How many of you.....

[Desert Rat]

...have a 'thing' for aircraft in FS2004 (or RL) that you built as a child in plastic-kit form?

Now, I had my favs before as a child (Spits, Hurris, 109's etc), before building Airfix kits, they remained favourites, mainly due to tales from my old man. Others I developed a passion for after buying a kit for something different to build ( A-7, B-25, DHC-6, etc). More lately I've developed fondness for FS planes I've invested time on (Skua, Hampden, BF-108, etc). I find myself sorting planes that don't look/fly right or just fancy painting, the time invested gives me a certain affinity with them.

Time spent at air-shows as a youngster gave me interest in other types (Vulcan, Victor, Shackleton, Vampire, etc.) But my one everlasting is the De Havilland Comet, it was my very first kit I built with my father (granted I mostly just watched, lol). It will always remain at the top of my list, was chuffed when I found out it was a default plane in FS9, had to wait to get a new computer to run it though.

If you made kits as a child, what are your favourites? Was it your first with the old man like me, or something else? The kits that have stuck with me were the early ones that I still needed my dad for, the rest were more accomplished solo efforts from experience, but lacked the excitement.

Jamie

[beana51]

In 1967 a popular TV show.."The Invaders'..got my kid then the model then,"AURORA" made it,,he was 6yrs old,and we put it together...Darn if he still has it....I too have it in FS9...Like then, its still Fun!..Vin!!


http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2160/12906442/23585855/394255310.jpg


http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2160/12906442/23585855/394255309.jpg

http://pic90.picturetrail.com/VOL2160/12906442/23585855/394255311.jpg

[HorusJ]

Oh so many to list! (B-58,F4U,Ju87,Tornado,Kfir,etc.....)
But for the moment these three live long in my modeling memory.One is available in FS9 but unless I missed the other two somewhere they are "not on the FS9 radar".:bump:
263912639226393

J

[TARPSBird]

One of the earliest kits I ever built was an Aurora Fokker D-7. IIRC it was cast in an odd maroon color plastic. Some of my other favorites were the Convair XFY-1 "Pogo" (Aurora), B-25 (Revell), P-40 (Aurora) and the F6F Hellcat and TBF Avenger (Monogram).

[Sunny9850]

For me my favorites involved three of something....one had three engines (Ju-52) and the other had three tails (L-1049G) .....unfortunately the models are long gone. But in FS they still are very much alive.
:ernae:

Stefan

[ThinkingManNeil]

Oh gosh! So many kits spring to mind. I had more than my share of Mustangs, Lancasters, and Mosquitoes but being a child of the Sixties I think I built more Apollo-Saturn V's, and Apollo Command and Lunar Modules more than anything else as I was absolutely gaga over the Apollo Program. I still have some kits in my stash and plan to build them up with some aftermarket resin and photoetch at some point with the idea of having them represent aircraft I'd actually own if I had the resources (eg., a taildragger Cessna 150, Ryan ST-A, Tiger Moth, and a Texan SNJ done up in an ersatz Royal Canadian Navy scheme.

My dad tried to get me interested in the balsa Guillows and Comet kits, but I never cared for their finicky fragility. I would like to try some of scale electric R/C kits now available as they look good and lack the maniacal buzzing of gas-powered 2-strokes; I hate that sound.

N.

[Willy]

The first airplane model that I can remember building was a Monogram SBD Dauntless. Followed up by a DeHavilland DH 106 Comet jetliner. After that it was the usual Mustangs, Messerschmitts, Spitfires, Hurricanes, Corsairs and other WWII aircraft. I eventually grew out of the fascination with P-51s though....

I did the NASA thing too... Never built anything Apollo but I did do a few Mercury and Gemini capsules though.

Did more model ships than anything though...

[aardvark62]

I would buy anything my pocket money would stretch to - ended up with a room full of Airfix kits, mostly unpainted; just assembled and then parked on a shelf. My faves were WWII aircraft, mostly at 1:72 scale, but I also had a collection of 1:144 planes (Revell?). But my pride and joy was a 1:24 scale P-51D by Airfix - would have looked something like this, if I'd ever painted it:

26397

Fond memories for me, a nightmare for my mother's dusting routine!

