Scale Modeling and History

[Radub]

In my case I concentrate mostly on the technical aspects of scale models. I am more curious about what makes the machine work, how it is built, how it is maintained, how it is painted, rather than the person behind the windscreen. Having said that, history makes its way into the technical aspects of model-building because various stages and theatres of war bring with them specific technical adaptations, advancements and production timelines.

One needs to be careful to separate history from glorification. History is the past. Glorification is politics. 

Radu 

Edited January 9, 2021 by Radub

[Greif8]

Like many here I enjoy the historical aspect of modeling particular subjects.  I probably spend as much researching things that have a historical connection with what I build, be they people, events, technical aspects or all of the above.  I spent nearly 22 years as a soldier and since retiring I lead what the U.S. Army calls "staff rides" to study various battles or campaigns in Europe covering the timeframe from the Napoleonic Wars through WWII.  So the study, and application, of the lessons of military history has been part of my professional life since I was 18 years old.   Just about all my builds have a historical angle to them, sometimes more than one; and I that provides a lot of my motivation to build.

 

Ernest

[MikeMaben]

I have no explanation for why I build what I build. I just like airplanes.

It's like trying to explain why you like your favorite color. Why you like

the other gender. There's no explaining it. It just is what it is.

I've always liked things that other people don't have. Most of my

vehicles have had some aspect that made them unique. I think that's

why I got into image editing and the Alps printer (found out about it's

existance and capabilities from Mike Grant). Now there's the cutting

machines that open up similar options for more people. It can be

cnallenging but fun to achieve your goal. The history attached to the

subjects I choose is interesting but not really the reason why I choose

them. It's the look of the subject (coolness factor) that piques my interest.

... but that's just me.

[George]

Modeling is fun whatever type of modeling you choose.  One thing that would really cool is have a Museum of Plastic Models that people could visit and appreciate.  The museum would have exhibits beginning with the history of scale modeling followed by dedicated wings by type and scale of every model ever produced: aircraft (private, military, commercial, private), ships, submarines, vehicles (armored, cars, military), sci-fi, popular culture (film and television), etc, including dioramas.  Can you imagine a museum that had one sample of every scale plastic model ever made by type and scale?  Wouldn't be awesome?   

[MikeC]

On 1/9/2021 at 7:53 AM, Radub said:

In my case I concentrate mostly on the technical aspects of scale models. I am more curious about what makes the machine work, how it is built, how it is maintained, how it is painted ...

 

The development of aviation technology since the Montgolfier brothers is a fascinating branch of history in itself, and of course there is arguably a great mutual influence between aviation technological development and historical events.

 

[Pup7309]

Bit of both. The technical/ mechanical aspects are least interesting- but are important to some which is fine. 
The buildability, and overall appeal is what gets me in but the detail in the research adds much more dimension. Sometimes I will do a build purely on its historical or personal significance. These aircraft sometimes have boring markings and aren’t your most popular types but they are the ‘vehicle’ for the stories behind them. If you know what I mean.

Edited January 10, 2021 by Pup7309

[Joe Hegedus]

On 1/8/2021 at 11:57 AM, George said:

I wanted to get a pulse from the blog.  Does military aircraft scale modeling want you know more about the model you built (service history, who flew it, the military campaigns it participated in) or vice-versa?  For me, it is both. 

Maybe.  Sometimes I'm inspired by reading about a particular event/person, sometimes building something inspires me to read more about the event, but sometimes I just want to build a model that is representative of a type - the "who" or "where" don't matter, just the "what".