Category: design
-
Swiss Ju-52 – Part One – Straight Out
Of the box. This one is a tribute to a club mate who left a large uncompleted stash. I’ll confess that it is not the first Ju-52 I’ve built – one was a Heller kit repopped by the Czechs, and one was a slightly later Italeri offering. Of course this Lufthansa plane will be the…
-
The Peculiar Model
The oddity. The kit that everyone else avoids. The scratch-built model that no-one has ever heard of. In other words – just down your alley. I have been the recipient of numerous models that fit into this category – and I’ve gone out and spent actual money on others. Not a lot of it, mind,…
-
The Two Musketeers
Dumas became an economical man. And it was just gilding the lily to add an extra hero. Porthos was a nightmare to feed. I often wonder what we would have seen if accountants had as much control over literature as they seem to have over the cinema. Two coins in a fountain? And get a…
-
” Launch At Unfriendly Target “
I kid you not…this was part of an advertisement for a scale model kit. It described a navy attack fighter. Presumably the launching of anything would most likely be done at a target…and unfriendly ones the first choice. Friendly targets are also possible, but you use smaller missiles. Advertising in a language that is not…
-
De Havilland Beaver – Part Two – Let Me Clear Something Up…
A recent build of another Airfix Vintage Classic kit – a Westland Whirlwind helicopter – pointed out the perils of remoulding 1950’s models. The clear plastic on that one was appalling. This Vintage Classic is of a newer year – 1971 – and the clear parts have improved immensely. But they are still just the…
-
De Havilland Beaver – Part One – Leave it To Me, Wally
Those of a ” certain age ” will get it… Those of that samecertain age will recognize the Airfix Vintage Classic Beaver kit as one of the British Army cooperation planes – but will be surprised when they look at the side of the box – it appears to have been used by the US…
-
Have You Found Your Oeuvre?
Or your œuf? Is your modelling pressing you toward one coherent thing, or are you flailing in all directions? Perhaps flailing is your destiny, and you are fulfilling it. Do not despair. Leonardo Da Vinci was nearly fifty years old before he built his first model of the MISSOURI. And look how he flourished in…
-
Every Time You Bolt On A Main Spar
A Fairey gets its wings… The magic of scale model building is far greater than any mousey studio could dream up – we actually get to do things instead of just watch other people do them. One of the things we do is cement wings onto aircraft. We can do this neatly or not, but…
-
Avia B-135 – Part One – A Semi-Precious Stash Gem
The big annual local scale model exhibition had come and gone – and there was some speculation that it had gone forever.* But I did well. My model Ruritanian airport garnered only slight interest, but the stash sales made it all worth while. This Czech fighter appeared at a very advantageous price and I was…
-
Shinden – Part Three – The Delayed Future
Delayed by the events of the late period in the war – delayed by inadequacies in production and supply. But not completely forgotten – as many of the concepts were to later return. The Shinden had one job – and had it been available in large numbers it might have been able to do that…
The Little World 