AEROGRAMME HOME > AEROGRAMME #7 [Sent 2nd November 2024]
We have a winner!
Hello Friends
Well that was a ridiculously speedy two weeks.
I'd planned to write the newsletter last week with the conclusion to the Christmas market display unit build, however while Tim and Yvonne were cracking on with the build, I was out of the office running various inconsequential errands.
Needless to say I missed the final assembly and, on my return, the display had been disassembled ready for transporting to the market (and someone forgot to take a photo of the finished masterpiece).
Anyway, given the response to Aerogramme #6, many of you seem to enjoy the “behind the scenes” stuff that goes on at VMC, so there’s a bit more background to the display build process later on...
October’s Subscriber Free Kit Winner
This month’s winner is Andrew A. who will receive a Magnificent Flying Machines Tiger Moth kit, so congratulations to him!
Next month’s draw is an absolute doozy (if you read RCM&E magazine, you’ll no doubt see the ad) - we’re giving away a 42” wingspan Balsa Basics Super Cub kit with electronics pack worth over £170.
If you’re reading this newsletter as a subscriber, you’re already entered in the draw.
Top Flight Request
We received an email a couple of weeks ago from reader Richard Lagasse in the US who is desperate to find a Top Flight (TopFlite?) kit.
Richard says:
If anyone at the Vintage Model Company has a “Top Flight” kit with these pieces, I will gladly pay $500 cash for it.
I got two and you can see the fuselage is curved. It looked like a Saber jet and would NEVER stall. I lost two that got so high, I lost them.
If anyone can help Richard, please email us and we’ll pass on your details.
Display Unit Build Conclusion
(Feel free to skip this section if it's of no interest!)
With four concurrent markets on one weekend this year, we needed an extra display unit (thanks again to those of you who built models to go behind the glass).
We spent a good few weeks earlier in the year trying to come up with an alternative display that would allow one person to set up and dismantle each market stall, but we could never quite come up with something to better the current unit.
The closest we came to a solution was to create a stack of vintage tea chests that we could arrange in a modular fashion - each unit being easy to manhandle to and from a van.
We bought a job lot of old tea chests and then set to work with a scale model of one of the market “chalets” and scale tea chests made from 3mm liteply.
Somewhat extravagantly, we had Emma, who works for James next door (remember him?!), produce a scale 3D printed human to stand in the shed.
Uncannily similar to yours truly both in stance and attitude, this figurine allowed us to play with how various arrangements of tea chests might work with or without a display unit.
After much deliberation, we decided that “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, hence this build of the current display design.
Last time, we left the stand at this stage:
The next part of the process involved Yvonne doing a lot of painting followed by cut outs for the television and the overhead lights.
The frame on the left hides the edges of the TV once it's installed
One of the trickiest jobs is cutting out the logo and straplines for the header board. We first mark the back of the logo in reverse and cover the area to be cut with 3M carpet tape (the stickiest substance known to man).
We then take the piece back to the laser cutter and cut it right through from the front. Applying masking tape keeps the cut out parts in place and then we position and tape the whole lot into place on the painted header board.
Removing each section, we can then peel off the backing from the tape and accurately place the cut out back in the template where it is stuck permanently to the header board.
Once all of the cut out elements are stuck down, the templates are removed to reveal the finished header board.
A trial fit of the cladding boards, TV and header board.
Bearing in mind that the stand has to be as attractive to customers as possible, we make sure to have as many brightly coloured models as we can in the display.
The distinctive red Hurricane will always be the starting point (until Andrew Darby’s new Red Baron Fokker Dr.1 replaces it… oops, did I just say that out loud 😜) and we counterbalance this with the bright yellow Tiger Moth on the other side.
We have to have a Spitfire and with the black Nightfighter always outselling the white version, we place this front and centre alongside a “naked” airframe to show how the kits are assembled.
It’s then a case of choosing models we think will be most appealing to potential gift buyers.
We know from experience that the SE5A, the Sopwith Camel and Sopwith Triplane always sell well, which leaves a space for one more.
We usually choose between a P51 Mustang and the F4U Corsair as we often have US visitors to the markets over Christmas (especially down at Blenheim Palace near Oxford) however this unit is destined for Chatsworth and we thought that after 5 years of the same stand, we’d stick the new Lysander in there.
The models “suspended” off the back wall are attached to bespoke laser cut plywood arms that we can position and then fix with CA glue once we’re happy with the look.
The models themselves are attached with elastic bands to their carriers.
Selected aircraft positioned and fixed.
And there we have it - a new display unit joining the "fleet" ready for action!
2024 CHRISTMAS MARKET DATES
Here’s the list of all of the dates and times for the various markets we’re doing this year.
It would be lovely to meet some of you in person.
Staunton Harold Christmas Artisan Show (close to East Midlands Airport)
Dates:
Thursday 7th November - Sunday 10th November
Open:
Thursday - Sunday | 10am - 4pm
Link: https://www.stauntonharoldestate.co.uk/christmas-artisan-show/
Chatsworth House Christmas Market (close to Bakewell, Derbyshire)
Dates:
Saturday 9th November - Sunday 1st December
Open:
Monday - Thursday | 10am - 5.30pm Friday - Sunday | 10am - 6pm
Link: https://www.chatsworth.org/events/christmas-market/
Haddon Hall Mercatum (close to Bakewell, Derbyshire)
Dates:
Wednesday 13th November - Sunday 17th November
Wednesday 20th November - Sunday 24th November
Wednesday 27th November - Sunday 1st December
Wednesday 4th December - Sunday 8th December
Wednesday 11th December - Sunday 15th December
Open:
Wednesday - Sunday | 9:15am - 5pm
Link: https://www.haddonhall.co.uk/events/event/mercatum-christmas-artisan-market-2024/
Blenheim Palace Christmas Market (Woodstock near Oxford)
Dates:
Friday 15th November - Sunday 22nd December
Open:
Monday - Sunday | 10:30am - 8:30pm (apart from Monday 18th, Tuesday 19th, Monday 25th and Tuesday 26th November when the market closes at 5:30pm))
Link: https://www.blenheimpalace.com/whats-on/events/christmas/
Burghley House Christmas Market (Stamford, Rutland)
Dates:
Thursday 28th November - Sunday 1st December
Open:
Thursday | 9:30am - 4pm
Friday - Saturday | 9:30am - 7:30pm
Sunday | 9:30am - 4pm
Link: https://burghley.co.uk/events/the-burghley-christmas-fair
COMMUNITY BUILDS
Three for you this week.
First up is Barry Scollay’s latest pic of the Gloster Gladiator he’s been building.
So, so good…
Second is a progress pic of Andy Sephton’s Lacey M10 build.
Expect this kit to be released early next year.
Finally, Ian Smith sent in this pic of his VMC Romany.
You’ve made a lovely job it Ian. Thanks for sending in the photo.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again - we all love seeing these community builds, so please keep sending in photos and info about your winter projects to inspire us as the dark evenings approach.
One of my winter projects will be to rebuild the twin SU carbs on my Frogeye.
And no-one wants to see that…
That’s it for this week.
I’m going to try my damnedest to keep the Aerogrammes coming through the Christmas markets, but I apologise in advance if I miss one or two as I don’t get the weekends off for a month or so 🎻 😭.
All the best
Hadi & the VMC Team
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