Basic HTML Version
AN ART OF PRECISION AND PATIENCE
Pham Minh Tuan, 40, a modeler
and an electrical engineer, has been
modelling for 10 years. His special area
of interest is weapons used in World
War II. “Modelling requires precision
and patience,” he says. “We try to make
perfect models which are as accurate
as possible.” In order to do this, the
modellers research each war and the
munitions used in great depth.
37 year old Nguyen Duc Huy, an
operations manager, has been addicted
to modelling for 20 years. “I love col-
lecting and modelling MIG 21 fighters,”
he says. “I have a collection of 50 MIG
21 fighters from 50 nations. I try to find
the flags of each nation to label them.
If I cannot find one, I paint it myself.”
Huy also seeks out the exact serial
number fighters used in each war to
print on the model. He loves to col-
lect pictures and materials of planes
since he was a child – his obsession
even landed him in trouble when he
cut pictures from his father’s books.
“When one of my teachers heard that,
they suggested I try modelling,” he
says. “From then on, I started model-
ling and my father has since given me
lots of good advice. The first model that
I made was a ship, but my interest for
fighters soon took over.”
Tuan says anyone can try model-
ling, but few have enough patience
to pursue the hobby in the long term.
Each model requires certain techniques
which are all hard to truly master.
Modellers are real artists; they trans-
form pieces of plastic into old fighters, a
bombed tank, or a rusted ship. To add
expression to their models, the
modelers use materials such as small
pieces of jewelry, acupuncture needles,
tissues, and even rice paper.
Vu Anh, 48, an electronic device
dealer, says: “Materials can be found
all over the place; we need to search
hard when the materials model manu-
facturers produce do not satisfy our
needs. For example, I have used rice
paper to make a canvas sheet for a tank
because the plastic sheet provided was
too tough to be shaped adequately.”
Another member of the group, of-
fice worker Hoang Thanh Tam, 36, has
modelled for 17 years. He says that
they often discuss the minute details
when photos of a model are posted on
the group website: “We are interested
in the small things – the harmony of
the colours for example.”
In Ho Chi Minh City, a
small band of people
are bonded by their
passion for military
modelling.
Bui Hoa
caught up with some
of them to learn more
about their hobby
LIFESTYLE
HOBBY
MILITARY
16
timeout