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Here's the A-6E I've been working on for the better part of this year. Ended up being one of my most work-intensive project, up there with the Trumpeter Tomcat. I'm generally really pleased with how she looks and man does this bird look different to all the needle-nosed fighters in my display cabinet. Note the correctly-shaped 300 gallon tank... thanks Ben! If you look close you'll notice the rear outboard Mk.20 is on slightly skew. Super irritating but for the life of me I cannot get that sucker off. I used two-component glue to mount the CBU's and MERs and boy is it strong. Anyhow, I'm thinking of building a little diorama with a red-shirt still working on that particular bomb. Onto the Tamiya Tomcat! Marcel

small progress still needs fine tuning

The F-4J Phantom II Tamiya 1:32 is a modeling classic. Made straight out of the box.

Shes BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!! I've missed you my sweet. I have put this off too long, and the first two go rounds with my favorite all time airframe (NOT kit) in 1/32nd were hard, but I think I ran out of steam right at the end of the last 2nd round right as most of the hardest parts had been done. My aim with this 3rd and (hopefully final) round of the build is to push through to the end and actually get a finished model out of it. There are still lots and lots of hard things to get done, but I had a list of the killers of the build, including the wheel wells, nacelles, full wing re-scribe, making the nose gear, adding the wings, making the engines and on and on. All but one really hard thing remains on the build, and that is the MLG. When last we left the build............... I had just started mocking up the MLG Here we are today! This is a shot just today, the day after Thanksgiving 2021, some two years and some months after starting this project, and right after I cleaned the bench after my AH-1G. *SIGH* LOTS of work yet to do! On her back once again to start the long climb to RE-figure out where I was and what i was doing when I last left off with the F7F nearly a year ago. I really wanted to get on with the last major hurtle in the build, the MLG, and get the stance of the model set before moving on to more exterior and detail work: I started with the MLG by assembling the main parts I had previously cut out and primed. I quickly found out in its current configuration and angles, the MLG had a substantial rake backwards, and to put it at the correct angle, meant the rear support arm came up short: Now the 1:1 also has a rake backwards, but its very slight, and much less substantial that what was going on with my gear. In order to correct this I had to make a new rear support arm, which I was planning on doing anyway, it just had to be slightly longer than OOB. This is made from cutting a channel in the OOB resin part, and making a new extended support arm out of stainless steel. It is only taped in position here, but will be glued together later to make a stout assembly. This new assembly while not 100% accurate depicts the way the actual support arm folds in the center section, unlike HpH had it, as a solid single part with a blade like protrusion: The outer support arms that fold on the 1:1 here are short about 1.5 mm as you can see, but that will be taken up by a scratch built mount I will make for them that will take that space up: Much better angle with the new support arm: That's all for this first installment of the 3rd series in this build. Hopefully the final series, as I intend to get this model finished. I've found some recent enthusiasm for modeling again, and have applied same to my all time favorite airframe and scale. Here's to rekindled passions! Cheers, thanks for staying with me and more progress to come!

As I have said before the one thing NO One least of all me wants anyone to see is how I build anything , assemble in Haste Fill and Sand later seems to be my ethic , but since I've been working on the Viggen I guess it's time to post something about it Yes the Bench is a Mess , it always is Deal with it! Yes the Tail is actually Purple , dammed Flash Any resemblance between me and the Viking is purely accidental! I adore these U/C legs - cleaned up and pauinted,(Alclad) - beautiful design and Executuon by Jet Mads Health and Safety can go chase themselves! and Finally the Camo that I will never talkabout ever again- Well you asked for it - I told you I can't take pics...!

