German-Made Model Airplanes

[victorbrunswick]

When I was a kid in the '70s I remember seeing these ready-made model airplanes and gliders at a toy store in one of the local malls. All I remember about them were that they were red and yellow, rubber-powered and made out of a thin but durable plastic film-like material and were made in Germany. Unfortunately I can't seem to find any images of them.

Does anybody remember these planes?

[Hooper68]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

Are you sure they weren't made from balsa and did they come in a cellophane packet? as I remember my Mum and Dad buying me them from my local toyshop in the 70's,they would fly for quite a distance and I lost them as quick as they would buy them.

[victorbrunswick]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

I'm very certain that they weren't balsa or had come in a cellophane packet. If I remember correctly they came in a box with the wings disassembled. Though I do remember the 25p or 30p gliders that you speak of -- at least that's how much they were in the States if I recollect. They were made by the Paul K. Guillow Company of Wakefield, Massachusetts. They're still around and make some really nice balsa kits as well as the cheapo gliders.

[willpurry]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

I used to buy a balsa glider from the hobby shop in Potters Bar whenever we went to Grandma Allen's.

[victorbrunswick]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

Now there's something that's more or less disappeared from the landscape. At one time there were at least half a dozen great hobby shops in my area, now there's only two. Yet there's a game shop in practically every strip mall and I don't mean board games either. We do have a chain out here called Hobby People but they're more of a toy store than a real hobby shop.

[adam13]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

Hi there,
The planes you refer to were and still are manufactured by Gunther Flugspiel.
The yellow and red ones were called Stormvogels, they are now red and white and
called xantos(stormvogel is now a toy boat in their range).
Hope this info finds you.
Adam.

[victorbrunswick]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

Du hast Recht!

You're right, that's the one! I knew someone would remember, vielen dank. I seem to recall that the Stormvogel/Xanto planes came in several sizes. I also looked at their website and didn't realize that Günther also made the Darda cars.

[Paulos]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

Slightly off course for the thread but I remember making these with my stepfather, anybody else make these?
Balsa wood which you had to carefully cut out each piece.
The body then used to be covered in tissue paper.

[victorbrunswick]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

I love those balsa kits. I'd like to get back into building them. I have some vintage books on how to build rubber powered model airplanes. A couple of them were published in the 1930s and one was published in 1974. It's called Flying Scale Models of WWII. In addition to having full-size plans for building such aircraft as the Hurricane, Spitfire, Me-109, Fw-190, Zero and P-51, it's also full of information on the techniques for building and flying these models. It's among the best books I've ever seen on the subject.

[tonyblue]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

Oh boy do i want to get back to making plastic model kits....but finding time the area to make them, some where to display them and needing bi focals all keep getting in the way.

[battyrat]

Re: German-Made Model Airplanes

I used to make all sorts of rubber powered balsa and tissue aircraft from Frog to Guillows.All good fun to chop around on a hot summers evening.I made a couple only a few years ago for old times sake and the best one was a repro I made from some old frog plan I had aquired.Superb plane.Managed to keep the thing in the air for quite a while on several flights,but the prop I carved probably helped.Plastic props are ok but a good hand carved wood one seems to pull the plane better.They feel a lot nicer in the hand then the modern plastics and foam.Nephews got hold of them in the end.