A.

[T6flyer]

What a wonderful thread....brings back a lot of memories!!

First kit I remember having was the Airfix 1/144 BAC 1-11, which at the age of six Dad bought me one when he came home on it from a Rugby tour of the Channel Islands. First kit I remember building myself was the Airfix 1/72 Me262. Still remember the blue plastic now.

Like most boys growing up in the mid 1970s, Airfix played a big part of my life and nearly every birthday up until about 13, there was some kind of kit on the wishlist. Remember Airfix series one kits in those bubble packs being 14p and the Series twos 28p!!!

At the age of 15, I started the real thing and didnt make a model for over 20 years. Now I have a sizeably collection in my study with many more up in the loft (for both insulation and investment...TSR2s spring to mind there!).

Ten years ago, thought it would be nice to have a collection of things that have flown/in and so have been looking ever since. Went to my local model shop and enquired there, only to be lead to the airliner section. Not really what I was looking for and so armed with boxes of Warbirds and suchlike was laughed at the till, but the young lad there. Took the smile off his face the week later when bought some more and showed him my logbook!!!

Favourite kits that a hard question to answer........used to love the Airfix Harvard (very inaccurate - but it was and is my favourite type and so built at least 12 of them!), their Chipmunk with the oversized rivets and the Heller T-28 too. I'm bound to think of something else when have posted this!!!

Best wishes and a Happy New Year!!

Martin

Dont suppose anyone has a 1/72 Hallam Vac Auster AOP9? :)

[huub vink]

I have built this humble FROG/NOVO kit several times as there weren't much Dutch WWII fighters available as a kit.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y210/Huub_Vink/D21.jpg

Another favourite is the Macchi MC202 Folgore, Dave Green even did the original FROG livery for me.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y210/Huub_Vink/CDP_Folgore.jpg

And this is one I like in plastic (FROG again) and in bytes and bits.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y210/Huub_Vink/P40_3.jpg

Although the first plastic model kit I ever built was an Airfix Messerschmitt Bf109-G6 (Yellow 14).

Due to financial constraints I only made single engined fighter (they were the cheapest). When I could afford more expensive models I stayed with these fighters I only made them in a larger scale. In FS9 and FSX I mainly fly single engine WWII fighters.

Cheers,
Huub

[Matt Wynn]

my Addictions are numerous.... but heres the list.... in order of fondness


DeHavilland Type/Model 98 (DH.98, everyone should by law know what this one is :icon_lol:)
F-4 Phantom/ RF-4 (Greek of course)
F-104 (Yes i love the Widowmaker, what happens when you see them daily as a kid)
BAe Systems Hawk (T.1, T.1W, Export Variants, the 100 series and 200 series)
Dassault Mirage 2000-5F/C
A-7H
Supermarine Spitfire
Hawker Typhoon
P-51B and D (Oh and the A-36 'Apache')
B-17 (Early and Late variants)
C-130J-30 (First Aircraft i Jumped From)
F-16 (With CFT's Naturally, and in a fetching Ghost Camouflage)


First Kit i made was a Panavia Tornado Gr.4 with my father, with sweepable wings, that was an Airfix Kit, kinda happy as my brother and his girlfriend got me a Hawk kit for Christmas... one by revell... i'm now eyeing up how i can modify the kit to show it canopy open, elevators drooped and the flaps down.... i love tinkering and toying with modifying existing kits, once got an F-15 kit and turned it into an F-15ACTIVE... say anyone know of a good 1:48 or 1:24 Mossie?

[Prowler1111]

Oh so many to list! (B-58,F4U,Ju87,Tornado,Kfir,etc.....)
But for the moment these three live long in my modeling memory.One is available in FS9 but unless I missed the other two somewhere they are "not on the FS9 radar".:bump:
263912639226393

J

You know, you brought tears to my eyes..i remember these 3 kits like it was yesterday..when they were on the shelves and me buying the whole thing between Monogram and Testors on who had the "real F-19" model, and also receiving in the pile of junk mail (real mail..lol) the testors pamphlet on the Ferret-E and all the story they made up with a low quality b/w pic of the model...2 or 3 years later the real F-117 came out, and these kits vanished from the shelves....all bought by collectors who later re sold them at higher prices..long live the 80´s!