Maru, thanks for the link to the drawing, I was aware of this website. Next.... ============= WHERE TO IMPROVE THE SHAPES The next issue to tackle is to discover “where” to correct the fuselage, wing and vertical tail shapes of this 1/32 SAAB Gripen. This took quite some investigation, also by measuring the 1/72 kit and looking at drawings and many many photos. Helpful was my home made 1/32 kit planform drawings to compare with kit parts. This was done with the computer, scanner and printer by enlarging drawings from 1/72 to 1/32 by factor 2,25. COCKPIT A quick check was done regarding the cockpit parts like the tub as I wanted to investigate proportions and width. In 1/32, detailing the cockpit is worthwhile. In those days it was still a bit secret with many photos showing the “mock up” at the time. Here the basic Revell kit parts are seen. A sort of Martin Baker mk.10 is suggested. That would be close to the MB mk.10 SL seat used in the real Gripen. I found that CMK had a set for a Mk.10 but is was far too wide to fit the kit tub. The basic Revell seat was taped together and checked with a same 1/32 Kitty Hawk Mirage 2000 Mk.10 seat. I concluded it would be a good idea to use this KH seat and update it. A quick check was done with the kit tub as seen here... More details will be added later on. The kit cockpit tub is very simple and at this stage only the base part will be set inside the fuselage nose. It can be used as platform to add at the details to be done at much later stages to avoid damage due to handling. A new instrument panel with side panels will than be made from scrap. FUSELAGE As noted earlier the kit fuselage is far too short. For increasing the fuselage length several cuts are required using the razor saw. [A] increasing the upper fuselage halve length: (1) the first large cut was made in the upper fuselage halve aft of the spine exhaust... (2) at the separated nose section a vertical cut was made at both side walls at the cockpit sill..... The nose and cockpit shapes were compared with the drawing… it looks more accurate now.... Note: as a result of the cockpit sill lengthening (with 4 mm) a 4 mm slightly longer “clear canopy” is needed; the kit part will be used: by sanding and polishing out the moulded kit frames and adding new rounded frames from card at the front edge and rear edge. [B] increasing the lower fuselage halve length: (3) make a cut slightly in front of the moulded nose gear bay. (4) make a cut in front of the main gear bay opening It was also decided to deepen the rear of the nose bay by removing a part of the nose gear bay "roof". In order to get more strength, a small secting was repositioned of the lower fuselage aft of the canard station. This small section was moved to the rear and now sits near the wing leading edge root... Parts can be shiften to get the 17 mm extension between nose section and rear fuselage as seen here... .... and seen here the lower sections shifted 17 mm... Here the overall idea is seen, making increasing the total length 4 mm + 17 mm = 21 mm. A CHECK WITH THE LANDING GEAR The lengthening of the fuselage affects the landing gear obviously. First kit doors and landing gears were cross checked. The distance between centers of nose wheels and main wheels at the real Gripen is about 5,25 m (so about 164 mm in 1/32). This number will be used to establish the location of the nose gear strut and the main gear bays and struts. It was concluded looking at the made cuts and shifted parts that the struts can be appropriately set at a correct location at the later stage. The main bays can be set at per fit at the changed rear fuselage insides. It was found that the kit main door parts are inaccurate. As the big main forward doors will be kept closed as seen on most parked Gripens and the main gear leg location will be kept, the effort is simple. The “closed forward” main doors will be “virtually” lengthened with a sort of card fairing (to be shown later). It was also found that the main wheels of the kit are too small in diameter (2,5 mm); but the kit nose wheels can be used (only about 0,5 mm too small) though these are found also in a ARMORY resin set; more about that later on. INTAKES The intakes were not that bad and can be reatined and installed with their kit part splitter plates. Inside the fuselage it was decided to suggest a sort on engine air funnel with card with an engine fan. A bulkhead was made and set in the upper fuselage to ensure it would not interfere with any main gear bays. I suggested a fan but later found out using the kit part was also an option, well I forgot about this. Note that the forward fuselage and aft section are not joined yet at this stage as first some work on the wing will be done. EXHAUST A sort of jet pipe will be set at the front of the exhaust with a part found in the spares box from probably a Eurofighter. (the kit “engine” parts were thus not used). The prepared and modified forward fuselage was assembled with pieces of card to get the required plugs of appropriate length. At the mid sections also card was set also internally to get strong joints. Card , putty / car filler and a lot of sanding was needed. When the cockpit sill was fine, the intakes were set with their kit part splitter plates. Again puttied and sanded. Inside the fuselage it was decided to suggest a sort on engine air funnel with card with an engine fan. A bulkhead was made and set in the upper fuselage to ensure it would not interfere with any main gear bays. Note that the forward fuselage and aft section are not joined yet at this stage as first some work on the wing will be done. ----------- WING MODIFICATION As noted earlier each wing half needs an extra about 5 mm span increase at the rear (including the inboard trailing edge flap); (total wing span increase 2x5 mm = 10 mm). The wing sweep at the leading edge is also improved that way. The inaccurate missile wing tip rails were be separated with a razor saw also enabling with sanding in flow direction a sweep correction at the wing tip ends. The inboard flaps were also separated. As regarding the wing, it was found also that the wing root span extension of 5 mm at the rear should be a bit less at the leading edge. At the leading edge root a small additional fairing kink is seen on the real Gripen. This will be made later on. The wing ailerons looked OK so were not changed. The spanwise pylon stations were checked with the 1/72 Revell kit but looked good enough. Though this wing correction is not 100% it improves the looks a lot. The wing root inserts will be made with card and putty. Inside, thick strips were glued. The upper and lower wing sections were joined, clamps used. The gaps will be closed with card between wing and the rear fuselage and puttied. All was aligned with the upper fuselage to keep any ridges and curves as limited as possible. The small indented grills were also filled with putty as they are inaccurate and at wrong locations. Some new engraving will done later. The lower areas are seen here... A check was done with the drawing and it looked much better now! (note: camera lens shows a bit distortion) The upper rear fuselage can be kept as per kit and will be used to install the vertical tail and (changed) exhaust later on. To be continued...

