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Showing content with the highest reputation on 05/15/2019 in all areas

  1. Hello all, Tamiya’s masterpiece Corsair. The best kit I’ve ever gotten my sticky mitts on. Grey Matter engine bay and various additions - see the build log for details. Thanks for looking in Guy
    10 points
  2. Just wanted to say hello. I've just been lurking for a while and learning what I could. I'm just getting back to modeling after many years away and plenty has changed. I recently retired but a couple of years before I did I started getting ready by building a stash of kits. Most of it is in 1/48 but I picked up a few WNW kits and a couple of 1/32 Tamiya kits. I have the P-51D and the F-4C along with some after market goodies. I'm working on my first build since coming back to modeling and I can see I have some learning to do before I get started on a nicer and more expensive kit. I'm sure enjoying it though. I was thinking of picking up 2 or 3 more 1/32 kits but I don't know much about all the new to me company's out there. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I know Tamiya kits usually build well but there selection is kind of limited. I hope you guys don't mind if I jump on a couple of threads now and then with beginner questions. I'm still learning about preshading and black basing and things like that.
    10 points
  3. Hello world! By way of a (short) introduction, my name is John and the last kit I built was way back in 1975, when I was 14. Now I'm within touching distance of 58 and after lurking here for nearly nine years and marvelling, goldfish-mouthed, at the tremendous talent exhibited here, I think it's well and truly time that I actually took the plunge and had a go at nailing something together... My chosen victim subject aircraft is Tamiya's lovely 1/32 rendition of the later P-51D. It is beautifully produced and the cowling is, as many have said before, a work of art but why Tamiya chose to include toy-like features such as vinyl tyres, removable landing gear etc. is a puzzle to me. Oh well, it is what it is. For me, this build is not so much about the "what", so much as the "how to". When I was a kid, I was happy just to stick the bits together and slap some paint on and this , as the title says, is therefore a confection of firsts for me: first time using an airbrush, first time doing anything that might be kindly described as "detailing", first time using PE, brass, resin or DIY decals, first time masking markings etc., even the first time putting varnish on the thing! I realise that to some the notion of alternate history is an immediate and complete turn-off, but I enjoy it and it does allow me the freedom to explore technique without having to worry about doing justice to a historical subject. With this in mind, the end goal will be an unashamed "what if". Spoiler: this will probably also apply to some extent to my first few builds - many more firsts to go, including foiling - those of a nervous disposition should look away now Anyway, enough dithering - if all goes according to plan, it should turn out something like this: 12e Escadrille, Forces Armées Bretonnes, Algeria 1954/55 in support of the French campaign. Thanks for looking in
    8 points
  4. Thanks! It’s encouraging to get kind comments I’ve been giving the support equipment some more thought. The factory photos show a kind of frame that the aircraft sits in and a made to measure step ladder & platform that sits over the wing. I still haven’t sussed out the frame, but I’ve had a bash at the ladder. I’ve used brass rod bent to shape and super glued the steps. I’d rather it be a stronger bond, but I don’t have a soldering iron, it seems ok at the moment but it will be delicate to handle, the frame is simply plastic card and a thin wood veneer for the platform... Guy
    8 points
  5. After a long delay, here Is the first of the finished pilots. US Navy pilot, painted by Edward Sage. This figure is now available. I'm waiting for the box art for the FAA Pilot to arrive from New Zealand.
    7 points
  6. Same part for the upper wing: 3D printed ribs and 2,4 mm Evergreen tube for the spars. The only change is the inner spar a 2 mm carbon rod. Now it looks more like a biplane.
