Howdy, all!
I trust this finds all of you well and healthy. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all of us in one form or another—family gatherings are on hold, all sorts of shows have been cancelled or postponed, meetings have been cancelled or gone online, stores have closed, and many are either working from home or not working…
Please be safe. COVID-19 strikes in many forms, and it is a matter of chance if you get a mild or severe case, should you contract it. Take precautions, follow the latest reliable news and directives, and we'll get through this together.
Personally, I’m using the down time to work on models. I have finished the Special Hobby Macchi C.200 (the article on the project was recently posted to Internet Modeler), our diorama project for the museum is completed and delivered (but not unveiled--the COVID-19 shut down meant the museum had to postpone the event), and I’ve done a little more work on the Aeroclub Gamecock. I’ve also started work on what I hope is a quick project—converting Fujimi’s classic 1981-vinatge 1/72 scale HSS-2B/SH-3H to a U.S. Nave SH-3A from HS-5 using the Cutting Edge “Sea Kings #1” decals.
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In the “The More Things Change” files, I found this while searching online for some information on Challenge Publications' Scale Modeler magazine. It was posted, with commentary, to one of the many modeling forums (sorry, I forgot which one!) on the internet these days. I have removed the original poster’s comments and added my own—some things had changed since he initially posted it a few years ago.
What is it? In October 1966, the magazine printed a survey—you know, one of those “What kits do you want to see?” surveys. They printed the results in the March 1967 issue, and I present them here. I’ve left the original as it was, so the spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors are not mine.
I thought it might be interesting to see what was going on back then, and compare it to what we see online these days.
My comments are in [RED]:
The Readers Speak - Results Of Our Modeler’s Survey
The letters continue to pour in but out of the chaos that five thousand plus survey returns can produce, Scale Modeler [S/M] has been able to draw several significant and far reaching conclusions.
First and foremost, is the informed caliber of today’s modeler. As we have pointed out before, he [It was, after all, 1966/1967—how many girls were building models back in the day?] is neither twelve years old nor is he gullible. On the contrary, his knowledge of what he is modeling is usually extensive. [And thus began the never ending quest for better, more accurate, more intricately detailed models.]
He is discriminating in his purchases and, if the kit warrants it, he is willing to spend quite a bit more to get something extra. Quality impresses him and he is quick to spot the hackneyed and the inferior. [Might this be the advent of “unbuildable” kits and “rivet counters”, maybe?] For this reason, the manufacturing of scale model kits has become a very competitive as well as hazardous business. Guess wrong or underestimate the modeler’s selectivity and a firm, even a big one, can go out of business fast.
Although our survey is only some six weeks along as this is written and we still are receiving letters at the rate of five hundred per week, a consensus has been building and it has taken the following form.
Fully half of those who replied to our questionnaire opted to write letters, going far beyond our brief listing. We appreciated this and we read them all. Preliminary among the comments after the perennial one that the survey was a good idea, was the thought expressed in many ways, that his was the first time the modeler had been asked about what he though and wanted and that it was hoped the manufactures would take heed.
We would like to reassure our readers that several companies, all of which well known, have already expressed interest in what they though and want to see the results of our survey as soon as it is completed. Two have already begun tooling up their plants for the production of models which, heretofore, they never realized were so wanted by the modeling public.
In addition to getting their thoughts of their chests, many readers also took the time to both praise and criticize some of the features in Scale Modeler. A few issues back, we told you that S/M was to be your magazine, and you lost no time making your opinions known. We must add however, that the majority of your points were well taken and although you got us right in the ego, we will try to adopt as many of your ideas as possible.
Getting back to your kit selections . . . we found the following comments particularly noteworthy. In fact they were voiced so often that we feel there is a definite trend to the thing of our readers.
1. Most modelers are tired of the same old standbys. Unless the kits are superdetailed, much larger, or depict a different model previously unavailable, they would rather say bye bye to Mustangs and Zeros et. al. [Where have we heard this? Yep, on pretty much every modeling forum or Facebook modeling page when Company X decides to release a new kit of the Me109, P-51, or Spitfire. However, many these days ignore the caveat listed--it isn't that modelers don't necessarily want these kits, it is that the new kit needs to be better--measurably better--then the extant examples. And, with each new release, that goal becomes more difficult, given the talent of some of the modern kit manufacturers.]
