Cold War Bench Notes #3: Bugle Call, a finish and something different!

It’s been a pretty busy month on the workbench, with plenty of model-making and the small matter of preparing for (and attending) the Bugle Call model show. I’ve also added something a little unusual to the stash, so more on that later!

Bugle Call (November 2025)

After attending the Yeovil Model Show back in April, our club, Taunton and District Scale Modellers, was invited to take part in this year’s Bugle Call at Nailsea School near Bristol on Sunday, November 30th. We were more than happy to accept and ended up putting on a three-table display.

We had a slightly smaller club turnout than usual, but still managed to bring along an excellent mix of models. A few of us entered the competition as well, with one of our members picking up a Bronze Award and two commendations (nice one, Mark!).

The show itself was great, and the venue worked really well. Footfall didn’t seem especially high, but everyone there seemed to be enjoying themselves, which is what matters.

Unfortunately, it’s since been announced that there won’t be a Bugle Call next year, as the three organisers are stepping down for understandable reasons. A real shame, but you can completely see why.

Supermarine Attacker F.1 finished

I’m really pleased with how the Trumpeter 1/48 Supermarine Attacker F.1 turned out, and getting it finished in time for Bugle Call felt like a nice bonus. The only real issues with the kit were the ones I mentioned in the previous Cold War Bench Notes.

I’ve got Trumpeter’s 1/48 Seahawk waiting in the stash too, so I’m looking forward to giving that a go once I’ve cleared a non–Fleet Air Arm build.

You bought a what?

Going into Bugle Call, my shopping list was pretty simple: glues, primers, and not much else. I did manage that… but I also made an impulse purchase: the Dubena Cesky Dun 1/72 vac-form Yak-17! In my defence, it was only a fiver, so if it all goes horribly wrong, it won’t hurt the wallet too much.

Growing up in the ’70s and ’80s, vac-forms were a fairly common sight for the more unusual subjects the big names, Airfix, Revell, Matchbox and so on, didn’t touch. So I’ve got a reasonable idea of how to approach it, but whether my skills are up to the challenge these days is another matter entirely. We’ll find out soon enough.