A Career in Modeling...

After 40 years in the business as one of the premier modelmakers on the planet, Ken has decided to semi-retire and let his staff handle the day-to-day business.  Ken will continue to oversee the shop and all of the custom projects, so if you have any questions or simply want to inquire about a model, please give us a call or send us an e-mail and we will get back to you.

We thank you all for the opportunity to be of service, we truly appreciate it!

Ken Gardiner started making models 40 years ago as a hobby based on what he learned from his father. About eight years later, Ken decided it might be worthwhile making a living out of it. His father, who viewed the passion as more recreation than profession, bet Ken he would fail. Happily for both, Ken's father lost that bet.

Today Ken Gardiner is seen by many as one of the country's premier model makers, providing yachtsmen with re-creations of their yachts in exacting detail. It is that attention to detail that seems to separate Ken from the rest.

He is extremely proud of what he does and defines success as being satisfied with the final product and knowing that every little fitting, winch, fishing pole, outrigger or shackle was handmade in his Newport Beach, California shop. Once Gardiner went so far as to re-create the inside of the pilothouse of the 127' Galileo, designed by Sparkman and Stephens, and included fiber optic lights. How's that for detail?

Windows too, can be tricky. Flush windows are easy. "But some boats have an inch of recess. Details like that are what I'm looking for." Gardiner will even go so far as to use the authentic paint when finishing the boat. His topsides paint of choice is Imron.

Gardiner says most of his clients are current owners, interested either in preserving a vision of their boat or just plain showing off. There's also a practical side: "They want to see their detailed boats sitting in front of them because they don't get to see the originals as often as they would like to."

Ken also gets inquiries from manufacturers who want to showcase a new boat (or make an owner happy) or even interior designers who want to add a nautical theme to their work.

Many of Gardiner's works can be seen at various boat shows and yacht clubs including the New York Yacht Club. Gardiner has two other modelmakers helping him in his shop and all models are made of wood with some plastic. Gardiner figures the end product has about 90 percent wood and 10 percent plastic. He does half hull models and full hull models and prices vary depending on how fancy the client wants to get. For example, a 20" sail half model of a 40' boat costs from $350 to $500. Powerboats range anywhere from $500 to $2,500. Full models start at about $2,500. Gardiner has molds for over 1,000 classes of sail and powerboat models as well as America's Cup boats since the Reliance.

Half models take up to eight hours to produce while full models can take up to 80 man hours. The record was 1,500 hours for the Stars & Stripes boat.