Fooesboy

As far as I am aware the issue people have with the gear is not the strength, it is the fact that there is a steel rod comming out of the top of the tyre....

I'm so disappointed to hear about the problems with this kit. I was seriously considering purchasing one but I have no desire to give out this much of my hard earned and then have a fight on my hands.
This won't stop me from following your progress.
Best of luck!

Hi everyone
Time for an update. I have pretty much finished detailing the sidewalls on the starboard side and now just need to do the port side. Once the all of the detailing is done, I'll drill out the windows and then paint them ready for fiber installation.
I am very happy with how its all come out!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Anyways, that's it for now, but I will update again once the other side is finished
Thanks for looking in
Si
 

Well, I needed a bit of a MoJo pick me up............something simple, small and that I did not have to add a lot of AM bits or resin to, so here we are with a Meng F.1.
I am not putting the Tigercat down, but working on this in parallel so I don't get burned out. From what I can see and have read, this will be a great fitting little kit.
 
I will be doing Werner Voss's F.1 103/17 as it appeared in his final valiant battle against James McCudden and 6 other aces in  'B' Flight of 56 Squadron on 23 September 1917.
 
This will not be a super detailed or slow build (I hope) but rather a quick enjoyable one. I've got more AM than I thought, but will not be using it all. 
Not a TON of plastic in the box, and assembly seems straight forward
 

 
 
 
 
Couple bits of AM I found that will all be easy to add, but I will not be using the rubber tires:
 

 
 
 
 
Can anyone confirm this is the correct engine?  Looks like it might be more detailed than the OOB Meng kit.
 

 
 
 
 
Also will be easing paint and decaling by doing everything in a single fell swoop, with some lovely Aviatic decals. I will be doing the cowl face with some masks created on my Silhouette:
 

 
 
 
 
They seem right on with what I can tell Voss's kite appeared like in 1917:
 

 
 
 
 
First job up is one of the two things wrong with the Meng offering that I can see, and my kit had both; warped wings (all 3 to one degree or another) and a broken forward cockpit/cowl piece. 
The wings were worse off the sprue than on:
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
Being under quarantine, and it being -15F to 5F outside lately, I've gotten into tea. Usually a coffee guy, but started having tea for a change, so while heating up some water for tea, prior to boiling it, I used that to warp the wings back into shape. Took all of about 10 min, and gave the peppermint tea a nice plastic wang. Pretty straight now, and really wasn't a huge deal. You can also see the broken part on the middle wing as well:
 

 

 
 
 
 
 
First up for Voss's F.1 is to remove the stacking pads, fill the skid holes, and fill some of the depressions left on the leading edge sprue gates. I'm also going to be masking the leading edge off and sanding down a bit of the rib/nail detail, but not all of it. 
 
I also snipped off and cleaned up a lot of the first steps to the cockpit assembly:
 

 
 
 
 
So far so good!  Things are progressing quickly, and Im hoping this build to be very enjoyable. We shall see.........
 
Cheers! 

Probably radials as they have an actual throttle, and are much easier to fly Im sure. 
 
Here is a German Tripe with an actual Oberursel  II repro. Having that "on\off" type throttle would have been a pain to fly:
 
 

It's a pleasure.
 

 

 
Sideskirts painted. Also made sone corrections at the yellow patches and did some touch-ups here and there. Now up to some more chipping with brush and sponges!
 
Regards
- dutik

hey everyone
 
I took some time today to make use of the awesome daylight we've had here to get some more detailed shots of where I am up to right now. I'll have some more time to myself this week as the wife and child are heading off to see her family before Xmas before I go up to Brisbane to join them later. I hope to be able to use that time constructively
 
So yeah, the last set of photos didn't really convey what I'd actually done, and here's hoping these ones tell a better story
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Well, that's it for now, but as always, thanks for stopping by and having a look
Till next time
 
Si
 

Thanks Chris!
Quick update while I wait for my work meeting to kick off. I took some pics last night of one of many test fits of the front sidewalls and upper and lower hull plates. I have to keep adding the walls and plates together to make sure the detailing I've added tot he underside of the edge on the top plate and again on the bottom plate don't interfere with the details on the sidewalls etc. Its very time consuming but it'll all look pretty cool once its together.
Excuse the not so great photos. I promise next time they will be clearer
 
 
 
 
 
 
Well, that's all I have for now, but once the front wall is done, I'll take a photo of the kit standard VS what I've done side by side so you can see the difference some extra details can make
Well I have to go back to work but as always, thanks for stopping by and having a look
Till next time!
Si
 
 

Thanks all!  
 
