Warbird Information Exchange

i would like to clarify a couple of facts & my opinions...... 1ST, STEVE OWES NOBODY AN AN APOLOGY!!!! 2nd, his diorama is 1st class work, 3rd, he should be proud of his work & devotion to detail, but we all know soplata is very protective of visual aspects of his collection, either in real pic form, or model form. i encourage steve to pm his work to everybody from a to z. best, tom

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!

Has Soplata told you to be on guard for anyone who dares to make a model or diorama of his collection? I don't know if there is any manure on the farm, but the attitude of this post sure smells like it! If I remember correctly from a brief glimpse of the photos they showed amongst others the F2G, F-82, and a B-25. Soplata no longer owns the F2G nor the F-82, and maybe even the 25 is the one said sold. So in fact this is a diorama of what was. I can agree with giving people some privacy, but give me a break.... I agree fullheartedly with Scott on this one. Put the link back, Steve. Don't let one negative remark ruin this. Please let us enjoy the fruits of your hard work, which was a real treat!

T J
(Trying hard to avoid the manure!)

TJ et al--

For the moment I'm going to leave the link off the thread itself, and take Tom's suggestion, but in reverse: if you'd like the link, just PM me and I'll paste it into my reply. (One WIXer already did this.)

Incidentally TJ, you're spot on about my diorama being representative of "what was": for me, Walt's acreage was pure magic, and I had wanted for years to recreate a bit of it the way I remember it. The figures I want to add will represent Walt (of course)...and me, staring in amazement at the F2G. You're right about another detail, too. Exactly half the aircraft I modeled have now left Newbury: the F2G is with Bob Odegaard in North Dakota awaiting restoration for the Crawford Museum; the F-82 is being restored at C&P Aviation in Minnesota; the B-25 is being restored in Georgia for Jerry Yagen; and the P-80 is restored and on display in the NMNA at Pensacola. None would likely survive without Walt. Four tips of the hat to the man from Newbury...

I'm starting to think about another project. Paintings. Profiles of the collection's aircraft as they looked when last in operation...hmmm...

Cheers all

S.

Question?

Has anyone asked Walt if he would mind if it the diorama pictures were reposted on this site?

TTFN....Kenn

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May all your bent wings be F2G Corsairs!

if he doesn't mind i'll eat crow gladly, but by the tone of some of the replies i think some of you would suggest i eat something else starting with the letters s and h. hey guys, i wasn't trying to stir up a bee hive, but bottom line soplata is very guarded with his privacy whether it be a picture, diorama, or painting. he wants no public images of his collection from what i have gathered. no, i'm not his watch dog, & he hasn't told me to be his protector. bottom line, walt & his wife have asked everybody who's been out their in the last 30 odd years not to make their pictures etc public. if you've had the privelege & luck to have been out their as guests you should be grateful as i was. they are 2 of the most gracious & enthusiastic collectors i've seen, & i feel their 1 single wish is not to much for them to ask in return for them letting somebody experience their piece of history. i was very respectful of steve, both openly on wix & in private messages, as i'm sure he will tell anybody. i did not mean to pee on his bonfire, about completing his project, he should be proud of the great detail of his work. steve, i openly apologize for ruining your big wix site intro of your diorama & i openly apologize to anybody else i've p.o.'d, but i will not apologize for helping keep my word for the soplatas. i try to be a gentleman always, but maybe not always with the best results. i've had a great relationship with everybody on wix up to now, i hope 1 minor storm doesn't change things that we've shared. all the best, tom

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!

Tom...I can't believe Soplata is that protective (paranoid?) to object to photos of a model of ONE PART of his place circa 1980?

Come on let some of us not in the "know" in on your secrets!

I can't believe the warbird community is a guarded as some of the posters seem to think it is.

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Remember the vets, the wonderful planes they flew and their sacrifices for a future many of them did not live to see.

no secrets...... years of to much irresponsible embellishment by numerous people. etc. how many repeated rubber glove cavity searches could you take??? for me 1 is to many. for soplata, if he had 1 he'd feel lucky.

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!