MYSTERY GHOST SHIP

This Japanese spaceship has me intrigued. I've no idea what it is. There's a large ghost galleon at the rear if that helps?

Missile Mania

Following on from British Missile models, I bought this loose Corgi Rocket Age Thunderbird Missile at the weekend. First released around 1958 with a trailer and land rover, the RAF Thunderbird was a precursor to the Bloodhound Missile. A single piece casting, with a plastic cap, it was a non firing toy.

See here: http://ilovecorgitoys.blogspot.com/2017/07/rocket-age.html?m=1

Around the same time an ebay purchase arrived in the shape of the Crescent Toys cap rocket. Ive had the launch trailer since I was a kid, but along the way, the rocket had become separated.

I was lucky enough to find the white fuselage rocket a few months back and now have the yellow rocket from the Civil Rocket Transporter too.
 

https://projectswordtoys.blogspot.com/2021/02/a-blast-from-my-past.html?m=1

THAT'S A BIT FLASH

Flash is the unwanted, excess plastic or metal surrounding a part after it comes out of a mould. 

In both injection moulding and die-casting, the two halves of a mould are clamped together, and plastic or metal is poured or pumped in to the cavities that will form the part. 

If the halves do not meet exactly, some of the material will be pressed out in to the gap. When this hardens it becomes flash, and needs to be cut or sanded off the parts. This is not usually a problem with new moulds, but in the case of older kits, etc, the moulds may become worn over time, allowing some of the material.

Some kits have holes that are deliberately 'flashed over', which you may need to open up, depending on how you want to build the kit. In the case of an aircraft model this might be for a display stand, or a choice of underwing weapons.

Here, the holes do not extend all the way through the part. They will be on the inside of the wing or fuselage, but smooth on the outside. If you want to use the display stand or fit the weapons, you just drill or cut through the thin flashed over plastic.

This is the Kovozavody Prostejov kit of the Aero C-3A light transport from Czechoslovakia. A small amount of flash is visible around some of the parts, especially the fuselage halves, and the tailwheel. There is also flash in one of the window openings.

How do you deal with flash?

Paul Adams from New Zealand

THE FAMILY MEAL: PASS ME THE PICCALILLI STEVE!

I was thinking about eating at my parents back in the Sixties and early Seventies. I know we ate most evening meals - tea - around a large dining table. I can see salt and pepper, piccalilli, bread and butter, Daddy's sauce and ketchup. I can see raffia place mats and bigger ones for the hot food dish placed in the middle of the table. Maybe a casserole or a hotpot, sausages or mince and onions. A lot of the crockery was white Pyrex with a blue pattern.

I don't remember my Dad cooking. Mum cooked everything. Sometimes we had guests like the kid from across the road, Russell James or a friend of my parents. So there we were, our parents and three sons. Often we had our two older married sisters, fellas and sprogs over from their houses. We were a big family who often came together back then. Mum was really the focal point of everything whilst she was alive.

We may have had Sunday dinners too round the dining table - a roast and all that - but I really can't recall now sixty years on. I bet we did, although church was a big deal on Sundays mid-morning back then. I had to go with my Mum at 11am and yawned the whole time!

My Mum and Dad's dining table - known as the breakfast table - was in a room off the kitchen called the breakfast room. This was our dining room. All very confusing. It was all very family-oriented and matter-of-fact. Plain honest food. No airs and graces. I don't remember my Mum cooking for friends in the evening like you might do now, though there was lots of drinking going on with chums at the weekends. There were buffets too, lots of finger foods on big occasions like Christmas and Birthdays. Lots of stainless steel pickle trays came out and little rainbow-handled forks.

I also ate in the telly room school-nights. I had tea there [the evening meal] with a tray on my knee. I can clearly see steak pudding, chips and mushy peas and gravy in front of me watching Blue Peter, Scooby Doo or similar kids' TV. Doctor Who and Thunderbirds were on later if I remember rightly. The food may have been on an oval Pyrex plate or even still in its chippy tray on a plate!

I remember making hot meals on Saturdays for my greasy mates later on in the mid-Seventies. I was quite the teenage cook! Chicken and mushroom pie, home made chips and marrowfat peas with my own special gravy were on the menu and drew my mates in like bees to pollen! I was a better cook then than I am now!