And here it is...Result of few weeks of hard work... Resin 1/32 DH.90 Dragonfly from Lukgraph. Great set, has some minor problems but everything is quite easy to correct. PM me if you'll ever need help with it

Part Three The wheel well doors really needs some TLC too, the layers shows through something fierce....on both sides. A bit worried about the small bulges on the doors...will probably ruin them I made liquid putty from green stuff and sloshed on. The repaired flaps got some too. Sanded... And finished off with primer. That´s all for today. Cheers!

hi Zac, it helped a lot, thank you again! I spent quite some time watching closely to these, and I found these really interesting, I also understood more about the peculiar habits of that kite, awesome! well, tonight little advancing in the cockpit area: I assembled an electrical panel as per photos. and then I started to add wires on it, here just the thin ones. next, when it will be glued at station, the thickest ones. and what will be seen (maybe) and a little more wiring in the front too. added a pressure tank behind the instrument panel, I'm not sure what it was for, but in a couple of photos you can see it. definitively placed the upper tank and the seat-locker in the rear compartment, testing in the main tank. now it begins to be too crammed, I need to shoot some color on that before adding the next items. so, I added the last things on the right front side before the colors: command of the cowling flaps, command to release the emergency landing flares placed in the tail, and flare gun. the two panels with plasticard discs will serve as a basis for some other commands, but I will put them on later, however I still have to invent the way to make them. and that's it, for this session. next time, some colors, I hope! cheers, Paolo.

Here's where I am with my Tamiya Tomcat. I started this build by taking the raised panel line parts on a vacation in Tuscany last year, while others where reading books etc around the pool, I was scribing :-) I can highly recommend this approach, I would usually have trouble finding the patience to scribe this plane but really enjoyed it in this setting. Plus I has exceptional light. I then made a lot more headway earlier in the year with this project when I had a bunch more time on my hands. Oh, before I get going, here's the subject: Rear fuselage, scribed: Front, note vents, thanks Ben! I've already added the red and blue lights, made from red and blue acrylic sheet: GE engine conversion: My friend Kai put me onto this method of simulating the hex cap bolts around the engine shroud. Sawing the tiny aluminum rod into even tinier pieces took some patience. The "bolts" will only be inserted towards the end of the build. And that's current state, still needs some scribing and finishing: Wings... I scribed into the flap line some more to get a crisper effect: Rivets on the slates: Lights have also been added: There is a horrible sink mark running the entire length of the flaps on both wings, somewhat painful to get rid of. But at this point the wings are ready for the actual paint to go on: A major shortcoming of the Tamiya kit is that the intakes don't feature proper trunking all the way back to the engine. Even though this aircraft is land-based and I could hence use intake covers, I didn't want to go there. Fortunately I had used the Zacto intakes on my Trumpeter F-14 and hence had the Trumpeter internals left over. I modified these and got them to fit pretty easily. That's all for now folks! Before I check out, I will say that I am enjoying this Tomcat build more than the Trumpeter Tomcat, by a lot. Even though the kit is ancient, I feel it's "honest" in that the shapes and outlines are generally correct and thought through, it's then up to the modeller to take it to modern standards. Plus the general shape, esp the forward fuselage, looks accurate. Marcel

Gettin' there... Interior fuselage sides with ribs and stringers are in design now. Some of what you see here will change or be tweaked a bit. Instrumentation, cannons and other details yet to be added. The cannon design is done. Shooting for a December, 2021 release. For assembly, glue the Revell kit's fuselage halves together. Paint and assemble the observer's station, then slide the station into the Revell fuselage through the wing opening in the bottom. If also using the Model Monkey cockpit, paint and assemble both the cockpit and the observer's station. Glue the observer's station to the cockpit. Once the glue has set, slide the entire model into the Revell kit fuselage through the wing opening. Epoxy is recommended for a strong bond. Working towards achieving this:

Hi friends at this topic I'll show one of ours Mig-21 MF, used for reconnaissance. The inspiration of the build is this bird: Those jets used a recon pods with three Zenit AFA-39 cameras. We've got those pods from Soviets Mig-21 R, so our Mig's become at MF-R's. For this project I've used the trumpeter MF kit at 32-nd scale. Also for better details, a lot of AM - BigED, resin nose-cone, air-scoops and antenas from quickboost, static-disschargers and pitot-tube from master, resin wheels from reskit and of course a lot of scratch - mainly the recon pod The paints as always are from tamiya, alclads for metal parts and some oils for the minor weathering. So here it is: Thank you always for stopping by and I hope you will like this beauty Cheers friends. P.S.: Special Greetings to my friend Dany Boy

For a change I was motivated to get right on it, re attached, filled, sanded and masked. And repainted. Faded the Dark Green and removed the masks over the Dark Earth, looks good to me But Looks like the masks have pulled off the faded paint on this side, so off we go again, masked up and ready to go with the Dark Earth again. Will fade it tomorrow. Cheers Dennis

