A NOSTALGIC TRIBUTE TO FROG MODEL KITS

[jannie]

On 3/16/2017 at 11:47 AM, adey m said:

Absolutely correct that FROG's choice of subjects opened up new horizons for a 10 year old - seeing the He 219 in the catalogue made my jaw drop!

 

It was so much the same for me too bryan when I first saw the FROG He219 in the Alderton Post Office window.

 

I could not believe that this futuristic looking aircraft was a Heinkel............I was only nine at the time and I thought Heinkels were just bombers.

 

The He 219 box art was the most exciting I had seen in the shop window.

 

 

I well remember the FROG He 219 kit - not so fond memories though. A local department store also sold models - Revell, FROG, Aurora etc (I'm talking about Pretoria, South Africa here). I have been a Night Fighter Fanboy since reading Cat's Eyes Cunningham's autobiography at age 14 and was overjoyed when I found one solitary He 219 kit on the shop shelf a couple of years later. I bought it on the spot (last of my pocket money) and hurried home - only to find that one of the fuselage halves was missing from the kit. No way you can scratch-build THAT at age 17. The Customer Service dep. gave me my money back, but to this day (about 40 years later) I still think that I'd rather would have had another He 219 kit with both fuselage halves instead! Maybe that's why I have two Tamiya 1/48 + one 1/32 Revell He 219 kits in my stash - I'm still trying to get over the disappointment  

Edited March 21, 2017 by jannie
Missing word

[Ventora3300]

Adey,

 

Many thanks for your information on the Frog (not to be) He115 - I was sent off on the wrong tack by another 'build review' elsewhere which convinced me that the Frog He115 became the Matchbox version which then became the most recent Revell version. (In fact, I see that on the Scalemates 'Timeline, itdescribes how we ended up with two Revell versions, one from the Frog mould and one from the Matchbox).

 

I discovered this thread during my search for info on the Frog He115 and what a fantastic thread it is!! I haven't finished reading it all yet but I will get there.

 

In my first modelling years (60's and 70's), I only ever had two Frog kits - the Gannet which made me think that the kits were lacking in detail and features and the Spitfire MKXIV & Doodlebug which restored my faith a bit in that it was a beautifully shaped aircraft and model. I was a confirmed Airfix man and in these last years, have 'gone a bundle' on the Airfix box art and collected all the kits I made previously plus many more that I missed (got to be 'red stripe' of course).

 

However, with this resurgence in my interest (I though I could get my son interested but to no avail), I have really been educated in what Frog offered and now find myself with 90 of their kits and a confirmed fan. I seem to have followed various themes that they had like the 'Trailblazers' and the 'unusual aircraft only modelled by Frog'.

 

More power to your elbow and all the other guys on this thread - after buying three Matchbox He115's on ebay (1st was part assembled unbeknownst to the seller (!?), second was not the version with swastikas and the third was as expected), I saw your post and managed to receive the first Revell version (with 'F418' stamped on the transparencies sprue) today - excellent condition and a joy to hold.

 

If a group build is on the cards, could we do a He115?

 

All the best to everyone.

 

Mike.

[malpaso]

 

I was briefly the owner of the only Frog Penguin Dakota known in captivity.  Previously its existence was apparently only known from instructions.  It was very incomplete – all I had was what’s in the picture, there should have been plastic wheels and props and some decals (okay transfers back then).  You had to carve the shape from that wood (which is something like pine), which was profiled only and thus even less than the shaped pre-war Skybirds.  And the boxes for all the larger aircraft were the same illustration, there was a label on the end giving which plane was inside.  In spite of its incompleteness, it was welcomed by a Frog Penguin guru for his collection.

http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/Gallery/displayimage.php?pid=6216

 

Frog Penguin Series 9 were wood with plastic “detail” parts and were only made December 1945 to February 1946 or so.  Accordingly they are rare, especially the larger aircraft – only a Halifax is illustrated in the “Frog” bible – although the smaller kits occasionally appear on that well known website (usually its the Tempest when I’ve seen them).

