I’ve just finished listening to the latest episode of the Sprue Cutters Union podcast, which was excellent as always. It was the anniversary episode featuring a great discussion between the three hosts, Paul Budzik and David Parker. I highly recommend you give it a listen.

Towards the end of their chat the discussion skates over the fact we do this hobby for fun; it’s not like exercise. And since I was listening whilst doing some exercise, that got me thinking: do I make models for fun? Because I’m not sure I do.

If my wife were to come into my modelling room at any given moment and ask me, “Are you having fun?” I’m pretty sure the answer would be, “No”. It’s not that I’m having the opposite of fun, whatever that is, but it’s just not an adjective I’d use to describe how I feel about modelling, in the same way I wouldn’t describe it as ‘exciting’ or ‘painful’.

But who cares, right? This is surely just semantics. I know that when they touched on this on the podcast they were not making a technical philosophical argument, but meant that this is a hobby, it’s not work (for most of us), it’s optional, a choice; you really can take it or leave it. But I think it might matter, at least to me, and the words we use are important because words are powerful and have consequences.

I suppose I react a little against the ‘it’s meant to be fun’ trope because of the expectations that sets. What do I find fun? Drinking a bit too much with mates is fun. Driving at 150mph on the M25 is fun. Going to Telford for SMW is fun. Having sex is fun. Watching decent comedy is fun. Talking with Scott Gentry and John Bonnani on the Plastic Posse Podcast was fun. Loads of things are fun. And when I sit down at my model bench to sand out a seam, mask a canopy or apply decals should I expect the thirty minutes I spend doing that to be fun? For me, no. It’s not. The worry I therefore have is that if I expect modelling to be ‘fun’ and I sit down and it doesn’t match the experience I get from these other activities, does that mean I’m not going to do it? Is the mythical mojo going to be depleted? Am I asking to much of scale modelling?

My personal perspective (and bear in mind I have written those three words!) is that present day society does hype up our expectations of what we should feel when we engage in fairly ordinary activities. Take work. It seems blindingly obvious to us that you should aim for work that is enjoyable, even though you do not have to go back many generations before that concept would have been nonsensical for vast swathes of humanity. I know the pressure my daughters are facing is the need to find a career they enjoy.

People often ask me that: do you enjoy your job? I never know how to answer. If I say ‘yes’ it implies I enjoy picking up dead bodies, depriving people of their liberty, telling them off, taking their vehicles off them, making them poorer. No one should enjoy these things. I recently stopped a private hire vehicle taking a couple to an airport. It turned out the driver had no licence. I had no choice but to seize his vehicle; they missed their flight. Did I enjoy that? Of course not. But if I say ‘no’ people don’t understand why I do it. If I don’t enjoy it, why not do something else? It would be easy to change.

Like ‘fun’ and ‘modelling’, ‘enjoy’ and ‘policing’ are not a happy pairing for me. But I do both, and both for positive reasons. Maybe I need to find other adjectives.

The SCU guys made a joke about exercise, and the implication it’s not fun. And I completely agree. I loathe exercise with every fibre of my being, yet for professional reasons and to avoid dying from a heart attack before I’m 70 (like my dad), I do it. Regularly. It hurts, it costs me money, and I could spend the time doing something I enjoy or find fun, but I exercise anyway because that’s my expectation: this is good for me and I don’t expect to be having fun at the gym.

To not quite the same extent that’s how I approach my daily modelling sessions. I’m not expecting to have fun, and I think that’s a central reason why I don’t suffer from the mojo-problem. I have no expectations of what emotions the ensuing thirty to sixty minutes will engender. Satisfaction, tedium, pleasure, frustration, enjoyment, disappointment – they will all feature in unpredictable and fleeting moments. It will be what it will be. In the long run, the pleasure will outweigh the frustration and a new model will grace the shelves in the living room. And for me that’s where the real satisfaction and pleasure will be obtained. I know lots of modellers are all about the journey and the model at the end is somewhat disposable, but not me. Looking at completed models is what I enjoy the most, and that’s what keeps me making more (and makes it critically important I make quite a few). I would rather know a little about a lot than a lot about a little (I’ve tried both, and it’s the main reason I hated doing my PhD); similarly, I’d rather make a lot of models to a competent standard than a very few to an exceptional standard. Until I’m retired (if I’m ever blessed to be), I think that choice will always be one I have to grapple with because of the tension between quality and quantity.

