1937 - a very particular boat

[Vanvlak]

1937, and the Mediterranean is going through some interesting times - the Spanish Civil War is raging, the Italians are shoring up their colonies, the Royal Navy is wary, and there is a lot of coming and coming between Cairo, Gibraltar and Malta. And some of this trafficking about is carried out by this surprisingly fast boat - but what is it?

[Plynkes]

It's not an Adidas Samba, which was my first thought, as it has too many stripes.

Maybe a Chinese knock-off?

[Vanvlak]

It's not an Adidas Samba, which was my first thought, as it has too many stripes.

Maybe a Chinese knock-off?

::  ::  ::
Well, maybe Maltese knock off!

[Auton]

You sure its not Hulk Hogan in 'Thunder in Paradise'?  ::

[Vanvlak]

You sure its not Hulk Hogan in 'Thunder in Paradise'?  ::

(one minute and 48 seconds later) ah, now I get it.
Nope - at least those ladies are nowhere in evidence.

[PeteMurray]

How do you say "converted wave serpent" in Maltese?  

Cool idea for a game...

[Vanvlak]

How do you say "converted wave serpent" in Maltese?  

Cool idea for a game...

Uh-oh, here's a tough one: Serp il-mewg would do for wave serpent. 'Conversion' would be translated as konverzjoni, derived from Italian, although it's usually used in a rather more religious sense! If we ignore this, we could say 'Konverzjoni ta' serp il-mewg'.

The game plan: this beastie landed in the Med as a result of your PMed comment on Malta, Pete  :wink:   I guess you could call it Med.45
The original was in 1:24 scale, but I settled for a larger boat in a smaller(28mm) scale.

[Westfalia Chris]

Oh, is it the 1995 Bat-Boat (from the one with... ahhh... Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey)?

Always thought that one was nifty. Although all those designs had too much "going on" detail-wise, which is to say they were "overcrowded" for my taste. Just like modern GW figures.

[Vanvlak]

Oh, is it the 1995 Bat-Boat (from the one with... ahhh... Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey)?

Always thought that one was nifty. Although all those designs had too much "going on" detail-wise, which is to say they were "overcrowded" for my taste. Just like modern GW figures.

Ah, well-spotted, that man!  
Obtained at half-price from a sale at a local model shop.
Overcrowded - well, not that badly - in fact some areas are bland - to my taste, at least!
This one has lost its bat fin, its engine (replaced), its cockpit parts (faired over) and has had no less than 3 funnels added.

[Westfalia Chris]

Ah, well-spotted, that man!  

1 R T3H W1NZ0R! ::
 

Obtained at half-price from a sale at a local model shop.

Good catch then. Haven´t seen that one for a decade, at least.
 

Overcrowded - well, not that badly - in fact some areas are bland - to my taste, at least!

Each to his own, of course. It´s a spiffy design, but I prefer the good old 1960s ones for sheer Baticity:





Those wouldn´t work for our kind of Pulp at all, of course.
 

This one has lost its bat fin, its engine (replaced), its cockpit parts (faired over) and has had no less than 3 funnels added.

Jolly charming, old chap. There´s a lot of fun to be had with a decent set of funnels.

[Vanvlak]

Well, there she is in glorious technicolor!

http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/2008/02/hms-pippistrel.html

[Tas]

Another glorious triumph for Vanvlak Industries!

[richarDISNEY]

What a great looking boat!  TOTAL inspiration!