The silliest modelling confession

[JamesPerrin]

Ok, we're all dying to know, which ship?!

Combrig's 1/700 HMS Canada on which my great grandfather served.

[GeorgeSweety]

Bought an Airfix BR Mogul train at a show had the box opened so I could check the parts. Got home and realised there were no wheels!

I found an Airfix Arado floatplane at a car boot sale for £1, bargain I thought! I asked the seller if it was complete as the box was taped shut, he said "Oh yes, most definitely!". I should have checked, when I opened the box at home it contained the empty sprues and the assembled floats and nothing else! The guy seemed so genuine!

[jssel]

Along that line, I stumbled into a shop at the end of dark lonely street one afternoon and it was full of models. I had just joined my local band of pirates and wanted to score a good kit. I found the Smer/Artiplast 1/48 Walrus for $25.00USD. The man told me that is was a "collectible" and out of production. I bought it and cleared out of that section of town.

Got home and the sirens and klaxons went off. It was available from a well known mail order place for a fraction of that cost. It is still in the collection waiting to be built.

Similar thing happened crossing into Canada and buying the Hobby Craft Dehaviland Otter. $36.00 USD plus a $7.00USD duty fee as I was in Canada for less than 24 hours. SWMBO was not amused. I must have a sign taped to by backside that says "Kick me."

[T-21]

Bought a trigger Sparmax & compressor airbrush last November. Treat the airbrush like a gun. Clean it after every use, now adept at stripping it which builds the confidence. I have been spraying Tamiya acrylics at about 14 psi and very pleased with results much quicker to cover the sprue gates than a paint brush. Practice and do not be frightened of it. It helps to have a clear work space area and well ventilated.

[flakmonkey]

I spent a whole afternoon masking the canopy on an Academy 1/48 CH-53E. Seriously, a whole afternoon. That is one complex house of glass. I wound up with beautifully clear frames. And perfectly camouflaged transparencies. FML.

[carlos]

I've never built a Stirling either - although I have an Airfix and an Italeri example in my stash.

Nor me - or a Sunderland either, and thinking about it, the only thing made by Short that I've ever built was, a 'Skyvan', many years ago.
(Don't have anything by 'Short' in my stash either)

[Martin R]

I spent a whole afternoon masking the canopy on an Academy 1/48 CH-53E. Seriously, a whole afternoon. That is one complex house of glass. I wound up with beautifully clear frames. And perfectly camouflaged transparencies. FML.

FM,

Brilliant! Just brilliant!

I don't tend to mask canopies otherwise I would have done exactly the same thing. I do mask invasion stripes, though; sometimes they're black-white-black-white-black.

regards,

Martin

[VickersVandal]

Built the Airfix FW190 A-8 and decided to make it an A-9. Put the canopy on and later realised it needed to be the bubble version. Was halfway toward scratchbuilding one when I thought to perhaps look in the box. Of course, they provided two different canopies...
At least I didn't actually scratchbuild one, but I did still feel like a massive idiot.

[fredk]

I use the blue pots of Revell Contacta glue. If I leave it for a short while glue hardens in the needle tube, so I have a piece of wire with a grip on it for poking down the hole to clear it.
Last weekend I was getting stuck into a few models. Glueing, painting, cutting, as you do. I kept not putting the cover on the needle and glue kept hardening, I kept clearing.
I got to one stage where the wire went in, but still no glue flowed, I took the lid off, wire pushed through from the inside, still no flow. I took the needle off and used a lighter flame on it. That cleaned it a bit more. But still no glue would come out.
Then I held the pot up to the light - ummm, there was no glue, it was empty. I'd used it up.
Big 'doh'

[carlos]

I use the blue pots of Revell Contacta glue. If I leave it for a short while glue hardens in the needle tube, so I have a piece of wire with a grip on it for poking down the hole to clear it.

SNAP !
Copper wire from the core of an electric cable, to be precise - attached to a cocktail stick.

And yes, I've also had the 'Doh!' moment when the bottle was empty and I hadn't realised.