HISTORY

„DOWSEENOH“

Michal Sourek, Alfred Riedel and Vladimir Sulc remember Peter

Dousek.

When on April 19 I received an e-mail from Peter Dousek’s address I would not suspect it contains his obituary. Since then

I’ve tried several times to sit down and write something about

him. I have failed to produce a single line though. Only now,

after more than a month, we managed that together with Michal Sourek and Fredy Riedel. We agreed that the best way to

remember Peter will be in a three way conversation as offered

to you herein

VS recollection how we crossed the paths, where I saw him for

I cannot remember when and where I met Peter. I have no

the first time. He somehow appeared in my life with his famous

„hi buddy, what’s up“ and stayed there.

MS Liberec in 1998. We were discussing how to arrange

a Fw 190 challenge. Peter’s contribution to the talks was an 1/48

I met Peter for the first time at the modeling contest in

BMW 801 engine resin master he authored and which was a subject to a hot debate in the modeling community. We liked each other

immediately, we had similar interests, went to the same school,

shared similar family history, watchmaking, love for France. Vlad,

I recall that together with Peter we visited Eduard while you were

presenting some of your models utilizing our photo etched parts.

You showed us your first trials of the negative rivets on Ki-115 Tsurugi kit. I believe it was in 2001 or 2002.

riveting wheels so was trying to figure out how to etch steel. I still

have those samples stored somewhere.

Yes, it was his most famous product, ever so popular riveVS the Tsurugi surface details. Your facial expressions indicated the urge to say something about the missed opportunity or MS ting tools „Rosie the Riveter“. This trade mark reflects his

I remember that. You did not like it, you were frowning upon

something along that line. Afterwars Peter dedicated quite some

time to the matter, he was calling me, writing to me and was curious where we were headed with this and if it is not a doomed

path. But it was all very decent and gentleman-like. We received

much harsher criticism for Tsurugi in various reviews and on IPMS

Numburk message board. Peter somehow believed that this ugly

duckling will mature one day. That’s what I liked about him, he expressed his disagreement but did not discourage. So I said to myself that I’d like to be friend with this guy.

AR

I met „Dowseeno“ for the first time when we were preparing

the booth for Model Hobby show in Fair Palace. He brought

1/48 Fw 189 in Hungarian colors built lightning fast on Jerry Silhanek’s request. We still have that model in our company’s showcase. Later we started to meet in groups of Liberec and Prague’s

modelers. Slowly we got closer and became more friendly. He

showed me a lot of tricks, taught me how to look for.......??? and

also explained to me that there is no need to rush while traveling.

You should enjoy that time.

VS of that he somehow anticipated our mutual acquiantance.

I recon he was acquianted with Karel Padar and because

I may have chatted with him for the first time in Nurnberg when

you guys turned our booth into a changing room. He also come to

chat with us because he liked photo etched parts. Once he wrote

about it nicely in a review published in Revi magazine „I tried them

once and am addicted to it ever since“. Then one day he arrived

in Obrnice with a box full of steel samples. He wanted to etch his

INFO Eduard - June 2021

vast knowledge of history and ability to see things in a context.

In the beginning of a millenium, at the pinnacle of riveting tools

making, he most likely bought off all the watchmaking teethed

wheels, first in Czech Republic and then probably in the whole of

Europe. Since there was no more material left for production he

was seeking the photo etched wheels option.

found one of the options in cooperation with Radu BrinAR He

zan. It has worked for some time but then he again found

the source of the old watchmaking wheels and utilized those. As

a businessman he was exceptionally fair, so called „old school“.

Once he negotiated a business shaking the hands was the ultimate

guarantee. He always met the deadlines, paid precisely and being

precise and honest he could not accept that someone doesn’t pay

on time and even considers it quite normal. I recall how he was

chasing the debtor all over the world and was upset that he had to

hunt down delayed payments in return for his honest work.

is a relevant legendary story about a price for

MS There

a scale engine master. When Peter submitted the price

calculation he was asked if the price can be lower. He laconically

answered: „OK, no business in this case, I just paint it and install it

in my model“. He knew his price and never went below it. He excellend in the precision in all things he did, he was obsessed with

details, in a positive way.When he became widely known to public

thanks to riveting tools manufacturing he was being flooded with

the ideas how and what to produce. He’s standard response to this

was“ :Supply the drawings and I’ll make it for you“.

eduard

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