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I would wholeheartedly have to disagree with that. Out of all the LSPs I've ever made since my 2nd modeling renaissance in 2007 I've not once made one with an exposed engine. Honestly open panels like engine panels not only are unwanted, but IMHO down right spoil the lines of the aircraft. To me they are much harder to fit when separate, and the extra money spent on providing a detailing engine (s)could better spent in cockpit/exterior details or upgraded exterior parts.

Hi Small update on the sandwich assembly. First job was to assemble the mylar sheet, with CA glue, just to see if everything works togheter. It was mostly OK, I just tweaked the inner flap part. enlarged the holes, just to have them not interfere with the upper sheet. Then it was time to cut real plastic and try it for good. I did not send the rivet pattern to the cutter for this one. as I wanted to have them positive. So once the parts were cleared and cleaned, I runned the riveter on the other side of the sheet, to have them appearing on the outer face. MLG door. Airbrake, a pity i wont use them Doors all completed : And a comparison, kit parts, proto parts, final parts. Kinda happy with how it turned out. I have just dropped the files overs at ScaleModelPaintMasks.com Here is the link: Thin wing conversion Would you want to give it a try, I wish you a lot of fun. Cheers. Mathieu

+1 on the hotcakes! When considering the major Spitfire variants; whilst Tamiya have done what is a beautiful MkIXc and (my personal favourite Spitfire variant) the Mk VIII, not only has there never been a 'definitive MkIa in this scale but nor has there been a definitive MkVb from the Merlin engine series. The Matchbox effort at the Mk22/24 is credible for its time but it would be nice to think that Kotare may even go in that direction. For now I am simply glad that this manufacturer will fill one of the most obvious gaps in the 1/32 LSP canon: a (hopefully) definitive Supermarine Spitfire Mk1a. Kind regards, Paul

+1. The point about cost is well made. The aftermarket will usually cater for the engines and other internal bits for those who want them (and there is nothing wrong in that, just different taste) and this means a simpler kit for those with other priorities.

Let me present the model of one of Polish early naval planes - FF33.L White 9, photographed during the inspection on Aug. 20th, 1920 in the Naval Air Base in Puck. It was then unarmed but I have taken a freedom to speculate, that it could later be fitted with Parabellum gun. I wish to express my enormous thanks to Łukasz from Lukgraph for fulfilling this dream of mine - "dziękuję bardzo!"

From their website: Kotare's passion is to provide accurate and highly detailed scale model kitsets that are enjoyable to build for both experienced and novice modellers alike. We hope that by designing these models to be as trouble-free to build as possible we will attract even more people the relaxing and rewarding hobby of building scale models.

I have been to Japan a few times and I spent a good bit of time around model shops. I also went to the Shizuoka show a few times and there are a few vendors there who sell second-hand and rare kits. Some kits are shrink-wrapped, some are not and it all seems to be random. These appear to be wrapped by the store or maybe by the distributor. Have a look at these photos I took a few years ago: Some kits such as Airfix and Special Hobby kits are shrink-wrapped even though they are not wrapped in that manner in Europe, which tends to indicate that the wrapping was done in Japan. B's Hobby in Kyoto: Leonardo LG in Akihabara, Tokyo (second-hand shop) Leonardo ET in Akihabara (second-hand shop) Leonardo G in Akihabara Tokyo (second hand shop) Tam Tam in Akihabara Tokyo Yodobashi Akiba in Akihabara Tokyo Tamiya Plamodel Factory in Tokyo Volks (Zoukei Mura) when it was in the Radio Kaikan building in Akihabara Tokyo (they got their own building now, around the corner) Volks (Zoukei Mura) Hobby Square in Kyoto (also headquarters of the company) But my favourite place to spend money is the Shosen Book Tower in Ochanomizu. The books tens to be in sealed plastic bags. I have more photos from Yellow Submarine and the Volks Hobby Square in Osaka, but they are on an older phone. I love Japan and I miss going there. If you can travel, go there. Also, it is cheaper than you expect. For example, travelling to the US has always been much more expensive for me than travelling to Japan. HTH Radu

After stripping the paint (twice now), I finally noticed that all three prop blades had sink marks in the back. A little Tamiya white, and they're all fixed up now.