Part two Leaving the wings aside for at least 24 hours I started looking at the canards. The fiting of the canards flaps are really smart. It´s a printed part that fits into a groove in the flaps and... And the other side fits perfectly into a groove in the canard, a strong bond is possible. Now the canards themself are a bit fragile and care needs to be taken when removing them from the casting blocks! First you need to remove the block it self, it´s easy enough just run a x-acto blade along the straight edge on both sides. Then a pair of pliers with long thin prongs are really practical. You just grab as far as you can and start wiggeling until the resin gives way along the line you just drew with the knife. This is what engineers call a calculated fail point or predicted fail point, by design you can break something clean off without loss of material. Perfect for brittle materials like resin. Now it gets tricky, to remove the goods from the part wihtout breaking the fine details or the really thin fillets you got to be really careful. I pulled a knifeblade along the seam and then I used my nippers at the thin end and carefully just made a cut. This gives you a small strip that you can bend with your finger until the failpoints give. you will probalbly not make a clean break all the way tough. Again I use my thin pliers and grip it across instead of along and bend to snap off pieces along the part. Lost a little piece at the root and a bit of the thin fillet ...oh well it is survivable. Next I brought fourth THE DREMEL! and cleaned the edges. Until I got a good fit to the fuselage. Added the vortex generators to the canards... JA has two on each canard and AJ, SH, SF and SK has one on each canard. With that the canards are put to rest for now. End of part two, more in part 3

Thanks for the visits and comments, very appreciated! I built up and tore apart the gear legs/trailing arms 3 times before I got to the point I liked the look. OK, they're not zackly accurate but the look is close, once the aerodynamic fairings go on maybe they'll look closer to prototype? The seams have been dealt with and sanded out and I've added the de-ice boot/lip to the engine air intakes...kinda crude but coming along; the two brackets will hopefully end up as gear doors at some point. and that's where I am at quitting time tonight Thanks for looking

So, have found a home for this build. A fellow aviator who's dad was in VF-114. Flew this exact jet to provide cover for Denny Wisely and Jim Laing after they punched out during a strike on Hanoi. Denny Wisely is pretty well known as the first fighter pilot to shoot down 2 planes in the war. Jim Laing became one of the initial instructors at Top Gun. This guy's father was one if the first students (he's even got a copy of the first tactics manual). His dad is featured prominently in Brad Elward's New History of Top Gun. Happy to have it be going to a home where it will be appreciated--been an interesting conversation as we compare notes. -Peter

What was I saying about Rushing things - I do see what you mean about the nose Oh Bum - where did I leave the masking tape ? - The moral SLOW DOWN and read the instructions properly - thank you

LOL, yes, you are correct. In order to avoid any further ribaldry, let's move away from my oft admired seat and turn our attention to my cockpit... First up, the IP. This is straight OOB as Revell intended it with the addition of a splash of paint and a dry brush. I highlighted the instrument dials by scraping the paint off with a cocktail stick and adding a blob of crystal clear. All the details are as moulded. I have a True Details IP and en Eduard detail set. To be honest, I don't see that they add anything at all. I have a couple of small decals to add, but nothing that will change the fundamental nature of what you see below: And now the actual pit. Same treatment as the IP. The first image is lightened to show something (I forget what) and the second image is closer to the coal black reality. The messy half moon hole in the cockpit floor is where I have surgically removed the joy stick so that the resin seat will fit. I will re-install it in a cunning way. In the meanwhile, I have been assembling the air intake ducting (fiddly) and the tailplanes. Soon I will buttoning things up.

I'm back... Finally completed my P-47D so it's time to get serious about this build. Before I show any progress, a warning - this build (I suppose like all of mine) will be a very slow project. If things get too hairy, I've a KH Blackhawk with a ton of aftermarket stuff calling me to turn her into an OIF UH-60L. Let's keep our fingers crossed that I can stay focused. First off - the obligatory box shots. The box: Yep, the same one you guys have seen for the last decade or so. Nothing special except it's pretty damned big! Shot #2 - the aftermarket stuff. It's a horrible picture. So I'll detail what I've got so far are: Eduard F-4C/D exterior details. GT Resin Exhaust cans AIMS Martin Baker Mk 5 Ejection Seats GT Resin ALQ-71 ECM pod Fundekals Wolfpack Set I'll go into details on all of these as I start to use them. Sharp eyed readers may note the lack of any upgrades to the cockpit aside from the early version bang-seats. That's because I'm still waiting for Quinta to get off their butts and release the F-4C cockpit set they've been promising for ages. So far they have done the J and E. Hopefully they get the C out before I start the cockpit. Otherwise, I'll go with the Red Fox set. The RF set is very nice but the Quinta ones appear to be just a bit sharper in details and they also provide the cockpit side wall details such as the prominent circuit breakers and also smaller other bits that RF did not. First order of business should have never have been required. For some reason Tamiya must have used their B Team to research and design this kit. They apparently used only a single Phantom as their reference and they one they chose was previously used for ground crews to practice battle damage repairs. The fuselage is covered with raised patches that need to be removed. Here is a very illustrative picture from another build that shows how bad it is. It took me quite a while to sand and then rescribe/re-rivet all the surface detail that was lost. A major pain in the ass. I've hit the fuselage with some Flory wash just to check the work. I've got multiple areas that need additional cleanups, so this is very much a work in process. Sorry guys, I didn't realize how horrid these pictures were until I saw them posted here. I'll go back and take some detail shots when the lighting is a bit better. Anyway, that's gonna be it for tonight. Next up will be correcting the intakes. Until then....

