I've recently become very interested in making WW2 models. I've always been fascinated by them but now I'm wanting to start trying some out. Not going for a full-scale attack, but would like to start with something small. But, I have no idea where to start. I need any advice you can give on size, where to shop, paint, platforms, anything I would need to know. P.S I'm particulaly interested in the European theatre, especially in the winter.
I myself preferred 1/35th scale when it comes to armor/soft skinned vehicles. Easy to modify scratchbuild to correct inaccuracies or customize the kit. For aircraft 1/48 scale was my favorite. Plenty large enough for detail, small enough in most cases not to quickly run you out of display space. A lot of times you can find "lots" of models on E-Bay. Heres a couple examples: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Various-Make-Military-Plastic-Model-Lot-Tank-Crew-Ford-GPA-Tiger-I-Howitzer-AH-/380906353277?pt=Model_Kit_US&hash=item58afc9b27d http://www.ebay.com/itm/LOT-OF-VARIOUS-MILITARY-MODEL-KITS-ARMOR-SOLDIERS-EQUIPMENT-GERMAN-TAMIYA-/371060695373?pt=Model_Kit_US&hash=item5664f0e14d
Painting small scale soldiers will save a lot of space as well. You'll need some good lighting and a commercial grade magnifying glass and some fine tipped brushes though. And a great reference book as well. When I was a kid and I needed room for newer tanks and aircraft models, I take some of the older ones out to the back yard and shoot'em up with a BB gun. Ahh, the memories....
Any advice on what scale? Seen sizes such as 1/35 and 1/72 but not sure exactly how big they are. Also, any favorite websites to buy from?
If you are just getting started, I'd begin with airplane models, especially fighters. They are a lot simpler to build than armor. You didn't set them on fire first and also put a few fire crackers in them before opening fire? That's the way we did it
Few things more depressing in modelling than a rubbish kit. Prices have also got silly for quality. So... Have a shufti at Tamiya's 1/48 vehicle range. Good compromise between price and quality/fit. Not the very highest detail, but up there. If planes are your thing, I'd again say go Tamiya. As it can avoid a lot of frustration when starting out.
I have to second that. If you are just starting out, Von_Poop's right, Tamiya is the way to go but you are not surrendering too much detail.
I have purchased 1:35 scale kits from the following on-line shops with no problems. http://www.luckymodel.com/ Lucky Model - Hong Kong. - Often have products earlier and at lower prices (even including shipping to the USA) than US shops http://www.squadron.com Squadron - Carrolton, TX - Deep inventory, Discount prices and often have very good sales. Free shipping on large orders. http://scalehobbyist.com/ Scale Hobbyist - Nashua, NH - Deep inventory, Deeper discount than Squadron. Flat rate shipping by USPS available. Other on-line stores with good reputations: Hobby Link Japan Hobby Search Sprue Brothers ----------- If doing 1/35 or 1/48 armor, Tamiya kits are well engineered and therefore great for people starting. A good place to learn about military modeling and see discussions and reviews of kits is Armorama http://www.armorama.com
First, join IPMS (International Plastic Modelers Society). There might be a chapter local to you, and there's nothing better than talking with other Modelers and seeing their work, to learn. http://www.ipmsusa.org Second, subscribe to FineScale Modeler. http://www.finescale.com For easy, but decent aircraft kits to start, go with the 1/48 Revell (Monogram) kits. Learn basic model building techniques and don't worry about detail too much in the beginning. Besides the online hobby sites, first see if you have any hobby shops in your town. Support them first. Barring that, Amazon is a decent source for kits and supplies.
My advice is to maybe try a few out first...just make one! : ) Personally i think 1/72 is the perfect size...once you get ten or more space will become a problem and you'll be glad you didnt go 1/48...48 has a little more detail and probably looks a little better, and with bigger part its easier to produce and paint... I have found excellent and bad examples from almost all producers...Airfix, Tamiya are always good value...I started woth a F4U4 Corsair (because it was my favourite)...buy the craft you like first and then fill to make a collection...you WILL make mistakes, just learn from them. Paint all small peices PRIOR to glueing them. Get a couple of different brushes, turps, a small pair of quality scissor and a scalpel...look at the box before leaving the shop and get the color paints you will need...always add silver and black to the list. And get some modellers masking tape for sharp lines and the canopy...ill try to think of more...
