Hello, I'm Rob. I'm a retired USAF Master Sergeant Aircraft Structural Mechanic. I still teach the trade for the USAF as a Civil Service DoD Employee. More money and less BS!
I started building models at age 6, and built religiously up until 1993, and stopped for some reason (Deployments? Kids?). I'd always wanted to get back into it, so my beautiful wife bought me a 1:48 Revell A-10 model as a retirement gift when I left the Air Force in 2009, In 2011, I finally got around to starting it, and I must say it came out pretty good!
Since then, I've built over a dozen kits. Most are on display at the USAF Tech Training School I teach at; along with my students' models. I usually keep at least two (if not four) kits in-work at any given time. I get bored, burned out, or need to let one cure...I move back to another kit. I find that I have more patience, and mess things up LESS this way.
Since 2011 I've built:
A-10, F-16, F-15, MH-53, F-86, Spad XIII, F-111, P-51, Do-335, B-17, B-58, A-7. I won 2 awards at a big show earlier this year with the Do-335 and the MH-53. Man, that felt great! Haven't earned a model award since High School.
Currently in-work on my bech and shelves:
Fokker D-II, P-38J, C-97, F-16D T-Bird, and another 1:48 Revell A-10 for a friend ($100 Commission Job--my first!)
In the closet waiting to be built:
1:32 Revell F-15, 1:32 Zoukei-Moura P-51, Eduard 1:48 F-15E, Hasegawa 1:72 Me-262, Old Monogram 1:48 FW-190, OLD Chrome-Plated Hawk 1:48 P-47. OMG I think I'm starting to hoard kits!
My Airbrushing skills have gotten much better, and so has my overall model building. I joined IPMS and joined the local club / chapter last Fall, I've learned A LOT from those guys!
In February 2014, I began holding modeling workshops with some of my students after class on the base. It has been wildly successful! Even Females who have never built models turned out some of the nicest I've seen out of amateurs! Even the guys in my local club were impressed by the pictures. It feels GOOD to introduce young Men and Women to the hobby; many of whom never did it as a kid...too many video games!
Anyway, enough about me, It's good to meet you all, and thanks for reading!. See you around the forums!