Oxford Model Kit Retailer - Boswells

[oriel63]

Top floor of Boswells, Cornmarket Street or Broad Street entrances. Part of Toy Department, 50% railway related stuff 40% ish model kits mostly Airfix.

[burbagejohn]

Thanks for that entry, that gives me another shop to browse next time I'm in Oxford, whilst SWMBO is hitting M&S or wherever.

John

[kitspackman]

Boswells? Are they still going? Amazing........

Way back in the 60s when I lived in Oxford THE place to go was Howes, in Broad St. then, but for some reason Boswells always got their new Airfix kits in a week or so ahead of Howes. In those days Boswell's model section was in the basement, and I can still remember coming up the staircase with a then new B-24 clutched in my hands.

Sadly Howes, now in Kidlington, is but a shadow of its former self, having pretty well abandoned plastic kits as far as I can see.

There was also The Oxford Model Centre, in St. Clements, that was run by a good friend, the late Derek Vaughn. OMC started around '65 and is still open now, but tends toward flying models today. Derek had his own 'in house' plastic modelling specialist on Friday nights and Saturdays...............ME!

[NoelSmith]

I can remember calling in at the Oxford Model Centre way back in the 70's and Kit Spackman was helping out in the shop as I recall. It's funny some of the odd little things you remember from so long ago. Kit and I chatted and I can remember him saying that he worked for British Rail at the time. I saw a programme on TV recently about the tilting trains that were being developed in Britain and Kit was on it talking about the developments.
The Oxford Model Centre always seemed to have some unusual kits in stock back then, so I always looked in whenever I was in Oxford. Glad to hear the shop is still going, and Howes.

[kitspackman]

Mar 16, 2009 14:03:44 GMT NoelSmith said:

.......I can remember him saying that he worked for British Rail at the time. I saw a programme on TV recently about the tilting trains that were being developed in Britain and Kit was on it talking about the developments.

Oh strewth, full circle!

I moved to BR to work on the tilt system of the APT in 1969, but at that time the train had been delayed to I ended up testing bridges, for goodness sake. After a year or so I moved onto the APT and became the Tilt System Development Engineer. Amazingly I STILL am, as the train is in the Locomotion Museum at Shildon and I'm the engineer on the job!

[Sorry about the thread drift........ ]

[oriel63]

The chap in the Oxford Model Centre sold me the best cutting tool for plastic I have ever had. Naturaly, he had it hidden under the counter.