Combrig Models
1/350 HMS Ardent


 
 
Reviewed April 2019
by Martin J Quinn
HISTORY
The three Ardent-class torpedo boat destroyers were ordered by the British Admiralty on 12 October 1893 and served with the Royal Navy. Built by Thornycroft, they displaced 301 tons fully laden, and were 201 feet 8 inches (61.47 m) long overall.

The Ardent-class were derived from the preceding Daring class, but were larger and had more powerful engines. They were armed with one 12-pounder quick-firing gun forward and three 6-pounder guns, mounted on the broadside and aft, and three 18-inch torpedo tubes , one fixed in a bow mount and two on a revolving mount abaft the two funnels.   The fixed bow tube was subsequently found to throw up too much spray and was removed very early in their careers, at which time two extra 6-pounder guns were installed en echelon amidships. They carried a complement of 2 officers and 50 ratings; one more was later added.

Ardent was laid down in December 1893 at the Thornycroft shipyard and launched on 16 October 1894.   Commissioned into the Royal Navy on 30 April 1895 at Portsmouth, she departed Portsmouth on 15 May 1895, for Malta. Once there, she became tender to the fleet flagship, the battleship Ramillies. Among Ardent?s duties was the training of stokers in the management of water-tube boilers.

She spent her career in the Mediterranean, until returning to home waters in 1911.  Subsequently, Ardent was put up for disposal and sold in October, 1911, for breaking up. 

For further information, check out the Wikipedia page (where this information came from) for her class here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ardent-class_destroyer, or consult Norman Friedman's "British Destroyers, From the Earliest Days to the Second World War". 
The Combrig Ardent

Ardent is packaged in a thin, white cardboard box, with a photo of the real vessel on the box top.  Inside the box is the hull in one bag, and four runners, consisting of almost 60 parts in a second bag.  These are all secured with packaging peanuts.  The small parts were all in a single bag, and some parts did come off the resin runners. 
THE HULL 
The hull is waterline.   According to the measurements I found for Ardent, the hull scales out pretty much perfectly in both beam and length.   The hull is very well cast with lots of good detail.   There are some faint lines on the deck and the sides of the hull.  This may be carry over from the master, if it was 3D printed. 
SMALLER PARTS
There are four resin runners in the kit. This is where you will find the funnels, guns, torpedo tubes, vents, boats and anchors, along with other small parts.     All these smaller parts are excellent, the casting is just terrific.   The guns and torpedo tubes are really well cast.   The davits and anchors are especially thin and delicately cast.   My only beef (once again), is that the co-mingling of the parts in one bag led to some being broken off their runners. 
PHOTOETCH
There is no photo-etch included with the kit.   You will have to source your own railings. 

Nor are there are any masts included with the kit.  As per usual Combrig practice, there are drawings showing dimensions of the masts and yards. 
INSTRUCTIONS
The instructions are typical Combrig fare, just on a much smaller scale.  I'd call them "minimalist".   They are one side of one piece of paper, with a list the parts and two exploded views showing where to place the parts.  There is no plan and profile view of Ardent included. 

There are no color callouts or painting instructions, but the box would seem to indicate a white hull with perhaps buff upper works.   Instructions continue to be one of the weaker parts of Combrig's kits. 
CONCLUSIONS
This is another excellent little kit of one of the earliest British attempts at a Torpedo Boat Destroyer.  It's small size and smaller part count may make this a good candidate for "Divine Scale" modelers looking for a break from capital ships.   This kit is highly recommended, especially for fans of small combatants, and/or fans of the 19th century British warships. 

This is Combrig’s 1/700 USS Ardent, kit number 70503.  The model lists for $19.95 and is available from many of our fine sponsors. This is an in-box review.  While the model seems to compare nicely to photos and drawings found in books and online, your mileage may vary once you commence construction.  Thanks to Combrig Models for the review sample.