The Little World

I have decided to try the Retro Challenge. I want to see if I can be a kid again.

I’m not sure if I was good at youth the first time round but I did have fun. And now I get a chance to do it again – specifically to build a kit as if I was 14 years old. Revell and Airfix make starter sets that give a young modeller a lot of what they need to build a scale model and I have decided to pretend I am 14 and taking up the hobby.

I’ve bought a Revell Fokker D VII starter kit with my pocket money. ( Now don’t start comparing 1960 prices with 2021 prices and the value of the money. Just play along with this thing and get mellow…) I shall build it as if I was an adolescent. I still remember the feelings…

The kit has two pots of acrylic paint and a double-ended brush as well as a small Revell Contacta cement bottle. There is a surprisingly extensive decal sheet and – in keeping with Revell’s European commitments – an onerously long safety sheet. ( Are these people that stupid? Can they not glue a model airplane together without disaster? )

I shall keep the former and discard the latter and use only the barest of tools and extra paints. I shall allow myself a pair of scissors, a modelling knife, and a bottle of rye whiskey. Discipline is everything in these exercises.

Note that the kit is basic. The decal sheet is sophisticated. The paints are suspect. The brush is delightful.

What could possibly go wrong?