Well guys, she is finally done! I'll be posting more pics on the Ready for Inspection pages shortly. Cheers, Marcel

Was picking up the Mustang and the others.. Saw this 2nd hand P-47 with all the AM for the equivalent of £49.50. Pretty good deal eh?

Did not use nose correction made by Barracuda. This beast fought me all the way. I wish to thanks Mr. Chuck Sawyer, for his precious pictures of his build, they helped me a lot during this build, and where a great inspiration. Revell decals are great (printed by Cartograf I think). The roundels are painted using homemade masks. Eduard PE to make the office a little bit busier, home made seat belts using spare PE seatbelt buckles. The pitot tube is made from steel tubes. Hope you like my model fellas.

decal tests https://www.facebook.com/339312286698433/photos/pcb.910861976210125/910861729543483/?type=3&theater

Hello I finally took time to take pictures of my Mirage 2000-5 that I completed some months ago. KH kit, nothing to say, everything has been said. I used some 3D printed stuff from Eric Jolly (wheels, seat, dashboard and external Mica IR pylons). Decals are from FFSMC prod. Handbrush painted with Xtracolor enamels

Puttying it forward.. It´s sunday and updatey time! This update is a bit picture intensive so I have to divide it into 3 parts. Ah...sweet gaps! The wing fillets are incredebly thin and that´s why it looks like a rat has munched on it. I will have to putty it royally! Looks a little better on the other side but it will need putty none the less. Same for the underside... And some repairing here and there. I begun with masking and puttying... End of part one more in part 2

It's difficult to generalise about assembly ships, each one was a one-off and almost unique in its configuration. All guns and often complete turrets would be removed, although some turrets were left as look-out stations. I think you would be correct in removing the entire belly turret. The bomb bay was probably left empty, to save weight, but that I can't say with certainty. What I can say is that they didn't carry a bomb load. The aircraft that stayed with its group all the way to the target was not, I believe, the 458th's "Ape", but "Wham Bam" (41-21738) of the 453rd BG. This was often flown by the Group exec, one Major James Stewart - yes, that James Stewart. It was Stewart who was flying it while the group formed up on a mission to Bordeax, and who kept with the group all the way to the target and back. By my reading it was spontaneous decision that even the crew knew nothing about until the French coast appeared. On return he apparently swore the crew to secrecy, even though the Group Commander wanted to know where they'd been the last 6 hours. So no, they would not have carried guns on that raid. (Assembly Ships of the 2nd Air Division, Robert Gray, Scale Aircraft Modelling, 1999)

Thank you ALL for your comments and encouragement, as ever it’s much appreciated. Regarding the IP, a quick Google will show very many variations so it’s potentially quite a minefield to get “right”, whatever your own right is. Mine is the Tiger Moths that I’ve flown at Henstridge and the AIMS IP ticks that box very well, and to be honest I feel that putting a Yahu IP into a model, excellent as they are, is taking away a little of the satisfaction that I get from creating the model but I’m sure that’s just me.

Never go full Wishlist…

hi, I'm still exploring the site, and I discovered this nice initiative. one thing I don't like about social media is writing hidden behind a keyboard, so it seems to me a nice thing to do, introduce myself by putting my face on it! ladies and gentlemen, a slightly younger myself just few years ago, when I still flew my beloved and never forgotten MD82. you can pick up the blue or the red pill.. nothing changes, just the red one it's at cherry taste. and nowadays, while trying to have some reading when one of my seven cats has decided it's snuggles time. cheers, Paolo

OK: The car now has a new gearbox, the grandchildrens' Christmas presents are bought, and most of the other real life stuff is done and dusted; and of the "couple of other models" one is done and the other - a P-51D in the Revell GB - seems to be languishing a bit. So I've picked this one up again. I seem to have spent ages tinkering in the cockpit, and suddenly the fuselage is together, and I didn't get any photos before closing up. The engine is also substantially done, I think, although I'm thinking the cylinders may be a bit dark - what does the team think?

It's been some time Winter in NZ, working (or not working) in an uninsulated garage, buying a house, moving, getting the new house sorted out to mine and my wife's requirements, setting up the model bench....but it's back on! Progress at the moment - Managed to mask and paint all the canopy interiors, and pop on the canopy release and grab handles, attach the canopies to the fuselage. S/B the "washing line" antenna and the HF mast (different on the C-1/3 variants- older style), and relocated the mounting point on the lower fuselage. Excuse the focus on the one pic... Wings are on, she's ready for the first coat of primer to check for seam/scratch/filler issues! Lovely beast this! Let's hope there not too much prep work!! Cheers Iain

checking before painting.

