That sounds pretty nice! I am with you on the Colts, I used to own a 1911. I just bought a Springfield Armory 1911…it shoots very nice and is one heck of a lot tighter than my old 1911. Good Shooting and stay safe.
Jerry
The latest posts in this thread suggest I shouldn’t feel too guilty about what I really want to do with a pair of apparently unfired 4" bbl. Webley Mark IVs next time I get to a range. But back on topic…If you want to really see what can be done with old, supposedly “obsolete” kits, take a look at the Carl Knable aircraft portfolio in Great Scale Modeling 2003. Some of the scales are a bit odd–apparently the old “box” scales (e.g., 1/128 Revell Super G Constellation and 1/87 B-57 Canberra)–but wow! what models.
I know, hats off to Mr.Knable!
Two that really got my attention were his Airfix F-86D and The Italeri RF-84 Thunderflash.
I’ve built them both and neither are an easy task if you want to get them right, particularly the Airfix kit.
As Mr. Knable shows, old kits aren’t necessarily dead, just sleeping a bit sounder than most 
Note: I still have nightmare’s about Airfix’s old 1/72 F-104 Starfighter. In spite of good skills, its nearly impossible to get right.
I’ve been building models off and on since the late '50s and I can’t think of one I’ve built in the past that if it was on my shelf today I wouldn’t open and start construction. I built them for fun and enjoyment back then and do it now for the same reason. As long as I’m able, I’ll build, regardless of when the kit came out. Some times I think it just boils down to the old adage, “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, collect.”
Rick
Thats a good point about various scales from yesteryear, 1:96 was used by Frog for a Lancaster and a Victor amonst others, i recently found a 1983 Revell issue HP Victor in 1:96 and have not been able to confirm its origin, any clues ?
Rick I believe the “old adage” is - Those who can, do. Those who can’t teach. Your version is also unfair, if that’s any consolation. Both practices, teaching and collecting, pass something on to others. If these passtimes are not your cup of tea, please don’t knock those of us who believe in preservation. I am a collector who will build an old rare kit, but some are too old and rare for even me!
Woody,
Sorry about that, didn’t mean to offend you or anybody else here. Yeah, you’re right when it comes to passing something on to others. If it weren’t for collectors, museums would be empty buildings and that would be a terrible loss to us all. I think my problem is actually with the word “collectable”. Lately it is a label put on everything that somebody wants to make money on. You can’t even get a toy from a cereal box that isn’t a “collectable” nowadays.
Again, I apologize to you and the other collectors out there, whether you choose to build the kits or not.
Rick
Rick your right. If you slap the word collectable on an old product, then the only thing that is different is the inflated price tag! Didn’t mean to come off as jerk, I just think there is value to preserving things from our past.[:D]
Just last December, I finished a 1960’s MPC kit of a 1932 Chrysler Imperial. I even added some scratchbuilt detailing such as spark plug wires and a real wood dashboard face. Another vintage kit (a Johan 1934 Mercedes Roadster) supplied chrome spoke wheels for the Chrysler, as the Chrysler kit’s spoke wheels were molded in gray. I tried making real wire wheels per a 1995 article in FSM but I found it too much time and trouble and silver chrome paint looked HORRIBLE, so I robbed Johan’s Mercedes kit. (That sound you just heard is all the vintage kit collectors cringing at once.[:)])
Now we’ve wandered off into guns! I am currently rebuilding a couple of old ‘merit’ kits, They date from the 50’s/60’s and, I think were British made. They even have the decal positions moulded in, thats how old!. I’ve finished the Walrus & I’m halfway through the Swordfish. I’ve corrected most of the faults, & things are looking good. Someone else built them originally, or rather, he threw them together. I’ve found it very satisfying to see something good appear out of something so rough. And all it’s cost is time, filler, plastic card & paint.
So yes, building / rebuilding older kits gets my vote, it’s cheap!
Good on you guys for collecting the older classic kits in the unbuilt, mint condition. They’re a part of the history of the hobby that we love (and hate) so much, and as such, should be preserved and remembered.
But I personally prefer to purchase kits that I have every intention of making, and therefore I tend to purchase much higher quality kits than some of the old classics (some of which were absolute dogs - c’mon, admit it), where the tooling and detail is top notch. I’ve absolutely nothing against the old classics - in a way it’s best to view them as a collector’s item, but to put an automotive spin on things, would you buy a full sized Shelby Cobra or a Ferrari 288 GTO and keep it under plastic and never use it? I don’t think I could.
Some of my empty classic kit boxs are definately wearing a frown ! …but i’m still smilin !!! ( i do have an unmade Airfix 00 railway collection under my bed tho)
Collect, or build, or both, no one needs permisson,especially it makes ya happy !
Hey, we buy the old ones on ebay or in old out of the way model shops or yard sales, whatever…I think most of us if not all buy with the intention of building…I have more than I can build right now, but I also figure that I’m gonna live until I build all the ones I want to, whetther I have tham yet or not…It;s my long term survival plan
Cars were made for drivin’, guns were made for shootin’, and kit were made for buildin’. f I buy a kit I’m gonna build it otherwise I could have spent the money elswhere(like another gun).
[:0]Another gun! Oh my![:0] What would you get? If Missouri’s right to carry passes, I’ll have to buy one of Ed Brown’s custom Bobtail Commanders[8D] Of course I’ll still buy a mess of kits to sack back[:D]
Its all the vintage Aurora Monsters for me. Keep them ALIVE!
I begun to make models in late 60s, and (as I’ve already mentioned somewhere on one of forums) in early 70s I’ve got about 20 “Western” (means Airfix) models from my uncle living in London. They are still standing on my shelf, but few of them were made by my father (and they are unpainted) - so my dream is to make them again - but it is very difficut to find 1/72 Heinkel He-111 H-20 (with nice two big bombs) or Dornier Do-217 E-2 ! Aleksander
Aleksander, I’ll keep an eye out for those two kits for you. Let you know what I find. - Ed
Good to see replies to an older topic !
Aleksander,
Those two kits are still fairly easy to track down here in UK in their early boxes and are still in the 2003 Airfix range albeit in various re-issue variants, i have some spares for both early HE111 & Do217E2 from abandoned projects ( [:I] ), all the canopys, undercarriage, bombs, ect - whenever i attempt German A/C all goes pear shape - ( not literaly ! ) if any use i’d be happy to send them ?
I buy old kits that I had and built as a teenager many moons ago. My mother threw them all out when I went to college. Having built them before, I know what kits were sweet and which were duds, so I buy only the ones that were important to me at that time. I often buy two samples. One that is mint in the box, and which I intend to keep that way, since I have already experienced the “build”, and another identical kit that is opened, or sometimes started (you can always strip the paint off) for really cheap which will become a new “builder”. Other models that I know are OOP I will still build if it adds to the theme of my collection, even if I know that it has a great value MIB.
Which leads me to wonder: Anyone can shrink wrap a box. How do I really know if that $100 IMC Ford GT 40 MISB on my shelf doesn’t really contain a bunch of old stripped trees? Am I stupid? Maybe. Can I afford that? Yes. Does it matter? You have to believe in some things. The only blessing is that I have two others in opened boxes that I got for less than $15.00 total, so at least I will have a built (by my hands) example that will be worth more than money to my children and grandchildren. So, I guess the bottom line on the value of kits, in any condition, is all in the mind. Build 'em if you like 'em, but build them with your heart. If it shows that it can be an investment (My old Renwal Visible Wasp Engine goes for around $500, another of Mom’s throw-outs) then invest. Sometimes the twain doth meet.