October 2024
This is a model of a cargo vessel which was likely used to carry stone from the quarries of North Wales to Ireland. It operated in the 1950s. Its owner chose it in part because it shares its name (Talacre) with the Welsh village with a nice beach where he went on holidays as a child."
Talacre
This is a model of a cargo vessel which was likely used to carry stone from the quarries of North Wales to Ireland. It operated in the 1950s. Its owner chose it in part because it shares its name (Talacre) with the Welsh village with a nice beach where he went on holidays as a child."
Previous Models of the Month
November 2024
Alk Khubar 3
Scale: 1/24
Construction: Fibreglass
This model was started in 1985 and it’s still not finished! The addition of handrails is next on the list of things to add. Its owner has made almost the entire thing (the radar being the only bit he hasn’t done).
The real boat has a history that takes it all over the world. Built in Japan in the 1970s as a tug, it was used as a tug in Saudi Arabia and much more recently worked as a dredger in Cardiff. There were three made in this design, and its owner chose to model the biggest one.
Alk Khubar 3
Scale: 1/24
Construction: Fibreglass
This model was started in 1985 and it’s still not finished! The addition of handrails is next on the list of things to add. Its owner has made almost the entire thing (the radar being the only bit he hasn’t done).
The real boat has a history that takes it all over the world. Built in Japan in the 1970s as a tug, it was used as a tug in Saudi Arabia and much more recently worked as a dredger in Cardiff. There were three made in this design, and its owner chose to model the biggest one.
December 2024
Robbe U47
This is a 'dynamic dive' submarine which goes under the surface by using movable fins to push it under the water (and not by changing its buoyancy)
The current owner added a rear gun and some bollards inventively made from .22 rifle round casings. Also some weathering has been done with the addition of rust streaks.
An interesting subject for modelling with some challenges not found on surface vessels.
Robbe U47
This is a 'dynamic dive' submarine which goes under the surface by using movable fins to push it under the water (and not by changing its buoyancy)
The current owner added a rear gun and some bollards inventively made from .22 rifle round casings. Also some weathering has been done with the addition of rust streaks.
An interesting subject for modelling with some challenges not found on surface vessels.
January 2025
The first model of the month this year is all the unfinished projects that people have.
This particular one in the photo is mine. It is a mould for making a model yacht that was very kindly given to me by someone I met at the pond. I got part way through finishing it before cold temperatures in the garage, a need for some technical knowledge, and other commitments meant it was put on hold.
The first model of the month this year is all the unfinished projects that people have.
This particular one in the photo is mine. It is a mould for making a model yacht that was very kindly given to me by someone I met at the pond. I got part way through finishing it before cold temperatures in the garage, a need for some technical knowledge, and other commitments meant it was put on hold.
February 2025
Tideway, a Tid tug in the colours of the Westminster dredging company.
This model is plausibly over thirty years old and has been reinforced with fibreglass after the original balsa deteriorated in that time.
These Tid tugs were built in large numbers during the second world war, this one here represents one as it was in the 1960s.
Tid tugs were built in sections, with a front, a middle, and back all being made separately then bolted together. Many years later, this same approach is used by people 3D printing hulls.
Tideway, a Tid tug in the colours of the Westminster dredging company.
This model is plausibly over thirty years old and has been reinforced with fibreglass after the original balsa deteriorated in that time.
These Tid tugs were built in large numbers during the second world war, this one here represents one as it was in the 1960s.
Tid tugs were built in sections, with a front, a middle, and back all being made separately then bolted together. Many years later, this same approach is used by people 3D printing hulls.
