Close-up of a rigged wooden model warship with gun ports, shrouds and deck fittings

Wood or plastic: pick your first kit

Open one to see where to start

Wooden KitLaser-cut sheets of basswood, strips for planking, dowels for masts and thread for rigging. You build the hull the way the real one was built: a keel, a row of frames, then planks bent around them. It is slower and messier than plastic, and the finished boat is real wood, brass and thread. Start with a small open boat. A beginner who starts on a three-masted warship almost never finishes it.

Start here

Pick a flat-bottomed rowing boat kit marked as a first or level 1 build, and start a build log on a ship modeling forum the day it arrives. Other builders will catch mistakes before the glue dries.

Model Ship World build logs

Plastic KitMolded parts on frames, glued and painted. The hull comes in one or two pieces, so there is no planking, and the work is in clean assembly and fine painting. This is the usual route for steel warships, liners and submarines, in 1/700 scale (a destroyer about 6 inches long) or 1/350 (twice that). It costs less and finishes faster.

Start here

Buy one small warship kit with a low part count and build it straight from the box this week, without adding any extra detail parts.

Open a card to see its first step. Each one adds its kit, glue and tools to the shipyard list, and you can switch them back out there.

How to choose a first kit

Skill level

Kit makers print a level on the box. Take level 1 or "beginner" literally, even if you have built other models.

One mast or none

Each mast multiplies the rigging. A dory, a skiff or a small single-masted boat teaches the hull skills without weeks of knots.

Instructions in English with photos

Older European kits often come with a few plan sheets and one page of translated text. Look for a step-by-step manual, and check that a build log for the kit exists online.

What is in the box

Some beginner wooden kits include glue, paint and basic tools. If yours does, skip those lines in the kit list below.

Scale

In wood, a larger scale such as 1/24 or 1/48 means bigger, easier parts. In plastic, 1/700 kits are small and cheap, and 1/350 kits have parts that are easier to handle.

Size when finished

Check the finished length and height. A rigged ship needs a shelf deeper and taller than most bookcases offer.

Your first wooden boat, step by step

Tick each one off as the glue dries

The planked wooden deck of a model ship seen from above the bow, with railings and deck fittings — A planked model deck, seen from the bow

What you can build in your first month

A rowing dory

A flat-bottomed wooden boat about 6 to 10 inches long, with a handful of wide planks, thwarts and a pair of oars. The standard first wooden build.

A destroyer or submarine

A small plastic warship of around 50 to 150 parts, built straight from the box and painted in two or three colors. A weekend or two of work.

A waterline ship

Many plastic kits let you leave off the lower hull, so the finished model sits flat on the shelf as if afloat.

Four skills every ship needs

Fairing

Sanding the frames until a plank laid across any three of them touches all three. Skipping it causes most of the bumps and gaps people blame on planking.

Bending planks

Wood strip bends when wet and warm and holds its shape once dry. Bend first, glue second. Forcing a dry plank into place splits it or pulls the hull out of line.

Small, patient gluing

Use a drop of wood glue the size of a pinhead, hold or clamp for a minute, and wipe the squeeze-out with a damp brush. Stains and paint will not cover dried glue.

Working in sub-assemblies

Paint and finish small parts off the model, then install them. On plastic warships this means painting the deck and the gun turrets separately before they meet.

What trips beginners up

What to expect

Expect the first hull to have gaps. A paste of wood glue and sanding dust fills most of them, and paint hides the rest.
A session often ends with three parts glued. Most of the hours go to fitting and waiting for glue or paint to dry.
Rigging is slow. A small sloop has a dozen lines, and a full-rigged ship has several hundred.

An unpainted wooden model ship with rope rigging and a red and white lifebuoy on its side — Rope rigging on an unpainted wooden model

Mistakes to skip

Starting too big

The large frigate or clipper is a third or fourth build. Work up through a dory and a single-masted boat first.

Skipping the dry fit

Once wood glue grabs, a crooked frame throws off every plank after it.

Using too much super glue

It wicks along thread and wood, leaves shiny stains, and makes rigging brittle. Diluted wood glue is safer on knots.

Painting plastic parts after assembly

Decks and small fittings are far easier to paint on the frame or as sub-assemblies.

Blades, glue and dust

Change knife blades often and cut away from the hand holding the part. A dull blade needs more force and slips.
Super glue bonds skin in seconds and its fumes sting the eyes. Keep the cap on and a window open.
Sand wood near an open window or outdoors and wipe the desk with a damp cloth afterwards.
Plastic cement is a solvent. Use it with ventilation and keep it away from flames.

Space and time

A desk corner about 2 by 3 feet with a bright lamp is enough. A wooden hull sits half built for weeks, so pick a spot where it can stay out between sessions, away from pets and direct sun, or keep it on a tray you can lift onto a shelf. Sessions of one to two hours, two or three times a week, keep a build moving. Glue and paint set the pace: plan each session to end on a step that has to dry.

A small black and white model passenger ship on a wooden dresser beside stones and shells — A small model ship kept on a dresser

A model sailing ship with striped cloth sails and a varnished hull beside an ornate gold frame

Where to learn

Find the build log for your kit

Ship modelers document their builds step by step in forum build logs, and a log for your exact kit is the best instruction manual you can find. Local ship model clubs meet monthly in many US cities, often at maritime museums, and welcome beginners who bring a half-built hull and questions.

Forums, societies and clubs

How the kit list is built

The first four lines are the bench tools both routes use. After that the list splits: turn on Wooden Kit or Plastic Kit for the model itself and the glue and tools that material needs. A plastic start costs about half as much as a wooden one. Paint, brushes and files are listed for everyone because nearly every ship gets painted and trimmed, but check your kit box first, since some beginner wooden kits are sold with their own paint and glue. There is no plank bending tool on the list: the planks on a first boat bend with warm water and clamps.

Close-up of the cloth sails and rigging on a dark-hulled model sailing ship — Cloth sails and rigging, up close

Fit out the shipyard

The knife, mat, sanding sticks, tweezers, paint, brushes and files start on the bench. The model and its glue join once you pick Wooden Kit or Plastic Kit, above or from the add-ons in the list. Compare the options, then set your tiers and check out from the list. Clicking a card selects it there.

Hobby knife set

essential · Core tools

Frees wooden parts from their sheets, trims planks and cleans up plastic parts. It is the tool you pick up most.

budget

X-ACTO #1 Precision Knife With 5#11 Blades, 1 Count

4.7(3.7K)

$9.01

Model Ship Building

Wood or plastic: pick your first kit

How to choose a first kit

Your first wooden boat, step by step

Four skills every ship needs

What trips beginners up

Blades, glue and dust

Space and time

Where to learn

How the kit list is built

Fit out the shipyard

Hobby knife set

Self-healing cutting mat

Sanding sticks and sandpaper assortment

Precision tweezers set

Acrylic model paint set

Fine detail paint brush set

Needle file set

Beginner wooden ship model kit

Wood glue

Medium super glue

Mini clamps set

Pin vise (hand drill)

Beginner plastic ship model kit

Thin liquid plastic cement

Sprue cutters