The Breyer SpotLight: Your Horse Model Market ResourceHi <
BHC - Donating to a good causeThere are so many things that are happening in the month of September it is hard to know where to start! This is a good thing though and we welcome the growth of Breyer Horse Collectors as we expand to additional outlets. One of these outlets is The American Competitive Trail Horse Association. (We will be sending out a special email with more of their information, what they do and how we can help.) Barbara Hopper who is the organizer for the upcoming ride in October contacted me on facebook about her ideas. And I said “Of course!” An excerpt from their site: “According to the ACTHA website, 'by Thanksgiving of 2009, ACTHA, along with our wonderful affiliates and generous sponsors, was able to donate right at $100,000 to charities and non-profits for the first year of nationally held rides.'” As a result, Breyer Horse Collectors has donated the Lady Phase model that was designated as the ELCR model for this year. In exchange Breyer Horse Collectors will receive promotions during this event. The Lady Phase that is being donated will be used as a prize for one of the classes. And while the competitors of the trail ride events pay entry fees, these fees go to support a variety of rescues. The way I see it; that is something worth supporting. I am also working closely with Barbara with hopes of having the winner of this great model share the victory photo with us for a special page on the site after the ride. So stay alert and keep checking back. Updates - Readers love to add c2o pages to our website!Since we have opened our site for readers to add pages using the "c2o" feature … they are going gangbusters! The easiest way to keep up with ALL of them is to check them out on our BHC News page: There is everything from Breyer Models for sale to photos of great Vintage Variation Models and more being added every day. Check them out and post a comment, that's what these pages are all about. It's finally here; the information you've been asking for. How to do repairs on your models. Yeah!! This article focuses on repairing leg breaks that are so common with our old toys that are much loved. Next time Elaine will tackle the subject of repairing the ears, another common problem… Article: Repairing Leg BreaksLeg breaks can be one of two things - a simple repair due to a clean break or a heinous mess because not only has the leg broken but there are chips missing out of it. Many times you can simply glue the leg back into place with some krazy glue - while this method works it doesn't mean the leg is strong, it only means it is back in place. I reinforce leg breaks with wire to give them added strength, whether the model is a resin or a plastic. In order to do a wire repair (the size of your model will depend on what size of wire to use, i.e. tiny wire used for a stablemate is not going to strengthen the leg of a traditional sized model well) on a leg - tip the horse upside down and hold it between your knees. Place the broken leg back on the horse and then slowly separate it keeping the alignment. Mark a small dot on the center of the leg still attached to the model with a sharpie and make another small dot mark on the broken piece making sure they line up correctly. This does require some bending around to see what you are doing but you have to keep the leg properly positioned. Once your marks are made, use a dremel with a small bit and drill a hole into both pieces of the leg. Snip a piece of wire, about ¼ inch long that will be used to piece the legs together. Apply krazy glue into the hole and around the surface of the leg on the main body, and then apply krazy glue only into the hole on the broken leg. Insert the wire into the leg attached to the model and slide the broken piece down over it. Make sure your leg is aligned properly and press together. Allow the krazy glue to dry. The leg is now half way there, and you have a seam all the way around the model. In order to fill in the seam, use a combination of baking soda and krazy glue. Apply the krazy glue first and add a small pinch of it sprinkling it on the glue until you have the entire seam covered. Allow this to dry. The baking soda and krazy glue combination sets up hard - as in hard as a rock. Once dried, sand the repaired area down until it is flush with the leg and you can no longer “feel” the break that was in the leg. Sometimes this has to be done several times in order to build up the broken area if you have chips missing out of your model. Once you have completely sanded the area down and can no longer feel the seam where the original break was your leg is repaired. It doesn't look pretty but once you paint it the repair will not be seen. Next time we will go over repairing broken ears and ear tips. Stay tuned…. Thank you again for the awesome information Elaine! Now we've got a good start for making repairs to broken legs… I know I have several of my own to work on. I hope you've enjoyed this edition of the Breyer SpotLight and look forward to seeing you again with the next issue for repairing the ears. Until then keep imagining! |
