Finished Daddy-Daughter Project

My five year old daughter and I finished our Revell 1/24 Mazda Miata. I airbrushed the body and helped with the smaller parts, did all the knife work, but she pretty much did the rest including choosing the colors(Love that teal). Took about three months to finish, working after homework and household chores (hers and mine). She learned a lot about patience and having to stop work to let things dry, sometimes making for short modeling sessions. Her kindergarten teacher was very happy about it and encouraged it. Following directions, using the drawings, and learning self discipline at an early age really made the old man proud. We already picked out the next project: a 1/72 Airfix Hurricane. (I have a lot of old low tech kits to choose from. She wanted to start my DML Elephant). If you have a young child I strongly encourage a joint project. Just use common sense with the tools, paints, and glues. If it survives show and tell her Miata will share top shelf in dad's display case........................................................................ ......................................Joe

Reply to
Joe Drees
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Wonderful story!

A mate's Danish wife teaches her kids lots of crafts like egg painting and making salt dough characters and I think some of the English think it is kind of quaint but I think it is really important to do these joint activities.

Thanks for that heart warming story,

Richard.

Reply to
Richard Brooks

I think any sort of parent-child projects are great. My father was a solitary sort. He built models, but by himself. When we'd get kits, it was more something for us to do while he went off to do his own things. I really have few memories of doing things with him and that's a shame.

Reply to
Gary Kato

Well my kids and I have done a few, with me mainly handling small parts and paints, but the last Bf 110 in 1:72 my then 6 years old boy did with wery little help - he even did some brush painting much to his joy (and his mothes fear (unnessecary)). It's the pride of his collection now.

Reply to
Claus Gustafsen

My daughter and I worked on a 1/32 Corvette kit once upon a time. She took 3rd place in Juniors at Mallcon in Trexlertown aroun '92. I still have the model here as she grew up and discovered boys. Maybe someday she'll take up some plastic again in memory of ol' Dad.

Bill Banaszak, MFE

Reply to
Bill Banaszak

Joe, I have to reply here, because of your choices of next subject...

My son has just turned nine, so his achievements should be viewed with that in mind. Our first model was a StuG III - his choice, but he asked for my help. I did most of the painting, and demonstrated techniques on one side of the model to have him complete the other side (tanks are good for this).

I must have got it about right, because he is now making (pause for fanfare) the Airfix 1/72 Hurricane, for his Cub Scout Hobbies badge. He is doing everything, knife work and painting included, because that is how we all got started, and he's old enough not to damage himself, under remote supervision from his dad.

Painting is the difficult bit: he is doing it all by brushwork, but I will show him how to use masking tape to get the Sky edge straight against the upper surface camouflage. The version of the Hurricane we have (he bought it at the Imperial War Museum when we visited there last month) has a two-part spinner, easing the task of painting Bob Stanford-Tuck's DT.A with it's red nose/white banded spinner. No cockpit detail to worry about. I plan to introduce him to decal strips for canopy framing. The main shortcoming of the kit is poor wing-root fit; we used strips of ten-thou card to fill the gaps (I suggested it, he did it). It has raised panel-lines, which limit the amount of surgery you can perform (NO we are NOT rescribing - not for a first effort!). Some filler will be needed a the under-wing/fuselage join, but the fuselage halves fitted together well, and needed only a little cleaning up; which he did!

The problem, really, is keeping his interest without letting him get bored. I have to keep reminding myself that it is his kit, he has to do it, and it will not be a competition-winner; but it will be as good as he can make it, and he will have learned from it, and had fun! It has to be fun, or he won't want to try again, when it comes to the Dragon Elefant that he sincerely wanted as his third tank! (A Sherman was second - "like the ones in Kelly's Heroes" :) ).

A good part of the learning is letting him make mistakes, holding my tongue while he does so, and waiting until he asks for help; then being able (well, so far) to show him how to recover (polish out a glue-mark from a finger on the wing, touch up the pilots blue uniform where the yellow Mae-West has gone too far). It has to be mostly his work, or he'll just lose interest.

Any chance of pictures?

Reply to
Alan Dicey

The Hasegawa EggPlanes make great projects too. My daughter built the Space Shuttle with the astronaut on a wire tether, which she painted pink. It was a big hit at school. Curt

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Reply to
C Knowles

I found one I want to do with my 4 1/2 daugher. It was a 10/1 scale ladybug figured its a good place to start since she wants me to paint all my planes pink.

Reply to
Sean McInnis

My daughter had a school project to select an inventor, read a book about the inventor, then make a shadow box presentation concerning their invention. My daughter chose the Wright brothers and delivered her presentation on the 100th anniversary of manned powered flight! She was going to do it all by herself but all those struts on the Revellogram kit convinced her she would never get it done on time. So she did the shadowbox and I completed the Wright flyer, to include all that rigging. I HATE STRINGBAGS!!!!! But I love my daughter. It was worth it.

Reply to
Predc130

Yes, they are worth it. :)

Bill Banaszak, MFE

Reply to
Bill Banaszak

try the latest issue of 'scale aircraft modelling'. this month one of the revell kits under review [a snap-fit model of the AH-64] was reviewed a regular reviewer and his ten or so year old daughter [who did most of the work on the kit!]

trevor

Reply to
87015

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