Juggernut

I suspect you're right having had a look at the posted link but I still hold out hope to a certain degree.... They just released the 1/48 P-38J kit which is stellar but doesn't come with any options to make a late P-38J (which is the one I want). Having said that, I think we can all agree that only folks associated with the company and/or with access to such information can say with any degree of certainty that Tamiya is done with 1/32. Everything else is just speculation like the multiple "wish list" threads that pop up every other day [just like this one is devolving into]. We all know that Tamiya does what Tamiya decides to do and with no particular time or fashion constraints. As consumers, we're usually the last people to know. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a 1/48 Hasegawa Typhoon bubbletop to finish (since Hasegawa has not been inclined to release an injected kit of this aircraft in 1/32)....

The Hasegawa kit isn't bad but needs some "attention". A new Tamiya 1/32 P-47D (bubbletop please) would be very welcome, especially with the wonderful R-2800 they already have as a basis for the -59 engine.

Hmmm....Don't know if your post about the P-51K or G-6 is tongue-in-cheek but there already is a 1/32 Tamiya P-51K.

Agreed, Roy’s stuff is top notch. Not sure I’ll replace the ZM prop as it’s probably very good but if he has a fitting one, I may.

Hi all, I emailed Henri and he confirmed that he has ceased production due to the excessive price increases. He did not indicate whether or not he has remaining stock or can produce from any leftover materials he may have but it’s not looking good.

I can't remember where but I read something that indicated that Henri is no longer producing the props, he's moved on to other interests. Don't know how true that is and if I can remember where I saw it, I'll repost it here.

First off, welcome to our humble (most of the time) corner of the modeling world. Are these are the two images you're comparing? If so, I don't think a comparison of an artist's rendition of the 109G-14 against a model is valid critique. If you're going to say there's an error in the tooling then I think you'd better use more substantial source information. More credence would be given to blueprints and/or photographic evidence. No doubt, some concessions had to be made to accommodate the thickness of the plastic but I don't think they bumped up the plastic cowl out of shape to do it. As I said, Radu was instrumental in the design of this kit and if he sees this, I'm sure he'll enlighten us as to what you're seeing and what you're not. If these images are not what you're referring to, please identify the images you are using. As an aside, here's another very knowledgeable persons appraisal of the kit: Zoukei Mura 1/32 Bf109G-14 Quick Review

I think Radu will have something to say about it as soon as he sees it considering he was a major contributor to the kit design. We'll just have to wait and see.

One is in the future, the other is now…. It’s a non-issue.

We’ll, I bought the marking yellow and red from Sprue Brothers and I found some xtracolor insignia blue so I think I’m set. I will definitely need to thin the xtracolor but that’s nothing new.

Yeah, sh*t happens all the time....

Thanks Tom, I’m glad I can pass along some good info.

Thanks, I'll see if they have the color I'm looking for.

Thanks for the compliment, much appreciated!

I'm thinking the answer is no (since I live in the United States) but since they have a website with pricing I thought I'd ask. Nobody has stock of RAF Marking Blue which I will need in the not-too-distant future. Sprue Brothers has RAF Marking Red and Marking Yellow but no blue; DAMN THE ROTTEN LUCK! I signed up for notification when they get it back in stock but I may have to resort to making some type C1 roundel decals for my 1/48 Typhoon. Not a huge problem but I'm hoping the dye sublimation inks I have coming will prevent the dithering that's all-to-common with Alps printed decals using non-standard colors. I have the masks which I'd prefer to use but as a last resort, a well made decal will work.

This I like. There's a wide range of Eaglcals out there for just about all tastes but by and large, most of them are Luftwaffe subjects. I'm also partial to the natural metal finish too. Whatever you guys think is best.... Even though I like these, I never seem to get in often enough and when I do, I don't finish in time.

Thanks Jose! Much appreciated.

I was not happy with the way the tracks were sitting (they were much too loose/saggy), so I drilled out a track pin and removed a link from each side and reinstalled them. Now I'm much happier with the "run". When I took the photos, the left and right sides were different but after inspecting the model, I discovered that on the right side track run, the drive sprocket wasn't fully engaging the track. I corrected that minor problem and now both track runs are the same as shown in the top image below. I didn't take an "after" photo just because it was already in the case and didn't feel like removing it from the case again. Both runs were acceptable as contemporaneous photos show but not on the same vehicle. My advice to anyone building this kit is to leave a few sets of track pins loose so you can adjust the track tension as needed. You can't adjust the idler wheel so it has to be done with the tracks.

Thanks for that Pete, very cool. All I ever was able to get out of my Dad, and it was long after he retired, was RC-135 Combat Sent and Rivet Joint….other than that it was “If you had a need to know, you would be told.” That’s tough as a kid when the other kids ask what your dad does. I imagine most of the stuff he worked with is still top secret.

Hey Pete, was your Dad a military pilot as well? My inference from your story is yes but wanted to ask. My Dad took flight training at Keesler AFB (Biloxi, MS - circa 1959) and trained in what I remember as the T-39 Mentor (my memory of what he told me he flew - looks like a Beechcraft straight tail bonanza..it has a proper name but I don't remember what it is). Unfortunately, he suffered from vertigo (he described it as he didn't know which end was up when he couldn't see the ground) so he never made it past basic flight training. He related a time he was in the aircraft and had a lighter in his flight suit upper pocket (shoulder from what I remember he told me), and said it got hotter than hell from the sun beating down...I could never quite figure out how a lighter in his pocket, zipped closed, caught heat from the sun....I digress. After washing out, he got sent to a tiny radar station on a teeney-weenie island off the coast of Okinawa called Okino-erbu-shima where he spent all of 1960... He resigned his commission in 1963 as a captain and then took a job with Rome Air Development Center (now Rome Lab) working on highly classified intelligence and reconnaissance systems. He retired in 1996.... Had I been able to fulfill my dream (at that time), I could've been flying in the Gulf with y'all...being about seven or eight years ahead of you. Not unhappy about the way my life's turned out but there's always that nagging wonder what it could've been. I suppose there's countless individuals with the same story.... LOL, end of "coulda, shoulda, woulda....

Well now, that may just change my mind about going to TX next year. I've applied for group admission so we'll see.

The TFE731 is equipped with DEEC’s if I remember correctly…. There used to be two black boxes (one for each engine) in the rear of the Lear that I’d have to download regularly and send data to CAMP Systems for engine trend monitoring but then again, they may just have been EEC’s; I’m old now so I may not be remembering correctly. It was 20 years ago and the TFE731-2-2B engines were OEM I believe. My Lear 35 (figuratively speaking) serial number 498, was built in May 1982 with updates done when it came back to the U.S. from Italy. I will say the 731 never gave me any major troubles. I can’t think of any real problems with either engine in all the years I maintained them. They were very reliable as far as I’m concerned. The flight crew never had to shut one down and I never had to have one removed for a bad soap analysis. Can’t remember what the TBO is but I think it’s pretty favorable. The intake lip is kind of sensitive to damage but that’s part of the airframe, not the engine so it’s N/A.

Mine too…and I haven’t even opened the shipping box yet. Don’t know what’s the matter with me other than I’m busy with a 1/48 Hasegawa Typhoon.

Ok, now that this is here, let me reiterate: Unless you want to do a large amount of scratchbuilding, you cannot build a modern day S-300C (269C) or S-300CB (269C-1) from this kit, there are too many differences. You may be able to make a 269B from this kit but that's about as far as my remembering takes me.

Oh yeah, I remember he was one of your favorites wasn't he? Mine's supposed to show up tomorrow; the local post office has it right now but too late for delivery today.