On the face of it this looked to be a straight forward restoration. The model looked in good condition, just little tired & dirty. A rerig, clean up of the sails & some tlc should soon have her looking bonny again.

Wrong! Examining the mainmast revealed some holes that did not correspond to any rigging. To my amazement the mainmast then crumbled just below the crows nest releasing a lot of dust. Woodworm.

Closer examination of the model revealed more spurios holes, particularly in the plywood. It was riddled!

Sadly the woodworm had been attracted to the fishglue used in the old plywood. Probably they found the model during its years in an attic or roof space. It was beyond economic redemption.

In all my years of restoring models this is the first time I have come across a woodworm infestation of any sort. It does show though how they can strike unseen. If you are buying a model on EBay or at auction, do make sure you examine it closely.