Hi friends, at this topic I'll show you WW2 Ju-52. Planes like this one were used for cargo transportation and para-jumps after 1944 in BG Air Force, when Bulgaria pass to USSR side. The model it self is beautiful - revell-monogram parts are great. For AM I've used Vector engines and resin-etched interior from Aires. The interior is painted with tamiya acrylics and weathered with oils and pencils. The exterior is painted with gunze laquers, weathered with tamya filters and dry brush. So here it is: Thank you always for stopping by and Cheers friends

From today we accept preorders - shipping time to 60 days. Albatros C.III 1:32 scale kit https://lukgraph.pl/.../Albatros-C.III-1-32-scale.../194 Albatros C.III PREMIUM SET 1:32 scale kit https://lukgraph.pl/.../Albatros-C.III-1-32-scale.../195 Albatros C.III in Polish service https://lukgraph.pl/.../Albatros-C.III-1-32-scale.../196 Premium set: 3 x A4 sheets woodgrain and canvas decals, and masks (1mm rib strips, main German crosses) all made by LukGraph (few decals added to the online store as separately product). Description of the kitset Resin Casting Parts: fuselage, wings (wire reinforced), horizontal and vertical fins, larger interior elements. All struts and axes reinforced by wire. 3 fuel tanks, wheels x 2. 3D prints: Mercedes D.III 160 hp Engine x 1 – separately boxed with 2 exhaust pipes, propeller, small interior and exterior parts, rear struts, 1:32 scale kit, upper wing support, gunner turret, guns Additionally, over 30 photo-etched parts - including barrels for 2 guns. The German Albatros model has 3 painting schemes available - Albatros C.III 766/16, Kasta 10, Russia 1916, Lt. Erwin Böhme - one of the most recognizable plane from the First World War. - Albatros C.III 4078/16 tactical „3" of Kasta 20 - Albatros C.III 106/16, 1916 Above screen printed decals. Based on the decal, you can make a few other paints (e.g. on the Albatros C.III Windsock cover). Separately boxed Albatros C.III in polish service - Albatros C.III 103/17 (light grey-blue overall) – digital printed decals. Even less experienced modelers should be able to assemble the model. We try to improve our workshop with each release. We try to do everything we can to ensure that this short series of resin models is at the highest level. We will continue the series of models from the First World War. LukGraph Team

Engine. Or no engine? Why not both? Some of us like to have an engine to detail up. Some want to close the cowlings. So why not provide BOTH options? A fully detailed engine AND an option to just plug in a bit of engine so you can close the cowlings and still have somewhere to install the exhausts if you don’t want to assemble dozens of parts just to get this ability.

Actually in spite of the tons of released books the Spitfire is NOT well documented except some specific and quite standard marks such as the Mk.II, some Mk.V and the Mk.IX. For most other marks, the documentation is only average and totally insufficient for some others such as the Mk.I, the Mk.XII, the FR47 or the early PR versions! One stupid and very visible example: up to now nobody correctly documented the evolution of the wheels bumps in the upper wings!

I have to agree, 100%

And so a small update.. I'm sure you've all heard about the Kotare Mk1 coming out, and modellers of lesser moral fibre would simply scrap this project, but I will continue... as best I can! Here is a comparison of the instrument panel moulding to the decals.... I need to make a plan as no AM is possible... but decals are the wrong size, place etc.... on careful consideration, the panel would work for a Mk IX (The other kit from these mouldings,) but the decal bears no resemblance to anything I have found online, and the white outlines are not great and most of the dials too big.... I don't think there's a swop of panels from left to right, just a lot of work to do... https://i.ibb.co/JmwttvK/IMG-2931.jpg Also working on the seat, I have no AM here too, bust adding the leather padding on the seat back, and using strips of thin plastic card, well sanded and Tamiya primer to sort the gaps, it still needs some sanding... https://i.ibb.co/MGBm1Zt/IMG-2932.jpg I know things look a bit scruffy so far, a combination of the second-hand kit and my enthusiasm, but I will endeavour to neaten up and fly right... Thanks for looking in! Regards, Marc

I've begun working on the fuselage....added the "E" nose and tail to both of the fuselage halves...the fit was a little better than I expected for such a large kit. The next step was adding a wash to the interior and many of the detail parts.... While not overly difficult, it was tedious....each fuselage half taking almost an hour each.... But, I can now actually start working on the interior parts themselves; AFTER first studying all of the Eduard interior sets to see what needs adding and/or modification to use them. There will also be quite a bit of detail painting that will be time consuming....but then that's the nature of this big beast. More pics when I have some significant progress to show! GIL

Since when was large scale aero modelling a "relaxing and rewarding hobby"? Perhaps I'm not doing it right... Richard.

Apparently it's a common word in New Zealand to describe a kit. There's more on this on the Kotare FB page iirc.

