Landrotten Highlander

A friend gave me the leftover parts from his Tamiya wunder-kit so here we go.  I'm doing a kit bash plus scratch building to get a decent display without the inflated co$t.  I have a strong appreciation for the "under dog" kits, especially the Revell 1/32 series from the 60's.

April 9/24
 
Lots of small updates, but mostly an introduction to 7 different after-market items you might not be aware of for this and the Block 50 kit.
 
First some housekeeping, to remove that panel line around the AOA probe on both sides of the nose cone.  While it’s usually stained this way due to the protective cap that's placed over the probe when parked, it isn’t a real panel line, so I want to remove it. Same thing holds true for the Tamiya F-15 kits.
 

 
This kit has a removable nose cone to show off the radar stuff like the Block 50 kit, but it doesn’t have the radar screen anyway, so it should be glued into place instead.  The nose cone join isn’t very strong as a result, so to reinforce the join I glued Part F-35 to the nose cone first, then a styrene spacer from scrap that was sanded down to size to fill the gap behind it.  I used thick CA glue to weld it to the metal weight at the front, which gives you about 5 minutes to wiggle it around to get the best fit from all sides and angles with ordinary Tamiya ETC applied around the margin.
 

 
The nose cone join was then sanded down where needed, with eroded fastener detail restored with the usual tools to do so, like a Mega Tool for the big fasteners.  For the AOA probes I cut off, I’m using Master brass replacements which I’ve used a few times before on my other jets.  I think they really “kick them up a notch”.
 

 
The other side.  These probes fit into small holes that I drilled, so I can leave them off until the end of the build.
 

 

 
Another addition to this build is Kopecky horizontal stabilizers, which I heard about from our friend Marcel about 18 months ago, so I ordered a set for this future model.  The Kopecky resin I’ve used so far is excellent and probably on par with ResKit, which is saying a lot!  The service is excellent and their website is here:
 
Kopecky Website
 
This set comes with nice subtle rivet detail, but if you want almost no rivets, they now make a smoother version (32028).  Although most of these stabilizers are quite smooth, there are a few where you can clearly see the rivets like on Page 30 of Jake’s book, so I’m happy to stick with these instead.  As usual, trying to photograph this snow-white plastic is a real struggle, but next to this dark resin, it’s even tougher.  As you probably know, those moon craters next to the stab axle on the kit parts are way too deep, while the Kopecky rivets are at the surface where they should be.
 

 

 
The Kopecky stabs also have really nice recessed hollow internal detail that is missing from the kit.
 

 
Even if you don’t care for the resin stabs, you should buy this kit for the super fine brass static wicks that come with it, also made by Master.  The kit one in the middle sure looks crude and chunky when set next to them.
 

 

 
As an added bonus, there’s enough wicks for the vertical stabilizer and the rear tips of the wings.  The little resin wick holders fit the kit parts perfectly.
 

 
While we’re looking at the vertical stab, that top panel line at the front should be filled and rivet detail added, while a static wick should be added, right behind the top light assembly that will be added later.
 

 
Kopecky also makes really nice LAU-129 missiles rails, which thankfully come in a set of 4, because you’ll need all of them.
 

 
And a really detailed center-line pylon, which comes in two parts, just like the real deal.
 

 

 
This will be added at the end of the build, along with the landing gear cover piece it attaches to, Part C27.  It looks so good from the bottom, I may not add the fuel tank, so that you can see all the work I did in the landing gear bay unobstructed.
 

 
I have struggled for years to find a decent ACMI pod, because up until recently, the only resin ones available were poorly made and it’s hard to keep up with all the new versions that seem to come out every second year.  Here’s the one on my subject, which I took in 2022.
 

 
Thanks to 3D printing, we now have a few good options, like Phase Hanger Resin (1 ordered) and a new aftermarket supplier I found in the UK, Bandit Resin Factory.  This supplier doesn’t have a full website yet, but they do have a Facebook presence, where you can see some of their products and contact the owner below, who will send you his catalogue.
 
Bandit Resin Factory (Facebook)
 
Apparently the ACMI pod above is a “Type E”, so I ordered 2 of them so that I had a spare for the stash.  This is the nicest ACMI pod I’ve ever seen and it even comes with decals.  Highly recommended!
 

 
I also bought a travel pod that I’ve never seen before, which is also excellent with a door that opens.  I didn’t open it yet, because I’m not likely to use it on this particular jet.
 

 
As mentioned before, the front flaps on F-16’s rest a few degrees in the upward position when parked for some reason.
 