One of my great themes is that you are you and I am me. Much conflict on modelling social media platforms could be eliminated if people just realised this. So what I am certainly not saying is that modelling can’t be fun. Of course it can be, and if it is for you, more power to you! But if it’s not fun, it might be worth asking the question: Am I asking to much from this hobby? Is ‘fun’ a reasonable expectation of what it can offer me?

But listening to modelling podcasts: now, that is fun. You can find a list of them here: http://modelpodcasts.com/

Back to home.

© Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

I recently finished Airfix’s 1/48 Supermarine Walrus Mk.I in Aéronavale markings using a combination of the kit decals and some masking. Plenty of Eduard etch was added, along with a Vector resin engine and some Quickboost navigation lights. There are tons more photos here and I hope this will appear in an issue of Scale Aircraft Modelling soon.

© Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

I love listening to the modelling podcasts, which was a revelation as I was convinced the subject matter wouldn’t lend itself to an audio-only format. How wrong I was; I enjoy them all.

Whilst listening to one of the recent Plastic Model Mojo episodes, Dave Knights made a comment along the lines of, “I have only 30 minutes and that isn’t enough time to do what I need to do next”. Now, I think that’s the gist of it. I can’t remember what Dave actually said, and it sounded like a rather throwaway comment, but I’ve emailed him and I think this is a fair representation. I’m not going to go trawling through the last five episodes to find one sentence of audio!

But it did catch my attention and got me thinking, since I often model in thirty minute chunks. In fact, I don’t think there’s anything I can’t make a significant dent in if I’ve got thirty minutes: parts can be glued together, seams can be filled and sanded, a model can be primed or painted, decals added, something masked…the project can always be moved forward. It may not be the most efficient method, but at least it’s moving.

A lot of this is down to the materials that are now available and which I referenced in my previous post on productivity. Superglue sets in seconds and makes a wonderful filler. Lacquers dry just as quick. Mini spray guns mean large quantities of paint can be applied in minutes; I once primed an 1/48 MiG-31 in the half an hour I had before teatime. With a motor tool a canopy mould line can be scraped, sanded and polished in little longer than it takes to dip it in Klear. In the 2020s we’re modelling on steroids and I think it’s us that are struggling to keep up.

Because I actually understand Dave’s comment. I think it’s a psychological block. When I got going on my collection in the mid-90s, things *did* take a long time. Plastic cement did take a while to cure (I was using Revell Contacta dispensed through a tiny needle – horrible stuff). Putty was solvent based, came out of a tube with HUMBROL written on it, and needed at least 24 hours to cure, whereupon it would have shrunk and you’d add more and wait another day. There was a lot of waiting. My paints were enamel. They took ages to handle and mask. Even simple camouflage schemes took multiple sessions because once you’d sprayed a wing, you’d have to wait until the next day to hold the other.

Modelling was an effort. Nowadays I can hold the airbrush in one hand and the sanding sponge in the other, polishing as I go. It’s astonishing. The problem is my mindset evolved much slower than the materials I was using. I was still mentally thinking, ‘It’ll take me x hours to do y’, when in reality it could be done in x/4 (or whatever). You don’t need to wait until tomorrow to mask. You can do it now!

So materials and mindset. There are other factors, too.

You can clean your airbrush quicker than you think you can. It used to take me ages to clean out my Badger 200 siphon feed. That was a real mental block to airbrushing: do I want to have to clean it at the end? But there is a dirty little secret not often spoken of: with a powerful enough solvent (I use a generic gunwash), you can get your airbrush clean enough just by squirting a cupful or two through it (assuming you’re using a paint that will dissolve in such a material; I don’t airbrush water-soluble paints and with them all bets are off). If you’re modelling regularly, in daily thirty minute chunks like me, that’s good enough. You can clean the airbrush more thoroughly the next day if you have a spare moment. Even then, a thorough clean shouldn’t take more than a couple of minutes.

Lastly, I have a plan. Not a complex one, but I know where I’m going. Whenever I finish my modelling session, I know exactly what needs to be done next. Often I write it down, on the decorators paper I use to cover my workbench anew with every project. I jot down lists. It takes seconds and it means that the next day, when I sit down, there is no dithering, no decision making, no getting my mind back in the project: it’s there already; I know what I’m doing. It helps that I only work on one project at a time so don’t get distracted or confused, but it’s a simple trick that has hugely helped me just get on with modelling.

Materials, mindset, maintenance and method.

