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A Decoarsing Moment

That’s like a defining moment but in the other direction. Recently a friend referred to my models as cheap and cheerful. A phrase that sounds intimidating…but it turns out not to be so. An English definition of the phrase says that it doesn’t necessarily mean bad quality – just good value for money. This certainly…
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Sopwith Triplane – Part Three – Black Maria

As a straight-out-of-the-bag build I could not have asked more of the Revell Sopwith triplane. It cost me nothing, it delivered a lot of pleasure. The plastic parts fitted as well as any baggie would…but yielded well to the cut and sand that you normally expect to do. The interior is a seat and a…
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Sopwith Triplane – Part Two – The New Techniques

I have decided to risk navigating this PaulPlane in only two uncharted waters: the use of the new decal technique and a new finishing varnish. The third experiment – the plastic rigging – will be postponed until a slightly larger model offers. It’s nice stuff, but a little thick for this job. The decaling system…
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Sopwith Triplane – Part One – Beige Baggie

My next PaulPlane is another Revell baggie from storage in his shed. This one has escaped the effects of the heat and even the decals look viable. It is also going to be the subject of another new experiment – I have had luck with rigging older planes so far with rubber string and thin…
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All Your Problems Will Be A Thing Of The Past

Leaving time and energy for your new problems. Whenever you meet with an obstacle in your road to scale modelling you must stop and try to figure out what went wrong. Go to reference works – whether they be on-line or in magazines – and then talk to other modellers who have had the same…
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From Expensive To Valueless In One Simple Movement

Want to know how to convert $300.00 to nothing in a couple of weeks? Easy. Go put and buy a $ 300.00 kit and build it. It was worth the 300 on the shelf in the shop, dropped to 150 in your stash, and as soon as it was complete it became unsaleable. Not quite…
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Remember: It’s Only A Hobby

If you’re smart. If you make it your job you have no hobby. Then you have to take up digging ditches to let off steam after building scale models all day… And so it goes. There are people who love their work and bosses who love that dedication…because they can make more money out of…
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Heinkel He 177 – Part Four – Courtesy Of The Resistance

A captured Heinkel 177 ready to be flown to the RAF for analysis and test flying. The paint shop has been busy making sure the thing is both presentable and safe to cross the Channel. The French roundels and tail flash were easy to do as one always seems to have spares of this sort…
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Heinkel He 177 – Part Three – Having A Fit

Pink or otherwise – sometimes you get things that you just wouldn’t do. I’ve yet to find my limits but to be honest I’ve stopped looking… The dry-fit stage of the Heinkel promised to be a time of tears and gnashing of teeth. I’d seen what old Airfix moulds could do when stored in hobby…
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Heinkel He 177 – Part Two – Riveting Detail

There are those in the world who would have me sand down the rivet detail of the 1967 Airfix Heinkel Greif, scribe lines between the panels, and re-mark sunken rivets. There are also people who would have me eat rutabagas and ground cockroaches…and I am here to tell you that I am as likely to…
