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RCN Swordfish – Part One – The Opportunity

All you need is one – an opportunity, I mean. Then you can do the model you really want. This Novo re-pop of a FROG mould comes along a complex pathway from 1971 through to 1980. I suspect the kit has lain dormant since then – a true survivor of Ye Olden Dayes. As I…
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Is There A Lexicographer In The House?

We need a decision on a number of words. The little world frequently expands its vision past the small individual model. From a simple toy soldier comes a figurine on a plinth. Then several figures arranged in a group. Then a piece of armour or machinery…and so on. Eventually it is a complete depiction of…
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Like Kipling’s Cavalryman

I spend idle time studying how to reduce my horse’s burden. Even though mine is an iron beast that runs on petrol rather than hay, it is still limited in what it can bear. There is only so much a Suzuki hatchback can carry and that I can ferry from carpark to clubroom or exhibition.…
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Well, The Maths Works Out

Dang it… As a kid in 1965 I could buy a 1:25th scale AMT car kit of a standard North American convertible for $2.50 from any drug store or hobby shop. A 3-In-1 kit with some custom parts and a fancy decal sheet. Today I saw a retro AMT kit looking precisely the same for…
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The Nearly Model

We’ve all had the experience of seeing an item on the shelf of a decor store antique palace that looks like a model from a distance – but a dust catcher from close up. Not that real scale models do not catch dust…it is just that the decor items are stuff that is churned out…
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Heinkel He-111c – Part Six – German Republik Luft

I have decided to please myself and indulge in a little whiffery with this Heinkel aircraft. Not assigning it to Ruritania or imagining it sold to some other power – I have decided to base it upon continued existence of a German Republic past 1933. Hence the black/white/red tail colours and the naming of the…
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Heinkel He-111c – Part Four – What’s Pink And Sticky?

Your answer will depend upon your character and level of maturity. In my case both are low, but I still think of ” sprue goo ” in answer to this question. I make it for pennies from discarded plastic sheet and lacquer thinner, and am starting to make it in three distinct consistencies. It may…
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Heinkel He-111c – Part Three – Touch-Fit

And only where it touches, I might add. The Roden curse is starting to take effect. The ambitions of the moulders will need to be matched with equal bravery by the builder. The fit of many of the parts is approximate. This is surprising considering the more delicate parts like the landing gear struts seem…
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Heinkel He-111c – Part Two – The Elsan

You may not have a lot in life, but as long as you have a pot… This is the type of thought that I deal with every day – no wonder the in-laws avoid me at parties. In this case, the Roden kit of the He 111c brought it to mind again as I commenced…