This is a very nice kit, the detail is great, fit is near perfect and the decals are extremely nice, all 200+ of them. My only gripe is there was not enough room for me to get the nose weighted down, so I made up a little base for her to sit on. I really like Tiger Meet special markings and this is a cracker of a kit. It's painted in overall RLM 04 yellow, weathering kept down as she looked pretty good when on display. It seems this aircraft was kept in her tiger colours and put on a pole outside an airbase hanger.

Here is some preliminary work done on the Hispano-Suiza HS.404 20 mm cannon. This is the drum-fed model suitable for early Beaufighters. A belt-fed cannon for late-model Beaufighters will also be designed. Four of these are fit below the observer's station, parts of which will be visible through floor cutouts. Much work yet to do. Some of what you see here will change.

Again, cost. A startup company like Kotare is not Eduard. They may or may not have that money up front that a Tamiya or Eduard DOES have to spend. In that case, deleting a very expensive open and visible engine may be the difference between putting the model out and making money, and putting a model out, and loosing money. It also costs a lot more money to make separate runs of kits, and when a company like this is starting out it seems a much better idea to keep things simple and accurate and sell a ton of kits VS dumping all your eggs in one basket with a "super kit" that does everything EVERYONE wants and pushes production costs so high that profit to make other kits is lost.

Why not both? Eduard already does it. Armor manufacturers offer a "basic" kit, as well as their own branded add-on packs with extra detail. They can design the whole thing keeping the engine sprue and/or gun bay sprue separate. Sell upgrade packs (at a premium), then after a while bring out a Special Edition with those sprues in the box.

You are never going to please everyone and I personally prefer the 'clean' and simplistic lines of the aircraft itself like in the style of the Hasegawa 1/32 range of WW2 single seat aircraft. I don't like to model my aircraft with panels and engine cowls off etc. and looking at those online and at shows etc, that seems to be the majority of us. The problem with all the 'bells and whistles' like full engines and gun bays etc. is that it pushes the overall cost of the model up for (everyone) and I recall when I built the Tamiya Spitfire IX in 1/32, I left out all the engine and plumbing parts other than what was necessary to attach the spinner and thinking "how much would this kit have cost if all the parts not used along with the little magnets etc. had not been included?" It's probably not economically (or moulding?) viable, but like with Zoukie Mura's 1/32 stuff, imagine if you could buy the base kit and just with those parts which add structural integrity and support and then another boxing for those who want everything 'open' or actually like painting and installing parts that will never be seen again. Ultimately, the manufacturer has to make the final call and then we then have to decide whether to buy it or not. Either way, I am sure that Kotare Models Spitfire will be a superb package. Gary

Hi John, thanks for the input. Tom (the subject pilot) can’t recall the exact sidewinder that he carried on that day so I went with my best guess based upon some images that I had at the time. Someone put up a stack of pics of the cruise that Tom was on which featured a great pic of an A-7A from VA-82 carrying an AIM-9B, so that is the one I went with. Subsequently, I have found a picture that Tom took of a stack of A-7A’s and also F-4’s in formation, bombed up and heading out to a sortie. This picture actually has -305 in it and was the basis for my small correction on the cam demarcation at the end of the tail cone. It also has -305 carrying a sidewinder with a longer nose than the -9B so I have considered that I might have the wrong - winder on. I have also got a very good pic of an A-7A on the carrier deck, loaded with the large Bullpup, which is rare to find. The sidewinder loaded has its nose partially covered but it features the same colouring as the later models. I have used brass pins to attach the missiles to the rails so can easily change them based upon any new information that comes to light. cheers, Eric.

Specs call for RLM 24. Eventually, due to raw material shortages and different manufacturers, in different regions, like Germany and Czechoslovakia, and because the allies were bombing the brains out of the Germans, ingredients weren’t available in the proportions and quantities required to make the same color as earlier in the war. Sincerely, Mark

I'd quite happily buy a budget version without the engine and ancillaries.

I can just imagine the engine and plumbing....oh boy oh boy!

And it has legs! The landing gear legs fit securely to the fuselage, and the photoetch struts lend a lot of strength. Not sure how securely the wheels will fit, but we will cross that bridge later. In the meantime, I am assembling everything that will be the main color. Accounts vary, but I am planning to go with MRP RLM 81. The entire fuselage, the legs, and all the struts get this color, so just the underside of the wings and tailplanes get the underside color, and I'll be using MRP RLM 76 for this. Cheers, Tom

The scratched Delmar Target equipment... Pieces of resin, sprue and styrene. Cheers: Kent

I am sorry to say, I had failed to document the progress on this model. It is now completed. More photos in the final gallery.

