Vintage Model Retrospective

[TramFan]

What a great little model, thank you Thumb Dog for sharing.
Owen

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

The Antarctic Snow Cruiser pictured below would seem to be the perfect vehicle to drive around in Buffalo, New York this week, but you’d be better off riding an angry elephant seal than taking a trip in this famous failure.

After much experience in the ice and snows of Antarctica, Richard Byrd’s former Executive Officer, Thomas Poulter, designed and promoted the Antarctic Snow Cruiser through to its completion in 1939. Built in the Pullman Company Shops outside Chicago, the Snow Cruiser was meant to be a wheeled laboratory that would comfortably traverse the impossible terrain of the earth’s southernmost continent. Arriving at Little America III in early 1940, the massive machine was an instant disappointment. Most of the problems centered on the huge, slick tires. Without the necessary tread, they just spun in the snow, slowly going nowhere.

More useful was the Cruiser’s Beechcraft Staggerwing airplane. Once the ski-equipped plane had been unloaded onto a prepared runway, it could take off and quickly scout the vast terrain from its base camp. The pair of machines, located as they were at the ends of the earth, made headlines around the world for their innovation and daring, if not for their successes.

The paper model shown below was published in France by Le Pélican Blanc and comes from the collection of Tom Greensfelder. A note on the Cruiser’s undercarriage gives a hint as to the model’s designer, and says, Construction, Marg. Schambert. Concerning a possible date, a small, blue notation can be found on the lower right of the first page. It says, 5-5-7-41. 1941 would have been during the German occupation of France during WW II, and this may have played a part in the appearance of the drawing.

With its high-vis red, orange and chrome exterior, the actual Antarctic Snow Cruiser was wildly colorful. In contrast, this paper model is not. Overall powder blue, with green and white accents, the drawing presents a somewhat disappointing scheme when compared to the actual Cruiser. The question might be asked, why were these rather dull colors chosen over the authentic paintwork? The range of reasons for the chosen colors could be wide. It could be as complex as the German censors not wanting the American invention to appear too glamorous, to as simple as the French publisher being unable to procure enough red ink. Often, vintage paper models come with a raft unanswerable questions.

The build was pretty straight forward. Parts fit was fair, with the airplane being the trickiest bit. The Cruiser’s biplane is not the most accurate paper Staggerwing available, but it gets the point across. Mat board reinforcements were used to keep the flat areas flat, and the finished model has remained straight and true. Even though the Cruiser’s color is wanting, the clear and precise drawing does build into an impressive model. And, as a bonus, the considerate Marg. Schambert even gave the tires their much-needed tread.

Other paper models of the Snow Cruiser have been published over the years, and there was a recent discussion in this forum. It can be found here:

Arctic Schooner

And thanks to those who wrote offering their encouragement concerning the book Tom and I have been working on. We haven’t given up on the idea, and we may self-publish sometime in the future. As with the publishers we contacted, money is the dominant issue. However, with the advances in print-on-demand publishing, the upfront cost has been reduced.

The other big problem for self-publishers is distribution. Advertising is expensive, and even with an effective ad buy, it’s difficult to sell books out of your basement. Without proper distribution, it’s hard to justify the time, work and money involved.

I have some experience with all this, as I wrote and self-published a book in 1994 titled, Card Modeling, The Art of Creating Scale Models in Paper. I had a lot of help from Lou Dausse, his wife Barbara and their Paper Models International. Along with his considered advice, Lou shared a number of his models with me to build and photograph, and most importantly, he carried my finished book and advertised it prominently in his yearly catalog. Without his distribution, I might still have 1,300 unsold books in my basement. I don’t see another U.S. based paper models distributor with the reach of Paper Models International, and without an enthusiastic distributor, selling an unknown book becomes a real slog.

Lou and Barbara passed away some years ago, and for those of us who remember sending our checks and money orders to their Bonnie Brae Drive address, we won’t forget the fast and friendly service they provided to us and our unique hobby.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[Don Boose]

Thanks for all this information.

My well-thumbed copy of Card Modeling is always on my shelf above my desk/workspace.

Don

[wireandpaper]

Dear Thumb Dog;
Or should I say Eric. I didn't know you were the author. Looking forward for your next book, in the format that it will be.

BEST WISHES FOR 2023

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And hi, Don and Pablo, and thanks for your continuing interest in the models I enjoy building and sharing. And it’s good to see that my nearly 30 year old Card Modeling book is still being appreciated by my fellow paper modelers.

Thanks, and wishes for a better New Year to all.

Score and fold,

Thumb Dog

[papermodelfan]

Is it possible the German group AGK might publish it?

[John Wagenseil]

Dover Publications still prints and sells paper model books and might be interested in a new one.
Have you considered self publishing, having a batch printed and selling them through ETSY, local independent book and toy stores, and if they prove to be a good seller, going back to the big publishers?
They also might be more interested in your new book if they knew that you are an already published author.
Good luck

[Thumb Dog]

Hi All,

And hi, Rob and John. Thank you for your ideas concerning the publishing of our book. I believe there have been discussions with one of the publishers mentioned in your comments, but for a variety of reasons, no go as of yet.

Tom and I are still talking about a feasible way to get into print. We aren’t done yet…

Happy New Year to all,

Score and Fold,

Thumb Dog

[Tom Greensfelder]

Originally Posted by Paskal

Very interesting idea to show old paper models.
We try to do the same in our PMP' magazine. I did not know this French publisher "Poupée Modele" and it is good to leave a trace here.
History and memory to understand.... Thank you very much Don

Hi, all. Eric's done a very good job of telling the story of our yet-to-be-published opus. We will get a book out of this one way or another! In the meantime I wanted to add another unusual model from "La Poupée Modèle, Journal des Petites Filles." The attached model "La Forge" uses the same construction technique as the goat cart... tab and slot with locking pieces.

This is a test build by Alexandra and needs to be done again with heavier reinforcement. Besides the complexity of the build, one stands in awe of those turn-of-the-century French girls who could be enticed by a moving paper model of a mechanical forge. The forge itself is activated by sand which is introduced through the chimney and released by the little gate over the big water wheel. The big wheel turns the little wheel which then moves the hammer up and down. Voila!

[Don Boose]

A wonderful model!

You have to cut very precisely the way the parts are economically arranged on the paper.

Don