Grumpy Old Modeller

Welcome to Mike's World

The Nat.Champs! Oh, all right, ScaleModelWorld 2011

I had this really good idea that about a week before I was due to leave for this year's Telford extravaganza I'd write a short para or two here about what I was looking forward to, what models I planned to put on the SIG144 and What If? tables and what I hoped to bring back thinly disgised as the weekend shopping; this would mean that I'd be able after returning glowing on the Monday afternoon to write a proper report, possibly on the Travels page, with many illustrations, particularly of models that had caught my eye in the competition. Well, that didn't work. Rather more than two weeks after it's over I'm composing what will inevitably only be part one of the story so far, with I hope a couple of pictures and a verbal peek in to my somewhat overstuffed goodies bags.

It's become evident over the years that time permitting the best way to approach this two day event is to arrive betimes on the day before, preferably with a marked-up copy of the floor plan; this year there was a colour one in SAM, even though it was in a font size to tax the ageing modellers' eyesight, and a rather larger-print one in the IPMS magazine which readily accepted my highlighter daubing. And this year my models were ready at least forty-eight hours before ETD, the accomodation confirmed and arrangements made to share a Saturday night dinner with some old - no, long-standing - friends; and there were packages to be collected not only in the traditional Big Yellow East Anglian Bag but also from Mel Bromley of S & M Models (no, me neither, but they weren't in a plain brown wrapper). Even the bag was packed, and I'd brought a few useful items in case I got the opportunity for a little light public whittling, and blowing the light out on the Thursday, I felt just a little smug; then I got up on the Friday morning with a virtually vanished voice.

Never mind, with a lozenge or two it would surely be back once I was approaching the Severn, and of course one of the anticipated great joys of SMW is the chance to meet and chat to people, especially the above-mentioned friends, that I get to see there once a year, and some of them do turn up at the occasional IPMS Branch show as well. But the lozenges didn't work, and by the time Andy Scott relented and let us in through the side loading doors five minutes early - those who are keen get fell in previous - there was a whole colony of frogs in my throat. Fortunately it wasn't actually painful, merely frustrating, probably as much for those who were trying to work out what I was croaking as for me. Still, the reconnaissance - time spent in which is, as you know, seldom wasted - duly took place and several contacts established, the models delivered to their respective SIG tables and the pre-requested Vickers 1000/VC.7 and Avro 730, which should appear here in that order in the next couple of months, grasped in my hot little hands to be waved at my fellow SIG colleagues with enthusiastic if hoarse details. One or two other items also came with me when I went off to the hotel - ah, the joy of Ring Roads - accompanied by Martin Denny of Dalrymple and Verdun and a copy of his their Tempest from the prolific Tony Buttler (and it's got a Joe Cherrie model of the Eagle-Tempest, to my mind the best-looking variant).

The frogs were still in residence on Saturday morning, but the perambulation, acquisition and conversation - this perhaps less successful than the other two, but I spent a most entertaining half-hour on the Aviation Bookshop stand chatting to Charles Keil, the authot of the excellent Sabre from the Cockpit and reminiscing about our parallel days and experiences in 2 TAF - continued as though nothing was amiss and I could still be heard. One of my regular stops is at the Revell stand to see if there's anything to be gleaned this early about next year's releases, and while there will be no doubt a ready market for the 1:48th Ventura, and it's a characteristic somewhat adventurous choice from this company, my attention was grabbed by the completed 1:72nd Airbus A-400. I was told that it's due to be available in time to give Santa Claus a bulk-out problem, at least in the UK, and inevitably triggered two questions of where I might be able to put it when completed and what markings I might choose for it (I think it's 70, or CXX, Squadron that are due for it at Brzn). This stand also tends to be where old friends run in to one another; here I am in the distinguished company of Dick Ward, David Howley and Dave White, all of whom I met around the time I joined IPMS in 1968 (that on the home page was taken by Dave, and has the geniel Volker Vahle of Revell Germany centre stage - names dropped while you wait!). Dick was later instrumental in persuading me on to the committee, which also included Dave W, and from this much else followed, including my writing the IPMS column for SAM and therefore Tailpiece, to say nothing of my wearing Freda Myles' bra-strap (I'll come back to that). Before the end of the afternoon I decided that I really needed a lie down in a darkened room ahead of the night's Dinner, and that I was probably spent and talked out for the time being anyway.