 

I do still have a couple of other Frog Penguins – the Vampire and Mosquito , both dating from the late 1940’s.  These are in the old cellulose acetate (or whatever it was).  They weigh a lot more than injection moulded polystyrene (like later Frogs and Airfix inter alia) as they seem to be almost solid plastic.

 http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/Gallery/displayimage.php?pid=6220

 

Hope this is of interest though I don’t think the Penguins were quite what Adey was thinking of for this thread.  The ultimate would be to own one of the C-class flying boats with interior – Frogs were expensive in the thirties, but this one would have been the equivalent of several weeks wages for most people in the country.

 

Sorry about the links to my photos uploaded on other websites.  One day I will get the hang of one of the imaging hosts again, I could cope with Picasa.

 

Cheers

Will

 

[Troy Smith]

4 hours ago, malpaso said:

 

Sorry about the links to my photos uploaded on other websites.  One day I will get the hang of one of the imaging hosts again, I could cope with Picasa.

 

Cheers

Will

 

very interesting,  but pic hosting,  simple, on the large image  just right click and select 'copy image location/url'  

 

bingo

 

the link Will provided  as some fascinating olid wood models that's he's salvaged.

A new thread on these I'm sure would be of great interest here.

 

cheers

T

 

[adey m]

Thanks guys for all your contributions.

 

There is some fascinating FROG Penguin knowledge out there.

 

Keep it coming.

 

Regards, Adrian

 

 

Edited March 21, 2017 by adey m

[adey m]

WOW  Horatio...........thank you for posting your fabulous FROGs

 

You have done some fabulous conversions there too.........I love that Martinet

 

all the best

 

Adrian

 

 

 

 

Edited March 21, 2017 by adey m

[adey m]

 

Edited March 23, 2017 by adey m

[bryanm]

Thinking back to the He219 in 1966 and my first sight of it in the FROG catalogue: other than that, how did a youngster find out about lesser known types?  I had devoured the 'planes' section in the local library (no trace of the He219 there), it wasn't mentioned in my treasured 1941 copy of "Aircraft of the Fighting Powers", donated by an uncle who thought of me just before he was about to bin it, and there was no internet.  Making models really was an education in so many ways,  not least because of the detailed instructions in which every part had a name - one of my big gripes with today's pictorial instruction sheets.  If only manufacturers would include a numbered and named parts list in their current kits!

 

[bryanm]

Three from my small collection......

 

Rapide - this is a French Triang boxing, with an additional (words only) instruction sheet in French, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, German and one of the Scandinavian languages:

 

 

Sealand - a NZ boxing with a hinged tray-type box:

 

 

Thunderjet:

 

 

Edited July 14, 2017 by bryanm

[keefr22]

One of the guys bought an original Frog Hampden to the club meeting last night - first time I'd ever seen one! It was lovely, complete with scribed markings (I have a couple of old Smer & Aurora kits with that great idea too!) and a decal sheet to cover them up with! (I wonder if they were actually both the same size?!) I don't know if they'd ever been attached to a runner, but the fuselage halves were loose - dry fitting them showed they would go together perfectly...!!

 

I don't know of it was a 'fit the box' scale or was actually 1/100 as someone had written on the instruction sheet - whatever, it's a lovely little kit!

 

Keith

[Ventora3300]

On ‎21‎/‎03‎/‎2017 at 13:24, Ventora3300 said:

Adey,

 

Many thanks for your information on the Frog (not to be) He115 - I was sent off on the wrong tack by another 'build review' elsewhere which convinced me that the Frog He115 became the Matchbox version which then became the most recent Revell version. (In fact, I see that on the Scalemates 'Timeline, itdescribes how we ended up with two Revell versions, one from the Frog mould and one from the Matchbox).

 

I discovered this thread during my search for info on the Frog He115 and what a fantastic thread it is!! I haven't finished reading it all yet but I will get there.

 

In my first modelling years (60's and 70's), I only ever had two Frog kits - the Gannet which made me think that the kits were lacking in detail and features and the Spitfire MKXIV & Doodlebug which restored my faith a bit in that it was a beautifully shaped aircraft and model. I was a confirmed Airfix man and in these last years, have 'gone a bundle' on the Airfix box art and collected all the kits I made previously plus many more that I missed (got to be 'red stripe' of course).

 

However, with this resurgence in my interest (I though I could get my son interested but to no avail), I have really been educated in what Frog offered and now find myself with 90 of their kits and a confirmed fan. I seem to have followed various themes that they had like the 'Trailblazers' and the 'unusual aircraft only modelled by Frog'.

