Augie Hiscano

[mike@af]

A year ago today the great Augie Hiscano passed away. I would like everyone to pause for a moment of silence to honor, and remember what a great person he was. Thanks.

[KarmaMechanic]

Am I the only person here, who doesn't know who this guy is! Who was he? What are his accomplishments? Never heard of him in my life, at all! Sorry!

[MPWR]

Originally Posted by KarmaMechanic

Am I the only person here, who doesn't know who this guy is! Who was he? What are his accomplishments? Never heard of him in my life, at all! Sorry!

Shouldn't be hard to do a websearch, mate. You might learn something. I'll give you a hint- he built model cars....

[americas911]

Originally Posted by KarmaMechanic

Am I the only person here, who doesn't know who this guy is! Who was he? What are his accomplishments? Never heard of him in my life, at all! Sorry!

http://www.craftsmanshipmuseum.com/augieH.htm

Educate yourself before making smartass remarks......

GTMike, thanx for reminding us all!!!!!!

Thanx
Doug

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

Mike, nice tribute. Augie meant a lot to many people.

http://www.craftsmanshipmuseum.com/augieH.htm

[gionc]

I didn't know nothing about Mr. Hiscano since Mike post his "Augie's lathe" thread, so I start to appreciate his work by surfing around the web.

But I've to agree with guys: I was hurted by Karmamechanic post but I just wait soemone answer for me: at least I wasn't the right guy to reply.

So once a time thanks Mike to let me know him and for this thread.

[tigeraid]

There is no better place to bring such a subject up than a modeling messageboard. Have some respect. He was a pioneer in our hobby.

[RallyRaider]

Long time members of this forum will know of the Augie Hiscano legend well. He probably ment a lot more to the Amercian members as that was where he lived and displayed his work, etc. A memorial thread is an entirely appropriate thing on a forum such as this one.
To Augie.

And guys, sorry if he offended you but lets give KarmaMechanic the benifit of the doubt on this one. He is an AF newbie with much to learn.

[The Sheene Machine]

I'm sorry fella's - please understand that this kind of attitude is not representative of UK model builders.....

I'm a UK modeller who learned of Augie Hiscano's work via Scale Auto Enthusiast many years ago and I understand what an impact his work has made on the hobby. I never met the guy, only admired his skill in creating some of the finest model cars I have ever seen. The man was a genius.

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

Originally Posted by The Sheene Machine

I'm sorry fella's - please understand that this kind of attitude is not representative of UK model builders.....

I'm a UK modeller who learned of Augie Hiscano's work via Scale Auto Enthusiast many years ago and I understand what an impact his work has made on the hobby. I never met the guy, only admired his skill in creating some of the finest model cars I have ever seen. The man was a genius.

Don't worry, we understand perfectly.

Once some necessary housecleaning is done (and I can see now the blatantly offensive posts have been properly removed in case people wonder what we are referring to) here we can carry on the tribute.

[mike@af]

I am embarrassed with the direction this thread has gone. Im hoping we can continue to carry on the tribute without further interruption. Thanks.

[Gridgirl]

Originally Posted by GTmike400

I am embarrassed with the direction this thread has gone. Im hoping we can continue to carry on the tribute without further interruption. Thanks.

I'll help out with that.

I met Augie once at a show - he was friendly and easygoing, and did some terrific modeling too. A great man, a real loss and not just to our hobby.

[mike@af]

Originally Posted by Gridgirl

I'll help out with that.

I met Augie once at a show - he was friendly and easygoing, and did some terrific modeling too. A great man, a real loss and not just to our hobby.

True enough. If you were willing to listen, he's willing to teach. I remember talking to him out the Southern NNL Nats in 2004. I stood there watching him for a couple hours with my jaw on the floor. Any question I asked, he gave an me answer too, and that goes for anybody that opened there mouth to speak to him.

Not just a great guy, but a humble gentleman too.

[ZoomZoomMX-5]

Here's an example of the real Augie Hiscano.

Augie set up annually at our show, we gave him a table to work from and he gave machining demos to anyone interested, no set schedule-he just did it throughout the day. He was quite inspirational; he really had a way of connecting with his audience, he was such a kind, gifted, and generous human being. After he retired from work and model competition he went to shows like ours throughout the US giving back his love for the hobby. Everywhere he went, he made new friends and reacquainted with old ones. He passed away the day before embarking on a 2-week tour, he was to drive to the most prestigious model car contest of all, the GSL in Utah from his home in Florida. Needless to say his loss stunned and saddened an entire hobby.

Augie often had an audience of younger modelers at the table. His influence spanned multiple generations; he was a true ambassador to the hobby no matter who you were, or your level of experience. You can see how it affected Mike. Augie would be proud.

With a younger audience at times he would give demos on parts that he knew his audience would appreciate. We had a "tuner" category for our 2004 show. He was making tuner parts at his table to a hungry audience.

After the show Augie came up to me after I had won an award for my NISMO 350Z. He said "Hey Bob, I didn't know until today that you were a fan of tuners. I really dig your Z car, congratulations. I thought you might like to have these muffler tips that I turned today while giving demos". With that he handed me a little baggie with three beautifully-turned exhaust tips. I thanked him profusely, I was honored that he would go out of his way to give me this personal token of his friendship. A generosity that I can only begin to aspire to.

To this day, that little baggie is a cherished and treasured part of my collection. Little did I know that day that moments like that would only be a memory in such a short amount of time.

Augie was the best. I'm honored to have been influenced by him. Even though he is not physically at the shows any more, he is most certainly there in spirit. ACME still has Augie's table at our show. He will never be forgotten.

[willimo]

Bob, you post made this whole thread worthwhile. If someone as generous and willing to share ideas as you looks up to him, then he must've been someone special. I'm sorry I never got to see him work.