Iron Modeler

Lest We Forget

This weekend is Memorial Day Weekend in the United States, usually it is the unofficial start to summer vacations, camping trips, cookouts, and fun.  Sometimes, though, the meaning of this coming Monday gets lost in the shuffle or twisted to fit something that it isn't.  Monday is the day here in America where we remember those who answered the call, went to fight, and never returned. 

So, we remember.  We remember the Minutemen and Colonial soldiers at Lexington, Concord, Cowpens, Trenton, and Yorktown.

We remember the Americans who defended Washington in 1812.

We remember Billy Yank and Johnny Reb, those brothers who fought on opposite sides of a war over States' rights.

We remember the sailors aboard the USS Maine when she sank in Havana Harbor.

We remember the Rough Riders who rode up Kettle and San Juan hill, but never rode back down.

We remember the Doughboys who went off to Europe to fight the Kaiser in The War To End All Wars, men whose ability to fight was questioned at first--but not for long.

We remember those brave Knights of the Air, who flew flimsy crates against an enemy who was better equipped.

We remember the Americans who died at Pearl Harbor.

We remember the Americans fighting on land, at sea, and in the air to slow down the Japanese steamroller in the Pacific, and, at the same time, taking the fight to the Fascists and National Socialists in Europe for the second time in 25 years.

We remember the men and women who fought "The Forgotten War" in Korea.

We remember the Americans who perished in the tunnels below, rice paddies on the surface, and high in the skies of Vietnam.

We remember, too, those who died fighting the Cold War.  While there was little shooting, the dangers were as real as any war.

We remember Beirut, Grenada, and Panama, and the men and women who died doing their duty in those locations.

We remember those who perished in the deserts of Kuwait and Iraq, and in the mountains of Afghanistan.

We also remember those Americans, service members or not, who died in the attacks of September 11, 2001.

For if it weren't for their sacrifice, America would be a far different place. 

My American friends, whatever you do this weekend, be safe.  And stop to pay respects to all the Americans who remain forever young, knowing they did so to keep America free.

Be good to one another.  Thanks for reading, and I bid you Peace.

Wasn't that fun?

I'm still recovering from the IPMS/USA Region 12 show, held yesterday in Columbia.  To say it was a success would be an understatement.  We had 87 contest entrants enter 466 models.  An additional 123 people visited us.  50+ vendor tables were more or less packed full of goodies.  I know of one minor glitch (and, as Lloyd Christmas said to his pal Harry Dunne in "Dumb and Dumber", "I took care of it!"), but everything else went of with nary a hitch.  I was so busy either manning our vendor tables or executing my Assistant Chief Judge duties that I didn't get any photos, and I didn't get to circulate very much.  I'm still seeing photos of models that were entered in the show--and wishing I saw some of them in person.  That's the way it goes, though--you get so busy with helping run the show that you miss the show.  No matter, though--I saw all the aircraft up close and personal, and the quality of the work was super.  I managed to see the best of the other categories, too, and if the other ACJ's had the same quality of work, then judging a lot of the classes and categories was tough!

Speaking of vendors, we managed to fill our two tables with no issues--and we managed to sell off most of what we had.  Now, I wasn't proud of my stuff--when someone asked why I was "selling out" by pricing them low, I told them that most of this stuff had been moved 8 times, and the last time a lot of it saw the light of day was when I did the inventory last year.  Bought with the greatest of intentions, my interests had either changed or I simply realized that I didn't need the kit.  Yes, I could have done the eBay thing and made more money.  I could have priced them in line with one of the many kit collector pricing guides.  And I most likely would have wound up hauling two thirds of it home again.  I told anyone who asked that I was more interested in seeing that someone who would build the kits got them than I was in making a ton of money--and anyone who tells you model kits can make you a ton of money is either very patient or operating under a delusion that everything he or she has stashed is worth more than it actually is.  What didn't sell got donated to one of the local models for the troops groups--they have the kits on hand for troops who are either waiting to deploy, just back from deployment waiting to go home, or injured troops recovering in various facilities.  Again, that goes along with the theme that I wanted to see these kits get built by someone who would enjoy them...

Back to the "I missed the show" theme--back in the day when we held shows in Florida (IPMS/USA Region 11), a good many of the shows were two-day affairs.  Registration would be on Saturday, judging would be done Saturday evening, and the awards ceremony would be on Sunday.  With the judging being done after the show closed down for the day, you had opportunity to go and look at all the models.  The room was empty except for the judges, which left them pretty much unencumbered by the show's visitors, all of whom were still trying to get a look at the models.  Up here, I don't think I've been to many two-day shows--most are Saturday-only, and the ones that are more than that are usually Friday night-Saturday deals.  There are many reasons for this, and I've noticed a lot of the shows I used to go to in Florida are now one-day events, too.  The last show I was directly involved with in Ft. Lauderdale was expensive--the venue alone was $2,400 for the weekend, and we had to guarantee a definite number of room-nights to get that rate.  I can see why one-day shows are becoming the norm.

