Whitey

Inspirational.

I find the best way to dilute AK paints takes 3 steps: 1. pick up all the AK paints you have; 2. Take them to the rubbish bin: 3. Throw them all in. That way they will never make a mess of any model you build and after a while in the rubbish dump, they will be diluted enough to not ever give a damn about again.

Thanks Mark, very handy reference.

Nicely played Brent. It should turn out to be a beauty.

Your Cobra is very nice Chris.

Thanks very much for the advice folks. It sounds like we are all having the same issues and it will boil down to what we think looks good. I'll let you know what I come up with.

Thanks John, we are thinking along the same lines.

Hi Guys and Gals and others, what paints are people (are we people in this new woke world) using for Olive Drab on their Vietnam Cobras please? Cheers, Peter

Hi guys, count me in please? My donation is a 1/32 Revell SuperCub. #04208. Merry Christmas everyone.

That sure is a beauty.

Hi Ray, yeah go for it. Thanks for the info re the clear fuselage parts. Not too much of an issue though. cheers, Peter

Very impressive.

After watching the new "Midway" movie last year I decided to build USN Lt Richard Best's SBD-3, that he flew twice from USS Enterprise, on 4th June 1942 to sink the IJN carriers Kaga and Hiryu. Its a really nice kit, but I didn't particularly like the clear fuselage. Nothing wrong with it but just hard to see if seams are covered until undercoat applied. Painted with a combination of SMS, MRP and Mr Hobby acrylic laquers and then weathered with oils and hard pastells. Yahu instrument panel, EZE line antenna, MasterCasters wheels and Master gun barrels. Some light fading on the upper surfaces, but these aircraft were new when they boarded Enterprise immediately before the Battle of Midway so not too much to do. My model depicts what the aircraft may have looked like after returning from the first attack and ready for the second sortie. The rear guns would have been stowed but I wanted to be able to see them. Enjoy.

Very nicely done indeed.

Pretty damn cool.

Thanks Jerome, your help is much appreciated and I am really happy with the outcome and look of the model. Cheers mate.

Awesome model Rod.

Pretty Cool.

The Ayes' have it. Stunning.

Thanks Matt. The kit decals make it easy though.

Wow, sensational Larry. Love it.

Very nicely captures the look of the triplane.

I am pleased to present the WingNut Wings Albatros D.V representing a Jasta 5 aircraft flown by Ltn Wolf. Typical WnW great quality and precise engineering. The decals are from the Jasta 5 Trilogy although the kit is the D.Va single kit as shown. I ordered the Pheon decals for this aircraft and had painted the fuselage grey in preparation, but when they arrived, the white squares were transparent which required a careful masking and repaint and possibly an aircraft scheme change. A quick help message on LSP and a kind modeller in England sent me his left over Bavarian decals, allowing me to preserve my own Trilogy set for another day. The Pheon decals are very nice so no issues there. As you can see from the WIP section the engine and cockpit have been detailed appropriately. I made the valve springs from fuse wire and added Taurus spark plugs and E Z Line plug leads, not that you can see them all with the cowls in place. I added the Proper Plane propeller and turnbuckle attachment at the wing roots. Gaspatch turnbuckles were added to those and Bob's Buckles' eyelets for other rigging points. E Z Line was stretched the attachment points and then a three turn wrap around painted in brass represents those turnbuckles. I think the Gaspatch ones are a little large and the eyelets allow a slightly more scale appearance. I also wrapped the kit inlet manifolds with gauze and weathered those a bit. I have the Barracuda resin ones but I think the tape gives it a nice look. The kit decals are fantastic. It looks daunting at first but they went on very nicely and fit perfectly. Paints were from Gunze, SMS and MRP. I've left it glossy at the moment because I think these aircraft were polished and kept in good order by their ground crews as a source of pride in their jobs and their pilots. I've added some oils for some grime but after seeing the photos might rub some of it back in places. Cockpit woodgrain was achieved using Tamiya acrylics and clear yellow and orange overcoats to the streaking effect. The main struts between the wheels and the wing roots for the lower wing have an Uschi woodgrain decal over Dark Yellow. The red outline on the tail was masked and brush painted and the camouflage on the wings airbrushed freehand. Enjoy - I did.

As they say at the footy: "It's all over bar the shouting." Rigged with E Z Line, a few Gaspatch turnbuckles and Bob's Buckles eyelets, the WnW Albatros D.V is about to go into the cabinet. I might make up a base with some grass matt to put her on but she has turned up mighty pretty. Kit decals from my Jasta 5 Trilogy set, Gunze, SMS and MRP paints and some oils for a bit of dirt. I might rub back some of the oil to reduce the staining a bit though. Check out the rest of the pics in the RFI area.

My Proper Plane Propeller, metal exhaust and turnbuckle attachments arrived this week for the Albatross, so straight into it I went. Postage took a while due to Covid issues but Alex kept me well informed of the delivery timeline. The parts are amazing and come in a well packed box that could be used as a display case. Last night I attached the outer wing struts to the underside of the top wing and fuselage struts at both ends, and kept it nice and square while it dried using the WnW box as my guide. I've let them dry overnight and then attached the outer wing struts to the lower wing, again using the box as a guide this morning. She is starting to look like an Albatross. The new (probably old by now but I only just found it) way to upload photos works really well. Just copy the address from my Smugmug site and post it in the article. I've got some Gaspatch and Bob's Buckles' turnbuckles to add to the rigging. Holes are drilled and when the wings are dried and set properly in a couple of hours I will get into the rigging and get this pretty little beast closer to the finish line.