 
So I decided to cement mine in permanently now, just in case I struggled with the fit and angle later.  With a microbrush holding up the flaps while the glue dried, they seem to be roughly correct.
 

 
Rear flaps were attached as well, but these ones can still move up and down.
 

 
The next aftermarket parts I used were the CrossDelta external reinforcement plates that I showed earlier, which for Block 25 and Block 32 Vipers have the “lawnmower blades” to reinforce the vertical stabilizer base and the big 5-piece plate at the wing root to reinforce the fuel tanks.  Tamiya includes a decal set to replicate these plates, but they are too thin and the rivet detail won’t show, unless you leave them unpainted white.  I thought these CrossDelta plates would be metalized plastic, but they are actually made from real metal and are self adhesive.
 

 
Tough to see on the white plastic, but this is where they belong based upon the instructions and Jake’s book (P. 23).
 

 
Since they are super glossy and metal, I scuffed them up a bit with 1000# sandpaper to help with paint adhesion, which isn’t too rough to leave scratch marks.  I will need to use a metal primer as well if I want the paint to stick.
 

 
Not in the CrossDelta instructions or in Jake’s book, Block 25’s like my subject have a small reinforcement strap just below the canopy hinge on both sides, so I cut up one of the bigger plates to create 2 of them.  Since they are so small, I wicked a little thin CA glue underneath them to hold them securely, then cleaned up the edges with CA glue remover.
 

 
On the starboard side, the strap is just aft of the panel hinge.  I also opened up that tiny vent on the side, which I should have done earlier from behind before the top fuselage Part B28 was cemented into place.
 

 
One thing that’s a little surprising to me with F-16’s is that there’s a small gap at the base of the vertical stabilizer, unlike other jets.
 

 
This small gap is perfect for the very tight fitting kit stabilizer, which is friction fit, so you don’t really need to glue it on, so it can be painted and decaled off the fuselage for ease of handling.  Note that the small air duct on the base was cut off, which Block 25’s don’t have.
 

 
Well that’s it for now, but I thought I would throw out a question that I’ve always wondered about.  If F-16’s have 16 static wicks trailing all the control surfaces, why don’t other fighter jets like F-15’s and F-18’s have them as well?  Hmmmm…….
 
Cheers,
Chuck

Thanks guys. 
 
Definitely watched das boot, but nowadays I am a big fan of Greyhound
 
Work started a few weeks ago on the forward torpedo compartment. 
Here are blueprints in side and top view:
 

 
It is made of different section:
- the bulkhead
- the floor 
- the 4 fishes stored under the floor (I should remove the det)
- the 4 launcher tubes 
- the side wall with the 6 bunks.


 
Interesting things might happen in this compartment. 
- It can be packed with sleeping crew, in the bunks and on the floor. 
- The crew can be set loading one of the torpedo tube (which is the option I probably will chose as it goes better with the rest of the scenario I'll show)
- Torpedoes can be loaded from above deck, and slide into the compartment through the pressure hull. One might think that the boat needs to be docked for that but there is one fish stowed in its own pressure tube, just under the deck floor that the crew could get while at sea.
It's a complicated manoeuvre they did on the surface being very vulnerable in calm seas, using the cradle and a winch on top of a pole, placed between the loading hatch and the tower.  The same winch was used to pull the fish out of it's rotated stowage tube and to let it slide into the forward (or aft -as the same mechanism was available aft) torpedo room.
I'm not ruling out the option, but at this time I am considering 88mm gun in action so that rules out torpedo loading above deck.
 
Current compartment painting is made with acrylics:
XF-66 for dark grey, H338 for light grey.
The fishes are aluminium XF-16 and their head bronze X-33; props and fuses are painted gold X-31. The floor is X-32 
Wood is made with oils which I'll detail in the next post.
 

Weathering the floor has started but it's far from being finished 
 

The launching tubes parts are not quite detailed. RC Subs provide the tube doors and I will detail these later on. The forward pressure hull part is provided in resin by RC Subs as well. If you don't have it the pressure hull is flat and that's highly visible. So this part is quite necessary IMHO. I will probably detail the visible side of the tubes a bit more later on. 
 

Then comes the back wall with the frames for the bunks. 
Trumpeter obviously couldn't detail the right side of the room since doing so would prevent us to look inside, but they could have done a bit better nevertheless.
I intent to add at least a few lower bunks which should not impact the view inside and leave enough space to look at the rest of the room.
 

