de havilland DH.104 Dove

[Balsabasher]

A tiny de havilland Dove that I am making to the tiny 1=200th scale,the pattern will be used to make a rubber mould to reproduce some replicas of this model that was never made in 1946,see the gallery for the original Meccano fctory drawings that were given to me.
Barry.

[Will]

A tiny de havilland Dove that I am making to the tiny 1=200th scale,the pattern will be used to make a rubber mould to reproduce some replicas of this model that was never made in 1946,see the gallery for the original Meccano fctory drawings that were given to me.
Barry.

Barry,
That looks a nice little model.  I presume the original Dinky designers would have done a larger scale master which would then be pantographed down into the steel(?) mould?  The drawings you uploaded show scales of 2 or 4X.
I went on a tour of the Airfix/Hornby HQ at Margate the other day and in the visitor centre there was a 3X or so carved wood master for the Scalextric 911 Turbo, thats from the 70's so they still used the old ways then.  Interestingly the designers at Airfix said they and their colleagues at Hornby all use 3D cad and rapid prototyping but the Corgi team still occasionally use carved masters.  I will upload a photo of the 911 soon.

Regards
Will

[Balsabasher]

Yes they would pantograph down Will,as I am using simple basic ideas for low scale cottage industry production my tiny master has to fulfill the task and must be carved to the best of my ability,interestingly at the board meetings of directors a wooden example at 1=200th scale was presented to them for new subjects,some examples of these can be seen in the Hornby companion series and even exist today in collections.
My series will continue under the original Dinky numbering system and marketed as 'Dinky Joys' with a very narrow lower to the 'J' ! my methods are probably a bit dinosaur but I get there in the end,keeping the series alive is important and lots of fun as well.
Barry.

[Mothman]

My ex employer, Mike Karslake used to know the chief modelmaker at Matchbox toys and he would always make an "approval" model for the board to discuss.  These would then be destroyed, but of course they never were and most found their way home and thence to Mike's collection when Ken died.  When Mike died a few years ago his widow sold his collections of Lambrettas, Corgis and Matchbox Toys and doubtless became a very wealthy woman.  Many of Ken's models were made in perspex as were George Turner's models for Corgi Toys.  George now has a company making some of the best slot racing resin bodies.

Detail can be very much better done with computers and CNC, etc., but the soul is always missing. A hand carved pattern like Barry's or mine, for that matter, will always exhibit soul and feel.  You won't get that in a CAD drawing done by some kid who can make the computer jump double somersaults, but doesn't even know what the subject was, much less have a feeling for it.  That's why my Lola T70 is better than Revell's

Martin

[Balsabasher]

Martin you have hit the nail bang on the head,I cannot tell you how good that made me feel when you mentioned the soul behind model building,it suddenly struck me that is why we enjoy the way we do things and making them from raw materials with our bare hands,a bit like a potter really creating perhaps various pots but everyone is so very different,you really have made my day saying that,how powerful words can be.
Martin do you know of any friendly sympathetic people who do white metal centrifugal castings ?
Barry.

[Ken Pugh]

I am finding that joy extending further as I hand paint my markings.  They always have flaws, but I am very pleased with them.  With small flaws, there is no doubt they are hand-made.  Since I paint with magnifying lenses, the flaws tend to be small and only visible under close examination.  I have also seen many old models that are masterworks with small flaws in the hand-painted lettering, so I tend to cut myself some slack.

If I ever get any flak about them being inferior to decals, my response will be, "Can you do it?"

Ken Pugh

[Mothman]

Barry, I'm so pleased to make your day.  I know how that feels, occasionally!
I do know a chap who does a good job with w/m castings.  Try Dave Ellis at South Eastern Finecast, Haywards Heath.  I've used him for years and done many patterns in brass for him.  he sounds in his 30s, but is actually late 60s, so grab him while he's there. All the others I used to use have gone!

Ken, I applaud a man with a one haired brush.  Your stuff also has that important soul.

Cheers,
Martin

[Balsabasher]

The important thing to remember is we are not aiming for mechanical perfection,and that is what appeals to me at least,a few squiggles and blemishes are inevitable,you can only do your best in anthing.
Look at any old masters painting and observe the sheer pleasure behind those brushstrokes he created,many critics see only the technical aspects and miss the person who actually created that work of art.
On occasions when my models have been on show people have said 'which kit is that ?' when I point out to them that the model is made from scratch they need convincing,then I show them  a bit of grain ! then the looks of wonder appear on their faces.

Thanks Martin for that useful lead,I will look into it.

Barry.

[cliff strachan]

Thanks Guys for reminding me that I can "cut some slack." You have no idea how much one can get worked up about "perfection." Especially as one gets older and have been away from the hobby(?) for many years. Oops. Forgot that I shouldn't be yapping so much.
Cliff.

[Ken Pugh]

Perfectionism, in contrast to craftsmanship, is a curse.  It stems from pride.  I know in my personal case, perfectionism causes me to doubt my abilities and brings my production to a halt.  I have to remind myself that perfection in this world does not exist.  Looking at decals under magnification shows how flawed they are.  If plastic models were perfect, there would be no aftermarket business.

Hmmm, maybe I should get off my backside and get to work on that Indian head on the tails of my B-25.  It has been intimidating me for a month now.

Ken Pugh

[Balsabasher]

Here is an update on the tiny Dove,I have added the spinners and exhaust augmenters from Milliput.
Barry.

[lastvautour]

Barry, you are the man. I recall you did a Seabee in 1/200 scale which prompted me to do my very first 1/144 scale solid.  Your Dove is great

Lou

[Mothman]

Barry, that's lovely.  Such a pretty 'plane.

What livery will you do it in?
Martin

[Balsabasher]

To Lou,thank you for your kind comments Lou,these 1=200th scale models go back a long way to the days when I could not afford diecasts for my small miniatures collection,somewhere I have an Avro Anson which plugs together and was used as a basis to do some moulding experiments,they require  fine touch as things show up even more to a small scale such as this.

Martin basically this is a slave model as the plug for some mouldings in my planned 'Dinky Joy' series of models that were planned by Mecano but never came to fruition,I think that a basic silver finish with tiny RAF roundals for the first ones then perhaps progressing to a civilian livery perhaps BOAC who used them abroad on commuter routes,keeping things simple is the plan.

My planned models are Bristol Buckmaster  ( already started ) Blackburn Firebrand,de havilland Hornet and the Avro Tudor,all of which I have original Meccano drawings for except the Firebrand but I know where to find them.

Barry.