2. Every modeler who wrote to us generally admitted that he would be willing to pay a little more to get a little more. All would rather have one or two well done plane, car, ship or armor kits than a hose of inaccurate, poorly researched models. [How much is too much? People clamored for these better, more detailed, well-fitting kits, but when the price point became too much, the screaming began. Hey, quality costs money, gang!]
3. Almost everyone evinced a keen interest in the neglected between-the-wars plastics which encompass the period 1920 to 1940, and include military, civilian and racing planes. [Some of what the modelers are asking for already existed in 1966/1967-- this seems to be a repeating thread in this survey. On the civil side, Pyro released a 1/32 Gee Bee in 1953; Williams Brothers would release their 1/32 racer kits in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. ITC’s 1/32 Staggerwing appeared in 1960; AMT graced us with a 1/48 kit in 1977. So, there were kits available at the time—I will make the assumption that the respondents merely wanted more and better.]
4. Our readers also wanted to see a section devoted to readers’ submissions, a feature we begun with our sixth issue and intend to sustain.
Before going into the selections chosen by you, one more market reaction was noted, possibly the most important one.
Every reader took the survey seriously. Many wrote us that they had tried repeatedly in the past to promote several kits that they wanted especially to see. Some have even gone so far as organize clubs for the purpose. Unfortunately, their requests have been ignored or turned down with a polite reply. That is until now.
We at Scale Modeler take great pleasure in announcing that many of your requests will soon be in the works. The model industry is waking up. Competition from overseas has been a major spur [The emphasis is mine—Airfix, Revell Japan, Tamiya, Hasegawa, FROG, and other foreign kits were making an influx into the United States; this was also about the time frame when the West started seeing more and more kits from the likes of Czechoslovakia and other Eastern Bloc countries.], but the resounding response from readers like yourselves has made the big difference.
For too many years scale modeling was thought to be in the same category with “hobby toys”, particularly by the manufacturers themselves. It is only now that many manufacturers have learned that scale modelers are serious people. With the emphasis away from pleasing the kids and focused instead on building an authentic replica, we can expect to see great strides made in accuracy, quality and the range of models available. [Indeed, it was around this time that Monogram started deleting the working features from their kits, and when Revell decided to get serious with 1/72 scale.] If Scale Modeler has done anything to further this trend, it would be gratifying indeed.
[For those not familiar, S/M was the best American modeling magazine we had—they started in 1965, and were all most of us had (Sure, there were a few European magazines, but out of reach for most kids back then!) until 1981/1982, when Kalmbach started FineScale Modeler. S/M would hang on until the mid-1990’s before it ended publication, but it was many modelers’ first taste of seeing other people’s work. I know what I saw on the pages of S/M certainly opened my eyes! Putty? Airbrush? What is this Solvaset they keep talking about? Microscale system? Huh? They were my source for what was going on in the model world, the place where I learned there was more than just Revell, Monogram, MPC, and AMT—in my early days, Airfix kits were exotic!]
[A few notes. For those of you who have never heard the terms “quarter-inch scale”, “quarter scale”, or “1/4 inch scale”, they’re talking about what we know as 1/48 scale—1/4 inch to the foot. Some people get torqued around the axle when you use “quarter scale” in conjunction with a 1/48 scale model—they say that “quarter scale” is one fourth the actual size, a common RC scale. The term probably originated as a slurred version of “quarter inch scale”. My answer to them is that they are just as lazy, claiming that ONE-quarter scale and “quarter scale” are the same thing. It doesn’t just apply to scale models—“quarter scale” also comes from the dollhouse builders—1/48 scale is one-quarter the size of the standard 1/12 dollhouse scale.]
And now the results of the survey in order of preference:
AIRCRAFT
[Note the depth and detail--such as it is--that this portion of the survey gets in to.]
A Kingfisher by Monogram in ¼ inch will be reviewed in next issue of S/M [June 1967].
