Shipcraft 18 - Titanic and her Sisters Olympic and Britannic Paperback – Illustrated, March 19, 2015

"'Titanic' and Her Sisters 'Olympic' and 'Britannic'" by Peter Davies-Garner is a wonderful reference for serious ship modelers or for historians of the class. I am fairly knowledgeable about this class of ships, but Davies-Garner turns up detail I previously had no knowledge of (e.g. the arrangement of benches on deck of the three sisters, the two foot addition to the beam of "Britannic," etc.) The information about the myriad of lifeboat and davit arrangements (which were modified extensively after the "Titanic" disaster) is greatly helpful to understanding the configurations of the ships at different times in their lives. Likewise the level of detail concerning changes made to the ships throughout their careers (especially important in the case of the long-lived "Olympic") is excellent.The book begins by discussing the history of the ships, and putting it in context of the then-current maritime world. There are numerous excellent photos of all three sisters, and frequent comparisons and contrasts between them. The book then discusses the pros and cons of each kit available of the ship at the time of publishing, and gives information on converting "Titanic" into one of her sisters (there are more differences than you might at first think.) There are also excellent line drawings of the three ships from different perspectives, and in a very welcome development, substantial discussion of the dazzle camouflage schemes worn by "Olympic" during World War One. Aftermarket details (brass railings, etc.) are also discussed, as are sources for additional reference.If you are interested in building an accurate scale model of "Olympic," "Titanic," or "Britannic," this book is a must. Even if you aren't interested in the modeling aspects involved, this is still a great handbook of details of the three great ships.

Titanic and her Sisters Olympic and Britannic in a concise visual reference book for modelers, or for that matter, anyone interested in the Olympic class liners. Peter Davies-Garner had brought together information on many of the currently available model kits of Titanic including after-market detailing sets and other resources for making fine scale replicas of these historic vessels. The photographs and color views of the sister ships are top notch. Photographs of completed models in various scales will be greatly appreciated by the serious Titanic fan. This book is rather brief by design. For those wishing more detailed information I would recommend RMS Titanic: A Modelmakers Manual by the same author.

It's fitting that Peter Davies-Garner has authored this volume in the Shipcraft series, as his own 18-ft model of Titanic represents the absolute epitome of the subject. His insight and research are essential not only to the serious maritime modeler, but also to those who are just discovering these magnificent ships of the past. His reviews of the available kits of Titanic are concise and practical, and are extremely helpful to modelers of all levels of experience.

This is the second book in this series I have purchased. Both are very good with outstanding photos and descriptions of models of ships I am interested in making myself.

There are some great model examples and photos in here for reference. I was surprised there was no mention of the Trumpeter 1/200 kit. I realised the book was published before the kit release.The Kindle version is very good and allows you to zoom in on the images for more detail.

Well written, great color photos and helpful reviews of popular kit features. I'd say a must for any serious historian and maritime scale modeler.

My son is a Titanic geek. He is 13 and is completely fascinated with ships. He loves the detail in this book.

A great book - if you're interested in the "Olympic-class" ships this is must have for your collection - Peter Davies-Garner is a master model builder - and if you've seen his work - you know how impressive he is.