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Just off the top of my head, I would say it was more likely that the tail AFT of the stab and elevator was extended to house some of the gear for the new tail turret. Just seems to me that that would have been the easiest thing to do. Later, Dave

From one Dave to another! As I remember reading somewhere many years (10+) ago, the main difference is that the canopy is a little longer on the B.35 than on the B.XVI, but not so much as it would be noticeable, particularly on 72nd scale aircraft. There may be a few other minor differences. I believe I read it in "de Havilland Mosquito An Illustrated History". There are two volumes to the book, with both volumes being sold separately. I have no idea if it is still available, but you never know! Later, Dave

I understand what you are saying and I have done that at times myself. Since I build for myself and not a contest it is not that big a deal. However there are times, and this particular example is one of those times, just for my own knowledge, I would like to know if it was just in one topside color or something else. Still haven't built it yet, but plan to eventually. Later, Dave

One sure way to tell the difference between GSB and Seaplane gray is if you can clearly see the blue in the national insignia. On GSB aircraft only the star and bar is present. On Seaplane gray aircraft they had to put the blue back in for the national insignia and it is very noticeable. Also the Seaplane gray aircraft had a flat black anti glare panel, again easily discerneable. ON GSB aircraft the NSSB anti-glare panel is not as easy to see. Later, Dave

Thanks, I'll have to check out one hobby shop that I think will have it. Later, Dave

Where do you get your small brass pins from, and what diameter pin? Thanks, Dave

I just checked Joe Baugher's serial number data base on A/C 06935 is a YF-12A! It looks like it will provide you with most of the items needed for an all black YF-12A. Later, Dave

The pictures of 979 on the instruction sheet were MY photos! The proprietor promised to make it good and blamed somebody else. It still has not been made good and several years have passed. I need to get with Cybermodeler to see why the pictures were taken down, but maybe Printscale stealing them without credit might have had something to do with it. Later, Dave

I don't have a kit in front of me right now, but something to keep in mind is the rear cockpit. No real side consoles in the back on the Navy versions. Hasegawa have a part to fill up the right side of the rear cockpit, but nothing for the left hand side. There is a short console at the very front on the left side, but most of it is the circuit breaker panel. Fujimi has a part for this in their Spey Phantoms, but not on the earlier J-79 versions as I recall it. Check photos of the rear cockpit and you should be able to get an idea of how to scratch build the circuit breaker panel. Later, Dave

Personally, I would stay far away from the Cutting Edge sheet if you can find it. A number of the decals are incorrect. How do I know? I took the pictures that some of the decals on the Cutting Edge, Caracal, and Printscale decal sheets. Cybermodeller used to have my pictures of SR-71 tail art on their site. I just checked and I can't find them anymore. This is all that they have now: . https://www.cybermodeler.com/aircraft/sr-71/sr-71_artgallery.shtml Caracal thanked me on the instructions for the help with the decals. Printscale just took the pictures from the Cybermodeler site and did not acknowledge that they were MY photos. On the Cutting Edge decals, they show Spuds McKenzie on aircraft 971 as being a multicolored drawing. It was NOT! Only one color, chalk white. They also have Gumby on 956, the B model, as done in green. Again, it was only done in white. There were several other errors as well. Spuds was only on the right side tail and had to be erased prior to going on an airshow TDY to Offutt AFB, Nebraska, which was SAC Hq. That was in August of 1987. When I PCS'd out of Beale to go to the Philippines in December of 1987 it still had not gone back up and I doubt it ever did. I don't know if Printscale has any markings for the YF-12A but a look at Hannat's should tell you if they have them or not. Later, Dave

Substitute Dog for Donkey. Later, Dave

I was going to suggest the Caracal sheets, but a quick check shows that they are still sold out. I think they have had two runs with those sheets. Maybe e-bay or some one else might have them. Otherwise, write Caracal and ask for a third run. The worst that could happen is they'll say no, but you never know! Later, Dave

Looks very nice! What did you use for the lower color, Azure Blue or something else? Later, Dave

The first two pics look nothing like a D radome, but the last one surely does. Later, Dave

Can't answer your question, but I just noticed something weird. It appears to have a "D" model nose radome. Notice the bulge underneath the IR sensor or whatever it was. We had a different name for it but I won't mention it here since some people would get offended by it. All of our F-4s at the time I was at RAF Woodbridge had the same type of nose radome. I have also come across a photo of an alleged Blue Angels F-4J that had the same type of noses radome, which is really unusual for a "J" model. Later, Dave

