david sMiGielski

Now that I've finished this, they almost have to. I think that's how the modeling fates work. What I really want is a 1/48 Scimitar. The Dynavector kit is impossible to find.

My first vacuform kit. Definitely not perfect--the camera sure brings out the flaws--but so much fun to build. This is the old Falcon kit. Scratchbuilt flaps, gear, wheel wells, and cockpit. Ejection seat came with the kit and, surprisingly, the kit decals worked (although I had to make the arrows on the fuselage out of red decal sheet. Finished with Tamiya acrylics. Not a contest winner by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm happy to have finished it and have even more respect for those who can really make limited run vac kits shine.

Rescued another partially finished build from the boneyard. Kittyhawk's 1/48 F-94C remains my favorite of all their offerings. I love the subject and this kit seemed to fall together. Finished with Alclad and Tamiya acrylics. Decals came in the box. My next post will involve a trip to Vacuform Land. Stay tuned.

I have so many of Eduard's 1/48 MiG-21s in the stash but this is the first I've finished. They might be my current favorite kit in that scale. This is a PFM in Mongolian markings. Painted with Tamiya acrylics, washed with oils. Decals from an aftermarket sheet that I picked up from Hannants ages ago.

I started this kit in the summer of 2005. Got as far as painting it, then the build stalled. Twelve years later, I decided to finish her. This is the venerable 1/48 Monogram kit, converted into a C model using the long since out of production Cutting Edge conversion set. Cockpit is from Black Box (and isn't accurate for a C-model, but back then it was the only option). Painted with Tamiya acrylics, if memory serves. I managed to lose a few parts (mostly on the undercarriage), so I had to do a bit of scratchbuilding (speed brake, for example). I'm happy to finally call this one done.

One of my recently finished builds. Kittyhawk's much discussed MiG-25 converted into a BM armed for an SEAD mission. Nose, missiles, and pylons are from a 3D printed conversion set I found online. It was designed for the Monogram kit but worked with KH's version with a bit of sanding and filling. Other than that--and some adjustment of the wings to match the BM--the kit was built out of the box. Painting her was the real challenge. First tried Vallejo Model Air but the colors didn't look right and I hated the way they spray (more power to those who can make these paints work). I ended up going back to Tamiya acrylics and don't know why I ever thought about trying something else. Decals were from the spares box. The nose number isn't accurate but I like the contrast of the red on the camo scheme. All in all, KH's kit wasn't the nightmare so many claim. Definitely not a shake the box kit, but a fun build.

I could use a sanity check. Is the nose of this Javelin longer than a typical FAW 9? I'm trying to determine if I can use the Airfix kit.

So...anyone know a good match for RAF yellow primer?

I stumbled onto a profile of a Lightning F.6 (XR773) in yellow primer. The caption says it was in the process of being repainted, was primed, then the paintshop got busy and the plane flew in just primer for a time. Is this a true story and does anyone have a pic or two of this airframe? -David

Something a bit different for me. The Russian Federation's newest SSBN: Project 955 Borei (or Dolgorukiy, depending on who you talk to). Riich Models 1/700 kit. An insanely simple build, assembled in literally 15 minutes. I used a picture frame for the base. The water is blue paper (painted) under the glass, followed by acrylic gel for the waves. The ice is candle wax, melted, poured onto a sheet of glass, then broken up. All in all, a fun weekend build and a chance to test out some techniques I've long wanted to try.

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Snow day, so decided to take some pics of a few kits I finished last year. Classic Airframes 1/48 Attacker. Built straight from the box. Finished with Tamiya acrylics and a lot of sanding. Airfix 1/72 Canberra. Finished with Tamiya Silver Leaf. Hasegawa's 1/48 Grace in test scheme. Out of the box with Tamiya acrylics.

And the Aires ejection seats with harnesses made from Tamiya tape and some leftover photoetch.

Wow, been a long time since I last touched this kit, but I'm back in the groove. Did some work on the radar. Once it's in place, I'll add more detail to busy it up.

Thanks everyone. I'm building this as a maintenance Vixen, so I've opened up panels, added a radar, etc. To show it off, I think I'll end up folding the port wing. I figure, it's a model anyway, it's not like it has to be airworthy.