Ayovan

Yes, it's just south of Salton Sea off hwy 78 in Ocotillo Wells. We ride there every so often. Catch a drywash headed south, just east of Cahilla trail on the south side of hwy 78 for about 3 miles. Not really much there, but it's a riding destination. It's also more or less under the Blue Angles practice area. We have watched them on several occasions.

I haven't been able to get too much done the last 2 weeks. I have been winding down on a job at Company3 movie studios in Hollyweird. Those people have more money than brains... Finished today. Glad that one is over with. Got a little of the cockpit done, but need to scratch out the armor for the pilot, since the only decent photo I have of EP706, there is no headrest. I'll have to go down to the LHS and get some sheet styrene to make a new one. The slot for the seatbelt shoulder harness looks to be in the wrong place too, based on photos.

Busted out some of the HPH set. They provide a resin piece to reshape the cockpit opening to accept the internal armored windscreen. Got that fit and CA'd into place.

I actually got a start last night and put the engine together. And this made it's way here today too.

After ordering and reading several books, and searching for all I could find online about the subject of Malta Spitfires, It does appear EP706 was delivered to Malta in factory applied desert camo, aboard HMS Furious, Operation Bellows, 11 August 1942. After that it becomes rather vauge about where and when what planes were repainted and in what colors, with everything from improvised paint jobs, to Air Ministry Orders. By fall of 1942, the RAF on Malta went from being on the defense to being on the offense, and camo pretty much became a non issue. The closest I can find to a semi definitive answer for EP706 is a snippet in Malta Spitfire V's- 1942. It refers to the color for the codes on EP706 to be grey and not yellow, per one of Beurlings ground crew. It also refers to a photo of EP706 in, Malta: The Spitfire Year 1942, with the kill markings and says it appears to be in desert camo. IDK, but Im doing desert camo overpainted with a light coat of extra dark sea grey... I think....lol Andy

A 1/48 XB-70 would be huge. My Dad took me to the rollout at Edwards when I was a small kid. It was ginormous to me then. A few years ago I went to Wright Patterson and saw the XB-70. It was still ginormous.

Thanks Bill, and NP on the masks. I made some, and used some decals for the rest.

Thank you Stefan

Looking forward to completion of some of these projects Ali. Particularly the A-7 stuff.

Thank you guys.

Patiently waiting for Ali's A-7 parts. I have a some F-4 canopies of his that are outstanding. Anything he produces for the A-7, I'm sure will be too.

No kidding... those are some dirty birds. The F-86 I just finished got zero weathering. This one will probably get weathered within an inch of it's life.

I have seen this photo (in one of my books) but in black and white. I have not seen it in color before. This is one of the pictures that leads me to believe a quick and dirty paint job was applied over the desert camo, with just enough coverage that the demarcation from dark earth to middle stone is still visible. If you look at the third aircraft in the background, there is a significant shine to it that indicates, to my eye anyway, that the entire upper surface got painted over, and not just the middle stone portions. Like many and better before me...just pure speculation on my part.

Thank you Jack.

Thank you Micheal.

I have read a few ideas and suggestions. Extra Dark Sea Grey, Dark Slate Grey, and Deep Mediterranean Blue, or even possibly what could have been a concoction of what was on hand at the maintenance depot. The impression I get from what I have read is EP706 got a quick and nasty paint job at the maintenance depot on Malta. I'm leaning towards a light coat of Extra Dark Sea Grey over the desert camo, to where the camo demarcation lines are just visible, Azure Blue underside, with light Sea Grey T-L codes I might have bitten off a little more than I can chew here. Andy

Malta spitfire colors.......What a kettle of worms! The more I read the more convoluted the subject becomes. Nobody seems to have a definitive answer as to which airplanes were what colors and when. Some say EP706 left England painted from the factory in desert camo, and that she was still painted that way while aboard HMS Furious while being shipped to Malta. After that it gets a bit confusing with much conjecture, and very little photographic evidence. The quest continues.....

Well that sux. Hope you get get over it quickly. Andy

Thanks Loic.

Thanks Mike.

From what I gather, EP706 arrived in Malta clad in desert camo, but received a repaint shortly there after. I have seen a picture of her on the flight line in desert camo, but that seems to be very short lived. So now I need to figure out if it was extra dark sea grey/azure as the decals I have depict it, or deep Mediterranean blue/azure. These came today. I have "T-L" stencils already, so there won't be much in the way of decals, except the kill markings, and MAYBE the EP706.

Thank you Kev. It was a fun build. I have (smh ) 6 more F-86-F kits in 1/32. 4 Hasegawa kits and 2 Kinetic/Italeri kits. I'm going to eventually build one of them to match a Mark Karman print I have of The Huff, along with a Mig-15. This was good practice for the Hasegawa kit. Andy Next Sabre...maybe.

Stick a fork in it...It's done. Here she is with all her bumps and warts.