Those who know:

[FRD]

I thought the forum would be the best place to get an answer from "those who would know".


My question is:


What is the OLDEST model producer who is still in business?


Is it Wilhelmshaven?


(Just curious)

[PacificWind]

That's an interesting question.
Wilhelmshaven is still in business? Isn't it defunct?
Mały Modelarz has its beginnings in 1957 and still publishes new models, although most of them are reissues(with slight improvements). But I don't know if it's the oldest paper model publisher that is still in business.

[Philip]

Can't come up with any figures I'm afraid but I'm pretty sure that LS goes back a long way, and JFSchreiber even longer. But can any anybody beat the longevity of L'Imagerie d'Epinal, founded in 1796 by the printer Jean-Charles Pellerin? The original output was mainly playing cards and religious prints. It didn't take M Pellerin long to discover that cutout paper soldiers were a good seller so he expanded this part of his repertoire to include the well-known Pellerin paper model prints, of which he produced a large number covering all sorts of subjects.

Although the Imagerie has not much to do with models any more it is still a thriving concern: Les veritables images d’Epinal - Maison Images d'Epinal

[Petestein]

Originally Posted by PacificWind

That's an interesting question.
Wilhelmshaven is still in business? Isn't it defunct?
Mały Modelarz has its beginnings in 1957 and still publishes new models, although most of them are reissues(with slight improvements). But I don't know if it's the oldest paper model publisher that is still in business.

The oldest card model printer is Schreiber from Germany. It started in 1831 and there is a small museum of this company in Germany, I can't remember the town.
The FIRST scale model aircraft in 1/33 scale were the GELI originally from Austria and started printing in 1954. Geli meant GErtraud LIscher the partner of the company's founder and designer Herr Karl Wittrich. Geli are still being printed today by Herr Armin Eberth. For the American market, GELI meant GENERAL EDUCATION LITERARY INSTITUTE. I think Maly started in 1956 or so, I might be wrong. Another very old printer is indeed WHM starting in 1953 and still in business. MON from Poland dates back to the early 50s as well as Kranich from the old East Germany.

[FRD]

Right, I remember Lou telling me 1831 but I couldn't remember what producer, I concur, thanks for the info. (I knew I could count on you guys!)

[Phillip Wingrove]

Hi. In looking into this, I came across this interesting article of German 'Meister' Hubert Siegmund, "the only full-time designer of model building sheets in Germany, revolutionized cardboard model making. From 1956 to 1989 he designed airplanes, vehicles, ships, buildings and figures for adults and children on his drawing board in Überlingen for the JF Schreiber publishing house," of the motto "Build today what will no longer exist tomorrow." Von Asterix bis Zeppelin. Hubert Siegmund - ein Uberlinger Meister des Kartonmodells - openPR This is a model village he did, Arbeitskreis Geschichte des Kartonmodellbaus (AGK) e.V. - Mittelalterliche Kleinstadt (Small Medieval Town) - About this Model
Of Imagerie Epinal, there are tons of nice models on Flickr ( I take it copyright ended a century ago or something ) imagerie d epinal-15 | French cut out model from around the … | Flickr

[Petestein]

Indeed Hubert Siegmund was a very prolific card model designer. But I also admire Herr Karl Wittrich owner and founder of GELI. He designed almost all of the 65+ Geli model airplanes he started to print in 1954. He also designed some WWII fighters during the war mostly for aircraft recognition. I am really amazed how can a normal human being can convert a 3D object as complex as an airplane in flat parts printed on any paper to be reshaped and assembled obtaining an exact scale replica. I've always heard that real aircraft were designed in a very similar way as a cardboard scale model, just using a slide ruler (no calculators or PCs), a pencil, a french curve and a ruler.