Kit of the Day: Wire Hair Terrier

Since not one single solitary human being on Planet Earth saw fit to comment on my Pteranodon, I thought perhaps a cute little doggie might bring some kind of response.


Reply, dammit!

Kit of the Day: Pteranodon

I found this at a Goodwill store for a mere $4.00 and decided to move it to the top of my to-be-built pile (actually, a tbb room with many piles of kits therein). It stands 15 inches tall and I had to epoxy a couple of peach-sized rocks into the back of the cliff to prevent it from flopping over on its face. The baby pteranodon is supposed to be twins, but half of the face of one was missing so I carved out the other half and rescribed the wing in hopes of making it look natural. The sea is a piece of velvet paper I balled up, flattened, and painted with acrylic to make whitecaps. As for the guano, I'm just guessing that pteranodon droppings are that color. Thank you very much.

 

 

Drakkar Oseberg

A recent completion is this Viking ship in 1/180 scale from Smer. Drakkar means dragon, but it doesn't have the typical dragon's head on the prow. The finished model is about 5 inches long. The fit of the parts was very good and I a swell time building it. Some day I will do the larger Viking ship I have in my TBB (to be built) room.

Kit of the Day: Collie

Here's a collie I call Champion Denton's Laddie Good Boy. He's another plastic model kit from Bachmann that was issued in the early 1960s. The paints that come with these kits are hard little buttons that are supposed to melt when mixed with Bachmann's thinner--a tolulene solution. The colors that came with this kit weren't for this pooch so I used oils and mixed the shades as best I could.

Kit of the Day--Standard Poodle

 

In the early 1960s, Bachmann manufactured model kits of animals and birds that were well-made, attractive, and simple to assemble and paint. Plus, everything needed to complete these kits came in the box: paints, brush, thinner/glue, dog, and stand. I recently got this poodle, along with a collie, on eBay and completed it last night (really, just a few hours ago, but it's after midnight). The instructions call for him to be either all black, white, brown, or silver, which made painting pretty simple. I opted to use black, then mixed a very dark gray to paint the shaved areas on his waist, legs, face, and tail. Finally, I used silver to dry brush highlights on the fur. I'm reasonably satisfied with the result.

 

Kit of the Day

Sassy the Kitten

In an effort to get more young girls to build models, Revell created four kits of cute, cuddly animals. They were marketed between 1957 and 1962, but the little ladies preferred Tiny Tears or Barbie and the idea flopped. Along with Sassy the Kitten were Perri the Squirrel, Teddy the Koala Bear, and Friskie the Beagle Puppy. Price guide values for these kits today range from $75-100, but I've seen a Perri on eBay for less than that for over a year with no takers.

Kit of the Day

 

   Wooo! Scary, kids, right? Or it would be except for one thing...

...IT HAS NO BODY! Who in the name of Nimitz thought that a shark head would make a good model kit? Even the lobster and long horn bug had bodies. Or thoraxes, or whatever they have. It's a shame, too, because the head is very nicely done and if it had the rest of the fish it might have made a good display. But they went ahead and did this without consulting me first, so this is the best they could come up with.

     I don't think we're going to need a bigger boat.

Kit of the Day

Want to make a movie or diorama about a giant bug invading Tokyo? How about this kit of an eight-inch Long Horn Beetle. As you can see by the box, It Walks! That's because it comes with a tiny motor that propels it along. The maker is Bandai, a Japanese firm that also makes regular model kits.

The Alamo Falls

On this day in 1836 the Alamo fell to the forces of Mexican dictator General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna. The Cap'n salutes the brave defenders of the Alamo.

Milestones

What a week so far. It's Linda's birthday today and last night her mother died. Plus, our sewer is clogged.

Corinne Johnson Wise, nee Krona, was 95. For her final 15 days she ingested neither food nor liquids. One tough old bird. She was married to Russell Johnson (no, not the Professor from Gilligan's Island) for around 60 years, and after he died married Fred Wise. Fred passed away about seven years ago.

Happy Birthday, Ma

My mother turned 90 today. I'm happy to report she's doing very well and living on her own in a seniors' apartment complex.

If I would credit anything to her longevity it's housework. She has always been phobic about keeping the home tidy and spotless. I remember visiting her about ten years ago and staying in the guest room. I got up one morning to go to the can and when I got out a few minutes later the bed was made.

She is also deathly afraid of rodents.

Playing Catchup

     I was having trouble with my blog during January, it wouldn't allow me to browse for photos. Today I tried again and it worked. I love capricious computers.

     So let me mention a few items that went unheralded since I stopped blogging.

Jan 16--my father's birthday. Alas, he died in 1977, age 59, of emphysema. Thanks, Chesterfields.
Jan 17--I got out of the Army.
Feb 1--Molly, my German shepherd, turned two. That's her in the photo with her frisbee.


     I spent about a week in the middle of January with a cold. I still have a cough but feel fine.

     I really didn't expect this blog to work properly so I have nothing else prepared.

     The Superbowl ended a few hours ago and while I wasn't surprised by the outcome I have to say it wasn't what I'd hoped for. There weren't too many boneheaded calls by the officials but a couple of them hurt the Niners and may have affected the outcome of the game.


     And so it goes.

Happy Birthday, Toby and Tiny

The Chihuahua brothers are ten years old today. No photos since Blogger once again decided to make a shambles of the system.

A MAD and Merry Christmas

A day early, but I don't mind. We're opening presents later today because Kristine has to work tomorrow.

In Everlasting Memory

On this day in 1980 John Lennon was murdered by a piece of scum whose name is unworthy of mention.

Remember Pearl Harbor

On this day in 1941, a Sunday, the Japanese launched a sneak attack on our sleeping fleet and airfield at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Lousy, stinking, dirty, rotten cruds!

Happy Birthday, Kristine

My baby is 22 today. Where does the time go? I can say this: Every day has been a joy and delight.

Happy Birthday, Uncle Georgie

George Armstrong Custer was born on this day in 1839 in New Rumley, Ohio. In this picture he's leading a charge against superior Confederate forces at Gettysburg. Had the rebs succeeded in this flanking maneuver the battle would have been lost and Lee would have been free to invade Washington, D.C.

Happy, Happy Birthday, Baby

My lovely granddaughter, Sofia, is two today. What a ball of energy this kid is.  She's with her mother, Stephanie, in these pix.

Thoughts For The Day