Your thoughts please gents?!?!

[Guest]

Agree with all of that Robert.


Except that you talk of "same league". Well we all started at the bottom where I or others


are I am not sure. Does not matter. If you models provoke a reaction then that is good


enough for me.


From my point of view the most rewarding is to pass on things which help others including


the things learnt from others in the past and the way I have manipulated those things for my


own way of working.


On the stars point of view on completer projects I always give a Great Build as If members have the guts to show


their stuff, whatever the standard, then that is worth a Great Build to me.


Laurie

[Alan 45]

I would like to put in my tupenceworth if that's all right. I started modelling as a child and I never had any political views on what or where a tank came from let alone what it should or shouldn't look like or an aircraft.
To be honest I think I first built a 1/72 me 163 Komet and I painted it red like the instructions said there were no swastikas back then if I can remember rightly and it was hunbrol enamels ( acrylics are taking over ( my view )


Now 30 odd years later I've returned to the hobby and I enjoy it and it's a relaxing hobby but I think there is too much critism out there ( my view )


I stared building my first tank and diorama earlier this year but I have seen the stuff that is in here and I feel it's not worthy of putting it on here to display, my skills ( skills?? ) I have learnt over the years and I'm nowhere in the same league as Si or Alan, Laurie, grumps, Ken etc


These people I learn from and look at their work ( and views ) to better what I do ( not copy or reproduce ) and I find it is still a relaxing hobby. Painting and weathering is an art form ( so we are all artists and yes if you look at the tanks and aircraft, ships figures and even sci fi they are not clean and pristine but battered and weathered, unless you go to a museum ( but even these aircraft/ tanks/ engines/uniforms / even machine guns in museums have weathering and age in them hence the word weathered look


But at the end of the day whatever skills we have or don't have we should enjoy the hobby go with what it is.


Views and critism most welcome


Robert

Thanks for the compliment I very much appreciate that


Good post Robert and I think the vast majority of us modellers would agree with you , ideology gets in the way of everything these days I've had more than one debate about putting a swashtika on an aircraft all I will say is whatever you do with your build is your choice and take it all with a pinch of salt and just enjoy what your doing because that's what hobbies are for

[Guest]

I'd agree with what you've said Robert, because it's all about the personal enjoyment of our hobby.


That said, I often wonder if I enjoyed it more as a 10yo building Matchbox kits with no concept of authenticity or particular accuracy!


Coming back to model making 6 years ago & discovering internet forums ( mostly this one) was a revelation. The techniques & knowledge I've picked up are legion & I'd never have been able to progress without being here.


My views on Great Build awards have been said before. Suffice to say that Laurie & I differ on that point!

[spanner570]

I enjoyed it more as a 10yo building Matchbox kits with no concept of authenticity or particular accuracy!

Patrick I'm still the same now and long may I stay with the same attitude!

[Dave Jay]

All I can say is that I agree with all the previous comments.


I often look back to when I was a younger modeller so much younger than today and remember with fondness at my model achievements back then, I was proud of what I turned out and thoroughly enjoyed the journey getting whatever I was building to being a finished model, okay maybe the finish wasn't quite as good as the finish I strive to today but nonetheless I enjoyed the journey, I think that is why I was tempted to return back to the hobby (with the encouragement of a better more understanding swmbo than the previous one(s)!). My return to the hobby was prompted by a recovery from a nervous breakdown and ensuing depressive episodes, with the support of my wonderful wife and enjoyment I have from whatever I build I am managing to recuperate from the darkness that depression puts you in.


I never lose sight of that pride and sense of achievement I had in my youth when I was building and completing my models and I believe none of us should ever lose sight of what this hobby first gave us no matter what it was and at whatever age.


And note to Robert, no matter what you model and how it's finished, as long as you are happy with the result then that is what matters and I'm sure that your modelling skills are more than acceptable, it would be great to see some of your builds. I thought that my stuff was never good enough to show others, but I plucked up the nerve to post on here and now I'm so glad I did, the reaction I had has really boosted my confidence and helped me realise that us modellers are a great bunch of people with a wealth of knowledge and above all kindness to share that knowledge with like minded people.

[eddiesolo]

ultimatly though it is YOUR choice as it is YOUR model and as long as YOU are happy then what does it matter?
just cos someone says 'you should do this to it' dosnt mean you have to


i build for myself, its my way of destressing from life, i dont build to win medals or awards......yay for those that do cos thats their choice and im always happy to look at their work....but im quite happy doing what i do

Hear, hear, well said.