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My trip to Dallas was uneventful.  I was glad to see the folks at American Airlines are still working hard to get people from one place to another amid the ongoing bankruptcy and rumors of mergers.  The folks I dealt with for both flights were friendly and professional.  The Embraer Regional Jets, though, are looking tired.  And I'm still puzzled why, with the airplanes in service for this long (initial in-service for the type was 1999), someone at Honeywell hasn't done something to kill that annoying roll oscillation that the airplane exhibits in cruise.  It isn't that bad, but you do notice it.  If Learjet could do it back in the days of analog circuits and systems, surely a digital or software fix would be possible.

Thanks for reading, and if you attended the show on Saturday, thanks for attending.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

On SIDNA*, deaths, and taxes

(* SIDNA = Shit I don't need anymore)

In the words of Justin Wilson (the late Cajun chef, not the racer), "How y'all are?  I'm so glad for to to see me some more..."

Here in the Greater Upper Midlands Co-Prosperity Sphere, we're in the last stages of preparation for the IPMS/USA Region 12 show coming up in Columbia (as an aside, I love the fact that I moved from a city who in the mid-1980's used the advertising slogan "Ft. Lauderdale...it makes me hot" to one that uses "Columbia, SC--Famously Hot".  I guess I shouldn't complain about the oppressive summers, huh?).  We've done all we can as a club to prepare for the show--we have the awards finished, we've made all the signage and table cards, the venue is ready, all we have left to do is set up on Friday, hold the show on Saturday, and then we can rest.  My final act of vengeance will be to go through the stash and do some serious house cleaning.  I've told you about The Stash, and how, like Great Stuff foam, it expanded to fit the available space.  It does that from time to time--the last real serious Fleet Reduction and Rationalization exercise was about a dozen years ago, back when I lived in Ft. Lauderdale--I slashed my armor collection, along with a bunch of miscellany that I had amassed over the years, many of which I was working at the local plastics emporium for store credit.  I had a minor SIDNA sale again in 2005, where I disposed of a great many of my 1/48 scale World War I airplanes.  This time, it will be a major sell-off (but not sell-out) of kits that have been eclipsed by newer, better engineered kits, or kits I have multiples of, or kits that I will honestly never get around to building.  That's one of those "older and wiser" things, by the way--I'm now in my late 40's, and given my current rate of production, I'll need to live to be 347.6 years old in order to build everything I have--and that's only if I stop buying kits right now and never buy another.  Where's the fun in that?  So, if you're at the show next week, you may be able to snag a bargain...or two...or three.  And then, some years later, you'll wonder how your collection got to be so large.  Then you'll ponder your own SIDNA sale.  See?  It self-perpetuates...

The thing that will make next week hectic is that once again, come Tuesday, I will be on an iron bird to The Big D, this time for a short training session.  I wasn't going to go, but this will be my only chance for a while to get this training, which I really need to stay current in my profession.  I told them I'd go on the condition that I absolutely, positively needed to be back in South Carolina by Friday morning--and if it meant they sent a company airplane for me, so be it.  I'm hoping that American Airlines is still running smoothly, despite the recent turmoils there.  So, out on Tuesday at noon, back in Columbia at 11:05PM Thursday, the Good Lord willing and the creek doesn't rise.  A few hours at the shop early Friday to fill out expense reports and time cards, then Let The Show Begin!    

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By now, all of you in the U.S. will have made your annual homage to the Tax Man.  We got a late start, but everything got filed with a week to spare.  I feel sorry for those who burned the midnight oil to get it all done by the 17th--but you had a few extra days, right?  The best laid plans...

We usually gt a refund, and this year was no different--although the refund was smaller.  I hold some degree of respect for people who are constantly re-filing their withholding forms so they break even at tax time--"I don't want to give the IRS an interest-free loan, and I don't want to owe, either!"  Good on ya--but I can't see doing that.  Nope, I'll stand pat and let the chips fall where they may...

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The music world lost a few this week.  America's Teenager, Dick Clark, died on Tuesday at the age of 82.  I was agnostic towards Dick Clark--I remember him more for his TV productions and his New Year's Rockin' Eve shows than I do for American Bandstand.  And honestly, it was hard to watch him on New Year's Eve the past few years, after a stroke had slowed him down.  I give him credit, though, he was bound and determined to do the show, and that he did.  I suppose the mantle will be assumed by his sidekick, Ryan Seacrest.  I can live with that. 

Levon Helm died Thursday at 71 years old, after a long fight with the Big C.  I knew of "The Band" and of Levon's work, but I wasn't a huge follower.  Their collective contributions to music, though, were many.  As the NPR report on his death said, at a time when most rock acts were trying new things (and new substances), Levon and The Band went almost retro, doing more country-blues based stuff than electric music.  I was also glad to learn that he and Robbie Robertson spoke to each other before Levon passed.

And, finally, Greg Ham was found dead on Thursday.  Children of the '80s know him as the flute and sax player for the Aussie group "Men At Work".  His most notable moment came when he played the flute solo in the video for their song "Down Under". 

If you believe in the theory of Threes, we should have a break.  But the news about Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees isn't good...

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I'm off to sort the SIDNA.  If you are going to the show next week, I hope you enjoy yourselves--we think it will be a great event.  Shows like this take a lot of work to be successful, and we're hoping the hard work pans out for you.

In the meantime, thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

 

New month, new progress...

Howdy!