Yes, this one by far and away has been blowing my mind with regard to how its supposed to go together.  Its really tough on my OCD, as NOTHING "pops" or "snaps" into place, and everything is just a bit off here or there, requiring guestimations, scratch building and loads of cursing. Combine that with flubs in manufacturing from the factory, and instructions that really are images only, and even then don't always show how or where exactly things are supposed to go. 
Its maddening at times honestly, and if the F7F was not my all time favorite aircraft, Im not sure Id persevere on this one. 
I'll NOT be giving up on this one however..........as at some point next year, I WILL have a finished 1/32nd scale F7F Tigercat!!
 
On a good note however, the latest factory flub in the kit (engine bearer brace being WAY too short) I think has been fixed, and that has lead to (hopefully) one of the last major "how-the-hell-am-I-going-to-do-this" moments of the kit:
 
I managed to cut open the port side engine bearer brace that was too short and add some styrene tubing to that, sanding it down to fit over the internal wire. From there, I used some larger aluminum tube for the bearer bases. Its not perfect by ANY means, but after about two hours of drilling holes in the wrong spot, cutting the new brace open a couple times, because the angles didnt match up to the starboard side, I had a pair of somewhat matching engine bearers:
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
You can see the styrene tubing extensions on the back and front of the outer port brace. In retrospect, it wasn't off by a mm or two but more like 5 or 6mm. Enough to where it should have been VERY noticeable it was not the same as the other 3:
 

 
 
 
 
This then will lead me to building the rest of the engine mounts which consist of two V shaped upper side parts, two V shaped lower side parts and a front hoop that the engine will rest on. Getting these last engine bearer parts assembled will be one of the last really tough parts to do.  You can see what the finished bearer is supposed to look like once all parts are glued on in the lower left side of the instruction book:
 

 
 
There was a very nice build of an HpH Tigercat by a Czech gentleman that has helped me considerably. I have used his build pics quite a bit to help me understand where things actually are supposed to go. Here you can see how the front engine bearer "hoop" must align just forward of the firewall itself, in order to have the engine where it needs to be inside the cowl:
 
Forward engine mount and firewall:
 

 
 
 
 
As you can see here, the engine mound hoop is JUST barely smaller than the opening in the firewall:
 

 
 
 
 
With this being said, theoretically when all 4 of the outer engine bearer parts are put together correctly, they come together at a single point at the top and sides (the bottom has a space in-between the braces unlike the top and sides). That seems WAY easier said than done with the inconsistencies of the resin parts in the kit. 
You can see here in the Czech gents build, how the firewall must be blended with the nacelle exhaust cutouts. The firewall then protrudes off of the nacelle by 4 or 5mm;
 

 
 
 
 
This leads to the main issue with the engine hoop. The nacelles themselves need to remain separate until all the internal wheel well detail is added, BUT the engine bearers need to be build before the nacelles can be installed..........yet you NEED the nacelle installed with the firewall installed on it, to make sure the engine bearer hoop will like up correctly with the hole in the firewall.
 
You can see here how the engine bearer hoop must align exactly with the hole in the firewall, and also must protrude ever so slightly (about the thickness of the hoop itself) in order to get the engine seated where it needs to be in the cowl:
 

 
 
 
 
Im really looking forward to figuring out this issue, as once I DO do that, The rest of the difficult parts will be things like the landing gear, and clear parts, but those I dont think will take NEARLY the mental fortitude that all of the rest has taken to this point. 
 
Man, this kit really makes you want it bad if you are going to see it all the way to completion!! 
 
Ive got the fire in me for this one boys, so Im going to utilize that feeling to press on through the crappy parts of the build, then onto the good stuff, like detailing and painting.
 
Cheers until you older! 
 

Hi all,
Apart from the propeller, all of the decals have now been applied.
Undersides using ‘Aviattic’ aged varnish CDL (ATT32094) over base colours.
Top surfaces 'Aviattic' Linen Weave Effect (ATT32236) over base colours.
Individual marking from the ‘SuperScale’ WW1 Nieuport 28C-1 (MS320243) set.
Final sealing coat of 'Alclad' Light Sheen (ALC-311) lacquer.
 