Nowadays, during the week me and the Missus eat our tea on our laps watching telly around 6.45pm. Breakfast is the same. We have a sofa each, which Blue the dog surfs between.

Saturdays we have a cooked breakfast with bread and butter and to relive those glory days of the Sixties we eat at the dining table with a mug of tea reading the papers.

Blimey, buttered bread, tea and papers!

We've become our Mum and Dads!

Where do you eat readers?

WEEKEND HIGHLIGHTS ON TALKING PICTURES TV UK

Friday 13th May 20:00 The Outer Limits The Invisibles. 1964. Stars Don Gordon, George MacReady & Dee Hartford. A secret government agent infiltrates the ranks of an underground society who are possessed by alien parasites. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Fri 13 May 21:00 Cellar Club with Caroline Munro The Cellar Club doors open once more, where Caroline Munro awaits. The first offering is the 1963 horror The Haunted Palace, directed by Roger Corman and with Vincent Price in the leading role. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Fri 13 May 21:05 The Haunted Palace 1963. Horror. Directed by Roger Corman. Stars Vincent Price, Debra Paget & Lon Chaney Jr. A man arrives in a village to claim a mansion he's inherited and discovers a curse plaguing the villagers. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Fri 13 May 22:50 Cellar Club with Caroline Munro The second offering tonight is Dark Tower. Caroline introduces the 1987 horror directed by Freddie Francis and Ken Wiederhorn about an office tower with a deadly presence surrounding it. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Fri 13 May 22:55 The Dark Tower 1987. Horror. Directed by Freddie Francis & Ken Wiederhorn. Stars Michael Moriarty, Jenny Agutter & Carol Lynley. A series of deaths around an unfinished building sparks a paranormal investigation. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Sat 14 May 03:10 Captain Kronos The Vampire Hunter 1974. Adventure Horror. Directed by Brian Clemens. Stars Horst Janson, John Carson & Caroline Munro. A master swordsman, former soldier and his assistant go on the hunt for vampires. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Sat 14 May 06:00 The Night Caller 1965. Sci-Fi directed by John Gilling and starring John Saxon, Maurice Denham and Patricia Haines. Aliens need to find mates from another world or they'll become extinct, they start with earth females. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE}

Sat 14 May 09:55 Larry the Lamb 1971. The Toytown Mystery. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Sat 14 May 12:00 Teenagers from Outer Space 1959. Sci-fi. Directed by Tom Graeff. Stars David Love, Dawn Bender & Bryan Grant. A teenage girl teams up with a young alien to prevent Earth from becoming a breeding ground for giant lobsters.

Sun 15 May 03:10 Something To Live For 1952. Drama. Directed by George Stevens. Stars Joan Fontaine, Ray Milland & Teresa Wright. A reformed drinker puts a strain on his marriage helping an actress's career threatened by drinking. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Sun 15 May 13:50 Mouse on the Moon 1963. Comedy. Director: Richard Lester. Stars Margaret Rutherford, Ron Moody & Bernard Cribbins. A tiny country in need of money, convinces the US and the Soviets they're starting a space program. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE)

Sun 15 May 22:05 Dead of Night 1945. Thriller. Directed by Alberto Cavalcanti, Charles Crichton, Basil Dearden & Robert Hamer. Stars Mervyn Johns & Michael Redgrave. An architect senses impending doom as his dreams become reality. (SUBTITLES AVAILABLE

What will you be watching?

Living in a Box

As part of an large insurance repair we are having Moonbase redecorated everywhere. 

It means that my collection needs boxing up to protect it whilst furniture gets moved. 

Have you ever boxed up your prize possessions readers? Did it go smoothly? Did you eventually get everything out again?

STIFF UPPER KITS: BRITISH MODEL MISSILES

The late 1950s and early 1960s saw a host of guided missile kits hit the shops in America. Most companies that made model aircraft also made at least a few missile kits. 

Most were to accepted model aircraft scales, or to odd 'fit the box' scales. Some missiles were made by more than one company. Many of the kits included launchers, and some also had transport vehicles, support equipment, and figures. Missiles were also included in the armament of many aircraft and ship kits, but these were generally to much smaller scales than the separate kits.

Outside America, there was less interest in missiles, and kits were rare. In Britain, the only makers seem to have been Airfix and Frog.