So quick update on the flight deck. You can't make 'em too nasty. I'm working on the cross deck pendant (that's the name of the cable that goes across the deck and the hook catches). Its held up by leaf springs similarly to an old car. I'll make mine out of a section of aluminum soda can, and then drape the pendant across it. Here's an image I found on the web (for illustrative purposes only). Check out how the non skid is worn away. I'd call that about 2 weeks worth of flight ops. After several line periods or an entire cruise, it will be worn down to bare steel. Even worse, it'll be covered in hydraulic oil, oil, grease etc and be slicker than ice. It's no fun being in a 58K pound jet and sliding or worse being blown by exhaust. So I set out to beat up my deck and bring out some of these details. First I chucked a big sander into a drill and began knocking back my non skid. Go slow and you'll end up with a good representation of how the pendant grinds down the deck Next, I hit the bare section with a steel paint, drybushing the edges. Following that, I used some of my kids old water color paints (Hello Kitty to be exact) to replicate some rust. This is the first pass. Gotta remember that exposed metal rusts super quick in the salt water environment. You can walk up on deck in the morning and there will be no kidding salt crystals sitting in the non skid. But even with all the oil on the deck, it still rusts quickly. Need to weather it a whole lot more and add some more stains before adding rhe springs and the cross deck pendant. More pictures when I get to that point! -Peter

Just for you MARU- 1/16th AT-38B: Link to the build is here: The Smurfjet cheers Pete

my last built , nice kit for a nice plane , enjoy :

Mono Chrome has a number of kits but most look to be copies of other makers: https://www.scalemates.com/brands/monochrome--782 Since only CADs of the StuG are shown maybe they got a hold of the Trumpeter CADs? We'll have to wait until Nov, according to the 1999 link, when the Mono Chrome one will be released. Jari

Guys you will kill me... I want to go away from Eagle topic for last 2 months and you..... :-D For example this... not 32 scale but 48scale pylons for C/D Ealges can be usefull too ... https://www.kopeckyscalemodels.com/?page=2

Yesterday I assembled the wings. The kit provides a few options: one, two, or no bombs per wing, and the presence or absence of wing guns. I'm building mine with no bombs and the guns. The kit provides locating holes for the machine guns; don't use them because they won't line the barrel up with the hole in the wing. Instead, the kit instructions show using a photoetch frame for the guns, and an outline on the lower wings for placement. I used this and the barrels will line up. I'm using the Master barrels so I've cut off the kit parts. The Master (AM-32-120) set also includes the ring and bead sight and a detailed venturi tube. The wings fit together really well, but I removed the locating pins to make it easier. The photos show the unsanded wings just placed on the fuselage to show how well everything goes together: Cheers, Tom

That's definitely a possibility; some of the bezels associated with the oxygen instruments certainly look as if they were anodized with a blue dye, and the connections to the regulator, dirt trap etc. were often just left in a gold anodized finish. On the other hand, in some images is looks as if the blue on the button has chipped, more like paint would do and not quite what you'd expect from an anodized layer. Also, the economizers that are entirely bright blue do seem to have been painted, not anodized. I think actually both are possible - an anodized finish, and (over)painted in some blue (24 or bright blue). Well, the mandatory color for oxygen bottles, lines, etc was RLM 24. However, regulators/economizers had several finishes, as discussed above. I suppose the color of the fake windows may indeed have been the same as the bright blue on some regulators - but that does not seem to have been an official RLM color; possibly it matches a RAL paint?

While I wont say that I have every Typhoon reference out there, I do have quite a lot, and in my opinion, the Valiant Wings Volume 1 book, is still the best out there for details. Odd, while searching the web, I found Volume 1 at Hobbylinc for $40, as well as my own review of the same volume, which I had completely forgotten about.

Clear as mud. It's a verbal Rorschach ink blot test. Everyone will read that and read what ever they want to into it. Some see the words "highly detailed" and think one thing and others see the words like "trouble-free to build" and think that means something else. No real help on the question at hand. I guess we should ask one of the principals or just keep our eyes peeled for new CAD images.

Getting to Japan is only one area where travel to Japan can be affordable. If you plan ahead and book your flights early enough, you can get a good deal. But once you are in Japan, everything, and I mean everything, is much more affordable. You can find very cheap accomodation if you are willing to stay in a "capsule hotel", but you can get a very good hotel room in the heart of Tokyo for around 75 to 80 euro per night. Good luck finding a similarly-priced hotel in the heart of any other Western major city. Expect to pay at least twice as much for a hotel room in the heart of Dublin. Of course you can find more expensive acomodation if you wish. Then there is the food. Japanese people eat out a lot, which means that there are many food outlets that sell a variety of delicious (and authentic) Japanese dishes for less than what you would pay for a hamburger in a Western restaurant chain. Peter mentioned ramen. Picture a bowl of delicious ramen the size of half a basketball for the price of a pint of beer in Ireland. Of course you can spend more on fancier food if you wish. There is no tipping (tipping is illegal in Japan) tax is included, so you only pay the price you see. Then there is the transport system. It is fast and efficient and cheaper than Western equivalents. There is no exaggeration when I say that one week in Japan can cost at least 50% less than one week in other Western destinatons and my point is that if you can afford a holiday in the Western world you can more than afford to travel to Japan. Radu

