Circuit bent... er, Kit-bashed V1

I'm taking a bit of a breather after the semester and engaging in true hobby activities (sort of). This is my first kit-bashed model. I took a sideways Fieseler V2 rocket (the jet usually goes on top). I then took the tail wings from a B-377 Stratocruiser and stuck them on the sides. The 377, by the way, is an unbelievably cool early airliner. In actually had a lounge on a lower deck! I then took the wing motors and some brackets from the Ford Trimotor and stuck them on top.

Right now this thing looks pretty realistic I think. Having seen planes like the assymetircal Blohm and Voss BV 237, the incredible Dornier Do X seaplane and of course, the Erkranoplan, the design is fairly tame and looks like some sort of experimental buzz bomb from before WWII. So the next step will be to try to add more stuff to it and make it a little more over the top. That's where the performative aspect of the activity comes in. How far do you go?

The actual activity of building the model is pretty fun. When I was a kid, I was always getting glue over everything and every model seemed difficult and time-consuming. Now that I'm older, the models seem pretty easy to put together. I think when you're a kid, you also are trying so hard to get everything right. I used to follow the directions expicitly and try to create a perfect, clean model. Now I just fill and sand (it's like working with bondo) if it doesn't work right. I've been building my own pins out of spare parts and drilling holes where needed. And if I'm not interested in a part, I just leave it out (like the interiors).

So here's what I've learned about kit-bashing so far. First, I'm still having a hard time figuring out what scale to get. I tend to think of everything in terms of inches, but of course scale models come in scales like 1/72 or 1/100. So for some big models it's OK to get them at tiny scales like 1/100. But for some smaller items, you have to get them at larger scales. I think the V-1, for instance, is 1/48 and it still looks small. So I've actually been going to airplane websites, finding the dimensions of the actual planes and then calculating their size at the available scales.

Second, you can't be distracted by the model, you have to look for the parts. I got some really beautiful planes like the Junkers bomber, but there's not much you can take from it, maybe just the tail section. Maybe in the future they'll have the kit basher's special in which there are an assortment of individual jets, props and wings. But now, you have to carefully choose models or you won't have anything to bash! Most plane designs have engines built into the wings for example. But you can't transplant an engine like that. So it's been taking awhile to find designs where the engines and other parts are fairly discrete. That was why I picked up the Ford Tri-motor.

Finally, I discovered that if you use the wings from a batplane, whatever you do your model will look like a bat-something!