Hooking up with people in your area will be good and give you great insight into the hobby you can't get with emails.
Well I'm not sure if i want a Penny Class BB (Penny standing for Pennsylvania) but probably getting a Brooklyn Class CL,(Sorry if iam kind of complaining... Well Don't all newbs complain?) and help from the local guys, (which is not very soon) I could weight it out and etc...
If you can get the plans for a Pennsy, we can help you build it. Atlanta to Statesboro is not too long a drive for a build session; Mighty Mike Mangus has driven 5 hours for such a thing! I have many plans, but none for anything US apart from Submarines, destroyers, and battleships (sadly, not Pennsy). Lots of French and German and Japanese. A few Russian, also. Next build session at Tugboat's in Statesboro is 14th or 15th of this month! There will be a battle in Savannah the following weekend; if you can make it, we can have a loaner boat ready for you.
Well the sad thing is I cant make it to the build Session because I have to go to Dallas, Texas (no this is not an excuse, I REALLY want to build a Penny or something else)....
Also Iam not using sarcasm.... Fortunatly (Spelling Fail) I probably could go to the Savannah Battle (only if my dad could drive to Savannah for me ...)
Well, when you're readdy and able, we can work on a Pennsy with you. If I'm not camping with the Boy Scouts (~1 time/month), or battling (also once/month), we're usually having a build session at my shop. Plenty of tools, and experience in the shop to get most anything done.
Depends on how much you want to spend. Strike's kit will probably be a more costly entry point but easier. They do make a fine hull though.
Either way works. Doing a ship from wood is not very hard if you have skills (or skilled help), and a bit cheaper (wood and epoxy for my Musashi ran $50, a 'glass Yamato hull runs $205, and with fiberglass you still have to add the subdeck and deck (another $60 plus actually fitting and epoxying them in). A wood hull can take longer to build than a 'glass hull, though. Don't get me wrong, I have several 'glass ships. I just prefer wood because I can build any ship that I have plans for, and it feels more visceral while I build it, watching it come to life. (waxing poetic, ah, how nice) That said, I have a couple of 'glass boats that I will never let go of because of irrational sentimental attachment to them (HMS Indomitable and SMS Scharnhorst for those keeping score on my hull collection).