Best regards
Prowler

[HorusJ]

You know, you brought tears to my eyes..i remember these 3 kits like it was yesterday..when they were on the shelves and me buying the whole thing between Monogram and Testors on who had the "real F-19" model, and also receiving in the pile of junk mail (real mail..lol) the testors pamphlet on the Ferret-E and all the story they made up with a low quality b/w pic of the model...2 or 3 years later the real F-117 came out, and these kits vanished from the shelves....all bought by collectors who later re sold them at higher prices..long live the 80´s!

Best regards
Prowler

So true Prowler.
"Long Live the 80's!":ernae:

[nazca_steve]

Brilliant thread, Jamie, I think there is no doubt a definite correlation between kits and simming. I started with my Dad, the classic Airfix 1:72 Spitfire that James May was so right to ressurect for schools etc. After that, the obsession never ended until I ran out of room and 'grew up', but I had some 200 odd kits by the end (passing these on to my kids to be broken no doubt).

Faves?Well big suprise, but any Canberra I could lay my hands on, which was not easy in the 80s. There was the Matchbox PR.9 but after that, short of the Airfix B-57B which I never liked, it was slim pickings. Of course Airfix have solved that gap nicely now with their new 1:48 and 72 scale Canberras. Other kits? B-17s, loved them, Mosquitos, Tiger Moths, and I had an odd thing for the Airfix Spad VII. I can't wait till my kids are old enough to start building with them.

[Curtis P40]

nazca_steve;Brilliant thread, Jamie, I think there is no doubt a definite correlation between kits and simming.

Definitely agree with you there. I've gone from making airplane noises and imagining sitting in the cockpit, to sitting in the VC and having the computer make the noises for me.
My first plane at the age of four or five was the yellow Aurora T-6, my sisters piggy bank was never safe after that. I think I've built every WWI and WWII airplane made by Airfix, Monogram, Revell, and Aurora. That's all the manufactures I remember from the sixty's. Built during the winter and literally flown to pieces in the summer. What fun!
What makes me sad is that all those $1 and $2 models are now $25 and up, for the same kit. Kind of makes it hard for the younger ones to start a collection.
Curt

[Blackbird686]

I prolly built more Monogram F4U-4's than most. Revell made an F4U-1A in 1/32nd scale that I built as a teen, and I still have it. Along with the ol' Hog, Spitfires, Mustangs, Bf-109's, B-17's and 29's, all of which I am flying in FS9.

Aaahhh... don't forget the Hawker Sea Fury. Built a bunch of them too!

BB686:USA-flag:

[nazca_steve]

I never had a Sea Fury, not sure why really. Maybe Airfix did not make one at the time, and they were the main supplier in my town's toy shop. I did/do have several Sea Hawks mind you, both of the Frog and Airfix variety. One of these days I'm going to get the Classic Airframes 1:48 Sea Hawk, what a joy to build that is.

But yes, FS is a total extension of kit-building to me, but without the storage space problems.

[Moses03]

Yes, a lot of my modeling experiences translate over to the FS world.

I can actually remember the first plastic kit I ever got. It was a Grumman Tigercat that I picked out at the local Woolworth's Dept store around 1968 or '69. Not sure why I picked the Grumman. Must have been the cool artwork on the box top (or most likely had a reasonable price that my Mom could deal with). After that it was an endless string of airplanes. I mostly worked on the bombers and larger propliners. One of my favorites was the 1/72 scale Monogram B-36J. Had that one hanging in my room for years. My favorite thing to do was scan each and every box for something unusual. "Dang, what is a Wyvern? Have to build this one!" The last model I built was a Tu-95 Bear in the early 1990's. Didn't seem to have much time to work on them after that.

I do recall once having just finished up a He-219 and then acidentally sitting on it. Argh!!

[Desert Rat]

Glad your all enjoying the thread, makes it worth starting one.