Sunday becomes a catch-up day; this year I finally found Kevin Byrne, of the Irish Air Corps, another friend that I met through IPMS when he came regularly to Southern Expo, and discussed aspects of our respective recessions; I'd seen Joe Maxwell of Max Decals the day before - we first met in the company of Dick Ward (him again) in a basement model shop in Dublin on our way to a Baldonnel air day many years ago - when he passed me a set of his very colourful new sheet of Antarctic helicopters, which I'll put up here somewhere when I can get my website illustration process working again. And I decided I couldn't go home without a copy of the book on the elegant Republc XR-12 Rainbow - which actually covers much more - by Mike Machat, from Specialty Press, and which raises the very tempting possibility of a tanker version! I toured the competition area and took some snaps, some of which I also plan to put up here if and when; one of those that sticks in my mind is the Israeli Meteor FB.2 - with turboprops, though I'm not wholly convinced that it would have had six-bladed propellers - of the Valley Squadron and wearing black/yellow "Suez stripes", and there was a really good Valiant B.2 "Black Bomber" based on the Mach 2 kit and with a very well produced little booklet describing the conversion process. I hope this turns up as an article somewhere, though what I'd really like is a set of resin/metal bits to fit the Airfix Valiant, but I have hopes for another alternative for 2012 which could be coincident with Airfix's own PR./K. set; combining the two could save me at least some notional space. So that was it, really, apart from a few more strangled conversations and the packing-up. By the end I'd assembled four goodies bags, two Waitrose, one Sainsbury and one M&S, holding amongst other treasures two Azur Vautours - and I realise I'm give a succession of hostages to fortune by listing any of these - the S&Ms previously mentioned, an Omega Hawk 200 fuselage to go with the new Airfix kit, the AlleyCat Vampire FB.5 to remind me of my days at Middleton and Chivenor, the Freightdog conversion for the Hunter night fighter and the Hasegawa F/A-18E/F "Bicentennial Combo". Sadly this didn't come with decals for the "retro" schemes for which I'd hoped, but I live in hope that someone will do them in 1:72nd, though the output so far in this scale has been rather disappointing. And there were a few decals, as well as the Max choppers, including "retro" Goshawks from DrawDecal, so there's a bit to be going on with; and to add to the weight of expectation, when I got home there was a package from Fantastic Plastic with three BAE. P.1214-3 "X-wing" (well, how many would you have ordered?).

On Monday many of the Usual Suspects were to be seen at the Conservation Centre at Cosford, marvelling at the Hampden, the Wellington and the Dolphin, providing a very satisfactory conclusion to the weekend; but I need to return to the Saturday night Dinner for which, being a ceremonial occasion, I was wearing the IPMS bow tie which the then Secretary, Freda Myles, fashioned with the help of the previously-mentioned strap. It's treasured to this day, and the only item of mine for which Alan Hall ever professed envy. I confess that I was feeing at least a couple of degrees under par when I resurfaced from my pre-prandial doze (it's the age) but I'd arranged to sit in the distinguished company of Trevor Snowden and Neil Robinson, and we were joined by Martin Denny, Richard Farrar of the IPMS committee and John Adams and Claire; and with our table backing on to that of the Farnborough IPMS Branch, my shoulder backed on to that of Dick Ward. The evening's speaker was Tony James, a long time attendee at this event, and after that the President, Paul Regan, rose for what he described as a few housekeeping announcements. This started with the award of a Life Membership to an unsuspecting recipient, whose identity became evident when Paul mentioned Modeldecal; it was of course Dick Ward, whom I met as soon as I joined the Society in 1968, who has become a good friend and whose decals, produced in conjunction with Mike Silk, set a standard by which even in these days of colour instruction sheets others are still judged, especially by those of us who remember and have used them from the beginning. The applause was considerable prolonged, and deserved, and the recipient taken aback, but he recovered to thank those there. When we sat down from the ovation, Paul announced that there was a second, and said a few kind and flattering words about the equally unsuspecting recipient; I know just how unsuspecting, because it was me that he presented with the little silver tray marking the occasion. Even if I'd had a voice I would have been speechless, and those of you who know me will know how rare a state that is! When I did manage to dislodge enough frogs to give my thanks - and to say that my delight was doubled by receiving it in tandem with Dick Ward - in a very sotto voce, I managed to say that I would try to make it last as long as possible. After all, especially at this time of the year, a Life Membership is not just for Christmas.

Apologies for the lack of photos; now I'll try and figure out while my processing routine isn't working, and hope that normal service can be resumed....