NEC Key Model World Show 2026

NARSES2 · January 10, 2026, 01:51:30 AM

NEC Key Model World Show 2026

National Exhibition Centre, Birmingham, April 25th/26th

I had this e-mail from Richard this morning, so just letting you all know.

"Just letting you know that I have been able to book in the What-if SIG into the Airfix / Hornby model exhibition, at the NEC, again this April. As previously there are two spare tickets each day and one extra car park pass for free. Or if required I can take some to the show each day, if they meet me at my address (and park up), as I did with Kit last year. There are some meal / food and drink freebie vouchers also provided for all exhibitors.

So please let members know and if some are coming with other invited clubs, they are more than welcome to contribute models for our display area as well. The more variety of models, the better, especially British / RAF 1950s - 1970s stuff. As this attracts many conversations with some interesting people, as Kit and I found out last year!! "

Kit will probably be able to explain the details

PR19_Kit · January 10, 2026, 06:01:52 AM

The show isn't really designed for plastic modellers, it's for all sorts of modellers, railways, boats, aircraft etc. and as a result you get people there who haven't a CLUE what a WhaitIf model is.

Trying to explain it to some of them is an exercise in futility of course, specially rivet counting steam railway modellers, but now and then one of them 'got it', and were amazed at the new ideas it opened for them.

Martin H · January 10, 2026, 07:35:37 AM

Quote from: PR19_Kit on January 10, 2026, 06:01:52 AMThe show isn't really designed for plastic modellers, it's for all sorts of modellers, railways, boats, aircraft etc. and as a result you get people there who haven't a CLUE what a WhaitIf model is.

Trying to explain it to some of them is an exercise in futility of course, specially rivet counting steam railway modellers, but now and then one of them 'got it', and were amazed at the new ideas it opened for them.

If i recall correctly. The UK model rail guys tend to refer to whiffing as Freelancing...........

PR19_Kit · January 10, 2026, 08:36:34 AM

Quote from: Martin H on January 10, 2026, 07:35:37 AMIf i recall correctly. The UK model rail guys tend to refer to whiffing as Freelancing...........

I think you're right OGL, and they sneer at you as they say it.

They forget that one of THE best UK model railway layouts ever, the late Edward Beale's 'West Midlands', built in the 40s-50s, was a freelance one.

In the US it's much more acceptable, and having your 'own road' is quite common. My own US based model 'railroad layout' is one of them, and I call it the 'Pine West', short for the 'Pinetree and Western Railroad Corp', and it had a number of awards at shows here in the UK, even though it was entirely imaginary.

scautomoton · January 10, 2026, 09:28:35 AM

Ha, sign me up, I love shooting those sorts of morons down.

Weaver · January 10, 2026, 12:33:11 PM

Hmm - that reminds me of the time I described trains as "targets" in my local part-model, part-train shop...

Got a vision now of a diorama featuring a crashed and burned-out train with a couple of what-if fighter-bombers with empty rocket rails flying over it...

Charlie_c67 · January 11, 2026, 07:23:55 AM

There is/was a guy on RMWeb, called Nils I think, whose work was very much Whifworld. Own company and schemes. Sadly he's not done much recently but his work was to a high standard.

Others seem to enjoy converting models to the railway series by Rev Awdry, Guy called Corbs in particular, and again, they look quite good for the most part. Thankfully the rivet counters tend to stay away.

I guess part of the problem is the cost of the base model making it generally less likely that railway modellers want to chop them up. There are ways round round it, but it's still not cheap.

PR19_Kit · January 11, 2026, 09:02:35 AM

I've been building a couple of Whiffed OO gauge locos for some time now. One a Bullied air smoothed Baltic tank, the concept drawing looks like this. It uses a Hornby Q1 chassis and a sawn down Airfix BoB loco body shell.

But work stopped in 2018 but I still have it boxed and ready to work on. Build thread is here.

https://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php?topic=44663.15

And the other is a Franco-Crosti boilered 8F but with Caprotti valve gear and a VERY long smoke deflector to save the poor fireman's lungs!

That build never really got started, but I have the 9F, the Crosti conversion and the Caprotti valve gear still. Build thread, such as it is, here.

https://www.whatifmodellers.com/index.php?topic=44530.0

The Rat · January 11, 2026, 01:34:50 PM

Quote from: PR19_Kit on January 10, 2026, 06:01:52 AMThe show isn't really designed for plastic modellers, it's for all sorts of modellers, railways, boats, aircraft etc. and as a result you get people there who haven't a CLUE what a WhaitIf model is.

Trying to explain it to some of them is an exercise in futility of course, specially rivet counting steam railway modellers, but now and then one of them 'got it', and were amazed at the new ideas it opened for them.

Mentioned this years ago, but I think it bears repeating with this thread: Somewhere in the basement I have what's left of an old Airfix Short Stirling, built at least 50 years ago. Every time I see the fuselage, it looks to me like it could be turned into a locomotive. No idea why my mind, such as it is, goes that way, but why waste the idea? Probably an electric, with that 'pantograph' thingy on top, but I have no idea if they would be available as an aftermarket product, or what size I would need. Also what size trucks would fit a 1/72nd scale. If I ever make it, I will DEFINITELY send it over the ocean so that you can tweak their noses![/troublemaker]

EDIT: A quick googling tells me that HO should be sufficient, and pantographs are available.

PR19_Kit · January 11, 2026, 02:12:52 PM

British OO gauge is 1/76. which explains why so many Airfix building and figure kits are that scale. And it's pretty close to 1/72 obviously.

OO uses the same gauge model track as HO with the rails spaced 16.5 mm apart, which means OO gauge locos and rolling stock are a different scale to the track they run on. Yes, I know it's silly, and I could explain why, but life's too short, just remember that it is what it is.

The same situation obtains with British N Gauge, at 1/148 scale (Very close to 1/144 handily....) and American and European N Gauge at 1/160 scale, but they all use 9 mm gauge track, and the reason is the same, but just as complicated..............