Looking Back: Scale Auto Magazine
Tuesday, February 5. 2008
Back in February 1995, my model collection was still in its early stages but was definitely on its way. I was partway through construction of my diorama, and in the process I was learning new techniques and trying new ideas on a near-daily basis. It was also during that time that my father (to whom I owe all my modeling enthusiasm) picked up a copy of a magazine he saw at the local hobby shop: Scale Auto Enthusiast.
The issue seemed especially appropriate because the photo near the bottom of the cover showed a Ford Ranger Splash loaded with equipment from Fujimi's Garage & Tools set: the same set I was using for many details inside my garage. It turns out that the article made no more than a mention of the tools, but it didn't matter: the magazine had us hooked, and we've been regular readers ever since.
At the time, SAE came out every other month, alternating with its sister publication Car Modeler. It was also a different world in those pre-internet days: the magazine was a robust 96 pages, and carried all sorts of specialized columns: "Strictly Stock" (eight pages of new & reissued kit reviews!), "Tips & Tech,""Forum 43" (for 1/43 cars), and "Light Commercial" and "Truck Stop" for news for truck fans. There were also ads for every possible need: paints, tools, mail-order hobby stores, plating services, resin, photoetch, and more.
As the years went on, the magazine went through some changes. Ideas such as diecast and slot car articles briefly found their way into the magazine, but the subscribers cried "foul" and demanded SAE remain 1/24~1/25 plastic and resin only. So, with printing costs rising and advertisers turning to online sales, the only other alternative was to reduce the overall content. Although the magazine started getting thinner, the number of issues per year increased in 1999 when Kalmbach discontinued Car Modeler (the name lives on today as an annual publication). We also saw a minor name change in 2002, when Scale Auto Enthusiast became simply Scale Auto.
Things were happening online as well. Kalmbach launched its site in 1996 (with sub-pages devoted to the individual magazines), followed by a separate site for Scale Auto in 1998. ScaleAutoEnthusiast.com was a small but fun site with a welcome letter from the editor (then Kirk Bell), downloadable articles, tips, news, events, classifieds, a modeling FAQ, and a guest gallery. To a degree, the information contained in that early site served as a template for my own site. In the fall of 2003 the site underwent a major redesign, to the look it more or less retains today.
(Click to enlarge)
On a personal note, I've been able to make a couple of minor contributions to Scale Auto over the years. A couple of my diorama photos were part of their early gallery, and my Knight Rider Legends KITT appeared in their February 2004 Reader Gallery. Still no larger photo or article yet, but maybe someday... For now, you can catch me on the SA forums pretty much daily, using the same screen name I use everywhere.
It's been a fun 13 years with Scale Auto, and I look forward to spending more time reading it in the future. If you haven't checked out their latest issue yet, Jim Haught's letter talks about the possibility of SA drifting to an electronic format, a concept that I'm 100% behind. In part because I see several advantages of a "paperless" format, but also because I'm happy to support what continues to be an excellent resource and integral part of our hobby.
The issue seemed especially appropriate because the photo near the bottom of the cover showed a Ford Ranger Splash loaded with equipment from Fujimi's Garage & Tools set: the same set I was using for many details inside my garage. It turns out that the article made no more than a mention of the tools, but it didn't matter: the magazine had us hooked, and we've been regular readers ever since.
At the time, SAE came out every other month, alternating with its sister publication Car Modeler. It was also a different world in those pre-internet days: the magazine was a robust 96 pages, and carried all sorts of specialized columns: "Strictly Stock" (eight pages of new & reissued kit reviews!), "Tips & Tech,""Forum 43" (for 1/43 cars), and "Light Commercial" and "Truck Stop" for news for truck fans. There were also ads for every possible need: paints, tools, mail-order hobby stores, plating services, resin, photoetch, and more.
As the years went on, the magazine went through some changes. Ideas such as diecast and slot car articles briefly found their way into the magazine, but the subscribers cried "foul" and demanded SAE remain 1/24~1/25 plastic and resin only. So, with printing costs rising and advertisers turning to online sales, the only other alternative was to reduce the overall content. Although the magazine started getting thinner, the number of issues per year increased in 1999 when Kalmbach discontinued Car Modeler (the name lives on today as an annual publication). We also saw a minor name change in 2002, when Scale Auto Enthusiast became simply Scale Auto.
Things were happening online as well. Kalmbach launched its site in 1996 (with sub-pages devoted to the individual magazines), followed by a separate site for Scale Auto in 1998. ScaleAutoEnthusiast.com was a small but fun site with a welcome letter from the editor (then Kirk Bell), downloadable articles, tips, news, events, classifieds, a modeling FAQ, and a guest gallery. To a degree, the information contained in that early site served as a template for my own site. In the fall of 2003 the site underwent a major redesign, to the look it more or less retains today.
(Click to enlarge)
On a personal note, I've been able to make a couple of minor contributions to Scale Auto over the years. A couple of my diorama photos were part of their early gallery, and my Knight Rider Legends KITT appeared in their February 2004 Reader Gallery. Still no larger photo or article yet, but maybe someday... For now, you can catch me on the SA forums pretty much daily, using the same screen name I use everywhere.
It's been a fun 13 years with Scale Auto, and I look forward to spending more time reading it in the future. If you haven't checked out their latest issue yet, Jim Haught's letter talks about the possibility of SA drifting to an electronic format, a concept that I'm 100% behind. In part because I see several advantages of a "paperless" format, but also because I'm happy to support what continues to be an excellent resource and integral part of our hobby.
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