Scaleworld
By Richard Marmo
Welcome to SCALEWORLD. Intended as a regular feature, SCALEWORLD'S purpose in being is to keep you abreast of the latest miniature developments. Essentially, anything goes as long as it's less than full size.
This means plastic, wood, metal, resin and/or paper kits. If manufacturers can come up with another material, we're game for that too! Subject matter will be just as varied, running the gamut from aircraft, armor and cars to science fiction and fantasy. If some of you reading this have a thing for dollhouse miniatures, let us know and we'll take a crack at it.
Since few, if any, model kits can be properly built without tools, related supplies and reference material, that area will be considered fair game for this column as well. Knives, small power tools, large power tools, airbrushes, paint, decals and printed materials of all kinds will be covered at one time or another. As far as reference material is concerned, SCALEWORLD will deal with books, magazines and other specialized releases. Nor will video tapes and CD-ROMs be ignored where appropriate.
For those of you who are somewhat curious about yours truly, a bit of background. I'm 55 years old (d.o.b. December 10, 1942) and have been building models of one kind or another for the last 48. While my first love and personal bias is aviation/aerospace (especially WW-II), followed closely by Science Fiction, it's very easy for me to become deeply interested in models of any subject you care to name. A freelance writer/professional model builder since 1967, my articles on modelbuilding have appeared in magazines in the U.S. as well as England. In the course of the last 31 years, I've authored over 150 articles, including regular kit review columns, as well as articles on airport management, aviation history and home improvement. Also have one book on modelbuilding (Building Plastic Model Aircraft) to my credit that is currently out of print and have built in excess of 1,000 models.
Over the years, I've built display models for purposes as varied as article subjects, private collectors, a TV commercial and companies such as Bell Helicopter. Then there have been concept proof models, trade show models and more.
But enough about me. In order to make this column work, SCALEWORLD invites all manufacturers and publishers to submit samples of their latest wares for review in this space. Simply stated, anything that is of interest to the modelbuilder is of interest to SCALEWORLD.
So there you have it, the purpose and ground rules of SCALEWORLD stated as concisely as possible. Where it goes from here will be up to you, the reader. And if one or two of you stumbled across this column by accident but have never done any modelbuilding, I would encourage you to give it a shot. You'll find it enjoyable, rewarding, fascinating and fun. Now let's get to it.
There is a tendency to separate modelbuilders into two basic camps, kitbuilders and scratchbuilders. It was a simple enough categorization, easily understood by everyone. No more. Today, when you say scratchbuilders, clarification is needed. Do you mean scratchbuilders who build models literally from scratch, or are you referring to SCRATCHBUILDERS, a manufacturer of high quality resin kits?
SCRATCHBUILDERS got its start during the latter part of 1992 in Houston, Texas with a dandy resin copy of the ITC Beechcraft Staggerwing. Since that time, the company's moved to California, added numerous subjects to their list and made many engineering improvements to their molds. All offerings are in 1/32 scale and include such impressive choices as the Grumman TBF and Bell P-39. In short, they're on a roll.
I'll be reviewing some of the latest offerings from SCRATCHBUILDERS in future columns, but for those of you who have never seen or even heard of the company, let's take a quick look at their premiere effort.
What you get for your money is a sturdy, flap top box full of slick, nicely cast light tan resin parts. Your first impression is that you're looking at injection parts that have been removed from the sprue. Closer inspection reveals anomalies such as flashed-over slots for the horizontal tails and wing struts, casting pins that must be removed before construction and the occasional cavitation, pinhole or other surface flaw that is typical of hand cast resin. Clear components are vacuformed and are as clear as you'd want. Instructions are thorough and comprehensive.
Do keep in mind that, since this kit is essentially an injection kit converted to resin production, it possesses a few peculiarities (problems, if you prefer) that don't exist in the rest of the SCRATCHBUILDERS line. For example, the full span top wing upper half has a tendency to develop a warp or wave, particularly if you keep the kit in a hot room or garage. Not to worry; once the lower halves have been installed, everything pulls down nice and straight. And if you want to really quit worrying about it, it's a simple enough job to install an internal spar from metal tubing or sheet plastic.