And for you Airfix fans,
http://www.airfix.com/wallpaper/
something for your desktop? The TSR2 is my new one :d

My favs as I remember them: (Airfix unless otherwise stated)
1st ever 1:72 Dh88 Comet
1:72 Spitfire MkVb polish sqn
my first 1:48 Spit VB trop, added the Hurri mkI soon after.
also loved the (later for me) 1:48 Mk.47 Seafire
I did have an Airfix 1:72 Canberra B.mk6 (was quite nice)
1:72 Vulcan (added shrike missiles Hasegawa IIRC) and Victor tanker (matchbox)
1:24 Stuka Ju87B (loved that thing, but had a couple of broken parts in the box, just my luck that Airfix went bust for the first time, lol!! no replacements available)
1:48 P47N Thunderbolt (Monogram IIRC)
1:72 Sikorsky skycrane (monogram)
1:72 F-16A and B (matchbox) kit adaptable to both versions, liked it enough to buy two :d
1:72 Seahawk
1:72 MBB:105, Gazelle, Wasp (x2) helos (inherited, but loved them all) added med-evac stretchers to one Wasp and As11 ATM to the other. (bits from various sources)

I could go on, and probably will later, lol.
Jamie

[T6flyer]

This thread has made me visit my local model shop in Plymouth today, looking for something else to add to the shelf. I was quite tempted by the Revell Super Cub, having over 200 hours in the type, but instead went for their Boeing Stearman Kaydet, which has been recently re-released. Bought two in the end (shop assistant was a little puzzled) and one will be made up as N510N sampled at Waynesville, Ohio in 1992 and the other as David Gilmour's N4596N flown two years before.

Martin

[Underdog]

I have built many 1/72 aircraft in my life. Some of my favorites the B-58 Husler, a Testors kit, the Airfix A-1, a line up of BF-109's B thru K, Me-110 Monogram, Do-217 Testors, B-17G MPC kit. These are just a few that come to mind. Due to a divorce I didn't have room for them moving into a one bedroom apartment. I donated the to the IPMS. The number of the collection was 412!!!! I hope that most of them survived or went to good homes.

[flaminghotsauce]

I wonder if any of you guys got the Lunar Landing Module cardboard kit? I used to ride around with my dad on his travelling route, and Shell stations were giving away these kits to comemorate the first lunar landing.

It was a cardboard fold-and-insert-tab "A" into slot "B" type thing. I had that suspended from my ceiling from a piece of fishing line for a year! I never thought to look for a flight sim model LOL!

I used to have a thing for warplane models, but I NEVER fly them on the sim. I'm mostly small single GA, with occasional twins, a small jet, or once in a great while, a 19 seat commuter flight.

[brad kaste]

One of the earliest kits I ever built was an Aurora Fokker D-7. IIRC it was cast in an odd maroon color plastic.
Boy,....Tarps hit it on the head about the Aurora model being colored an odd maroon color. One of my first models was an Aurora BF-109 with this funky maroon color. Which,....as a seven or eight year old thinking goes,...that must be the color of the aircraft. So for many years after wards I always thought Messerschmidtts were painted maroon. Came as a real shock-a-roo when I discovered they weren't.
I think there was more glue on the aircraft than there was plastic that made it up. I could never get the horizontal stabilizer and elevator to project outward properly. They 'settled' on being droopy. Musta' been the glue.......:icon_lol:

[huub vink]

I wonder if any of you guys got the Lunar Landing Module cardboard kit? I used to ride around with my dad on his travelling route, and Shell stations were giving away these kits to comemorate the first lunar landing.

You can download this model here ==> http://jleslie48.com/gallery_models_real.html

This thread brings lots of memories. Like Jamie I loved the Airfix (Polish) Spitfire Mk.Vb, which was so much better than the old Mk.IX model!

One name which hasn't been mentioned yet! Do you still remember the crisp Heller Bf109 B/C?

http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/portland/971/boxart/heller/heller_bf-109b-c.jpg

Heller made great models and always had a special subject, where most manufactures chose for the more popular E,F and G models, Heller made the rare B/C model.