All photos from Ebay or Worthpoint, and one from me.

The Bristol Bloodhound Surface-to-Air Missile was developed in Britain in the 1950s. The Mk.I entered service with the RAF in 1958, followed by the Mk.II in 1964. It was exported to Australia, Sweden, and Switzerland. Ex-RAF missiles were also used by Singapore. According to Wikipedia, some of these later went to Myanmar (Burma).

Airfix

This was the first military vehicle kit from Airfix, and pre-dates the tank line. The kit depicts the early Mk.I missile, and was released in 1960. It has been re-issued several times over the years. Included are the Bloodhound missile, launcher, transport trailer, Short Wheel Base Land Rover towing vehicle (no interior detail at all), five human figures, and a dog. Original kit number A1V, later A209V, then 02309-0. The scale was originally given as 1/72nd, the same as the aircraft kits; later changed to OO (which is 1/76th scale) to match the tank kits, then HO/OO, and finally back to 1/72nd. Originally sold in a plastic bag, with a paper header/instruction sheet. Later issues were sold in boxes.

The Airfix Corporation of America release has different box art, and is very strange - it seems to show the launcher sitting on top of the missile transport trailer.

When Airfix released their Lockheed Hercules kit in 1971, initially as an RAF C-130K, the Bloodhound was included as a load. This was dropped when the Hercules was re-issued as a USAF C-130E in 1975.

Bristol Bloodhound, Airfix A1V (1960) (scalemates.com)

144747-30-instructions.pdf (scalemates.com)

Airfix 1/76 Bloodhound Missile, by Greg Ewald (modelingmadness.com)

Plastic Soldier Review - Airfix Kit Figures - Bristol Bloodhound

AIRFIX 1/72 BRISTOL BLOODHOUND Mk1 SURFACE TO AIR MISSILE - Ready for Inspection - Aircraft - Britmodeller.com

Frog

This kit was also released in 1960, and depicted the Mk.I missile on its launcher. It was far larger than the Airfix version, being made to 1/24th scale. Height 13 1/2 inches. Kit number 344P included the missile, its launcher, and four figures. Moulded in white and khaki, with the figures in blue. The box top boasted 125 parts. Price was 12/6, which would have bought you six Airfix Series 1 kits.

The entry for this kit in Frog Model Aircraft 1932-1976 by Richard Lines and Leif Hellstrom, New Cavendish Books, 1989 states that the kit was only available 1960-62, as it did not sell well, and has never been re-issued - 'The ultimate fate of the mould is unknown'. It is considered one of the rarest of all Frog kits, which means it is really expensive when an example does show up.

Bristol Bloodhound, FROG 344P (195x) (scalemates.com)

RARE Frog Bristol Bloodhound guided missile kit - boxed | #166055178 (worthpoint.com)

Classic British Aviation Industry Advertisements 1909 - 1990 (aviationancestry.co.uk)

There have also been die-cast versions from Corgi in 1958, and a much more recent version in 1/76th scale from Oxford Diecast.

The SA-2 Guideline was an early Soviet Surface-to-Air Missile, widely used in Vietnam and the Middle East. Given the lack of information on Soviet weaponry during the Cold War, code names were assigned to each new type as it became known to the West, in order to keep track of everything. This was similar to the system used for Japanese aircraft during WW2. SA-2 meant the second type of SAM identified. All Soviet SAM missiles had code names beginning with the letter G.

Airfix

The SAM-2 Missile kit dates from the early 1970s. Like the earlier Bloodhound kit it included the missile itself, launcher, a transporter - comprising a truck and trailer, but this time the only figure is the truck driver (who looks very British). This was a Series 3 kit, hence the numbers A303V and 03303-5. The scale was given as OO, or 1/76th.

This was a short-lived kit, and has not been re-issued. It seems the moulds for this kit were either damaged, destroyed, or simply went missing, and it has not been seen since the late 1970s. Given how short-lived the kit was, there are only small variations in the standard box art.

Checking the Vintage Airfix site, I was astounded to see this kit listed as dating from 1971, when it was in the 9th Edition catalogue, under the number A303V. Luckily, I have that catalogue, and a box top is illustrated on page 45, with the tractor in green rather than the usual sand. It seems this kit was announced long before it was released. Most references give a release date of 1973, which I still thought was too early, as I remember this kit coming out, and I did not start modelling until 1974. On checking the Internet Archive, the kit is included in the Newcomers section of Airfix Magazine, August 1974, page 685. Therefore I believe the correct release date is 1974.