It seems that once again I got real busy with "other stuff".  In no particular order:

We're packed to the rafters (so it seems) at the regular job--two in work with one on a fast simmer, waiting for work to continue on it.  We actually started the one simmering away before the other two, but the other two were booked well in advance, so they took center stage.  If the third arrival goes well (we're evaluating it for a possible purchaser), then the Fun-O-Meter will bend the needle around the peg at the high end, since it goes from a fairly non-invasive inspection to something similar to what we did with the Learjet we inspected last year.  This one's a Hawker 800, and we may wind up doing the major structural inspections on it.  We have a Learjet in for inspections and work that should be leaving on Thursday.  The one we started on and set aside is a Cessna Citation VII, which has a lot to be done to it, too.  So, my days are pretty full.

On the "away from work" side of things, the local IPMS Chapter is hosting our IPMS Region 12 Regional show in a few weeks, so preparations for it are going on every spare weekend we can find.  A few weeks ago, we assembled the award plaques, we've had numerous judging meetings, and we're in the process of doing the table cards.  In addition to that, the local AMPS Chapter is co-hosting our Second Annual show in July--as soon as the dust clears from the IPMS Regional, we go into full APMS prep mode.  Fortunately, we have table cards and the like already done--and we designed both the AMPS and IPMS cards to be reusable--and we know the facility, so set up will be fairly easy on that one.  But there are always those little things that, if forgotten or poorly planned can take a huge bite out of one's ass.  So, we meet to discuss.  And discuss some more.  The better we plan now, the better the show will be for all involved.

And, finally, I plan on having a few vendor tables at the IPMS show.  I've still not totally completed my kit inventory, but I do need to thin the stash, which means it is time for a SIDNA sale (In case you forgot, SIDNA=Shit I Don't Need Anymore).  And, since the wife has some SIDNA of her own, we're going to try and sell it to someone who will need it more than we do.  I think it has been at least 7 years since I sold off SIDNA, and the last time I did a real good house cleaning was at least 12 years ago, at one of the (in)famous IPMS/Flight 19 Holiday Party/Kit Auction meetings.

Add to that the fact that the company I work for is really pushing their wellness program (which takes up some time at the computer as well as the exercise bike and walking), and my "free" minutes aren't many.  Regardless, I have started to make more progress on the Dragon 1/35 scale StuG. IV--I've been adding some of the smaller bits to the main sub assemblies, and one of these days I'll tackle the link-to-link track. 

Speaking of which, I did tell you about my Dragon 1/35 scale M50 Super Sherman, no?  I had built the kit back in the late 1990's when it was first issued.  Now, it isn't a bad kit--typical of Dragon at the time, it used a multi-purpose lower hull (which meant you had to measure to locate the suspension parts), it had the typical "if the real thing had 3 parts, we'll break it down into 12", and it was based on the M4A4 with the extended hull.  Even so, it makes a nice model with a little work.  The worst aspect of the kit are the horrid rendition (in link-to-link, no less) of the T80 tracks.  I built mine out of the box, racks included.  Somewhere in the interceding 14 years or so, the tracks exploded like popcorn, so I started looking for new tracks--and found them, from AFV Club.  They tout these as "workable", which they are, but since the wheels get glued in place, why?  Anyway, each link consists of the track pad, the guide horn, and two ityy-bitty end connectors.  AFV Club would have you belaieve everyhting stays to gether by a friction fit.  Yeah, that didn't work out so well.  Add to that the fact that the sprockets were, by necessity, epoxied onto a dowel to get them spaced properly away from the hull, which means no easy adjustments.  I have most of one side done.  I'm resting my eyes in order that I might regain enough sight to finish that side and do the other...

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

Cars

Lately, I've been thinking that it might be time to get a new daily driver.  My current car is actually a truck--a 1999 Toyota Tacoma V-6 PreRunner extended cab pickup.  I've owned it since new, and as of this afternoon it has 343,456 miles on the odometer.  It has been as close to bulletproof as I think a vehicle can be, and has given me no major problems to worry about--until recently.  Late last year, the air conditioning compressor went out, which cost a bit of cash to fix.  At the last service visit, I was advised that the steering rack was leaking and probably should be replaced.  The transmission is getting jerky going up hills.  The Cruise Control "ON" annunciator has been out for a year or so now (but cruise still works), and the airbag light stays on for an ever-lengthening period of time when I start the truck.  Now, were the truck a wee bit younger, or had fewer miles, I'd go ahead and pony up the dough right now to get these matters attended to.  But with 10,000 miles to go until the next 90,000 mile interval--and all Toyota owners should know what that means (timing belts, trans flush, diff flush, etc., etc.)--I'm beginning to wonder what will be the next major failure.  And I'm starting to realize that the truck's days of a 90-mile round trip, five days a week are coming to an end.  I won't trade the truck--I won't get much in trade, maybe $3,000--and where I live, you need a truck to do those around-the-homestead errands like run the recycling to the drop off center, haul stuff to and fro, and to use when the weather isn't very hospitable to a car.  Nope, the truck has served me well and deserves a retirement in the country...

I've been looking at something that gets better gas mileage than the 20- to 22mpg I currently get, and I want something that I can pay off quickly.  All of this points to a compact or subcompact.  I want a car that will be reliable for many years, and one with a good warranty.  Like it or not, that points me towards either a Japanese or Korean car (I'm starting to gravitate towards either a Hyundai or Kia).  And that got me to take a look back at the cars I've owned in my lifetime.

