The Model Making Section

of the Internet Craftsmanship Museum

The 1/16 scale all aluminum Corsair shown above is a very ambitious model. The builder, Young C. Park of Hawaii is a recently retired dentist who put his skills in working with his hands and in forming metal to a new use. This section includes automobile, ship, locomotive, aircraft and other models of mechanical devices other than engines.

Craftsmen represented in this section are:

R/C Flyers: To learn how Dave Mathews built a very impressive 1/10 scale flying jet C-17 model see http://homepage.eircom.net/~skycam/C-17A_Globemaster_III/. This project required skills in many areas from engineering and computer drafting to aerodynamics to airframe construction, all of which were done essentially by one man in a relatively short time.

About Model Makers

Model making has been employed over the years for the purposes of both business and pleasure. Models are often built to demonstrate the practicality of a concept before building the full size version, particularly before computer modeling was available. For example, before drawn plans were commonly used, naval architects would build a model of a wooden ship for the shipyard to use so the craftsmen to copy in full size. Traveling salesmen who could not carry a line of stoves, guns or harnesses with them would often carry a case of small sales models to show the customer. Patent models were often submitted to prove a concept for the purposes of patents. The models most of us are familiar with, however, are the ones made for fun. There is a real appeal to seeing a scaled-down version of something big. Toy trains, cars and airplanes have been popular for as long as the real objects have existed. Some model makers take their skills past the crude representations of mere toys to create a true miniature version of the real object. The smaller and more detailed the model, the more we marvel. We often feel like giants viewing these tiny models. Included in this section is the work of some of the best model makers around. Click on the names of any of the craftsmen listed above to see their work.

"Model makers" in this museum are differentiated from "Model Engineers" in that the models shown here are made primarily to represent very accurately what something looks like. The motors in these models don't actually function. Model Engineers, on the other hand are usually concerned with modeling the function of a device like a steam or gas engine. More often than not, these models are also very close to representing the real thing, but the overriding goal at the beginning of the project is to represent a function. Model engineers and model makers share many of the same skills and often build models that fall in to both categories, but we have separated them into two different rooms in this museum to highlight the two disciplines.

New Submissions Welcomed

If you have additional information on a project or builder shown on this site that your would like to contribute, please e-mail craig@CraftsmanshipMuseum.com. We also welcome new contributions. Please see our page at www.CraftsmanshipMuseum.com/newsubmit.htm for a submission form and guidelines for submitting descriptive copy and photos for a new project.

This section is sponsored by SHERLINE PRODUCTS INC., Vista, CA,
manufacturers of tabletop machine tools and accessories.

To learn how your company or organization can sponsor a section in the Craftsmanship Museum, please contact craig@CraftsmanshipMuseum.com.