    7 points
  7. It feels like I'm in some sort of holding pattern on both builds. I've got the K-4 data stencils to wait upon and also a reference that I've always wanted to get my hands on: So I looked around and tried to find some of the small things that need to be done. I boxed in the MK108 cannon chute with plastic card and topped it with piece of brass sheet. This will fit underneath the wing spar structure and keep the spar from being seen. The oil cooler housing needs some work like thinning the trailing edges of the fairing. I've added the small drain pipe to the front of the oil cooler in a way that I can leave the oil cooler intake detached. I'll be able to do any fill work required around the base of the oil cooler after it is attached to the fuselage. And then the oil cooler intake can be slipped on afterwards. A preliminary look at the drop tank and ETC rack. I've filled in the forward-most panel line on the tank with black CA. The molded strap has been removed and will be replaced by a strap fashioned from brass sheet. I've glued the front and rear fuselage pieces together. Mostly to get a stronger bond. The fuselage halves were then taped together. I thought it'd be better for the glue to cure with the fuselage halves mated together. Some possible candidates for shimming have been identified.
    7 points
  8. Thanks guys It’s pretty much fallen together now, I’ve installed the engine and bay and the other appendages and it looks like a Corsair now. I can’t tell you enough what an amazing kit this is - go and buy one today! Still to do - the wing and attachment, and the ground equipment; no idea how I’m going to tackle that. Guy
    7 points
  9. I get back to modelling with the old Trumpeter’s Su-27B. This kit stayed almost 4 years on the shelf with half work done. So I decided to finish it as soon as posible before I ruin all that I did before. It seems so hard to pull the trigger for my new enlisted project in 2019. This old kit nicely detailed fit well together but also presents some minor mould’s errors. Luckily, the decal sheet still in good condition and I have no problem to finish her. Su-27 is a big plane, compared to thoses from US like F/A-18F, F-15E, F-14s. It’s big, so it’s Russian. Here we go and I hope you, friends love her.
    5 points
  10. 'The molded strap has been removed and will be replaced by a strap fashioned from brass sheet.' I've done this. It results in a tricky connection. There is an actuator inside the flap. I can pull up a page from the Tech manual if you're interested. Love what you're doing. Sincerely, Mark
    5 points
  11. Got a new graphics card, so it was time to add more details to the MH-53E sponsons while I'm waiting for a replacement canopy for my Academy Viper. Adding raised details to compound curved parts is very time consuming, but I hope the result will be worth the pain. I'll have to split them into two halves as they are too big for my little Photon.
    5 points
  12. Sorry to be gone so long folks, but lots of work and travel and also the usual life stuff too. But I'm finally back at it and making some progress. Want to get the cockpit pretty much together this week and next - that is the goal. So I'm combining Eduard, Barracuda and the kit parts to see what I can cobble together. Also using the Barracuda cockpit stencils many of which are TINY!! Here the sidewalls with the black backgrounds for the placard and working on the pilot's head cushion. Interior Green is primarily MRP Interior Green - sprays so nicely as everyone knows. The IP is mostly the kit IP - The gorgeous Barracuda IP just had too many PE pieces for me to tackle at this point, and the Eduard Color PE just doesn't look quite right to me - the paint is not smooth enough for my taste. Having said that, I did use one part of the Color PE on the IP, the piece right below the main IP. To avoid a completely monotone IP I did paint the two main gauges and the small rectangle to the bottom left with the two red switches Black Grey. Looks more stark in the pictures than visually and I still have the placards to add. Ok, that's about where things sit now. Thanks for looking! Chris
    5 points
  13. John1

