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Well, my parcel from Poland arrived on Wednesday, it took a wee bit longer than previous parcels from Arma Hobby, but considering the postal situation at the moment it was still reasonably quick, only 12 days. The sturdy card box contained one Expert Set FM-2 Wildcat and 3 sets of Overtrees neatly wrapped in bubble wrap, I've got a few sets of decals for Martlet/Wildcat VI's, so there's a fewe schemes for me to choose from. Wednesday afternoon the Expert Set was unboxed and had a good fondling whilst I perused a selection of references. Box and contents:- The overtrees supplied are just the two grey sprues and the clear sprue, nothing else. The kit comprises of a main sprue for the FM-2 / Wildcat VI release:- Plus a common sprue for this and the forthcoming F4F-4 release:- The clear sprue is also common with the F4F-4 release, as it contains the lower fuselage windows and wing landing light cover not used on this FM-2 / Wildcat VI release. Also shown here are the small etch sheet and the masking sheet for the canopy and wheels which are only included in the Expert Set:- And here's the decal sheet from the Expert Set which covers 5 US FM-2's, and 3 FAA Wildcat VI's, all of 882 NAS on HMS Searcher, 3 individual code/serials being supplied for the same basic scheme:- If you want to see photo's better than my phone snaps above, there's more on the Arma Hobby website, unfortunately the links they provide on this page for the instructions don't seem to work for me. Initial impressions? It looks like a top quality product, with pretty much all you'd need to build a well detailed model straight out of the box.

Good day all, hope you are all safe and sound where ever you are. I'm just setting up my page for this GB. Really looking forward to this build and I have chosen Tamiya's epic 1:32 kit of the Birdcage Corsair. I came across the kit just after Christmas and was really looking forward to a later mark as I wanted to do a MkII but due the stock having a great price this was the last remaining and I couldn't turn it down, it worked out at around 60 quid! Now I prefer to model Fleet Air Arm aircraft and they did operate this type of aircraft as a MK I, it never really saw much operational action as it was mainly used as a trainer and was stationed mainly stateside and Canada. This particular build will be of JT190 which was flown by the late Lt Cdr Jack Sewell a FAA Fighter Ace, based at NAS Brunswick in Maine. I still have much to learn about the pilot and aircraft and will hopefully share that over the course of this build. The kit is quite huge and there is a lot of detail in there. Its the first time I've really tackled something in 1:32 so I hope that I can do it justice. I'm building straight out of the box with the exception of a fabric harness (I am assuming that the Mk I's still retained their American harnesses as they were based in US and hadn't really been British-ised yet), I also ordered a set of cockpit label decals to add a bit more depth to the cockpit, they haven't arrived yet so hoping they are not far off. As for the decals, well I haven't had any luck in getting a set in 1:32 so another first for me is painting the markings as opposed to sticking them on, we shall see how that goes! I do have a 1:48 'Royal Navy' and serial letters that work out to roughly the correct size so the serials wont be a problem. Just need to find some colour matching for the roundels. This aircraft was also marked up as '7M' and that will be slightly easier to mask and paint as opposed to any other number/letter combo. Here is the obligatory box top I wont go into every sprue shot as there are a lot of them and this kit has been well reviewed elsewhere on the web so I will save my Flickr size but heres a little selection of parts post washing, there are a fair few to count! It all looks a little daunting at the moment, I just hope I can complete it in time and do it justice, but we shall see. Until later, stay safe! Bob

This is the first time in many years that I've attempted a group build of any type, and although my track record has been abysmal in the past, I am actually really looking forward to getting started on this. I'll be attempting a Corsair Mk.I of the FAA, JT228, code 6A of 1833 RNAS Macrihanish in 1943. The kit is the Tamiya F4U-1D in 1/48th scale. I'll be using Xtradecals "Yanks with Roundels" set X48102, and going with their recommendation that the aircraft was still in US equivalent FAA colours, so ANA 603 Sea Gray, ANA 613 Olive Drab and ANA 602 Light Gray. Probably Humbrol enamels for those, although I may test the Xtracrylix Olive Drab and see how that looks - either way, it will be brush painted unless I cannot get the effect I'm after with the camo demarcation. In addition, I have the Ultracast replacement seat with Sutton harness, and replacement exhausts. I'm still undecided about a replacement engine, but have time to make up my mind on that. The kit is un-started - I have kept it locked away in a cupboard to stop me even thinking about getting stuck in - but I will be studying the instructions between now and Friday to try and make sure I don't commit the usual Laidlaw stupidities. Well, I can dream. I'll be adding representations of the fuselage-side air intakes and the ventral exhaust, and will be clipping the wings to the "short short" position, as that's what I believe the Xtradecal instructions show. If anybody knows differently, I'd be grateful for the information. Kit, decals and resin bits: Decals/transfers/stickers: Resin bits: Runners:

I’m up and running, my entry into the Journeys End GB is:- Supermarine Seafire LF III LR866/S121 887 NAS 24th NFW HMS IndefatigableJapan Aug-1945 On 15.08.45 2 x Mitshibushi A6M Zeros were destroyed, 0.5 Mitsibushi A6M Zero was shared destroyed by S/Lt Vic Lowden Flying this aircraft. This was the last dogfight fought by British & Commonwealth forces in WWII. This is the Special Hobby 1/48 Seafire III ‘Last fight over the Pacific’ boxing. Typical short run kit but if you take your time they build up really nicely. I am building this in tandem with another SH Seafire III ‘Eye of the Fleet’ over in the Spitfire, Seafire GB which is headed for the paint shop, so today was catch up time for LR866. Mandatory box & Sprue shots.. I got stuck into this model and forgot to photograph the cockpit... Sorry... Cockpit is out of the box, with some extra plumbing and bits and bobs added. Surprisingly, no grinding out the fuselage to fit the cockpit (this is SH not Tamiya), I fitted the rather lovely, well detailed cockpit, (as you can see I slightly miss aligned the instrument faces with the etched panel) by taping the fuselage along the top and fitting from underneath then Tamiya Extra Thin around all of the joins with some liquid sprue as reinforcement. This is where I got to, hoped to get a little further, but it’s okay progress. Well we’re off anyway, hope to be finished by the time of the 75th Anniversary of the Dogfight... Thank for looking in....

Last November, during the BTE (Best Trip EverTM), along with @CedB, @Terry1954, @Navy Bird, and the Mighty @Procopius, I got to visit the FAA Museum at Yeovilton, and found this prize in the gift shop: While paying for my new treasure, the kind women behind the counter asked if I'd like to have the author, David Morris, sign it for me, he was standing right there! BTE. Here's a pic I snapped of KD431 in the exhibit hall: Hopefully, this one helps me rebound from multiple recent modelling setbacks, we'll see. I was originally going to attempt this in the upcoming STGB, but I'm afraid that it's too big a project to do under a time pressure, please pardon this sinner Dennis @Corsairfoxfouruncle - I'll attempt a RNZAF Corsair in that one. Well, I want to build it as close as possible to how it's displayed at Yeovilton, so that means opening up the panel between the engine and fuel tank, and scratch building a bunch of stuff to put in there. Panel removed with scribing tool, then razor saw. The wide portion of an eye dropper will be the fuel tank. By a stroke of luck, the plasticard I have lying around is exactly half the thickness of Tamiya sprue, so if I glue two pieces together it is the right size to represent the ducting header for the tubes going from the wing root air intakes. I'm not looking for 100% (or even 78%) accuracy, I just want it to look busy in there.

Evening all 😎 Just thought I'd introduce myself - I was going to say I'm new around here, but actually it turns out I registered on this forum back in 2015 . . . just haven't been a very active poster 🤐 I'm coming back to modelling after a very long break (35+ years to be precise, although I did half complete a few things along the way) , you know how it is, girls, motorbikes, children, jobs, houses, etc. all get in the way (and not necessarily in that order) My passion is RNAS/FAA aircraft, and preferably in the larger scales, eg 1:48 or 1:32 I've been slowly building up a stash of models and reference materials over the last 10 years or so, but every time I thought I was just about ready to put glue to plastic, something came along and got in the way, however with this enforced lockdown I now have no excuse. Well that's not entirely true as I run the communications team for our company and we've been VERY busy of late, although that seems to be slowing down and we now seem to be settling in for the long haul. The other fly in the ointment is that I'm in the process of moving out of London to a quieter place in the country, so put all my stuff into storage (elderly parents loft) and now can't get at it . So I'm now considerably poorer as I've had to go out and start from scratch in terms of paint, tools, and a couple of models, etc. I'm looking to get into using an airbrush for the first time, so may turn up asking basic questions in other sections - I have a compressor that a bought a while back that came with 2 free airbrushes, so shortly I'll find out how good they are/aren't My first kit to ease me back into the flow of things will be a 1:48 Airfix Seafire F.XVII 😀 However I'm also a sucker for punishment, so I'm also doing a Magna Models 1:72 Fairey Firefly T.2 🤔 Hope to see you around Simon

