Laminate, sanding, laminate, sanding... And the crew is getting older..
I had to diversify the endless grinding and laminating with the helmsman and the waiting crew. (Unfortunately, neither of them has any idea that they will have many more months in port ahead of them.)
Good Morning Gang:
Thought you'd like this as it made me think of my (still to be be fully completed) freighter "Pacific Trader."
I found this large and very nice piece on the floor in a nice little antique store yesterday. We don't often see freighters depicted in such a fashion; it's an original too. It depicts the MS Finnforest.
So did a bit of research and found out that she was completed: in 1963 by the Emden, Rheinstahl Nordseewerke G.m.b.H. Shipyard
Weights and dimensions: 9 674 / 7 610 DWT, 6 500 BHP, 139.72 x 18.74 x 8.34 / 7.29 m.
Her tabular records are listed as...
1963.6.28: FINNFOREST, homeport Kotka. Enso-Gutzeit Oy, Kotka (Finnlines). Finland - USEC service. 1968.8.23: lengthening completed by Rheinstahl Nordseewerke: 11 510 / 8 190 DWT, 152.32 x 18.74 x 8.58 / 7.11. 1973: Chartered to Atlantic Gulf Service Ab Göteborg. 1976.12 Charted completed.
1978.9.6: BRADEVERETT, Everett-Orient Line Inc (Everett Steamship Corp S.A. Tokyo), Monrovia.
1988.5.24: demolished Kaohsiung, China
I built my Emma C. Berry over 50 years ago. It was only in the water (pool in a mall) once, just after I finished building it. Yes, Roy, sides of the hull were planked with odd shaped 1/8 inch Balsa plate pieces rather than straight planking. I believe the bulkheads were also 1/8 Balsa as well. I fiberglassed my haul with anticipation of actually sailing it in the pond. The Berry is promently displayed in my game room, I just took the photo a few minutes ago.
A friend also sailed his Emma frequently at the same park we still use, but 50 years ago. I remember seeing the real Emma at Mystic Seaport about 70 years ago. That's why I bought the Sterling kit. I probably still have the plans.
Curious, do you have a weighted keel on the bottom?
I bought this model of the Emma C. Berry from the estate of a deceased member of our club (San Diego Argonauts, San Diego, California). It was built around 50 years ago, as I understand it. It needed a lot of work in order to prepare it for sailing in the club pond, including adding a false keel for balance.
The length of the hull is 32 inches O.A, with an additional 10.5 inch bowsprit. I can't find any kits for sale on the internet with those dimensions, so I don't know anything about how it was built.
The Wiesel is Back: Sea Trial at Lake Seminole Park (Florida, USA)
Had a nice run with the Schnellboot Wiesel at the June 21,2026 meet of the Suncoast Scale Model Boat Club. First time back in the water after 15+ years in my display case. I was hoping for a little more speed but the boat ran well and looked good cutting the water. But then, don't all of the Schnellboot look good? Only issue was me letting it drift into some weeds while setting up my camera on the tripod. Most of the video was recorded at about 30 meters away but the decent zoom on the camera brought the boat in close. I hope you enjoy the video.
At the last SSMBC (Seminole, Florida, U.S.A.) Jim brought his RC scale model of the "Blue Devil" (WWII Fletcher Class destroyer) to the SSMBC meet. Having taken a video of it I decided to have some fun and edit it and add some sound effects to represent it looking for a German U-Boat. About 2-1/2 minutes long). Sound layers added: Water, engine, sonar, alarm, and voice. Lew
The sound track makes all the difference, it adds a sense of realism and character. The back end looks rather low in the water, and you don't want the crew to get wet feet when firing the depth charges.
We had pretty good weather for this meet of the Suncoast Scale Model Boat Club. The temperature was 84F instead of the usual 90-92F for this time of the year. No rain, clear skies and a light breeze. The photos show the variety of boats (leaning a little heavy on the tugs) present at the meet. Lew SSMBC Event Coordinator
