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Folks, I'm doing yet another WWI build with an OLD kit (hoping I can get it together before the end of month for the Jurassic build GB). This is the original kit, with the mountain range wing tape lines, etc. Yeah, THAT one. The decals are hideous. I'm having trouble finding replacements and I'm trying to do Captain William Barker's aircraft. Tried SprueBrothers, Zotz and Eaglecal. Even Ebay. Copper State does 1/28th, but this is a 1/32 build. I've hit all of the LSP sponsors. Any suggestions folks? Chris

Well, here goes... Not every prototype aeroplane was a success, and here are a couple that weren't The one on the left will be the unique F.1/4 (or 4F.1, or whatever) taper wing prototype built by Sopwith in 1917 and tested at Martlesham Heath. I bought an Academy kit ages ago pretty cheap, and read reviews of the kit afterwards. The wings were, um, unusual. The usual description is 'like a starving cow' which is pretty fair. I could see I was going to have to do a lot of work on them to get something reasonable so I shelved the kit. Only, in the back of the Camel datafile is a lovely drawing by Ian Stair. hmm, what an interesting 'plane. And if I was going to have to work on the wings anyway.... On the right is B3811, delivered in July 1917 with a Gnome Monosoupape engine. This is the Academy Clerget Camel kit, which I also bought cheap. I'm afraid I'm a bit of a bodger, so fitting one of the less usual engines appealed to me. The engine is the Roden one, the Academy Clerget has gone into the taper wing plane In the middle is the Part photoetch kit (S32030) - it's very useful for dressing up one of these kits - I've just ordered another one for 3811 Looks like this is just the wrong time for this thread, I guess LSP is about to get overrun with WNW camel builds Richard

Well, this came as a complete surprise to me. I had been completely content with the Airfix 1/24 P-51D kit, and really happy to have scored the reissue P-51D/K boxing with all the extra bits and pieces, and much better plastic. BUT.............. I just had the amazing fortune of aquiring the Hobby Craft 1/24 P-51D, and all I can say so far is......WOW!!!! This kit is just amazing, and is probably worth the c-note plus, that they are listing them for, and so what makes this even better is that I paid just over a third of that for this jewel. So with this aquisition I am moving the paint scheme and nose art from my Airfix build over to this kit......for 5 very good reasons....... S.W.M.B.O. My original build was for her (as the plane sports her name, although shes not a blonde), I thought it was great that I found real nose art from WWII that was so appropriate. And now I believe a better kit for her. So I intend on building this kit represent "Jan" QP-D, the initial mount of Lt. Robert Dickmeyer of the 334th Fighter Squadron, 4th Fighter Group, 8th Air Force, stationed at Debden, UK. His tour with the 334th was from 6JUN44 through 26DEC44. During that period he had two Mustangs assigned to him, 44-13956 and later 44-14606, P-51D-5NA and P-51D-10NA respectively. He scored 2.5 kills (1 ME109 and 1.5 FW109) and I read that 413956 was downed by flack near France, and he dead sticked the Mustang into a 9th AF landing strip, but I have not been able to pin point the date. These Mustangs also were adorned with nose art by the 334th's famous artist Sgt. Donald Allen.I hope to do a decent natural metal look on her fuselage, and aluminum paint finish on the wings. I havent done any of that before, so its going to be trial and error, I am afraid, but I am looking forward to the challenge. Obviously at this scale, there isnt a bunch available, and certainly not for "Jan", so I will be printing up my own for this build. Here is a photo of "Jan" Here is the kit, and a quick photo of its contents, still in their packaging. As I unwrap the sprues and wipe the drool off my desk I will post up more pics of the plethora of parts included. I have been reading up on some of the kits shortcomings, and some I will live with and some I will do my best to rework. Anyway, thanks for looking in and putting up with my indicisiveness.....at least you dont live with me