In all the time I’ve been modeling, there’s been various modeling subjects that I’ve often felt were underrated and/or underappreciated.
Stuff that almost never gets built or seen at contests, in modeling magazines, in website photo galleries, talked about on message forums, etc.
Things like, but not limited to:
American west figures, dioramas, etc. depicting life in the mid to late 1800’s. Cowboys, Indians, Wyatt Earp, Stagecoaches, etc.
Civilian passenger liners and cruise ships, yachts, oil tankers, freighters, etc.
Railroad type models. Locomotives, dioramas, etc.
What other types of models or catagories of models would you be more curious to see of at contests, in magazines, on websites, etc.?
Farm implements! The wide variety of tractors, balers, mowers, cultivators, harrows — you name it — of the golden age of the family farm from pre-WWII through the 70’s, seems totally unrepresented in the scale modeling world. Die cast replicas, sure… but I want to build them, and weather them up to look like the ones my grandpas had when I was a kid.
Or like this one I just got for moving logs at my up-north place. It’s a 1967 International 424 utility.
How about a Streetcar named Desire? Well, more exactly a Cable Car named Powell & Mason. Hawk kit from 1957 I built last year. It’s good to take a break from building your regular airplanes, cars or armor. There are lots of subjects out there for a change of pace.
Trainers! Especially WWII trainers in styrene. Primary like the Ryan PT-22. Fairchild PT-19. Basic like the BT-13/15. A new mold NAA AT-6 advanced trainer.
Got to agree with you about emergency vehicles. I hardly ever see any types at contests except for the occasional police car.
I’ve had thoughts of buying a fire truck model in the past. But I’d paint it that bright yellow/green color that you see on some airport emergency vehicles instead. Red is just too “classic”. For me, I gotta be unique and different.
I’d like to see more weird bugs and crustaceans! Fujimi lidar scanned a real crayfish to produce a super realistic model so I know it can be done.
Stuff I’d like to see include a giant Amazon centipede, coconut crab, some prehistoric critters like trilobites and sea scorpions… and a 4:1 scale American Cockroach molded in translucent brown!
Many years ago I saw some 1:1 kits of fish mounted like trophies at Tokyu Hands in Shibuya. The kits contained a resin fish, wooden trophy plaque, and detailed step by step illustrated instructions for painting the fish for maximum realism. Kinda cool. I wish I had bought the rainbow trout kit.
I’d also like models of the Thrust SSC land speed record car and the Ady Gil trimaran boat that the Sea Shepherd guys used.
I’ve got the 1/25 Trumpeter LaFrance engine kit - about 10% done. Looks really nice.
Engines out here are a bright yellow, but a they are Pierce rigs. I’ll get to it sooner or later. I lived in Ramona, CA outside San Diego - I plan on doing one of their engines. This was a great pic
I also did the 1/32 snaptite - pretty cool little rig
Construction equipment is another catagory of models you hardly ever see people building. Everything from bulldozers to dump trucks and everything in between. I never see that stuff at contests or on Facebook, etc.
I’ll second the emergency vehicles as well as utility / work trucks. I’m thinking fleet purchase vehicle types. Most of them can be repurposed into civilian garb of one type or another. I’d like to see more car and truck models come with stock wheel set ups included as well as the fancy chrome wheels and aftermarket tires.
I’d like to see larger scale motorcycle models. Tamiya does make a bunch but all the current ones or modern motorcycles are 1/12. They did a 1/6th scale Honda Africa Twin, I’d love to see something like a Ducati MotoGP bike in that scale.
