The Little World

1957 was a big year for me. My dad’s firm failed and we had to move to Quebec for him to continue in the heavy construction business. I had to learn school French – fast. And I got to see a whole new world of scale model kits that never made it out to Western Canada.

Why? Heaven knows. Perhaps it was the same with Canada as it is with Australia – the national boundaries here are often seen as finishing at the Victorian border, with nothing but Terra Nullis west of that. I think that might have been the case with Quebec and Ontario; Lower Canada and Upper Canada perpetually at war with each other and ignoring the rest of us.

Any road, I got to see my first Renwal kits and the first of the Aurora Famous Fighters – in my case it was a 1:48 Nieuport 11. It was tiny, and distorted my view of the size of WW1 aircraft for years. This Revell model of the Nieuport 17 is in 1:72 – not quite the same plane or the same scale as the 1957 Easter present, but very evocative.

The sprue trees are fragmented in this old kit. It was a 1963 new release – with many repeats – so I am not surprised. All the parts are safe, however, and make it a good bargain – it was an estate sale. The mouldings are nothing to enthuse over – flash and ejector marks being the main problems, but for the very low price it is a fine challenge.

The instructions are commendably clear, if aged, and the the decals may actually be savable. French roundels and tail colours are easy enough to print afresh. Oddly enough, the colour call-out bears no resemblance to the box art at all. Fortunately there are modern replicas and museum planes to look at.

I deliberately chose this from the stash as a two-week project before March started. March was to be Matchbox March with a major kit to build and I wanted my workbench clear for it.