Chris Foss signing Hardware at Forbidden Planet

I was very pleased to be able to attend a signing session by Chris Foss for his book Hardware at Forbidden Planet in London. I've always been a fan of Foss' work, and have all his other books. My interest first came from his covers for EE Doc Smith's Lensman books and Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy, and these and all his other major sci-fi works are included in the excellent compilation Hardware. I got a copy signed and annotated and had a bit of a chat. Pity there doesn't seem to be an exhibition planned - not outside Guernsey, anyway.

Man from UNCLE carbine Dragonfawn special

I finally received the Man from UNCLE special carbine I ordered some months ago from Dragonfawn. Basically it's a Walther P38 airsoft pistol with resin attachments, quite a nice job, some rough parts, but I think I can tidy it up and make some improvements using the replica parts I have, then customise a case. And I'd like to get an actual Bushnell Phantom telescopic sight to add an extra level of authenticity...

Secret Agent Golden Sniper kit

Picked this up as a Buy it Now from eBay at some considerable cost, but it would have gone much higher otherwise; okay, it isn't James Bond or even Man from UNCLE, but these sets command ridiculous prices, so I might sell it on... or might not.

Nice win - Revell Sherman Calliope

Received a large and unexpected box in the post - very pleased, it turns out I've won a 1/35th scale Revell Sherman Calliope kit in a Scale Military Modeller reader survey contest. See, it is worth filling these things in and returning them... At the moment I'm also trying to collect some Starfighter, Freedom Fighter, Hustler and Draken kits to do a spot of Supermarionation kit-bashing...

Stuff I've bought recently

A nice book about Doc Savage artist James Bama... more Classic Doctor Who action figures... a Dragon South Wales Borderers Rorke's Drift 1/6th scale figure... and the Airfix Plastic Toy Soldiers book I've been looking for for ages...

More Classic Daleks

There's another marvellous Classic Dalek set on the way from Character Options; the Remembrance of the Daleks set features an Imperial (great, now I don't have to get the overpriced McCoy+Imperial pack), a Renegade, a Supreme, and best of all, a Special Weapons Dalek. And there are three more Cybermen coming out too, but frankly they're all starting to look the same to me...

Unimat 1 Classic

I indulged myself in a multi-tool which ought to make it easier to manufacture small parts for models and conversions. The Unimat 1 Classic is a lightweight plastic-bodied lathe which converts into a mill, saw, sander etc; it's not heavy-duty, but should serve for what I need, and at around £160 from eBay it was a viable alternative to the £600-ish mills and lathes a real pro would go for. I'll report back on how I get on with it!

Doctor Who action figures - 11 Doctors box, Ironside Dalek etc

I've been going a bit mad with the Doctor Who action figures lately - apart from the 11 Doctors box set, I've had the 1st Doctor with Dalek, 2nd Doctor with Cyberman, 7th Doctor with The Master, Cyberman 2-pack and Remote Control Dalek Ironside. Just have to get the 7th Doctor with Dalek now. And a blue new model Dalek. I sold another custom - a 'pewter' finish classic Dalek - and am still working on a Dalek Space Commander...

Doctor Who Eleven Doctors action figure set

Ooh, very excited by this. A set of all 11 Doctor Who action figures, in a Tardis presentation case, including the one Doctor who hasn't been released before, number 8. Looking forward to seeing it at a launch in July, and I already have my order in...

Victory of the Daleks poster, new pattern Daleks etc

Pleased to see that the new pattern Dalek collectables are starting to appear on Forbidden Planet's website; presumably the Victory of the Daleks poster will be the last of the old pattern Dalek collectables... and of course a Cyberman is always nice to have...

Victory of the Daleks mods

I've done very well selling modified WW2 Daleks - or 'Bracewell Ironsides' - on eBay. They're relatively easy to paint as they're all one basic colour, and I've done a good job making ammo belts and Union Jack badges, much better than anyone else who has had a go at it. I've done 6-inch and 10-inch models, and I'll try to do some more while there's interest. And I quite like the new coloured Daleks, apart from the over-large chest boxes and the hunchback...