Now I'll need apply weathering before adding details, such as the retaining strap for the engine cowl and ring supports for the front of the machine gun cooling jackets.
Then it'll be pre-rigging and start the construction,
 
Mike
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 

Hi all,
I've made a start on the painting phase.
The undersides of the wings would have the faint shadows from the leading edge fairings, wing ribs, rear spar and cross bracing wires.
The upper surfaces hardly at all as they were brush painted with coloured dopes.
I thought this time, I'd try representing these shadows with a slightly different technique.
I airbrushed the undersides with 'AK Interactive' white primer, which was required for when I apply the 'Aviattic' clear CDL decals.
Then I over sprayed a light coat of 'Tamiya' Smoke (X19).
I scanned the internal structure of both with and rescaled the scans to the correct side.
Then coloured the structure with contrasting colours and saved them as JPG files.
These were uploaded into my 'Cricut' Explore Air 2 crafters cutter and the parts not required were deleted.
I then cut the masks using 'Artool' Ultra Mask sheets.
These were placed onto the wings with the parts not required removed.
A light coat of the white primer was airbrushed and then the masks removed.
The bracing wires were drawn on the wings using a pencil.
Finally a light, blend coat of the white was airbrushed to blend everything.
 
The surfaces still need to be gloss coated before the CDL decals are applied,
 
Mike  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

thanks guys
Thought I would show you where I'm heading with this. Got some good basic structure work done and am now working on the larger details before moving in to do the finer stuff. There are some casting holes here and there and will need covering etc which will be done with details. Most of this will unlikely to be seen but it's better to be safe than sorry and have visibly empty spots of nothing
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Anyways, that's it for now, but thanks for looking
Si
 

Hi all,
 
I would like to start a WIP of my Wecohe 1/16 Jagdtiger.
Wecohe produced high end 1/16 models for the RC market (Sturmtiger, Jagdtiger and Panther), unfortunately they ceased productions a few years ago.
Luckily I was able to buy the last remainig kits, although I am missing a few items.
Everything on this kit is true to scale, the hull has the correct length, and the white plates which make up the upper hull are all scale thickness.
This sounds nice, but is a real pain in the #ss, it takes time (and a sh*tload of white dust) to file/sand the correct angles so that all the plates fit into eachother.
I started with preparing the lower hull, only to find out that I missed 2 Torsion bar stays for the suspension. I ordered them in the UK, and am waiting for them to arrrive.
So I started with priming the Tamiya roadwheels, sprocket- and idlerwheels, schwingarms and 2 parts of the upper hull frontside:

 
Next was the construction of the rear plate, and idlerwheel axle:


 
Followed by the basic construction of the upper hull:


 
Then I decided to attach also the front and right hull side, and started with weldinglines, made with 2 component putty:


 
Then, while still waiting I started for the torsion bar stays, I started with the Gunbarrel travel lock:


 
I am pretty happy with the result, as the whole travel lock is fully functional!
 
I hope you find this start of my Jagdtiger build interesting, and stay tuned for more updates!
 
With regards,
Rob
 
 
 
 
 

Here are some photos as it comes into final forms.  I have made some creative decisions as if you have to make a tough choice here.  If you are trying to replicate the studio scale prop, it has a lot of features that never show up in the movie.  For example along the sides there are extensive use of weathering materials that resemble rust effects.  Also the Satellite dish area looks totally different from what is replicated in the model.  Also the prop is fairly clean.  There is little panel lining, there are subtle streaking effects and some basic washes.  Now when you go back and watch Empire Strikes Back the look is totally different.  The falcon in the movie is just filthy.  The sides are just loaded with soot and very dark dirt effects.  Also in the movie scenes the set designers loved leaking hydraulic fluid.  You look at anything where there are hydraulics like the entry ramp and there is leaking fluid everywhere.  The thing is filthy in the movie.  
 
I in the end went more for the movie look.  I rewatched the movie and the rust effects don't seem to ever show up or make any sense.  When you see the movie prop it looks fire enough back that I think the movie close ups should influence the look more.  So here you go:
 

Hi everyone
Thought I would update this quickly while I had some spare time. As I have said previously, I have made a good start on the base. Most of my time has been spent making casts but I have actually cemented stuff together. The main service trench has been made and I am now making the lower level details. I've tried to make it look under construction but I think I may have made it also look like it's destroyed. Not sure which yet.naturally, there will be some lighting in amongst all this to give it more life.
I've quite enjoying making the base so far and if it goes like what's in my head, then this will be awesome. Maybe even better than the ship? Too early to say but here's where I am at currently:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Well, that's it for now but once I'll update again once I have something worthwhile showing
As always, thanks for stopping by and having a look
Si
 
 
 
 
 

So here it is all finished........
 