Don't get me wrong, I do not think including extra detail in a kit is a bad thing, far from it. I'm simply saying there is a possibility that going with an uber expensive and ultimately detailed model for your first LSP may not be the best thing if you don't have an enormous budget to work with.

Unrestored ...

10565 - mine was shipped this week

I think Kotare mentioned going for ease of build so think Tamiya or ICM rather than ZM or Verlinden for engines. I'm also ok with that

I'm not done yet dutik!

Pastels are a great and IMO underutilized resource. Great work so far. Just one note, and your paint mule is probably a good place to experiment with this, in my hands at least application of a clear coat over pastels tends to lessen their visual impact (sometimes greatly lessen). So if you plan on flat coating over them, you may want them to look a bit over-done prior to the clearcoat. Best tested on scrap first, though.

Greetings All Hope veryone is well. Some progress has been made, albeit slowly. This has been quite the learning experience but Im so glad I did it. Its not a quick process in any way. Litho is a finicky material once its annealed but it isnt without consistent characteristics that can be identified and overcome. I think the best explanation I can give, is that, annealed litho spreads like peanut butter. You push it around or smear it to wear you want it to go. If youre working it on a buck, you tap it with the hammer gentley. Think of it this way, if you have a flat sheet and you tap in the center, the edges go up. If you tap at the edges, the center goes up. You bend it around curves by tapping along the curve in straight lines, back and forth towards the bottom of the curve. You walk the curve in by walking the material (pushing) with the hammer. I wont say its easy to do, but as you work with it, it does get easier..patience is key. Curves add a twist to the process and the ST-A nose is one big curve.I started with it because it seemed to be the most difficult aspect. So, its at the point where, after some edge clean up, the nose cap can go on. That operation will be tricky because of the curves and the tendency of contact cement to grab as soon as it touches. Ill use waxed paper between the cap and the buck as a standoff (I hope) to give me time to adjust the cap. No sanding will be done untill all components are in place so they can be blended together at the same time. Remember, the spinner needs to be litho covered as well. Ill have to fix the spinner seat before hand. I squeezed it a bit to hard and broke a bit of it around its OD. So here we are. All the panels have been permanently attached except for the nose cap...You can see where I pushed the spinner seat in. Still in its rough state, the finish currently was done using the spatuala I mentioned in my last post and my trusty ole fingernail. Its great tool. Its hard, smooth, nonabrasive and very capable of moving the litho around..the litho likes it. Clean straight edges are a must. Edges can be sanded by working inline with the edge, never perpendicular to it unless its supported. Still a very long way to go..but its getting there,one small step at a time. Right now my greatest concern is the motteling of the surface/material. I dont know if thats only on the surface or if it goes all the way thru. Right now the surface is pretty smooth and shouldnt take much to sand it out. Thats it it for today. I hope everyone is well... Be safe Best Geoff

from here on, the game gets complicated... one of my many weakness is on figures painting, i never achieve a result that I may call fully satisfactory. well, that's my be(a)st. the blue-green clothes of the HG are not well depicted, and I was reluctant to add any "pulp factor", so just light wounds, here. another little big complication I discovered was in the HG camo splinter pattern: it wasn't the heer's standard one, but it had smaller pattern and slight different colors, it's commonly called "splinter B". to paint it on figures big as my thumb was a nightmare, here we are in progress: meanwhile, I played around the engine, adding oil tank and lines, some electric wires, air intakes and ducts, and this plate that appears on pictures, but of wich I don't understand the use. I emulated it with a soda can plate and a little gizmo. then I pressed on with the fuselage: glued on the big window, and tested the landing gear. hey, it seems to hold! not so bad... but doing the aft doors, and comparing these with the pictures of the real ones, I realized the holes i cut in the fusealge are wrong. now is too late to correct the hole, so the only thing I can do is to adjust the door's internal frame to disguise a little bit the mistake. sigh. modeling is suffering, I know... cheers, P.

Well done! Now that you posted the pic, I remember you posting this one before. I thought it was really a creative display; I have seen them do that maneuver.

First things first, This Ceramic Tile look has to go!!

From my SBD build.