My first car was my father's 1978 Datsun 510 station wagon, with the nearly indestructible 1,952cc inline four cylinder engine driving a four speed manual transmission which was also nearly indestructible.  I started driving it in 1981, after dad got a company car.  After some wheeling and dealing, I got the car--I'd need something to get me between Ft. Lauderdale and Daytona Beach.  That car was through a lot--both my brother and I learned to drive with that car.  We probably were the reason for the first clutch replacement.  My brother was in an accident when a guy ran right into him.  The car got fixed and was nearly as good as new.  But, being a Datsun from the 1970's meant that the steel was unprotected.  About the time I started driving the car, rust was becoming evident.  See, Datsun didn't use any sort of anti-corrosive primer or coating on their metal.  Couple that with a rubber compound in the door drains that tended to swell shut when submerged in water, the doors were the first places to show evidence of corrosion.  Also remember that this car saw a lot of Daytona Beach--those were the days you could drive on the beach, down by the water.  You could wash the car every hour and still not be able to keep up with the salt-laden air.  So, I learned my fair share of shadetree body work during the time I owned that car.  By the time I traded it to my mother for her 1982 Toyota Corolla, the Datsun had had three clutches, five sets of brakes, a transmission rebuild, one brake master cylinder, one clutch master cylinder, and was 85% Bondo by volume.  Mom and dad traded the Datsun for Mom's new car, a 1987 Hyundai Excel 5-door (which taught me a lesson about buying a first- or second-model year of anything).  I'll bet that little Datsun 2L engine is still being used, though, maybe to power a well or something.  I miss that car...

The replacement was a 1982 Toyota Corolla.  Mom bought the Corolla to replace her 1981 Dodge Reliant-K station wagon that exploded a transaxle at about 11,000 miles.  Funny, a lot of people we know who had K-cars had the same thing happen at almost the same mileage.  Now, my mom is easy on cars--she could be the prototypical Little Old Lady from Pasadena.  The Toyota was a good little car that could get her from home to work, and back again safely.  It could get her where she needed to go--and that meant that it saw little of the Interstate (I-95, in this case).  See, mom doesn't like the Interstate or Florida's Turnpike.  She likes quiet roads where she doesn't feel hounded.  But I had to drive the Interstate and the Turnpike.  One thing I learned very quickly was that in order to merge, I had to shut off the A/C, drop the transmission to "L". and floor it.  I would manually shift through the automatic trans until I hit "D"--and by that time I hoped to be up to about 60mph.  The Toyota served its purpose--it got me through my last year of college and through a year at work in the real world.  The only real problems I had with this little car was a balky fuel pump (it would mimic vapor-lock, and would manifest itself at the worst times--like on I-95 just outside Boca on my way home for the weekend) and a ruptured oil pressure sending unit.  I had the same part go bad on me on the Datsun, and it took literally 10 minutes to change back then.  It took me several hours on the Toyota, since they located it on the most inaccessible part of the engine.

By 1989, I was ready for something that had a little more oomph--the Toyota was starting to show signs of an impending need for a transmission rebuild, it needed brakes, and honestly, I didn't think the car was worth the work.  So, it got traded for what would be my first "new" car, a 1989 Chevrolet S-10 Blazer.  I hauled a lot of stuff for work, so I needed something bigger than the Corolla.  The truck had the 4.3 V-6, which was the first source of heartburn for me.  After about 20,000 miles, the truck would smoke on start.  The Chevy dealer knew right away what the problem was--weak valve springs.  I took the truck in, and they fixed it under warranty.  They also fixed some rust I found on the truck.  Then, more heartburn--I couldn't keep front brake pads from wearing out.  I tried every type and manufacturer I could, they all would last maybe 10,000 miles.  I had the rear brakes adjusted and re-adjusted.  Same deal.  I could never solve that problem.  I had an accident in a parking lot that required suspension arm replacement on the passenger side.  I started to get some bad tire wear.  Before I could fix that, I was in another accident where an old lady hit me nearly head-on while I was on my way home from work.  The driver's side headlight bucket was even with where the center of the front wheel had been, the roof was buckled, the engine block was cracked--and the insurance company still wanted to fix it.  I finally was able to convince them that it wasn't in their best interest when I asked the Service Writer at the dealership to crawl under the truck with a string.  He held the string at the output of the transmission, I took the other end, pulled the string taut, and held it at the input of the differential, and you could see that the driveshaft was not straight, but more of a gently arced rainbow shape.  They totalled the truck.  Honestly, I was relieved to get rid of the truck.

