pennausamike

Here is the thread for my 15-16 year-ish build of the Combat vac combined with the Revell/ Takara mid-wing George. I was only ever aware of the Scratchbuilders conversion and the Combat vac that was a full kit, buildable as either a mid-wing George (obviously draped over the Revell/ Takara kit), or a Rex with Combat-made conversion pieces. I know Horizon made a nice Rufe conversion (which I have) but I don't know that they did a Rex.

I was at Marauder Con on October 22nd, and I bought a 1/48th scale Koster conversion set designed to convert the 1/48th scale Monogram Bf-109 and Spitfire into other variants, because for three bucks, I thought it was interesting. We got to talking about vacuform kits and the conversation rolled around to Combat Vacs/ Roberts Models who went out of business due to the owner's declining health. Jeff Roberts had a vac 1/32nd scale Betty and He-177 that I never bought because at the time, it was too much money for kits I'd likely never build. The Koster sales guy said Combat/ Roberts was bought; and I still want that Betty, especially, doggone it! Now I'm hoping that is true, so I can try to talk a Betty and He-177 out of 'em.

YES! We moved from FL to PA and I loaded all my models in my car. We carried some sentimental items, valuables, vinyl records and my models in our two cars; the rest went in the moving van. The only permanent loss/ damage was the loss of the antenna off my Me-163 Komet. In boxes, I like stacked foam under the wings and one fuselage point and two pieces front-and-back, then peanuts to keep it from shifting too much.

I'm guessing that in the days before modern copiers, it wasn't so easy to re-scale a drawing; had to be done manually, I imagine. So re-drawing something three times bigger was an easier conversion. Also, I found the pic from the display table at the Northern Virginia model show that Anne was at. (I had originally met her at the Silver Hill restoration shop.)

NOOOOOOO!!!!!! OK, but actually, I'm thinking of one of these Renwal kits: A Mercer modified with a hardtop and a Cosworth V-8, or a Pierce Arrow with a Lamborghini V-12, or a Packard V-12, or a Duesenberg/ Stutz/ Pontiac hybrid meant to look like the Stutz Blackhawk, or maybe a Bugatti, or a Jordan Playboy. None of these require decals.............I don't think... Mike

Yeah, right, and no you're not. My last build was Bud Anderson's "Old Crow" using P-51D decals on a Revell P-51B. I think this may have been my worst build in thirty years, and the decals were a big part of it. More and more decals (all brands and types- kit and aftermarket) just seem very unforgiving if they require any placement adjustment. I remember sliding decals all over the place to get them where I wanted them. Now they just seem to distort, rip or fold. Fu-fu-fu-fooey! I ruined the "6" on "Old Crow" and it ate at me enough that I bought a whole 'nother set to replace it. Twenty five bucks shot in the (Biblical beast of burden). And I haven't got up the nerve to do it yet. My other problem has been OLD decals. I tried to use the hinomarus from both of my old Revell George kits and they just fell apart. I let them sit or soak in warm water short time 'til so long the paper practically dissolved out from under them and, no-go, the decals just broke into pieces. I ended up cannibalizing decals from other kits (because I never don't finish a project for a project I may never even get to) but even then I had a heck of a time finding decals that worked for me. I just bought two sets of Techmod hinomarus to replace the ones I used only to read in this thread that they are problematic as well. NUTS....I'm gonna go build a car model....... Mike

Hey, I actually heard the answer to this! Years ago I was told by NASM volunteer Anne that paper models became popular in post-war eastern Europe because their industry was still recovering from WWII devastation, and plastic molding machines weren't being used for making toys. 1:100 was a common aircraft drawing scale, so scaling the drawings up to three times their original size ends up at 1:33 scale. So, over time, 1:33rd scale became the "standard" paper model scale. I have a Fw-200 Condor paper model in my "not-to-likely-to-ever-be-built" pile in my stash. I also have a Val and a Kate, also "not-to-likely-to-ever-be-built". I remember someone here on the LSP site did a very nice Kate.

