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Post by fredhocker on Mar 23, 2016 9:17:29 GMT
Hello all! I am pleased to be able to let you know that there is a new wooden kit of Vasa now available in some European markets. It is a plank-on-bulkhead kit in scale 1:65 (finished length 109 cm). It is a partworks format, where you subscribe and receive a few pieces each week or month (depending on the market) over a three-year period. The kit was developed by an Italian company, deAgostini, who specialize in this sort of partworks approach, with the kit design and production carried out by Artesania Latina of Malaga, Spain (actual production of parts in China). The kit is being released in Scandinavia by Editions Atlas in a subscription format; it is available in Italy at newstands or by subscription. For more information, see www.editionsatlas.se/collection/VBU/Majestatiska-vasa.html. You will see there that the model was developed in cooperation with our museum. In reality this means that we provided the most current digital documentation of the ship and assisted in the kit design, as well as providing text and illustrations for the written material that accompanies the kit. I will be building it as it is released, and will try to post here about it. Fred
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Post by vladfs on Mar 23, 2016 11:05:39 GMT
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Post by alexander on Mar 23, 2016 13:56:22 GMT
These are interesting news.
So the community of our Forum will grow tremendous.
I am looking forward to your model, Fred!
Cheers, Alexander
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Post by sparks on Mar 25, 2016 22:31:26 GMT
Very pleased to hear that the new model has been released. I am really hoping that the partwork will eventually be available in England. Partworks may seem to be an expensive way to buy a model, but the very detailed building instructions provided make them ideal, particularly for the less experienced builder. I have had an interest in Vasa dating back to the time she was raised. I hope to visit her, for the first time, this July. Sparks.
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Duff
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Post by Duff on Mar 27, 2016 9:32:07 GMT
Dear Fred, I am both impressed and dismayed: impressed that you will be building a model and dismayed that you will be building a model. Your immense knowledge and technical abilities are a tremendous asset best used to complete the 4 volume tome already started, plus further investigation and documentation of the actual Vasa. One can argue that building an accurate model accomplishes the second goal but completing the tome can only be done by you. I hope you are not spreading yourself too thinly.
My very best regards, Duff
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Post by amateur on Mar 27, 2016 17:44:36 GMT
Hello Fred,
I have the impression that in allmerchandising, the 1:10 nodel fromyour museum is used. Have you seen any pictures of the agostini-model itself?
Jan
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Post by fredhocker on Mar 29, 2016 7:07:06 GMT
Duff, I don't build models during my work hours, and publishing Vasa is my job, so there should be no impact on the Vasa research program. It is strictly a hobby pursuit (my wife may object to how much it slows down the garage rebuild...). Jan, the way that the partworks people work, they start marketing the first parts before the kit is finished, so there is no finished example or test shot to photograph, which is why they are using out 1:10 model in the advertising. I have been involved in the design of the kit, including providing CAD drawings of the ship and detail parts, so I think the result will be pretty good. Sparks, when will you visit in July? I am travelling to the US in the second half of teh month, but may be around before that.
Fred
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Post by sparks on Mar 29, 2016 18:06:57 GMT
Hello Fred, We will be flying to Stockholm on 4th July and staying for four nights. This will be our first time in Stockholm, and the main reason is to visit the Vasa Museum. As I mentioned, I have always had an interest in Vasa, and this was further stimulated by both the announcement of the new model, and a recent purchase of the "Vasa 1628" dvd. Sparks.
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Post by fredhocker on Mar 30, 2016 7:09:04 GMT
I am on vacation that week (I am an American after all) but would be glad to arrange for someone to show you around.
Fred
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Post by sparks on Mar 30, 2016 18:49:15 GMT
Hello Fred,
Thanks for letting me know, and will bear your offer in mind. Re the new model, I was wondering how much influence the Museum has had on the accuracy of the design. I appreciate that some compromises will have been necessary because of manufacturing limitations, as well as aiming for the right market. Artesania Latina did a great job with the Sovereign of the Seas partwork and, as Vasa will be at a larger scale, I imagine that she will be even better. I am keeping my fingers crossed for a UK release. (My Wife does not share this wish!) Sparks
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Post by fredhocker on Mar 31, 2016 7:04:10 GMT
Hej Sparks, I provided the most up-to-date digital drawings of the hull that we have, and spent a couple of months making specific digital drawings of items that would need to be cast (cannon, anchors, etc.) so that these would be accurate. I also spent several days in Malaga wth the AL team working out the details of kit design. As you note, there are always some compromises. In the case of Vasa, one of the big kit engineering challenges was the sculptures. There are more than 700 individual sculpted elements on the ship, but the tooling cost for a metal casting is about 1000 euros for each "hole" in the mould. What is peculiar is that the cost does not change very much with the size of the casting. We could thus reduce tooling costs (and resultant kit cost) by combining adjacent sculptures into single castings. We also had to decide where to use duplicates. There are a zillion little Roman warriors all over the stern, each one an individual carving, but at 1:65 the differences would not really be visible, so it was possible to use a single mould for large numbers of them. The goal was to get the number of moulds down below 100, ideally closer to 80, and we managed this by some clever engineering and careful evaluation of every sculpture on the ship. It was a fun day of discussion! One area where it was necessary to be a little more drastic was in the rigging. We looked at the cost of making accurate blocks and deadeyes, and it would have driven the kit price into the stratosphere, so most of the rigging hardware will be the standard stuff you get in kits. A few of the larger blocks, such as the big halliard blocks on the fore and main, are worth engineering, and so they will be metal castings that copy the originals closely. It was also necessary to simplify the number of different sizes of rope to allow AL to use commercially available thread in standard sizes. For those who want to go the extra mile, the Vasa II volume will include enough drawings and rigging tables to allow you to rig your kit as accurately as you want. Fred
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Duff
New Member
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Post by Duff on Mar 31, 2016 7:36:04 GMT
Thanks for the update Fred.
And enjoy your vacation. If you are in Connecticut, I would be glad to take you to Mystic Seaport or to a good restaurant. Duff
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Post by peowa on Apr 17, 2016 11:50:12 GMT
Hello, About the Company Edition Atlas... I have already ordered this new wooden kit of the Vasa. And I am now eagerly waiting for the first delivery. But after having googled on this Company I have started being worried. Many persons tell about the many problems they had with Edition Atlas (at least here in Sweden). Everything from deliveries to payment problems. Does anyone know more about them?
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Post by passer on May 4, 2016 9:22:56 GMT
Hello all, I am new on this forum. I aim to build Vasa and I have the Billing model at home. But I found this new Vasa and it looks very interesting since the museum has been involved. So I started my subscription yesterday. But now I start to have little worries since this kit will be very expensive. My concern is the look and shape of the cannon that will come in part one. It looks rather fat and short. Is this the right shape or is it just a very bad representation that is found on other kits? If it is a bad shape, how is then the rest of the kit? Does anyone here have any inputs since there are no pictures or reviews to look at. Best regards Jörgen
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Post by amateur on May 5, 2016 18:43:20 GMT
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