Cliverdee

In July with my previous order when I had the first the problem with Hermes I managed to catch the driver the following day who again was attempting to deliver my parcel 2 doors up. I asked him how he could not see that he was delivering to a different address than that clearly shown on the address label, and he said he could only deliver to where his sat nav showed which was my neighbours house, no matter what the address label said… he explained that his handheld electronic device wouldn’t let him enter that he had delivered anything unless he was at the address it told him to be at… ‘ludicrous’ I said to which he added it was happening more and more !… I contacted Hornby to complain and alert them to the problem with Hermes but felt fobbed off and was told Hermes was the courier but could pay extra for DPD for faster delivery… totally missing the point that any courier who’s business it is to deliver parcels must at least have a reliable system to get it to the correct address. I’ve got to ring Hornby again as the replacement flying hours card wasn’t included with the kit so will again inform them of my recurrent problem with Hermes. I tried to contact Hermes, but their automated systems just say my parcel has been delivered and it is impossible to get through to anything human.

2 weeks back I was most surprised to open the sealed box & sealed bag of a new Airfix Wildcat to find sprue A missing and 2 sprue C instead. The missing sprue arrived less than a week after my spares request so that was good but clearly issues for quality control so hope there is a link from the spares dept to the people responsible for machines that pack the kits.

I’ve had 2 deliveries since Hornby switched to Hermes and on both occasions the courier has tried to deliver 2 doors up from me. My neighbours were out on both occasions and the failed delivery photo and sat nav location shows their house. This is rubbish service and after the 1st occasion I suggested to Hornby they need to change to a reliable firm to keep customers. They said they would not change from Hermes but I could pay extra for DPD for faster delivery… not the point as any delivery service needs to be reliable and my latest order was redemption of Flying Hours so no option for DPD….in today’s newspaper I see Hermes comes bottom of the list. I have eventually got my orders due to the kindness of my neighbours who put a large note on their front door telling the Hermes courier to find the correct house as was clearly shown on both address labels. I won’t renew my Airfix or Hornby memberships nor order from Hornby until they change their delivery service as I can’t expect my neighbours to have to put up with this. I’ve been a member of the Airfix Club for years and am aggrieved that my hobby is affected by their extremely poor courier choice… sorry for the rant but I’ve supported Airfix for 60 years and spent a fortune on their website and never had an issue before Hermes.

Not spent my money on these as yet because just wondering if they are up to scratch for the price.. . have bought Tamiya 1:35 and 1:48 before and been impressed even with the old mouldings...but I see that the majority of the new Airfix 1:35s are ex Academy moulds so is there a distinct improvement or just trotting out old moulds to fill a gap in the Airfix model range. .. also most Tamiya kits give at least one figure to enhance the kit but not aware the Airfix ones do ... anyone illuminate thanks

Yes thanks for ideas and suggestions ... I like the Airfix 1:600 scale as they are not too complex and the pieces are more easy to handle than 1:700.. the scale also allows me not to be too fussed about trying to replicate railings, radio wires or the tension cables for masts funnels etc ... and I do find they make a fine collection of same scale ships posed side by side. I'm shying away from 1:350 as I feel the scale would require far more detail than I want to do to be completed to make a reasonable model ... a few years back I made the Revell HMCS Snowberry in 1:72 ... i did all the detail needed for such a large scale and it remains my best effort.. but it took 6 months with few distractions so haven't the patience for replicating this again ... at least not right now !

I wish in the old days Airfix had moulded at least one of the German WW1 battleships in 1:600 ... I've just completed my age old Iron Duke that I've had for years and it's a brilliant model and because of the 'constant scale' and it's very educational to put the 1:600 s alongside each other. The Osprey book publications are really interesting regarding main gun arrangement etc and wish we had at least one Airfix kit in this scale. Ah well .... will never happen but perhaps worth mentioning ....

Well it was me that started whinging on about the new Airfix kits with too many parts and hidden detail, so as I've just finished the plastic bits on my 1:48 Hurricane and started the painting I can now see why Airfix have got it just right. The option to either omit or go for all the detail is excellent and clearly shows Airfix have catered for different level modellers in the new mould kits. Given the quality of the plastic I don't feel I've paid over the odds by not wanting to cut panels or do the gun bay internals, so it's even better value for money for those wanting the detail. Personally I've found even the Hurricane in 1:48 scale a little too large to manage on my work table and available display space so think I'll stick to mostly 1:72 for aircraft.

Howdy... glad you've sorted the gift for your dad and sure he is very pleased with it.. great kit and choice. Just an add on to the 'what to buy for someone' theme ; a few years back I sold two built models of the Airfix RAF Rescue launches .. one in each of the options provided in the kit. They went on eBay and was so pleased that they were both bought by a chap's father who served in them during the war. I got a very nice note saying his father was delighted with the gift as the boats brought back so many memories...funny things these model kits ... not just bits of plastic

Ha ... I have just seen the post title has come out as months Humber ... instead of Monty's ... clearly humans choice of words has been superceded by the superior intellect and correction of the ipad

Ah thanks.. that's a very helpful answer and useful explanation of the modelling scales relating to human growth ! ... I was about 8 when I went on board Victory in the early 1960s and I can still remember all the adults bumping their heads with a variety of grunts and gruff curses ! Thanks again and I'll try out a mix & match.

