Michel, you’re a true gentleman. Many thanks indeed.
Its been awhile since Ive been on this site but I was also wondering , Mr. Tilley, when you built the models mentioned earlier. They are wonderful models and what are you working on now ? You mentioned some 1/700 scale ships… do you have any photos of them and what is your opinion of them as models ?
Armchair Sailor - your interest is flattering. The Bounty is an extensively modified Revell kit; seven pieces of the original (not counting the crew figures) found their way into the model. I finished it in 1977, having worked on it for a little over two years.
The Hancock is my only scratchbuilt model. It’s built on the “plank-on-hollowed-out-solid” system, the basic hull being carved from basswood “lifts” and the planking made from strip styrene. (That method worked fine, but I’m not sure I’d use it again. It doesn’t offer any particular advantage over wood planks.) I worked on that one from 1978 through 1984 - about three years on the hull and decks, and another three on the spars and rigging. Those figures are misleading, though. I built those two when I was in grad school and getting my professional career off the ground. The Hancock went through two changes of residence, and there were periods of several months at a stretch when I didn’t touch it. Its hull (before the masts went up) also made a trip to England in a suitcase, while I was doing dissertation research.
The Phantom is a somewhat-modified Model Shipways kit. For a few years the company was selling a version of it with a cast resin hull, and I was curious to see how that system would work. I think it has great potential, though that particular example had some significant errors. I see MS is now selling the kit with a machine-carved wood hull.
I’ve built quite a few 1/700 and 1/720 warships, beginning when the first ones appeared back in the seventies. (I was working in a hobby shop at the time; I remember being downright overjoyed at the opportunity to build a Japanese ship other than the Yamato for the first time.) The ones I have now (various others didn’t survive the various moves) aren’t very numerous: the Italeri H.M.S. Hood and Graf Spee, the Tamiya Yahagi, and a Skywave American destroyer escort. I think they’re all excellent kits; the Italeri German pocket battleships, in my opinion, haven’t received anything like the attention in the modeling press that they deserve. Like so many other ship modelers, I’ve got a closet full of kits waiting for my attention; realistically, I rather doubt that I’ll ever build anywhere near all of them. I don’t think my 1/700-scale efforts are worth showing off here, but I’ve gotten quite a bit of pleasure and knowledge from building them.
I’ve got two current projects. The long-term one is a scratchbuilt model of the American extreme clipper ship Young America, based on the superb plans by Hornsby and Crothers. I won’t speculate on when - if ever - that one will be finished. The short-term project is a 1/96 Golden Hind, based on the old 1965-vintage Revell kit. I wasn’t sure after the Bounty that I ever wanted to do another plastic sailing ship, but when our good Forum friend Big Jake made this kit available I couldn’t resist. It’s one of the best ever. I’m hoping to get it done by the end of the summer or shortly thereafter - but I’m notoriously lousy at making time estimates. To my notion, one of the great things about a hobby is that it doesn’t involve time pressure and deadlines. That’s one of the reasons I’ve never had much inclination to build models professionally.
Yeah, I also went into the 1/700 scale ships back in the 70s absolutely going ga-ga over the selection available. The Japanese cruisers were my favorites , especially the Haguro. I really tried to put the detail into that ( this was before photoetch ) I still have it in a box packed away. I also have several battleships and the Kaga in the wings including the P.E. sets so I can get into them again. But right now Im putting my effort, as Ive mentioned before, into the Monogram "United States ". Im in the process of removing the gunport lids molded in the sides and Ive also removed the molded on Beakhead (?) going for the one that was used in the 1812 period. Im kinda using the 1/96 Revell Constitution as a guide in some of these areas but am also using this forum for small details that I can`t seem to find anywhere else .
Some day, in the far future, I`m going to take the hull of a Revell heavy cruiser and make a Independence class escort carrier from scratch just for kicks and grins…
There is another fantastic ship modeller Lloyd McCaffery who has written a book about Building Sailing Ships in Miniature published by Conway Maritime Press. The book features two of his models, the clipper Flying Cloud and the whaler Charles W. Morgan. His miniature woodcarvings that I have seen on the internet are absolutely exquisite. Besides the ship models he has carved miniature dinosaur skeletons in wood. Lloyd must be one one of the most accomplished artisans in his field. I am sure that probably John Tilley must know him personally having like interests.
Bugatti, you’ll be sad to hear that John passed away this year.
I would like to thank you for unearthing this 11 year old thread. It’s a real gem and a tribute to the man. I’d suggest that anyone who can take the time to do so, bump up any of the old discussions. It’s unfortunate that only the original poster can add John’s name to the title, which would be most helpful for future searches. And of course there’s the photobucket mess.
But again, reading this brought a smile to my face this morning.
Bill
Bill,
I never got a chance to see high-quality pictures of Dr Tilley’s Hancock. I did managed to get a few lower quality copies. It’s a Masterpiece . I’m still reading all the books he recommended. So far I can start the rigging at the masts but where’s it all go when it gets to the deck??? LOL.
If we add a TAG, (ie: Jtilley), when we do a reply, might that make it easier to search on?
Jim.
P.S. Many Of John’s Pics were on Drydocks or HMSVictoryscalemodel site, both of which are gone. I would hope that some members here still have good copies of his Models. I loved his Tug.
Bill and Nino
I was very saddened to learn from Bill’s post that John Tilley died earlier this year. Way back in the 80s John wrote an article for the UK Scale Models Magazine about building the Heller kit of the Soleil Royale. I corresponded with him for some advice and found him most generous with his replies. (Post in those days!) I still have all the letters that John sent me in a reference folder, and a lovely set of colour slides of his model of the Soleil Royale that he also sent me. He also sent me some prints of his Bounty model that he also wrote an article about for the UK scale Models Magazine. Shortly after I learnt that John was going to spend some time in the UK doing research towards his Phd. We met up a few times during this period. He showed me the work he was doing on the hull of the Hancock that he was carrying about in a shoebox along with some basic tools. There is a full build and history article John wrote that ran over about 3 or 4 issues in Model Shipwright. I had the great pleasure of taking him to Portsmouth to see HMS Victory one weekend whilst he was in the UK. If only I could have taken him to see the Mary Rose and HMS Warrior that have since been placed on display as well. John stayed over at my home one weekend and came with me to the IPMS National Championships when it used to be held at Stoneleigh and kindly acted as a co judge for the sailing ships category. I was pleased to hear about his career progress via the Mariners Museum and that he eventually become a Professor and worked at Columbus State University. He will be sadly missed both on a personal level as I got to know him, and as a highly knowlegeable sailing ship modeller who was always willing to share his techniques with others. Having read a number of John’s posts on internet model making forums over the years is a true testimony to this. It was John who got me interested in sailing ship models as I normally make cars. A photo of my Vasa model that I recently completed can be seen in the galleries on this site, and I like to think that I did it some justice due to a number of the techniques that John shared with me all those years ago.
Noel
Bill Thanks for placing the link for John Tilley’s obituary/tributes. Noel
And one more Link to "What did happen to John Tilley’s Hancock?..
http://s1360.photobucket.com/user/jtilley1/library/?sort=3&page=1
Nino