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Wednesday 8 March 2017

Some more Airfix memories

Whilst looking through some old magazine clippings, I came across the following:

Click on the image to enlarge it.
I can remember buying and making all of these kits ... and 'kit bashing' quite a few of them as well!

The one kit that I felt did not give me value for money in terms of what it contained was the Buffalo Amphibian. I needed lots of Jeeps ... not very many amphibious vehicles! Most of the Amphibians ended up in the 'bits' box ... and were still there until I had a serious clear out a few years back.

22 comments:

  1. Good memories. Like you I made them all; in fact I've still got multiple copies of most of them in storage. As for your jeep problem, I'm just pleased that we did not have to buy the LCM just to get a Sherman.

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    Replies
    1. Mike Hall,

      Every so often I wonder how many unmade kits I have in storage ... and then decide not to look just in case!

      I agree that having to buy the LCM to get a Sherman would have been a major nuisance ... but luckily we didn't.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  2. Ah! Nostalgia ain't what it used to be. I too have many yet to be built but many more in combat as we speak especially the redoubtable Pz IV in both F1 and F2 versions. The good old Sherman, though small and simple to build was my 'first love' in tanks as the Spitfire Mk IX was in aircraft. Tanks for the memories.

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    Replies
    1. Service Ration Distribution (Hobby),

      It wasn't until relatively recently (ten or so years ago) that I built my first Pzkpfw IV.

      The Spitfire was always a great model, and was one of the first I ever built unsupervised.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  3. In my early wargames I discovered that I could fit a Matchbox Panzer II in the back of a Buffalo!

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    Replies
    1. Tim Gow,

      Matchbox! How dare you even mention that name!

      Seriously though, their kits added a lot of extras that were very useful to wargamers and I certainly bought - and built - my fair share.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  4. Some very distant memories! I seem to remember the 88mm & Tractor kit was way more complex than the norm?

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    1. Jeremy Ramsey,

      It was - and still is - a right b*gg*er to make, and mine always ended up looking a bit wonky.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  5. Thankyou for sharing this. I think that I made them all except the Centurion. Yes, the Flak 88 was a bit more complex, I remember having real trouble with the legs.

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    Replies
    1. Jon Meech,

      The 88mm looked great once built, but seemed to have lots of bits that needed very careful assembly.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  6. I think I still have the kits (unmade) of the Buffalo and Jeep in my loft, probably at least 3 or 4 of them.

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    1. Jim Duncan,

      I'd be willing to bet that when you look there are few more than you expected to find.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  7. Bob,
    Early in the peace I managed to assemble seven of the kits- I liked the Matador Truck and Centurion Tank the best...in latter years found that the kits being in 1/76th to be a problem when the figures I used were 1/72nd...I guess I'm a bit of a Scale nut! Cheers. KEV.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kev Robertson,

      Over the years I've used anything and everything from 1:87th to 1:72nd scale stuff together ... and even used the odd 1:100th scale heavy truck to represent a medium truck.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  8. They were great kits. But those plastic tracks - joining them up and ensuring they did n't actually melt the road wheels drove me mad! I also remember avidly following Chris Ellis and his monthly conversion articles in Airfix Magazine!

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    Replies
    1. David Bradley,

      Some years ago I found one of the Airfix Panthers that I built when the kit was first issued ... and the tracks and wheels had turned into a gooey mess thanks to a chemical reaction between the two types of plastic.

      Chris Ellis' articles were always inspiring even though I never managed to do all of the conversions.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  9. Yeah, the rubbery-plastic tracks were a challenge, but many if not most kits now have the tracks in hard plastic sections, requiring the building to assemble them piece by piece! Yarrg! Being an old-fashioned fellow (accent on the "old") I still prefer the one-piece versions.

    Chris

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    Replies
    1. Chris,

      I hated the old plastic one-piece tracks ... but hate the alternative make-them-one-link-at-a-time even more!

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  10. Still remember my first conversions from Airfix magazine - Sherman to Priest plus loads of different Bren Carrier variants. My first Panzer 3 and Stalins had turrets my dad carved for me.

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    Replies
    1. Rob Young,

      I also made several Priests from Shermans to ensure that my tanks had some heavy fire support!

      I did once try to build a Pzkpfw III using the StuG III chassis as a basis, but it never looked right.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  11. I own not a siongle Buffalo, but I've made several. They were for a friend, who, by way of recompense, threw several other desireable bits and pieces my way (including several of the jeeps!). He had a considerable interest in the US island hopping operations during WW2.

    Tell you what: trying to land a battalion of Marines on a hostile island shore ain't no light task, even in Command Decision games. If you can't arrange a landing where the enemy aren't, then it's case of bashing your way straight up the guts. Meat grinder country.

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    1. Archduke Piccolo,

      Whenever I have staged a wargame based on an opposed beach landing I've always made sure that I have massive amounts of firepower available to support the landing, otherwise it can easily turn into a massacre.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete

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