IPMS Fine Waterline Special Interest Group

Welcome to finewaterline.com, the website of the Fine Waterline Special Interest Group of IPMS, the International Plastic Modellers Society.  As the name suggests, we are a group of modellers based in the UK whose main interest is ships depicted in their natural element, at sea. Our aim is to bring together people with an interest in building waterline ships between 1:700 and 1:350 scale, and to aim for ever higher standards in our modelling. 


A gallery will show the work of the group with plenty of tips and tricks to show how we got there.  To help point you in the right direction there is a links page to our other favourite modelling websites and other IPMS groups, there are also those important shops and companies producing resin ship models and all those hard to find bits and pieces.  

If you would like to join our group, submit articles and photos for possible inclusion in the site or just generally would like to ask a question, email us on - mail@finewaterline.com and we will get back to you with how to send photos and how to format them.

You don't have to be an IPMS member to join our group, all are welcome.  Send your name and IPMS number (if you have one) and country of residence so we can register you. 

SIG leader Mike McCabe

Kits Update 31st January 10
Cold War Range
At present all of the Cold War range of kits, the Type 41, 61 and 81 are out of production, however it is planned to release these within the next few weeks, most likely towards the end of February. 

A new kit will also shortly be released, this is an Oberon class submarine, initial casts of this have been made and it will be available within the next couple of weeks.  Price for this kit will be £6 including postage in the UK, £7 outside the UK but please contact us for multiple orders of this and any combination of kits.  For more information on this please email.

Dunkirk Line
Work on these continues, we are planning a March release for this at present.

The set will be based around the ships which were present at Dunkirk and will include Royal Navy and French Navy subjects and of course many of the whole range of vessels which were present at one of the most famous events of World War 2.  As far as possible the kits will represent actual vessels, but in some cases a more 'generic' starting point will be provided, where a number of similar ships were present, so the actual ship modelled is up to the modeller to decide.  Of course the kits will not only be applicable to the Dunkirk operation but will also be very useful for harbour scenes, convoy dioramas and any number of occasions when smaller merchant and private vessels are needed.

Of those already outlined to be included in the first set are the coaster Yewdale and a small dutch coaster, Sun class tug, paddle steamer Gracie Fields and spritsail barges and progress is being made on including a hospital ship, a second paddle steamer, a French subchaser, Fairmile A Motor Launch and some of the 'Little Ships' all for inclusion in the same pack, with probably more additions to come.

A word on our range of kits are 'craftsman' kits in resin and 1:700 scale, these provide the basic hull and superstructures and only some of the small parts, they are aimed at modellers who I are willing to locate the parts required for completion and have some references available.  We are not professional kit makers and we use only basic casting methods, so please expect to have to do a little work yourself, we feel the price charged for the kits is an appropriate one for the product.  Our approach to this is that it is much easier to have the basics of a model and have to do a little clean up than to have to scratchbuild the whole model, so what we provide is a good start point.

For more information about these kits click on the link in the What's New section below, or email us on mail@finewaterline.com

Diary dates
The show season is almost upon us so it is time to start planning and putting a few dates in the diary.  If you can come along and see us or even better help us man the stand then please get in touch.

South Cheshire Militaire 28th February, Crewe Oakley Centre, for more information south cheshire militaire

Southern Expo 20th & 21st March, Hornchurch Sports Centre, Hornchurch, Essex Southern Expo


Shropshire Modellers Show 11th April, RAF Cosford, shropshire model show

Staffordshire Model Show A new event, 4th July, Stoke on Trent, details here
What's New
  Rio de Janeiro Maru by Jim Smith
(06/02/10) 
  Basic ship model photography
by Mike McCabe
(31/01/10 
  Oktyabrskaya Revolutsia by Jim Baumann
(31/01/10) 
  SMS Freidrich der Grosse by Hanchang Kuo
(07/01/10) 
  Akula by Rui Matos
(06/02/10) 
  Further ship model photography by Jim Baumann
(31/01/10) 
  Yi Yang, by Hanchang Kuo
(24/01/10) 
Orp Orzel by Thomas Drysdale
(24/01/10)