T is for Two . . . err . . . Four, Engines!

I picked up a couple of rather interesting aircraft models a week ago last Saturday, neither of which seem to be elsewhere on the Internet, so we'll look at them both and thoughts are welcome on these two mysteries, the first is a kicker for Brit's . . . 

. . . as I suspected first that Victory Toys were likely a US firm, before finding it (as an aluminium Jeep manufacturer) in the archive as being a Dutch/Netherlands maker, but the point is, it's inescapable that this composition B17 Flying Fortress is a world away from the lumpen models we've seen here previously from Zang for Timpo. I don't know if the dodgy-looking characters (possibly a dog, a human and a duck) have any significance, or are a further clue to anything?

 

I wondered if at first it was aluminium, Victory seem to have made figures in the same material, as well as the Jeeps (all around 60mm), but it's definitely a composition; you can see where light rust on the prop-shafts is just starting to split the cases on the port-engines. Also, the varnish, where it hasn't worn off, is starting to bubble, like the unit/nationality shield transfers on a WWII  German helmet I used to own - clearly reacting with the paint underneath.

 

Only, it's a very finely finished model, as you can tell from this comparison of another recent airborne discovery here at Small Scale World, the Zang B29 Superfortress, you can see it's a much cruder beast altogether, and you wonder if, at that level of finess, we don't still have composition toys, but that's forgetting the frangibility of the material, and the fact that it's only survived because the box has soldiered-on, getting a bit battered, defending the contents!

 

Typically, the B17's from Zang which we also only recently looked at, are in storage, but that will give us an excuse to return to the whole Air Wing one day, as there are some lead ones too, and a wax one!  Going by the scale on the wing of the next, below, these are about 1:300th scale?

 

The other 'plane I found that day was this cast-aluminium MR2/Mk.2 Shackleton, long range maritime-patrol/reconnaissance aircraft. The official recognition model was a 1:72 scale celluloid/phenolic model, made by Cruver, and most of the desk-models I could find are far more detailed/larger, so I was minded to suspect an apprentice piece, however, the 52/986 looks like a stock-code, so it may still be a recognition model, or perhaps a targeting-aid, but I'm not sure that I'd be very happy if our gunners were practising on models of our own aircraft?

 

Now, 52 could be the year, and 986 is close to codes used by Avro for both the Shackleton (696/716) and Lincoln Bomber (694/695), so this could be an Avro factory/design office model? I can see there's still more to learn about this!

 

The small recess shows no sign of glue or fixings, so seems to be designed to fit easily on a stand of some kind, and be removed again, while the yellow-brown paint is crudely done, compared to the all-over green, but seems to be original?

 

And here's another thought, the Shackleton has direct descendancy from the Lancaster, via the Lincoln, and I wonder if the fact that around the world, three Lancaster's have now (I believe) been rendered airworthy, is down to the number of Shackleton parts still kicking around here or in South Africa?

T is for Two - Of The Few!

As we lose the forth-to-last remaining Battle of Britain fighter-pilots, here's a couple of really very interesting model 'planes, the first is the less fascinating maybe, being a chunk of Alli', the other is a real treat. Both shot on Adrian Little's Mercator Trading table at Sandown Park, but photographed several months apart.

I think this is probably a 1st-year or 1st-term (Christmas) an apprentices or engineering student's test-piece, due to its crudity and lack of true mirror-symmetry . . . and the fact that the engines point outward, or that it lacks a notable or noticeable cockpit!

However, one or two people who saw it at the show thought it might have had a more commercial aspect, remembering similar stuff from their childhoods. Being older than me I'm not going to argue with them and will leave it to your judgement.

It's an aluminium casting, but appears to have been poured, not pressure-injected, resulting in softer lines and a rougher surface, and might be trying to be a Bristol Blenheim fighter-bomber?

We know what this is because it's written on both wings! A De Havilland Comet, but issued in a natty army-green, rather than the more famous racing scarlet! It's also marked with the B&s cipher of Barratt and Son's - similar to the cipher of the Bergan Toy Company (Beton)!

What I find so fascinating about this slush-cast lead-alloy (whitemetal) model is that it's almost identical in production values or properties to the early Supermarine Spitfire and Bolton-Paul Defiant models from Palitoy, not because it's copying them, but because they were aping the previous technology, prior to discovering the full potential in the properties of the new materials.

The way the propellers are fixed on with nails set into the casting, the whole profile of the wings and fuselage, even the marking position and style is similar!

Thanks to Adrian again, for the photo-op'.

F is for Follow-up - Artillery

As an addendum to last year's post on Artillery this is the stuff that's come in, in the last four years, as I said in the first 'round-up' post: I will redo these, or just start an Artillery page one day, but for now, here are a few more!

The upper one is the little cannon claimed by Kinder collectors as one of theirs (and may well have been in the eggs at some point), but has been available long before, and from various sources as a tourist trinket, key-ring &etc.

The lower gun is (I suspect) an apprentice piece, handmade from high-quality brass-plated steel, with hand-cut wheels and a leather finish to the barrel (lizard or snakeskin by the looks of it), it has a loop for a charm bracelet but is a tad heavy for the purpose. maybe and engineering student's end of year thing, or jewellers first piece...even a bit of 'War Art', but the quality is really too good for that?

The upper shot here is a lead solid Skybird's howitzer, it makes a super mountain-gun for Airfix Australians or Gurkha's to drag through Burma...or even to be given to the Japs! The lower shot shows the wooden ones from the sorting post earlier today, in better detail...home-made or austerity/craft 'manufactured'? They elevate by means of a panel-pin pushed through the barrel as trunions.

Above; classic and common 'antiqued' pencil-sharpener gun of the 1800's, issued by several brands over the years and a favourite with museum gift-shops and tourist kiosks the world over.

Below; Kleeware large-size cannon from the yellow, marbled-plastic, clip-together forts.

The six together with a plastic ship kit Naval gun for scale and (inset) a French penny toy from SR in lead with a heavy wash of pale-grey gloss paint.

U is for Unknown Aircraft

While sorting out the Photograph for the Battle of Britain memorial piece last night, I shot these two as well, now I have lots of unknown aircraft I wouldn't dream of boring you with, but these two are worth a more public forum in the hope of identification...

The first is presumably meant to be a Czechoslovakian-service Russian Mig fighter, but is managing to look more like a V1 on it's launch-skid! It is missing the top tail-plane, and from time to time I consider making a replacement, but feel one shouldn't bugger-about with what may be a rare thing! Any ideas? It's about 1:90, 100% wood with paint, the red disc on the tail-fin is on both sides, there's no markings underneath.

The second one is even more interesting, a polished perspex model of - I think - a Messerschmitt Me.109? Could be a modern western 'collectable' from Franklin or Danbury and co.? Or, a post-war corporate desk model from Spain, Finland, Switzerland or Roumania? Either way, I suspect it's having been attached to an ash-tray or similar 'objet'.

Secondly - Could it be a Master, for a range of white-metal models?

The other alternative is that it is from National Socialist Germany. around 1:100/110 and obviously missing a propeller and tail-planes it also has a small hole for a mounting-wire (?) underneath, forward of the cockpit, under the cockpit itself is an air-scoop. No other details or markings. Again - any Ideas?