Cheetah11

Hi Pete On my previous F-16 build the only way I could make it work was to use Tamiya acrylic clear with a drop of black. Smoke gives quite a dark coating. Thin with Tamiya acrylic thinner but if you need to remove it, Tamiya thinners might craze the plastic. I also sprayed it on the outside and not inside .l found it difficult to get an even coat on the inside of the canopy. BTW is it smoke or green you are spraying? Hope this helps Nick

Hi Dennis What a great build. I have a G-6 from Pastor John still to build and have completed a C-6 also with his conversion. Just a heads up on the windscreen. I used the same idea you had on the windshield. The fighter variants of the Ju-88 used an armored windscreen of a different config to the bomber variants. Here is a photo of the 1/48 Dragon G-6 windshield. Note the asymmetric two front windshields glasses. Cheers Nick

You are right about older kits Dan. For me they provide a nice break from hyper builds full of AM. BTW I loved what you did with the F-16XL. A pity the only kit has such bad dimensions. In the mean time I have scribed the top fuselage and have attached the wings to the top fuselage. I find this works better than attaching the wings once the fuselage is joined. The cockpit needs a bit of adjustment to represent a real F-16 cockpit. I cut the bottom away to deepen the cockpit tub and to make the seat fit. The original seat in the kit was a Stencil seat. When Hasegawa upgraded the kit they added a white metal ACES seat but shortened it to fit the kit. I intend to use a surplus seat from a Tamiya kit, so the tub needs adjustment. More soon Happy modeling Nick

In the mean time I cut a bit of plastic Cheers Nick

Hi Mongoose The Hasegawa kit was released in the late seventies and as such is not really an alternative to the Tamiya kit. The original kit seems to have been based on a mix of prototype and pre-production airframes . The main problems I believe are as a result of this. The nose gear well and gear door are too narrow by 2mm and the main gear well is too short by 4mm. The main gear well is relatively easy to correct but the nose gear will be a little more tricky. I won't be correcting the gear wells on this build. The cockpit is too shallow and the sill at the rear of the cockpit needs to be extended forward. This is an easy fix. I will also re-scribe the raised panel lines. The weapons are not up to modern standards better to bin them. Despite the problems the fit is great and with a bit of work will look great. Hi Alain Great photo. I think masking the splinter pattern will be a bridge too far. I am inclined to do a F-100 powered model this time, so maybe an A as I have a spare tail. I am not nearly an expert on all the variants but as this is my sixth Hasegawa kit since 1984, I am familiar with the kit and it's weaknesses and strengths.

Great work as always Sean. I am looking forward to see this model finished( Now I know why Jix is out of Tamiya tape} Cheers Nick

I recently sold a resin update set for which I had no use and the buyer added the old Hasegawa F-16 to sweeten the deal. He used the tail to make a B model from the Sufa kit but apart from the A/B tail the kit is complete. Since the Tamiya kit these are going for a song around my part of the world. So what to do with this kit. Well, build it of course! I will see what I can do with this one. Cheers Nick

I would go with the Eduard Profi-Pack if cost was not an issue and live with the patience required in the build. Both kits have the un-common small tanks as well as the 500l supersonic tanks. Just note on both kits the tank location needs to be moved inwards a few mm. The old Heller kit was correct in this respect. The armament stores in the kits also need some research as the extension for the Matra550 missiles are not in either kit and only the 550 practice missile is in the Eduard kit. There is a review on Modeling Madness of the Hobby Boss kit. If you need any more info, just ask. Cheers Nick

They are different versions. The Eduard is a Mirage IIIC and the Kinetic kits are of the Mirage IIIE series of aircraft. The Eduard has some tricky fits but can be build with a bit of patience. The Hobby Boss Mirage IIIC builds easier but does not have the same finesse as the Eduard kit. Cheers Nick

Ade just remove the side pegs on the kit gear. There is a small recess on the crossmember where the small tongue on the front of the gear will fit. This is the way to go even on the kit if the gear is to be fitted after painting. I think that is what breaker referred to. Nick

Ha ha, I see you have entered the minefield. seriously I have added a bit of black and a touch of blue to try and replicate Model Master RLM 70(They look the most pleasing to my eye anyway) Nick

Incredible build Sean. You obviously do not need a new 1/32 Tamiya Sabre. Cheers Nick

Nothing unusual except the price. I per chance found this at a local supplier for almost a $135 less than the going price in Europe and England (and saved on the post and import duty.) Modeling budget for a few months gone but I think worth it. Nick

Hi Dave A great and fascinating theme you are modeling. Good luck with the quest of finding the nose penetrator type. I collected some parts and info to model F-16 no 107 a few years ago. (The Thunderbird kit is now too valuable to build, maybe an Academy substitute when I get around to it). When I ordered decals from Isradecal for the project I posed the same question but received no reply. If I may venture a guess the shiny part at the tip of the bomb may indicate a custom penetrator. What kit and decals are you planning to use? BTW I have two interesting articles on the raid. The one also details the raid on the Osirak complex in Sept 1980 by Iranian Phantoms. If you are interested in copies, just ask. Cheers Nick

I bought the Trumpeter Skyraider for a good price and will build it sometime. After being made aware of the canopy issue and differences on the internet I did a comparison with the two 1/48 kits I have to see really how bad the Trumpeter error is (OCD) The results for the base of the windscreen. Monogram 15.25mm Scaled to 1/32 22.9mm Tamiya 16.44mm Scaled to 1/32 24.66 Trumpeter 23.22mm In this picture the Trumpeter just should be closer to the Monogram kit which will be close enough for me. So no more losing sleep over this. All we need now is the sizes of the ZM and of the real aircraft to complete the picture. Interestingly the intake above the cowling has the same difference between these kits as the Trumpeter-ZM kits. Cheers Nick

Although Sailor Malan was an exceptional fighter leader he was not the highest scoring South African in WWII. That honor belongs to Pat Pattle. Two more to mention were the two VC recipients in Bomber Command, John Nettleton and Edwin Swales.

Very, very nice Malcolm. Well done

This is a fantastic and interesting project Iain. I am interested to see how the details like the undercarriage will print. BTW if you ever intend to do an airliner version in the future, I have a color scheme for you. Cheers Nick

So Peter where are the photos of the model. Like Wolf I also only see photos of a real aircraft. Jokes aside, a simply stunning build Nick

If I look at the dimensions on the box it is 1/32

Release for 8/2021 so we will soon see. Box art says 1/32

Better late than never. This should please a few.

Must be 1/35

With apology to Genl Patton for using a quote attributed to him 'A good 25 year old kit is still far better than the perfect kit we will most likely never see.'

Thanks for the interest everyone Thanks for the compliments Alain. It was my first model using Acrylics and I still need to get a few things right. BTW how is your Phantom coming along. Cheers Nick