But who am I to dispense advice? I am not you and you are not me. In all our discussions on mojo, and productivity, and shelf queens and What You Can Do To Fix Your Modelling Problem(s), we too often forget that a lot of it just comes down to psychology. What works for you may not work for me, and vice versa, because we’re wired differently. The idea, for example, of a ‘palette cleanser’ from a different modelling genre is anathema to me; I cannot think of anything less motivating. For others, it really works.

So take what I say with the pinch of salt it deserves, but I will still contend this: In thirty minutes you can make a meaningful dent in any model you’re working on. Prove me wrong in the comments!

For more info on modelling podcasts, visit http://modelpodcasts.com/.

Back to home.

© Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

HobbyBoss’ not-so-acclaimed 1/48 Grumman F8F-1B Bearcat built as an F8F-1 with some terrible Superscale decals. Read about it here.

© Copyright 2021. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

Back to home.

Completing my ‘F-16 and children’ series is AFV Club’s 1/48 AIDC unfortunately named F-CK-1C built out of the box, which can be seen here.

© Copyright 2021. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

When it comes to model aeroplanes, I really geek out, even for what is already a pretty geeky hobby. I make lists. Lots of lists. One of them, which lies at the heart of all the other lists, is an attempt to list every single military aircraft type, defined by unique designation, that has seen operational service since 1946. My aim in my collection is to make as representative a sample as possible of this list in 1/48, which is why I only build one example of each type. There will always be gaps – I’m never going to make a 1/48 KC-135 (although I was tempted by the HPH 1/48 B-36 and B-52, the temptation only being resisted by the fact I’d have nowhere to display them) – but it’s sort of a direction for why I make what I make.

Which means I am interested in the gaps: the aircraft types that have not been kitted in 1/48, either at all or to a standard I’m happy with. And having maintained this list for nearly 20 years, I thought I’d reflect a bit on the gaps that were recently filled and those that remain.

2020 was an okay year for filling some gaps. The ICM O-2 Skymaster was an important aircraft missing for many years and an instant purchase, as was the ICM B-26C Invader, since I’d never been willing to buy and rescribe the Monogram/Revell kit. Airfix obliged with a decent Tiger Moth, which wasn’t exactly a major post-war aircraft, but was an excuse to add another biplane to the collection. Kinetic’s early Harriers were essential buys, as I added the GR.3 and AV-8A to the stash; this is the first time these have been kitted with recessed panel lines and a modern tooling. Lastly, in terms of what was released last year, I was delighted that AMP released a HUP Retriever, which is a gorgeous looking helicopter with some beautiful schemes; the joy I had building the same company’s Huskie only increased my determination to order one of these as soon as they were released. Right at the end of the year I added LF Models‘ model of the a rather obscure OH-13 Sioux variant, the HUL-1 Ranger, simply because I have a thing for little helicopters. So it was a pretty good year for plugging some gaps.

Which leads me to look forward to 2021. A whole bunch of kits have been announced which will plug more gaps in my quest to model a wider variety of post-WWII aircraft.

Kinetic’s Pucara has already arrived this week, and the Hobby Boss MV-22 is on its way to me as I write. Ark Models’ La-11 Fang, will be on its way as soon as the Russians allow post to the UK; I hope their La-9 will follow before too long. Airfix are again in my good books for promising a Chipmunk in the Spring and I’ve pre-ordered it from Hannants. The same goes for ICM’s OV-10A, OV-10D+ and B-26K kits. The Broncos, in particular, will fill a void that has existed for far too long. Freedom Models have released an AT-3, but it’s not available in Europe and they don’t seem that keen to send it our way. I’m holding out for the early version which is promised but has yet to materialise. Also near on the horizon are the Special Hobby/Eduard Tempest II and the Special Hobby SF-260 series. These will be instant purchases once they are available to plug some gaps.

Other kits announced that would plug some holes, but with no sign of any appearance soon, are the AMP Gazelle, TH-55 Osage and HH-43B/F Huskie, Anetra’s Mi-8/17 Hip (we’ve even seen sprues…where is it???), Clear Prop Models’ Firebrand, Kitty Hawk’s Ka-52, Mars Models’ MiG-9, Modelsvits’ F-82 Twin Mustang, Pilot Replicas’ Saab 105, and S&M’s Wasp. All are big gaps I want filled.

Which brings me to what’s still missing. I shall divide these into the Baffling, the Understandable and the Predictable.

The Baffling

Some of the gaps in my list baffle me. I am baffled there are no even semi-decent kits of these kits in 1/48. My assumption is that the kit companies know what they’re doing and know their markets, so I’m not baffled that they haven’t been made; I’m baffled there apparently isn’t a market for them.