OK, folks, it’s time once again to kick off our Christmas raffle for the year, but first, a few basic rules/guidelines we intend and encourage all to follow/observe. Please real all of these guidelines very carefully, as we’d like this to go a smooth as possible for us all, and observing these rules/guidelines, will most certainly help in this regard. Note: This will be one large, all-encompassing drawing, not dozens of mini-drawings, so entering the drawing for very specific items, will not take place. 1. Firstly, only LSP kits and related AM items will be accepted as donations (books and magazines are OK, so long as they are aviation related). Tools and supplies are also quite acceptable. 2. Whatever you may choose to donate, you will be responsible for physically shipping the item(s), so please bear this in mind. Since there is absolutely no guarantee that recipient will live in your own country, shipping costs should be considered for all items donated, prior to making this commitment. Given the ongoing pandemic issue(s), recipients should be aware that possibly delays may occur regarding shipping times. Please make allowances for these possible delays, and be patient with the donors, as much will be completely beyond their control. 2a. Donations are not required to be considered as a possible recipient. Donate if you choose, but no one is under any sort of obligation to do so. 3. Inclusion of photos of donated items is encouraged, either directly in the raffle thread itself, or by sending to me for inclusion on post #1. 4. LSP is prepared to offer limited shipping assistance (financial), to those that may require it. (This applies to international shipping specifically and exclusively, as local costs should be reasonably manageable for most.) 5. Swapping is not really recommended, but neither is it discouraged. If you do decide to swap however, we encourage the individual recipients to make those arrangements amongst yourselves (after receiving items from the respective donors), leaving the donor out of the equation altogether. Shipping costs under these circumstances, will be at the responsibility of the recipient(s), so should be agreeable to by said recipient(s), and will be exempt from LSP shipping assistance. 6. Common sense dictates that members that had not yet served out their full moderation period prior to drawing commencement (ie, today), be excluded from participation in this event, unless finished with moderation period by actual draw date (December 26th), with none of the initial (moderated) posts being acceptable in this specific thread. 7. We fully expect that donors will make every attempt to ship items in a timely fashion, but we also well understand that sometimes work/life can get in the way, so if you are a recipient, please be patient. 8. If multiple items are donated by one individual, please make it perfectly clear if they are offered up as one package, or as individual raffle items. This will save the staff a fair amount of time, by not having to chase down clarifications. 9. Every effort will be made to assure that everyone that desires to participate, will be entered as a participant, and this will be checked and verified daily, and in chronological order. 10. If you desire to participate in this raffle (as a raffle entrant, not a donor), please clearly state that (within this thread), so that you may be entered as such. If you do not clearly state that you wish to be entered, you will not be. Donors are encouraged to state what they intend to donate, also within this thread, and that information too will then be logged on page 1, and again, in chronological order. 11. In the possible event that there are more items offered than participants, a second drawing will be pulled for those specific items, using all names submitted. 12. Last, but certainly not least, if you enter into the drawing at all as a possible recipient, please make it a point to contact donor in a reasonable amount of time (3 weeks) after the drawing date (December 26th) if you win something, or you forfeit that prize (at donor discretion). Donors should not have to chase down recipients, under any circumstances. Also, please make sure you have adequate room in your PM folder(s) for receiving messages; so by all means, clean out that inbox, if full. Note: Raffle results will be announced on December 26th, either late afternoon or early evening, probably early evening. These guidelines will be amended, when/or as deemed necessary. Donated Items (Kits): Special Hobby Brewster Buffalo - Donated by Alex Trumpeter F6F-3 Hellcat - Donated by r0t0rdr1ver Trumpeter