 

More power to your elbow and all the other guys on this thread - after buying three Matchbox He115's on ebay (1st was part assembled unbeknownst to the seller (!?), second was not the version with swastikas and the third was as expected), I saw your post and managed to receive the first Revell version (with 'F418' stamped on the transparencies sprue) today - excellent condition and a joy to hold.

 

If a group build is on the cards, could we do a He115?

 

All the best to everyone.

 

Mike.

Can I add another post?

[keefr22]

15 minutes ago, Ventora3300 said:

Can I add another post?

Why not? It's a discussion forum, so feel free to discuss! 

 

Keith

[The Cameraman]

On 20 March 2017 at 6:15 PM, adey m said:

 

Kits, kits, kits....................is that a Novo 1/96 Lancaster I can see ?...............and FROGs in the distance ?

 

Regular pre-owned kits trader at Scale Model World.

Hi There,

 

this is always a stand I like to visit at Telford, as each time I've attended, I've been able to increase my Airfix Beaver stash here!

 

 

[yarvelling]

Thanks for all this fascinating history of FROG kits   Amazing for me, as I don't ever recall seeing FROG models anywhere, in any of the places that I grew up!  Came home to England from Hong Kong in 1968, and had my 7th birthday on the ship just outside of LeHavre, before we docked in London.
Lived in Aylseford, near Maidstone, in Kent for a year or so, before moving to Ardley, near Bicester, Oxfordshire, in around 1970... and I only ever remember seeing Airfix and Revell kits on sale in any toy or model shops.....and of course, Woolworths
I do though, however, remember seeing FROG kits being advertised in comics at the time - notably on that I had weekly at the time, called "Countdown"-later "TV Action".... these adverts were pen/pencil drawings of the subjects, and from the drawings always looked pretty plain and boring!  I only ever saw those adverts though, and never experienced the kits...it was only recently after finding this forum, that I saw finished FROG models, etc, that sparked my interest in them - I'd always much preferred the Airfix kits back then in the late 60's and early 70's...and even some of those old awful Revell kits that were really poor looking with abysmal transfers that never stuck to any surface, be it gloss or matt finished.... (and I still find that problem with Revell kits today...they really need to go to 'Cartograph', who now make Airfix transfers SO beautifully)...anyway....I digress!!  I now have, purely for a "missed nostalgia" sake, from Ebay, an original old style FROG Mustang MK II kit complete in it's bag and header card (with a very old "Beatties - Trains And Cars" sticker for 20p) which I have no intention of building - the transfer sheet has caught too much sun and has folded and yellowed badly over the past 45-odd years!!  However, it looks fabulous in its old packaging, and could still be classed as mint, and I really don't want to disturb it...!!  I'm going too see if I can get a second one at a good price, and build it, just to se how it stands-up to current offerings...and I have a FROG Mosquito on the way too, which from photos looked to have an interesting molding style around the engine/wheel-well areas - all in one piece?  This one I think I'll build as it's an open box item, and not from a sealed plastic bag/card-header style package

I'll see if I can find any copies of the "Countdown/TV Action" comic ads to add to this fascinating, and brilliant thread, and get a few photos of the Mustang kit, and the Mosquito, when it arrives....

Thanks to Adey for starting this journey back into the past, and to all of you others who've contributed, and for showing that in actuality modelling isn't always about the most accurate, or those with beautifully recessed panel-lines....some of those old kits with raised panel lines and heavy rivets can actually look fantastic!!  Especially in 1/72 scale

I'm currently building a 70's vintage Airfix Mosquito FB MK VI with raised panel lines and rivets...and it's a lovely kit!!  A bit of creative card in the cockpit, and bulkheads in the wheel-well areas, and it hides a multitude of sins, and it's still one of the best looking 1/72 Mossies around...so I can't wait to see how the FROG version measures-up

Thanks again to everyone for this wonderful thread......

[Old Man]

These made it over to the States in the middle sixties.  They were not too widespread, though. I definitely remember one hobby shop downtown carried them, and one other that might have. The ones I remember best are the ones nobody else would have thought of making kits of in those days: the Morane-Saulnier 406, the Fokker DXXI, the Macchi Folgore, the Blackburn Skua, the Martin Baltimore, the Bristol Beaufort. Some of these I had never heard of till I saw the kits. I kind of preferred Revell or Airfix kits, but the things only Frog made were great to have.