But, apparently I hadn't learned quite enough.  The replacement to the Blazer was a 1993 GMC S-15 Jimmy SLE 4-door, 4.3L Vortec power--this was the last year for the "square" Blazers and Jimmys, 1994 saw the redesigned, rounded models.  At first, it was a great truck.  Then, at 20,000 miles, it would smoke when I started it.  I've seen this play before (and wondered how, in four years, General Motors couldn't fix the issue with their 4.3L V-6 engines), so I had the dealer fix it under warranty.  After that, things seemed good--except again, I would burn through a set of front brake pads in 10,000 miles.  I guess GM still hadn't figured that one out, either.  Anyway, I drove the truck for the next five years or so with few problems.  Then, at about 60,000 miles, trouble hit--big time.  I never had issues with starting--the truck had an electric fuel pump.  You'd turn the key, wait a few seconds until you heard the pump, then start the truck.  It would rarely crank over more than once before starting.  Well, it got more and more difficult to start.  Took it in, and I was told that the fuel plenum was bad.  A new one was $500.  Well, it sure beat a car payment (I had recently paid the truck off), so I had it replaced.  Then, the next oil change came with a surprise in the form of a bad filter adapter--the gasket split, and I dumped at least 10 quarts of oil on the road between my house and the dealership (5 of those being Mobil 1, since the only place that was open where I could buy oil was the local Mobil station, and they were out of non-synthetic oils).  Okay, that got sorted.  Two weeks later, the coolant pump shit the bed in magnificent fashion.  New pump, all is well.  Then, the radiator tank split a seam.  Fixed.  Last straw?  The freeze plugs started seeping--badly--at 70,000 miles.  With a $1,500 quote to replace all 12 (including the ones behind the bell housing), I declined and decided that the time was nigh to end this madness.

So, I traded the Jimmy for the Tacoma.  And until recently, I haven't looked back.  And if I follow the pattern, wouldn't I be due to buy a Nissan?  Then again, with the warranties the Koreans are offering, they'll get a stong look from me.  I'm as Buy American as they get, but I was burned on not one but two American vehicles (sure, fome the same family--but other members of the family were just as burned by the other two branches of the Big Three--see my story on the K-Car above).  Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, and I'll buy a Toyota...or Hyundai...or Kia.  And I remember when all of them were the proverbial "cheap rice-burners", even the Toyotas.  They've obviously learned something that the domestic auto builders haven't--Ford and GM still only have a 3/36 warranty, when Toyota and Nissan are 6/60 and the Koreans are offering 10/100...

That being said, people often ask me what my dream car would be.  Well, if they never wore out and gasoline and maintenance were free, here are my Top Three:

1.  1970 Hemi 'Cuda (with a nod to a 440+6 powered 'Cuda as well)

2.  1969 AMC AMX or Javelin

3.  1964 Jaguar 4.2L XK-E

Alas, the MOPAR of yesterday is long gone, AMC was sacrificed to the Gods of Daimler when Chrysler-Jeep needed money, and Jags, while nice, are maintenance intensive.  (sigh)  At least I have model kits of all these...

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Tonight marks the 100th post to my little corner of the Interwebs.  While I had hoped to do more frequent updates--like, maybe daily--it isn't in the cards.  I'm trying to make more frequent posts, really, I am, but this is a bit of work, especially when I have a lot of photos or a lot of research material that needs to be formatted, cleaned up, and posted.  I'll stick to updating when I am able, and when I feel like I have something to share that you all would appreciate.  I can't compete with any of the daily websites, and I won't try to.  I'll just keep throwing out snippets when I can.

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

What the funk?

Hello, folks!

After a long absence, I've finally carved out enough time to update the place.  Why the absence?  Well, the last trip to Dallas put a kink in a lot of things, and it was really more drama that I'd like to remember.  I'm also doing my best to try and fight off the creeping crud that seems to circulate around the hangar at this time of year--I've been moderately successful so far, but I fell like I may have caught some of the fringe.  Then, well, I got into a funk--a pretty deep funk, too.  I'm still in a mild funk, but I think I've found a few things to keep me occupied , and that might just pull me back into the world.

First, a catch-up is in order.  The Rolex 24 at Daytona came and went this year, and like most years, we worked on models.  My wife built a Fujimi Mazda RX-8 kit during the race, and I think it came out very nicely.  I, on the other hand, didn't really feel like doing anything.  About an hour into the race, I decided that the 1995 Monte Carlo that has been featured here before was about three hours from being done, so I pulled it out of the queue on the bench and brought it downstairs.  It took a little longer that I first estimated, but I did get it all finished--or as finished as it is likely to be.  I haven't taken any photos yet, but once I do they'll get posted here.  Oh, and congratulations go out to Mike Shank Racing for taking the top step this year--a hard-fought win, one that is well-deserved.  Magnus Racing took the GT honors...

We also helped out at December's South Carolina Historic Aviation Foundation's celebration of the 70th Anniversary of the opening of Columbia Army Air Field.  Three of the local modeling clubs put on a display of aircraft, ship, and armor models depicting World War Two subjects.  The event was well-attended, and the Foundation was pleased to see as many models as they did--we filled 10-12 tables with models. 

