Randy Lutz

Much appreciated Alan. Cheers

Thanks Bob Cheers

Thanks Rod. Cheers

Thanks Joachim I do hope my short painting explanation proves useful. Cheers

Hey Georgie Boy You can well imagine how I feel. You may see me around, but it will not be in the aircraft categories at shows, as everything I had related to aircraft modelling is gone, including 1,000 tins of Xtracolor. Cheers buddy Randy

Thanks much and like you, I have always found the nose gear to look out of place on the airframe. Cheers

I agree 100%. It also instills a greater feeling of satisfaction painting the wood grain instead of relying on decals. One thing I have learned is you should never say never. If I decide to pick up modelling again, chances are it won't be aircraft. Cheers

Pretty much sums it up. This model fought me along the way and at one time it sat in the garbage can for 5 months, until I decided that I won't let it beat me. Cheers

Thanks Giampiero Cheers

Thanks very much Gaz. We never know which direction we will take, so who knows...maybe some day I will close the circle. Cheers

Thanks Pete. I am done with aircraft and I am taking a break from modelling. Perhaps down the road I might give it another try, but it will be a different discipline. I would like to build a model of my car... or even a sci-fi subject. Cheers

Thanks very much. Cheers

Thanks. Initially I thought I would use the Uschi decals that I had invested so much money into, but when I made test swatches of paint an applied the decals I found that they were silvering badly. In addition I could see all the individual ink dots/pixilation in the decals and I knew I would not be happy with the look. So I opted to paint the wood grain. To achieve the wood look I first painted each individual panel in different shades of tan and creme. Some of the colours I used were Xtracolor RFC Linen, Radome Tan, Desert Sand, French Creme, Kuwaiti Sand and so on. You get the drift. Then each panel was masked off and I applied Winsor & Newton oil paints straight from the tube. I used Burnt Sienna, Raw Umber, Yellow Ochre and Raw Sienna in varying amount and locations, depending on the look I wanted. The oils were applied using a 1/4" wide brush to establish the basic look and direction of wood grain. Then using a fan brush, the grain was softened and the various colours were blended. Turning the brush 90 degrees would allow me to create the finer more distinct elements of the grain. It is a long process as it takes about four days for the oils to dry, before the panel can be masked and then the adjacent panel can be painted. I imagine I could have shortened the drying time by soaking up some of the oil from the paint, or by using a drying accelerator, but my experience has shown me that I have more control and working time with the paint if it is not drying quickly. Cheers

Thank you for the compliment. Alclad 2 is great stuff to work with...sprays beautifully and takes a lot of handling. Cheers Thanks much. Cheers

Much appreciated. Finishing it in natural wood was something I had wanted to do for many, many years, but other projects kept getting in the way. Cheers

Thanks much. I was suffering from a self-imposed stress that took the fun out of the hobby. Every model was built to compete and I found myself re-doing so many aspects of the build, trying to get things just right, that I was dreading each step of the build. Cheers

Hi all I would like to present some images of my Horten Ho 229, built from the Dragon kit. There were many modifications, or changes made based on the info found in the Kagero Monograph on the Horten. I made these changes on the assumption that the Kagero book and plans are correct, so it may or may not be an accurate representation of the Ho 229. To the best of my knowledge from my readings, the Ho 229 V3 was never fully assembled until after the war, while on display at the Douglas Aircraft factory, and this is how I have chosen to display my model. This may prove to be the last aircraft model I will build, as I have been losing interest in the hobby over the past few years and have subsequently sold off all my kits, books, paints, finished models and awards. I considered this model as unfinished business, so that is why I have chosen to finish it and present it at this time. Thanks for looking

Hey Georgie Boy, Very nice job on the Ju 188, and I agree with all your observations about the kit. I am not a fan of the Ju 88 lineage, but your rendition could have me thinking otherwise. Cheers

Thanks much. Cheers Much appreciated. Cheers Thanks Djordje Cheers Thank you Greg. Cheers Thank you very much. Cheers Thanks much Pete. Cheers

