AlexM

It was a busy week for the postman here. I got a bit of flak from my wife as she had to bring it in.
 

 
I'm almost neutral in the stash size as I managed to finish four builds so at least that helped.
 
Carl

Hi there,
 
here is my first model published on this forum: the Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero in 1/32. The SM.79 was one of the best Italian warplanes, and – believe it or not – one of the most successful torpedo bombers of WW II. My model shows the normal bomber version from 1940/1941.
 
It's a vacuform kit by Tigger Models, which just offers the "hollow shell" of the main parts (what is of course mentioned on the website of Tigger Models). So I had to do the whole interior and landing gear (mostly with Evergreen cards and profiles), get some resin engines (Bristol Pegasus/Alfa Romeo 126C43 by Vector) and create my own decals.  The guns (Breda-SAFAT machine guns on the real thing) are a mixture of Browning M2 from CMK and parts of my spare box. The tail wheel came from my spare box, too.
 
The vacuformed main wheels and the two-part engine cowlings from the kit were no usable. The engine cowlings of the finished model were partly made from covers of deodorants 
The forward part of the cowlings were 3D-printed, as well as the main wheels. I designed those parts on PC with the easy-to-use CAD-program SketchUp, and sent the file to a 3D-printing service. The exhausts are made from a styrene sprue.
Beside the wheels and cowlings, the kit parts were really OK, although I had to use tons of putty.  So, here we go:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex

Hi there,
 
here is my first model published on this forum: the Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero in 1/32. The SM.79 was one of the best Italian warplanes, and – believe it or not – one of the most successful torpedo bombers of WW II. My model shows the normal bomber version from 1940/1941.
 
It's a vacuform kit by Tigger Models, which just offers the "hollow shell" of the main parts (what is of course mentioned on the website of Tigger Models). So I had to do the whole interior and landing gear (mostly with Evergreen cards and profiles), get some resin engines (Bristol Pegasus/Alfa Romeo 126C43 by Vector) and create my own decals.  The guns (Breda-SAFAT machine guns on the real thing) are a mixture of Browning M2 from CMK and parts of my spare box. The tail wheel came from my spare box, too.
 
The vacuformed main wheels and the two-part engine cowlings from the kit were no usable. The engine cowlings of the finished model were partly made from covers of deodorants 
The forward part of the cowlings were 3D-printed, as well as the main wheels. I designed those parts on PC with the easy-to-use CAD-program SketchUp, and sent the file to a 3D-printing service. The exhausts are made from a styrene sprue.
Beside the wheels and cowlings, the kit parts were really OK, although I had to use tons of putty.  So, here we go:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex

Hi all,
here my last built : the Tamiya's Spitfire mk VIII. Really good kit and really easy building. Montex mask were used for markings. I've chosen to paint serial in black instead of white beacause photos show them often black evan if white is possible.
Hope you will like it.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Small conversion A6M5 to A6M5a - Tamiya kit
All colors Gunze Sangyo
HGW  Seatbelts & wet transfers
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SBD-2 BuNo 2106, 2nd Lt Daniel Iverson & PFC Wallace J Reid
VMSB-241 Midway Atol, 4. June 1942  1/32 Trumpeter All color MRP / Mr.Paint                              

Hi Jim and Kevin, thanks a lot!
 
After gluing some stringers with evergreen profiles, I gave it a coat of interior color. I don't know for sure what color was actually used. According to this great reference site, it could have been interiour green, or some kind of grey (Grigio Azzurro Chiaro 1).
 
http://www.stormomagazine.com/RegiaAeronauticaColorsinWWII_3a.htm
 
There is a color photo of the real thing on the last page of the Ali d'Italia book, but due to the pale colors, it could be both grey or green. I finally chose Grigio Azzurro Chiaro 1 and used the corresponding paint from Lifecolor. The grey turned out slightly greenish, and I think it matches well with the color photo. The fuel tank between the main frames is still dark, but I can't see this color-contrast on the black and white photos, so it will propably become grey as well.
 
After painting, the perforated coverings were glued in place, and the openings for the waist-guns were cut/sanded open. The edges do still need some cleanup.
 

 
Here is the whole thing, showing the slightly modified ends of the engine nacelles.
 

 

 
That's it for now.
 
Cheers
Alex

Wonderful model and nice camouflage 
I think I'll order some Colourcoats paints.

A virtual out of the box build.
Silver Wings' Reggiane Re.2000 Falco was a straight forward build without any mayor vices or dramas.
I substituted the kit's etched seat belts for a set from Eduard, and I had to rebuild the cockpit floor as it was too short.
The camouflage was painted using enamels from the Colourcoats rang, which are the old White Ensign paints.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
Thanks for looking
Angelo.

