Skybirds Models

[Mark Braunlich]

Unbuilt Skybirds kit #27 of the Gloster Meteor, available in 1945-46, one of the last Skybirds kits made.   Note the austere postwar packaging compared to the prewar Dewoitine above.  By this time there were probably a dozen or more competitors making 1/72 solid kits in the UK, materials were scarce and containing costs was paramount.

[Mark Braunlich]

A Skybirds B.A. Eagle, kit #22A, released in May, 1936.

[Mark Braunlich]

Cover of James Hay Stevens' book SCALE MODEL AIRCRAFT published by John Hamilton in 1933 to popularize 1/72 scale modelling and promote the then new Skybirds line of kits.

[Will]

Cover of James Hay Stevens' book SCALE MODEL AIRCRAFT published by John Hamilton in 1933 to popularize 1/72 scale modelling and promote the then new Skybirds line of kits.

It's a great book.  He was only 19 when he wrote it and started designing for Skybirds.  He doesn't mention Skybirds in the book though.  I uploaded all the 3-view drawings to SMM a while ago.
I am building an SE5a and "Hannoverana" from the plans.

Regards

Will

[George Burton]

It's good to see some discussion about Skybirds, an interest of mine since I was given my uncle's copy of JHS's book over 40 years ago. I bought the Comper Streak shown in an earlier post via ebay and doubt its Skybird origins. The pilot, wheels and propeller were all plastic but as the prop was broken I've replaced it with a Skybird one. There is a near identical model, same colours etc, on display at the Shuttleworth Collection in the UK.
The Walrus fuselage was not the only pot-metal/lead-cast aircraft. The Skybird Junior Series consisted of the Percival Mew Gull and Caudron Racer which were all lead-cast and the Aeronca C.3 JAP which had a lead-cast fuselage and wooden wing. I have the Mew Gull and Aeronca in my collection.
I also have recast spare parts for Skybirds - propellers, wheels, bombs, guns etc - see retrotoyspares.com for details.

[Peter]

Thank you George, that's very interesting. I think it would be hard to be a member of this site and not appreciate Skybirds. Your link is very much appreciated too.

Peter

[Mark Braunlich]

Will,  
You may be interested to see my own Skybirds Hannover or Hannoverana as Skybirds called it, this one a factory assembled and painted example still sporting it's price sticker on the underside of the upper wing.   A lot of people don't know that Holladay & Co. sold completed Skybirds models.  Mine has the barrel of the Parabellum machine gun broken off but is otherwise quite "new".   This was kit #25A, introduced in March, 1938.

George,
Welcome to SMM and thanks for posting photos of your Skybirds.   My brother has a boxed Mew Gull in French blue but without decals.  Yours is the first one I've seen with decals and original or not, it looks very nice with them.

I shall no doubt be interested in some of your replacement parts in the near future.

[Mark Braunlich]

Kit #25B released in March, 1939, the Miles Master.

[Balsabasher]

The Master was also done in the 'Air Stories' plans by JHS,but then it was called the 'Miles Kestrel Trainer' an elegant looking aircraft.
These Skybirds are really lovely old models and thank you for bringing them here all together.
Barry.

[Mark Braunlich]

Another Skybirds Comper Gipsy Swift, kit No. 8 issued in January, 1933.  This model is restored in the colours of the Prince of Wales' aircraft as flown by Flight Lieutenant Fielden when he placed 2nd in the 1932 King's Cup air race.

[Mark Braunlich]

Kit #23A, the SPAD VII, released May, 1937

[Mark Braunlich]

A couple of issues of The Skybird newsletter/magazine.

[Mark Braunlich]

Airco D.H.4 kit #12, released April, 1933.   This one missing the airscrew but otherwise in excellent condition and well made.

[Balsabasher]

Some lovely examples of Skybirds surfacing,not heard of the Aeronca C3 metal fuselage sludge casting before must be very rare ?

Dont know if I mentioned it but Messrs Aeroclub produced a small run of metal Mew Gull's when they released their first range at Stoneleigh many years back.

Barry.

[Will]

Hi all,

Further to discussion about a metal fuselage Skybirds Aeronca, I think there's one on eBay at the moment:


Updated to show pictures.

Same vendor also has this WW1 German observation type [edit by MFB: L.V.G. C.V]


And this [edit by MFB: Sopwith Camel]:


A Fokker Triplane:


A nice Fairey Seafox:


and a Fairey Battle:


Whether Skybirds or not, they're quite nice and reasonably priced, at least as I post this!

That vendor also got good prices for this Torpedo Bomber [edit by MFB: Blackburn Shark] (GBP77 = appx 110USD) and Spitfire (GBP57 = 80USD) recently, I wonder if they'll be restored or kept as is:




The same seller's DH4 Mark showed us before and a Fokker DVIII, together with other vendors SE5, SPAD and DVII fetched lower prices:







I think this may be a [edit by MFB: D.H.4] rather than a SPAD:





Will