Category: Miniature Philosophy
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Douglas DC-3 – Part Five – Et Voila
There is a lesson to be learned with this Airfix model of a DC-3 in Aéronavale colours – and I must compel myself to learn it. It is a lesson of humility. At the start I thought this a marginal model – the sort of ugly cousin kit from an old company that had been…
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Douglas DC-3 – Part One – The C-47
‘Well, duh. Of course it’s a C-47, because it is a Douglas DC-3. And It’s a DC-3 because it’s a C-47. And it’s a Vietnam-era gunship in this Airfix kit courtesy of four Air Force figures and a cargo floor that sports a number of mini-Gatling guns on stands. I’m afraid it holds little place…
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The Bellanca Ball-Ache
I’m being unfair to Bellanca – I could have chosen Beechcraft or Bristol. The alliteration was the thing – a ” B ” aircraft maker was needed. Let’s start out by saying there never was an aircraft called the Ball-Ache. There may have been many that induced the condition, but that is a matter for…
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Federal 2 1/2 Ton Part Three – Classy Chassis
The joy of building Academy vehicles is the precise subassemblies that their kit moulding makes possible. The chassis of the Federal is no exception – in fact it is better than the Army ambulance that they put out. I still have the horrors trying to get all the wheels on the pavement at the same…
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Martin Maryland – Part One – Circling The Shelf
You know that thing – when you visit a hobby shop on a number of occasions and pass the same model on the shelf each time. And you look at it and heft it and put it back for some reason. Then one day you run out of reasons… This kit of a Maryland is…
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15 = 50
If someone owes you $ 50 and tries to pay you off with $ 15, don’t you let them get away with it. That’s robbery. But if you find that you can have the same amount of fun, nourishment, or drunken-ness for $ 15 as you can for $ 50…take advantage of the discount. I…
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Operating Vs Poseable
Also known as detached parts…and what you do with ’em. As a kid 60+ years ago I built Airfix, Monogram, and AMT kits that had working parts. Ailerons, tail surfaces, car bonnets, ship’s turrets, etc. were made with joints and sockets that allowed things to wave, swivel, and retract. This was a major attraction that…
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My New Favourite Thing
And like many of my favourites, it is cheap and plentiful. It also fills a long-desired need and is available from Officeworks. And I have a full packet of it…how much better could it get, eh? The miracle product is A4 -sized sticky label paper. Avery and others make packets of it in all sizes…
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The Joy Of Cheap Modelling
I often write paeans to frugality, now that I’m retired. No big stream of money coming in means you must cut your coat according to cheaper cloth – and use smaller bolts of it. Fortunately I am skinny so a little covers a lot. The plastic model hobby is also a field for care. I…
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Christmas Etiquette For Scale Modellers
A valuable guide to the holidays to ensure that you have the right spirit and none of it spills on the tablecloth. a. If you are given a model, it is The Right Model. You may have built eight ME 109’s already and the kit that you have received is an Airfix Me 109… You…
The Little World 