While true, 1/72 takes up less space, 1/48 is easier to learn basic model building techniques like filling seams, scribing, finishing, etc.
always put the tops back on the paint containers properly and they will last you 4 or 5 models...Same with the glue.
For hobby tools, there's a great source: http://www.micromark.com Good books for tips: http://www.kalmbachstore.com/scale-modeling-special-interests-scale-modeling-books-general.html
My younger brother bought him a small air brush to spray paint his larger aircraft models. He got pretty good at it too. The paint jobs looked a lot better that thousands of dabbles with the smaller paint brush strokes. Not sure how much they cost, but you might look into them if you get real serious with your modelling.
Scads of good advice above. I think Gromit's take on 1/48 and Monogram/Revel is fairly sensible, if you care to do aircraft. 1/700 or so is a popular scale for small naval display models and there are many fine kits available. Waterline kits in this scale can be great for dioramas. I haven't personally built much armor, but 1/35 does seem fairly prevalent. I believe I've also seen armor in 1/72, which could give you the possibility for some combined arms. The IPM advice is great, since there are many stores that offer discounts to members, and it would be a good way to find modelers in your area, if there's a chapter nearby. (As would a decent brick and mortar hobby store.) But one slightly offbeat piece of advice: gaming scales can also be great fun, if you want to try a quantity approach. You could build whole squadrons of aircraft in 1/300 or 1/350. My own present fleet of . . . geeze . . . 600 some assorted 1/2400 vesses . . . started out as a simple order of perhaps thirty ships that became an obsession. Working in gaming scales is a little different, of course. Many kits are metal. Few have more than five or six parts. Many have only one. It can be more an exercise of painting than conventional model building, though there's still plenty of opportunity for kit-bashing and detailing. It's a somewhat different art, though one with considerable crossover. There is one significant advantage, though: you can invite your friends over to fight larger battles with gaming miniatures than with conventional display models. And commercially available rule systems are typically geared towards "gaming" scales rather than "display" scales, though there are exceptions. (Fletcher Pratt, anyone? Ah, to live in a world where a wargame could appear in a sports magazine.) Not that this is necessary, but it can be fun. What do you want to model? Aircraft seem like the usual gateway drug. That's where I got hooked, anyway. My very first model was a 1/72 Wildcat. The first one I built myself that required paint and glue was a small F-16, but my modeling career took off with a 1/48 Monogram TBD. Many many more 1/48 aircraft followed, including perhaps a dozen with four engines. That takes up some real-estate, let me tell you.
Wait till you discover 1/24 aircraft, 1/350 ships. That's when AMS sets in. (Advanced Modelers Syndrome)
After I've finished relocating I may take up modelling again (assuming I have any space left), and will probably go for ships, still uncertain about scale, did some 1/3000 a few years ago but was disappointed because the kits were made to "feel" like the originals rather than be true scale reproductions so sister ships from different sets looked nothing like each other, big turn off for a nit-picker like me. 1/700 was great fun but my recollection in that scale was that you either omitted some details or ended up with grossly oversized elements, so it is probably better for waterline 2 / 3 ship dioramas than for super detailing, on the other hand 1/350 looks awfully challenging.
Yeah, there is a lot to be said for photo-etched parts nowadays - for 1/700 or 1/350. If you are really interested in ship models, you will want to peruse this link - have fun, and we will see you again in a few weeks. http://www.steelnavy.com/
Well aware of that site, but if I go for it my first stop is likely to be "brick and mortar", Rome still has at least 3 good model shops though they mostly stock AFVs and I haven's bought any kits there for years, I will need to restock on tools before I start as practically nothing survived the house moves and my "usual" wargames store only carries paints and brushes. My first attempt is going to be either Zuikaku or Littorio, as I have tonns of documentation about them, and is expected to be a re-learning experience, I'm probably going to botch them but the purpose of the exercise is to see if I still have enough eye hand coordination and patience to do serious modelling so I'm not going for something less ambitious.