First Place: Tie between Vought Sikorsky Kingfisher and Douglas TBD Devestator. The former will be out within a few months in 1/32 scale [A typo?], the model, an OS2U-3 type was made from a three-view drawing appearing in our sister publication Air Classics. Meanwhile, preliminary work is underway on a model of the later. [It appears both were close to market. Monogram’s 1/48 kit was released in late 1966; Airfix produced their 1/72 OS2U in 1967. Airfix’s 1/72 TBD would debut in 1968; Monogram’s 1/48 kit was released in 1974.]
Second Place: Martin B-10. A fine aircraft ignored by manufacturers, no plans are in the works for its production, bet we have made contact with a forward looking firm which is giving the matter strong consideration. [Were they referring to Williams Brothers, perhaps? So far, they’re the only game in 1/72 scale with their 1974-vintage kit. In 1/48, Lone Star Models did a 1/48 kit originally produced in the late 1990’s/early 2000’s. Special Hobby has made noise about a new tool kit in 1/72, nothing yet.]
Third Place: Savoia Marchetti 79. We knew this one was in production [Artiplast of Italy was on the verge of releasing a 1/50 scale kit; Airfix would follow suit with their 1/72 kit around the same time] when we ran our survey and therefore omitted it. However, we got so many requests for it, we thought we would include it to prove that not all manufacturers are stuck on the same kits.
Fourth Place: Seversky P-35, another of the forgotten classics of the thirties, which many wanted super-detailed in 1/4” scale. [Williams Brothers would release their 1/32 kit in 1970;) fans of 1/48 scale would get a vacuum-form from Aeroform in the mid-1970’s, but had to wait until 1993 for Hobbycraft to release their injection molded kit.]
Fifth Place: Curtis C-46 Commando, virtually submerged by the Goony bird’s publicity, this World War II workhorse was the biggest non-combat vote getter. [Williams Brothers released their 1/72 scale kit in 1976.]
Sixth Place: Waco 10. All respondents wanted a big, super-detailed model of this bird with moveable controls ala Monograms F3F and Gulfhawk. [The world still waits for this one.]
Seventh Place: Bell Airacuda, also in quarter inch scale, although collectors of many models complained that 1/72 was the only to keep models from taking over the entire house. [RarePlanes released their 1/72 vacuum formed kit in 1971; Valom released their injection molded kit in 2006. Other than limited run and obscure kits, nothing in any other scale. Also note that in many surveys today, the pendulum has swung the other way, towards larger subjects and bigger kits.]
Eight Place: Tie among Mitsubishi Ki 21 Type 97 “Sally,” Mitsubishi G4M “Betty” and Kawanishi H3K1 flying boat “Emily.” The first two will eventually be brought out by L/S, the Japanese firm which did the Peggy that appeared in the issue Number 6 [L/S’s Peggy kits were closer to 1/75 scale]. Since L/S and Nichimo are perhaps the two finest companies in Japan, these should be winners. [Funnily enough, L/S didn’t release kits of either the Sally or Betty, and Nichimo didn’t kit any of them. The 1/72 Sally was released first by Revell Japan in 1975; MPM released theirs initially in 2001 followed by an improved reissue the following year. The Betty was released in 1/72 scale by Lindberg in 1970. Still no injection molded 1/48 scale Sally, but Tamiya came through with a 1/48 scale G4M1 in 1996. Hasegawa did a 1/72 Emily in 1967; L/S did one on 1/144 scale in 1980.]
Ninth Place: Heinkel He 177 Grief. Aircraft will be out next year by Faller, a German Maker, but may be hard to come by. [Scalemates doesn’t list a Faller He177 at all—most of their models were in 1/100 scale, anyway. Oddly enough, Airfix released a 1/72 He 177 in 1967. How S/M missed it is still a mystery. Revell (Germany) released a superb 1/72 kit in 2000.]
Tenth Place: Curtis Shrike. Again the call was for a super detailed model and readers called for extra parts to make model variations with, thus giving them a wider range of types, and were willing to pay more for same. [The question in my mind is which “Curtiss Shrike”? Curtiss used the “Shrike” name for different models of airplanes they built for the Army, from the A-8 to the A-25 (the USAAF version of the SB2C Helldiver—incidentally, the name “Helldiver” was also a common name Curtiss used on their airplanes delivered to the U.S. Navy). RarePlanes gave us a 1/72 vacuum-formed A-8 in 1969 and an A-12 in 1987; Czech Models released 1/48 scale kits of the A-8 and A-12 in the early 2000’s. Monogram’s original 1/48 scale SB2C kit came along in 1961; Airfix put out a 1/72 SB2C in 1967 and Matchbox released a 1/72 SB2C in 1973. In more recent times, ProModeler (Revell-Monogram) made a new-toll SB2C in 1997; in 1/72 scale, Sword (2001) and Academy (2005) are the most recent.]