Then I stalled on how to implement the bunks.
Trumpeter only offer a plastic part for the mattresses which really aren't up to par. I initially cut some thin slice of foam which I intended to paint white but I wasn't satisfied with the result.  It took me a while to figure it out.
 
I designed mattresses and pillows and 3D printed them (a bunch of them) 
then designed a decal for the linen (white was too immaculate and I wanted something more military issued) and laser printed them on a blank white decal sheet
And finally I created the blankets with toilet paper soaked with a mixture of PVA glue and water.
 
Result after the basic layer of paint::

Much better although the linen need another coat of decal solution.
Normally the bunks are folded up when loading torpedoes, a process I intend to show. But I'll load one of the right side tube to keep clear from the beds and populate the open side of the room. Lots of details will also required on the back walls
 

The roof has been painted in light grey with the wood framing. The loaded torpedo will hang from there and I intend to add a lot of supplies in the room as well.
4-5 leds will be wired on the roof for compartment lighting as this turns pretty dark once the roof is closed. 
i'll try to manage the electrical side of things at later stage of the built. But I need to plan a bit ahead to make sure I still can add lights where I need them without destroying too much of the prior work. 
 
 
 

Hi gentlemen
This is my last construction, something different today ... this is the Wessex  HU 5 from Fly.... the kit is a "short term", the plastic is thick, the engraving is sometimes "soft", especially the multitude of small holes supposed to represent the rivets (they are raised on the real machine) but no matter that works, we have some nice resin parts ( cockpit consoles , rotor head , wheels etc ....)The decals are thin and nice , for 4 different colorful helos .. The instruction sheet is .....not clear , and I dare to say "messy" , ... But stop chatting, there is a complete review of the kit here....... Well, don’t expect a very detailed construction like "Shark 64 did it here some time ago, I’m nowhere near as skillful as he... My main improvement is in the cargo cabin. there is a lack of detail inside, and God knows this area is " occupied," so I scratch built it, and too bad if nothing will be seen afterwards..... I put some raised rivets here and there on some hatches, panels and so on, especially around the windscreen, for a more pleasing effect, I added some "pipes" along the fuselage on both sides , the rotor head needs more details , a good picture is very useful because of this complex area ........ what else ??, the paint scheme is not provided, but it's nothing, I just painted a big D on the fuselage, the decals are from the kit...... Is it perfect ???? no , but despite some issues , it was a cool trip ......so enjoy ....or not thanks for watching
Alain
some in progress pictures





 





 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Onward to the next step, trying to get rid of, or at least subdue the golf ball size looking rivets (dents) in the cowl flaps.  I couldn’t help but notice just how prominent they look in many of the pics online of different builds.  
 

Finished with the radar dome and mount, and depending how lazy I get this afternoon I’ll  maybe make a power cable for it. 

 

Painting continues.    AK Real Colors US Army Helo Drab as the base, then with a couple of custom blends of paint to replicate the faded, weathered appearance of the real thing.    One tint is more of a brownish OD, the other a chalky lightish-green. 
 

 
My primary build log is over on FB.   On it, a former UH-60 crew chief mentioned that they used a version of CARC Helo Drab in spray cans.   He said this stuff faded quickly to a grey/green color.    It was used for general touchups, corrosion control and (in the case of my subject) to overpaint the "United States Army" markings on the tailboom.   This was done when the aircraft received survivability updates circa 2006-2007.   One of these was the addition of extra flare dispensers on the tailboom, which required those markings to be painted out and reapplied higher on the boom.    Looking at pics, I found he was spot-on regarding this, so back to the paint booth I went. 
 

 

 

 
Also put a patch of this paint on the nose, to replicate where a former unit logo or aircraft number was painted out.      
 
Thats it for now, thanks for checking in. 

Today's update
 

Kits-World seat harnesses now added. Tomorrow I'll dirty this up with some washes and get ready to assemble the fuselage halves.
 

Hi Ronnie,
 
That link is for the page that hosts the image, rather than directly to the image itself. You want the one that looks like this (second option in the list):
 
https://i.postimg.cc/yNwxQKMr/8-CA3-DFC1-EBC5-48-EC-BE8-E-0467-DDAF08-C2.jpg  
Which will give you this:
 

 
Kev

I'm getting on almost a 'semi-Tolga' roll with this now!
 

 

Last details to glue plus some areas to tweak and Tempest will end up in glass-case.

That's crazy I know.
My kids gave me that look when they saw that huge box. My wife didn't even bother to raise her beautiful eyes. Implicitly that meant keep that beast in your man's room and don't you dare store it outside - I am sure she is enjoying the struggle I will go through to enforce her rules
Luckily she does not come in the garage.
 
