Well done Sheila

Some superb skills there Heather!

Outstanding

*blush*

As any craftsperson does, I am not entirely happy with the completed models. I aim high, and usually come in slightly below target. I am, however, getting better each time, and I suppose the acid test is the client is chuffed enough with the finished product to pay me.

It looks amazing!

Very nice paint job.

Looks amazing. How does it work then, do they come in some kind of kit form?

Yes, essentially, all the bits arrive flatpack. The floor, sides, ends and roof are moulded in a high quality resin. Detail parts are cast in various metals. The interior details and glazing are laser cut from a plastic sheet. Given a fair wind, construction takes three or four working days, painting probably another three while you wait for coats of paint to dry enough for further layers. The lettering and whatnot is pretty much like your average Airfix kit, being so-called waterslide where you soak the required part in water for a short time, then slide it off the backing into place.

I've been making models of all kinds since I was small, as my Dad let me help him with things he was making. As a hobby, I find it relaxing. As a job, it's just as relaxing - except when the painting doesn't work as planned! The devil is in the details.

As a hobby it might initially cost a bit to get all the tools, but once you have that the effective cost per hour of entertainment making them is so low that it is a great form of entertainment. I went to Hendon museum last year and someone had built a 1:35th scale model of the German Dora gun from WWII. The kit cost £500 or thereabouts but the kit took months to make and paint. If you were to cost that kit on a per hour basis it would be a fraction of the cost of going to the cinema etc.

The Dora model was so large he donated it to a museum, and he has a plaque with his name on it forever.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk.

Any male of a certain age or above spent a fair portion of their childhood making airfix kits of one sort of another. I was in a well known craft shop chain recently and was amazed by the size of the 'plastic model' section, the variety of vehicles and such you could purchase within and the range of brushes, paints etc to go with them. And thats' without even considering the kind of stuff Heather seems to do, which sounds considerably more artisan than the mass produced stuff .

Jon

I was in our local Hobbycraft store yesterday and they had a very sizeable range of kits, plus the paints, etc. I haven't put together a kit model in a very long time but I was seriously considering purchasing a Tank to build. It was either a Panzer or a Tiger Tank and I've never done one of those....mostly WW2 aircraft and space stuff.

Kit making has moved on in leaps and bounds over the years. You can now get metal parts for kits, so parts can be thinner and more realistic. Then there are resin kits and vac forms for the more esoteric kits. The range of decals is incredible. I know someone whose specialty is canadian aircraft over the years, so he needs the decals for those variants. It is a healthy industry.

A couple of years ago, I was shopping in town and somehow ended up buying a 69' Sunoco Camaro model kit.
Loved it.

Bloody hell, how many million cookies does that website want to set?

Had a fab photowalk today down at Dungeness.


Heading home by Snaptophobic, on Flickr


Triumph Stag by Snaptophobic, on Flickr


Gulls by Snaptophobic, on Flickr


Oops! by Snaptophobic, on Flickr


Hemp and Steel by Snaptophobic, on Flickr


Radiator by Snaptophobic, on Flickr


Tools by Snaptophobic, on Flickr