1/76 Cromwell: Daughter & Dad Co-Build
The last of my Airfix builds for 2016, though this strictly speaking isn't one of mine, but rather my daughter Aemilia's build...I just painted it, and stuck a few more bits on when she lost interest...
Purchased back in 2015 from our local supermarket which had a number of Airfix starter kits going for $10, (see previous posts). My daughter had a crack at building the 1/76 Cromwell Mk.IV.
I had no expectations regarding this kit, to be honest I thought it was going to be some dreadful re-pop from the 1970's, so imagine my pleasant surprise on opening the box to discover it's yet another new tool release from Airfix.
It's a well engineered product & kept my daughter's attention for the afternoon it took to build.
I actually went back to the same store & bought one for my collection to build at a later date, a pretty good recommendation considering I don't normally do small scale armour.
As with most kids of today after that first flush of excitement getting something stuck together, she lost interest in getting it finished and so it languished in her cabinet of breakables, with the gun barrel broken after a handling mis-hap.
Scroll forward to January 2016 and I'm in a process of getting a number of stalled builds finished & my eye catches the hapless & forlorn Cromwell sitting on the shelf, so I decide, 'well, it's worth finishing properly'...
The broken barrel was replaced with some brass tube, the snorkel added, together with some of the stores boxes Aemilia missed while building, and then the whole thing was sprayed in black primer. Construction wise, I didn't finesse anything so the build is 'as is'.
I had a bit of fun painting & weathering.
Some stainless steel fishing wire was used for the aerials, decals added & the job's done...
For those interested in those sort of things, the markings are for the British Army's 5th Royal Horse artillery, 7th Armoured Division, ETO post D-Day to 1945.
Thanks for looking.
I really like the snorkel. It adds a lot of interest for me. I built one of those original 70s Cromwell's . This one looks alot nicer.
Thanks Stephen, the kit also includes the hedge cutter, so I'll probably end up building mine with one.
You didn't mention how Aemilia was/is and which, pray tell, grocery store carries models? Nice little build, by the way...to both of you. 🙂
Hi Craig thanks for the comments, Aemilia just turned eleven when it she built it last year. We've done a few co-builds together in the past, basically her building & me painting, which seems to work quite well. Unfortunately as kids grow up so do their interests change so this build is a bit of a swan song, for now at least.
And yes, the grocery store in question is Aldi, who I think originated from Germany and are expanding here in Australia. They occasionally, run some specials where they sell four different Airfix starter kits; last year they ran the promotion at ten bucks each, this year they did something similar but the price went up by three dollars, still excellent value considering they're twice the price in the local hobby stores.
Marek...my apologies for forgetting the word "old" after I typed the word "how" (but, alas, you figured that out). 🙂
And no wonder I've never seen model kits in the grocery store - Australia, huh...? I'd gladly pay $13.00 for an Airfix kit (unless, of course, 13 of YOUR dollars translate into many more USD - and yes, I was too lazy to look it up) 🙁
Craig, it should be cheaper in the US as our Aussie dollar only buys roughly 75 cents US, and the price of most of Airfix's stuff has, if not skyrocketed recently, at the very least risen sharply.
Good job from the team ! The new tool Airfix Cromwell is a real gem.
Thanks Bernd, yes it's a good one try building small scale armour..
sorry Bernd, for the typo, that of course should have said..."yes it’s a good one to try building small scale armour"..
That was an amazing "try" Marek. There are a lot of relative new mold kits out in this scale and they can be like your Cromwell turned into little gems.
...some sort of an addiction...
What a nice build, you did great both of you. My first reaction was "that can´t be an Airfix..." as I had no idea they´d released a new one.
Hi Stellan, thanks for the comment, looks like they may have been testing the water regarding new 1/76 AFV's. I notice they're re-issuing a lot of their back-catalogue from the 1960's & 70's. (which I have very mixed feelings about).
Marek, what a really nice build !. I don't build armor either, but this makes me want to get some on the shelf.
For the price of a couple of beers, it'll keep you entertained for a weekend or two, so what's not to like.
Eleven years old and not a glue bomb in sight - kudus!
Thanks, she doesn't know yet that I've posted her tank pictures, (but she will shortly), so you never know it may inspire her to build more over the Christmas hols...
Hey - you both did great! My 14-yr-old son has an on-again, off-again relationship with 1/35 armor and figures, so I know what you're talking about!
...thanks & there's always those long winter evenings (assuming you're in the Northern Hemisphere) which may help to get your 14 year old back to a bit of kit building.
Good work from you both, love your daughter's name by the way.
Cool build on a little tank! It is good to see the younger generation taking a bit of interest in the hobby.
Most kids I see these days only have one hobby, their phone!