SAM-2 Missile, Airfix 03303-5 (1973) (scalemates.com)

SAM 2 Guideline Missile - A303V (vintage-airfix.com)

Airfix Magazine 1974 08 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

miniafv: Airfix 1/72 Sam-2 Missile with Launcher and Transporter **inbox preview** (by Cem Esen)

Airfix 1/76 SA-2 'Guideline' Preview (modelingmadness.com)

In 1960 Frog released eleven ex-Renwal kits as Frog De-Luxe models. These were a mix of ships, military vehicles, and a single missile kit. Frog model M550 was the Renwal Nike SAM kit in 1/32nd scale, so it was to a smaller scale than the Bloodhound kit. Missile, launcher, and three figures. Moulded in authentic white and olive drab colours. Over 14 inches long. Frog retained the original Renwal box art. This kit was also re-issued by Revell (but still with the Renwal name on the box).

Antiaircraft Guided Missile NIKE, Renwal M 550-149 (1955) (scalemates.com)

VINTAGE FROG DELUXE MODEL KIT NIKE ANTI AIRCRAFT GUIDED MISSILE ROCKET COMPLETE | #500572729 (worthpoint.com)

More peripheral are various aircraft kits that included a model of the German V-1 Flying Bomb of WW2. All 1/72nd scale.

Frog Supermarine Spitfire Mk.14 (or Mk.XIV) and German Flying Bomb. Kit number F194, released in 1969. The kit included a stand with two arms, so the Spitfire could be posed attacking the V-1. The kit came with two decal options for the Spitfire, one of them South East Asia Command, which would have looked very odd alongside a V-1. This kit has been re-released under many different company names.

Supermarine Spitfire Mk14 & German 'Flying Bomb', FROG F194 (1969) (scalemates.com)

Frog Arado Ar234 Blitz jet bomber. Released in 1976, this was one of the last Frog kits. Number F417. Could be built with either two or four engines. The kit included a V-1 flying bomb, which could be carried above the fuselage, and air-launched. The Scalemates entry includes the instruction sheet.

Arado Ar234 "Blitz" Jet Bomber, FROG F417 (1976) (scalemates.com)

In 2005 Airfix released a Dogfight Double kit of the V1 Flying Bomb/Gloster Meteor III, with paints, brushes, and cement, as kit number 03148G. In 2008 the box was changed, and the kit re-number A50039.

Gloster Meteor III And V.1 Flying (Doodle Bug) Bomb, Airfix 03148G (2005) (scalemates.com)

German flying bomb V1 and british Gloster Meteor III (Dogfight Doubles series) Airfix 50039 (super-hobby.com)

In 1992 Airfix released the RAF/NATO Weapons Kit in 1/72nd scale. Only some of the items were British. This was described as a Hi-Tech Series kit, and came with etched brass missile fins. This made the set more expensive than a normal, all plastic kit. Series 5, model number 05041. The set contained a mix of missiles, bombs, and various pods. All for use on modern (1990s) aircraft. The Scalemates entry for this set includes the instruction sheet, which can be down-loaded.

RAF/NATO Weapons Kit, Airfix 05041 (1992) (scalemates.com)

Several American companies, such as Revell and Aurora, had British branches, and they may have released various missile kits under their own names in Britain. Some of the smaller British firms might also have re-issued American kits in Britain, as Frog had done with Renwal.

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Ready For Revvers

 In my search for Hot Wheels Redlines, I came across another line from Mattel that never quite made it. Hot Wheels Revvers were a low tech attempt at powered Hot Wheels cars, using rubber bands.

Only released for a year in 1973, Revvers are a bit bigger and heavier than standard cars and have a simple mechanism underneath and a fifth wheel at the back, to rev up and wind the band. A ratchet holds the wheel in place until pressed down and the car takes off.

Revvers would fit on standard track, but also run on smooth floor. The range also invluded a Rrumbler motorcycle side car and a caravan to push unpowered models.

Like so many other ideas, Revvers never really got anywhere and the line, consisting of about 10 models, was canclled.