[Guest]

I thought that my stuff was never good enough to show others, but I plucked up the nerve to post on here and now I'm so glad I did, the reaction I had has really boosted my confidence and helped me realise that us modellers are a great bunch of people with a wealth of knowledge and above all kindness to share that knowledge with like minded people.

Took me a long time to do that Dave. Always thought my stuff was not good enough.


But taking the plunge I found as you obviously did that some very nice people said


some very nice things. That gives encouragement and something I will not forget.


Laurie

[Guest]

I just make models and having only recently come back to aircraft and tanks etc find it interesting and relaxing. My main thing will always be model rail which is a different hobby requiring some engineering and computer skills etc if you want to enjoy the do it yourself part of the hobby. Having tried a tank and two aircraft I have decided to stick with Tamiya. Although the plastic is very thin and the fit is not great it is still in my view worth buying. I only say that as my model rail stuff is made with better quality plastic and more detail with little painting required. It all comes from German manufacturers and as I think Revell is from Germany I was surprised at the poor quality of the kit I bought.


Having said all of the above I enjoying building these kits and the painting side although new I find is great ... not sure if I want to spend up to three times the cost of a kit on buying the paints ... however they do last for future models.


Basically I am really enjoying building these kits and look to continue to do so and increase the level of difficulty but have no intention of competing with any of the excellent models on here just as I would not expect others to fit a new sound decoder and lighting into a model loco.


Hopefully will post a pic of my latest effort in due course and meanwhile I take great pleasure in reading all the builds on this forum.

[eddiesolo]

same league as Si

o_O eh?

[eddiesolo]

Nobody, and I mean nobody should feel ashamed or think they or their work is not good enough to showcase on this site.


Patrick's comments about getting authenticity, painting and weathering is correct, after all, what is the point of sites like this if not to bounce ideas off each other and pool skills or tips that work for us. Afterall, we all started off with glue-bombs dipped in a 5 litre gloss of paint...I still make em. But, I have learned a lot from various members on this site regarding highlights, techniques etc.


It is all a learning curve. This has cropped up a few times...elitist...non of it on here, we all muck in and if you're not sure, ask. This, actually has been shown recently on this site. The member Blair, is 13 years old, his Nimrod was by no-means perfect-he got brush lines his masking wasn't 100%...but the end result was a great looking build-no member slated him or the model-some offered advice and he, obviously didn't feel threatened by big scary modellers and their mystical ways. As it should be.


The advice is there if you look or ask, try it, if your skills are not that great...so what, have fun.

[PaulTRose]

i can think of a reason why we should build german military stuff


this will be a bit of a ramble but bare with me on this,......it came to me in a roundabout way this afternoon


im not just interested in building models......im interested in the history


what ever im building, weather its a ferrari or a phantom or a ducati or a M60 tank i will end up googling it and read up about it......and of course once you start you end up going off at a tangent


earlier today on another forum i was reading someones thread about the Airfix DH Comet.....between the wars racer....something i knew nothing about.....a quick google and i was reading about a GB to Oz air race and how De Havilland designed what actually won....thing is cos the revolutionary new techniques they tried they ended up with the Mosquito many years later......stuff like that i find interesting........i was looking at a Ju 86 on ebay this afto.......heard of the 88 but not the 86 so again i googled it....not a succesful design but Junkers redesigned it to be a high altitude bomber.....that led onto reading about the Westland Welkin......RAF answer to the 86.....ultra high altitude fighter, had pressurised cockpit but ultimately wasnt a success...it had stall issues cos of the wide wing design....the designers next aircraft was the canberra which has a relativly narrow wing.....again stuff like that interests me..........a friend of mine is on holiday in disneyland and posted a pic of the magic kingdom castle on facebook.......jokingly i posted 'colditz?'......i was soon reading about colditz,,,,which led to the glider in the roof....which led to other escape attempts.....which led to the fact that the last guy to escape was possibly killed in mathausen concentration camp cos of a german directive to eliminate any captured escapees (like at the end of the Great Escape) and mathuasen was the place chosen to do this .....that led to reading about mathuasen....a concentration camp ive never really read anything about.....truely horrific and quite different to ones like auschwitz or dachau etc


no doubt every one else is the same.........when i build a german panzer i will be looking for pictures and info, and that of course leads on to reading about WW2 and what the Nazi's got up to


my point is if you start saying that you shouldnt have anything to do with anything ww2 and german cos of what they did then it becomes a way of censorship.....a way of eliminating a very dark part of what is actually very recent history...and i dont think we should eliminate it.......i think its important that people, especially young people, know about history, any part of history

[Guest]

Well, Nazi's is an emotive word & doesn't necessarily describe the German people between 1933 - 1945.