MiG-15 - Donated by Dany Boy Hasegawa P-40? - Donated by Winnie Eduard Bf 108 ProfiPack - Donated by Rick Griewski Hasegawa Ki-61 Tony - Donated by Fanes Revell Fw 190F-8 - Donated by Jack Kitty Hawk T-28C - Donated by Phartycr0c Hasegawa Fw 190A-5 - Donated by Dennis7423 Hasegawa Bf 109G-4 ("Hartmann") - Donated by coogrfan Hasegawa A6M5c - Donated by smoke417 Trumpeter MiG-3 (with AM) - Donated by Dukie99 Trumpeter SBD-3 Dauntless - Donated by Dukie99 Hobby Boss F-84E Thunderjet - Donated by Jack Hasegawa Me 163B - Donated by RadBaron Revell 1/32 He 162 (with Quinta cockpit and Fusion V-tail conversion) - Donated by seiran01 Revell Spitfire MkIX - Donated by Rockie Yarwood Revell Bf 109G-6 - Donated by Telepatu Revell Super Cub #04208 - Donated by Whitey Donated Items (Books): (One) HMH title, winners choice - Donated by Nic C.D. (One) Valiant Wings book - winners choice of title - Donated by Trak-Tor (One) Valiant Wings book - winners choice of title - Donated by Trak-Tor (2) He 219 books, (1) Kagero & (1) Valiant Wings - Donated by Neo One KLP book, winner's choice - Donated by Jeroen_R90S (4) KLP Luftwaffe books - Donated by Maru5137 Aichi 99 Kanbaku "Val" Units 37-42 - Donated by John1 (These four books are one gift) Ki-61 and Ki-100 Aces - Donated by John1 Luftwaffe Mistel Composite Bomber Units - Donated by John1 Dornier Do-24 Units - Donated by John1 Donated Items (AM): CAM F-4S decals - Donated by themongoose CAM Phantoms Phorever decals - Donated by themongoose Caracal A-10 Warthog decals - Donated by themongoose Eagle Strike A-10 Warthog decals - Donated by themongoose Eagle Strike A-10 Warthog decals (2) - Donated by themongoose Reid Air F/A-18E/F Super Hornet decals - Donated by Landrotten Highlander AOA VMFA-212 F-4 Phantom decals - Donated by Out2gtcha Draw decals P-51D Mustang decals - Donated by Out2gtcha Multiple MiG and Mirage 2000 items - Donated by LSP_Kevin (Four) 1:24 scale Barracuda wheel sets - Donated by LSP_Kevin Multiple decals sets - Donated by LSP_Kevin Aviaeology Beaufighter decals - Donated by LSP_Ron (3) CMK sets for A6M - Donated by Dragon (2) Two Bobs F/A-18 Hornet decals - Donated by Dragon One each of entire airscale inventory, winners choice of scale - Donated by Peter (airscale) Group of AM items (to be provided with MiG-15 kit offered by Dany Boy) - Donated by Rick Griewski Superscale F-14 Tomcat decals (VF-211) - Donated by blackbetty CAM P-51D decals - Donated by Dennis7423 Eduard (Brassin) Aim-9D missiles - Donated by Dennis7423 Aires F-16 burner cans & wheel bays - Donated by panzerrob Two Bobs F-16C (32-031) decals - Donated by Daywalker Two Bobs F-16C (32-033) decals - Donated by Daywalker Two Bobs F-16C (Alaskan) decals - Donated by Daywalker Aires F-14D 'pit set (2174) - Donated by steinerman (these three as one gift) Aires F-14 wheel well set (2182) - Donated by steinerman (these three as one gift) Aires F-14D burner nozzles set (2117) - Donated by steinerman (these three as one gift) Werners Wings MH-60 decals & Reskit rotor head - Donated by Hawkwrench Colors and Markings vol 12 - MiG kill markings Vietnam - Donated by phantom (all four as one gift) Colors and Markings vol 10 - US Navy and USMC Cag aircraft - Donated by phantom (all four as one gift) Detail and Scale vol 46 - EA-6B - Donated by phantom (all four as one gift) Detail and scale vol 19 - A-10 Warthog - Donated by phantom (all four as one gift) Zotz F-84E decals, Part 2 of a series: USA, Greece and Portugal - Donated by Rick Griewski (for winner of HB F-84E kit) Eduard “braces”, Photo-etch, 32-058 - Donated by Rick Griewski (to go to winner of Hasegawa Me 163 kit) Two Bobs 32-034 A-7 Corsair decals - Donated by red Dog Mil Spec 32-009 VF-143 F-14B Tomcat decals - Donated by red Dog Bf 109 AM - Donated by Rick K Fw 190A/F-8 AM - Donated by Rick K Two 1/32 Leading Edge Sabre deal sheets - Donate by Rocky Yarwood WWII decal bundle - Donated by Juggernut Newer(ish) decal bundle - Donated by Juggernut Bf 109 decals, Aero Master 32010 Early Eastern Friedrichs (part 1) and Techmod 32029 Bf109G-2 - Donated by Thomas Lund (3) sets of Eduard Brassin 1/32 Wheels - He219, Zero and Spitfire (sets 632016, 632087 & 632038) - Donated by machine_marty Fox One 32-003 F-4J's in SE Asia & Two Bobs 32-032 F-16C Aviano Vipers - Donated by Modelpig Donated Items (Tools/supplies): Donated Items (Other): $50 Amazon gift card (electronic version) – Donated by myself and P-51D Man (will not be available until 01 19 22 though) Have fun, folks, and good luck to you all. (I will amend this list, as and when new items are added, or to clarify/amend desired guidelines.)

