bdthoresen

Brian- so sorry about your Mom, it’s a club that we all seemingly gain membership to, but never ask to join. I lost mine just over a year ago, so I understand about losing one’s mojo. I lost all motivation for most things, and am slowly “emerging from the fog.” But things still aren’t right, and my modeling has suffered hugely. Just can’t seem to get into gear. All the best, broski. In due time…… Thor

Brian- nice work so far. I drive a 2018 Gen 3 with the G series Lexus engine. I have owned Chevy, Ford, Dodge and Nissan pickups before, but the Tacoma beats them all hands down. I will never own anything else…… Keep the updates coming in the Tigercat. You are so close! Thor

I worked for them. It is Gruh-man……. Thor

Sorry, Anthony. I call bullsh$t on your previous statement. I check your thread all the time. I have been busy restoring the full size birds in my shop. Loving the work here dude! By the way, how is the Taylorcraft coming? Thor

I will buy multiples of both…….without hesitation. -Thor

Aren’t those the shell ejector chutes for the nose mounted guns? Thor

Nice work, Chuck! I like the results of the masks…….looking forward to the weathering! -Thor

Nice work! Love the build so far! And if we are talking Swedish Melodic Death metal bands, may I suggest the following…… I have a rule about metal singers who scream. Scream all you like, but I have to understand the lyrics you are screaming. If your screams sound like two marsupials/ mammals mating, I will pass……. THOR

Welcome back, Fanch! Looks great so far!!!! -Thor

Dang, John that looks great. Beautiful work as always! -Thor

Vince- Awesome work. Loving the conversion work. The FM-2 is a great airplane. Keep up the good work. What are you going to use for an engine? Thor

Been there, done that on a -2800, and, quite frankly, it’s sucked! (Not a Hellcat, FG-1 Corsair!) Looking good, Chuck! Thor

Merry Christmas Dave-O! Stunning build! Thor

Wow, that’s some awesome work. I really am enjoying this build so far. In your last photo, it looks like the flaps and ailerons will need modifying to straighten out the trailing edge, increasing their span slightly. But, it looks like that will not be a huge deal considering your work so far……. Please keep the updates coming! Thor

Yes, there are options. Some of the NJG 5 machines in Norway were 75/76 with a mottle of 81/82 oversprayed to conceal the birds on the ground. No clear photos, I am afraid. There was also reportedly six machines built from spares in the field by NJG 1 in Venlo that had no official Werk numbers. They had field applied camos of 75/76 in squiggle/mottled patterns. No real good photos of them out there. There is very little documentation of 219’s in action, but they did contribute…… Good Luck in your quest! Thor, huge 219 fan…….

Damn, Soph……..might just have to give up and take up knitting! Beautiful work. Thor

It’s merely a flesh wound…… Thor

Irek- I absolutely love your work. You are a master craftsman. Please, please, please keep the updates coming for this project. Thanks for sharing! Thor

Nice work, Bruce. I like the subtle weathering on the Trumpeter port sidewall. Tell me, what color did you use on the small diameter wiring on the starboard side of the cockpit? Keep the updates coming! Thor

Yeah, C’mon Anthony. It’s time to get into the pit. Quit stalling. You managed to nail the exterior fuselage shapes. The cockpit should be a piece of cake- And remember- I have seen your fabrication skills on a 1/1 scale aircraft. Get cracking. All joking aside, killer work brother! Thor

Yes, Rick. There are a few still around. The B5N Kate at the Pacific War Museum is about 80 percent complete. It will be restored to full static using as much of the original material as possible. There are the 2 Vals in Fredericksburg, which it is said there is enough material there for a full airframe, but currently there appear to no plans for restoration of either. Planes of Fame’s airplane is a D3A2 that was restored by Robert Dietmart of Canada in the late 60’s. That airplane was cut apart by locals he hired for easier shipping back to his airfield in Canada. He “restored” the airplane, very shoddily, installing an R-2600 engine and cowing from a B-25. Planes of Fame wants to restore it to airworthy condition, but it appears to be stalled at the moment….. And there are quite a few wrecks being recovered from Balalae in the Solomon Islands, including 2 and 1/2 Bettys, atleast 3 Vals, a couple of Zeros, and possibly a couple of Kate relics. A couple will be restored and returned to the government for display. But the exact counts and what are still not known. Some great photos here- https://warbirdsnews.com/warbirds-news/wwii-japanese-aircraft-wrecks-salvaged-at-balalae.html HTH- Thor

Hey Cal- went a rummaging through my notes and paint stocks to find what I had stockpiled for the F-21, here is what I had. The Furball Aero sheet (generally these people’s research has been impeccable!) had the colors for your scheme listed as the following- FS 36307 Light Sea Gray FS 35237 Medium Gray FS 36251 Agressor Gray Looking at my Model Master chip chart, they did not look like the colors in your photos. I had notes that these colors in the Model Master line were not quite right. So I pulled them and took a photo of them in natural light, and sunlight- Not enough contrast in either situation. The darker gray has no violet tinge to it, and the blue is far too washed out to be the base color. I had noted the light grey, Model Master FS 36307 Light Sea Gray was almost perfect. I also noted that I wanted to use Model Master RLM 75 Grauviolett and Model Master Navy Blue Gray as substitutes. So I went a rummaging, and found them. Here are comparison shots in the same lighting conditions- My plan was to lighten everything a bit during post shading to get that weathered effect you see in most photos of the USN/USMC Kfirs. But as base colors these were the closest I could find. So, in summary- FS 36307- use MM Light Sea Gray FS 35237- use MM Navy Blue Gray FS 36251- use MM RLM 75 Grauviolett Again, I would use them as base colors, then post shade, or perhaps mix the darker colors with a bit of white of post-shading is not your thing….. Hope this helps……and now I want to build a Kfir again………crap….. Thor

That’s not really the case. They are fairly capable Falcons, far better than the junk they were flying prior to Saddam’s removal. The problem is, they are not capable of maintaining the aircraft without direct help from Lockheed Martin, which has announced they are pulling all maintenance contractors from the country citing safety concerns. With no real experience in maintaining the fleet, it’s only a matter of time before they are all grounded….. Thor

Shogun- Looking good so far. I agree with Frank that the second gray could use a tinge of blue/purple…… I was going back through your thread and suddenly remembered I wanted to build this airframe in 48th scale using the Kinetic kit. I had stockpiled some Model Master enamels that I had found matched the colors fairly well out of the bottle, made some notes, and then had “squirrel syndrome” moving on to other projects. I can have a rummage for my notes and share my findings with you if you like….. Still, solid work so far! Thor, still a huge fan…..

Amen bud! I knew studying IJA/IJN airframes my whole life would come in handy someday……