John’s grandfather was Leslie Rowell, the founder of Lesro Models and chief designer of Aerokits. Alas, he died in 1992 after a long battle against cancer and, unfortunately, by the time John was old enough to appreciate the beautiful models Leslie had created, he had retired and sold the business. Before passing away, however, Leslie…
The Veron story is inseparable from that of its chief designer, Phil Smith. Phil was first and foremost an aeromodeller, and his Impala 52 slope-soaring glider design, selling to the tune of 140000 kits, probably introduced more people to the delights of this form of flying than any other, including me. However, it is his…
The West Coast of Scotland steam puffer has long been a favourite subject for modellers, with a number of kits and freelance examples appearing in the marketplace. Since the history and development of this somewhat unique type – which has a well-deserved place in Scottish folklore – has been well documented previously, only a brief…
This was not so much a kit conversion as a complete rebuild on a commercial hull. For several years I was a Police Inspector in Hong Kong and spent some time with the Marine Police Department. Legendary in police lore were the two post war ‘cruising launches’ Police One and Police Two, which were actually…
John Parker delves into the archives Compressed air engines, from a 1928 catalogue. Alternative energy in the form of air, rubber and clockwork motors for model boats are today only a curiosity, but in the 1930’s when other options were more limited or expensive, they were looked upon as a viable alternative, even for serious…
Dave Wooley with his Worldwide Review of Warships and Warship Modelling The Polish guided missile frigate ORP General Tadeusz Kolciuszko entering the River Mersey for the Battle of the Atlantic Commemoration in 2013. Welcome once again to our regular sortie into the world of fighting ships and in this issue we have Part One of…
Chris Drage explains how to build these miniatures Operation Halberd 1942 featured the British cruisers Sheffield, Edinburgh and Kenya. These are 1:700 scale models and show what can be achieved just by working on a kitchen table. The one big advantage of depicting ships in a harbour is that you can include a great deal of…
Richard Simpson profiles this well-known model steam manufacturer and trader It still surprises me to think that although I made the move from West Yorkshire to South Lincolnshire four years ago, I am still finding my way around the area and locating the modelling traders and suppliers. I was aware that Tony Green Steam Models…
Dave Wooley with his Worldwide Review of Warships and Warship Modelling EML Wambola arriving at the Liverpool Cruise Terminal Welcome once again to our regular sortie into the world of fighting ships and this month we have a close look at a warship that was once a minelayer in the Danish Navy and is now…
