my modelling life:

[Tophe]

- Aged 7 to 10, I was a Joyful Modelling Innocent, having fun with aircraft kits. I was not using paint at all (nor putty), just plastic, and some decals to put anywhere as most beautiful...
- Aged 11 to 15, I felt guilty under the frown eyes of Joyless Modelling Nazis writing magazines to condemn any "mistake", and I added colours. I remember a Navy Soldier getting angry with my Etendard IVM painted violet with French air-force roundels, saying this was insulting the Clémenceau-pilots... I then tried to use the right colours, and exact decals at precise position, and true bombs/missiles/guns, to be like Real. I felt uncomfortable about such celebration of killing, and I had problems with painting frames in clear parts, I was becoming a Joyless Modelling Sorry, and I stopped modelling, with a few objects remaining (like the silver P-38 above).
- Aged 21 to 30, I started again this hobby, inventing shapes of my own, with smooth putty and sanding, Joyful Modelling Creator, but failing to finish a single model, as I was unable to create new fairing between moved canopies and fuselages, Joyless Modelling Sorry again, and I stopped modelling again, to draw with computer.
- Aged 37 to 40, I discovered the Universe of Joyful Modelling What-ifers, and I drew some of their ideas or ideas from myself that they could use: Joyful Modelling wi-Fan.
- Aged 41 now, I start again this hobby, with the key point being the black painting of canopies, allowing their free moving with putty for fairing. And my 4th model, this year, is the sky-blue GP-38W below. Joyful Modelling wi-Actor...

Thanks you all (mainly Nev, Gary, Barry ): you were so right pushing me ahead/back into modelling. The result is not impressive, but is deep personal satisfaction. Thanks a million, no psychiatrist did the tenth of what you did for my comfort...  

[Captain Canada]

Great stuff, Tophe ! That was a very nice read..........glad you're enjoying modelling once again !

And we love you too, buddy ! Thanks for making this site a better palce !

[nev]

No, thankyou Tophe.  As someone who returned to the hobby after a c. 10 year layoff myself, I know the joys of rediscovering our great hobby, and seeing you pick up the styrene, knife and putty again makes me all warm and tingly inside    

SO don't worry about your planes not having pilots or wings or whatever, our hobby is not restricted to those who just want to make an exact scale replica of a real machine (thankfully).

I'll stop now before I start a long post on "why modelling is art"  

Keep up the good work mate, and keep an eye peeled for my EF-86T, coming soon to a forum near you  

[Tophe]

Thanks for making this site a better palce !

mistyping for 'place' or for 'palace'?

Thanks both of you, and all the others, I just could not mention all the great supports I got , please for the others: don't feel scorned...

Nev: someday, I will be intereted to read what you have to say about "modellism and art". Even in 2006, no hurry, but I feel this would be more interesting than a full Scale Model magazine...

[NARSES2]

There's a lot of "the truth" in what you wrote there Tophe - glad to see you back enjoying this great hobby of ours

Chris

[Allan]

Hi Tophe,

You're a brother in arms-one of us.

Allan in Canberra

[Ollie]

C'es très bien tout ça Tophe.  Comment ne pas aimer quelqu'un qui publie ce qu'on a fait dans un livre?



 

[TsrJoe]

great to hear your back modelling again Christophe and great to see its for your own personal pleasure (who cares bout JMN's not us!), likewise i too have gone through many modelling phases, my recent 'outline' modelling passion (ie painted canopies and no surface detail) coming from a frustration of excess detailing (a MiG29 was the final straw when i couldnt find out what colour the radar unit and radome interior was.. dont ask!) as well as a desire to recreate a company 'display model' style on illustration models for Tony's BSP. books!
I fear im now in danger of being bogged down again with those so possibly a quick dip into the realms of photoetch and detailing might renew my interests...

cheers, joe    

[Tophe]

Thanks for the support, that will be mutual, as much as I can ^_^ ...
Obviously, what-if modellism should not be 'cured' by JMN-psychiatrists, but considered as 'genuine medicine', paid back by Health Insurance or Social Security...  

[Tophe]

C'es très bien tout ça Tophe.  Comment ne pas aimer quelqu'un qui publie ce qu'on a fait dans un livre?

(Babel-Fish translation:) It is very well all that Tophe. How not to love somebody who publishes what one made in a book?
(My translation?:)That is all very fine Tophe. How disliking someone that publishes in a book what we made?

There is a (little) misunderstanding: I have not "published" those books but had those books "printed". "Publishing" would have meant : the goal is making benefit or at least reaching financial balance between sells minus printing/shipping/tax costs, thus trying to please any reader, respecting the holy requirements of JMNs, army fanatics, severe patriots... and most of all pleasing as much as possible the advertising magazines, reaching lots of potential purchasers while requiring to obey their strong values (like severe Realism, nationalism). No, I am not "publishing" anymore, and I am proud to pay-to-share, not to prostitute myself to get money... I am feeling bad enough at work, commanded to accept lies, not at home, please, don't say I am a lier-seller doing anything to seduce.
I know that - from the outside - printing and publishing is the same, but in detail, it is not, not at all...