Just brainstorming here.... Maybe we WW1 and Golden Age of Aviation modellers should issue a friendly challenge to our Jet Age modeller friends that if we build a jet model, they would build a biplane or Golden Age aircraft, rigging and all. We could pair up and work by two's on a Group Build, maybe called 'Building Bridges.'

(I know the notion of a Bare Metal Finish intimidates me, but I'd be willing to to take a shot)

Converts may be made.

I'll build anything that takes my fancy from The Golden Hind to a Harrier but my favourites are aircraft 1914 - 1934. You don't need to build jets for NMF just a Hart or Fury or an early I-15. To be intersted in a subject you need to know it exists and many fewer people know much about WWI than WWII, and many more people again know about modern aircraft. Kit manufacturers have to make a profit to survive so inevitably they will chase popular subjects and the more obscure ones get left to the specialists. That said, even without WNW kits (too pricey for me) there are many more kits in my period than I will ever be able to build. The reluctance to build biplanes cannot be just down to rigging, there are a fair number of early aircraft with little rigging but they aren't all that popular either Fokker D.VII, E.V, Dr.I, Fiat CR.32, CR.42, HP42. I built Airfix biplanes in 1/72 scale for years and never rigged them, and was happy with them. We should also recognise that the tooling costs and difficulties in manufacture for a biplane kit are much higher than for a jet where the same level of detail is included, yet the kit is not seen as being worth more to the buyer. finally, there are some Early Aviation kits that are so bad they would put many people off ever trying another, these need to be dropped, or better still retooled into buildable models (Airfix F2B case in point).

You make several good points. My favourite period is early aviation, through WW1 right up to WW2.