Let’s start with what must be widely agreed as the most attractive of all helicopters ever made: the AH-1G. I don’t understand why this isn’t available in 1/48. It’s good looking, it’s pioneering (first dedicated gunship design), and it saw extensive combat use. We have kits of its ugly offspring (the terrible Italeri AH-1W, the barely adequate Monogram AH-1F/S, the great Kitty Hawk AH-1Z), but the original, and the almost-as-good-looking AH-1J are sorely missing. Special Hobby are rumoured to be working on it, but why this is not considered a mainstream viable proposition is beyond me.

Next we have the missing French jets. Why do they get so little love in 1/48? We are crying out for a Mirage F.1. It looks great, has loads of different schemes and loads of different operators. There are rumours of Kinetic working on one; if it’s as good as their Pucara, they can’t get round to it soon enough for me.

Then there are the early French jets. No kits (worth mentioning) of the Ouragan, Mystere and Super Mystere. Again, pioneering aircraft and operated by the Israelis for extra exoticism and cool colour schemes. Who will step up to the mark?

Lots of gaps among trainers have been filled in the last decade, but the Cessna T-37‘s absence cannot be missed. (And if I hadn’t already built an obscure resin kit, I’d say the same about the T-34C.) For the RAF, we’re still missing a Shorts Tucano and a mainstream Jet Provost (yes, I’m aware of the Fly kit).

Early US Navy jets also miss out on the love. We have Tamiya to thank for giving us a model of a plane as wonderful as the Skyray, but the lack of a decent Vought Cutlass – what must be the most exotic design to ever see carrier service – is mind-boggling to me. As is the lack of a Grumman F11F Tiger. I know these were not exactly successful aircraft, but I don’t see how anyone can disagree that they are eye-catching and saw operational service with the largest military machine in the western world, and they flew with the Blue Angels. Throw in an early F2H Banshee as well while you’re at it, and a late one too to make up for Kitty Hawk’s monstrosity.

Even the mighty USAF is missing key aircraft designs. It beggars belief there’s no market for an F-86A or F-86E given how famous the Sabre is and its combat record. No F-86H is rather more understandable, but is a gap that surely should be plugged?

Lastly, it’s the USN again, with the gaping hole that is the lack of conically-nosed Crusaders: the F-8A/B/C/D. Hasegawa never got round to them, and oh I wish they had. (Along with the fat-bellied RF-8.)

So these are the really big gaps for me.

Oh, and I forgot: I assume someone will give us a decent F-35B and the first F-35C before too long.

The Understandable

Next we have the gaps that really, I understand. I can accept the market for them might not be great, but I genuinely think they should be, maybe even will be, made. I’m sure enough of us would buy them…wouldn’t we?

I suspect that the de Havilland Hornet and Sea Hornet well has been well and truly poisoned by the Trumpeter and Classic Airframes disappointments. I hope we get decent and accurate kits eventually. Similarly, the Sea Venom and Sea Vampire surely deserve some love at some point. Keeping with the Royal Navy theme, the absence of a Supermarine Scimitar is a real shame, as is the fact I can’t buy a Fairey Gannet in either its AEW or ASW forms. From the RAF, we’re missing the Supermarine Swift. Every year I hope Airfix announce they’ve scaled up their relatively recent 1/72 kit…just like I hope they’ve decided to make a Westland Puma in 1/48, too….

Some American aircraft have been similarly neglected: a Douglas F3D Skyknight would be unbelievably welcome, as would the side-by-side seater Skyraiders – so many variants unexplored, in US Navy, USAF and foreign service. Early F-94A/B Starfires carried some amazing schemes and would look great alongside modern toolings of the F-94C and T-33 that already exist. The F-89 Scorpion is due a revamp; I fancy a J model. The short-nosed F-105B was a great looking jet that deserves a model.

I’m surprised that a Japanese company hasn’t tooled a Fuji T-1, given we can get good kits of most other operational Japanese aircraft, and similarly I don’t get why a Chinese company hasn’t given us a Q-5 Fantan.

One of the biggest advances in the past 15 years has been the filling of many Russian/Soviet gaps. Some still remain though. There is no good kit of the MiG-27, and a Kamov Ka-25 would complement Hobby Boss’ Ka-27 very nicely. Mil helicopters haven’t been particularly well served, and I’m hoping Zvezda will oblige with an early Mil-24A. I’ve lost track of where the Mil-28 is operationally, but it looks very cool and I’d like one. If someone could do a Yak-25 Flashlight as well, I’d be most grateful.

