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Everything posted by tomprobert
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B-17 post war, chin turret?
tomprobert replied to GeoffSteer's topic in Aviation Discussion & Research
Here you go… As others have said, the hole for the turret itself was plated over with a circular ‘patch’ and the fairing removed. The same applied for the top and ball turrets when removed. For the top turret, some simply had a flat plate attached to the turret fairing, such as on the PB-1Ws, but others had the turret fairing removed and the blanking plate contoured to the curvature of the area behind the cockpit. As an aside, few Bomb Groups removed their top and ball turrets late in the war as the Luftwaffe became a spent force. Less drag and weight meant more bombs. The 94th and 398th are two groups that spring to mind - some even installed a single .50 in the nose cone like seen on some F models. Post war, and with the groups remaining in Europe post hostilities, it was common practice to remove chin, top and ball turrets - Silver Dollar above is one such example and was, I believe, originally with the 100BG and seen here as a post-war ‘hack’ aircraft. I hope that helps, Tom -
Absolutely mental... but in a good way!
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I’ve just got home after the long drive down the M6/M1/M25 but the hours in the car were worth it! Another fantastic weekend - it seems as if the show is back to its pre-Covid best and I felt it quite a bit busier than the previous few years. So many bargains on offer, too… The LSP stand was wonderful - as always - with some very impressive builds on display. Every time I visited the table it was heaving with lots of admirers and clearly there was a great deal of interest. Its was great to meet and catch up with fellow LSPers and chew the fat - roll on next year! Tom
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I’ve just seen in Revell’s Facebook page that they are to release a 1/32 Hunter twin-sticker (T7) in 2025. Happy days!
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2-seat Spitfire conversion in 1/32 scale
tomprobert replied to Pete Roberts's topic in LSP Discussion
I have this conversion in my grubby little mitts and I must say I am very impressed. The decal sheets alone are worth the money IMO - it’s all been done to a very high standard. When you consider an aftermarket decal set often sets you back in the region of £20+ these days (and there’s multiple options in this kit) plus some nice resin, it can’t have been cheap to produce. If I get the chance, I’ll get the decent camera out at some point and take some decent photos if anyone is interested… I’m currently in the painting phase of the Airfix 1/24 Spit IX and when I’ve put that project to bed I think I’m going to make a start on this conversion as having flown in one, it’d be rude not to! Tom -
Boeing C-97 (B-29/50) panel line drawings
tomprobert replied to geedubelyer's topic in Aviation Discussion & Research
I did indeed build a 1/32 B-29 but getting it out to photograph is rather tricky as it’s in storage in the back of my loft and getting it out means moving the other 1/32 behemoths stored up there and there’s not a lot of room! I think the B-29/B-50/KC-97 shared more or less the same core wing structure, other than the heavier gauge of metals used on the latter two and structural differences around the larger engines and modified nacelles. However, I’m pretty sure the outer sections would have been the same but with the later variants having jet engines/tanks hung there I can’t be absolutely certain of that. Anyway, here’s a couple of blueprints I used when scribing mine: All the best, Tom -
A bit late to the party here, but it looks as if we’re in for another amazing ride! I must confess I know next to nothing about this aircraft, so it’s good to learn a bit about it. It’s a very pretty aeroplane - you’ve got to hand it to the designers. Great work (as always!) so far, Peter.
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1/18 Hawker Sea Fury - VX628 - 1831 Squadron RNVR
tomprobert replied to airscale's topic in Works in Progress
So not are you one of the most talented people I know in regard to scratch building, metal work and 3D printing, I can now add airbrushing and painting to that list as well! Is there anything you can’t do?! -
1/18 Hawker Sea Fury - VX628 - 1831 Squadron RNVR
tomprobert replied to airscale's topic in Works in Progress
That is so, so impressive. It’ll be a crime to cover that beautiful finish in paint - but I get your earlier point and it’s going to be a stunner! -
1/18 Hawker Sea Fury - VX628 - 1831 Squadron RNVR
tomprobert replied to airscale's topic in Works in Progress
This just continues to amaze on every level. The skinning looks so good that’ll it be a shame to see it covered by paint (even though I’m sure you’ll do an exemplary job) and I wondered if you could complete it as a just-out-of-the-factory-prior-to-paint finish..? A naked Sea Fury..? -
From your picture, it looks as if the paint is laying too thick in those areas - I’ve had the same issue before. It therefore dries more slowly than the paint around it, leaving a different hue. This is exacerbated by the fact it’s a metallic finish. I’ve found giving it a gentle polish with some polishing cloths and then reapplying the top coat effective - the way to remedy it is to ensure the paint is relatively thin and sprayed at a slightly lower pressure - along with fast, smooth passes from a distance in multiple thin coats. Easier said than done, I hasten to add, but the paint pooling slightly would be my guess - and that’s what’s causing the problem.
