Scale Plastic Aircraft Modeler member interview
BorgR3mc0, real name Remco Grob. So the mystery of my avatar name is finally revealed.
1. First model kit?
I am not really sure. My first kits where build "together" with my grandfather. I was about five or six at the time and enjoyed doing these projects together. He did most of the work but I was really involved. And he taught me the basics: check instructions, cut out parts carefully, test fit, then glue (not to much!), etcetera. Most likely it was a Airfix 1/144 DC-9. My grandfather probably misread the instruction because the decals are cut out with backing paper and glued on the plane. I still have this kit in my display cabinet. It is a treasured possession for me. First build that I did solo was an 1/144 F-14 which I later trashed for a whiff build.
2. Preferred scale?
1/72, The One True Scale! I like the size, you can get a lot of detail in without getting bogged down by all the pieces you have to fit. Furthermore I really like all the subject matter that you can get in 1/72. My interests go towards pretty obscure subjects such as Polikarpov, Koolhoven, rocket powered and forward swept winged aircraft. For that 1/72 offers the widest selection. Lastly you can relatively easy make little diorama's or vignettes with 1/72. I do have other scales in my stash, some subjects lend themselves for a nice large model. For instance the Polikarpov I-16 is very small but at 1/32 it is quite impressive.
3. Preferred subject or subjects?
Aircraft mostly. I like a wide variety of aircraft but a few of my preferred subjects are the MiG-3, Me-163 Komet and Polikarpov. However, I do build other stuff such as Gundam, Games Workshop figures and tanks.
4. Favorite model built to date?
Oh dear, that is a difficult question. I will have to split that into sub categories:
Best fit: Tamiya 1/48 Kawanishi N1K1: it is true what people say about Tamiya, simply the best!
Best paintwork: Zvesda (Italeri reboxing) 1/72 Kamov Ka-32 Helix, one of my earlier blackbased models and it worked as advertised. Blackbasing really is a great technique that I picked up at SPAM.
Best use of aftermarket: Academy 1/72 Me-163S with CMK cockpit, Rocketeer decals and some scratch items to make it a very specific Komet that was captured and tested by the Soviets.
Most modified kit: that is tie. I like doing modifications, it really makes your model unique. It is a tie between a Hobby Boss 1/72 Me-163 Komet. This "easy build" kit has a very bad cockpit. I grafted a Academy cockpit in it, made master for the canopy, vacformed a new canopy and used Rocketeer decals for a captured French example with a modified canopy. But I am also very fond of a kit bash of an MPM XP-47H and Academy P-47D that I did. The shape of the MPM kit is bad, I used the nose and belly of the MPM kit and grafted that on a Academy Thunderbolt. It was my first black based model but my airbrush just wasn't good enough. So I bought a new airbrush just to finish this kit.
Most epic build: 1/48 HitKit MiG-3, a vacform that toke me more than a decade. It was on the shelf of doom for a long time but I am very happy with the end result. I used black base and Alkan paints for that one and it turned out just as I wanted. And the fact that I persevered in building it even tough at times I thought it should throw it in the trash.
5. Hardest model built to date?
I build a lot of short run kits so I think I have quite a high threshold for crappy kits. Some that come to mind: Zhengdefu/Kitech 1/72 Mig-25: when you see a Zhengdefu kit, run away, don't walk! These are pirated copies of other brands, a badly fitting mess with crap decals. I solved this by making this MiG-25 into a diorama where it is half buried like they did in Iraq.
- Condor 1/72 Heinkel He-176: the team that wrote the instructions unfortunately never talked with the team that made the kit nor the team that did the photo etch.
- Amodel 1/72 Polikarpov I-180: not my first or second Amodel kit so I know they can do better but the I-180 is a bad kit: short shot, weird wing assembly, very hard to get everything aligned.
- Modelnews North American P-51H Mustang: a very bad kit. Not because it was typical early 90's short run but because it just doesn't look like the H model. It is at best a D with and Cavalier H tail. So after all that effort to build it, I still don't have a nice H model mustang.
- Condor 1/72 Messerschmidt Me-163A: the worst kit ever, the build itself is quite easy but this horrible blob of malformed styrene doesn't even remotely resemble the A version of the Komet. To make matter worse, I bought the "new" Special Hobby Me-163A but that is the same kit! Somebody needs to do a A version Komet, I am pinning my hopes on Brengun.
6. Holy Grail kit?
A nice 1/72 Lockheed AH-56 Cheyenne. I think that would be a license to print money for any model company.
7. Favorite kit maker?
ICM, because of all those nice Polikarpov kits they make! But I must say I choose subject first and then look at the kits available. So I have a lot of different brands in my stash.
8. Favorite glue or glues?
Microscale liquid, non toxic and effective for general assembly. Revell Contacta or Faller with a needle tube for details. Gator Grip for canopies and PE. Gel CA glue for metal and resin parts.
9. Favorite paint?
I use a lot of Tamiya. I think Gunze is even better but it is hard to find over here. Both are fine paints.
10. What started you as a modeler?
A love for aircraft is my driving motivation. I lived near Schiphol (Amsterdam) airport for years. Going spotting or visiting the local aircraft museum where favorite past times. After that I moved near Soesterberg air force base. At the time the 32nd TFS Wolfhounds where stationed there with the F-15. All sorts of exotic planes came in at that base, Antonov's, A-10's , Jetstars. I have a vivid memory of seeing an F-117 flying in whilst I was riding my bike in our street. This was just after Desert Storm so it was very exciting.
I had a sort of "Pokemon, got to catch them all" attitude towards modelling at the time. I just built models for collecting, no painting, maybe some decals. I probably didn't start to paint them until I was about 15 or 16. I picked up a copy of "How to go advanced modelling" by Chris Ellis at a modelling event. That was an eyeopener for me. Internet wasn't really a thing yet so was this book that really got me going into correcting kits, finishing seams and all the other stuff that we consider basic skills nowadays. So after that I started "serious modelling".
