Into the Bin, A Quiet Goodbye

[chrish]

20 hours ago, LSP_K2 said:

I never once bothered to get a vac anything. I knew that if I ever did, I'd end up in a rubber room with a jacket that has extra long sleeves. 

hey, there's a room right next door to mine...if you're interested...

[MikeC]

Once I'd actually managed to finish a vac-form  I was hooked. Lots of subjects (in 1/72 scale in those days) that I fancied doing had not been kitted by mainstream i/m manufacturers like Airfix.

But nowadays? It's a long while since I did one, not sure how I'd manage. But perhaps it's worth a go?

 

[Tony T]

26 minutes ago, MikeC said:

Once I'd actually managed to finish a vac-form  I was hooked. Lots of subjects (in 1/72 scale in those days) that I fancied doing had not been kitted by mainstream i/m manufacturers like Airfix.

But nowadays? It's a long while since I did one, not sure how I'd manage. But perhaps it's worth a go?

 

 

I admire your courage. 

Thete's a chunky Tigger Canberra out there and with its chunky leading edges that might just work as a vac kit...

...then I retreat from the concept. What exactly am I thinking? 

 

Tony 

[Jack]

By the way, i do think a have the rarest of 1/32 vacform kits in my stash (sorry Lee) of a Lockheed Cheyenne helo, which i must say i've been delaying and "fighting" for quite some time, and i'm totally hooked on this helicopter, but e.g. i'm totally afraid of tackling the rotor system, but i'll have to get my behind going with this one.

Problem is, in general, this kind of building is getting lost somehow in the dayly "motion" of life......

[Sabrejet]

On 7/7/2026 at 6:29 PM, RCPlym said:

And here's me seeking out 32nd scale vacforms... 😁 

 

Glad I'm not the only one! I still search for obscure vac subjects and still get more satisfaction from making a vac kit than I'd get from most injection equivalents. It still baffles me why modellers don't give them a go.

[RCPlym]

30 minutes ago, Sabrejet said:

 

Glad I'm not the only one! I still search for obscure vac subjects and still get more satisfaction from making a vac kit than I'd get from most injection equivalents. It still baffles me why modellers don't give them a go.

 

Absolutely.

I am awaiting RM to deliver a little venture into 1/24th scale with a Black Knight/Sanger SE5a that I think I'll enjoy sometime.

[Sabrejet]

25 minutes ago, RCPlym said:

 

Absolutely.

I am awaiting RM to deliver a little venture into 1/24th scale with a Black Knight/Sanger SE5a that I think I'll enjoy sometime.

 

1/24 Bucker Jungmeister might be nice, or a Berliner-Joyce P-16 in 1/32.

[Martinnfb]

The day where there will be an abundance of  "free stuff" bins on the IPMS tables is coming.  Actually no, just a landfill.

 

[Cicchino]

On 7/7/2026 at 5:28 PM, thierry laurent said:

Finally, I think the only full kit ones I will assemble will be the ID F-82 and Echelon Lightning!

 

I'm with you Thierry, 

 

My year started full of ambition, and the F-82 was destined to be my first vac. I was totally committed for 6-8 weeks, but it just got to be too much work. It's shelved for now, but I have had more than passing thoughts of giving a 3D design a go. 

 

Regards,

 

John

[thierry laurent]

4 hours ago, Cicchino said:

 

I'm with you Thierry, 

 

My year started full of ambition, and the F-82 was destined to be my first vac. I was totally committed for 6-8 weeks, but it just got to be too much work. It's shelved for now, but I have had more than passing thoughts of giving a 3D design a go. 

 

Regards,

 

John

Actually I simplified a little bit the process as I got a ton of aftermarket sets to ease the process: F-82 exhausts and wheels, US IP bezels, P-51 seats, control sticks and cockpit details, seat belts, MG muzzles, LG legs, canopies, propellers...

[Lee White]

15 hours ago, Cicchino said:

 

I'm with you Thierry, 

 

My year started full of ambition, and the F-82 was destined to be my first vac. I was totally committed for 6-8 weeks, but it just got to be too much work. It's shelved for now, but I have had more than passing thoughts of giving a 3D design a go. 

 

Regards,

 

John

John, 

 

If I may, I’d like to suggest an alternative model for a first vac kit. Learning vac kits on ID or Combat kits is a bit like trying to learn how to ride a bike on a TT motorcycle. I think you’d be pleased with the results if you cut your teeth on a Dynavector kit, or even a Koster kit. Yes, those are 1/48, but the fundamentals are the same. Soon enough you’ll know enough to build a more challenging kit, perhaps one of your own design. That’s very satisfying. 
 

   Good luck!

 

 

[chrish]

37 minutes ago, Lee White said:

John, 

 

If I may, I’d like to suggest an alternative model for a first vac kit. Learning vac kits on ID or Combat kits is a bit like trying to learn how to ride a bike on a TT motorcycle. I think you’d be pleased with the results if you cut your teeth on a Dynavector kit, or even a Koster kit. Yes, those are 1/48, but the fundamentals are the same. Soon enough you’ll know enough to build a more challenging kit, perhaps one of your own design. That’s very satisfying. 
 

   Good luck!

 

 

Damn! I wish you’d said so sooner! My first vac. Kit was a Broplan 1/72 ATR 72 500 that I converted to a 42 300….very difficult kit made from 2 dimensional plastic (very thin) to say it was a learning curve would be a bit of an understatement. Little like going from training wheels to a Kawasaki Ninja 

[Cicchino]

22 hours ago, Lee White said:

I think you’d be pleased with the results if you cut your teeth on a Dynavector kit, or even a Koster kit.

 

Lee, 

 

Great idea and I actually have some Dynavector and Koster kits in the far regions of the stash, but each has seemingly been surpassed by a quality IM kit; I've pretty much moved away from 48th scale regardless (which has created its own problem with moving this kits to better homes)

 

I think I'm enjoying 3D design enough and seem to be progressing that a full kit doesn't seem that far fetched, and the F-82 is not all that more complicated from a design perspective. We'll see...

 

Regards

 

 

John

 

 

[mattlow]

On 7/13/2026 at 4:47 PM, Cicchino said:

 

Lee, 

 

Great idea and I actually have some Dynavector and Koster kits in the far regions of the stash, but each has seemingly been surpassed by a quality IM kit; I've pretty much moved away from 48th scale regardless (which has created its own problem with moving this kits to better homes)

 

I think I'm enjoying 3D design enough and seem to be progressing that a full kit doesn't seem that far fetched, and the F-82 is not all that more complicated from a design perspective. We'll see...

 

Regards

 

 

John

 

 

Have you seen this thread from way back...?

Quite inspirational work in the days before 3D printers...

 

Matt

[Rick Griewski]

A continuation… today and tomorrow the resin kits I started that in today’s world are replaced by styrene are going to Valhalla.  These could not complete with my 12 to 15 hour engineering job.  Some should have been tossed years ago due to poor casting, bubbles, warping.