Airfix. "That's all you need to know"

[Aperitif]

Ah! Noodley has opened my memory bank on the 'Part Works' thread. Did not want to go OT too much so...

I loved the Airfix kits. Saturday morning going to Hopkins Toy Shop and looking at all the bits in plastic bags - sometimes being privileged enough to get a boxed kit... I tried for all the moving bits - swivelling guns, wheels etc. I remember the Boulton Paul Defiant in black plastic! And the Aerial Arrow motorbike (with the little struts holding the twin exhausts) in white. Transfers were always a challenge for me.
Armoured vehicle carriers with a gun to tow was immense value and Humbrol abounded in khaki colours - although very expensive to build a collection of model paints.
The soldiers in their windowed boxes were fantastic too - whole weekends disappeared tending to Rommel's troops in the desert or the Americans with their big machine guns and assorted cavalry.
Almost feel an airfix moment coming on...I really must stick to what I was doing (After I have googled the subject...:?: )

 

[Noodley]

Oh dear. I have just been on the Airfix site.

 

[Aperitif]

Oh dear. I have just been on the Airfix site.

Me too! :?:

 

[Noodley]

The box illustrations are exactly as I remember them. I am off to the shops this afternoon with the Noodley Jnrs. and shall look out for the 8th Army (Desert Rats) figures.

 

[Fab Foodie]

I posted this in the other thread, but here goes....

Airfix are still great. Me and my 8 year-old lad have done a few (Spitfire, Hurricane, Messershmit and WIP a Sunderland flying boat), my daughter also did a Ford Focus rally car. Good honest interactive fun with the kids and not a TV/Monitor screen in sight.

Revell also do a range of high quality snap-together kits which are brilliant for kids, not only aircraft and stuff but Star-Wars as well, no glue, lots of colour and detail. Keeps 'em amused for hours!

 

[Smokin Joe]

I had both the Aerial Arrow mentioned by Aperitif and Noodley's 8th Army. God knows how many Flying Fortress's, Lancasters and Spitfires myself and bro made between us, but it's a wonder we didn't develop a solvent addiction from the glue.

I can still remember the first words from every line of instruction, "Locate and cement..."

 

[Aperitif]

http://soli.inav.net/~edzwil/ it's like eating the purple sweets in a tin of Quality Street - naughty Noodley!

 

[ChrisKH]

I was into Airfix when younger. Moved onto handbuilt gliders. Cames to an abrupt end when my sister sat on my balsa-wood frame for a particularly large model. I also discovered girls, which changed my hobbies somewhat.

Funny the way your mind works. A guy who used to live across the road (with two daughters, I might add) was very good to me and gave me a lot of modelling stuff as he didn't have any sons. I recall even now sitting in his living room with his two daughters watching Gary Glitter sing "Do you want to be in my Gang" on their new colour telly.

 

[Noodley]

http://soli.inav.net/~edzwil/ it's like eating the purple sweets in a tin of Quality Street - naughty Noodley!

How cool are these? :?:

http://soli.inav.net/~edzwil/outpost.html

http://soli.inav.net/~edzwil/Battlefront.html

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

I was also an airfix addict...especially the old ships like the Victory etc

 

[Noodley]

I was also an airfix addict...especially the old ships like the Victory etc

I remember building the Golden Hind. Took me ages it did. Then I killed it with a Spitfire. :?:

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

I used to build the aircraft with a lump of plasticine stuck in the nose. Then I'd drill a small hole in one wing, attach a length of fishing line and they would fly perfectly in a circle as i whirled around...hours of fun.

 

[beanzontoast]

Never did manage to get the Ark Royal to float evenly in the bath. What good's an aircraft carrier with a flight deck you can't land on?

 

[Aperitif]

Grrr! Chris is right to point out that any self- respecting Airfixologist would, sooner or later, diversify into the wold of balsa wood. I remember thinking what a task as I glued teensy strips of this hardwood onto a fuselage shaped series of bits which - after interminable notching/snipping and cutting (without the benefit of a scalpel) - turned into a lighweight superstructure. All the shapes were printed on flat sheets of balsa which had to be carefully cut around...1/32" or 1/16" or 1/8" x 1/8" or 1/4" x 1/4" etc etc.
After all that - the aircraft tissue. Nearing the end of the operation now. All glue dry. One last thing. Application of dope.Sniff.Dope.Sniff.Dope - that enticing enchanting smell which meant nothing then - but would require security clearance to buy nowadays.
A beautiful plane shape, taut tissue, thanks to the tightening effect of the dope. One final thing - the JETEX 'motor'. I'm sure this will be familiar to some but basically it was a container with a fuse sticking out of it. The fuel was in pellet form if I recall correctly and the principle was to light the fuse and let it launch the plane far and away...
Well! The bloody plane caught fire as I tried to light the fuse - all that work and thanks to the dope residuals - instant ash!
I turned to weedkiller and sugar in tobacco tins experiments after that...:?:

 

[Fab Foodie]

Ahh, the joy of the Jetex Engine...
Had one to power a balsa Gloster Javelin which never made it to completion...had loads of fun with the JETEX until I ran out of pellets and Mum wouldn't buy me any more.