To Gregory Bovino: This is what brandishing a firearm at a protest looks like.

I'm attending No Kings's event, “Eyes on ICE: Document and Record” - sign up now to join me! www.mobilize.us/nokings/even...

I am watching what is happening in Minneapolis on Ali Velshi and one of the ICE officers (off camera) literally says, “It’s like Call of Duty. Pretty cool huh?” as they shoot whatever it is they are shooting. Agents walking around, guns unholstered for no reason. This is insanity

#HistScaleModels #ScaleModels Update on the F3F-2. Apologies, but had a setback when I assembled fuselage out of sequence (bad idea). Had to order replacement parts. Now I've got the fuselage completely assembled, filled, primed and sanded. Looking pretty good. Next step, AK Xtreme Metal Aluminum. 🤞

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Progress on the Grumman F3F-2. Cockpit almost done. A bit of a catastrophe when the decal of the instrument gauges flopped back onto itself. I wasn't able to unfold it. Only the white backgrounds survived. Maybe no one will notice if I close the canopy.

And now it begins. First build of 2026. Fingers crossed; this will be my first biplane in (literally) several decades.

#HistScaleModels #ScaleModels We're hosting a Holiday Open House this afternoon. Spent two days cleaning up the house -- especially my modeling nook. Thought I'd put out some recent examples for the guests to see. (Note: may need a 'do not touch' sign. People love to try to spin the props.)

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Nippy outside. Sharing a hot latte with Betsy & Milo. Merry Christmas, all.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Second attempt at a British X-Craft sub. (My first one got binned after a shattering fall to the floor.) The overall grey scheme didn't allow for any creative camo. Instead I added restrained rust effects at the drain ports and where seawater would pond on the decks.

I had to take an oath of allegiance to the Constitution when I became a park ranger in 1974. The usual process was simply signing on a dotted line, but I made the Personnel Officer swear me in, hand raised, in the middle of the office. I took those words seriously. The clown car in DC doesn't.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Are there any sources for 1/35 U.S. sedans from circa 1940? I’d like to do a staff car alongside an early Stewart but all all I can find in that scale are European autos. American vehicles of the era aren’t close to 1/35 - except for a Packard but that’s too posh.

#sanfrancisco #gratefuldead SF then and Now. 1965. The newly-renamed Grateful Dead (formerly the Warlocks) took a series of PR stills at Battery Boutelle in the Presidio of San Francisco. Still there today..

We need new heroes

Doguerreotype 🗃️

As if he cares…

These are the folks designing the ballroom. Terrifying renderings on-line at www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-st...

President Trump in July: "[The ballroom] won’t interfere with the current building. It won’t be. It’ll be near it but not touching it – and pays total respect to the existing building..." Kinda looks like touching to me.

Let their words speak for them.

#scalemodel #histscalemodels Trying again with a photo. This will be the "A" side of the finished M36 tank destroyer. All in all, very happy. (Good old Tamiya fit and quality!) I could probably do some additional weathering but will hold off for now and not mess with success.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Well, this is the best I could do with the gap in the track links. It's visible but doesn't jump out at you. Not too much, that is. Again, this will be the "B side" of the M36. On the positive side, the post-shading and turret detailing came out pretty well.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Help! Almost finished my Tamiya M36 Jackson and ran into track glitch: the kit appears to be one link short. No idea how this happened. Directions followed explicitly, no remaining links on the sprues. This the second Tamiya model where this has happened. Argh.

Even Sporkfoot knows who is responsible for the government shutdown.

#scalemodel #histscalemodels I gave a talk at a high-end yacht club last night. Venue was loaded with gorgeous, scratch built models. Almost made me want to to give up model building and switch to a hobby like tatting or stamp collecting. Keep repeating, “it’s the process, not the product.”

Just a reminder: the Republicans have enough votes right now to overturn the filibuster rule (only a simple majority in the Senate needed) and then immediately pass their continuing resolution. They don't need the Democrats' votes to end the shutdown. They just don't want to.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels The X-class submarine is assembled and primed. A German tanker is temporarily standing in to give the model scale, while awaiting a proper British officer (on backorder) to take over the watch. A short breather, then start pre-shading.

Real post on another network:

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Did some poking around and found a 1/35 figure of a British sub commander standing lookout. He looks very much like the salty dog in the newsreel footage of an X-class sub. This will help give scale to the model, which was only 51.25 ft (15.62 m) long.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels. This is turn into a nice build. Cool details like weld lines. And I’m really looking forward to the weathering stage. I see lots of opportunities for rust streaks from those drain ports.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Very glad I invested in a slew of new clamps before starting on the X-class sub and its long, long keel.

"Il Duce ha sempre ragione" is Italian for "The Duce is always right." Very common phrase in Italy in the 1920s and '30s. Wonder if it was ever put on a ball cap?

Amazing coincidence

Honor Charlie Kirk by releasing the Epstein files. It’s what he wanted.

#Histscalemodels #scalemodels I’ve run out of display space for my completed models, and saturated my friends with gift models. Now I’m looking for ideas for how to cull the collection further. What do you all do? (Anyone ever sell the models via Etsy or similar?)

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Some anonymous modeled maker created a diorama of National Guard “policing” Washington D.C.

This is what forest fires many miles away from the city did to San Francisco 5 years ago!

#history Serious question: considering Trump’s fascination with trying to recreate some mythical golden era (“Dept of War,” replacing Confederate statues, reopening Alcatraz), how long before he orders the Navy to take back their battleships from museums and return them to the fleet?

Serious question: considering Trump’s fascination with trying to recreate some mythical golden era (“Dept of War,” replacing Confederate statues, reopening Alcatraz), how long before he orders the Navy to take back their battleships and return them to the fleet?

Oh

#sanfrancisco Nudged by two tugboats, the historic ferryboat EUREKA made it safely from San Francisco to Mare Island today. Originally built in 1890, she's reportedly the largest wooden ship still afloat, with a total length of 300 feet.

#sanfrancisco The 105-year-old ferryboat EUREKA just left her home at Hyde Street Pier, headed for a long-term stay at Mare Island. Here's a view from the Pier 39 live cam. She looks tired and old, like her feet hurt and doesn’t want to leave the house, but the grandkids are making her take a walk.

I know I'm not the first to see this...

You have to start to wonder if the interior decorator is actually trolling him.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Excuse the repeated postings. Does anyone know a source for WWII 1/48 USN ground support figures for a carrier flight deck? All I'm finding on-line are contemporary figures.

#histscalemodels #scalemodels Trying out various ways to display and photograph my collection. Picked up this 1/48 US carrier deck for Navy aircraft. I tried to emulate the early war color scheme of wood deck painted overall dark blue w/gray striping. Not sure if the weathering worked.

Way to go, San Francisco!! 👏👏

"A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people." —The Declaration of Independence

#scalemodels #histscalemodels Finished! The P-47D came out looking pretty good, but like all of my models there's an A side and a B side. Here are some views of the A side. This kite has so many protruding features I'm almost afraid to touch it: antenna, pitot tube, MGs. Now for a plexiglass box.