Cheers,
Huub

[Desert Rat]

Like Jamie I loved the Airfix (Polish) Spitfire Mk.Vb, which was so much better than the old Mk.IX model!

whilst looking for info and pics of the Comet, found a link to some nice pewter models, Comet included. Just above which is the very same Spitfire Vb, had forgotten about 'Donald' on the nose. Gonna have to see if this paint is available for an FS9 spit.

http://www.collectair.com/diverseimages.html

Jamie

[huub vink]

The livery is included in the (payware) AH/JF Spitfire set.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y210/Huub_Vink/AH-RF-D-1.jpg

But the repaint has been done for Akemi's CFS2 Spitfire Mk.Vb as well.

Thr repaint is located here: http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/page.php?lloc=downloads&loc=downloads&page=info&FileID=1089

The Akemi's model can be found here: http://members.jcom.home.ne.jp/hago/hangar3.htm

It is an older CFS2 model, but the external model is very nice. I used to fly it in FS9 with a modified flight model and an improved VC, but I'm afraid I have lost these file a long time ago.

I might do the repaint for Bruno's Vb somewhere in the future. This is a lovely model, but hardly flyable in FS9......

Cheers,
Huub

Cheers,
Huub

[Desert Rat]

As Homer Simpson would say, lol. I've got the JF Spit pack along with, most other spits for FS9, was a bit gutted that Plane design didn't release their Spit pack, whilst the bubble-top looked great, they're not my cuppa, so didn't get that one.

:ernae:
Jamie

[strikehawk]

My sister summed up my love of FS2004 this way,
"Since you built all those model airplanes as a kid this is just a natural progression for you."

Reading the lists of what everyone built brought back memories, I still remember my first kit that I built by myself at age 8, a Revell He219.

[AndyG43]

One name which hasn't been mentioned yet! Do you still remember the crisp Heller Bf109 B/C?

Heller made great models and always had a special subject, where most manufactures chose for the more popular E,F and G models, Heller made the rare B/C model.

Cheers,
Huub

Ah Heller! They were a little more daring in their choice of subjects - as well as the Bf 109C they also produced a very nice Bf 108 Taifun. And they put thought into their models, that gave them the ability to give multiple options - they did a whole range of Saab fighters, the Lansen, Draken and Viggen with the choice of a variety of options including the various photo recce models. And I remember their Vampire very fondly.

Another manufacturer that seems not to have been mentioned yet is Italeri - now they WERE adventurous. Horsa, He III Zwilling, many & various Luftwaffe bombers & fighters, obviously a variety of Italian subjects that nobody else would have touched ...... Just too many to mention! Their 1/48th C-130 Hercules could have easily doubled as a piece of occasional furniture!

[Desert Rat]

And I remember their Vampire very fondly.

Me too.


Another manufacturer that seems not to have been mentioned yet is Italeri - now they WERE adventurous.

Again, me too. Had a Do217 Night fighter by them and loved it, Had one missing bit and was distraught for want of a better word, lol.

Jamie

[OBIO]

Growing up in a small town in a very sparsely populated county, there weren't any hobby shops. The only models I could get my hands on were at the local K-Mart. The basic WW2 planes, such as the Mustang, Thunderbolt, Spitfire, or the modern flame throwers like the F-15 and F-16. The bulk of the models were of cars and trucks....what would you expect to find in a place were 95% of the population was gap toothed hilljacks who wore AC/DC t-shirts to their weddings and decorated their house trailers with those black velvet Elvis tapestries.

Sure, I built a number of P-51s, P-47s, F-4s, F-16s. And more muscle and classic cars and 4X4 truck models than I can remember.

But, the planes that are my favorites in FS9 I have never seen a model for. Piper Super Pacer, Piper J-3 Cub, Cessna T-50 Bobcat, Beech D-18, Cessna 140.

While it is nice to be able to fly the planes that I built models of all those years ago, I think it would be nicer to build models of the planes that I fly most often in FS9. I would love to have a nice yellow Cub hanging from the ceiling of my office/sim room; To have a gleaming bare metal D-18 sitting on the shelf above my monitor; to have a tundra tired Super Pacer sitting on top of my computer case a foot and a half from where I am sitting. And I would love to build a from scratch Bobcat using balsa wood, wire and cloth.

