellows72943]

The issue is available via the archive and I had a read last night. Different times indeed for the model boat hobby. Vic’s output was certainly prolific with not only models, including boats and planes but books and articles etc. as well.

Along with boats, mainly Faireys, Dave produced a number of aircraft as well and of course his taking on of Action Electronics for a time.

Yes, their contribution still stands today and I agree is extremely unlikely to be repeated by anyone else. As we know model boat making and similar is in decline and the opportunity that was available in those days i.e. to produce lots of new designs that were eagerly snapped up by enthusiastic builders has long gone.

Yes, the odd new design comes out and 3D printing and a plethora of RTR plastic power boats and yachts but the era of scratch and kit building is history now. As I said, different times.

Chris

 

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Still plenty of kit manufacturers out there Chris. Lindsey doesn’t seem to actively seek out reviews though, just competition prizes!

Colin

[Richard SimpsonModerator @richardsimpson88330]

When I did a review for Paul a number of years ago he bought the kit and all the other bits and pieces I required.  My profit was payment for the articles. When I did a review for Lindsey I was just given the kit.  The other bits I needed, receiver, battery, motor, coupling, propeller, speed controller, servo etc. were all out of my pocket.  With the article rates as they are now it actually cost me to do the review.

Its hardly surprising she can’t find anyone to do kit reviews nowadays!  I certainly wouldn’t volunteer again.  She simply doesn’t have the funds available to make it attractive to anyone to do a review.  The only reviews I do now are for things that vendors give me, although the Chiltern Models engine I did recently I bought at cost as Chiltern do not operate as a profit making business.  Again I didn’t make anything on that either!

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hold on Guys !!

I may never equal Vic’s number or quality of his designs ! but I’m working on it  🙂

I very much liked the broad spectrum of his work back in the day, his beginners boats actually looked like real boats, not 3 planks with a point at the front   Ooooo I could get some stick for that comment ??

One has to remember Vic being editor of the magazine as his day job he was having too fill the magazine with his own designs while being paid a salary, I have had 12 RC aeroplane designs published in RCM&E does that count ?? . This was also the case with David Boddington another hero designer of mine, the list goes on ……

Regards Ray

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Hi Ray,

Many of us are unsung heroes in supporting the hobby in various ways. As you say, the situation in Vic’s day was very different to what it is now. The business model was very different. When John Cundell wanted a photo of my ss Granada model for his book he provided a photographer! The market then could support the cost.

One big problem is that producing a new design is never going to be rewarded in terms of the effort that went into it. Most contributors these days are paying to keep the magazines afloat!

Articles are written for pin money.

Colin

[Chris FellowsParticipant @chrisfellows72943]

There are plenty of kit manufacturers out there Colin but the point I was trying to make is that because the hobby was relatively young in those days it was relatively easy to come up with and produce new designs either based on existing full size craft or freelance designs.

Once all the wooden hulled designs based on full sized craft had been exhausted and attention turned to fibre-glass etc. then it became more difficult to build models of them and has been said many times they are less attractive to many modelers.

There is very little that is new amongst the kits and many are just rehashes of old ones. Pretty much everything has been done now. So what I’m saying is that even if there was someone like Vic around today then the conditions are just not there to repeat what he achieved.

 

[Tony HadleyParticipant @tonyhadley]

Going off topic from Vic Smeed, one of the other Special Editions which Colin edited is also still available in digital format. The 2013 ‘World of Model Boating’ is currently at half price.

https://pocketmags.com/model-boats-magazine/world-of-model-boating#

Tony

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi Chris,

Fortunately your wrong this time there are plenty of wooden designs that havn’t been modelled yet 🙂

Research is the interesting part I find , watch this space !!

Widen your horizons it’s more fun 🙂

Regards Ray

[Richard SimpsonModerator @richardsimpson88330]

Did you ever look at those plans I sent you Ray for the German ship?

[Ray Wood 3Participant @raywood3]

Hi Richard,

Yes I look at them frequently , they scare me to death 🙂 to do the ship justice it’s a year’s build minimum !!

Maybe a smaller version would work, I will see

Regards Ray

[Richard SimpsonModerator @richardsimpson88330]

I’m glad I didn’t take it on then!  A year to you would be around ten for me!

[John W EParticipant @johnwe]

hi there

I think all of us scratch builders who like building from plans have one or two of Vic Smeed’s plans in their stash.  I know one of the plans which I have is the German E boat, which he has done a drawing for.   There is also HMS Cossack and one plan which is very popular is the pilot boat Path Finder.   The only thing that put me off the plan for the Path Finder was that I was unsure as to whether Vic had drawn the stern correctly or, had he simplified it?   I had never seen or come across a stern of this shape in photographs or in life  so therefore I thought he had simplified it – until when doing a web search I came across a couple of photographs and a drawing which changes things in my mind and the plan is now in the ‘higher’ stages of my pile, shall we say.

I still have a lot of Vic Smeed’s books and bits and pieces.   Some of the things that he says in print are still relevant today.

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Vic produced model maker’s plans. Very often the plan was all you needed to build the model. We no longer have many draughtsmen (draughtspeople?) producing accurate model  scale drawings for large vessels as was the case in the past. Few people have the skills now as everything is CAD

The other problem is that back in the day, shipping companies and builders were often happy to provide information to modellers in the form of general arrangement drawings.This has no longer been the case for years now as builders and owners treat this information as commercially confidential.

Information on ships of earlier eras is still available in museum collections such as the National Maritime Museum but reproduction can be expensive and research difficult. The images of Miltiades below are typical of those I took at the NMM during my visit with Ashley in 2019. A lot of work and interpretation is needed to make them useful for model construction. I was photographing unrolled plans which were just under 10 feet long. All good fun though.

Colin

 

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