Three issues into the relaunch, Ships in Scale is starting to feel less like a magazine and more like a crew. The May/June 2026 issue didn’t come together because we went looking for content – it came together because modelers reached out, wanting to share their work, their hard-won knowledge, and their corner of the hobby. Here is a guided tour of what is inside.
The cover story: warships at the limit of the hands
Linus Spjutsberg opens a new series, “At the Limit of the Hands,” on building Age of Sail warships in 1/700 scale. This is modeling at the edge of what human hands can manage: resin hulls the length of a large thumb, brass rigging wire roughly twice the thickness of a human hair, and research drawn straight from the Admiralty draughts at the National Maritime Museum. Part One covers scale, materials, and preparation – and it will have you rethinking what is possible at miniature scales.
Builds for every bench
Four build articles span the experience range. George Athanasiou begins a beginner-friendly build of HMS Beagle – the ship that carried Charles Darwin around the world – walking newer modelers through keel assembly, planking, fairing, and copper plating with unusual clarity. Thomas Koehl continues his 1/35 scale scratch build of a WWII Harbor Defense Motor Launch, taking the deckhouse and bridge from bare deck to fully detailed. Scott Himowitz wrestles with paint matching, a photoetched degaussing line, and the first frustrating RC water trials on his 1/200 scale HMS Hood. And Ron Neilson returns with Part 3 of his 3D printing series, asking the practical question every modeler eventually faces: make or buy?
History and research
Two articles reward the modeler who likes to dig. Ian McLaughlan, Chairman of the Society of Model Shipwrights, continues “Don’t Forget Us, We Also Served” with a close look at the sail plans, sweeps, and gun arrangements of the minor warships – the sloops and advice boats that history overlooked, and that offer the builder a wide-open field for original work. Scott Bradner tackles an unusual subject: the livestock pens and chicken coops that fed crew and passengers aboard clipper ships, researched from period letters and surviving museum models.
Reviews, departments, and one free read
Robert Hunt – who has built six HMS Victory kits over 35 years – delivers a frank, multi-part review of the $1,600 Artesania Latina Anatomy HMS Victory: what works, what doesn’t, and what to watch for. In Scuttlebutt, we sit down with fourteen-year-old modeler Caelan McCormick. Greg Baumgartner walks through his coppering method in Shipwright’s Apprentice, Soundings rounds up new kits, and Around the Horn covers the 43rd Annual Northeast Ship Model Conference. The issue also includes the Reader’s Showcase and our 2026 Kit Manufacturer Survey.
And from the On the Water department, we have published TR Mayer’s tour of his scratch-built Coast Guard 40 boat in full, free, right here on the site – a complete article from the issue, so you can see exactly the kind of work that fills every page.
Subscribe to Ships in Scale
Ships in Scale publishes six times a year, written by modelers for modelers. A print + digital subscription is $44.95/year in the US ($54.95 Canada, $64.95 international); a single copy is $15. Subscribe at https://simplecirc.com/subscribe/ships-in-scale – and keep building.
