Tag Archives: Sails

Building Woody Joe’s 1/72-scale Kitamaebune Kit – Part 13

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When I look at how long this project has sat, while I’m off working on other things, it just seems crazy. Fortunately, I’ve found an impetus for finishing up. Before COVID, I used to have displays of Japanese traditional watercraft at a display window in Sand Francisco’s Japan Center Mall. Well, I finally reached out to the bank which has that display window, and I’ve got the display area reserved for late October. So, it’s time to wrap this up, one way or another.

The model itself looks the same as it ever did, but I’m now back to working on the sail. I’ve gone around in circles on this feature and I’ve written enough about ideas and steps I’ve tried taking, considered taking, and so on. So, now, I’m just going to show where I’m at with it.

The model, as we last left it.

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Building Woody Joe’s 1/72-scale Kitamaebune Kit – Part 12

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I took something of a break from the Kitamaebune project again while I tried developing techniques for making the Japanese-style sails. It’s held me up for quite a while, and I’ve actually started the process of sailmaking at least five times, never satisfied with the results. It’s partly a matter of coming up with a good idea, but it’s also a matter of my skill, or lack of skill, in making the idea work.

At the same time, I finished up a card model of a European medieval period ship called a cog. Like the Woody Joe Kitamaebune kit (and Higaki Kaisen too), it’s a 1/72-scale model that features, almost exclusively, laser cut parts. Cogs, like Japanese boats, also featured edge-fastened hull planking, and a single large mast with a square sail. If you’re interested, you can read about it on my shipmodeler blog.

Bremen Cog and Kitamaebune niswk comparison.

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