Your model timeline

[Simpo Two]

Prompted by 'Why are there so many threads about Lego?' I thought it would be interesting to compare our model-making development.

For me it went roughly like this:

5-10: Lego
8-16: Airfix and other plastic kits, mostly aeroplanes.
10-16: Fischer-Technik
12-16: Keil-Kraft; first gliders, then rubber power then control line.
Then I moved from aeroplanes to boats, including static and r/c, kits and scratch-built from plans, and one own-design.

[troc]

Something like:

4-now = Lego

Slight detours from 11-18 for all things Tamiya and 13-25 for warhammer miniatures.

[Yertis]

3 – 8 Lego
8 – 15 Airfix etc
In parallel with those various model railways, which I still love in a vaguely academic way.

[Simpo Two]

Yertis said:

In parallel with those various model railways, which I still love in a vaguely academic way.

That's a point. As a teenager I had a rather decent Hornby layout on a baseboard that came down from the ceiling, but I didn't think to include it because my father did most of it; I was largely an observer!

[Yertis]

Simpo Two said:

That's a point. As a teenager I had a rather decent Hornby layout on a baseboard that came down from the ceiling, but I didn't think to include it because my father did most of it; I was largely an observer!

Yes also applies here, especially when I was younger. I had a couple of locomotives that I was allowed to play with, but Dad kept all the best stuff locked in his gun cabinet, with the pistols. I inherited the locos, but thankfully not the guns.

[Elderly]

I’m too ‘elderly’ to remember an exact timeline but under the influence of watching a rather older cousin, I started with Veron solid balsawood jet fighters; they needed a lot of carving and my parents wouldn’t trust me with a balsa knife – so large quantities of course sandpaper were used !

Once I was allowed a balsa knife, it was on to Keil Kraft flying scale rubber powered WW2 fighters.

Then I discovered plastic and I progressed to 2 shillings Airfix kits in plastic bags from Woolworths, those continued for some long time.

When I was 13 I was given a control line trainer with a 1cc ED Bee diesel engine. I crashed it SO many times that I got a water cooling jacket for the diesel and instead put it in a wooden cabin cruiser kit.

The boat kits got larger and I’ve still got an Aerokits Vospers crash tender with a 5cc Miles Special diesel that I built when I was 15.
Then a long break from kits once cycle racing, motorbikes, girls and cars took over........... until ......

[Simpo Two]

Elderly said:

When I was 13 I was given a control line trainer with a 1cc ED Bee diesel engine. I crashed it SO many times that I got a water cooling jacket for the diesel and instead put it in a wooden cabin cruiser kit.

The main reason I switched from aeroplanes to boats was that in the event of a failure, I could simply wade out and get it, rather than either never see it again or sweep it up as matchwood.

I clearly remember the time at school when a friend had built a free flight IC model. We pressured him into flying it before it had been trimmed; it performed a half barrel roll before smashing into the ground. He stumped off in a sulk while we eagerly salvaged the bits of torn and ragged balsa wood for our own supplies.

The other good one was when a boy was demonstrating his flying wing CL model. On the playing field, round and round, lovely. But what he didn't realise was that with every turn he was moving steadliy towards the trees. And so on the final circuit - KAPOW - straight into a spruce tree. Happy days

Edited by Simpo Two on Monday 25th July 23:14

[MBBlat]

Lego -> Airfix -> Tamiya -> RC cars -> Lego -> RC cars -> model railroad -> Caterham 1/1 kit -> Lego -> garden railway -> Pocher -> Tamiya/Takom/Bandai/Airfix (using an airbrush) -> part work -> Lego

Basically I like building stuff and am good at starting, but not good at finishing anything and find painting a bit of a chore. Lego is relaxing, I can finish it and no paint required.

[troc]

I totally forgot the model rocketry - especially as that’s something I still do

[Simpo Two]

MBBlat said:

Basically I like building stuff and am good at starting, but not good at finishing anything...

My record is from 1984 to 2019. For 34 of those 35 years it (an MTB) sat covered up in various garages and lofts until one day I spied it and thought 'Actually why don't I finish that now?' It had ground to a halt because the plans only had two angles not three, so there were various parts I was unable to resolve.

