A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: WHY DO I ALWAYS HAVE TO MAKE LIFE DIFFICULT FOR MYSELF..?

Honestly, I don’t have enough knowledge of most of these vehicles to know if any particular kit is deficient, but that doesn’t stop me wanting to improve smaller details where I think there’s a need.

16th April 2025

Despite being midway through April and having experienced several glorious weeks of almost unbroken sunshine, the last few days have been dark grey wet, and unseasonably cold. What better weather to hunker down in and get on with some modelmaking?

Having spent this morning completing – there or thereabouts – the design of my new book (more of which tomorrow) I decided that I would spend an hour or so this afternoon on a new build. The kit that I chose was the Blitz Panther Ausf.G that I bought at the Crewe show earlier this year, chosen because I was looking for a cheap quick project that I could complete swiftly, with little need for additional work or expense. Quick, easy and cheap. What’s not to like?

So immediately, I looked at the kit and wondered what I could do to improve it, thus making it long-winded, difficult and more expensive. Because, of course I did.

I do this every time I build a kit. I look at what’s in the box and then wrestle with the idea of adding to it, detailing it, make it more involved. Most of the time that’s a sensible course of action, kits that I build for work being improved thanks to the addition of scratchbuilt features, aftermarket details, or decals that I’ve collected waiting for a new kit to use them on. That was of course entirely the wrong approach to this kit, for two reasons. Firstly, I bought the Blitz kit specifically for a quick build that played on its meagre asking price. I wanted to see if I could build it from the box and make it look cool. No more, no less. It was never destined to be anything other than that. Why? Because I’d already bought the RFM Panther Ausf.G in November to create a fully-detailed model, so had no need to repeat the process with something new.

So for a few moments of assembly this afternoon I considered additional possibilities, before deciding that that was all nonsense and to focus only what was in the box. Sure, I may add bring a figure or two into play, but as for extra details, not this time. The selling points of this kit were price and how quickly it would go together – why on earth was I thinking about adding cost and time taken to build it?

From the box, the Blitz Panther, though not entirely perfect, is very nice. The moulding of the parts is superb, detail, comprehensive and there are a few features here and that that make you wonder just how they are making any money on its release! But it is the ease of assembly that really ticks the boxes. It’s just so simple to build! This afternoon having spent around an hour on it, I had the hull done, the roadwheels cleaned up and one of the track runs in place. The last time I managed that kind of speed, I was building Tamiya’s ancient Panzer II, with its minimal parts and rubber band tracks!

I think that this will be an interesting project, if only as a way of rewiring my brain to at least pause for a while, my endless need to tinker with what I build.

In this case, having empty track hangers on the rear hull would look pleasing, thinner, separate sideskirts would add to the overall look of the model and I am sure open vents on the engine deck would improve the look of that area as well. All fairly simple to deal with; all likely to be present and correct on the RFM kit when that is built as part of a much more involved project, later this year. But for this build, I’m going to slap it together and then focus on painting and weathering, using it as a test-bed for some ideas that I hope with work their way into the RFM project, down the line.

The bottom line is that I don’t have the time or frankly the inclination, to create the best models I can every time I open a kit box and set to work. Sometimes, actually most of the time(!) I want to simply enjoy the process of building a nice easy kit, without any additional faff. Sure, there are those builds that become more involved, ones that I try and place my heart and soul into, but they are exceptions rather than the rule. Frankly, given how many models I build a year, it would be exhausting and not fun, if it was any other way.

See you tomorrow.

TODAY’S MUSIC CHOICES…

The Beatles: Abbey Road

The Beatles: Please Please Me

The Beatles: With The Beatles

The Beatles: A Hard Day’s Night

• A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: WHY HAVE I NEVER BUILT A LIGHTNING?
• A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: A TRIP TO BRISTOL…
• A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: A RELAXING DAY…
• A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: HOW MANY MORE KITS DO I HAVE, HALF STARTED?!
• A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: 2025 ALL WRAPPED UP!

1. 

   Wow! I built a dozen back around 1980. Entered them as a collection at the IPMS USA Nationals. Didn’t win…

2. 

   Yes, stop procrastinating……build a Lightning🤣

3. 

   Who knows, you might even consider publishing another bookazine on building the BAC Lightning as well?

4. 

   I am glad that the man was talked down. It’s definitely hard to see without knowing the outcome, until later.…

5. 

   sadly(?), I’ve at least 15 models at various stages of completion. 2 I started back in the 80s, iirc I…