ninjrk

Thanks and probably way past subtle! But yes, the aluminum especially needs toning down with some filters and washes. Then the accumulated grease and oil staining from 5 months at the front. I had no interest in displaying the engine but it's going to hurt a bit to bury this in the fuselage. The folks at WNW did an outstanding job on this kit. I can't wait to see their Fokker D.VII, Pfaltz D.IIIa, and Roland. Matt

Well, I had to paint the engine. Apologies for the bluriness of the photos. And, of course, besides knocking off half the ignition wires (fortunately, the engine will be closed up so I doubt if you could see them anyways) isn't it amazing how you can prime and paint and everything looks great, 30 seconds of drybrushing and the lousy seam just pops out at you? Bondo to the rescue! By the way, any aftermarket for those big numbers on the first cylinder out there? Matt

Wow, that is lovely work. I really can't get over the seat, the "leather" is just beautiful. Matt

A bit more progress, did the wiring for the other side, ued a combination of 15 pound test fishing line and 28 Gauge wire. Quick shot of Tamiya primer shows a couple of areas that need more sanding. Matt

Slight update, happily going blind drilling very, very small holes for the wires. Of course, I doubt if you'll even be able to see them when the fuselage is closed up but what the heck! Matt

Thanks all. I haven't picked a scheme yet and honestly will use artistic license on the beliefe that we haven't photo records of EVERY jasta's Albatros, right? I am leaning towards having the fuselage be partially painted over. I'm really impressed with the quality of kit and the fit is very, very nice. About my only beef is that the instructions don't point out when to use which optional parts, so if you're not modeling an obvious reference there's little guidance if you should use an asbestos wrapped pipe or not. Nitpicky to the nth degree I know but I had to find something. Hopefully I'll get the various tubing attached tonight, need to pick up another spool of 28G wire! Matt

Well, I've been fighting the urge to start yet another collection of model types but the Wingnut and Roden 1918 fighters in 1/32 were just too much to resist. So, off I go. Got the engine together and will add some hoses and such, although most of this lovely engine will be hidden from sight. By the way, I hope everyone else out there building this kit is smarter than I am I spent at least 15 minutes fumbling with the engine supports and was cursing WNW for making such a fiddly assembly with barely locking attachments. Then I glanced at the ever so helpful indentations in the front of the fuselage and realized I could use those to get everything set just right. Duh. . . Now to finish this part and to start on the cockpit. This kit really is a little gem. Matt

Yeah, I got my D.Va on Saturday and it is gorgeous. Heck, the instruction book alone almost qualifies as a Windsock mini-datafile! Can't wait to start working on it this weekend. Matt

According to Wingnut Wings back in October via europeanmodeler forums, they are releasing one next year. 32001 Junkers J.1 - available now 32002 LVG C.VI - available now 32003 SE.5a Hisso - available now 32004 Bristol F.2b Fighter - available now 32005 Gotha G.IV - available 2010 32006 Pfalz D.IIIa - available 2010 32007 DH.9a - available 2010 32009 Albatros D.V - available 2009 32010 Hansa Brandenburg W.29 - available 2010 32011 Fokker D.VII - available 2010 32012 RE.8 - available 2010 32013 Sopwith Pup - available 2009 32014 FE.2b - available 2010 32018 Fokker E.II/III - available 2011 (new announcement) 32019 Pfalz D.XII - available 2011 (new announcement) 32022 Roland D.VIa - available 2010 32028 DH.2 - available 2010 Matt

Which reminds me, aside from a very few scattered pictures of her on the web, are there any walkarounds of Lulu Belle out there? As an aside, it's always fascinated me how poorly the Shooting Star is covered in print. I wonder why that is? Matt

That's me on a good day. I measure, mark, use paper templates, etc and more often than not it takes 2-3 tries before I have the piece right. Let's not even discuss the pain when I try and bevel the pieces before assembly. . . Matt

Any chance that someone is planning a P-80A conversion kit? Aside from scratching the cockpit and altering the canopy there doesn't seem to be that much major work involved so it won't stop me from doing it myself but it's nice to get a drop-in conversion instead of my cut 20-times-then-measure approach to scratchbuilding! Matt

BTW, for those wanting to convert it to a P-80A, here are some photos I took of the P-80A shell at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo. Kinda rough but may prove useful. Matt

Well, I'll be backdating mine to an -A, so it wouldn't just be you! Now, can someone please do a Meteor F.1 or F.3 and a FH-1 please? Matt

So, I got the a-1 kit of the Me-262 and am getting ready to start building. As I'm merrily purchasing aftermarket I've been contemplating the Big Ed set from Eduard for the kit but am wondering if it will actually improve the kit much, as it already looks really, really nice. has anyone used this set for the kit and does it really add a whole lot? Thanks for any and all help, Matt

I would be so up for that, especially if it were an early F-84. However, my grail of jets in 1/32 are for Meteors and P/F-80's. First person who does a 1/32 Meteor F.1/F.3 or P-80A gets my first born child. She might complain a bit but she'll understand in time. . . Matt

I forgot that I scanned some of the Model Art stuff back when I was trying to figure out what modifications were needed for the kit. I threw them up on webshots if anyone wants to look at 'em. http://community.webshots.com/myphotos?act...security=sCZlOh Matt

George E-whatever the heck the rest of his name is has it at his site as well http://www.arawasi.jp/salebook.hp/ma.html I've ordered from him numerous times and he's always been simply great and ships things quickly. He's where I got most of my Ki-61 stuff from. Which reminds me, do you have this book yet? It's all on the Tei series but the photos are beutiful! http://www.arawasi.jp/salebook.hp/244.html Matt

I think the Model Art drawings are nicer than the Maru Mechanic or FAOW ones but they are of the long-nosed version. However, there are some really nice side-view plans of the various marks. Beyond that, there are some really nice detail photos of the armament after being removed from the plane and detail shots that I haven't seen In the Maru Mechanic, FAOW, Schiffer book, or the Hien book. I'm not quite willing to give away my book but I do have a scanner and some free time. I can shoot some scans to you, if you'd like. Matt

How nice for me. . . I think that there is some fuselage configuration changes to be made and if I could find good drawings maybe I could make them. Unfortunately, good drawings of the different marks are hard to come by. I think I've got all of the decent Japanese and English language references, so I guess it'll be picture comarison time! Your stuff does look amazing, just tell me where to send the blank check and I'm all over your update set. Matt

I did a quick scroll-through of the topic and didn't find the answer, so apologies if it's already been given. Is your end result to be a -tei model or are you modifying the fuselage to make an earlier mark? Since my goal is to do an -A model, it would be so nice if someone else did all of the work for me! Matt

Yeah, just let us know in advance so I can sell my Revell kit first! Matt

That is just. . . beautiful. I've a what-if diorama planned for my Ki-61 (with a BF-109G-4 and Mc205v) and I'm going to have to raise the bar on the 109 I'm building just so it doesn't look like ameteur hour next to the Hien with your replacement parts. Matt

I'll ask this weekend at the Air Zoo. Matt

I know, but if you dont cure the corrosion inside, the aircraft will rot from the inside out! As for a good primer, I'll ask....they should have a good answer, I hope lol. Ain't that the truth. I volunteer at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo doing restoration and it is simply amazing how destroyed the metal can be when you strip the paint to finally see it. More importantly, if you prime and paint over it you'll get some lovely blistering and flaking in only a few months. Heck, you ought to see what decommissioning concrete plugs do to an airframe. . . Lots of quality time with an orbital sander ahead if you want the replacement paint job to last for any length of time. Sandblasting would be much faster but much more expensive. Matt