Category: Miniature Philosophy
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The Scholarly Modeller

People in the arts, sciences, and humanities will all have encountered the scholarly author or researcher – who will vastly overbear anything the average enthusiast can bring to a discussion. The scholars will have read, experimented, thought, or created their way to eminence in their respective fields and very likely have published and publicized all…
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You Lose Points…

Whenever I see a contest that starts with the premise that you have a certain number of points to lose – and the winner will be the one who loses least – I lose interest. If I want to be belittled, I have a family at home. No need to do it in a drafty…
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Mirage III CJ – Part Three – Let’s Give The Customers Something…

What shall it be? Accurate instruction sheets? Flawless mouldings? Adequate colour information? I have it – let’s just give them trouble. It’ll be fun and cheap and we can do it by making bad decisions. Like avoiding a centre seam on the top of the Mirage fuselage that could be smoothed and polished easily –…
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Doing It The Way You Want To Do it

Vs doing it the way someone else forces you to do it. Guess which feels better in the end. I am brought to this realisation with my change of activity in the scale model hobby field. I have removed one of my club connections from a public space to a private one and rearranged with…
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Show, Tell, Or Brag

All depends on the tone of voice. I’ve been associated with a modelling group that has had a permanent display at a public library for a few years. Changed four times a year, it gave us a good way of showing off our builds and our collections. That’s largely gone by the board as the…
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Some Models Are Not The Model

Like some jewels, they are just there to show off the setting. Dioramas and vignettes and layouts and displays can be far more than the models on show. The PDMC stand has contained a large set of letters: PDMC. These for containers for smaller models and the effect is charming. The contents of the letters…
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The Little World Hall

Perth needs a Little World Hall…or perhaps a Little World Centre. Some place that people interested in all forms of modelling can come to for sharing, display, and learning. The SMCWA and some other clubs use the Noranda clubrooms for this, and benefit greatly. Some disciplines use other suburban halls for meetings or have premises…
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You Can Only Build What You Can Get

And if you can’t get something, you have to build it… The principle of the scratch-builder. Also of the realistic builder – a person who may not know their own limitations but can list those of the local hobby shops in detail. This is not just snarkiness – the realistic builder knows that not every…
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The Decal And Your Soul

Only one comes on a paper sheet… The decal – or water-slide transfer if you are pedantically British – is the final test of your character. It is the printed sheet of possibilities that can become either probabilities or inevitabilities. You will get what you deserve… It’s the challenge that separates the men from the…

