SCALE MODEL NEWS

Here’s a last look at the 2014 iHobby Expo, Chicago. It’s roundup time for the best of the rest, kicked off with this handsome 1:25 scale Ford Torino car kit. Mat Irvine reports: Games Workshop (below) with some of its larger scale models. The primary use for these is for gaming, or purely display. The Hawker Typhoon (below) is perhaps not the best known World War II aircraft outside the UK, but the new Airfix 1:24 scale model has been going down a storm.* Below, Iwata stalwarts Rob Schmitt (left) and Tom Grossman (right), either side of Iwata’s Director of Sales and Marketing, Brooke Cedros. Address any comments re: “A rose between two thorns…” to Rob and Tom! Minicraft continues issuing kits that no-one else has contemplated. 2015 will see (below) the Titanic’s sister ship Olympic and a new-tool 1:144 scale KC-135 Tanker kit. Under the MRC label, a 1961 US Presidential ‘Marine 1’ helicopter, the Sikorsky VH-34D used by President John F. Kennedy. Stephens International, another major ...

Although I would usually say that the automobile in all its forms comes tops in American modelling interest, I’m really talking about purely ‘static’ models. When it comes to anything that actually moves, that qualification has to go to model railroads. Mat Irvine reports: It was, after all, the railroads that opened up the expanses of the continent, long before the interstates were built or airlines started regular flights. Consequently, model shows almost always feature railroad displays, and iHobby 2014 was no exception. One of the largest rail-orientated companies is Bachmann, whose origins goes back well over a century - it started more than 180 years ago, in 1833, albeit making parasols and Spanish ivory combs. Bachmann's model rail history dates back to 1968. These days Bachmann keeps rail fans up to date with regular releases of items such as scenery components, rolling stock, and computerised systems. General view of the Bachmann stand (below) loaded with desirable goodie...