I have plans for something the same only different. In the ninties (I think) we had a toy liquidator that had the Marine recon Phantom for seven bucks, so I had to get it. (Even though I pretty much only build WWII stuff.) They also had a MiG-21 late model on the cheap, also. The phantom kit has some of the "E" model nose pieces, so I figured to back-date the MiG and the Phantom. I made it this far before I lost interest :-) The multi-gun barrel is from a Blue Thunder chopper kit that I bought that was supposed to be 1/32nd scale, but obviously way undersized.

I'm almost certain someone made a Type 32 chop-wing conversion a few years back. I remember thinking it was too much for me because I already had my path to making one by combining the Swallow Type 21 with the Hasegawa Type 52. The only scratchbuilding should be in the wingtips, the cowling flaps and an exhaust. It doesn't seem like a version that should be hard for an IM manufacturer to produce, and the Type 32 was a player at the turning point of the war. I think the Type 32 received some of the most hideous green over bare metal, practically brush painted camo schemes, making them interesting to model and display with the other Zeros. If I had to pick a "high complexity - low-demand" kit, it would be the He-177.

I can't say this is my oldest shelf of doom project, but it is my most well documented. At the point I started my "Rex In Limbo" thread, I had probably already started and stalled on the kit for a year or so. So, posted in May of 2004, finished in May of 2020. I have a bunch of shelf of Doom projects from that period. An A-36 being converted from an old Revell P-51B, a Typhoon, a Hasegawa F6F-5 Hellcat with folded Wings, a Combat vac Me-410, and an Aurora B-25H. Since then I've added an Aurora B-25 8-gun nose J conversion (hey! it was supposed to be quick and easy!), an He-111 in flight, and the one I pulled off the shelf to work on, my ID Models vac B-17D. I don't worry too much about what I have or what I finish; I work on what makes me happy at the time. (And I'm not sure that cut up Hellcat is EVER gonna make me happy!?) PS: I know, now, that the NASM Rex isn't the only survivor.

I guess my question always is, "How good does it have to be?" I built my Revell George and a Revell/ Combat vac Rex (along with the old Swallow low wing George) and I'm happy to have them on my shelf. But, I am not a rivet counter nor super detailer. I build basic kits as a form of recreation and relaxation. The kit looks like this,

I was just checking because I've built every model in my stash HaHaHaHa! Yeah, I couldn't say THAT with a straight face :-) I do want to make sure I don't MISS the release, tho'.

The Helldiver and the Val both interest me. But it looks like Infinity is not offering any of their kits for sale. They all default to "Pre-Order". Is there any kind of release schedule? Thanks!

I bought a new release of the Rommel's Rod recently. I paid about the same as I had paid for a poorly built one on eBay a few years back. The price was fairly reasonable (20 to 30 bucks IIRC) but this is likely a higher volume nostalgia kit. But some of the oddballs, like a Glenn L. Martin experimental seaplane, are probably priced to amortize re-release costs over a smaller volume; plus the manufacturers want to price at the top of what the market will bear, I imagine. Far as the pre-built Rommel's Rod, four things. First, the original release had "Mercedes Benz" on the valve cover; the new one does not. I assume the maker elected to avoid any licensing issues/ fees. Second, I turned the second chassis into a fuel trailer so the staff car could follow the armored units. Third, I replaced the American-style roller bumper with chrome bumpers. And fourth, I made a soft top for it (not shown) out of a 1950 Ford convertible top. I was glad the kit was re-released, and was happy to pay the price.

I'm thinking of the detail pieces; seats, radios, panels, controls, bombsight, etc; and hopefully the front turret. Internal structure will need to be sheet styrene. As far as dimensional correctness, I won't be going there at all. I'm looking at this as displayed in flight and I have neither the time, patience, nor skill to correct any major flaws. My biggest appearance concerns are recreating the main canopy and the top turret. Honestly, at 60 years old and with THIS to work on, it'll probably be a miracle if I ever get to it at all. :-)