InnerViews - Conversations with the leading modelbuilders.

Our first InnerView is with Pat Covert,
one of the leading "how-to" writers of the 1990's.

Pat has written several books about building and detailing model cars, and writes a regular column for Scale Auto Enthusiast. We asked him about his background in the hobby, and how he approaches his projects. We think many of you will see a bit of yourselves in his answers!

We thank Pat for his participation, and for his friendship over the years...

Did you read any model magazines in the Sixties and Seventies?

Religiously! My favorite back then was Model Car Science. I'd wear the pages out. I have a bunch of the old mags and it is fun to go back and look at the "hi-tech" cars back then and compare them to what is being built today. The hobby has indeed come a long way.

Did you enter contests?

I entered the local contests at the department stores like J.J. Newberry and Woolworth's. The best I ever did was pull a second place for a candy purple AMT '28 Ford sedan I'd built. I was 15 years old at the time. That first trophy probably meant more to me than anything else I've ever won since!

What builders or writers had an significant influence on your own approach
to the hobby?

Back in the Sixties you had guys like Bob Paeth, Augie Hiscano, Don Emmons and-- of course-- Dave Shuklis.

After I got back into the hobby during the early Eighties there were quite a few guys whose work was a big inspiration to me. Mark Gustavson, Gary Nash, Tim Boyd, Rick Hanmore, Ken Hamilton, Evan Hermel, Terry Jessee, Don Fahrni, John MacGowan and Augie (still around after all these year!) just to name a few. For the better part of the Eighties I was isolated down here in Alabama so my heroes all came out of the pages of SAE.

When did you start to pursue modeling as a serious hobby?

I always took building seriously, sort of a personal challenge, but when I won Best Auto at the 1991 IPMS Nationals in St Louis, Missouri the doors started opening for me to become a writer. I'd been penning the AutoFile column for the IPMS Journal for about a year or so and I was approached by Paul Boyer to write for FineScale Modeler at the show in St. Louis. I took him up on it and they published my first full-color article, which was on the topic of painting (with aerosol) and polishing out a paint job.

The following year I attended the 1992 Toledo NNL and was approached by Kirk Bell to write for SAE, which was a Highlands publication at the time. They offered me the Tips & Tech columnist position when it came open shortly thereafter. Then came the books from Kalmbach Publishing. By that time, things were pretty darn serious!

How has your approach to the hobby evolved over the years?

Although I always liked to build well, I never really appreciated the fundamentals of modeling and how important they are until I started entering contests in the Southeast during the late Eighties. The only shows down here in the sunny South at the time were IPMS contests and the judging was purely on fundamentals.

Competing made a better modeler out of me and strengthened my appreciation of good, sound modeling. Ironically, I hated competing. Detested it. But it was the only outlet I knew of at time so I just jumped into it.

When you start a project, do you plan it out in detail, or just wing it?

I spend a lot of time up front getting my concept down, but I'll leave subjective things open to flow. I'm a kit-bashing maniac. I'll wreck a kit just to get the alternator I want. Much of my planning time is spent deciding what to kits bash, and a lot of my building time is spent bashing kits I hadn't planned on bashing.

Do you look at a project as a platform for testing new techniques, or as a
means to create a subject?

Both. Since my modeling leans to the creative side I'm always looking to do something new and different. But at the same time I keep a backlog of techniques that I want to try stored in the back of my brain and, whenever appropriate, I'll inject them into the project.

When did craftsmanship take precedent in your building style?

Craftsmanship has always been important to me. I come from a family of artists and craftsmen-- folks who enjoy working with their hands.

How would you define craftsmanship in this hobby?

I think craftsmanship is the ability to master techniques and execute them properly, whether they be basic or advanced. It is a combination of the mental and physical skills working together to produce art-- whether it be a car model, a chair, a painting, a building or whatever. Pride in craftsmanship is one of the greatest gifts one can have.

Who has influenced your building in recent years?

The aftermarket more than anything else. The kit companies have done a great job the last few years, but we've always had kits. Aftermarket companies have opened the door for modelers to do things we never dreamed of back in the Sixties. When the baby boomers started bringing their technology to the hobby back during the Eighties car modeling simply blossomed. I wish Dave Shuklis were here to see it.

Where do you see the hobby in ten years?

Some things will change, some won't. Technology will continue to change the way we build and improve the quality of our kits, but we will always only be as good as we push ourselves to be. No matter how much technology is available, there will always be modelers like Shuklis and Hiscano that rise up and push the envelope even further. That's just human nature and inner drive. I just hope for all our sake that in 10 years the hobby is as fun and exciting as it is today.

Thanks again to Pat. You can send an email message to Pat through us here, or if you'd like to see his books, we offer them on our site.
Click here for a list!

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