    Forgotten War Mustang

    Told you I was slow. It's taken me this long just to post the obligatory box shot (which is even out of focus to boot). Here are all the bits I'll be using. The Pacific version of the Tamiya kit has a few extra bits that will come in handy for this kit. In looking inside the box, as with the F4U-1D I just completed, I'm in awe of the quality of this kit. The surface detail is truly amazing, the instructions are first rate and quite honestly, you could build a truly wonderful Mustang right out of the box. If anyone has yet to build one of Tamiya's recent 32nd scale aircraft, you really have to treat yourself. You won't regret it. All that being said, I decided to splurge on this project. I added the following resin from BarracudaCast: P-51D Cockpit Upgrade - this smallish set includes a superdetailed K-14 gunsight, control stick, throttle quadrant, battery (getting tossed since on the F-51D, the battery was moved from behind the pilot to inside the engine compartment), radio (I need to verify the type, hopefully it will be the same one used on "my" Mustang) and a few other small bits. P-51 Mustang Diamond Tread Tires - a very cheap upgrade. Fantastic quality and much better than the vinyl ones used in the kit. P-51 Instrument Panel - a nice mix of PE, resin, and instrument decals. Each instrument bezel is a separate PE piece. Gonna have hours of fun here! I'm not entirely convinced this set offers a marked improvement over the kit parts. I'll study them closely before making a final decision on using it. P-51D Mustang Cockpit Sidewalls - just what the label says. Looks to be a nice improvement over the kit parts and they include a late style radio controller which looks to be a nice fit for the one "my" F-51D would have had. For decals, I've got the aforementioned AIMS F-51 Korean War Mustang set. I'm not completely thrilled with this set. For one, they neglected to provide the spinner polka-dots for the RF-51D option, so the modeler is left with the very fiddly task of punching out decals or masking and painting a dozen or so dots on the curved surface of the spinner. They also only provide the teeth for the sharkmouths of two other subjects. The red mouth itself has to be masked and painted. Someone less of a PITA but not what I would have expected. Oh well, given it's the only set of large scale F-51D decals being offered, beggars can't be choosers. Lastly, I've got the Barracuda P-51 cockpit decal set. Approx 50 tiny decals that accurately represent every warning label and placard used on the real thing. I used these on "My Nel III", my F4U-1D Corsair project and I have to say - they make a huge difference. I really wish Barracuda would offer these for other models. Once you see how a cockpit looks with these installed, you don't want to go back to a sterile, unmarked cockpit again. Those decals went on surprisingly easy, they are highly recommended. Anyway, that's my big update for tonight. I'll be going on a nice cruise to my favorite island on the planet in the near future, once I get back, I'll start doing some actual work. Thanks for looking.
    5 points
  14. So I've been slowly working on the cockpit sub assemblies when time will allow and they are pretty close to complete now., still a bit more to do but getting close to finished now. Starboard side wall painted and Eduard etch added: Port side wall with Eduard etch added, also the access curtain on the side wall was first painted Tamiya Dek Tan followed by Aviattic lined decal with the red edging cut from an old decal sheet which is far easier than trying to paint a uniform line. Main cockpit assembly painted and wooden floor treated with Uschi van der Rosten wood decals which worked perfectly. A few other bits and pieces to paint as well as some Airscale decals to add here and there followed by some HGW belts but so far so good. Regards. Andy
    5 points
  15. Hey, This evening I have started to "fill the gaps". After having taken this challenging decision, I feel more comfortable now. Honestly, when you start to drill the fuselage, you only hope that you thought about everything before on how to challenge the scratch built after. Thanks Ben for having pushed me on that way. I will probably open the door of the station 4 ; the aft one here below. Cheers Eric
    4 points
  16. Just to clarify... the painted drop tank I posted was for a previous build. It was for the Revell 1/32 Bf109G-10...
    3 points
  17. Thank you Vincent! I appreciate all of your input and assistance on this build! Drop tank - I've done something similar with the Revell G-10 tank and yes, the connection between the tank and rack can be dicey. I need to consider strength and may forgo some accuracy to achieve it. Oil cooler flap - yes, any details would be most welcome! Thank you Mark! Your K-4 build is an awesome reference for me to refer to. Yes, it's still fun! Not quite the perfect engineering that I find on my Corsair build but close enough that the corrective work is not frustrating at all. In many ways, I prefer Hasegawa over Tamiya. It's more of a blank canvas, whereas the Tamiya Corsair almost feels like I'm assembling a pre-completed model.
    3 points
  18. Thanks very much I did re paint the fuselage with airframe aluminum and I think the tone is more realistic... I was fitting wings and dropped one doing damage to it, two steps forward one step back...The wing has been re-glued, re sanded and should be (hopefully) ready for paint again soon The repaint on the fuselage;
    3 points
  19. Neo

    Dragon BF 110 D (Completed)

