by Kerry Jang
1/64 Balahoo (Caldercraft)
The model is of the schooner BALAHOO (also spelt "Balahou"). She was a Bermuda built schooner of the "Fish" class that was ordered in 1803, launched in 1804, and taken by the American privateer PERRY on November 17, 1814.
The model is the wooden kit by Caldercraft kit (1/64 scale) which was waterlined. The model is built pretty much out of the box, except that I modified the rigging so that I could mount sails. The deadeyes are pewter parts by Bluejacket Shipcrafters and the sails are paper.
In order to get the seams between planks, on the second planking I bevelled the edges. Thin spackle was then pushed in and wiped, leaving a slight depression.
I airbrushed the model using Caldercraft’s Admiralty paints thinned with water. Weathering was applied by airbrush, washes, and ground up pastels. I also made an attempt to tie off all lines using the proper knots and seizing.
The seascape is paper-mache waves built over swells made of stacked cardboard and Styrofoam packing. We modellers never throw anything away. The figures are wargame figures by Old Glory in 28mm scale. They were painted using acrylics by Vallejo as used by model figure builders. The flags (except the pennant which was made from scrap cloth) are cloth from BECC, which I ran through the washing machine to fade. The signal flags read “2214” (2, repeat, 1, 4) = “urgent dispatches on board”.
