DonH

Thanks! The Hunter is in my top 3 of gorgeous looking aircraft. The other two being Spitfire and Phantom. Nothing much to report on progress other than work on cleaning seams and sorting the wing tips. Most of this work is totally self-inflicted and very little to do with the kit. I am loving this and am excited that I have the FGA.9 kit in the stash waiting for me. There is also another kit gathering dust in my local hobby shop. Tempting.... It's a busy week at work coming up (just like every other week), so probably no pics until next weekend.

Thanks. It’s all downhill from here!!

Hi Troy, yes it's very sad news. Fortunately, Muddy Murphys in Orchard is still running. More Hunter progress to come. The rear fuselage is glued together (mostly) and the front end is all buttoned up. Working on the wings to get rid of seams and ugly lumps and bumps.

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.

Ahh, if I had a dollar for every time I head that!

Bang seat is done. It's a resin replacement and may not fit in the cockpit. We'll know fairly soon as the cockpit is assembled and some paint has been flung at it. We have a wing: Fit is really nice so far, if I am careful. Some remedial work to do on the wing end cap. Fill and sand, fill and sand... Until next time...

I'm in with this: More to come. At my pace, I will not finish before the deadline, but it's the winning not the taking part that counts. Or did I get that backwards?

It will be a Spey engined Phantom. They’ve already got the scans etc. Just saying.

I have it on good authority from a mate who was on a zoom meeting in the pub, that the next release from Kotare will be a Spey engined Phantom. In the meantime, I will impatiently await the release of probably the best Spitfire MkI in the world. My cash is sitting ready to be unleashed.

They have detected 10% damages from those who have received and checked their new toys. Whilst I can understand the logic of avoiding increased shipping costs, I wonder if Jetmads are lowballing the damages rate.

This thread deserves a bump up the batting order and to add to the Airfix tale of woe: I sent an email to Revell Germany with a speculative request for some replacement parts. I offered to pay for the relevant sprue and the postage out to Singapore. Two working days later, I got a reply saying "we will send you the parts to your address without charge." They also kindly warned me that shipping time might be up to six weeks because the parts were coming from the USA. So, Airfix, that's the way to do it. Anyway, back to this amazing build. Chuck, I love the crispness of your building and the informative tips and tricks. I am looking forward to the next instalment.

Use them, don't use them, your choice. I put a set in a 1/48 F-16D and was very pleased with the result. I generally won't use them because sometimes I like to try painting the cockpit myself. On other occasions, I cannot be bothered and will stick something in instead. Call it cheating if you like, it won't change anything.

yes, maybe. But if I wanted to get at least one kit into the hands of someone who wanted it, I might consider spreading the butter more thinly. There may be a rare modeller or two who will build more than one kit at the same time, most I assume will start only one. The second, third or more would sit in the stash longer than it will take to ship the second kit out to them.

Ahem, are you forgetting Airfix Vintage Classics?

I have a sentimental fondness for Airfix, but their response to you is not good and mystifying. On a brighter note, your build looks fantastic and I am enjoying following along.

Hmm, yes, that is a shame about the footwear. I have four crew members from Tamiya and HKM Mosquitos were I could graft the boots on, also a couple of Tamiya Spitfire pilots could provide the same service. But why should I have to?

I’ve sprayed Tamiya smoke on a canopy. Worked well BUT thin it a lot and do several passes to get the tint you want. I overdid mine so it’s too dark. Oh well.

Yeah, I have used Quinta for one of my builds and have been very impressed.

I am going to enjoy this. Where will you find a 1/32 tractor for the diorama?

RSAF…..is that the Republic of Singapore Air Force version or the Royal Saudi Air Force version in the desert camouflage? There can be only one - RSAF = Republic of Singapore Air Force. Maybe someone will build a Saudi plane in black and white stripes (obscure football/soccer reference).

I have the HK nose kit. That will do for me until Border brings out their version of the nose kit. I wish them every success with this kit. The knowledge they gain from producing this may well translate into future releases (stressed skin, fine details), so more power to their injection moulded elbows.

Only 21 ever made? I though there were hundreds. Just shows what I know.

It would be somewhat ironic(?) if there was not a suitable adhesive available to bond this wonderful kit together.

On a related topic, WWII, Merlin engines, is it too much to hope that a L*******r is in the pipeline?

That will do very nicely! Thanks Kotare.