[dogsbody]

There were always a few FROG kits in our little town, in Eastern Canada, back in the mid-60's when I started model building. Not as many as Airfix and Revell but almost.

 

 

Chris

[adey m]

21 hours ago, yarvelling said:

Thanks for all this fascinating history of FROG kits   Amazing for me, as I don't ever recall seeing FROG models anywhere, in any of the places that I grew up!  Came home to England from Hong Kong in 1968, and had my 7th birthday on the ship just outside of LeHavre, before we docked in London.
Lived in Aylseford, near Maidstone, in Kent for a year or so, before moving to Ardley, near Bicester, Oxfordshire, in around 1970... and I only ever remember seeing Airfix and Revell kits on sale in any toy or model shops.....and of course, Woolworths
I do though, however, remember seeing FROG kits being advertised in comics at the time - notably on that I had weekly at the time, called "Countdown"-later "TV Action".... these adverts were pen/pencil drawings of the subjects, and from the drawings always looked pretty plain and boring!  I only ever saw those adverts though, and never experienced the kits...it was only recently after finding this forum, that I saw finished FROG models, etc, that sparked my interest in them - I'd always much preferred the Airfix kits back then in the late 60's and early 70's...and even some of those old awful Revell kits that were really poor looking with abysmal transfers that never stuck to any surface, be it gloss or matt finished.... (and I still find that problem with Revell kits today...they really need to go to 'Cartograph', who now make Airfix transfers SO beautifully)...anyway....I digress!!  I now have, purely for a "missed nostalgia" sake, from Ebay, an original old style FROG Mustang MK II kit complete in it's bag and header card (with a very old "Beatties - Trains And Cars" sticker for 20p) which I have no intention of building - the transfer sheet has caught too much sun and has folded and yellowed badly over the past 45-odd years!!  However, it looks fabulous in its old packaging, and could still be classed as mint, and I really don't want to disturb it...!!  I'm going too see if I can get a second one at a good price, and build it, just to se how it stands-up to current offerings...and I have a FROG Mosquito on the way too, which from photos looked to have an interesting molding style around the engine/wheel-well areas - all in one piece?  This one I think I'll build as it's an open box item, and not from a sealed plastic bag/card-header style package

I'll see if I can find any copies of the "Countdown/TV Action" comic ads to add to this fascinating, and brilliant thread, and get a few photos of the Mustang kit, and the Mosquito, when it arrives....

Thanks to Adey for starting this journey back into the past, and to all of you others who've contributed, and for showing that in actuality modelling isn't always about the most accurate, or those with beautifully recessed panel-lines....some of those old kits with raised panel lines and heavy rivets can actually look fantastic!!  Especially in 1/72 scale

I'm currently building a 70's vintage Airfix Mosquito FB MK VI with raised panel lines and rivets...and it's a lovely kit!!  A bit of creative card in the cockpit, and bulkheads in the wheel-well areas, and it hides a multitude of sins, and it's still one of the best looking 1/72 Mossies around...so I can't wait to see how the FROG version measures-up

Thanks again to everyone for this wonderful thread......

 

Thank you yarvelling for your kind comments and for sharing your model memories with us.

 

The FROG Mosquito had one of my favourite box artworks....so inspirational, it sums up the low level precision attacks carried out by the bomber Mosquitos.

 

The box is crammed to the top with parts........I find it difficult to get it all back in again and close the box...............it must have been a nightmare for the packing line ladies at Margate.............

 

One of the reasons that there are so many parts is because FROG included parts to make either the bomber or the fighter which added value to the kit and hopefully would encourage buyers to buy two..............

 

Unfortunately though the outline shape is not as good as the 1970s AIRFIX Mosquito.....the engines are under size......but could be beefed up with miliput.

 

 

One from my collection.............

 

 

No wonder FROG kits cost more than AIRFIX ............their boxes covered in full colour artwork on all sides must have cost a fair bit to produce.

 

 

A box full of fun and inspiration...................

 

Make sure you put everything back carefully in reverse order to the order you took them out.....................or you won't get the box closed again......................

 

 

Typical FROG crew members and those utility seats adorn the Mosquito cockpit.....you get a choice of control columns though for the version you are building......