Has anyone taken longer than 34 years to finish a model?

troc said:

I totally forgot the model rocketry - especially as that’s something I still do

There were a couple of American boys at my school who had catalogues of model rockets - it seemed to be an American thing as I'd never seen them before.

[clockworks]

Simpo Two said:

MBBlat said:

Basically I like building stuff and am good at starting, but not good at finishing anything...

My record is from 1984 to 2019. For 34 of those 35 years it (an MTB) sat covered up in various garages and lofts until one day I spied it and thought 'Actually why don't I finish that now?' It had ground to a halt because the plans only had two angles not three, so there were various parts I was unable to resolve.

Has anyone taken longer than 34 years to finish a model?

I've got a Pocher Alfa Romeo that I bought when I was 15. I didn't do a very good job of painting the bodywork (Humbrol enamel aerosol), so I took it apart again. It's still in bits, 50 years later.

[generationx]

3 - Lego
4 - Airfix (mostly aircraft but basically anything I could get my hands on), beginning with a free-be from something like a cereal promotion, possibly a Red Arrow
10 - Tamiya cars, starting with the Ferrari 312T3 1/20 bought on a family holiday in London from Hamley's
16 - Tamiya and Kyosho R/C cars, usually buggies

continued until now on all fronts...

[IJWS15]

7-13 Airfix, Revell, Frog
13-18 - small Tamiya kits as pocket money was limited.
12-18 Kielkraft/Aeromodeller plans (gliders/rubber power)

University and work

60- Tamiya GP cars and Card

[Yertis]

Simpo Two said:

Has anyone taken longer than 34 years to finish a model?

I've a white metal TR6 that I started and nearly finished in 1990, but no not quite 34 years...

Now I'm thinking about it, I started on a motorised Airfix Bulleid pacific in 1980, and found it in Mum's loft a couple of months ago.

I few years ago there was a '24-hour- build thread on here, I think trying to capture the childhood thrill of throwing a kit together and finishing it in one day. My Frog Kittyhawk is still unfinished, mainly because modern paint is rubbish with brushes. I bought a new compressor etc but thats still in its box

I might flog it actually and put the funds toward a car lift for the garage.

[ShredderXLE]

Theres some overlap but broadly speaking starting in the early 80s;

4-9 Lego (never got into technic, mainly space and medieval)
10-13 Airfix + basic Nikko RC buggy
11-17 Heroquest then onto Warhammer 40k + a Graupner elec rc boat kit
17-21 Kyosho Nitro RC touring cars

<many boring years>

39-44 Tamiya RC cars (current era and ongoing)

[Simpo Two]

ShredderXLE said:

Theres some overlap but broadly speaking starting in the early 80s;

4-9 Lego (never got into technic, mainly space and medieval)
10-13 Airfix + basic Nikko RC buggy
11-17 Heroquest then onto Warhammer 40k + a Graupner elec rc boat kit
17-21 Kyosho Nitro RC touring cars

<many boring years>

39-44 Tamiya RC cars (current era and ongoing)

I do find grown men playing with RC cars a bit strange... I think it's because I expect them to have moved on to real ones That said one of my neighbours is a local RC champ.

Also dressing up as Star Wars characters...

[ShredderXLE]

I thought that until they rereleased the Avante which was completely unaffordable when I was growing up and then as an adult I couldnt resist all the carbon fibre and machined alloy parts - im more into the building than running.

[generationx]

ShredderXLE said:

I thought that until they rereleased the Avante which was completely unaffordable when I was growing up and then as an adult I couldnt resist all the carbon fibre and machined alloy parts - im more into the building than running.

That’s me too. The re-re Avante was great to build. I enjoyed the Kyosho Javelin too.

[Simpo Two]

That's a fair motivation - something you couldn't afford at 14 then becoming achievable in later life.

[MBBlat]

Simpo Two said:

I do find grown men playing with RC cars a bit strange... I think it's because I expect them to have moved on to real ones That said one of my neighbours is a local RC champ.

Also dressing up as Star Wars characters...

However dressing up as your favourite football player is considered totally normal Football shirts are a lot more common in your average pub than a Star Wars costume.


PS having a few RC car builds under my belt definitely helped with my Caterham build.