When it comes to France…all I can say is Sud-Ouest Vautour.

The Predictable

Lastly, we come to the gaps I doubt I’ll ever see filled; it’s predictable no one has made these. But when 2019 gives you a Sud-Ouest S.O.1221 Djinn, you can live in hope.

Business jets get little love, and so whilst a BAe Dominie and T-39 Sabreliner would be awesome, I’m not holding my breath. Same for the Beech C-12 family, which have a bewildering array of great looking variants, but I doubt will get many people’s blood pumping.

Every so often a Canadian makes a call for a decent CF-100. Look, I’d buy one straightaway, but I don’t see it happening anytime soon. Same for a Bristol Brigand. It would be nice to have one to allow the end of the Bristol twin-prop series to be modelled.

A Hiller H-23 Raven would be welcome, and might come from AMP since ultra-obscure choppers is where they camp out. I guess it depends on if anyone actually buys what they’ve made already.

Dare I hope for a McDonnell FH-1 Phantom? No. Nor a North American AJ Savage or B-45 Tornado, however great they might look alongside a Vigilante, Canberra, Tracker, etc.

Pilot Replicas made a well-lauded prop-powered Saab J21A; there’s an outside chance they might get round to the jet-powered J21R, but they seem to struggle to deliver on what they’ve already planned, which is a shame.

I think that’s pretty much it. Looking back over the past 20 years, it’s not that big an ask really. I know others will have plenty of other gaps I haven’t mentioned – a new Buccaneer tooling is an obvious choice, but having built two Airfix kits, I’m not in the market for any more – but this is my personal list. It’s not exhaustive either (I’d probably not say no to an F-104A, since no one’s made one, or an A-4A), but these are the main gaps I’d like filled.

What are yours?

The Addenda

Somewhat predictably, feedback and further musing have highlighted some additional holes. So, further to the above, we have two additional categories:

The Ones I Forgot

I would buy these:

Bell OH-58A/TH-57

de Havilland Canada U-6 Beaver

Fiat G91Y

Hawker Hunter T.7

North American F-100C/F Super Sabre

Sikorsky SH-60B/F

Sikorsky HH-3 Jolly Green Giant

Sikorsky UH-19/Westland Whirlwind (the helicopter. Obviously.)

Vought A-7A/B/C

Westland Scout

This list will get longer, I’m sure.

The Ones I Don’t Care About

Some holes have been plugged in my collection by obsolete, inaccurate kits + corrections, or models I think are good enough, and so I have no need of better kits. However, were I starting again I would definitely be agitating for:

Bell UH-1B/C/E

Blackburn Buccaneer

Convair F-102 Delta Dagger

de Havilland Venom

Fiat G91R

General Dynamics F-111

Grumman F9F Panther

Lockheed U-2R/TR-1A. We need accurate older versions, too (shame on you AFV Club!).

Lockheed F-16A/B/D/exotic foreign variants. Another bonkers omission in the world of 1/48

Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star

North American T-6 Texan

North American T-34C Turbo Mentor

North American FJ-1 Fury

SEPECAT Jaguar. Were someone to make a decent two-seater, I might be tempted.

Sikorsky UH-60 series

Sukhoi Su-7 Fitter

Sukhoi Su-15 Flagon

Sukhoi Su-24 Fencer

Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot

Yakovlev Yak-15 Feather

Back to home.

© Copyright 2021. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

It might be 37 years old but sadly it’s still the best 1/48 F-16A on the market. Hasegawa’s venerable kit is US Navy markings can be seen here.

© Copyright 2020. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

The most fun I’ve had building a kit in ages: AMP’s 1/48 HUK-1 Huskie. Full build article here.

© Copyright 2020. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.

I don’t usually make this sort of post, but today is an exception.

Warren Starrett has managed to get an astonishing amount of industry interest in a new endeavour he’s pioneering: The Golden Sprue awards. As I understand it, this is a community-led way of nominating and voting for what we think is the best product in various modelling categories: kits, paints and aftermarket. Nominations are now open for 2020 until 25th September and voting will commence from 3rd October. The results will be announced in mid-November.

It’s a bit of fun, there are some great prizes available, and the more people participate, the more meaningful the results will be. All the the information is available here: https://www.goldensprueawards.com/

1 collection, 26 years, 142 aircraft and this is my greatest failure yet. Read all about it here.

© Copyright 2020. All Rights Reserved. Jonathan Bryon.