GPM B-52 Introduction

Most hobby modeling in the United States is done using plastic kits. I put together (and subsequently destroyed) a lot of plastic airplanes when I was a kid. With this type of modeling, the actual construction of the model is relatively easy. Don't get me wrong...I know there are plenty of challenges there. But, the real challenge with plastic models is the finishing. Skill with an airbrush is really important.

I am always in awe of scratch-built models. People who use wood, metal, plastic, paper, fiberglass, paint, etc. to build models have to deal with forming the individual parts AND doing all the finish work.

There is a step between these two that is referred to as card craft or paper craft. There are, of course, a wide variety of ways to design, create and build card or paper models. I am not an expert in the definitions here, but I would consider Japanese origami to be one of the oldest (if not the oldest) form of paper craft. "Origami" literally translates as "paper folding," and it involves folding plane sheets of paper into models. If you are interested in digging more deeply into the mathematics of very complicated origami, may I recommend a film by Vanessa Gould called "Between the Folds." Between the Folds on IMDB

"Card craft" more specifically is done with thick paper, or card stock. You can buy 8.5 x 11, 65-pound card stock at office supply stores. That's about the same thickness as common index cards. You can also get 110-pound card stock which is thicker and more suitable for some applications. Then, you can use an internet search engine to locate free card models, download them (usually in PDF format), and print them on your own printer.

If you want to see some more sophisticated models, take a look at this website, Fiddlersgreen.net. They have aircraft, buildings, boats, cars, and other models you can buy and download. I have purchased and built several of their airplane models, and I think their models are a great place to start if you are interested in this hobby.

Some people (and companies) have taken this hobby to the next level. Again, I don't pretend to be an expert at the history and distribution of paper craft hobbies, so I'm just telling you what I have found. One of those companies is GPM, located in Poland. GPM.

I started out working on very simple models several years ago. I've learned a lot about how to work with the materials and tools involved (see other models on this website), so I decided to try one of the more complicated models.

I recently purchased the GPM model of the Boeing B52D (B-52 on GPM website) . This model is in 1/33 scale, so when assembled it will have a wingspan of approximately 5 feet. Google Chrome translated most of the website, and the website takes Paypal, so all I had to do was put it in my shopping card and check out. With shipping, it cost 118 PLN (which is the abbreviation for Polish Zloty, the currency of Poland). That turned out to be $34.82 US Dollars.

I'm planning to build it and post my progress here. Please don't expect any particular rate of progress. I'm retired, and while it's true that I have a lot of free time, I've gotten use to mostly doing whatever I want to do rather than what I should do...or what other people expect me to do :).