Admiral Me 262 1:18th scale

Admiral's 1:18th scale Messerschmitt 262 is the most marvellous model ever; in fact strictly speaking it's a toy, though an incredibly detailed one, including moving parts, a pilot and radio antenna. I picked one up on eBay for around £21, which I thought was incredible value considering its size and quality. The only catch is that it doesn't come with the swastika decals dealers were supposed to supply, but I was able to source those from http://www.badcattoys.com/. I've now fixed them, plus the broader yellow tail-band which is more accurate - a big improvement.
Apparently there are also Stuka, Spitfire and Sabre models available, though Admiral has gone bust - but in any case I don't really have space for any more this size..!

Hammer Glamour exhibition, Madeline Smith, Valerie Leon

I went to an event to launch the Hammer Festival exhibition, where I met Madeline Smith, cover starlet of Marcus Hearn's book Hammer Glamour. Despite the event being run by a PR company which couldn't organise a bum-rape in a Borstal, and who seemed intent on preventing anyone getting books signed or getting photos, l managed a chat with Madeline, who seems a mad as a box of frogs, and got the book signed.
I didn't catch up with Valerie Leon, and there was no sign of the promised appearance of Caroline Munro or Jimmy Sangster, but Madeline was the main attraction for me. And cleverly, I had bought the book for £12.49 from Forbidden Planet, rather than pay £25 at the Hoxton Twat gallery. So in the words of Alan Partridge, 'needless to say I had the last laugh'.

Radio-controlled talking Davros

I got a buddy for my radio-controlled talking Dalek - a radio-controlled talking Davros, for £19.99. But I'm not allowed to play with it until Christmas.

Radio controlled talking Dalek

I finally got a large radio-controlled talking classic Dalek (as opposed to a new type Dalek); it looked like it was the last one in Forbidden Planet, reduced from £50 to £25. It's marvellous.

New Doctor Who action figures from Character Options, 2009 Dalek Bubble Bath

I'm pleased to have picked up from Forbidden Planet the latest Doctor Who Classic action figure sets from Character Options; the Fourth Doctor Adventure Set, and the second of the Classic Daleks sets. I'm particularly taken with the Saucer Pilot Dalek (the one with the energy collector dish on the back) and with the Fourth Doctor, a very convincing representation of Tom Baker (with a choice of heads). And you can't beat a Dalek with bombs strapped to it. There are more out next month, including another Dalek with a Jon Pertwee figure, so I'll be first in the queue. And I've picked up the Dalek Supreme Bubble Bath... the last one in Forbidden Planet as, Boots and the like don't seem to be stokcing it this year... but I did get the last of last year's black Dalek bubble baths fro Boots for £1.25... and I'm still working on some mods for the first Classic Dalek set. I got some Plastruct and brass tubing to try to fabricate the claw, but it's tricky...

Vintage Years of Airfix and Revell Fairey Rotodyne

Got an excellent book recently - The Vintage Years of Airfix by Roy Cross. Collecting his artwork from the classic years of Airfix model kits, it's a very high quality production and has all my favourite artwork in it, from the Fairey Rotodyne to the DUKW. Published at £35, I got it for £26 from Amazon. I also got the reissue of the Revell kit of the Rotodyne - looking forward to building it, though I still mean to get another couple to do 'What if...?' finishes.

More Doctor Who action figures

Apart from the nice-looking Hartnell and Troughton Dr Who action figures coming out this month, I see Character Options now has some great packs scheduled for August, including four new classic Daleks, and a four-pack with Tom Baker, Mummy, Death Robot and Suicide Dalek. Want!

Dalek crazy!

I'm buying a load of Dalek toys at the moment with a view to customising them. There are some good examples on eBay, like this blue one... I'm sure I can do just as good a job, and maybe add flashing LEDS...

Star Trek toys at Burger King

I haven't eaten at Burger King for years, but I had to go in the investigate the Star Trek toys they're doing with kids' meals this month. It's a great selection of super-deformed characters and spaceships, and the best part is they have speech chips with lines from the movie. I've managed to blag a whole set, without having to eat a single burger...