|
Introduction
Inspirerd by a message in theYahoo group Scale Model Nostalgia from Nov 18, 2005 I decided to do some research on EKO models and open an entry of EKO in the Kits 70 up section. It was an experiment to find out , how long it takes to create an EKO page from scratch , having not known anything about EKO before.
Looking up PAK-20 Burns (2003) I noticed that I already had bookmarked the page were EKO models are dealed with. I did it some time ago. Obviously I was interested in the two aircraft types shown above: The Hispano HA.200A Saeta and Republic RC-3 Seabee.
I succeeded to buy a couple of secondhand EKO kits, on  .That helped to get a better impression what EKOs are like. Additionally I found some closed auctions of ECO models with the help of  . I contacted the sellers and asked for the photos. Special thanks to BDB Modellen Holland, Isabel Baeza García de Quirós and Jesus Vera !
On 1. December, 2005 I first published my research in these pages.This state is archived here.
Since then I succeeded to aquire more EKO readymade models and kits and some of the photographs of the contributors will be replaced by own photographs. I´m happy to have most of my favourites now, the Saeta,the Piper L-18 and the Seabee , the latter two both as kit and readymade model.
In collecting I will concentrate on civil aircraft and cold war military aircraft. WW2 aircraft are not of so much interesting for me though one of my first EKOs were from this genre. I will keep them: The Messerschmitt BF-109 ( which gives an example of an old style box) . The Hawker Hurricane (I like the sand color of the plastic, and the Junkers Ju-87, which I aquirered in a lot together with a Republic F-84.
Still missing is the DC-3 and I ´m undecided if I should look for a Dornier Wal.
History of EKO
I did not yet find much about the history of the Spanish company EKO and their 1:150 scale aircraft models.
In the website 87thScale.info, which deals with 1:87 model cars you can read, that at the end of the 1950s, Blasco Industries in Barcelona (Spain) released a series of miniature vehicles under the EKO name.
In PAK-20 Burns (2003) you learn, that EKO aircraft kits were marketed in 1978 and were the only unassembled kits ever issued by EKO. The F-84F (#5002) is definitely a copy of the Busch kit. Burns speculates that 5001, 5003, 5005 and 5014 could be Busch copies as well. The built-up models were available in Spain at the time of writing. There are no entries on EKO kits in PAK-20 updates 2003 and 2004.
According to a mail dated November 2005 from the webmaster of the Spur N website, to his knowledge EKO does not produce items in N-scale (1:150 ) since a long time.
List of EKO Aircraft
I have compiled a list of EKO aircraft in aphabetical order with the help of PAK-20 , and checked the Catalog numbers (Ref.) with the Spur N website, the closed auctions and my own Eko models . with the 1976 catalog.
Remarks and Observations.
- The readymade models came with a stand similar to that of the WIKING ready made models.
- The back sides of the blister packs are blank, the back side of the boxes have a description of the particular aircraft in Spanish language.
- I have identified 3 types of boxart for the readymade models, they are all depicted on this page.
|
