CHRIS Hext, of Spot-On Models and Games, handed me a 1:72 scale Airfix model of a Spitfire and it was like holding a relic from a forgotten civilisation.

Does that seem like exaggeration? Well, imagine it’s the last day of term before the Christmas holidays, the day when the kids are allowed to bring in toys and games.

Now imagine sending your kid to school with an Airfix Spitfire to make, complete with small parts, solvent-based glue and aromatic pots of paint.

If you imagine the scene vividly enough, you can almost hear the growl of engines, but they are not the engines of the Battle of Britain’s most famous aircraft.

Nope, they are the engines of the circling helicopters from which battalions of “caring professionals” will shortly abseil to the classroom windows, smash their way in, abduct your child and interrogate them until they sign a statement saying you’re a neglectful parent, a Fascist and probably a Satanist, too.

When I was at junior school, however, bringing in Airfix models on the last day of term was commonplace.

Mind you, the electricity went off every other night, the fear of nuclear annihilation was constant and cheery racist comedians were met with acclaim rather than a brick in the head, so it wasn’t all roses.

These and other musings – I’ll spare you the rest – were prompted by my visit to Spot-On in Fleet Street, Swindon.

Chris Hext, who is 55, co-owns the place with brother Bob, 64, who ran the fantastic old Froude and Hext model shop in Victoria Road until he retired back in 2007.

I was at Spot-On because I wanted to find out how the economic climate was treating sales of models, train sets, slot cars and games, and because I wanted an excuse to hang out for an hour or two among stacks of kits and board games, cabinets of model trains and cars, racks of spare track and other assorted delights.

Although Spot-On has some female customers, notably among board game buyers, there is a definite blokeish air to the place.

Chris said: “Men never grow up – my whole business relies on men not growing up!

“I once read that someone said men are honest because we call our toys ‘toys’, but women call theirs makeup...”

Chris, I should add, is married with three sons, four grandchildren, three of whom are boys, and has a model railway in his back garden.

So how has the recession treated the industry?

With money becoming tighter for many of us, you might think things like models, games and whatnot would be first in the firing line when it came to tightening our belts.

And you’d be wrong.

“People have less money, and stuff they really need is going up,” said Chris.

“They might not be able to afford as many nights out.

“But they can still come here, buy a kit, some glue and some paint, and have a week’s entertainment for twenty quid.

“I think that’s what keeps me going at the moment – people are going back to their hobbies.”

The most popular lines tend to be model kits, with interest fuelled by the increased availability of top quality kits, the revitalisation of Airfix since it was bought out by Hornby four years ago, and something called the James May Effect.

A mini-boom began last year after the Top Gear presenter created and assembled a full-sized Spitfire kit for a show called Toy Stories.

The 29-piece kit that inspired the programme can be had for £4.99, not including paint and glue, while the venerable company’s most complex model, a 617-piece 1:24 scale Mosquito aircraft, comes in at £125.

Slot cars aren’t as popular as they once were, which Chris puts down to people having smaller living spaces.

Model train popularity also seems to be static, although they, like slot cars, are very seasonal.

In the weeks before Christmas, Chris expects to sell up to about 150 train and slot car sets.

The real success story at the moment, though, is board games.

Also popular are the large range of roleplaying games produced by a massively successful and globally-known Swindon firm called Mongoose publishing. The shop’s website is at www.spotonmodels.co.

uk.

The Mongoose Publishing site is at www.mongoose publishing.com.