Hi there,
 
here is my first model published on this forum: the Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero in 1/32. The SM.79 was one of the best Italian warplanes, and – believe it or not – one of the most successful torpedo bombers of WW II. My model shows the normal bomber version from 1940/1941.
 
It's a vacuform kit by Tigger Models, which just offers the "hollow shell" of the main parts (what is of course mentioned on the website of Tigger Models). So I had to do the whole interior and landing gear (mostly with Evergreen cards and profiles), get some resin engines (Bristol Pegasus/Alfa Romeo 126C43 by Vector) and create my own decals.  The guns (Breda-SAFAT machine guns on the real thing) are a mixture of Browning M2 from CMK and parts of my spare box. The tail wheel came from my spare box, too.
 
The vacuformed main wheels and the two-part engine cowlings from the kit were no usable. The engine cowlings of the finished model were partly made from covers of deodorants 
The forward part of the cowlings were 3D-printed, as well as the main wheels. I designed those parts on PC with the easy-to-use CAD-program SketchUp, and sent the file to a 3D-printing service. The exhausts are made from a styrene sprue.
Beside the wheels and cowlings, the kit parts were really OK, although I had to use tons of putty.  So, here we go:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex

Hi there,
 
here is my first model published on this forum: the Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero in 1/32. The SM.79 was one of the best Italian warplanes, and – believe it or not – one of the most successful torpedo bombers of WW II. My model shows the normal bomber version from 1940/1941.
 
It's a vacuform kit by Tigger Models, which just offers the "hollow shell" of the main parts (what is of course mentioned on the website of Tigger Models). So I had to do the whole interior and landing gear (mostly with Evergreen cards and profiles), get some resin engines (Bristol Pegasus/Alfa Romeo 126C43 by Vector) and create my own decals.  The guns (Breda-SAFAT machine guns on the real thing) are a mixture of Browning M2 from CMK and parts of my spare box. The tail wheel came from my spare box, too.
 
The vacuformed main wheels and the two-part engine cowlings from the kit were no usable. The engine cowlings of the finished model were partly made from covers of deodorants 
The forward part of the cowlings were 3D-printed, as well as the main wheels. I designed those parts on PC with the easy-to-use CAD-program SketchUp, and sent the file to a 3D-printing service. The exhausts are made from a styrene sprue.
Beside the wheels and cowlings, the kit parts were really OK, although I had to use tons of putty.  So, here we go:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex

Since it's about 40 cm long in 1/32, and therefore larger than a normal DIN A4 paper (or whatever strange format you are using in the USA ), I would make two copies of the pictures. One showing the exact fron halve, and one showing the exact rear halve (for example just with Microsoft Paint). Then, you can insert every halve picture for example into Microsoft Word, adjust the exact size (for example about 20 cm for every picture),  print, and glue together. Before deviding the whole digital drawing into two halves, you could also draw two croses centrally above and below the actual profile, what makes alignment later easier.

You are a patient man Alex, but love what you do to this kit! Some real old fashioned modeling happening here
 
 
I had the same issue when building and researching a 1/72 scale Mosquito and the rear facing light is a none-coloured light. The one in the front of the wingtip do have a green / red bulb behind a clear perspex.
 
Cheers, Peter

YES there is!!   Way beyond my personal skill set thats for sure.     This looks totally awesome!  Really one of the few models that does not instantly "look" like a vac.   Well done!! 

Looking forward for work being resumed on this one, Alex ...
 
Btw, as an exchange of good practice, I am a taker for your printed cowlings (or just a .stl file, as I have a 3D printer in the office)
Ditto for the LG legs
 
Hubert

OK Alex, what I suggest is shaping the lights out of solid pieces of clear plastic, Plexiglas,  etc. 
Personally I would check my scrap boxes for left-over clear-parts sprue's.
Next, cut the pieces and file/sandpaper to the shapes that fit the wingtips spaces.
Finish with a finger-nail file, fine wet/dry sandpaper, then toothpaste to polish the outer lens surfaces.
 
Then take them and paint their inside-surface backs with Testors MM Enamel Chrome Silver. Tamiya's acrylic chrome is crap when you compare.
 
This gives you the mirror-reflector backing you need.
Remember, you can always touch-up the outer lens shape after gluing them into place with a cement like Loctite Control Gel or your contact cement.
 
Then hand-brush paint the outer lens the color you want with a thin coat of Testors Acrylic MM Clear Red, Clear Green, Clear Blue, Clear Gloss, etc.
 
I wouldn't worry about a bulb, nobody who has tackled vacu-formed kits should care, as the media itself, especially with the detail you have gone to would be sufficient "punishment" for me!
 
