SCALE MODEL NEWS

WE SAW SMALLSPACE 9 reaching out to sci-fi model fans recently. Last weekend, it was the turn of the sci-fi enthusiasts of Corby, a town in the UK’s East Midlands. David Jefferis: Whereas Smallspace concentrates on being a scale model show, Corby’s event took a much wider look at the worlds of science-fiction and fantasy. Among the differences were fans that included Cosplay (costume play) as part of their lives. As you will see from the pictures ( below ) a sleek green skin-tight suited Power Ranger cut an impressive presence. And outside, realistically attired Imperial Stormtroopers and a Doctor Who were on patrol to usher visitors to the show.  Model fans were catered for by the IPMS Spaceflight SIG (Special Interest Group), members of which displayed many spacecraft. Of particular interest to me were scale models of several SpaceX craft, especially a beautifully-made miniature of the full-stack SpaceX Starship, ready for liftoff. The BBC’s Doctor Who made a strong impression t...

IF YOU WANT A QUICK TO ASSEMBLE and reasonably easy rainy-day kit build, this could be the one. Mat Irvine:  The Atlantis Fireball Dragster is a reissue of a Monogram kit from 1961. It first appeared in a series that Monogram termed ‘Forty Niners,’ perhaps as a play on the old ‘1849 Gold Rush’ term, but more likely down to the fact they were priced at 49 cents. (Those were the days…) There were two reissues in 1967 and 1970, but the kit hasn’t seen the inside of an injection-moulding machine since. These were simple kits, moulded in one-colour styrene, so there are no clear or chromed parts, or vinyl tyres for that matter. The Chevrolet engine block, with GMC blower (aka supercharger) is moulded in two main halves, with separate front panel, blower belts, rocker covers and headers (aka exhaust pipes). The rail frame consists of two halves, with radius rods, drag link (which connects the steering linkage to the front wheels) and front axle. The two-part fuel tank sits between this a...

  THIS IS THE LONG-AWAITED REISSUE OF an original Aurora biplane kit from Glencoe Models. Mat Irvine:  The kit was first issued by Aurora in 1956, was reissued in a virtually identical box two years later, even saw the light of day in 1960 as a 'Barnstorming' double-kit with a DH.4. But it has not been reissued since then – until now. Glencoe CEO Nick Argento says the new kit is the result of a lot of cleaning-up work on the Aurora tooling, which was badly rusted and pitted. Nick also took the opportunity to remove engraved decal positions, a detail for young model builders that many model manufacturers included in the early years of plastic kit manufacture.   Considering its age, and the condition of the original tooling, Glencoe’s Curtiss JN-4D comes out remarkably well. There is virtually no flash, and only a couple of sink holes in the three supplied figures. This is because they are solid castings, and is a fault that can be seen even in far more recent kits.  O...