[yarvelling]

Fantastic!  Thanks for the photos and heads-up Adey...   This looks to be the very same kit that I have on it's way - same wonderful box art
I can see I'll have to get a little creative with more thin card in the cockpit area too..but I may just build it as straight from the box   I'm planning on the Australian version to match the Airfix one that I'm currently doing.... I love that silver finish look, and these two will be like brothers/sisters as the Airfix is B-NA and the Frog is A-NA...
Work the last few days, but now I have 3 days off so I'll try and find those old Countdown comic Frog adverts

Cheers!!

Steve.

[stevehnz]

3 hours ago, adey m said:

 

Make sure you put everything back carefully in reverse order to the order you took them out.....................or you won't get the box closed again......................

 

Isn't that the truth, as I found on my Swordfish kit.

That Mosquito box art is fantastic, does anybody know if this was based on a real raid or just a great artists imagination?

Steve.

[adey m]

17 hours ago, stevehnz said:

Isn't that the truth, as I found on my Swordfish kit.

That Mosquito box art is fantastic, does anybody know if this was based on a real raid or just a great artists imagination?

Steve.

 

I think that it was just the imagination of a great artist Steve.

 

Just like AIRFIX's Roy Cross who could make any unlikely scenario seem possible.......................

 

Adrian

[adey m]

 

I have found this picture of a FROG DH Mosquito built straight from the box as FROG intended as the B. Mk IV.

 

 

 

 

Edited April 17, 2017 by adey m

[yarvelling]

Received my FROG Mosquito today - a few days earlier than I expected!!  A great Ebay seller   Blimey!  Compared to the 70's Airfix version it does seem pretty 'crude'...especially around the undercarriage area, but, as supplied, it has come with the "Skybase" stand, I think I'll make this one gear-up and flying, though I'll probably substitute the Airfix crew for the FROG crew..... the FROG pilot and navigator are tiny... TINY!!    Must have been measured from children!!

Mine is moulded in a very dark blue plastic, and not the grey seen in other photos... the box-art is a full-width box version of the aircraft too, without the green worded flash up the left-hand side, so maybe it's a slightly later release?  Whatever... the parts look 'good', and the transfer sheet looks perfect, even though it's 40+ years old!

The Airfix kit is almost finished, and I look forward to making a start on on this FROG version...

Edited April 10, 2017 by yarvelling

[yarvelling]

Here's a photo of the FROG box.....

 

The dark blue contents....

 

As mentioned, here's the Airfix Mosquito, in Royal Australian markings, just having the undercarriage stress-fitted..... the FROG model will be made as sister aircraft to this Airfix one.

 

And as mentioned earlier too.... on aircraft I've not seen mentioned yet in this thread (?) .... a Mustang mkII...

 

Hopefully the 20p price sticker is visible still...must have been priced just after currency change here in the UK in 1971/72..!!

As I said in an earlier post, I don't want to open this package.... it's a little piece of history!  I'll see if I can get a second one to build - and hopefully with a better transfer sheet too!!

[adey m]

Very interesting posts yarvelling.

 

You probably have the last FROG issue of the Mosquito before FROG closed down in 1978. It is a mid 1970s issue with the full box cover picture.

Also all the last FROG kits were moulded in that dark blue plastic.

Oh yes and you have reminded me about the tiny 1/96 scale crew.......I forgot that. 

 

Your AIRFIX Mosquito looks as good as I remember from when I built it as a new issue in 1973 from Woolworths in Whitby.

 

Your FROG Mustang II brings another memory back for me too...........a Sunday morning in Whitby about 1973 and a short cycle ride to the West Parade Post Office which sold FROG kits, pocket money spent on a Mustang II, quick ride home and start building it straight away, built by teatime, Humbrol paints on in the evening and transfers on and finished after school on Monday...............happy times.

 

regards, Adrian

Edited April 12, 2017 by adey m

[dogsbody]

Sounds like some of my builds from the late 60's into the early 70's while still attending school. Into town on Friday evening, while Mum did her weekly shopping. Garb some kit from either the local department store, Wilcox Brothers hardware or Moe Smith's nasty old sporting goods shop. Start assembly as soon as I got home. Finish assembly and begin painting on Saturday. Decals on Sunday.

 

Life was good back then.

 

 

Chris