It took 50 years to build my model ship, a 1m long model replica of the Fishery Protector "Meerkatze" plying the North Sea and the Baltic Sea.
But now in 2009 it is done. It started in 1959 in Stuttgart, Germany, with a model construction made of balsa wood.
However, the soft balsa wood hull and the superstructure would not well withstand the use of the ship
in the water, with two electric motors driving it under remote control. During the period 1965-1969 the simple balsa hull
was replaced with a rugged plywood double hull, keeping the core of the ship. The superstructure was
also reconstructed with plywood, and I had a much more rigid and rugged model ship for serious use in the water.
But the fine details like railings, lights, riggings, were never finished at that time. Then the ship was
forgotten, sitting in a den in Stuttgart.
In 2001 I brought the model ship to Fredericton, Canada. And year by year a few items were added to
complete the detailing of the upper deck. The electric geared motors (Graupner) were kept despite their age of
50 years as they still work well, but a new rechargeable battery and a new R/C control was added to go
with modern technology.
And now the model ship is finally ready to go to the water again. Below are a few photos of the model ship "Meerkatze".