In a word, yes. RAF Dark Green is nothing like OD 41 or ANA 613. MSG would be too light. FS 36173, although that standard did not exist until fifteen years or so later, looks to be good for a later war neutral gray. The U.S. neutral gray of WW II was darker than FS 36270, which also has been called neutral gray and is very close to MSG. Later, Dave

As far as the Eduard kits go, it would depend on the serial number of the aircraft to determine which factory built it. The early Fokker built D.VIIs didn't have any cooling grills. Early O.A.W. aircraft had small semi-circular cooling grills. Later, Dave

Hey Mr. T! Lookie what I found! Doesn't say what Squadron it was in, but the picture was taken at Preswick. Definitely a 36 Sqn aircraft. The foward part of the belly radome looks to be maybe GSB. "Our" aircraft! A darker gray than what shows on the decal instructions. Based on this I will be going with MSG for the forward part of the belly radome. On the MAD boom the forward part of the tail radome looks like maybe DSG with the rear MSG. I'll get the anti-glare panel painted first, wait a few days to mask it off, then get the radomes, and then a few days later mask those and get the rest of the airframe. Later, Dave

Always helps when you mess up like that to just put it aside for a bit, do something else, and then come back maybe in a day or two and have ideas of how to fix it. I've done that a couple of times on my Neptune. The nose gear bay that is in it now was my second attempt at scratch building a new nose gear wheel well. Later, Dave

Now I have a question. Looking over the decal sheet's page on Scalemates and my own copy of the sheet, it shows the radomes in gray and not radome tan. I checked my photos and the picture in the book on the Neptunes that I have and it appears that they radomes were painted gray. But which gray? Both 36270/Medium Sea Gray and 36375 look a bit too dark. 36495 would be way too light. Maybe 16473? Anybody have a suggestion? The sheet doesn't mention the radomes. Later, Dave

That's pretty much the same reason why I decided not to mess with the main gear. The reason for the offset of the nose gear would be on the Tailhook Topics (I just looked it up. Everybody is used to calling Tommy Tailspin Turtle) website. I don't think it had to do with the tunnel on the left hand side, but you never know. Later, Dave

Most likely they went to dark gull grey at the time that they switched over from overall GSB (except for NSSB anti-glare panels) to the light gull grey over white camo scheme around 1955/56. Later, Dave

First off, the decal sheet we are both using: https://www.scalemates.com/kits/freightdog-models-fsd72001s-gods-sea-and-fire--1173760 I was going to try to do some mods for the main gear, but decided to leave it alone. The two nose gear doors should each be 18" in height. I forget the length right now for each door, but it is about 1 1/2" to 2" in for the model, or around 9' to 12' in 1:1 scale length. I have mine and the prop spinners set aside in a plastic box right now awaiting painting. I am also going to have to figure out how far down the nose gear hangs from the gear well as the Hasegawa kit nose gear is much to shallow, except maybe for a P2V-7. The part where the gear glues into on the kit piece has been cut out till the time I am ready to determine where exactly it should be placed and then glued into position. Hopefully the Freightdog conversion is better in that area. The nose gear is also positioned off to the side a bit. The Tailspin Turtle articles show where. IIRC the right hand door is partly up the right hand side of the fuselage. Later, Dave

If you are using the Freightdog decal sheet, then I would say that we are both doing the same aircraft! Less than a tin of Interior Green will do. I have painted the radome with radome tan paint, I just need to refer to photos and drawings to see how far back to mask it off. I have had to do a bit of scratch building to get the nose gear wheel well correct, but I don't know if the Blackbird conversion has the same problem as the Falcon triple conversion did. They made the gear well way too long, the doors were not tall enough, and I put in the tunnel from the nose gear well to the observers position in the nose. Check the Tailspin Topics site for pictures and other information needed just in case Blackbird made the same mistakes. Hopefully they didn't. Later, Dave

I have been working on the same thing but with the old Falcon triple conversion kit. Based on what I know and can tell from the time period, the fuselage interior should be Interior Green. I also have all three wheel wells interior green, but the gear doors will be GSB. I have the tip tanks installed now and will be painting the anti-glare panel in NSSB later on this week and start the GSB several days after that. Later, Dave