R Palimaka

Here you go James, so you can see what you're getting in the Lone Star resin sets. There are some holes and pitting, and some flash which is simple to remove. The oxygen hose on the starboard side of the cockpit has broken off on both my examples. The wheelwells: Cockpit parts:

Welcome James! Always good to have another builder of Mustangs... The Lone Star set is not too bad, it's complete and accurate but not quite as sharp as what you would expect from more recent resin upgrades, or Aries. They need some cleaning up before you install them. I have two each of the Lone Star cockpits and wheel wells. I haven't actually used them because I grew discouraged with the Trumpeter kit the more I looked into the inaccuracies. I can take photos of the Lone Star sets this morning for you and post them here for you to see. He also had a beautiful and accurate Malcolm hood for the Mustang III (P-51B/C) that came with the tracks and rails. I'm not sure that is still in his catalogue. Long story short, still worth getting if you can. It would definitely improve and correct the Trumpeter or Revell cockpits. Richard

Superb!! What a beautiful build, and the natural metal finish is one of the best I've seen! Thank you for sharing that!! Richard

Those are superb, both of them! My favourite version of the Spitfire and you've done a brilliant job on them. I've spent some time this morning drinking my coffee and enjoying the photos above. Apart from the builds themselves, I am impressed with the finish and weathering. You are a master at creating a convincing and subtle impression of light weathering and wear. Thanks for sharing these! Richard

That photo does it for me! Beautiful! ...although there was never any doubt I was going to buy one. Encouraging to see some attention paid to designs from the 1930s. Richard

Excellent work! That thing fought you all the way but the result is absolutely gorgeous! It was a pleasure following the build and watching you overcome a lot of problems that were not your fault, and would have stopped a lot of other people. It's superb, and the finish and weathering just perfect. Richard

Exactly...a lot of parents are going to find out that the teachers are not the problem!! I saw a meme on Facebook about schools being closed that i thought was amusing: "Homeschooling is not going so well. Two students expelled and one teacher fired for drinking on the job..." Richard

I've never used the Humbrol products, but I would think that is a good percentage mix to start with. Do a test spray though away from your model, just to be sure it works and dries the way you want. Richard

What a superb result for all your work and research. It was a pleasure following the build, and watching you ensure that you got all the details correct, from all the modifications made to late F-51Ds even down to the weathering and finish. It's not easy to recreate a convincing combat filthy aircraft, but you nailed it. Well done! Richard

Happy to see you are back and ready to finish this one! That was so generous of your brother to make sure you got the correct markings, especially since that kit is now out of production and unavailable from Airfix. As for the final coat, the photos of 442 Squadron's camouflaged Mustangs show quite a flat finish, with not much sheen. http://www.thescale.info/news/publish/442-RCAF-Mustangs.shtml I don't know if you are mixing your own clear coats for the airbrush. Maybe you could mix something that would dry between flat and satin? I agree, a little bit of a sheen looks better and more realistic than complete flat. Not sure any of that helps... Richard

Nothing announced yet, but I suspect Techmod or ModelMaker will be out with something soon. That's encouraging that you bought another, looks like it was a fun build. In the meantime, here are a few photos I took in 2018 of the restoration in Krakow. It was such a thrill to finally see her. Richard

Doesn't take away at all from your superb build, but if you're interested... It is a little green, but there has been a lot of discussion about the Polish khaki used in the late 1930s. The restored P.11c in Krakow was meticulously restored. The colour was matched to factory original patches of overspray in overlapped joints and hidden panels. It turned out to be closer to RAF Dark Earth.

I work for the Canadian Army, at the Command and Staff College in Kingston, and we have been instructed to work from home for the next three weeks, except for essential personnel. LIbrarians don't count as essential, strangely enough. :-) Have to say it's a bit unnerving facing a forced stay at home, having your routine disrupted, but knowing that people affected by the virus are dealing with much worse. Worried about my 94-year old father, who is rather stubborn, and my children who are far away. Our province of Ontario has declared a state of emergency too, so that theatres, restaurants, bars and pubs are closed. I am grateful for, and in such awe of the health care professionals who go in to work every day not knowing what their shift will bring. I thank goodness for the health care system we have here in Ontario. In the meantime I have plenty of kits in the stash, and that 1/24 Mustang to finish...with no excuses now. I think I have enough paints and supplies to keep me going, even though our local hobby shop has closed for good. We have a wargaming store that stocks the full line of Vallejo paints, so I'm ok that way as long as they stay open. I also have three IBG PZL P.11c kits stuck in Canadian Customs, so they'll show up eventually. Stay safe everyone, especially those of you in Europe! We in North America are probably two to three weeks behind Europe, so the curve is going to rise sharply. Richard

Wow, superb build! Spectacular markings too. Thank you for sharing! Richard

Beautiful build of a lovely and important aircraft! Thanks for sharing your build with us. It looks like the kit is a real pleasure to build and you've done a splendid and quick job of it. Can't wait to see mine show up...stuck in Canada Customs limbo. Richard