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What a stunning model!
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Thank you! I don’t know if there is a model of the XB-19 but it would certainly be an interesting subject. Anigrand do the XF-12 Rainbow which I’m keen on getting - such a beautiful aeroplane!
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In a departure from some of my usual larger scale builds, I decided to have a go at a full resin kit for the first time: enter Anigrand's 1/72nd scale B-32 Dominator. Designed as a back up to the B-29 project, the B-32 was a fall back option in case of the B-29 being a failure - which we now know it wasn't. Spooked by the complexity of the B-29, Consolidated were asked to simplify their initial design and dispense with the original plan for a fully pressurised fuselage and computerised gun turrets, which caused numerous delays and thus the B-32, despite now being a more traditional, simpler, design, actually entered service in the May of 1945, some time after the B-29. By September of the same year, and with the B-29 proving to be an excellent long range bomber, the B-32 was cancelled with only 118 airframes being completed. With the end of WWII, the US government felt there was no need for two heavy bomber programmes and all B-32s were consigned to the boneyards and all were scrapped by 1947. The B-32 holds the sad honour of being involved in the last combat of WWII when, on 18th August 1945, two Dominators on a reconnaissance sortie over Tokyo bay were attacked by Japanese fighters - well after the cessation of hostilities. Sadly, a gunner was killed in the fight and Sgt. Anthony Marchione was the last allied airman to lose his life in the conflict - although both B-32s returned safely to their base. The kit is in 1/72nd scale and produced by Anigrand and is full resin. I’d never done a resin kit before, so started with a little trepidation, but the moldings were exquisite and the fit excellent. Having read some reviews, other builders had struggled with warped parts and poor fit, but it seems I got lucky and mine was as straight as an arrow and construction only took a few hours - the joy of using CA glue! (Picture courtesy of Anigrand) Overall, I’m pleased with end result and I’m pleased to add ‘the forgotten bomber’ to my collection. Now for a 1/32nd scale version…! Tom
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What an exceptional model - the finish is absolutely flawless.
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It is indeed quite a lump of plastic - hence I work on this in the kitchen or in the garden - it’s just too big to do it anywhere else. Still, both the Sunderland and B-29 (as well as the currently stalled Shackleton) I did were bigger, so I’ve got a bit of experience previously and I can assure you the fridge gets a regular bearing from this on a regular occurrence. Good job I’ve put plenty of strength into the structure Many thanks, Chris - I’ve said this many times before but I’m honestly not doing what any reasonably experienced modeller can do. You just have to think outside the box (not that kits like this come in one!) and just go for it. There’ll be lots of errors and muck ups along the way, but so what? It’s all part of the fun - and certainly prepares you for those trickier injection molded kits and gives a real sense of perspective when there’s a join or two to fill…
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That’s stunning, Iain - lovely to see a civvie build on here and your workmanship is exemplary. Tom
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Thanks for stopping by and your kind words, guys and gals - it is appreciated and certainly helps with the mojo on longer builds such as these! I’m putting off working on the cockpit interior as it’s the part of builds such as these that I hate, so had a play with the props. These are the Revell 1/32 Beaufighter propellers which are a perfect fit - all I had to do was fill a multitude of sink marks and give them a bit of a clean up. With the sun shining I thought I’d assemble everything I’ve done so far and take a few ‘this is how far I’ve come’ shots - with one on the kitchen table to show the size of this beast! I suppose I can’t put the cockpit internals off forever and better dive in at some point! Until next time, Tom
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Indeed, Rick - the span is actually very similar to the Lancaster and Halifax, but the fuselage much bigger. There was a ‘Super Stirling’ in development which utilised a larger wing (similar in dimensions to the Sunderland’s) but the success of the Lanc and later Halifaxes meant development was stopped. Very kind, Paul - thank you!
