A MODELMAKER’S LIFE: BEST LAID PLANS AND BOILING HOT DAYS…

I have no aircon as mentioned, so if the temperatures rise outside, they can become very unpleasant in the studio. Today was one of those days, where even oil paints were flashing off at an alarming rate.

19th June 2025

This week has become progressively hotter and hotter, with the temps working their way up into the late 20s/early 30s. Though there are hotter places in the world, in a country where air conditioning is something of a luxury (we have a few places in town, but that’s about it and I know of no-one that has it in their homes) sleep and work can be something on an issue during these infrequent but frankly welcome, periods of actual summer.

Today, after rising at 5.05am when sleep just seemed like a redundant idea, I’d planned to complete the smaller areas of painting around the F-35 and then photograph it all and then, with the images in the can, glue the airframe together. Yeah, that didn’t happen. Instead, I started to muck about with the Jaguar, weathering the smaller items, control surfaces, undercarriage doors., weapons, pylons etc., ready for what I hope will be some final assembly over the next few days or so.

All was going well until Liz asked me if I wanted to go for a walk (a fine idea, despite the heat…) and then having settled down to work on the weapons once more, whether I fancied an iced latte in town. Well of course I did, so another break and another wander into the summer sun. After writing this I’ll be trekking out again for an evening walk and then perhaps a beer, so it’s been shall we say, an up and down day of work!

I mention the heat though, partly because it’s so unusual, but mainly because of its impact on my work. I have no aircon as mentioned, so if the temperatures rise outside, they can become very unpleasant in the studio. Today was one of those days, where even oil paints were flashing off at an alarming rate. Acrylics though, especially the AK 3G paints I was using to detail the weapons, were drying on the brush, a less-than delicate balancing act being needed to keep them moist enough for each to work as paint was transferred from wet palette, to model.

This manifested itself most annoyingly as I tried to paint a suitable message on one of my 1000lb bombs, the tiny lettering, acrylic paints and high temperatures, making the job seem almost impossible. The air, already warm enough to cook an egg, then turned blue as I cocked up my first attempt, had to respray my neatly weathered munition and start all over again. Fun, it was not.

As it stands, the F-35 is now done, so deadline for that has been hit and the Jaguar is around 95% complete, so I will – I hope – have a model I can build a cover around for my new book, sometime next week (wifely interruptions and my inability to resit a walk, coffee and a beer, permitting).

Speaking of books, I’ve just come across a title that’s right up my street! Entitled ‘Cold War Bases: 1 RAF Bentwaters/RAF Woodbridge’, this new book features 400 images all taken around the twin bases of Bentwaters and Woodbridge during the 1970s and ’80s. Here’s the information from the publisher’s website:

“The ‘Cold War Bases’ series from Runway25 is a look back to a bygone era at these long since closed locations. Packed with rare and evocative images, these pictorial history books capture the Cold War era with many, never before published images. With nostalgia guaranteed, dive in to the first instalment which takes a look at RAF Bentwaters/RAF Woodbridge, the based squadrons and the various aircraft that visited the bases.

With over 400 Colour and B&W photos, patches and stickers throughout, this 96 page softback book is a must for any aviation enthusiast of the Cold War era.”

Given how much I love that period of aviation (in fact, I’d go so far as to suggest it is my favourite period of all) I can’t see me passing this one up, so although sold out at the moment, I’ll be grabbing a copy when it comes back into stock. For more information check out their website at:

Cold War Bases: 1 RAF Bentwaters/RAF Woodbridge

See you tomorrow.