Hi Ya'll ;
I was just sitting thinking on Friday . My 75th B'day . What was I thinking . Well , it's simple . I was looking at models
Not just any models . I , for some reason selected a rather eclectic bunch . Two Palmer kits .Two Monogram Kits , Two AMT Kits , Two Johan kits .Two Airfix Kits , and lastly Two Revell Kits . Oh , And two MPC kits .
Now as some know there are those specifically devoted to autos . We Shant converse about them . That leaves a very few .Airfix , Revell and Monogram . The Monogram kits , Well the M-48-A-1 Patton ( With Shep Paine's little booklet inside ) , and The Viet Nam Swift Boat .
The Airfix kits suprisingly weren't ships , or 1/35 Armor , or planes .They were the Maudsley's Paddle Steam Engine and A Single Cylinder Gas Engine .
The Revell kits weren't usual either . One was the Original Issue of their Lincoln " FUTURA " show car from the FORD Rotunda display in 1956 at the Car show . The other was an original issue Offshore Oil Drilling rig !
I looked in each box and wondered , Hmmm , We have come a long way in my 65 years of Modeling . Now with Photo Etch , pretty much everything and newest of all 3-D printing of model parts .
The tools and equipment has improved by leaps and bounds . More brands of Airbrushes than you can name off-hand . I still have My old " Badger -"D" model and it still works great .
Look at things like plastic availability . Evergreen and Plastruct The latter waiting some years before offering styrene . Paints out the Wazoo ! I still prefer " Polly " S " and Humbrol . They seemed better than anything out there for the good stuff .Of course there was " Floquil too . great stuff . For Shiny there was " Pactra " Guarenteed no Brush-Marks when dry !
Putty , Nah , Except maybe spackle and car glazing putty . lacquer for models , Forget that !Aftermarket resin stuff Naw !
I have to leave now for a meeting , On Mother's day yet ! If you wanna hear more , Just ask !
I'm Baaack :
Anyway , where was I . Don Stauffer brought up a few points . Like adding talcum powder to paint to make flat paint . That made me think even harder and I also came up with this .Monogram's kits go further back than that , But those are the ones I picked out .
I have the Cadillacs that are made out of some plastic . It isn't styrene though .Then there were their toy-like boat kits .You could build them , then , There was a little hook molded on the bottom . Whether it was the outboard or the inboard the rubber-band ran aft along the bottom and connected directly to a hook on the back of the prop .Thus giving you a non - electric powered model ( Toy )
Now Lindberg ( even under their new owners has been known for their small electric boat models .Some weren't bad , But the one that is still stuck here is the 36' day cruiser by Chris - Craft . No matter how you built it . Glue Bomb or Decent model It was always recognizeable as a Chris - Craft
I won't go into wood but just a little . I built a very nice all wood D.E . I don't know who made it , But , You mixed the glue powder with water and then glued the shaped parts together . Turned out decent too !
Then there were those ubiquitis Stick and Tissue ! First time I had ever heard of Ambroid glue . Then they added plastic to replace the blocks you had to shape out of balsa into Cowlings etc.
Don was right though . I have a " Fair American . It is probably at least fifty . It has been re-rigged at least eight times .The last time , according to a rigging plan I found on line .After-market - You bet ! White Metal or britannia metal fittings and wood ones too . All kinds of Blocks . Blocks , Two Blocks and Sheaves , Anchors etc.
Now go back to paint .Testors I remember as the ( art and Craft paint . ) Gloss colors and little square bottles . Flo-Quil - Larger bottles and an evil smell . Humbrol ,Little Tins ( still ) and more colors than you could shake a stick at . I went to Home depot paint department with a chip of Humbrol's " Deck Bleached Teak " ( they don't offer that color now . But I have a quart of it in regular house paint interior flat .
It thins well . Pactra was probably the first paint that while we had to hand paint autos , they came out highly glossy and as they said No Brush marks . They didn't lie either .Plus the bottle was bigger !
Sprue cutters ? I used to use Toe-Nail cutters . Screwdrivers ( we use them a lot on model rail stuff . No special ones Just use the finest one you could find . Yep .A lot has changed in all areas . But you know ahat I discovered .looking at my bench the basics are slightly differently made , But , they are still the same . Model On . Tanker - Builder