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It is indeed huge! And yes, being in England means it’s not usually hotter than 30 degrees - although this summer has been quite wet and and around 20 degrees… not that I mind too much as I don’t like the humid heat we get here and there’s nothing worse than sweat dripping on your model! Thanks - but I can’t claim any credit for the canopy as that is all Peter’s genius! I’ve been putting off doing the cockpit interior as I really don’t like fabricating cockpit interiors - however it’s the last major hurdle before I can get painting and actually get this thing finished. Indeed. It’s a shame the central keel stopped it from carrying bigger bombs - no 4000lb cookies for this bad boy. I imagine this, along with its low ceiling, was one of the primary reasons it was removed from front line bomber ops early - to be fair the Halifax and Lancaster did do it better but the Stirling held the fort commendably in those earlier years.
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Hello, old friend... With the school summer holidays here, some additional bench time can now be found and the bonus of some nice weather has meant I've been able to do a bit more (long overdue) work on the Stirling. The main gear bays needed finishing off, with the forward sections now being detailed in preparation for the oil tanks and emergency gear extension bottles to be fitted: The rear bays have also now been done, and the Beaufighter gear legs modified to the correct heights and now permanently installed. Gear doors are for another day! I've also given the scratch-built main landing gear legs a scratch coat of Xtracolor's night black: The black has tied everything together nicely and I'm pleased with how they've come out. Being such a huge model, while I had the back out I have also sprayed the interior of the wing bomb cells and gear bays, as it'll be much easier to do this now before the final, more fragile detail parts are added. I gave the flap apertures a good spray of night black too: I just now need to make and install the aforementioned oil tanks and compressed air tanks, and the lower surfaces areas are more or less done. Until next time, Tom
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1/18 Hawker Sea Fury - VX628 - 1831 Squadron RNVR
tomprobert replied to airscale's topic in Works in Progress
This is just modelling porn. Exceptional work, Peter. -
1:48th Aeroclub Avro Vulcan B2, XL386, 44 Squadron, RAF Waddington
tomprobert replied to tomprobert's topic in Non-LSP Works
It’s not small per se, but compared to a 4 engine WWII bomber in 1/32 it’s a toddler! Indeed. They are very rare and I think most loiter in people’s stashes. Considering the price they go for these days they are more or less a retirement fund. I’m a builder and not a collector though, so there was only one option for me: build it! I loved seeing Vulcans fly and XH558 was always a spectacular sight - a shame we’ll not enjoy again. Thanks, Derek. And I agree with everything you said about John - his vacs are up there with the very best. This was beautifully engineered and caused very little problems, other than the tricky join between the vac fuselage and jet pipes. Filler did the trick and other than that, it went together like an injection kit. Surface detail is sublime too! Ha! Now there’s an idea..! I will indeed take a comparison shot at some point - this one is in our double bed at home sitting on an A3 cutting mat if it helps: It’ll no doubt do the rounds at model shows - not sure when and where but it’ll be hard to miss if I do bring it! -
I've finished off Aeroclub's 1/48th scale Avro Vulcan over the weekend - this has been my 'holy grail' of kits for as long as I can remember and I was finally able to get hold of one last year. The kit is a beautifully moulded vacform with resin intakes and tail pipes, along with lots of white metal detail parts. It was a pleasure to put together and once the main parts were sanded and trimmed to shape, it was more or less like an injection build. The only tricky part was the fit of the tail pipes, and these required a bit of trimming and shimming and plenty of Milliput to get everything together. I did have a couple hiccups - one of my own making which was managing to ruin the paintwork when I didn't secure my airbrush cup properly and it managed to drip grey all over my carefully masked dark green and the other was the very old decals which silvered to the point of them having to come off. I managed to raid the spares box to cobble together some stencils and Xtradecal came to the rescue for the roundels and serials. I decided a kit of this size and quality needed an open bomb bay so spent a good few evenings scratch-building all the internal detail and I think it was worth it as it adds some nice visual interest to the bottom of the model. Paints were my usual Xtracolor enamels with lots of Tamiya tape for the masking of the camouflage - that's many hours of my life I won't get back! Other than that this is what you get in the box - a very large model of a very impressive aeroplane! For those interested, here's the Britmodeller-based 'Work in Progress' here Anyway, here she is all done and dusted - I've modelled XL386 as it was when on strength with 44 Squadron, based at RAF Waddington in the mid-1970s... Best regards, Tom
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It looks fantastic, Kev. The finish is spot on and, considering you were sweating over the weathering, in my humble opinion you have achieved a far more realistic finish than those that have been shaded/filtered/panel-washed to within an inch of their existence. It’s actually quite refreshing to see a nicely in-scale finish - weathering if you look for it but not in your face. Just as it should be and a big thumbs up from me!