OBIO

[Motormouse]

Think my first foray was a 1/72 Airfix Hawker Typhoon; many,many more followed; you could get a series 1 kit for 1 shilling and sixpence; which became 20p on decimalisation; I could get one every 4 weeks on my 5p pocket money!!

Ho-hum

Pete

[ThinkingManNeil]

But, the planes that are my favorites in FS9 I have never seen a model for. Piper Super Pacer, Piper J-3 Cub, Cessna T-50 Bobcat, Beech D-18, Cessna 140.

OBIO

You're like me; I dearly wish some of the mainline model manufacturers - or some of the "cottage industry" resin types - would pay more attention to vintage and general aviation subjects. I'm not a big fan of modern military jets as I know the probability of me ever sitting in the cockpit of one - let alone flying one - is as likely as me growing a 14-point rack of antlers by lunchtime. I like sim flying and modeling aircraft I've been fortunate enough to fly or are most likely to fly in the future, plus a few a know are pipe dreams but that I'm a fan of none-the-less.

I've currently got Testor's 1/48 scale Ryan PT-20/ST-M in my stash waiting to be done up as a polished NMF civie ST-A Special. The Ryan has to be one of the prettiest aeroplanes ever conceived and I'd do handsprings at the chance to take a hop in one but I doubt I could squeeze my lumbering 6'2", 300+ lbs frame into either pit. I also have one of the old AMT Stinson SR-9 Reliant kits (gotta love gullwing Stinsons!), and a Minicraft Cessna 150 that I'm going to do a Texas taildragger conversion on (hopefully I can figure out how to replicate the Horton STOL wingtips).

I also have one of the rare 1/48 scale Beech D-18/C-45's by Battle Axe. The Battle Axe kit is a nightmare of clunky cockpit details, warped parts, "short shot" parts, and soft, indistinct surface detail but it was, and still is, the only Beech 18 available in 1/48. Belcher Bits (http://www.belcherbits.com/) had planned to produce a complete Beech 18 in 1/48 scale some years ago, but the project got shelved when the Battle Axe kit came out; too bad as I think it probably would have been a far superior model.

I've got a set of RCAF CT-128 (C-45H) decals for it from JBOT, but I think I may sacrifice those for a custom set of Beechcraft factory "Speedbird" designs for a polished metal civilian version. Still, I do wish someone would come out with a really decent quarter-scale Beech 18. I know there are some decent 1/72 scale Twin Beeches out there, but if I want something that small I prefer to buy metal die cast models.

I'd also love to see a few other vintage and general aviation types given their due, too, such as the Erco Ercoupe 415, Aeronca Champs/Chiefs/and Sedan, parasol-winged Stinson's and Fairchild's, the Davis D-1-K and D-1-W, Fairchild 24, Pietenpol Aircamper, Stolp Starduster, the Skyote, the ubiquitous but terrific Vans RV series, short-wing Pipers, Meyers 200, Piper Tomahawk, Grumman American/AGAC/Tiger AA-5B Tiger, Beechcraft C-90B King Air, Socata TBM-700, Cessna 310R, Porterfield Collegiate, Globe-Temco Swift and Super Swift, Curtiss Robin, De Havilland Dragonfly and Dragon Rapide, Arrow Active, the WACO YMF-5 and cabin WACO's as well as a string of others I could likely name given more thought.

These photoetch brass and tissue paper Bleriots and Demoiselles by AJP Maquettes (http://www.ajp-maquettes.com/AJP%20Maquettes%20-%20Accueil.htm)are definitely on my "to do" list!

N.

[Ascua02]

Obio

I know it is not exactly the same thing, bot Revell makes a 1/32 scale Super Cub that doesn't look bad, an I know about a 1/72 Bobcat but cannot remember the maker.

Saludos

[Matt Wynn]

Obio

I know it is not exactly the same thing, bot Revell makes a 1/32 scale Super Cub that doesn't look bad, an I know about a 1/72 Bobcat but cannot remember the maker.

Saludos

Pavla for the bobcat...