I've also taken out an old build for a rehab.  The model in question is Dragon Models original (1mid-1990's-vintage) Israeli M50 Super Sherman.  If you've ever seen and/or built one, you know that the kits takes some work, and that the tracks are perhaps the worst rendition of the HVSS T-80 tracks ever produced.  They're also a link-to-link track, with not a lot to keep them together.  Well, when I moved from Florida, they exploded like popcorn.  Some links were lost and gone forever, while the rest was a hot mess.  Well, the other week at the hobby shop, I spied not only Tamiya's new 1/35 scale M51 ISherman, but two sets of AFV Club's replacement track.  "What the hell", I thought, "Tamiya's vinyl tracks are good but not great, and I always have the M50 that need replacement track.  How hard could this be?"  I think you have pretty much deduced the answer.  The tracks look great, and they go together moderately easy--until you get to the part where you install the end connectors.  Even that isn't the worst part--the end connectors won't stay put without glue, which makes wrapping the track around the running gear a real adventure.  And I must have forgotten that the M50 was based on the longer-hulled M4A4--I counted out 79 links (and added a few for insurance), since that's supposedly how many a standard-hulled, HVSS equipped Sherman is supposed to have.  Well, this one will take more along the lines of 85 or 86 per side.  Now, I'm pretty sure the pitch was the same 16" as the VVSS Shermans, so the only explanation I can think of is that the kit is based on the longer M4A4, or Dragon really screwed up.  No matter, there are enough parts in the box to get the job done.  There are some loose parts to reattach, and some touch up needed, but once I get these &*%)(*^) tracks to behave, I can paint and weather them, and reassemble the beast.

I've still got the other projects on the burner, too.  They'll get some love shortly.

And, lastly, we have a model show coming up in late April--the IPMS/USA Region 12 Regional Show, to be exact.  I've already sponsored a trophy (Best Ship) and may do more.  I also reserved two vendor tables, too, to get rid of some of the SIDNA that's accumulated upstairs.  It will be nice to move some of the kits that I know I'll never build. 

Work is a bit on the slow side right now--which is fine by me.  We have two of our technicians out of town for the next week or two, working in our Grand Junction shop.  We're waiting for a few people to finalize their quotes and bring their airplanes in, too.  We're also looking for a larger (better) place to set up the shop. 

The last, and most exciting (for me, anyway) think to arise over the past two months is another research project.  Out Learjet Program Manager's father flew B-24's out of Italy during WWII.  His dad's health is an up/down deal--one day it is up, the next it is down--and he's reached the point where he can't live without constant supervision.  While they try to find him a nursing home, they've been gathering his stuff in order to vacate the assisted living facility where he had been living, and they're finding all sorts of his wartime memorabilia.  Scott wants a model of a B-24 flown by his dad, so that's what I'm working on.  So far, I've hit some dead ends, roadblocks, and faint leads.  The more I dig, the more I find--and I keep telling Scott to find his dad's photo albums and logbooks.  I'm having fun with this, so far...

Here's hoping I get the funk out and get the funk going...

I hope to see you at the Region 12 Regional Show if you're in the neighborhood.

Thanks for reading--and sticking around.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

 

"The hobby is dead, Long Live the hobby!"

I finally was able (once again) to get a weekend off, so the wife and I took a ride to Aiken, SC and Augusta, GA (part of the reason for the ride was to reconnoiter a possible driving route for an upcoming event).  While in town, we stopped in at the HobbyTown USA in Augusta.  Dave has a large selection of kits, the largest selection I've seen since I left South Florida.  So, I wasn't really surprised to see that he had several new kits as well a a whole mess of reissues in stock.  Some random thoughts follow...

I like what Round Two Models is doing.  In case you haven't noticed, they acquired the rights to several manufacturers' catalogs from years gone by, including AMT, MPC, and Polar Lights.  Dave had the reissue of AMT's 1/25 scale 1976 AMC Gremlin X in their "Original Art Series".  You get the same AMT plastic from years gone by, and they also include an 11" X 14" print of the artwork less any other copy--no logo, no other text, just the artwork.  I just had to pick the kit up, since this is just the type of kit I grew up building.  The plastic parts are quite nice--no flash, very nice, very clean.  It looks like it will be a fun build, too.  The other things about this kit that caught my eye was that Round Two encloses a small fold-out catalog of their products as well as a postcard that asks the buyer "What do you want to see from Round Two Models?"  It warms my heart to see a company is once again willing to listen to their customer base.  The other Round Two products that caught my eye were a Limited Edition of the 1/16 scale Dodge Charger in the guise of a "Street Charger"--rumor has it that the NASCAR version (the Petty Charger) will be released shortly.  Also, their 1/25 scale Big Rig collection has been joined by the reissue of the Diamond Reo.  Very nice...

The other kit that caught my eye at HobbyTown USA was the new Revell 1/48 scale PV-1 Ventura.  Twenty years ago, I would have been all over this kit like a fat kid on a box of Krispy Kremes--I lived for 1/48 scale WWII aircraft, and the Ventura was one I would have loved to build back in the day.  Since then, I have switched scales to 1/72 for multi-engined subjects, but the Revell kit still interests me by the fact that is is a new release from the re-re-reborn Revell.  By all accounts, it is quite the kit.  I'm happy to see Revell back in the game.  I'm also happy to see Revell reissuing recent kits (if you call 10 year old kits "recent") like the 1/48 SB2C, P-47N, and the Prowler/Intruder series.  If that doesn't wake you up, have you seen some of the Renwal kits that Revell has been reissuing?  Sweet...

Then there's Moebius Models.  If you haven't seen them in stores yet, their 1/25 scale kits of the 1952/1953 Husdon Hornet are out, and they are very nice, indeed.  My wife preordered the Tim Flock 1952 NASCAR version of the kit, and I am impressed.  Build reports from the Internet are saying wonderful things about this kit and its 1953 street version brother.  Next up from Moebius is a 1955 Chrysler 300, and I can't wait to see it.

