SCALE MODEL NEWS

THE SURFITE IS A REISSUE OF one of Ed Roth’s smallest custom vehicles. Revell originally issued the 1:25 scale Surfite in the 1960s, and it has had just one reissue since. This was part of the SSP (Selected Subjects Program) Phase 4, Fall 1993, so even that was more than 20 years ago. Mat Irvine reports:  One intriguing thing about the Surfite is that it is powered not by Ed’s usual choice, a big American V8 (or in the case of his Mysterion, two V8s), but by the diminutive British BMC A-Series four-cylinder engine from a junked Austin Mini Cooper he found in a scrap yard. The component layout ( below ) reveals that the Tiki Hut takes up almost half the parts. Without the hut, the Surfite would be a very small kit indeed.  The Surfite kit provides the tiny A-seriesengine, complete with front-wheel drive set up, and the sub-frames, onto which the tiny body is fitted. Also, the whole purpose of the Surfite (not that Ed necessarily needed a reason) was to carry a surfboard, and so...

ACCORDING TO THE HASEGAWA promotions department of the Eurofighter Typhoon, “If only we had these in 1940…” SMN Report: Hasegawa's blurb writer goes on to say, “Either side would have loved to have the Eurofighter Typhoon in 1940. For the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, the Royal Air Force 29th squadron decorated their Typhoon with a Spitfire camouflage scheme. Hasegawa's writer adds, “The irony, of course, being that the Eurofighter Typhoon is cooperatively constructed by Britain and Germany as well as Spain and Italy. Painting the Typhoon in the Spitfire's Battle of Britain colors ( header, below ) is both an homage to history and a prime example of how far European cooperation has developed in the last 75 years. Kit features special markings.” And it’s those special markings that are the raison d’etre of this kit, flagged out as a Limited Edition that you can pre-order by September 3. The Typhoon (to our eyes) isn’t exactly a handsome beast (then again, neith...

NOT EVERY MODEL comes out of a box, and here is a beautiful example of traditional model making at its best. SMN report: The model - made to approximately 1:72 scale - is of a row of old cottages called Arlington Row, which lie in the English village of Bibury, deep in the Cotswold Hills west of London. The video ( below ) was shot by SMN editor Mr J, and gives you a good feel for the reality behind the model. The main material used for the roofing ( below ) was modelling putty. Rolled out flat, the surface was lightly scored to outline the tiles and ridge line. The model maker was Ken Larwood of Kent, who spent more than 650 hours on the construction. That's a hefty chunk of time, and definitely more than a few evenings in the hobby room after work. In fact, working a full seven-hour day, you'd spend around four months on the job before you'd match Ken's build time. The cottages of Arlington Row are very old, dating back to the 14th century. Generations of weavers ha...

  THE MUNSTERS CHEVY MONSTER TRUCK is a reissue of the existing AMT Chevy Monster Truck, but this time round, the kit is marketed as a vehicle supposedly used by The Munsters, the ghoulish family of a TV comedy series that first aired from 1964-66. Mat Irvine reports:  Real-life monster trucks take existing bodywork - usually a Chevrolet or Ford F-series - and plonk it on top of a dedicated chassis, with big engine, bigger axles and even bigger tyres. And this kit follows the same pattern, with parts and construction that are much the same as previous releases. But of course this is a vehicle for Herman Munster, so it’s down to paint and the colourful supplied decal sheet to make the difference. Finishing the kit is helped by the useful closeup pictures on the chunky box sides. The components ( below ) are cleanly moulded, and go together without major fit and finish issues. To match another, smaller kit, the AMT 1:25 scale Munster Koach, I made the primary body colour black. ...

BIG NEWS FOR fans of the jet age is that Airfix will be releasing a 1:48 scale Gloster Meteor next year - and the pre-order hotline is already open. SMN report: 1:48 happens to be our favourite aircraft scale, so this big new Meteor kit is definitely one to wait for. With the huge amount of interior detail ( below ) on offer, we reckon Airfix ought to include a transparent fuselage half, to allow proper inspection of what's inside. Centrifugal turbojet engine ( below ) on stand looks a nice touch. Let's hope a nicely sculpted 1950s-era pilot is included in the box. Below, removeable nose cone, exposed guns, visible engines, and deployed air brakes are just a few of the goodies coming with the new kit. Shots ( below ) of the actual aircraft that Airfix have laser-scanned to make the kit as accurate as modern technology allows. When it arrives in Spring 2016 (April is the current target release date) the Airfix Gloster Meteor stands a good chance of being the best kit ever relea...

HERE'S AN OLD IDEA that might just be ready for a 21st century revamp. The strip-style advert ( above ) portrayed grizzled old Captain Billy asking grandson Kid about a novel Renwal product, pre-painted Aeroskins, an interesting idea that didn't last long.  SMN report: For marketeers, the Captain Billy and the Kid strip-style advert ( header, below ) made perfect sense, being an opportunity to explain a new idea easily.   Perhaps the death of Aerokins is a shame though, particularly for modellers who lack the time (or skill) to recreate complex World War I camouflage markings, which can be a pain to apply, especially the lozenge patterns used by German forces. These six Renwal aircraft kits ( below ) came with Aeroskins ready for immediate application. Other interesting aviation subjects included two Curtiss designs, a Jenny two-seater as flown by aviator Frank Hawks ( below ) and a F11C Goshawk fighter from the 1930s. Neatly printed, the oversized Aeroskins allowed plenty of...

HERE IS A SLEEK AIRCRAFT of interest to classic kit collectors and builders. The Martin Seamaster was one of the best-looking bombers ever made, even if it didn't have a long career. SMN report : It's a certainty that if you have a number of kits dating back to the 1950s and 1960s, then you have a treasure chest of plastic gold, items which have an achievable value via any of the internet sales sites, or indeed a local hobby or swap meet. Not that the Revell Seamaster necessarily lies at the top of everyone's most-wanted pile, not least because it was made in a weirdly random fit-the-box 1:136 scale. But the box art was pretty good, so as is often the case, an unbuilt version - mint and boxed, and definitely without any evidence of plastic cement - could be a collectible worth having. We trawled eBay and found a nice Revell 'History Makers' version on sale at just $25.00 USD, which seems a bargain, even if the box photograph is dull as ditchwater. What were the mark...