The month of August marked the passing of a great modeler.  Ted Holowchuck passed away in his sleep on August 8, leaving behind a legacy that spanned many diverse areas, including our hobby of scale modeling.  While Ted was a phenomenal modeler what made him truly stand out from the rest was his unending desire to teach anyone willing to listen.  It was clear that he drew happiness from helping others, and his skills at both modeling and teaching are apparent in seeing how many of his techniques are used by the modelers of the Seattle IPMS chapter.

While I had only known Ted for a short time, less than three years, the openness and friendly manner of Ted left me feeling like I'd known him for decades.  I personally can think of several areas in modeling that I have dramatically improved in thanks purely to the knowledge received from Ted, most notably in painting and finishing.  It was in this area that Ted was truly a master, as his finishes were the best, bar none.  His exclusive use of automotive lacquers in painting resulted in smooth flat finishes and gloss finishes that rival that of an expensive Ferrari.  His skills on painting aircraft interiors were covered in a past issue of Internet Modeler, and his treatise on exterior finishes will be coming in a future issue.

While the individual skills of Ted were amazing, seeing him start with a blank slate and turn it into a miniature replica was truly a treat.  While he did build mostly to 1/72 scale, he did stray a few times to both larger and smaller scales, always raising the bar.  It was his 1/72 collection that was the most impressive, with a wide variety of aircraft ranging from Bf 109s to Phantoms.  Ted wrote a pair of articles for Internet Modeler, one on the Czech Master Seafang and one on a pair of Pitts biplanes.  In seeing his skills at work every Thursday night while working on the Seafang I was able to witness firsthand this master at work, and even while working he was more than happy to explain why he was doing certain steps in his specific way.

I know that I am a far richer person for knowing Ted, even for a short time, and I will sorely miss his open honesty and clever wit.  Rest in peace, Ted, and thank you for giving me the great times we shared over the last three years.

Chris Banyai-Riepl, Publisher