Even better?  All of them are offering some sort of newsletter or modeler's club.  Nice, right?

I think what we're seeing here is a return of hobbyists having a say in how model companies are run.  Back in the days of Lew and Royle Glaser (Revell), Jack Besser and Bob Reder (Monogram), Joe Giammarino and Abe Shikes (Aurora), to name but a few, the model companies were run by modelers and hobbyists.  There was a sense of business behind them--after all, if the company made no money, they were out of business--but the driving force was the hobby.  These folks were hobbyists themselves, and they knew what they wanted to see.  They'd research a subject, and if they thought it would sell, they'd design, tool, and produce the product. 

A lot changed, and not for the good, when Nabisco bought Aurora and Mattell acquired Monogram.  The hobby people were either out for good or shunted to the side while the businessmen made the product decisions.  Now, granted, not every hobbyist running a company had the Golden Touch--when Royle Glaser began running her late husband's company, she did some trimming, since Revell had a huge catalog, but was never very stable financially.  But in the end, Revell, too, was sold to a business group.  With the departure of the hobbyists, these companies did continue to thrive for a while.  But things weren't as rosy, I guess, as they appeared.  Monogram merged with Revell.  They were bought and sold several times.  The Monogram name has all but gone away for new kits.  The last new aircraft kit from Revell (not Revell-Germany!) that comes to mind was the 1/48 scale F/A-18E and F kits from around 2005.  The names MPC and AMT all but disappeared when Racing Champions acquired the company in the late 1990's.  Nabisco liquidated Aurora in 1977.  Hawk Models went away, many of their kits reappeared in Testor's boxes. 

Recently, though, things have been looking up.  J.Lloyd International has the Lindberg, Hawk, Weird-Ohs, Frantics, and Silly Surfers lines in their catalog.  Round Two, as we've discussed, has AMT, MPC, and Polar Lights under thier banner, and they have been busy reissuing kits from years past.  Moebius is going quite well with their Sci-Fi, vehicle, and various comic book and movie character kits.  With the Revell release of the Ventura, one can only hope they are on the road to many more new releases and reissues of their kits from back in the day.

Add to all this the recent releases and reissues from Dragon/DML/Cyber-Hobby, Hasegawa, Trumpeter/HobbyBoss, and Tamiya, several new issues from Italeri along with their extensive back catalog, the availability of Fujimi kits once again in the United States, Academy's releases and reissues, Roden's ever-expanding line of kits from WWI crates to airliners to, well, whatever strikes their fancy...and that's just airplanes, folks.  We haven't begun to discuss autos in depth, let alone armor and ships.

If there is any modeler out there who can't see that we are living in another Golden Age of modeling, they haven't been looking very hard.  I, for one, am being reenergized...

On another note, I'll be once again heading out to our comany's Dallas facility for a week.  I hope to have more time to see the area than I did last November.  No rest for the weary...

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

The Holidays are over...

I don't even know where to begin...

Since our last visit together, I've been busy--big surprise, huh?  Well, it was a good busy, for the most part.  We took a trip and visited my mother in Ft. Lauderdale.  While we were there, we got some pictures.  The houses are all in the neighborhood where I grew up--it isn't as nice as it once was, and I had traffic behind me, so the photos are the best I could do given the circumstances.  I simply started popping away with the camera while I drove--much like an RF-4C over Route Pac 6, I didn't dare stop:

_{The lot where 5446 NW 18 Street used to stand, the duplex we lived in when we first moved to Florida in August 1971.  It looks like the city is doing some cleaning, and the two duplexes at the end of the block were demolished.}

 

^{1631 NW 55th Avenue.  We lived in this house from February 1973 until November 1989.  Other than the new roof, reconfigured driveway, and the coconut palm in the yard, it looks much the same as it did when we lived there.  The circular part of the driveway was just that, semi-circular, when we lived there, it looks like the owners extended it a bit near the house.}

 

_{1641 NW 55 Avenue, our neighbor's house to the North.  It is looking pretty sharp here--which wasn't always the case.  A few years ago, it had bright purple trim.  There used to be a huge black olive tree in the front yard, right about where the fountain is now...}

 

_{1611 NW 55 Avenue, two doors down to the south.  I remember when that siding went on the house in the early 1980's.  I believe the same man still lives there...}

 

_{1741 NW 55th Avenue, the last house to the north before you got to the duplexes, triplexes, and quads that still apparently are the center of some not-so-nice activities.}

We also did some running around town on one of the days we were there.  Lunch at Char-Hut is always required, and we always try to stop in at the hobby shops in the area.  Here's Warrick's Hobby Superstore, on University Drive south of Peters Road:

_{There used to be a Sound Advice store to the left in this picture, but since their demise, the hobby shop has expanded all the way to the end of the building, taking over the vacant space.  They actually had more esoteric stuff that I figured they would, but largely the selection is Revell, Trumpeter, Tamiya, Hasegawa, and Airfix.  Still, not bad considering what it looked like four years ago when there wasn't a geed selection on the shelves...}

We had to visit Chuck at RC Hobbies in Tamarac, too:

_{Same store, and Chuck usually has a pretty good kit selection.  He's rearranged the inside of the store since our last visit in 2007, but he still tries to have some of the less-popular stuff in stock.}

We spent about a week with my mother, then made the trek home.  We stopped in Daytona Beach both on the trip down and the trip home, and on the way home we had a few hours to check the place out.  No pics, sorry, but I can tell you this--Daytona changes from year to year, it seems.  We were there last for the 2008 Rolex 24, and at the time, the new ISC HQ building was under construction.  It is complete now, a monument to themselves.  The area around the Speedway is much the same, though, and ARCA testing was going on when we stopped on the way down.  Soon, the area will be abuzz with Sports Cars and the Rolex 24.  We're not going, again this year--a 3:30 PM start on Saturday pretty much kills the deal for us.  Grand Am, are you listening?  What happened to the 12 Noon start, so everyone could get a stint in the car when it was light outside? 

Once we arrived home, I had no time to rest.  I do a lot of baking for the holidays, most of which goes to the in-laws when we visit.  With no time to spare, I was able to get it all done:

_{The first of two cheesecakes.  I'd be disowned if I didn't bring them with me.  I use Alton Brown's recipe, for those who are interested...}

_{Good, old fashioned, Nestle Toll House cookies.  Why mess with a good thing?  I don't deviate from the recipe on the bag of semi-sweet chips...}

 

_{A batch of Quaker Oats' Disappearing Oatmeal Cookies waiting to go in the oven.  The recipe is on every tub of Quaker's Old Fashioned Rolled Oats...}

 

_{Spritz, ready for the oven.} 

 

_{Pizzelle batter and pizzelle iron on deck.  I didn't get any pictures of the finished product.  Rats!}

 

_{Something new for me this year, I made Italian Bowknot Cookies.  I tried these last year, and they didn't work too well.  I think I'm getting the hang of these now...}

 

_{Another new item, Nutella Ravioli--a Giada DiLaurentiis recipe.  They were good, but next year I may reduce the size of them--they're awfully good, but they're awfully rich, too.  I didn't follow the recipe exactly, so that's part of the issue.  I'll do it proper-like next year and see...}

 

_{The only holiday baked good that I don't make (nor do most Italians)--Panettone.  It is a sweet bread, full of candied fruit and raisins.  We made French Toast from ours this year, and all I can say is that you need to try it.  Very good, indeed!}

As for Christmas, we had an enjoyable time.  We spent most of the day at the in-laws, where we were treated to good food and good company.  What more can one ask for?  I did manage to get a few kits--Anigrand's 1/72 scale XF-103 and XF-108 kits.  I guess I can stop scouring the Internet for the Ken Rymal vacuum-formed versions...

We spent New Year's Eve watching the "Big Bang Theory" marathon on TBS.  Why I hadn't discovered this show earlier is beyond me--I started watching it when I was in Dallas, and it is a hoot.  We switched over to ABC so we could be welcomed into the New Year by Dick Clark and see the ball drop...

As we usher in 2012, I would like to wish all of you Health, Joy, and Prosperity for the New Year.

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

I got that travelin' jones once again...

As soon as I thought I could relax, another wave hit us at work.  I was getting used to having weekends off again, and *wham!*, another airplane comes in with a long work scope and short turn around time.  That explains why I've not had time to update this blog--we've worked straight through since 4 December, and I'm talking 12-15 hour days.  We slowed down this week, and again, there appears--as if my magic--yet another airplane in need of attention, specialized attention that only I am qualified to render, in this case.  Good thing, then, that I was able to get it done as quickly as possible, since I have a long-awaited vacation coming up...

By the time you read this, we'll be on our way to visit the old stomping grounds.  We'll be back before Christmas, when I hope to have plenty to share--and the time in which I might just do so.  Until then, thanks for reading.  As always, be good to one another.  I bid you Peace.

Black Friday

Greetings, all.  I hope you have survived Thanksgiving (if you celebrate the holiday at this time of year), and I hope any of you brave (foolish?  insane?) enough to venture out to the Holiday Shopping Bacchanalia made it home intact.

I have never understood the whole Black Friday thing.  I guess it is just how I operate.  I go Christmas buying--I know what I want, I go, I buy it--and have little need to share the shopping experience at 4AM with 50,000 of my closest neighbors.  And lately, with the rise in idiocy (the deaths due to trampling last year, the pepper-spray incident this year), I'm less inclined to go out and shop at all, let alone on Midnight on the morning after Thanksgiving.

Having worked retail either full- or part-time for more years than I care to count, I can tell you that about this point in time (mid-afternoon Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend as I type this), my patience would wear thin.  Why?  Because I had about enough people shouting at me, being generally rude to me, or asking advice and then ignoring it.  There's only so much one can take, and coupled with the fact that working this weekend means that we had to give up family time to go to work made it rather a chore.  

So, as you venture out to "push and shove" as my mother and Grandmother used to say, remember that while you are tired and worn out, so are the people trying to assist you--they've been up longer than you, as most of them had to show up at work an hour before the store opened--or will be there for an hour after it closes.

I'll do my shopping--er, buying--later, and much of it online...

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and, as always (and especially now), I bid you Peace.