Loren Perry has passed away

[brandonlowe1985]

I was informed by Sherry, his wife, that Loren Perry passed away on January 16th. Loren was such a great guy and an amazing modeler. Many of you know the name, but in case you don't Loren was largely responsible for the creation of mass produced Photo Etch in the 1980s. His brand was Gold Medal Models. If you have ever had the opportunity to see any of his finished models - they are basically the definition of a perfect ship model build. If you would like to hear his story, I had the opportunity to interview him 3 years ago - which you can see here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ufr_GoWt6es

[MartinJQuinn]

Very sad news.

[Jon C Ryckert]

My condolences to his family.

[Dan K]

Most unfortunate news. He was a first class modeler, and an innovator, as he really did kickstart fine quality photoetch for all. His IJN Ultrafine Sets in 1/700 and 1/350 remain the gold standard in my opinion. I thank you, Loren.

My condolences to his family.

[DanCinSD]

R.I.P.
I remember as a teen getting a Scale Ship Modeler magazine with an article on a USS Long Beach that Mr. Perry built that had p.e. parts to it. I was fascinated by the idea and have purchased many of his products since then. I hope Squadron will keep the name Gold Medal Models going.

[William Smallshaw]

Sad news, Loren was an incredible ship modeler, but more important, he was an absolutely wonderful person. I will miss him.

Bill

[Black Cat]

Very sad news indeed, Loren made me back to ship modeling in the late 80s when I discovered that I no longer needed to make railings with entomologist pins and fishing thread to represent accurate railings. Many French modelers discovered and became fans of his fine range of PE sets when I introduced his range of accessory sets to L'Arsenal's catalog.
Thank you for all that you did for us Loren !
Best regards from Normandie,
Jacques Druel

[Walter Sonderman]

That is very sad to hear: my first experiences with PE was with the Gold Medal Model Set 350-12, "Modern US Navy", of which I still have 8 or so sets lying around. Loren Perry indeed set the standard for photo-etching. He will be greatly missed, and I hope Squadron will continue his legacy, if only because some of his sets still set the standard for photoetching.

Walter

[Gernot]

Very sad news, RIP and condolences to his family. I remember buying so many GMM sets from him in the 1980s, and have a collection, as others have already said many remain the gold standard even 40 years later, amazing contribution to this hobby of hours. Thank you Loren for all the enjoyment you have personally given to so many of us.

[Seeadler290]

Very sad news. Condolences to Mr Perry's family.
There is no denying that my interest in ship modeling which sprang up in the 1990's was due to ads for his USS Arizona set in the magazines of the time. I still refer to his outstanding, approachable books on ship modeling.
R.I.P.

[Guba]

My condolences to the Perry family. RIP.

I too was influenced by his article in Scale Ship Modeler of USS Long Beach. I almost threw the issue away, but kept it just for his article. I've become a fan of his work to be sure.

[Rui Matos]

Very sad news...
Thank you Lorren, You've made our hobby much more interesting and detailed!

Sincere condolences to the Family and Friends.
Rui

[JIM BAUMANN]

This is indeed sad news....

Lorens brass-and therefore GMM was my accomplice
through the 1990's whilst learning the steep curve of building modelships.

I still often now use his parts.... especially the superfine gold plus 1/700 rails
yet to be surpassed...

Rest in Peace
JIM B

[G.A.G.]

Rest in peace Loren and thank you for all you have done for the hobby.
I too used GMM sets and exchanged emails with Loren over the years. He taught me a lot. I liked his philosophy of supplying lean frets, i.e. frets that just included items that are hard or next to impossible to for us to scratchbuild.

[jpeeler]

This makes me sad. I've used a good bit of his stuff over the years and it made a difference in this hobby. I never met him, but he was always very kind to me in our correspondence, and I sure appreciated it.

Jodie Peeler

[Cadman]

A pioneer in the hobby and all around great guy. He will be missed. Praying for his family and friends.

[JamesAPrattIII]

RIP sad news I have used his stuff over the years

[Bill Code]

RIP good Sir. You showed the way for so many of us ..

[pascalemod]

RIP and thank you for all the great things you've done for our hobby.