Eleventh Place: Tie among Boeing F4B, P-12, P-26 all in quarter inch scale. It was felt the models now on the market of these ships were just too inadequate. Again super-detailing and size was the big feature, with lots of accessory parts for variation and prime attention paid to exacting detail. It was also found that in conjunction with these inter-war ship types Monogram’s treatment of the Grumman F3F should be extended to these classics also. [Aurora’s 1/48-ish scale kits were released in 1955 for the P-26, and 1958 for the F4B-4 and P-12E. They were okay for their day, which is probably why the respondents to the survey wanted newer and better kits. Again, sound familiar? It wasn’t until the 1990’s that we saw modern kits of all three—Classic Airframes released their P-12/F4B series in 1999, and Hobbycraft’s P-26 came along in 1994.]
Twelfth Place: Lavochkin LA-5, included with these votes was the comment that most Russian WWII aircraft have been ignored by the manufacturers. [In the larger scales, this is still somewhat true. Things are getting better with the new Ukrainian companies. There were vacuum formed 1/48 scale kits of the La-5 by Falcon in 1980 followed in 1991 by Hobbycraft’s rather lukewarm injection molded kit. In 1/72 scale, the Russian/Soviet types were gaining notice--Airfix released the Yak 9D in 1963, Ilyushin Il-2 in 1964, Petlyakov Pe-2 in 1968. FROG released the Tupolev SB-2 in 1969, and had a Lavochkin La-7 planned for 1977, but the firm went insolvent before it could be released. Italeri’s La-5 came along in 1971.]
ARMOR
[Note the general lack of detail when it came to armor kits. Aircraft were then, I suspect, as much a "majority" subject as they are now. Plus, reviewing scalemates.com, it became apparent that even though Revell, Adams, Aurora, and other domestic companies were making armor models, it wasn't until Monogram's 1/32 kits and the Tamiya 1/35 scale invasion a few years later that the field really got going. The smaller scales were dominated by, at first, Airfix's HO/OO (1/76) kits until the Japanese firms started producing 1/72 armor. By the time ESCI got into the 1/72 armor game, they were producing superb kits in the smaller scale.]
First Place: General Stuart M3A1 light tank used by British in western desert and christened “Honey”. [Tamiya’s classic Stuart kit in 1/35 arrived in 1974. Hasegawa’s Braille scale kit in 1/72 arrived the previous year. Since then, we’ve had more modern kits.]
Second Place: General Grant with 75 mm gun also mainstay in western desert, early phase. [Tamiya’s 1/35 scale Grant and Lee kits came along in 1974; like the Stuart, Hasegawa issued 1/72 kits in 1973. Better kits have come along in recent years.]
Third Place: German half track armored personnel carrier . . . sd.Kfz 250/1. [How odd is this? One of the most-used German half-tracks wasn’t kitted in 1/72 until ESCI’s 1974 kit; a 1/76 scale kit came from Eidai in 1972; and Nitto gave us the first 1/35 scale kit in 1968.]
Fourth Place: American M-10 Tank destroyer with 76 mm gun. [Academy had a 1/35 kit out in the 1970’s; the smaller scales seemed to have had nothing until the early 2000’s.]
Fifth Place: British Mk.I “Mother,” variation which first appeared on the Somme in 1916. [Airfix 1/72 scale in 1996; still nothing in 1/35.]
Sixth Place: Renault FT tank WWI. [Nothing until the mid-1990’s MB resin 1/35 kits and the early 2000’s 1/72 kits from RPM.]
Seventh Place: Christie T3 Tank, pioneer of the early thirties and forerunner of Russian designs. [Still not thick on the ground—conversions exist in 1/35 scale, and Kora did one in 1/72 scale—all in the 2000’s.]
Eight Place: Russian T/34 76. Only model of this type tank is T/34 85 mm gun model by Revell which is no longer in production. [Tamiya’s original 1/35 scale kit came out in 1965.]
