Railroad Model Craftsman 07 2009

David M. Hoffman, 8682 U.S. Hwy. 61 North, Woodville, MS 39669-3502, has now produced an HOn3 scale Mann's Creek Railway No. 2 420-ton Shay semi kit. This kit includes genuine MDC casting parts, plus specially made lost wax brass castings upgraded with NorthWest Short Line gearing and U joints. It is powered with a flat can motor. The price is $200.00, postpaid. Athearn Trains, 1550 Glenn Curtiss St., Carson, CA 80746, has introduced an all sound equipped HO scale Genesis locomotive with custom designed SoundTraxx Tsunami digital sound decoders. These new decoders provide smoother and more precise operations with back-EMF control for consistent operating speeds. This unit is compatible with NMRA standards for DCC and features dual mode capability for operation on analog or DCC layouts. The HO model will be available with Mars oscillating signal lights, Pyle Gyra-lights, Western Cullen rotary beacons and more. Also available from Athearn are a new line of HO scale of Fixible Visicoach bus. These standard designed 1950's buses are decorated for Consolidated Bus Lines (Roanoke); Fred Harvey Bus Line (Grand Canyon Village); Badger Bus Line (Madison) and Utah Parks Company (chartered). They are priced at $22.98. For TOFC modelers, there are three new 28-foot Wedge Trailers (two packs). Road names are Consolidated Freightways (two sets) and Roadway. The price is $24.98 per set.

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Railroad Model Craftsman 06 2009

When I began building HO kits I brought with me a background of building balsa wood flying models. Several of my fingers were perpetually scarred from using double edged razor blades given me by my father, which I would snap in two. The blades cut through the soft balsa with ease, so fingers were at risk. I eventually saw an ad for a safety knife which sold for five cents. I bought one and still have a scar in my right index finger from the deep gash I received from it! Not long after I discovered X-Acto hobby knives. What a difference in cutting not only balsa, but also basswood which was increasingly popular with scratch and kit builders back then.
The basswood parts that came with the early kits often required tender loving care before being useful. One pioneer in this area was Jim Doyle, of Ballardvale, Massachusetts, who devised an ingenious machine that produced basswood strips of then unbelievable quality. He was followed by Campbell and others. Doyle produced thin strips which made modeling of fences, stairs and other intricate pieces feasible and fun, especially in HO.

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Verlinden Modeling Magazine Vol.5 No.3

Just imagine, you are an American tanker, serving in Germany during the 70s or 80s. It's an extremely hot day and your commanding officer gets the bright idea to initiate a CBR (chemical-bacteriological-radiation) exercize. The M60A1 is hotter than an oven, the protective clothing and mask weighs a ton. You are in this situation for hours trying to perform your assigned tasks under these circumstances. Your vehicle is assigned a hiding position in the hedgerows next to a small river, and guess what? You look outside and see a couple of teenagers frolicking in the cool water having a great time. Then the radio cracks. "Move out fast to your alternate position". That is the scenario for this diorama. The centerpiece of the scene is the Tamiya M60A1 updated with the VP set (No. 320). The camouflage pattern was airbrushed with green-brown-light sand and black. After the traditional "wash" the green and brown was drybrushed with lighter shades of the same basic colors. Figures are VP U.S. Tank Crew CBR dress. Kitbags. rucksacks, ammo boxes, in a word, the usual selection of gear stowed on exercises, was painted and affixed to the diorama.

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Military in Scale 02 2003

History suggests that there will always be a last minute scramble to enhance capabilities in the last days before an operation is launched. Who can forget the frantic race to field an expeditionary force to retake the Falkland Islands. Even as the British task force steamed south equipment was being purchased off the shelf and flown out to meet the ships at Ascension Island. One of the most dramatic upgrades was the fitting of SNEB free flight rockets to Army and Royal Marine Gazelle recce Helicopters, this was earned out at sea. All 3 services earned out numerous mods to their respective Heli fleets, the absence of this equipment prior to the balloon going up can be attributed to various factors. Economy as always is a prime variable in defence procurement, witness the current comparison between the cost of the Army's Apache buy and the cost of new hospitals! The other age-old variable is of course, the unexpected; who foresaw the need to field a UK division to liberate Kuwait? Yet again we will have to wait for the 'desertisation' of the Challenger regiments as the cost cutters ruled out another deployment!

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