The Little World

No sense jumping off the roof with cardboard wings.

But if you don’t know you can’t do it…go ahead and try.

I use this principle all the time in scale model building. I have built kits that were unbuildable, finished buildings that were improbable, and built dioramas with no knowledge whatsoever of what I was doing. I should not extend the philosophy to defusing land mines, but plastic kits are another thing. And the approach applies particularly to the literature of the hobbyists.

There are a number of publications that deal with scale modelling – and allied ones that help the R/C fliers, the model train and boat people, the car makers, and the doll house builders. All are readable by a specific audience, and surprisingly – they are also interesting to other modellers in other divisions.  You may not get all the references in the articles, but every issue you work through leaves you with some fresh knowledge. And sometimes you don’t even know it has sunk in until later.

Here’s an example:

I picked up a model railway magazine made in the UK. It is specifically aimed at UK builders – particularly the OO gauge crowd. You know, that peculiar 1:76 scale that accommodates the British loading gauge. It is similar to, but markedly bigger, than the North American, Japanese, and Continental HO scale…1:86 or 1:87.

It is also similar, but smaller, than the 1:72 scale favoured by some model aircraft builders. So I can look at structures and layouts in the UK and see if there is any part that would suit my own layout – the 1:72 airfield. YES! There are tiny little OO railway station benches that come in laser-cut kits. Some white glue and a lot of fiddly work results in perfect benches for my air museum. Score one from the UK.

The US modeller’s magazines have a lot of goods for sale…most of which we will never see in Australia. I cannot grumble, as the costs are pretty steep. All I need to see is the things in a clear pictures and there is an even chance I can make something like them. As long as I do not know that I can’t.

One caution – as you read your store of ignorance goes down. Eventually you have very little of it left and then you are duty-bound to go out and do something.