Landing gear is another area of concern. The kit gives you faithful copies of the injection kit parts. Trouble is, it's questionable as to whether or not they have the necessary strength to support the finished model. This is a fairly common problem with resin kits. It can be rather easily overcome by doing a little reinforcing with music wire or replacing certain sections with pieces of brass tubing. The later offerings from SCRATCHBUILDERS combine white metal with resin and wire pins.
If you're looking for a 1/32 Staggerwing to add to your collection, this'll do it. Well within the capabilities of any reasonably experienced modeler (even if you've never built resin kits), it carries a price tag of $99. A #10 SASE to SCRATCHBUILDERS, 6025 Marsh Hawk Court, Elk Grove, CA 95758 will get you a price list by return mail. And for those of you in a hurry, check out the SCRATCHBUILDERS web site.
Talk to enough model builders and you'll soon find that there are four or five areas that tend to cause most modelers constant trouble. One area that seems to be the bane of everyone is the masking of canopies. Over the years, we've tried everything from masking tape to various types of commercial solutions. They all have their strengths, weaknesses and a common trait of not working consistently for everyone. Until now. A couple of years ago, a creative Canadian by the name of Chris Loney took a look at Fast Frames, said "I can do better than that!" and did. The result was a product by the name of E-Z MASKS that has spread like wildfire and does exactly what it's name says.
E-Z MASKS are nothing more than pre-cut, self adhesive vinyl masks designed for specific kits. Created by computer, these little boogers take the pain out of masking in general, complex multi-pane and greenhouse type in particular. For example, if you're building the Accurate Miniatures TBF/TBM Avenger or the ProModeler Me-410, E-Z MASKS are a must. Last I heard, there were 80-something MASKS available with a to do list as long as your arm and growing rapidly. Prices are generally in the $3.99/$4.99 range with $2.00 per three items requested to cover postage.
If your local hobby shop doesn't carry E-Z MASKS yet, you can order directly from Chris Loney, RR #4, 75 Golf Club Road, Smiths Falls, Ontario, CANADA K7A 4S5. And that famous #10 SASE will get you a product/price list. Incidentally, even though Chris is in Canada, all prices are in U.S. dollars.
If your interest lies in figures, one of the latest releases from MODEL MASTER should get your attention. Marketed under the TESTOR HSO (Hobby Shop Only) program, kit No. 4906 is a 1/6 scale resin casting of a WW-II Japanese Army Soldier. Designed by Jim Holloway, cast by Jimmy Flintstone and standing some 8 inches tall, he's posed in the act of drawing his sword.
Wearing knee-high leather boots, riding breeches, uniform shirt, visored soft cap and mounted on a base that puts a British style helmet between his feet, the finished figure is quite impressive.
You'll find the figure to be primarily a one piece casting, minus his arms, canteen, holster and leather pouch. The sword/scabbard is a separate piece while the hilt is part of the right hand/arm. All parts are cast in a high quality pale cream resin except for one small metal casting that's used for the portion of the sword blade that has been withdrawn from the scabbard. A small amount of clean-up will be needed before you get to the assembly stage, but no more than you would expect from most resin figures.
The one thing you really do have to exercise some caution on is the pouring points (casting sprue if you prefer). They run to the large side and, as a result, you can't simply nip'em off close to the figure with a pair of dikes. I would suggest a carbide cutting wheel or razor saw to get rid of the largest chunk. Then finish whittlin' it down to the figure with whatever method you're most comfortable with.
Instructions are limited to a single two-sided sheet that offers a generic guide to resin kit assembly on one side and an exploded view of the figure on the other. It's sufficient for experienced modelers, but rank beginners may find themselves somewhat adrift.
Priced at $50.00 (most reasonable when compared to many of the currently available large scale figures), this Japanese Soldier deserves a place in every military figure enthusiast's display case.
