View Full Version : Mystery 'Blenheim'
oncemorealoft
21st Jan 2006, 11:51
Digging around the garage looking for a pot of paint I came across a model Blenheim that my grandfather gave me. He worked in the scrap metal industry and gave me this sometime in the 1960s. It appears to be made of solid copper or brass and is very heavy. I'm pretty sure it dates from World War 11.
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e190/hedgesr/9d8ed204.jpg
I once saw another one made of a darker metal (possibly pewter). Again I think my grandfather had given this to a cousin.
It's fairly crudely made but clearly an early version of the Bristol Blenheim.
Does anyone know what the background to this object might be?
Thanks for any info provided
jabberwok
21st Jan 2006, 12:08
I'd be glad to be corrected but I suspect mosat were apprentice test pieces. Never seen a Blenheim before but many Spitfire's and P38's seem to turn up. I presume the latter was popular because it would be a tricky piece to make.
I had a chrome-plated brass Spitfire when I was a lad and it was definitely an apprentice piece.
Onan the Clumsy
21st Jan 2006, 13:15
I saw some solid black plastic (bakerlite?) models at an estate sale once.
One was a B24 and I forget the other. I assumed they were for aircraft recognition purposes, which makes it doubly confusing that I didn't buy them. Ireallymustbeatightbastard.
foxmoth
21st Jan 2006, 14:12
Ireallymustbeatightbastard.
Yes - even too tight for spaces between words.
(well someone had to bite didn't they:p )
Blodwyn Pig
21st Jan 2006, 16:52
i've seen it mentioned on other forums that you could buy rough castings, and hand finish them yourself.
No advertising please.
Kermit 180
21st Jan 2006, 20:58
I have a similar solid model of that sort of era, it looks like an Avro Anson, of which there were once many in New Zealand. Also have a pewter Spitfire prototype which I bough ton holidays in the UK in thea early 90's. I think the Anson is made of brass.
Kerms
atb1943
22nd Jan 2006, 11:36
Oncemorealoft
I copied a dear friend who was on Blenheims during the conflict, and he responded:
Definitely an early Blenheim 1. ......enquire if the original grandfather lived near Filton (Bristols) , Chadderton Manchester (Avro) or Speke, Liverpool (Rootes) the model could have come from a factory producing Blenheim 1s. The Aircraft Recognition models supplied to the RAF were of some composite material and the large ones in wood all painted Black.
cheers
atb