The Little World

I am starting to wonder about the future of the dear old box scale for model kits.

I would have judged that the day is dead for this form of moulding. The division of the plastic kit industry into recognisable scales for particular purposes is so far advanced that there would seem to be little room for the older form of design.

Yet, A major maker of model railways has opted to revive a long-dead scale – 1:120 or TT in an effort to capture a home market. I cannot help but think that it is what might be termed ” Brexit scale “. A defiantly British riposte to something…but we cannot be sure what.

Will this nostalgia at a terrific price carry on to a start-up for odd scales and singleton models in our hobby? Okay, Revell will mould the old WW I aircraft in 1:28 for as long as they think they can get away with it…and they have got away with it for half a century. If they could revive the oddities of their ship collection I’m sure we would see the USS OLYMPIA and the cargo shops in every scale imaginable. I’ll bet they are watching the sales figures for Airfix’s Vintage Classics and itching to churn out planes in 1:98 from 50’s moulds.

We can accept this sort of rebirth if we are nostalgic enough – Renwal armour is welcome despite the scale. But whenever someone pushes the retro button it had better be at retro prices or we are just going to stride down the kit aisle and get the latest modern moulding. We might curse the multi-part track but we’ll welcome the fact that the turret fits the hull.