Bertholterix

I no longer make monthly blogs by now, 

only when I find something fun to share can it still be found here.

I had asked Berthold Tacke if I could recreate him for the EME modeling fair

at the end of March 2025, first I thought of him in electric cart,

but then I came up with much better idea, see here the how his figure came about.

My goal was to make it something fun, and not something offensive. 

So I chose an Asterix figure to start my little project with,

it became the fish seller.

I didn't need the fish, and the legs were also temporarily dropped.

So with the knife I began to take care of the figure.

Then it was the turn of my 1mm drill,

the shoes and fuselage were provided with holes.

Then use a paper clip to make the correct length for the legs,

this time in a seated position.

That looks very different right away.

Look at him sitting there on that cork.

I also drilled a hole through his hand, 

also through this hole went a piece of paper clip 

through which I still bent over.

From an empty ballpoint pen I sawed off a small tube.

With some wood glue, I sealed 1 side.

And right away I put a couple of coats of wood glue on the legs,

to make them a little thicker.

In the tube I drilled 2 holes,

and with super glue glued them to the paperclip construction

in his hand to create a cup.

Then the figure was ready to be primed.

Then use a paper handkerchief to put on a shawl.

When the shape was good, reinforce it with wood glue.

A pair of glasses also had to be made, this too was made from a paper clip,

after some bending with the pointed pliers it already looked good.

Finally, a bent piece to make headphones,

and using wood glue to make the ear cups,

which also fixed the glasses right away, handy right!

The figure was completely finished at this point,

I had to restrain myself from showing it already,

it became so funny.

After I painted the figure I started making an office chair,

I did this from a plastic sheet.

Again, a hole had to be drilled in the right place for it to sit properly.

While the chair had to dry after painting it black,

I started measuring out the base, 5 legs is quite difficult,

so I printed out a picture of a pentagon on the internet,

and then I could copy the lines on the clear plastic sheet.

Then slightly bend the 5 legs with pliers.

And also fill these with wood glue so it will be solid.

Finally, 5 small beads to mimic the wheels.

And so he sat there on a real office chair,

with some wood glue around the paperclip that is vertical

I put everything together, with some black paint it looked perfect.

Of course it had to be made into a famous EME mug with a tank,

really at this point I kept laughing.

To make a nice memory for Berthold as well, 

I ordered a mug, because he is collecting them.

Unfortunately, this one turned out to be a bit small,

but it's the idea that counts.

I ran out of time to order a new one before the EME.

From an old plastic placemat I tried to make a desk.

Bending the plastic it broke, so I did cut some new parts.

The desktop was given a nice shape to fit on a wooden mini base.

I glued all the parts to a piece of styrofoam,

with wood glue and let it dry with rubber bands

It actually looked good right away.

Of course a few drawers had to be added too...

I gave the whole thing a wood look with some paint

Then make a monitor from an old construction kit part.

Add a piece of paperclip, and a round piece of plastic as a foot, 

put everything back together with wood glue.

And a monitor also needs a keyboard,

so I cut out some keys and glued them onto

a larger piece of plastic from the placemat.

And a mouse could not be missed either.

On the screen the word that everyone confirms

at the beginning of their broadcast:

BUTOK (Bild Und Tohn OK)

translation: image and sound ok

A construction kit could not be missing either,

so I glued a printed front onto a wooden stirring stick.

In the end this is what the little vignette became..

Always with his mug online.

The shawl is also a clear point of recognition.

After the first BUTOK he can start chatting.

Each kit is expertly assessed.

And so he sits there for another hour without any problem.

The moment last week at the EME,

Berthold finally got to see his mini-me, luckily he liked it!

After a little inspection...

The Italeri kit turned out to be a real insult, now that's humor!

This was a really fun conversion, mission accomplished!

And Berthold also has a small memento of it.

That's all folks, until next time.