jumpjack

Hi Woody My comment was aimed at what can happen at our end- if goods are subject to a UK customs check they are then automatically subject to a Post Office 'handling charge' of £14, whether or not any extra duty is due. In my experience this may apply to any declared value and is frankly a lottery - and a nice little earner if you are cynically inclined. In due course I'm sure Theresa and Donald will get things sorted (LOL). Keep up the good work Les

For a 'frrebee' I would definitely recomend fusion- apart from anything else, there are basic tutorials for kids online to get you started double quick and it handles modelling type small scales with ease (unlike some others). I made my first complex hollowed out 3D model from scratch in under a fortnight. Another plus for fusion is that it can model direct from DWG imported from other programmes- in my case I use CorelDraw for most of my 2D and ship into Fusion 360 for modelling.

Hi Woody TBH $10 p&p is presently not too big a hit in the UK, our internal minimums can easily be half of that. Where things get expensive is when items are intercepted by Customs- that automatically doubles p&p costs through 'handling charges'. les

Thanks for the response, Woody and I've taken due note of your suggestions. I am in the UK where regular supplies of your rivets have been erratic; so I have built up stocks over a number of years from various sources- including direct. On the project mentioned I'll be using Surface Details 25, 30 and 31 of unknown production dates. Related to your laqueur suggestion one technique I've tested with surprising success is to print the required pattern on thin coated paper (@ 0.013mm) using light blue lines (for HO scale the liners are 'hairline'). This is then laqueur coated both sides and the rivets applied 'on the flat' and laqueur sealed, then bonded to the model as a complete 'rivetted' panel. Basically a variation on how Peter Cooke skinned his Lancasters- time consuming but quite effective. Les

Twobad's suggestion can be used for just about any shape of line- at least in F360.

Hi Woody This is slightly off topic question that I hope will be of more general interest. I have two railway cars to linet out with your HO scale rivets. Each is some 18" long and requires 20 odd of both full length and vertical straight lines of rivets. Any tips on how these may be best applied? On my tests I have found a coat of Microsol Decal Film greatly improved handling and with such small rivets it was easier to see what was going on with light coloured guide lines (rather than black or graphite over which the teeny decals disappear). Thanks Les

I think the wings and undercarriage were common across all 3 (?) engine variants bar the later addition of air brakes. Fuselage and tail alterations were quite another matter.

Seatbelts- not exactly definitive but in the Schneider cockpit scenes from First of the Few, David Niven does not appear to be wearing any shoulder straps! You can find the film on YouTube; relevant scene is around 39 minutes.

I think what Americans know as Bondo is the same as UK car body filler products such as Isopon P38. The U-Pol Quicksand easy sanding version (Halfords) does what it says on the tin and is a lot easier to dress than is Hard set Milliput . By the way, assuming you already know fresh Milliput can be readily dressed to shape with water as lubricant?

Re the issue of raised lettering, I am getting some very high resolution prints for my railway modelling scratch designs from the likes of CW Railways, certainly good enough for this sort of detail in 1/18. I'm also finding the new generation of 'self levelling' acrylic primers go a long way to finishing prints without any further prep. For lower definition stuff, I suspect the resin decal printers such as Archer Transfers might fancy association with such a prestigious project (worth an email). Then there is always etch, either direct or as stencils for paint/filler.

Have you come across Gator's Grip thin and thick acrylic glues? Supposedly specially formulated to deal with PE and so far giving me and my fat fingers good results.

Assuming you already know of G-BDFF, the ill fated flying replica S5 of the 70's/80's. A short reference to reviving the project here http://theflyingboatforum.forumlaunch.net/viewtopic.php?f=105&t=1531

Never mind the basic kit price, that's going to be a substantial investment in Archer rivets!

I think 30g refers to a standard wire gauge; 30 Gauge is around 0.012 inch (twelve thou.) or 0.32mm, so very thin in 1/32( 0.001mm).

Just a thought and only thrown in as an excuse to add to the justly deserved admiration of your model; any high gloss paint finish will act as a mirror with black being particularly good- spray finish on the reverse of sheet glass or plastic being the simple way to get a pristine finish. This can be a useful option where the display item itself has a near mirror quality and offers the eye some help in distinguishing between the real and the reflected. Les