Another must-have figure for anyone with the slightest interest in horror films (especially the classic horror films of the 30s and 40s) is a spectacular offering from POLAR LIGHTS. Since the company had been chugging along building a dedicated following of modelers who couldn't wait for their next release of the old Aurora monster kits, this beauty came as a complete surprise.
What am I talking about? How about a 1/4 scale cold-cast porcelain figure kit of The Wolfman as portrayed by Lon Chaney, jr. in the 1941 film of the same name? Mounted on a two part base, surrounded by the intertwined limbs of shattered dead trees and a human skull at his feet, standing some 17 inches tall and weighing in at 7 1/2 pounds (!), only one word even comes close to describing The Wolfman. Magnificent!!! Sculpted by Randy Bowen, a fact that speaks volumes in itself, the assembled kit looks as if a single frame of film from the movie was suddenly converted to 3-dimensional form.
Cold-cast porcelain, for the uninitiated, is resin filled with porcelain (or ceramic) powder. The Wolfman is comprised of 14 georgous white parts, only four of which are required to complete the figure. The base uses two parts, one for the skull and the trees consume the rest. Quality is so high that you almost consider it a sin to paint it!
Whoever cast the parts for this kit (and it was cast in China) is a master of his craft. The reason for that statement is that, try as you might, it is impossible to find parting lines on any piece. In fact, the only seams that can be found after assembly are the horizontal joints where two pieces of tree limbs are joined.
The kit comes packaged in a large box containing two layers of styrofoam. Each piece has it's own individual nest to reside in. Instructions are very thorough. About the only thing you might want that isn't provided by POLAR LIGHTS is a video tape of The Wolfman. Selling for $199 including shipping, The Wolfman is not only reasonably priced, it'd be cheap at twice the price. Needless to say, I'm glad they didn't double the price because there's no way I could've afforded it. And considering the fact that production is limited to whatever can be produced in 60 casting days, you can't shilly shally around, asking yourself "Should I or shouldn't I?". Go get it. Now.
Every once in a while, most modelers wind up needing to do something that there's a dedicated machine for. Say you need to grind a piece of metal stock to an odd shape. Solution? A benchtop grinder. Or you need to strap a portable drill or Dremel in place and use both hands to control the material or model. Solution? A specialized benchtop adapter designed for the specific drill or Dremel in question.
Trouble is, you only have that kind of need once in a blue moon and it's a little hard to justify the cost of a benchtop grinder, never mind the space, for something you may use once every year or two. Ditto for specialized adapters, one for each drill or Dremel you own. So, what to do? Well, thanks to WOLFCRAFT, an answer is at hand.
WOLFCRAFT has just released a neat little Stationary Drill/Hobby Tool Holder that takes care of all the problems just mentioned and more. And just for good measure, it's cheap.
Molded from heavy black ABS, the base is designed to accept the double-legged metal hold-down clamp from any of it's four sides. And if you want to mount the base in a permanent position, there are holes provided for that as well. So how do you hold the tool down? With an ingenious half round, ribbed nylon strap. The strap feeds through the bottom of the base, comes up on either side of the tool and then both ends of the strap thread through an oval shaped ABS nut. When the flat sides of the strap are put together, you get a round, ribbed nylon strap that can be tightened in exactly the same manner as a metal wingnut on a conventional bolt. This thing's worth the money just to see how the strap/nut works!
Nor has WOLFCRAFT forgotten safety. Since it's fairly obvious that, if you clamp a 1/4 or 3/8 inch power drill into the base, you'll be using a wire brush or grinding wheel at some point, they've included an adjustable four-inch diameter wheel guard to boot.
Don't rush down to your local hobby shop to buy one of these tool holders. Instead, check out hardware stores, home centers such as Home Depot, woodworking catalogs and the like. Considering how adaptable it is to modelbuilder's needs, along with a U.S. price of $12.99, it's worth a little effort to track one down.
See y'all next month.