Category: frugality
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S.P. – Part Six – A Dollar

I have never spent my money better. Even if it was only a single coin. The Mirage company may be big or little, but whichever, they make a good product. This unexpected purchase has proved to be successful, and will form the basis of an entire museum. The model is not without flaw. Anyone trying…
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S.P. – Part Three – Chassis

I have to keep reminding myself that I am basically playing with a dollar coin here. The kit is progressing well, with a club day spent making wheel and tyre assemblies and getting the running gear on the chassis. The top casing fits down with perfect precision, so it can be finished separately from the…
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Highly Desirable

And highly detailed. And highly priced. And highly unavailable. Hi-lee-hi-low. Hi-lup-a-pup. And that’s another magazine down the drain. I used to buy modelling magazines when I was a kid. For cars to begin with and later for scale models or military models. Model boats kept me going for years. I would read the how-to-do it…
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WW1 Tank – Part Four – Rust Bucket

Purists will note that there are no unit markings on this WW1 female tank. There’s a good reason for this. The tank has been sold to Ruritania, after completing its time on the western front. The Royal Ruritanian Army has no experience with this new arm and so is cautions about what to paint on…
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WW1 Female Tank – Part Two – Mystery Iron Box

I must say that the classic British WW1 tank is somewhat of a mystery to me. I’ve never seen a real one and the actual topography of it is a puzzle. I know the lozenge shape but that’s all. The basic box hides inside the tread, much like the Churchill tank – another enigma. This…
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WW1 Female Tank – Part One – Dollar Man

I was delighted to see Gary the Dollar Man turn up at a Men’s Shed day at our club. He had a box of kits to sell at remarkably low prices. As I had remarkably low funds that day I could only buy three, but one of them is this Emhar WW1 tank. He did…
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Build Simply

Or, in the case of the stash maniacs in the readership – simply build… Today’s posts on my other two weblog columns has centred around simplicity – in living and purchasing. It can also be applied to our hobby of scale modelling. Not every kit or model needs to be super-detailed to be super fun.…
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F-82 Twin Mustang – Part Five – The Black Twin

Lo and Behold. A dear old Monogram F-82 kit at a swap meet. The price of Hobby Boss click-together. What’s not to like! The kit is complete – the decals are reasonable, the canopies are all there. It is out of fashion as an older mould, but the raising of the panel lines has lowered…
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All These Sprue Trees…

Of which i am collecting more and more each week… What the devil do I do with them? I’ve been in the habit of throwing them into the trash after I finish a build – minus the spare parts, of course. In some instances chopped up as I progress through the box, but in some…
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This Model Ain’t Makin’ Itself…

The lazy modellers guide to workflow. We are told that youthful modellers in the 1970’s used to buy a kit at their local shop, have it together by teatime, and destroyed by the next morning. I think this is one of those old-guy stories that is made up of fibs, lies, and political promises. I…
