Category: Collecting
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Who In Their Right Mind
Would line up to buy old model kits? I don’t know. Because just after I shot this panorama ( not a complete one, mind…) I joined the end of the queue. It was like the Oklahoma Land Rush, but in styrene. Some stash sales are sedate affairs. Discretely attended by studious enthusiasts who quietly murmur…
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Why’d You Build A Model Of THAT?
There are many paths, Grasshopper… a. It was the plane my father flew in the Battle of Britain. He was on the Finnish side. They shot at EVERYBODY. Little Helsinki on the Avon was a hotbed of aerial warfare. b. I had the money and the shop owner seduced me…by putting the kit on the…
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The Richest Kid On The Block!
Possibly in the whole town! I’ve got 27 model kits ready to build. They came from friends, family and pocket money. I’ve got enough cement for all of them, and enough paint. School is out, and has been since 1972. Employment is done, and has been since 2016. I do not have any homework due.…
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Do Other Hobbies Suffer From Being At The End Of The World?
Or is it just scale kit building? We all go regularly to the hobby shops or websites looking for novelties. We regularly come back disappointed. Meanwhile the net and the magazines show a wonderful variety of goods available to people in Europe, Asia, and North America. We are left outside on the footpath with our…
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A Kit Too Far
If you are observant at stash sales you can tell which models will be coming onto the table at a good price. Not initially, perhaps – we have all seen the ambitious price tag on a scale box. Sometimes it is high enough to over-run new kits currently available in the shops. This can be…
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Pilatus PC-21 – Part Five – RAAF Roulette
The Pilatus PC-21 were ready to fly – the next batch of pilot trainees due to make their solos. One of them was the son of my niece. I have a short reel of him flying that first solo taken by a squadron mate. It is detailed enough to make out the number of the…
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Making A Public Exhibition Of Yourself
This is not as dire as it sounds. Of course the upright, uptight, upper class Victorian would never do it…but then they never did. They reserved their showing off for a funeral cortege and a statue in the local gardens. I plan on two show-off shows this year; one at the annual scale model festival…
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JAS 39 Gripen – Part Two – Loaded For Bear
Quite literally – whether on the ground, in the air, or on the sea. This Gripen is painted as a demonstrator model for an air show – no unit mark, no wear and tear, but a full load of missiles, tanks, and a designator pod. With a load-out this intense, I think its greatest feat…
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JAS 39 Gripen – Part One – The Export Model
That’s good enough for home. This Italeri kit is probably based upon an early model JAS 39 Gripen. Since its introduction into the Swedish Air Force it has been sold to the Czech Republic, Hungary, and South Africa. Did you wish to add a modern aircraft to your collection for these services, there are decals…
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Pre-Coloured Model Kits
We already see some surprisingly precise model kits in the 1:144 scale that have been pre-painted or colour printed. They are generally the tinier fighter planes and the schemes are simplified, but for all that, the kits go together well and the end result looks at least as good as a a die cast example.…
The Little World 