That's a commission build. and I welcome a break from things with wings - although I miss them already...
 

The kit is huge: 140cm and feature internal details in 6 compartments: 
front torpedo room + crew quarters officer quarters conn rear crew quarters + kitchen diesel engine room electric room + rear torpedo compartment
  And about 40 figures to go along... Lighting is mandatory for viewing inside so A magic scale factory led kit will be added to the project. 
 
One hull side is transparent to see the details inside but I intend to paint it and cut it open rather than suffering the plexiglass effect.
The tower surprisingly also feature a transparent side, but opposite to the hull ...

 

 
The kit is rather simplistic and much detail will be necessary to bring this where I would like.  I sourced all RCsubs PE but I will be short of many details for the inside to overcome the shortcut Trumpeter took by roughly making only half a boat internal. Luckily the new 3D printer will come to the rescue.
Another aspect dearly missing is supplies. So lots of crates, hamacs, bottles, cans, vegetables will be added a little bit of everywhere.
 
I guess this will be a long journey and I found myself intrigued by the infamous U-boot threat in the battle of the Atlantic. And there is much to read about it.
 
I'll build this in stage, compartment by compartment and will probably work on the hull when I'm fed up with internal details.
Let's dive into this. 

Not far to go now....tomorrow? 
 





 

Some more items in-progress.
 
Flaps. First version, some improvements needed. Re-printing a little thicker. Thin prints tend to curl/warp. I will thin the print on sandpaper when complete.
 

 

 
Fuel tanks. Some small modifications still needed.
 

 

 
Improved flaps printing now.
 
Dan

Been a long time since I've posted anything, had a few false starts over the last few years but in reality my heart wasn't in it. A lot has happened in the past few years from a couple of health scares, taking early retirement from my job after 44 years ( not health related ) to our first Granddaughter arriving.
So I have decided to try and get back into building again especially with quite a few semi started kits kicking around the house, I thought I need something nice and simple so after raking through the stash I found the venerable Hasegawa 109. Upon opening the box apart from the kit parts there was an MDC cockpit, Quickboost exhausts, Radu's seat belts and wheel well upgrade. Wow I forgot all this was in there plus I reckon it's been at least 15+ years since I last built one so that could be how long the bits have been in the box.
I'm going for a German 109 rather than the Italian one on the box, so the markings will be replaced with aftermarket ones. 
So far I have built the cockpit using the MDC set apart from the main panel, I replaced it with the pre-painted one from Eduard as I couldn't be ersed yet doing it plus it looks a hell of a lot better than I could do. It only needed a bit of trimming to get it to fit, I used material the seat belts and they proved quite a challenge as my eyesight has gone to pot and the hands shake a bit so getting the material through the buckles was infuriating at times plus I've cheated a bit missing threading it through some of the buckles.
So far it's been quite enjoyable and a learning process all over again.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Graham
 

Hello, everyone
 
I recently finished building Frank Luke’s SPAD XIII.
 
Frank Luke was America's second highest ace in WW1. He shot down 14 balloons and 4 planes just in 10 sorties in 8 days. After making an emergency landing behind enemy lines, he refused to surrender, returned fire with a pistol, and was shot dead.
 
Roden's SPAD XIII is a little difficult to assemble in some aspects, but the proportions is good. One of the shortcomings of Roden's kit is the quality of the decals. The decals for the unit markings of the 27th aero squadron, to which Frank Luke belonged, were not similar to the real ones, so the decals were printed by tracing photos of the real marking. The checkered pattern on the wings was also corrected to four rows, although the kit has three rows. I used photo etching hexagon mesh for sides of the engine cowling and stealed Vickes guns from extra parts of Copper State Model’s Nieuport kits. 
 
The Frank Luke figure was sold on Amazon, and although I don't know the manufacturer, the quality is very good.
 
I also built a Hispano-Suiza 8Ab engine. This is an independent engine kit by RODEN. It is very finely crafted. I highly recommend this kit for everyone. I want more engine kits to be released!
 
 
 
 


 

 

 

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Some progress;
Painting of the upper surfaces
 

I'm back....  been a long grind adding rivets to this thing.    For the aft fuselage and tailboom, I transitioned to Archer's decal rivets (still using those solder balls for a few areas that don't lend themselves to decals).  Also had to spend a great deal of time sanding off incorrect details on the fuselage.   This includes some stiffener plates that were on the tailboom and a large cargo hatch on the aft starboard fuselage which wasn't present on Army UH-60's.    After that, it was full speed ahead on the decals.    These went down extremely easy and after a coat of Micro Sol / Set the look very nice.   
 

