January 2012 - Ping

Balsabasher · January 10, 2012, 05:07:17 PM

Top marks Fingers for such enterprise ! I just wish that I was there to give you a hand,that would have been real fun.
Please do keep us all posted on your commendable efforts,Spitfire is one you cannot go wrong with.

Barry.

Jim · January 10, 2012, 05:10:34 PM

Right now I'm just praying everybody doesn't show up dressed as empty chairs!

Balsabasher · January 10, 2012, 05:13:35 PM

Quick tip for spraying water onto tissue,I use this idea myself it is safe and easy and requires no airbrush or spraygun,get an ordinary hand brush,a clothes brush or kitchen brush will do fine,dip the tip of the brush into water,then with a table knife draw the blade back quickly from the front spattering the water onto the surface,its not rocket science by any means but try it and you will see it is most effective,as a young lad it was all I had and my dad used this to watershrink the tissue on his rubber powered models.

Barry.

Balsabasher · January 10, 2012, 05:15:42 PM

Quote from: Fingers on January 10, 2012, 05:10:34 PM
Right now I'm just praying everybody doesn't show up dressed as empty chairs!

I have never heard that expression before !! simple,just build a quick Spitfire and display it in the museum with a placard, 'You too can build a model like this'

Barry.

Kenny Horne · January 10, 2012, 06:03:25 PM

Fingers, Good Luck on the Spitfire class!

I was days away from teaching a similar class to a bunch (40) of university design students last year. Had all the photocopying done, pre-cut and pasted templates to the blocks, built a sweet router jig for the wing etc... had a heart attack and the project was shelved. Lots of plumbing later and I'm now feeling great, though I do still have a box of kits waiting to be built. I guess I have a "Big Wing" to build myself

I sure hope your project goes well. I am absolutely sold on the idea!

Kenny

Balsabasher · January 10, 2012, 06:27:59 PM

Kenny I am so sorry to hear of your heart attack,non of us are getting any younger and need to take care in our lives,I find that sometimes we can take on things that stress us out without realising it,take care Kenny Sir.

Barry.

cliff strachan · January 10, 2012, 07:45:05 PM

Good Luck indeed Ken. What Barry says is very true. As we get along in years we're much more susceptible to one thing or another and stress, even building models, can creep up. But its nice to hear from you and that you are doing OK.
Cliff.

cliff strachan · January 10, 2012, 07:57:47 PM

Good Luck in teaching your modelling course, Fingers. It looks like a good course. Wish I was closer; it would be fun to enroll in your course. We can always learn something new.
Cliff

Kenny Horne · January 10, 2012, 08:29:32 PM

Didn't mean to hijack the thread with health issues. Thanks guys, but really I'm feeling great lately, better than before. Spent the last three gloriously unseasonal days in the back yard jumping on the trampoline with my son Jimmy.
Just finished a 30 year old 1/72 Airfix Fokker Dr1 that was gathering dust in the stash. Been making the odd ID model, painting and paper decalling them. Working on a Battle of Britian set to have fly above my bench in the studio.

lastvautour · January 10, 2012, 10:27:46 PM

It is great to see you back Kenny. I hope to see that squadron on line later in the year.
Fingers, I too wish I could attend your class.

Lou

Jim · January 11, 2012, 03:23:47 AM

Kenny:

Let me add my "voice" to those wishing you the fullest recovery and continued good health. You're the person who first inspired me to try my hand at solid modelling, and I owe you, Ray and all the others here a debt of gratitude for the many hours of life-affirming recreation the hobby has provided me. When I consider the beautiful work you and the others here routinely turn out, I feel kind of presumptuous to be casting myself in the role of teacher. Truth is, if any of you were to enroll in my class, I'd gladly take a seat the first night and let the real masters hold forth. I see this as something to do to "give back" a little something to the community, and maybe even to help the craft itself endure.

Thank you all for the kind words and good wishes. If things go well, I'll try to keep you posted on the results.

jim

Balsabasher · January 11, 2012, 11:24:12 AM

Jim you have the right approach to this,you realise the joy of carving and what you have personally achieved and now want to pass on some of that joy to others of creating a solid model,there can be no better way to spread the word about our hobby in this world today of ready made articles to distract the masses, we have here a unique craft at our fingertips that has survived and contributed to world wars,see the plastic model revolution but we all know it still holds an important place in model building,long may live the solid model ! and bravo to those prepared to fly the flag for its continued existance !!

Barry.

Jim · January 26, 2012, 05:15:20 AM

Well, I promised to update you on the model-building class, and here it is...The news is not cheery: We've had to cancel out.

The problem wasn't lack of interest, but lack of publicity. We sent out news releases to the local media, and I even followed up with phone calls to the local daily newspaper. The assignment editor promised he'd "take care of it."

And then -- nothing. Not a word. Only one weekly paper ran anything about the class, and they botched the rewrite up so badly that the one phone call we got as a result was from someone who thought we were going to build stick & tissue electric and R/C models! So, with the class due to start in a couple of days, no sign-ups in sight, and no materials in hand -- I wasn't about to buy supplies until I had at least ONE student! -- I decided it was time to admit defeat and pull the plug...

A great disappointment, to say the least. I really thought we could make a success of this. But the media was too busy covering God-knows-what to spare me three lousy column inches in the "Community News" briefs over a three-week period. What's doubly ironic is that just two days ago our daily paper ran a front-page feature on "16 Things to Do to Chase Away the Mid-winter Blues". It was filled with electrifying suggestions like, "Go for a Walk," "Take a Cooking Class" and "Adopt a Cat". But nothing on learning to build a model aeroplane...

Oh, yes, and this morning there was a three-column, 4-photo feature spread on the front page of the local section on...ready for this?

Popcorn...

I worked as a newspaper reporter myself for several years at the beginning of my career, and then 20 more years as a government public information officer, during which I dealt with reporters and editors every day, from all over the world, and I am at a complete loss to explain the depths to which the news media have fallen.

Sorry, gents. I tried...

jim

Balsabasher · January 26, 2012, 01:45:09 PM

Jim please do not feel too badly about this,at least you tried to get something really good happening,give it a while and bounce back with a different plan of attack,the media really are to blame here and have let you down,I am sure that one day many will realise that building models is better than some of the other things you mention ?
There are just too many ready made distractions these days to compete with our unique hobby,but we will fight on regardless and keep solid modelling alive for the future.
You tried but did not fail,was merely let down by third parties who should realise better.
Barry.

Ken Pugh · January 26, 2012, 02:36:44 PM

The print media today is practically dead. I don't think most of the so-called reporters even leave their homes but do all their investigating via the telephone and internet. Remember the NYT reporter who travelled the world without leaving home? Magazines in the US are going downhill drastically as well.

The best way to reach people is via the internet. It can be tough some times to do, but it is the most reliable. Try setting up a social media site, such as facebook, for the event or some kind of local model group. That will be your news posting site and it is free. You can make up flyers publisizing the site and distribute them where you are likely to find people who want to take the class. Word of mouth is important as well. Make some posts on the site to give people an idea what to expect. Post pics to show some solid work. You may be able to get friends signed up that won't take the class but will keep watching your posts. Eventually, they too may give it a try. Post links to this forum.

It is true that many potential students are not on the web, but the newspaper has taught you how dead they are. They live in their dream world for as long as the paper can stay in print. When you see how little news is in the paper, you know people get their news from somewhere, you just have to find those places. Oh yeah, maybe the local libraries will let you put up a flyer advertising the class. They may even be interested in displaying the class projects for a short period of time.

Ken Pugh

News:

January 2012 - Ping