Category: finances
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North American AT6 – Part Two – Building The Factory Build

I am aware that Hobby Boss airplane kits are viewed as little-kid stuff by many modellers. Easy assembly, few extra parts, defined edges to some mouldings. The up-and-down assembly of a fuselage and wing unit – sometimes with horizontal stabilizer attached – suggests an activity for the ungifted. Perhaps it is so, but you need…
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North American AT6 – Part One – The Kosher Texan

We often buy a set of decals to match a kit we have – but in this case I have reversed the procedure. I had a leftover set of Israeli Air Force markings for an Academy kit and I purchased a Hobby Boss substitute to use them up. The original Texan became an RCAF Harvard…
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Who’s A Dealer and Who’s a Wheeler Dealer…

And how can you tell the difference between them? Perhaps we should mention a third category first – the retail dealer. a. The Retail Dealer has a shop – sometimes an on-line one, sometimes a physical store. Sometimes a combination of the two, if there are enough staff with enough expertise to run it all.…
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Serrer Le Marchand

Or in English – squeeze the merchant. a. ” I can get that cheaper “. So can the merchant. That is why it is being sold at the price on the tag. the difference between that and the wholesale price represents the profit, out of which the rent, wages, and interest comes. If you offer…
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Mitsubishi A5M-2 – Part One – CLAUDE

I often wondered about why the WWII Allied command code-named the Japanese aircraft in the way they did. So I analysed the names – ZEKE, RUFE, BABS, BETTY, TOJO, NATE, CLAUDE, etc. and here’s my conclusion, unsupported by any research… a. The names are short. They needed to be to be spoken or telegraphed quickly.…
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Ustar

Never heard of ’em? I never did until I started patronising Hobbytech out in Myaree. Then I found an increasing number of products from this Taiwanese firm on their tool and material shelves. I experimented with a few things, then bought more. Not every product was world-beating, but they were all workable, and some were actually…
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Scale Model Kit Building Is Craft Beer In Styrene

Here’s two parallel experiences; buying a plastic model kit in a hobby shop and buying a six-pack of craft beer at the local Dan Murphy’s. In both cases you are basically paying out for a pig in a poke. The externals are generally confusing…the plastic model kit has either great box art or horrible writing,…
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” It’s Only A 1:72 Model…”

The word to look at in the title is ” only ” – and I would look at it askance, if I were you… I’ve noticed that there can be quite some little hierarchy in the scale model building fraternity – based upon a number of factors: a. Years spent doing the hobby. This is…
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A Different Rhythm At The Workbench

What strange creatures we are. When working for a living there were times when I could not get away from my work station fast enough at the end of the day. Now that I’m retired, I can’t wait to get to it. And there are weeks when I seem to work at it as if…
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Hobby Money – Part Seven – Makin’ Money

With the advent of the inexpensive colour copier and the inkjet printer, it should be easy for a modern hobbyist to make money. He would be wise to choose where he tries to pass it, however, and not go back to the same shop twice. Producing bills in denominations of $ 7.00 and $ 13.50…
