"Many people turned to different activities as a comfort or distraction in these strange times, and for me, that new, or should I say, rediscovered activity was building models! I have a 7-year-old son, Seb, and whilst he was lucky enough to be at school for a lot of the year, there are only so many hours in the day that he should be looking at a screen when he was at home. 

As a child of 8 or 9, I had made the famous Sea King and Hurricane models, resisting parental help, but back then, I lacked the patience that I have now as an adult and although I finished the kits, it took a long time- I think I was still washing the glue off my hands weeks after!  

I actually started in modelling at the age of 5 with Hornby. My parents bought me the “Mighty Mallard” set complete with an instructional tape featuring the legendary Noel Edmonds! Over my childhood I mainly built up my OO gauge set, and also dabbled with Scalextric. Airfix wasn’t something I was massively into as a child, it’s only as an adult with my own son that it’s become a real hobby. 

Rediscovering Airfix came about quite randomly. I was browsing a popular web-based shopping site, looking for rainy day/screen-free activities I could do with Seb when I discovered the Airfix starter kits! Remembering my experiences as a child, I was a little apprehensive, however the great price and fact all materials were now included made the Spitfire Starter Set a very good choice-it was time to try again (and how glad I am that I did!). 

When the kit arrived, there was great excitement from Seb (and myself!). We began to build the Spitfire and soon completely lost track of time. It’s times like these that you remember and cherish. For me, it was the first time I’d sat down for a prolonged period of time with Seb to do something practical that involved us both and that is really special. I realised that we had found something we could do together that we could both contribute to and at the end, there would be a great model as a bonus! Seb’s small fingers proved invaluable in some of the more dexterous steps, and after advice from a friend who is an experienced modeller, I tackled the painting."

“The end result was something that we were both really proud of! Yes, it wasn’t perfect, but it was the first model we’d made together, and the experience of doing so was fantastic."

Dave proves here just how powerful the magic of a build is! Here at Airfix we firmly believe that it’s about the journey and not the destination. Whether you’re building your first model or your one hundred and first, the only step we don’t put in the instructions, is that you must have fun! Otherwise, what’s the point?

“A couple of weeks later we went onto complete the Titanic Starter Kit which was also great fun, and both of us learnt so much about the ill-fated vessel whilst we were building it. Every day’s a school day! Speaking of school, Seb proudly took his completed models into school and impressed his teacher and the students in the class! Many hadn’t heard of Airfix so Seb was able to tell his classmates how he had made both kits!

For me, Airfix has given me an opportunity to spend precious time with my son, it allows us to discover new skills, learn interesting facts, and most important of all, spend time together. I didn’t think that modelling would be for me after my experiences as a child, but we have discovered a new hobby that I’m sure we will continue to enjoy for years to come, and who knows- Seb may well make Airfix models with his children one day!”

We want to thank Dave for sharing his story with us. It’s a wonderful reminder that it’s never too late to try something new (for the second time) and that modelling is about so much more than just the models. The joy of sitting down with a loved one to create something is truly unrivalled. You might not all have as much luck as Dave but we greatly recommend modelling as a family activity.

Dave, we hope that you and Seb will continue to be a part of our modelling community as the world gets back to normal! However, in the meantime, you can check out Dave’s band on Facebook by searching for TheMixtapesUK.

We have included some of the products Dave mentioned in his article so that if anyone comes to mind who you think would benefit from a bit of Airfix TLC, you can share this with them and recreate some of Dave's favourite builds.