My son started me off on model boats 11yrs ago when I took him to a model show, he was fascinated by the wonderful models. So I bought him a cheap vac form kit of a fishing trawler just in case his interest wained.
11 yrs later we have quite a fleet, but U-551 & 553 are our first subs, at the minute when school work permits he's building a Billing Zwarte Zee. Interesting kit, instructions in six languages and the english is a bit gibberish, the diagrams for the placement of parts is typical Billings, things appear out of nowhere between one diagram and the next.
Me I'm scratchbuilding a north sea trawler Kingston Peridot in 1/48th, lost with all hands somewhere to the north of iceland in the late 60's. The subs will come as soon as he finishes Zwarte Zee and I have exhausted all avenues of research.