Many requests for Japanese tanks were received but these are now available from Japan in any store that stocks Japanese kits. [I wish they would have elaborated which Japanese tanks. As an example, Tamiya did a 1/35 Chi-Ha in 1975, Aurora kitted a 1/48 Chi-Ha in 1964, Fujimi released a 1/72 kit in 1974, and Airfix did a 1/76 kit in ’74 as well. Nothing I’ve seen in 1966/1967 time frame.]
SHIPS
[I'm sure there were more ship requests back in the day. The Waterline Series wouldn't appear for a few years, but certainly there were holes.]
First Place: RMS Titanic. The famous liner won by ratio of nearly three to one over its nearest competitor. Rumor has it that the Cunard White Star Lines would take dim view of a model being produced, as it would revive unpleasant memories. This seems a bit much when you consider the movies and bestselling books written about this historic steamship. At any rate, two firms are definitely interested in this project, as a group of modelers who form the Titanic Enthusiasts of America (that’s the name) have collected all the photos etc. needed to do a comprehensive job. Model would be made in the three ft. overall class. [G-Mark released a 1/350 scale kit in 1975; Revell did a box scale (1/570) kit in 1970. In the 1990's, Academy released their kits in various scales.]]
Second Place: German WW I sub (U-9), Kapitainleutnant Otto Weddigen commanding. Early sub sank three British battlecruisers in first weeks of WWI. Readers asked for clear plastic hull-half to reveal detailed interior. One firm has already undertaken the project. [Nothing yet.]
Third Place: Carrier Enterprise Big “E” a scratch built model of which appeared in previous issue of Modeler. Kit will appear early next year. [Assuming they’re talking about CV-6, Tamiya had a Waterline Series 1/700 scale kit out in 1974, and Aurora had their ~1/600 kit out in 1959. If they mean CVN-65, Revell had a 1/720 kit out in 1969; Aurora’s 1/400 kit was out in 1961.]
AUTOMOBILES
[Once again, note the quick take that gets done with autos. Perhaps it was (and is), as the article states, that cars were well catered for. Perhaps, but why is the automotive world still waiting for some of the classic musclecars and cars of the 1950's and 1960's?]
Of the thousands of questionnaires received all but a handful checked Hitler’s Mercedes Touring Car which was the biggest single vote getter in any category. Of all the models available the car manufacturers offer the widest range. Therefore, many classics ignored in other fields are already available in the car category. However, in addition to the Mercedes, numerous requests were made for Craig Breedlove’s “Spirit of America”. [ICM did the Mercedes a few years ago in 1/35 scale. Only a 1/43 Spirit of America from several manufacturers was ever released. Part of the reason cars had a wide range in the States comes from the promos and annual kits being produced by AMT, SMT, Jo-Han, and MPC.]
In closing, we wish to thank all those who took the time to write to us. Time and space do not allow us to reduce all your requests and it must be noted that particular aircraft such as the McDonnell Moonbat and Japan’s Rita, a four engine bomber, will probably never appear except as scratch built projects. [Funny they said that, since a 1/72 G8N1 arrived later in 1967 from Hasegawa. The XP-67 kits released in both 1/72 and 1/48 are vacuum form or resin, and came along much later.]
However, many fine models which are out were requested by readers who in all probably, did not know that they were available. We are speaking of the Douglas A-20 Havoc, the Me. 410 (reviewed in last issue) [November 1966] and now the Arado 196. [How can this be? How can fans of certain subjects not know kits exist of their favorites? For starters, we only had magazines—monthly, bimonthly, or quarterly—and word of mouth, either through clubs or the guy at the local hobby shop to go by in the day.] Others will be coming out shortly and if your local hobby store does not carry them, write to any of the specialist outfits which advertise in S/M; chances are they’ll have what you want. [I love the shameless plug--Syd Chivers was never one to miss an opportunity, nor was Ed Schnepf. These guys were the powers-that-be at Challenge.]
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So there you have it. We've come a long way, for sure, since the late 1960's...
Thanks for reading.
Please stay safe. Check up on your neighbors, won't you, especially elderly neighbors.
Be good to one another, and, as always, I bid you Peace.
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