I think the last time I built a scale model of something that actually existed in the real world must be nearly 30 years ago.
However, for the last twenty years, on and off, I've been into the Games Workshop stuff, mostly the fantasy aspect. Which is fine. I've enjoyed it - hence keeping it up for twenty years or so.
Recently, our small group decided to have a look at the sci-fi stuff they do, and that got into making a sort of airplane type thing...
And that got to remembering that when I was a kid, my local shop carried the Airfix range, and I guess that pretty much every peny of my pocket money went staright into that shop keepers pocket! I'm sure I must have built the full range. I still remember the week when the only model I hadn't built was a Joan of Arc figure. Airfix used to show little pictures of other kits on the sides of their boxes, and this is what I used to decide what my next kit would be. The Joan picture had turned up a few times, but I was determined that I would not build it, because it was too girly..even though the picture showed her in plate armour.
So I worked my through planes, tanks, support vehicles, helicopters, boats, ships and other figures (I only actually remember Cromwel), until, there was nothing for it, the only thinkg in the shop I hadn't made at least once (of course, I had a dozen or so Spitfires - and I hadn't made the 1/24 Spitfire or ME109, because they were too expensive) was Joan of Arc. So, begrudgingly, I asked the shopkeeper for his Joan of Arc...and was horrified to see the picture on the box was a woman in a big frock - not even plate armour.
I mumbled something about it not being the right one, and bought another Spitfire.
Anyway.
The point it, I was building this plane type thing from Games Workshop, and this all flashed back into my mind. This was about a year ago, and in that time, I've been considering what to build. I thought I'd settled on a Mosquito (another old favourite), but, yes, you guessed it, the Spitfire would not leave me alone. A bit predicatble, I know, but my word, what a piece of machinery it really is!
So, I found the Osprey books and couple of other references and did some reading.
Now I'm at the stage where I've just completed assembly of a Hasegawa MkVb, straight from the box. It's literally sat here right now just waiting for some filler at the wing fairings, and a bit of sanding a rescribing of panel lines (all simple techiques picked up from my time modelling GW stuff).
So, anyhow.
Hello, and thanks for reading so much waffle. I hadn't intended to go on so, but I figure if I'm introducing myself, it's as well to say why I'm here...which I haven't done yet...
I'm here because I'm very aware that though the construction techniques generally used by people in the GW world must be not too dissimilar from those used in fine scale modelling, the painting techniques, and the attention to detail in a real, actual subject, make it somewhat different and more challenging...which is good.
So, basically, I'm here to poke my nose in, browse the archives, pick up on a few threads, and see if I can gain some insights into the techniques used by you guys, and see if I can make the transition to making proper scale models.
Thanks again; getting this far, you really are indulging me!
Phil