Thanks much. Cheers Much appreciated. Cheers

Thanks much. To make the insulators, I apply a small drops of Micro Scale Kristal Klear to the antenna wire and when dry I paint them gloss white. Cheers Thanks Vinnie Cheers Much appreciated Wulfman. Cheers Thank you very much Gary. Cheers

Thanks much Cheers Thanks Steve. Much appreciated. Cheers Hey Georgie Boy, thanks a lot. I am still hacking out models and it does not look like I will be seeing you anytime soon. Stay safe and hopefully we have a beer next year. Cheers Thanks much. I can't take credit for the colours. That's all Xtracolor. Cheers Much appreciated. Cheers High praise and I thank you for it. Cheers Thanks Colin. Cheers Thank you Piotr Cheers Thanks much Cheers Thank you Sir. Cheers

Thanks much John. Cheers Thank you. Cheers

This is the Tamiya kit finished in the markings of Feldwebel Walter Scholz, 3/Jagdgeschwader 53 while in France, September 1940. I used Aero Master decals on this one and I feel that the yellow 13's area tad too small and the black outline is not bold enough. But, alas, I did not have any other numbers to chose from, so it is what it is. I have seen this scheme done by others and I am offering my interpretation based on how I see the photos of the real thing. I fell in love with scheme based on the presentation of the swastika and overall finishing of the vertical fin. Fuselage - kit seat replaced with Ultracast seat - antenna wire made from stretched sprue - upper cowl intake opened - cowl gun barrels replaced with Master brass barrels - engine starter crank opening and lift points drilled out - kit propeller and spinner replaced with Ultracast resin parts - exhaust replaced with Ultracast resin exhaust Wings - wing gun barrels replaced with Master brass barrels - kit wheels replaced with Ultracast resin wheels - tail planes modified to eliminate the anhedral Paint and Decals - airframe painted with Xtracolor X202 Hellblau RLM 65, X201 RLM 02 Grau, X204 Schwartzgrun RLM 70, X205 Dunklegrun RLM 71 and X213 Gelb RLM04 - all markings are from AeroMaster 48-014 Battle of Britain Bf 109Es Part 1 - model is weathered with chalk pastels References - Model Art No. 375 Messerschmitt Bf109B-E - Aero Detail No. 1 Messerschmitt Bf109E - Jagdwaffe Volume Two, Section 3, Battle of Britain Phase Three September-October 1940 Again, thanks to Dave Wadman for all his help. Cheers

This is the Tamiya 1/48 Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4, finished in the markings of Oberleutnant Albrecht Drehs, of Stab III/Jagdgeschwader 54 in France, August 1940. Respecting my minimalist approach to modelling, I only performed the following minor enhancements to the kit. A note to fellow modellers in regard to the spinner colours. Hussar suggests a red and white spinner, and while quite attractive, is incorrect. The RAF Crash Report states the spinner is dark green and white. Fuselage - kit seat replaced with Ultracast seat - antenna wire made from stretched sprue - upper cowl intake opened - cowl gun barrels replaced with Master brass barrels - engine starter crank opening and lift points drilled out - kit propeller and spinner replaced with Ultracast resin parts - exhaust replaced with Ultracast resin exhaust Wings - wing gun barrels replaced with Master brass barrels - kit wheels replaced with Ultracast resin wheels - tail planes modified to eliminate the anhedral Paint and Decals - airframe painted with Xtracolor X202 Hellblau RLM 65, X201 RLM 02 Grau and X205 Dunklegrun RLM 71 - all markings are from Hussar 48D003 Messerschmitt Me 109E3A/E4 - model is weathered with chalk pastels References - Model Art No. 375 Messerschmitt Bf109B-E - Aero Detail No. 1 Messerschmitt Bf109E - Jagdwaffe Volume Two, Section 1, Battle of Britain Phase One July-August 1940 Special thank to Dave Wadman for providing info on this subject. Cheers