    Update TIme so black basing.. im not entirely sold i like the effect i got on the yellow. im somewhat liking what it has done on the light grays but im pondering if its worth the effort and hand cramps!! i do have to say i did master my new Badger Krome by motheling and using this technique ! and i feel tons more confident now with my airbrush. Here is the bottom that i mentioned was done in my previous post fuselage wing And last night i spend 1.5hours applying RLM 75 on the uppper surfaces left wing rightw And as a bonus here is a sneak peek at my custom paint booth that i built in January. more on that soon under Thanks for following ! Cheers Neo
    3 points
  20. Hello again. Due to work I've been able to work on anything too seriously since Christmas. To get back in the saddle I decided to take a stab at Chuck Yeager's "Glamorous Glenn II". I love these cheap Revell kits, and I'm pretty elated they they've finally at least started labeling their sprues so finding parts is less of a wild goose chace. Planning on keeping this build very simple so I don't lose interest. I'm hoping blogging this will help me keep on task too. Besides the wheels, exhaust and masks I will probably add some sort of aftermarket belt. At this point I have about maybe 90 minutes into it. A little flash here and there but otherwise drama free. I'll try to work on my photography skill for future posts. Thanks for looking. Jeff
    2 points
  21. Went to my local monthly hobby night and on our display table was a Super Hornet. Long story short, it became mine for free! The kit is 95% done, with the builder sort of giving up because of an issue with one wing (a bit lopsided) and not finishing the ordnance, particularly the AIM-9X missiles which were missing from the kit. Took me about an hour, but I disassembled what I could, including the offending wing, but also all the undercarriage, canopy, seats, tails and nozzles. He didn't use very strong glue so it was relatively easy to manhandle apart. The only extras on the kit were resin seats - which are too tall to close the canopy - and some photoetch for the cockpit. Rest is stock. I'm clearing my bench to finish this, where my plan is to convert to wheels up, repaint and weather the heck out of it, providing a great testbed for my other naval aviation subjects. I shall call it the "Recycled Rhino" Here we go...
    2 points
  22. We started selling our La-11 at 1:32. Available on my website and Ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/123769230038… https://www.ebay.com/itm/123769228148… http://lemkits.com/…/1-32-la-11-fang-limited-edition-resin…/
    2 points
  23. Well I have been hammering away at this project since December of 2016, and finally (FINALLY!!) it is done. Here is a link to the long build if interested: Here are the pictures, warts and all. Apologies for the amateurish lack of good background and other professional picture taking skills. Aside from that, let me know what you think: I will post this now, as I don't know what limits there are on pictures per post. More next post.
    2 points
  24. Radio rack also completed also completed today. And then fitted to the rear bulkhead Feel like I'm cheating bit with these Eduard pre printed items as I dont usually go for them, however they are pretty good and once a.flat coat has been applied everything should come together nicely. Regards. Andy
    2 points
  25. Welcome And as to techniques, me too. As you were familiar with styrene kits from days gone by, the main things that have changed are that a/ the modern kits go together better but b/ are more detailed and fiddly. The biggest change, albeit mostly aftermarket or AM, is the widespread use of photo etch and polyurethane resin detail parts, which often require use of the very ungentlemanly cyanoacrylate superglue. This headache can be ameliorated by the use of white glues for cockpit etch, but for load bearing parts it's better to go for the more accurate kit in the first place than have to "refit" a bad one with corrective resin parts. As such, Tamiya WW2 props are your friend, as are the later edition Hasegawa Japanese props: Frank, Tojo, and recent new tool Zero. If you like jets, my own recommendations would be the Academy/Kinetic F/A-18A-D Hornet, Tamiya F-16CJ Fighting Falcon, plus Trumpeter MiG-29 Fulcrums. Tony
    2 points
  26. I don't believe my eyes, probably the best Corsair WIP I've ever seen Lothar
    2 points
  27. Thank you. On a test fuselage, I also sanded the surface and then slightly re-riveted. The advantage was that you can polish the paint so that the rivets become slightly more visible because paint on the edges around the holes wears off a bit. But it is a lot of work. I'll have to try the method suggested by Peter as well. My worry is that I am not as good at riveting as I like to be and I sometimes had to fill holes. I think it could be more difficult to repair a primed surface as you would have to remove the primer and then carefully apply primer again in a way that it merges with the rest of the primed fuselage. Fuselage halves are almost complete now with the last few rivets to be added. Then sanding and re-riveting. I may then try to apply a black wash like Chuck does in his builds to better see the quality of the rivets and panel lines before I paint the cockpit walls and then join the fuselage halves. I am looking forward to finally continue and apply some paint again.
    2 points
  28. Actually, yes it does matter, and due to it being 1/35 scale I won’t be buying it. I have been to many shows around Australia and New Zealand over the last 8 years and am yet to see anyone combining vehicles, field equipment and aircraft into one diorama. I think that the market avenue for the people that would want to do that is pretty slim. (The same goes for all the 1/35 helicopters currently available) On the other hand, and not withstanding that the subject is Luft ‘46 or whatever it is, I reckon there would be significantly more aircraft modellers who may be interested in this aircraft that won’t touch it due to it not being in the same scale as the rest of their collection.
    2 points
  29. The dont like it dont buy it adage is true, but the discussion is here and just like you have the right to have your opinion on it, others like myself also have the right to think of it as utterly ridiculous. It's only one modelers opinion either way, we would just prefer them (opinions) shared without calling out other members for having theirs.
    2 points
  30. https://www.flyingleathernecksdecals.com
    2 points
  31. Thanks Ben ! As you can see, my decision is taken. I will detail the stations 3 and 4 with one door open on one side. The station 1 ( Fwd Rh side ) will be left closed. Stay tuned Eric
    2 points
  32. And still some more: I am not sure where to start with this adventure. The following were entirely scratch built: Cockpit Engine Cowl flaps Tires, wheels Main landing gear Tail gear Wheel wells Flaps, flap linkages Bomb pylons Gear doors All outlet duct doors Guns Tip lights Pitot mast By far the longest scratch build project was the engine - it took more than six months. For all that building, I made extensive use of Aircorps Library drawings and manuals. I cannot thank those folks enough! The rest came compliments of the long defunct 21st Century Toys. That includes the oversized canopy and some other poorly done details that I just could not correct. My aim here was to take what looked like a complex toy, and turn it into a shrink ray Thunderbolt. Will let you all be the judge of that. Thank you for looking in.
    2 points
  33. phantomdriver