Otherwise, since it is 1/32 scale, instead of painting the clear-polished outer lens, to represent a bulb, you can micro-drill a shallow hole the size of the bulb in the back of the light-housing and paint it from the inside for the color you like.
 
Tom

Hi Tom,
 
I use the normal Revell Contacta glue. The styrene sheets that were pulled over the molds of this kit are pretty thick (1,5 mm), and therefore, also the vacuformed parts are still sturdy enough at their lowest end. Nevertheless, especially the wings definitly need some inner structure, and this was one of the most time-consuming challenges of this model.
 
To ensure the alignment of the fuselage, it is recommendable to glue some connectors at areas that are not visible on the final model:
 

 
 
 
Advice is very welcome for the navigation lights. I thought about making replicas of the wing tips and pull some clear sheet over it

Thanks guys!
 
Another critical part is the landing gear. I guess this generally applies to that kind of vacuform kits since a landing gear is nonexistent in the kit. I was a bit afraid to build this from scratch with its several struts, keeping at least a remote similarity to the real thing, while at the same time ensuring a stable stand for this rather heavy model. Since I have now a 3d-printer, I gave it a try yesterday. I made a 3d-model with the CAD-program Sketchup using a photo as reference from this thread:
http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=30408&page=4
 

 

 

 
Though it needs some cleanup, I'm pretty happy with the result
 
 
Alex

Hi Tom,
 
I use the normal Revell Contacta glue. The styrene sheets that were pulled over the molds of this kit are pretty thick (1,5 mm), and therefore, also the vacuformed parts are still sturdy enough at their lowest end. Nevertheless, especially the wings definitly need some inner structure, and this was one of the most time-consuming challenges of this model.
 
To ensure the alignment of the fuselage, it is recommendable to glue some connectors at areas that are not visible on the final model:
 

 
 
 
Advice is very welcome for the navigation lights. I thought about making replicas of the wing tips and pull some clear sheet over it

Hi there,
 
here is my first model published on this forum: the Italian Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero in 1/32. The SM.79 was one of the best Italian warplanes, and – believe it or not – one of the most successful torpedo bombers of WW II. My model shows the normal bomber version from 1940/1941.
 
It's a vacuform kit by Tigger Models, which just offers the "hollow shell" of the main parts (what is of course mentioned on the website of Tigger Models). So I had to do the whole interior and landing gear (mostly with Evergreen cards and profiles), get some resin engines (Bristol Pegasus/Alfa Romeo 126C43 by Vector) and create my own decals.  The guns (Breda-SAFAT machine guns on the real thing) are a mixture of Browning M2 from CMK and parts of my spare box. The tail wheel came from my spare box, too.
 
The vacuformed main wheels and the two-part engine cowlings from the kit were no usable. The engine cowlings of the finished model were partly made from covers of deodorants 
The forward part of the cowlings were 3D-printed, as well as the main wheels. I designed those parts on PC with the easy-to-use CAD-program SketchUp, and sent the file to a 3D-printing service. The exhausts are made from a styrene sprue.
Beside the wheels and cowlings, the kit parts were really OK, although I had to use tons of putty.  So, here we go:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
Cheers
Alex

Excellent work!
 
Tell me, what is the best glue for the light plastic shell halves used in the vacu-formed kit?
 
As for me, for the effort, for a 1/32 scratch-build, I believe I still would prefer a balsa-stick Guillows 1/32 B-25 to the vacu-formed kits. Something about being dependent on the proclivities of the outer shell's fit to each other to maintain the correct shape over the substantial inner-supports framing overall skeleton (cockpit bulkheads, wing fillets, spars etc.) I get with balsa kits.
 
On the other hand, if you need a tip for an easy way at making nav lights, let me know. 
 
Tom

After the issues with photobucket, I finally managed to update this thread with pictures from Imgur. Pretty tiring work. I wasn't able to download my full album at once from photobucket for whatever reason, so I had to manually download every picture.
 
Alex

No real update on the Hampden, but I took some time to link the older pictures from photobucket to Imgur. Please remind me to finish this one someday

No real update on the Hampden, but I took some time to link the older pictures from photobucket to Imgur. Please remind me to finish this one someday

Good evening,
 
some progress on the right fuselage shell... I added frame 5, the longitudinal U-profile, frame 3d and frame 2.
 

 
Frame 5 has a large circular opening for the oxygen-shower. The U-profil runs along the top edge of the sideconsoles from frame 3d to frame 5:

 
Frame 3d is quite simple. In front of frame 3 is frame 2 with four circular openings:

 
Close-up of f5 and f6:

 
F2 (dry fitting) with the openings for four electrial sockets/connectors:

 
Bye for now,
 
Bernd.