A fan of the Waverley has created an incredible scale model of the famous paddle steamer that can actually sail on water. Kevin Dawes, from Carlisle, was inspired by his father, who had previously built a similar model of another well-known Glasgow-built ship.
The 63-year-old explained that the epic replica of the last seagoing paddle steamer in the world took around four years to build, and even features lifelike details like the lifeboats, benches and funnels of the original ship.
Kevin explained: "The inspiration for the build came from another Glasgow-built ship, the HMS Hood. One of many boats built by my father. The Hood model, built before I was born, was sold after a few years to finance another build.
"When I finally got the Hood model back it was in poor condition, but after restoring it, I fancied a crack at seeing if I could create something similar, having never built a boat before, only a few R/C aircraft."
The Consultant Technician, who works at a local Citroen Garage, explained that at the time he had thought of making the German cruiser Scharnhorst, another of his dad's missing models.
However, he decided on the Waverley after one of his drinking pals stated that he had a souvenir plan of the Scottish steamship from 1975.
Kevin added: "The plan was a general layout and not really accurate for the real thing, but the shape was good. That was late 2014.
"I scaled up the plan to double size, 5ft 5in or 1/43 scale, and altered the Hull depth to match the HMS Hood model. I then made a wooden shape similar to making aircraft and then clad it in steel."
The model maker then joked that after he got a chance to take measurements on the real boat, he became "slightly obsessed" with making his model as accurate as possible.
"I quickly realised the devil was in the detail," he added. "And became slightly obsessed with mast and funnel diameters, chairs and tables and such."
After four years of hard work and alterations to the original plan, a proud Kevin was finally able to sail it for the first time at Talkin Tarn, a lake near the market town of Brampton in Cumbria.
He said: "Now, whenever I sail it or the HMS Hood they always attract attention. However, after I posted photos of the model on the Waverley Supporters Facebook page, the reaction and lovely remarks has been astounding and something I really did not expect.
"Anyone that sails it is always amazed at how enjoyable it is. After all it does seem a bit boring controlling such a relatively slow model."
Incredibly, Kevin stated that, apart from the radio gear, the most expensive part was the solder for the Hull at about £60. Overall, he paid around £200 to create the complete model which, in the water, weighs about 30lbs.
If you are interested in learning more about this stunning build, Kevin has created a Facebook page called ' ps Waverley model and others ', where he posts the build pictures and also where others can post their models or just have a look.
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