 

 

 

 

 
...and up on it's frame......
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
As I said ....really had a lot of fun with this generator build!....excuse the amount of photos!
 
Onwards ever onwards!....to getting the tail wheel assembly built......till then
 
Cheers once again for looking in!
 
Fozzy

And start with painting - first 1500 black primer, light shades with deck-tan and white. After - paint some places with original two tone of green camo, sealed with varnish.
Some hair sprey covered those areas and start painting the "tank" colors. Some chipping of different zones and places, continue with other shades of those colors.
When all was ready - sealed with clear and start with decals-work. Over them I sprayed some smoke to shade again some of the panels and details:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Some additional touches
 

 

 

 

 

 
Ohhh guys, I'm so sorry for the background with the Mi-26, but this my other project waiting to build the base for it. Sorry ones again.
So that is for now, hope you are all OK, stay safe, eat great food and dring sweeet beeeer
 
Cheers friends
 
 

Thanks guys
Now continue with some weathered burnt paint over the half-wings:
 

 

 
Cheers friends
 
 

I was lucky to get some free time this afternoon, so I took some pictures of where I am currently up to
I have been working on this as well as the Batmobile and have actually got quite a bit done. I have cemented my base plans and I'll show you a picture later on of what I have in mind. So, I have been casting multiple copies of my very expensive 3D printed DS tile ready to layout on the sheet and that has consumed a fair amount of time so far, but TBH, it's not hard to mix up a batch of resin  and make a copy while waiting for the spuds to cook or what have you.
The surface detailing is coming along nicely. The main concentrations have been finished and now its just time to fill it out and then crack on with the side walls (what I have also started but not got very far with)
 
 
 
 
 
And this is rough layout of how the base is going to go:
 
 
Well, that's it for this update, but the next one will likely be the completion of the lower hull and more work on the base
As always, thanks for continually coming in here and having a look
Si

While I wait for my new 3D printed tile to arrive, I have been quietly working away on the ship and have finally finished one side. Now I just need to start the other side....
Trying to get a shuffle on this one as I want it done for Expo next year (providing its on of course)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Well, that's it for now, but as always, thanks for looking!
Cheers
Si
 
 

Oh it is confusing.  I was doing some more digging because actually I am almost done with it and am trying to figure out the weathering.  The internals would not fit in the real thing if it were real.  The engines did not exist on film until The last Jedi and other than blue light did not show in earlier movies.  The movie sets and the prop are substantialy different.  The original model from A New Hope is a lot more detailed and was 5 feet across.  
 
Life is a lot easier when dealing with modeling reality.  It is harder in it's own way.  You have more freedom in some ways with Science Fiction but you have new complexities also.  That is the problem when you are not dealing with reality but a movie and whether you are replicating a prop, or a set or some other thing.  I am only scratching the surface of this insanity.  My son is far more fanatical about Star Wars than I understands the various concepts of what is cannon and what is not as far as official stories and so on.  
 
Finally keep in mind there is no "official Mellinium Falcon" it is a composite of what we think it was and the various states it existed in movies from Prop, to Set to CGI.  

A little more progress on this project with all of the fairings/aero stuff painted and decaled.
 

 
The decals performed flawlessly and settled down really well. Really nice colour density and no silvering. They need sealing in and then a matte coat misting over. 
 
Regards. Andy 

Starting this weekend I am reviving this thread, I have been photographing all the way and she is almost done.  So this will become a fast foreword build thread.  I hope you enjoy and am bumping this up so I can quickly find the thread and hopefully tonight I will start getting photos up.  

I started this 2 days ago and like a good book, I couldn't put it down! This is my first bike model but definitely not my last (Tamiya) bike!
This is Tamiya's 1:12 Yamaha YZF-R1M. It's out of the box with the only "improvement" being drilling out the brake rotor vents.
Definitely a recommended kit.
There are a few WIP pics on my computer but I only put these ones on tonight. It's painted with Tamiya and Vallejo acrylics and Tamiya and Alclad lacquers.

 

 

Thanks for looking

Thanks!
Completed. Like every Tamiya kit the fit is impeccable, I had a bit of trouble (nothing new for me) with the decals but after using Micro set/sol,  Mr. Mark set, Solvaset with no real effect, I remembered I had Tamiya mark fit "strong"...well, these being Tamiya decals and Tamiya mark fit I gave that a go and it worked...some Tamiya magic in there I guess.

 

 

 

Thanks for looking