Hi just wondering if anyone has put the Airfix 1:32 kits such as Monty's Humber, the Frontier Checkpoint or Bamboo House with 1:35 scale figures. I'm imagining the difference in scale would not be noticeable for buildings but with the car and the figures of Monty and his driver the mix of scales may well not look right. I see the only current 1:32 Airfix figures are the German Infantry, and eBay OOP 1:32 Airfix figures seem at premium prices and don't look that good a moulding. Thanks for comments

Altbough plastic modelling for 60 years I've never aspired to advance to an expert level as I have learned my right balance of time and effort for an acceptable (in my eyes), finished model... and most importantly to have enjoyed the whole process from start to finish. So to my mind the sky can be the limit for those who enjoy and aim to get best results whereas I live somewhere in the lower cloud layers which is why I enjoy simpler kits and get agitated with too many fiddly bits to assemble. I do always put windows in the vintage classic vehicles and gloss coat before affixing decals on all kits so do put some effort in to get a kit that looks half right. On the new mould 1:48 Hurricane build I'm finding the sub assemblies compromise the mating of the main parts...like wing halves and wing section to fuselage. I've read that tolerances are tight so think any slight imprecision in my construction is causing the need to cut, scrape and file, rather similar to older Airfix....and although nowhere near finished I'm getting the feeling that 1:72 is my comfortable limit scale wise, and will triple check any potential purchase to see the parts count and amount of time likely required to build it. I've made the most recent Airfix Zero which went together like a dream and didn't go over the top in small parts so some of the new moulds will doubtless suit my style. As for the competitive business world of model manufacturers Airfix still stands as my favourite and think the Vintage Classics is a master stroke to keep old school folk like me happy whilst producing new highly detailed kits for the more advanced modellers. They certainly will still keep getting the lions share of my model spend with the VC strategy.

Yes thanks, I use Scalemates quite a lot .. often to see the decal options but also the history of the moulds since getting caught out with the current Revell 1:72 He 70. I had assumed it was the old Matchbox version with updated decals but is ex ICM and a horrible kit, particularly the non fitting windows that had to be fixed flush on the interior and the requirement to cut sections of the fuselage out of the very tough brittle plastic. I made a hash of tidying up the cut areas and unusually for me chucked it in the bin as couldn't see how to fix the very obvious window problems. I'd already made 2 He70s from the old Matchbox moulds (one under the Revell boxing) and was very happy throughout these builds so yes I'll stick with the old stuff... I too have a stash of older kits , mostly Airfix, so I'll make it my lifes work to get them built! ...the vintage classics are great as it's old moulding with newly produced decal sheets .

Thanks for replies and of course the beauty of model making is the diversity in why we all do it... and to remain top of the game Airfix is quite right to be producing kits to compete with other manufacturers with a good lot of detail... it's just that I don't want so much of it ! Airfix kits are actually well priced in my view so even if the interior detail isn't used you still get good value for money in most cases. With my current 1:48 Hurricane all the strut pieces that make the frame for the seat, cockpit internals and wing fixings appear to be essential parts of the build, so am ploughing through these, but looking ahead I see I have an option whether to include open gun access covers if I choose... I'll decide that when I get there and at least they would be visible when the kit is completed. I too very rarely venture into 1:48 aircraft, never anything larger scale, and only ever single engine planes... so its 1:72 by choice for a number of reasons... 1/ I haven't much display nor work space, and 2/ I can get away with brush painting which is an essential part of my enjoyment, whereas the bigger scales show up the limitations of using brushes, and for e.g. shading camouflage an airbrush is really required. I've learned to avoid some manufacturers because of high parts count and consequently loads of very small pieces... a lot of which easily break when trying to get them off the sprue .. often quite brittle plastic is found too... Airfix plastic is about the best I've come across... I have a Henschel 123 in the roof so will seek it out and look forward to enjoying that in the near future. Just one last sour puss grumpy point of view about the caricature jolly faces that are now in some build instructions... I understand that they are of modellers who have won a competition or Airfix R&D staff faces, but being a grump I wish they wouldn't . Daft as it is, when I am making a military model kit I always have a form of reverence for the men who flew and either survived or died in these war machines, and it just feels a bit too light hearted and disrespectful to have modern folks smiling faces included. Apologies to anyone reading this who has their face in the instruction sheets ... it's my advanced age you know!

I have a smiling cartoon pilot face in my 1:48 Hurricane... I must say I find it rather irritating and not at all respectful of the men who actually flew them ...