This week's Sprue Cutters Union question is: What will never make its way on to your workbench?
I know this is almost heretical among scale modelers, but the answer is easy; anything with a swastika. While I'm not against Fw-190s or Bf-109s per se - in fact, I plan to build one of each in captured RCAF markings - World War Two Luftwaffe aircraft bother me deeply. (Not to mention, the Bf-109 may be the most over-modeled subject in the history of plastic scale modeling.) I don't understand how modelers can build these subjects and not be impacted by the historic mass murder of innocents perpetuated by the Nazis. What kind of satisfaction do they gain from showcasing this global shame? (About the only thing creepier than all the Luftwaffe models on contest tables are the reenactors who dress up as Germans. WTF?) Sure it is history, but personally, I don't want my display case to provide any memories of an ideology that was responsible for the holocaust. Not to mention, most non-modelers find it really creepy and odd. Generally, I don’t care much what others think, but this is one of those times that the general public is right and modelers are missing the bigger picture.
Part of being in the Union means you must include links to fellow contributor's posts within your own response. So here are a few posts from some of the other members:
Havoc Models doesn't want to work with vacuforms.
Lt. Smash isn't down with eggs.
The Eternal Wargamer is all about the game.
Yet another plastic modeller isn't gonna sculpt.
Scale Model Workbench wants to keep the fixed wing aircraft away.
Build the world with me objects to the scantily clad female figures.
Doogs isn't feeling the airliners or the cars.
Kermit is not amused by the visible cow.
The Migrant is not feeling Tamiya Corsair fever.
Our fearless leaders is not into the ugly.
6 comments:
As a modeller of Bf 109s and Fw 190s I sort of agree with you on this. I think the 'hero-worship' shown by modellers and manufacturers in our hobby towards Luftwaffe aces such as Hartmann & Galland is totally misplaced and unwarranted (352 victories my eye!..the 'official' German claims confirmation system had broken down long before Hartmann filed his 280th claim....) However many German pilots and crews were not political- some brave souls even removed the Hakenkreuze from their aircraft- and certainly all Germans were not Nazis and many had deep misgivings about the regime. Nor can you deny the place of these a/c types in history as you briefly concede; 33,000 examples of the Bf 109 constructed makes it an important type whoever deployed it..As a modeller what I don't do is portray Spitfires and P-51s with swastikas on them (captured examples); that does appear to me to be purely gratuitous.
I'm so glad I'm not the only one who feels creeped out by nazi modeling subjects. I am especially concerned about the armor genre. Every hobby shop or show I attend has stacks of tigers, panzers, stugs, and German soldiers. Finding non-nazi kits takes quite a bit of work. I am not against the subject matter per se, but I find it more than a little disturbing how the kit market is dominated by nazi subjects.
Modelers in my country (USA) tend to be of a certain ideological persuasion. That persuasion comprises many patriotic 'USA is the best' type (not that I am against patriotism). But I do find it ironic that these same folks turn around and build a giant Luftwaffe collection. I just don't get it.
Watched your blog for some time... but I had to respond to this. I feel almost the same way. Certainly other nations perused morally dubious ends in WWII, however nowhere was it as bankrupt as the Nazi efforts. I have a certain bit of revulsion towards those who blithely build these kits. What's even more galling is the near ignorance of these aircraft capabilities. So many believe that they were "wonder weapons" when in reality many, if not most, were either deficient or barely a technical match to their allied counterparts. The british and americans produced exceptional fighter aircraft like the P-47N, P-51H, Spitfire 21/22 and the Vampire. Yet there doesn't seem to be the same level of interest as you see with the Luft46 crowd.
Combined with the ersatz quality of the German training system post 1942, and the vaunted german war machine was a shadow of itself. The reality wasn't Gallands and Hartmanns and flying Me-262 across the sky but 17 and 18 year olds with a minimum of training flying outmoded BF-109s and FW-190As.
Anyway, I only build Luftwaffe aircraft that are in service with other nations; Finnish, Czech and French AF units primarily. I find them more interesting than the usual late war Luftwaffe schemes.
German Air gains a large number of partly based on false information.
The aircraft were flown in a flock.
Wing machines to "soften the victim" and the leader acknowledges the machine down.
Only the management plane was winning entry, the wing squirrels do not.
Drop in profit is shared among all, the same practice of allied and German.
The Allied victory list was the same indication, only one was the drop of honor, even if a machine firing the same object.
Drops in the Soviet Union lied about its own machinery to cover the loss.
Only in Finland, the drop-down to share among pilots, usually half the battle / per pilot
USAF/USN stuff - in fact anything American except Harriers (:-)).
Austro-Hungarian stuff from WW1
What about building and displaying Japanese aircraft, who were responsible for the murder/rape of many Chinese? Do you have a problem displaying Soviet aircraft, who were ultimately responsible for double the death's of innocent's than the Nazi's? What about Israeli aircraft, which a significant portion of the world see's as being part of a movement that kicked people off of their land? Singling Nazi aircraft out as being inherently unmodelable is ridiculous.
All that, nevermind the fact that no matter what we are building, machines are not evil. Machines are used by people to do evil things.
If someone started to build nothing but diorama's that presented the holocaust in a glorified way, then that would be cause for alarm. But your average wehraboo, who just likes he way German stuff looks? It's no different than someone who only, as a rule, builds American things.
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