    Trumpeter Jaguar

    probably the old pics from a few years ago.. came to nothing...
    2 points
  34. Ive never ever called one of those tops a boobtube although it might be appropriate................it was always just a tube top! Where Im from in the midwest US, a boobtube was always a TV. Maybe a Bobtube would be for someone named Robert on TV?
    2 points
  35. I do not want to hijack Eric's thread by any means, but I have found these three old and pretty bad photos showing the modified cameras and the installation. I am pretty sure the cameras could be swiveled on the real a/c.
    2 points
  36. Masking to make fabric thicknesses. I used 7 mm tape spaced by 1 mm. I used the same narrow tape for the four faces. A template helps tu cut the tips form. Black plastic card is a tester of thickness: I put a first layer of Surfacer 1500 diluted with AK extreme thinner on the wings and on the black card. When it's dry, I pull the number 1 tape and check the thickness. If this is not enough, secon layer and so on. So I don’t have to take the tape off the wings. Three layers were required and a sanding with 2000 paper. 1 mm steel rods glued with Araldite. Still to cover the central part with plastic card. Have a nice weekend !
    2 points
  37. Hey folks, I'm normally a lurker here, I don't tend to post outside of my regular sites just read other peoples stuff. But I've been told I should post this over here so here I am, cap in hand showing you my finished bird. It's out the box and yes I'm fully aware of all the shortcomings of the kit, Davis Wing, Turrets yardy yar etc etc I've put Master Model Barrels on it and some RB belts, not that you can see them, but other than that she's El Naturel Finished in Alclad, Gunze and Ushchi metal powders, weathered with Mig products. Thanks for looking and be gentle......... Gary
    1 point
  38. Welcome! I'm looking forward to following along, you will enjoy the P51 - Its a great kit and lovely to build.
    1 point
  39. With that intro, I just had to become the first lurker follower on the thread!
    1 point
  40. Starfighter

