CarLos

Just a preview (old vs new) I'll try to show all the progress very soon!

Well, I don't know if it can be called "progress" as I decided to vacuform copies of the individual halves of the Tamiya nacelles instead of what I did above. It's a great improvement in quality and I hope to show the results soon. Not too much time for modelling these days...

I will participate with one of these beauties: One is barely started (wing glued) but I may go with the new box. It will be (almost) OOB. Blue or silver, this is the main question - unless I'll try to complicate things looking for the colours of G-AEPJ. Carlos

Very interesting! I wonder how efficient that central engine was, with that massive fuselage behind. It's this kind of naivety that attracts me to many Golden Age designs.

Thanks to you I also acquired the book and just finished it. Very good reading, and a very detailed one on the great Atlantic crossing. And thanks to you and to @PeterB now I must get back to my Vimy build started years ago! I still don't know which one, may be Ross's G-EAOU of the first flight from England to Australia.

Very nice build, Cliff. Good to see a Virginia, quite a rarity!

Thank you, you make me feel much better!

Please put me in the list

Unfortunately only for UK based watchers...

Sorry, that was not my interpretation you your post. Of course you are right.

I agree that Amodel took a close inspiration on ESCI but they made a better kit. Amodel's fuselage width is 33.5mm (about scale size) when ESCI's measures 31.1mm (Italeri shares with ESCI this problem, and has a few on their own). Accuracy has nothing to do with age. The new Airfix kit is from 2014 (according to Scalemates) and Hobby Boss's from 2017. Still they manage to make the worst DC-3 kit (and the more difficult to correct!) since Airfix in 1960!

Very nice build and excellent exhaust stain!

The kit is probably based on the Airfix one, which is a very good thing. Some clues: wing spar, wing centre section... It would be great if the panel lines would be toned down a bit.

Hi J-W, always willing to help. I probably won't have time today but I'll read the remain of the text carefully and take some notes. Your CANT 506 will look nice, but mine will be I-DOTE and will look even nicer, in that ivory and red civilian livery! You must try a civilian one... Carlos

Hi J-W, it was some time ago when we exchanged some messages on the subject! Then I lost my modelling hard disk and... guess what? My latest backup dated from seven years before! So I spent some time trying to recover what I could, mainly photos of my ongoing builds. Unfortunately many have gone west. Sorry for my silence since then and I'm glad you proceeded with your build, and certainly will follow it with great interest. Regarding your question - my Portuguese is certainly better than my Italian, but from what I could read: By 8 June 1940 five SM. 66 (that were by then out of service in Ala Littoria) were requisitioned by Regia Aeronautica and the 613.a squadrigliglia was formed with voluntaries ex-Ala Littoria; They performed some recognizing and rescuing missions (one was even attacked by a CR. 42! How could an SM. 66 be confused by an enemy plane???) and finally by 10 September 1940 S. 613 was transformed into a sanitarian squadron. I haven't read it all yet, and may be some more may be of your interest - but it must be later. Not putting me out of it, but certainly @Giorgio N or any other Italian member may help you more... Cheers Carlos

The Hobbycraft kit looks better in the sprues but the PM one is more accurate, at least on the fuselage general shape. The top of the fuselage lowers at a point behind the vertical line after the wing. PM is the only kit that gets this right (I'm including Rareplane here). Carlos

Great idea! And I am not ashamed to say that I will copy it! Carlos

Fortunately the Airfix plastic is thick enough to make them look better, if not completely accurate. I will follow your builds with interest, may be they'll encourage me to return to mine(s). Carlos

Many years ago, my plan was to scratch build a new hull and use (Airfix) Sunderland wings. I even ordered Brian Cassidy plans for it and started making formers of the various stations but then CMR issued the kit... and I acquired it. I think that it is still the second best plan... Carlos

I wonder if this may be considered for the GB. I have doubts about the 25% rule. For me it's only 23.75% done, but others may think 35% or more...

Very good! One I must do, one day.

It's an almost exact copy of the Amodel kit. Not bad at all. I only hope they did a new canopy, as the original was too large.

I have the file on my hard disk and put it for a limited time on my drive. Please get it from here (right-click and "save link as..."). It's a 3 MB download. Carlos

Good work! This is, I think, the first kit by Rareplane. Still with male molds, and far from the quality of later kits. I also have it in my stash for one day... Carlos

This is from my more-than-forty-years-ago build. I packed also the nacelles with lead and plasticine. I remember to enjoy this kit a lot, and a few years ago I get another one to convert to Reporter. Keep going with the good work!