I have been visiting the site for about a year, and though it was time to introduce myself. I appreciate the help from Richard and Lance regarding my Pfalz magneto question a few weeks ago. I started drafting this right after, then got caught in some work things and vacation; apologies for the delayed acknowledgement.
I returned to plastic models about 2 years ago after 25 years. I had built car models when my kids were small, but worked in a corner of the basement with the cats and laundry, and got pretty frustrated by the lint and cat hair in my paint. I switched to wooden ships, which I have really enjoyed. I’m currently working on a scratch built cross section of the sloop Echo, a British sixth rate from the 1780’s (
https://modelshipworld.com/index.php?/topic/703-daves-echo-cross-section/). Each of my ships takes 5-6 years. I’ve learned some rudimentary metal work (photo etching, lathe, milling) and mill my own woods to scale dimensions. I use different colored woods (ebony, boxwood, swiss pear, holly) rather than paint- I like the way it looks, and it got around the cat hair and lint problem.
Around 7 years ago, we moved to Virginia, and I got a dedicated room for my workshop. My son graduated from college, moved out, and began building planes about two years ago. I started building plastic along with him. It was something I could share with him, and I liked building something that I could finish in 6 months. I know this is still really slow, but it is light speed compared to the ships. He stopped building when he started sharing an apartment, but I kept going. I started with a Tamiya 1/48 Brewster Buffalo and Accurate Miniatures SBD-3, then discovered the Wingnuts kits. My dad built stick and paper world war 1 airplanes when I was growing up. I built the Sopwith Pup (learning experience, many problems), Fokker EIII, and am working on the Pfalz D.XII now. I’ve enjoyed the quality of the kits, the research, learning new techniques (materials very different than 25 years ago – love the quality of the acrylics as well as the metal paints like Alclad). I also enjoy the rigging, which is part of my attraction for the ships. I particularly like the Wingnuts kits – the incredible detail lets me build mostly out of the box, which is a good break from the completely scratchbuilt ships. I had planned to avoid modification, but have started going a little down that road – I added wiring and valve springs on the Pfalz.
With both kids out of the house, I was able to split our garage and expand my workshop to 3 rooms. Now I can separate the big power tools, little power tools, and painting and assembly into separate rooms to keep the dust down and have enough space to have the two projects laid out at the same time. Insulation is covered, floor and walls painted, lots of lights, dehumidifier installed, and spray booth vented outside – essentially my dream space.
I’ve been amazed at the quality of the work here. It is a little intimidating, but I will post a log of the Pfalz after I get home as I’d appreciate people’s suggestions and advice. I have the engine and cockpit done, and just glued the fuselage halves together before leaving for vacation.
Many thanks!
Dave