    Trumpeter Jaguar

    Every year someone has to repost this on Facebook...
    1 point
  41. I once saw a tube top on the boobtoob.
    1 point
  42. Out2gtcha

    Trumpeter Jaguar

    Yep, those certainly do look like Songs original pics, I remember the dark background.
    1 point
  43. Cheers guys, Radu, got em thanks! Lovely kit mate. Eric.
    1 point
  44. So, I've been digging around in the papers I got from The Smithsonian Archives.. Among them is a damming report from the Department of Commerce, dated 30th September 1929. This rapport (Att: G.G. Budwig - Assistent Director of Aeronautics) describes very vividly the sorry state of one converted Navy F-5-L Seaplane (NC-79-M) after it has been inspected by the Department of Commerce. Well, I wasn't even aware that any of the Aeromarine's were still around in 1929. AnyWho, if there were others, at this point in time, they probably wouldn't be flying anywhere... In the inspection papers, there is a very detailed description of the access to the passenger cabins, revealing some of the rather elaborate way for the passengers to access the rear cabin... I think you get the tone of the report ;-).. But there is an interesting part, the one with the pilot's seat being fixed in position... There are photos available from the construction of the Curtiss F-5-L's, showing exactly this feature... I thought that it was photo's of the cockpit in it's final stages.. Then it dawned on me, that this was a way for the pilot's, to get to the rear of the fuselage during flight. Because of the cramped cockpit, there really is no other way for them to do this... Now with this information, I will have to take another look at the access to the rear cabin, the removable ladder and the latched door... Cheers: Kent
    1 point
  45. For the detail oriented , the shields went up over the lip as seen below ... HTH
    1 point
  46. Here's a look at some of the sprues that Hasegawa supplies with the Bf109K-4 kit. Hasegawa usually employs a modular approach to offering different sub-types of the same aircraft. For the Bf109 family, the fuselage is cut in the middle, just aft of the cockpit. The Kurfurst-specific rear fuselage with the tall tail and revised fuel filler and radio compartment locations is supplied on a separate sprue. This maximizes mold efficiency but creates more work for the modeler. Here is that K-4 sprue. Not only the rear fuselage, the sprue also provides K-specific wheel well doors and instrument panel. The molding detail is fine and recessed with no rivets portrayed. The instrument panel has some good detail but this kind of molded dial surfacel has taken a back seat in favor of pre-painted photoetch or resin. The Bf109 wing did not change significantly after the F series. I think this is probably the same wing sprue that is offered with any Hasegawa F, G or K boxing. Hasegawa bags multiple sprues into a single plastic baggie so some of the larger parts exhibit scratching and scuffing. The old style circular wheel well openings will need to be opened up manually. Hasegawa 1/32 kits are relatively simple and have a correspondingly low parts count. They don't offer engines or interior detail that won't be seen and cater to modelers that like to show their aircraft buttoned up and ready for take-off. The clear parts illustrate one issue with the Hasegawa kit. The profile of the upper fuselage spine aft of the cockpit is overly flat. You can see the results of this squashed shape when comparing the rear edge of the kit canopy with the canopy from the Revell 109G-10 kit. The kit decals won't be used so it will go into the spares box. The kit decals some with a decent representation of the instrument panel dials so I have a back-up if there is an issue with the size of the Airscale decals.
    1 point
  47. A small step forward: In place the third windshield, the second (wrong) is in front and the first is in the trash can !
    1 point
  48. Hi, I'm lucky, I got this light wave effect. In some points, I put to much plastic glue and I have to fill them. The lighty wave effect on the wings compared to the fuselage more pronounced. The wing is light but rather solid to do that. The dihedral remains flat. Don't forget, it's just a game !
    1 point
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