Howdy folks, K2 is at it again, this time with a review of Kagero's La-5 book: Kagero Lavochkin La-5 Thanks, Kevin! Kev

After a brief moment of turning the air blue, I decided to press on. I used strip styrene to fill the gap with cement then coated it all in super thin CA to make sure it wouldn't pop apart. Which it still did a bit. I then sanded it all flush. I'm now working on the rest of the fuselage seams which aren't anywhere as bad.

Thanks Chuck! In the kit of version F with consoles everything is fine, I checked. Apparently they fixed the error. The only thing, they forgot to make the boxes for the maps on the right consoles. I made them, it's not difficult.

Can I just add I'm pleased to see the scheme referred to correctly as Fields and Meadows rather the lazy 'splinter scheme'. I physically detest some modellerspeak such as 'Tonka' for Tornado (nobody ever referred to them as that) and 'bang seat' for ejection seat (Note 'ejection', not 'ejector' seat).

Update soon

I've been thinking about it for quite a while Richard so I hope the actual matches the vision! Engines.....love 'em or hate em?! The kit engine of the famous Gipsy Major, is rather lacking in detail. Compare the left and right sides with the Lukgraph 3D-printed one above in both pictures: but if you're planning on doing anything like this: then the Lukgraph engine is a must:

Don't know if many follow the company, Jet Art Aviation, they have resurrected several Harriers and a Tornado most to "fast taxi" status. They just finished a FA2 , this video shows the results, maybe a useful reference for those getting getting to grips with Trumpeters offering. Link to Youtube Video

Been a member for 10 years this year and have never participated in this annual event. Not this year. Please add me to both lists. I will PM you with what I'll be donating. Thanks - Mike

While that was all happening I started looking at the turrets. Here's the Cold War Studio tail turret on the left compared to the kit one. The kit turrets I got are the updated ones where they polished the frosted sections compared to the original release. The Cold War Studio nose turret is on the right in this pic. The big challenge will be getting the internal parts into the turrets. That's the puzzle I'm sorting out at the moment.

Major update (reporting in) The cockpit is done and the fuselage closed up. Sadly the cockpit's cross bars weren't a good fit even after I cut them down ~2mm. Luckily this won't show and the fuselage did close (althoough with some gaps/steps). First of all a glamour shot of the IPs: The front coaming/fuselag/engine cowl is a tricky multi piece assembly. One side looks fine.. big gaps on the other side But nothing too drastic with some gentle force. The photo shows the test assembly. Before comitting to glue, the toothpick was shortenend and did spread the part to the appropriate size. Unfortunately I had to choose between a step on the upper or lower rear fuselage. No real choice, so I went with the bottom and black CA as filler The engine cowling suffered from poor manufacturing. The disappearing rivets are a reminder of the horrible surface from Italeri's Starfighter.. The orange peel is a surprise but for sure not a welcome one! The port side is a little better but far from what I expect from ICM kits But it's not too bad overall and should be an easy fix. To conclude with something nice: here's another shot with a look into the cockpits to enjoy I'll tackle the engine cowl in the next days - when I'm in the mood and then the paint booth isn't too far away. Which reminds me: still need to draw the masks for the insignia and unit emblem. Joachim

Superb work Marcel: accurate, detailed and realistic all the way through. Rich

Gorgeous Phantom..! Spooky is always a welcome sight and one wearing "Dem Bones" is even better ... Really nice work on the paint and weathering ... -Gregg

Hahaha....The Hagbard Viggen! LOVELY!!! Well it really rains Viggens here right now Great work, mate now bring it over the finish line!

Turns out incremental but regular progress is good for both the project & my headspace. Who’d have thunk it? More work on the suspension locators this week. This work is critical for the alignment of the suspension itself, as well as ensuring all of the wheels will touch the ground! Making my mistakes in CAD rather than in real life is much more efficient. All going well, I’ll be able to get the drive module on the printer before Christmas. Thanks for checking in.

Great to see you start this, Max! I'm sure it's going to be fabulous. Aerocraft also has some parts for the Tiger Moth, including 2 sets of wheels: https://aerocraftmodels.bigcartel.com/product/de-havilland-dh82-tiger-moth-spoked-resin-wheels https://aerocraftmodels.bigcartel.com/product/de-havilland-dh82-tiger-moth-smooth-cap-resin-wheels Some brass interplane struts: https://aerocraftmodels.bigcartel.com/product/de-havilland-dh82-tiger-moth-brass-wing-struts And some brass landing gear: https://aerocraftmodels.bigcartel.com/product/de-havilland-dh82-tiger-moth-brass-undercarriage Looking forward to more of your progress, Max! Kev

Wheels! The ICM wheels are provided with the DH logo embossed on the hubcaps, which is probably fine if you're planning to do a pristine Club Tiger Moth, but in practice during the war years, from my research, wheel caps with half a dozen bolts to remove every time were quickly discarded. The option to the modeller then is to try to find a pair from a Revell kit, or buy a new set from MH Design Scale Models Studio: As can be seen, they are also 3D printed and are very good indeed. You have the full range of options - DH logo, or not, or wheel covers or not. The picture posted above showing the engine of a Tiger Moth is also useful for wheel detail, but here's a little extra: The lettering on the tyre wall needs toning down it's true, but they look pretty accurate to my eyes. Comparing with the ICM wheel: ....it's perfectly fine but if you want that little extra the MH one is the one to go for.

Lovelly model, just add Master from Poland stuff, great addition to this model! Hope you like my model