Sharp eyed viewers may note that I haven't applied decals to the area aft of the cabin door.   That's because I'm going to have the cargo doors in the open position, and you won't be able to see the fuselage.    No sense making extra work for yourself. 
 

 
My approach to finishing this kit is to decal and paint the tailboom but hold off on the vertical stabilizer.   That way I can use the tail to hold the model while finishing up the detail bits on the fuselage, painting, decals, etc.    I wanted to minimize handling of the surfaces with the decals on them.    In retrospect, that probably wasn't necessary since the Archer decals are impressively strong once they are fully cured.    
 
That's it for now, thanks for checking in. 

Slowly but surely making progress.  I couldn't stand the framework in the upper turret, so I spent some time sanding and polishing it.
 
The start... Completely inaccurate as it should have no framing at all.

 
220 grit to knock it down.

 
This is about 800 or 1000...

 
I finished at 4000 grit, then brushed on a coat of future floor polish. Much better.

 
A quick and dirty dry fit shows it's looking good!


 
Not surprisingly, there is a lot of crap to paint on this beast.

 
I spent today base coating the interior.  Nothing too exciting, so I didn't take many pictures, but I'll post a few once I get it washed and dirtied up a bit.  Next step is to build the Eduard cockpit bits.  More pics soon!

Here is a little more for today.
 
Instrument panel and shroud.
 

 
Flaps. Grey copy is from SC. I will be scratching mine from sheet plastic with a 3d printed detail insert. Sc's part will, I am sure, contain tons of detail in its final form.
 

 
Exhaust nozzles. Outside part courtesy of Chad Summers with the interiors from.....Me.
 

 
Printing flap interiors as I type.
 
Dan

Mike, I don't know how I do it: I start working with the table (a large technical drawing table) free, and I always end up locking myself in the space smaller than an A4 sheet!
Denis, thanks, but never say never: the ICM biplane series is really well designed, think about giving them a chance! 
I think the I-153 kit is the simplest, as a biplane... I'll be able to tell you hopefully soon, it's one of the next on my list of models to make.
 
well, after a few tweaks here and there and some unsuccessful attempts to take some decent photos, I'd say I can declare it completed.
be gentle... even though I used a reflex camera for photos in the lightbox, I'm still very poor at digital photography.
 
a few more shots in the RFI section:
https://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?/topic/99921-fiat-cr42-cn-mm7584-300a-squadriglia-167°-gruppo-autonomo-ciampino-spring-1942-pilot-cpt-corrado-ricci/
 
 
cheers,  and thanks to everyone, Paolo.
 

 

 

After a lot of contemplation I have decided to ditch the vac wings. SC's fuselage is so gorgeous I didn't want to graft on some very suspect vac wings. And I also didn't want to face the hassle of finding a way to attach them, install the wheel wheels and flap bays. 
 
So I sent an email to SC and asked if he would send me his 3d printed wings. He said yes. 
 
Now, he is still in the final design phase and these are not the finished product, but in my opinion will be much easier to work with.
 

 
Anyway, this is just the first look. Much work still lies ahead.
 
Dan

Thank you Richard and Fab for your messages.
I don't know if I've become a modeler with 4 "stars" but I'm trying to improve at every stage of my Yak.
Painting canopies...
I don't know about you, but for me this is the stage I dread the most: if you break a plastic part of the model, well, you can always glue it back together, or even rebuild it.
But when it comes to the transparent parts, there's no room for error, and of course I take great care.
So I completely masked the inside and outside of the canopies and the 2 transparent shields.
I painted them with A14/MRP021 and then glued them with AK Crystal magic glue, specially designed for transparent parts.
As there was still a small, unattractive joint between the canopies and the fuselage, I added a little Deluxe perfect plastic putty, which smoothes out with a damp cotton bud.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
As the camouflage of the Yak at the rear is very dependent on the position of the red star on the fuselage (this star is flush with the AMT12 paintwork from edge to edge), I created a mask of this star, which I then placed in its correct position, thus delimiting the 2 AMT11 and 12 paintworks.
 

 

 

 

 
 
And last but not least, I drew all the boundaries of the 2 AMT 11 and 12 camouflage shades with a pencil, so I could cut the masks to size.

Any update on this project?  I did one earlier this year and used Tamiya TS-15 spray can blue.