Although in the final free election in 1933 the NSDAP lost previous support, the German people were quite naturally enthusiastic in their support of Hitler in the pre-war years.


The stain of the Treaty of Versailles was felt extremely strongly in Germany, so reclaiming their national pride seemed like the right thing to do.


No-one could have foreseen the Holocaust back then - in fact the death camps didn't get going until well into the war.


I'll build anything, SS vehicles, planes with swastikas on them. It doesn't mean that I support of believe in Hitlers twisted views, but pretending something didn't happen means we're not learning from what did happen. And that risks allowing it to happen again.

[eddiesolo]

Well, Nazi's is an emotive word & doesn't necessarily describe the German people between 1933 - 1945.
Although in the final free election in 1933 the NSDAP lost previous support, the German people were quite naturally enthusiastic in their support of Hitler in the pre-war years.


The stain of the Treaty of Versailles was felt extremely strongly in Germany, so reclaiming their national pride seemed like the right thing to do.


No-one could have foreseen the Holocaust back then - in fact the death camps didn't get going until well into the war.


I'll build anything, SS vehicles, planes with swastikas on them. It doesn't mean that I support of believe in Hitlers twisted views, but pretending something didn't happen means we're not learning from what did happen. And that risks allowing it to happen again.

Interesting points there Patrick. If we look at it a bit further we could find an argument regarding Ron's superb Zulu dio-The British...taking over, forcing rule etc etc, is that wrong to build? No, events in history happen and are still happening, some great, some not and others damn right nasty, yet, as you rightly put, just because we build them does not mean we agree or advocate that that Government, Country, Ideology, Individual is correct and that we concur with them, it.


I also think that history fades people's judgement. If you build a thousand Roman soldiers no one would bat an eyelid, yet they conquered and if the populace didn't do what they wanted they were killed. Yet because it is ancient history that seems to be okay. I also must point out that the Bosnian and Serb war was a bloody, nasty and Genocidal yet that is largely forgotten about, yet you start on about Germany, and the SS and why there is so much interest...they come out the woodwork. Funny old game init?

[Guest]

WW11 is a very complex thing. Complex in that unless you have been thro that war and the


aftermath it is very difficult, perhaps, to understand peoples point of view.


I ended that war as a 7 year old and therefore very much inundated with Hitler and Germans


as being bad. Not actually a hint of NAZI. I cannot remember even the name being mentioned


any where. I can remember going into our own shelter in the garden and also the large


shelters at school. Even now I can smell the damp earthy odour.


The head lines in the paper as I began to read. The news on the radio. The pulse as the news


came up and "This is London calling".


I can also remember a Tempest destroying a V1 or Doodle Bug. Pauline can remember


seeing her Aunt's house a heap of rubble not 10 doors away. I can remember two windows


in my bedroom filled with lino where the glass had gone.


I can remember the talk about my cousin Alan losing his life in a submarine. I remember


the rifle next to the tuba in the hall way of another cousin.


At night in the shelter I can remember the horrible grumble of the V1 going over our house.


I can remember being shuffled around England to escape the bombardment. The V! caught


up with me in Hull. I can remember the thumps as a VIs landed and exploded


I can remember friends who had lost their dad.I remember travelling via London to see my


Grandma in Hull. The empty spaces in London the empty spaces in Hull.


The predominance of women teachers. When I started to train as an Architect the lack of tutors.


The lack of training facilities. But I did manage to fill some of those empty spaces.


I have now lived in Jersey, which was German occupied, since 1962. The way the people of


these Island were treated was awful. Many lost their lives in concentration camps for such


minor activities. They did not harm or kill any Germans


I have built one solitary 109. Can you wonder why.


Laurie

[Guest]

I can't resist the opportunity!


That V1 tracking you down in Hull was a persistent blighter Laurie!


Actually I can understand a little of your attitude & feelings. My grandfather served in submarines during WWII & for years after never had a good word for any German.


Only by about the early 80's did he & a few mates from the Legion meet with some surviving U-Boat crewmen. After that he mellowed slightly, but still never bought anything that was made in Germany!