Mike Stannard

[David Gray]

Very sad news , I bought many parts from Mike over the years , a great loss to this Hobby and to his friends and family

David Gray

[David McConnell]

I too am saddened by Mikes passing.

I have many many boxes of yet to be used parts and also was lucky enough to meet Mike and visit his workshop some years ago. He never forgave me (in a nice way) for persuading him to build the tiger turret bin for me which he went on to sell to all. He always reminded me that it was the most time consuming item he made.

He was also close to producing the 222 turret wire grate for me which he was also going to offer for sale, I am truly saddened that we will miss out on what would have been a great addition to that modal.

RIP Mike

[Steve Hoeger]

The Family gave me permission to post this probably one of the last pics of Mike .

[Brown Hawkins]

I've been wondering what I can add to the tributes for Mike. Not much on a personal level as we only corresponded through email and post. The news was unexpected since I received a package from Mike a little over a month ago.

I'm sitting in my work area and see that I will be reminded of Mike for a very long time to come as my tanks contain so many of his parts and my work bench and storage drawers are literally covered and filled with his kits in all states of assembly. Mike's Kubelwagon Tiger cold start and KT muzzle brake kits are in process in the only usable area on the bench (I don't even have a Kubelwagon!). His instruction sheets cover lathe, tools, and still more of Mike's kits. It's a mess! Mike's primed tow cables for my KT are hanging from a hook nearby too.

I remember seeing Mike's many parts on Ebay circa 2002-2003. I'm not sure but they may have been the way I discovered Armortek. Afterwards I thought about Mike's super detailed Tiger pieces and how I wanted to build a tank with those incredible parts. 7 seven years after seeing those parts I finally bought my first tank kit.

Thanks Mike and goodbye.

Brown

[William Lewis]

I am very saddened to hear about Mike's passing. I only ever had the change to order one T-34 Tow rope kit from him, but it was a very pleasurable experience,and of course a very high quality part and to think that he made this effort because members here requested parts for a tank that is not a big demand item. I think it is a tribute to him with all the parts he has made being installed on the different tank models out there. At least I have one part that will be on my model to remember him by.

God Bless,Mike
William Lewis

[graham broadbent]

So sad to hear of Mikes passing. I bought all his Tiger 1 mods a few years ago which were the icing on the cake for my model. A pleasure to deal with and always a positive reply if you needed advice.

A true craftsman and engineer

My condolences to Mikes family

Thanks Mike

RIP

[Steve Hoeger]

Please PM me for a email addy to contact a family member about your orders .

[Edward Earp, Jr.]

The news that Mike had died has come as a shock to me. I have ordered many items from Mike and always enjoyed doing business with Mike. Not only will I miss his craftsmanship but our phone conversations also. RIP Mike. You were one of the good guys ! Save me a seat !! Ed

[Steve Hoeger]

Ray , Mikes Brother in Law asked me to post this message from the family :

To all friends

It was a deep personal regret that you had to hear from Michael J. Stannard’s passing away from someone else and not from us. Please understand and believe that it was out of our control. We are unable to log into his emails, website and so forth but we finally made contact with Steve Hoeger who has been kind enough to help us. As you all know that Mike was struggling with leukemia since 12/2013. The DRs had informed him on 7/8/14 that he was diagnosed with stomach cancer also. He was placed on hospice that same week but passed on that Saturday. He had wished to be cremated and that was granted. We grieve his death but cherish his memories and find comfort in knowing that he was loved by all his friends. Thank you from the family for the condolences as they are so much appreciated and needed. We are only able to read all these comments and it brings us peace.

We saw Mike work with such pride and he was so happy doing this kind of work. I recall going with him to the shop and he just couldn’t wait to start. He was a workaholic and so to us it was hard to see him weak and sick and unable to work. He would still try and go to the shop but it was so impossible sometimes. We just want to inform you that 6th Scale Icons is not shut down. We want to assure you that it is still open. We thank you for your support, Ray .

[Chang]

All of my experiences with Mike were good. The last news is so sad...
RIP Mike.

[Fabrice Le Roux]

Sorry to pick this up so very late. Been off the grid a while.

I count myself very fortunate to have many of Mike's detail parts, still neatly packed with his unfailingly detailed instructions and notes. Even when they had taken way, way too long to be delivered, they never failed to delight. His Tiger1 turret stowage bin is an outstanding work of photo-etched art, and no-one has offered a better off-the-shelf replacement, in any medium, after several years.

A craftsman and a visionary, Mike should be remembered for the sheer scope of the market he tried to address, single-handed, and for many years battling with ill-health and the frustrations of managing small runs of outsourced castings and photo etchings.

Kudos and farewell, Mike , when we smile upon your workmanship, we smile upon your legacy.

cheers all
Fabrice

PS His craftsmanship should live on. Will someone please license the rights and masters of his models from the family, lest scumbags and rip-off vultures make off with them? It would be a pity.

[Adrian Harris]

> PS His craftsmanship should live on. Will someone please license the rights and
> masters of his models from the family, lest scumbags and rip-off vultures make
> off with them? It would be a pity.

Loic from "Field Of Armor Tanks" has bought the rights and moulds and will hopefully be offering them for sale in the near future.

Adrian.

[Dave Boller]

I've heard and thought likewise, but their website oddly makes no mention of this. It would be nice if they would drop a word to that effect, both there and here. Such would be good news for a lot of anxious people in this hobby. Regardless, I would imagine it will be awhile before Mike's stuff would be up and running. It's probably going to take time for them to pack, transport, sort, set-up, and figure out alot of Mike's stuff before they can begin selling it again. And, that doesn't take in consideration the back-order issues. Expect it to be awhile still, even if the ball is rolling at this point. PS: Fabrice, I love your choice of words, it (on many different levels) reminds me of my days living in Brooklyn, NY.---LOL!

[Adrian Harris]

This is from their Facebook page - posted 5th October:

"Field of Armor is proud to announce the acquisition of "6th Scale Icons" of the late Michael Stannard. 6SI is the premiere accessory line of 6th scale WW II German vehicles.

It will take some time to integrate this line into our website. We ask for your patience. We will start with the best selling products, and update our customers regularly, trying to keep the premium quality of Mr. Stannard legacy.

FOA is committed to fill all orders prior to Mike's untimely passing. We will contact all these customers this coming week"

And on the 16th:

"6th Scale Icons Production (3 photos)
We started by producing the Tiger I loader's hatch from 6SI and installed it on our RC Combat Tiger I going to battle in Gettysburg next week! "

I guess there may be some negotiations needed, as Mike was a neutral third party supplier to all 1/6th modellers, whereas FOA also produce their own range of metal 1/16th scale vehicles, so could be considered a direct competitor to Armortek.

Adrian.

[Dave Boller]

There you go folks! Thanks Adrian.