Hi all Hope you are all well and able to stay safe. I have had this one on the shelf of Doom for a while and inspired by others on here with their shelf of doom builds I decided to finish this off. I started this last year as part of the Flying Boats and Floatplanes GB II but did not finish in time. This is the AZ \Model 1/48 Grumman Gosling. Here is the link to the started GB thread Built OOB with the addition of new scratch built seat frames, Consul above windscreen with throttle levers, Aileron actuator levers, ring aerial, hand grabs and cleats. The kit is brush painted as usual with Humbrol enamels and washed with Oils. The rigging and aerial wire is invisible thread. For a limited run Kit it was an enjoyable build. I was going to do the props as they would have been in wood below however did not think this would have been like this at the time used by the FAA I wasn't happy with the colour of the roundels being a bit too bright, but did not have anymore and I have already bought too many goodies recently !!! Apologies for the dust , it happens when you are doing building work unfortunately. Hope you enjoy Stay Safe and all the best Chris

Don't know about you mates, but this lockdown unleashed the inner beast in me For this build I took inspiration from the the wonderful Attacker build presented by @Navy Bird here: All issues described were present in my kit as well, except for the misalignment of the fuselage halves. I have added the boundary layer plates, reshaped and boxed the tailhook compartment (albeit a bit deeper then needed) and the tailwheel well too. Added the aerials, scratchbuilt a new tailhook. I regret not opening the canopy as the fit of the closed one was awful. I like the "pregnant" look with the belly tank and added this too. However, after the long and painful process of glueing, trimming and fitting the tank in place and filling the ever-present large gaps, the plane still retained his elegant lines and that puzzled me . When comparing with the photos in the Richard Franks' book it seems to me that the tank AZ offers us in the kit is the one from the prototype that differs from production ones by being shorter and slimmer (photo on p. 13 for the lucky ones to have his book on the subject). I never knew that there were two types of external tanks for the Attacker (different capacity, probably?). Modified the landing gear a bit by adding scissor links and some missing rods I tried to keep her clean as the photos show that the fleet was well maintained. Oh, BTW, managed to pull the paint off twice while removing the masks... 😠 Hope you will enjoy it! Stay safe!

On 20.11.1941 Lt P N Charlton flying Hawker Hurricane I (Trop.) W9327 OL*W of the Royal Navy Desert Fighter Flight intercepted and destroyed three Ju87s. Later in the same flight Charlton was hot down by a 'friendly' Tomahawk, later awarded DFC by RAF. This is my representation of Charlton Hurricane. I must thank and both @Beard and @tonyot for their help with the general appearance of this aircraft. Kit is the Airfix 1/48 Hurricane MkI(Trop.) boxing, paint is Xtracrylics, decals came from the kit or from Xtradecal generic set, the Squadron codes were sprayed using templates I made. I hope you like these rather cruel photographs.. On the shelf with Sea Hurricanes and a Martlet MkII Thanks for looking in..

This is my first work in progress post so please be gentle on me. This was going to be my winter project, then when I had to go into lockdown for 12 weeks it became my virus project. Unfortunately I have to go into hospital on Tuesday so this may be as far as I get. The kit is great so far, I am not sure if the kit is a lot better than the Typhoon or if I have got better, but so far there are no issues putting it together. I went for a cockpit upgrade kit and I don’t think it was worth it. The seat belts from HGW are excellent and well worth the investment. I have freestyled the inside of the back of the aircraft as I want to leave the bottom hatch showing. I have taken some inspiration from Nigels Modeling Bench but not followed him exactly. I have the Anyz engine upgrade set and brass undercarriage which I have to make a start on but I am leaving that until after my hospital visit. Eventually it will be finished in the FAA scheme as I am ex RN myself so it seemed the obvious choice. These close up photos show up errors and such that I just cant seen with the naked eye 😢

Hi all. As I wait for the paint I need for my Buffalo I thought I would start another kit. Italeri’s 1/72 Sea Harrier, which I believe was originally issued by Esci and was highly thought of at the time. This will be a straight forward out of the box build, no resin or PE. I will be doing the top one here: Sprues: L Finely engraved detail and very little flash, there a few ejector pins to be filled. My only quibble is with the main undercarriage leg which has to be attached as the fuselage is closed up which makes adjustment for a level sit impossible, so 🤞everything lines up. Also the auxiliary intake doors are moulded closed and will need to be opened out. Made a start cleaning up parts and filling the ejector pin holes: Wings assembled and rear fuselage closed up: Started on opening up the intake doors (a bit rough at the moment): AW

Hi. I would like to join in with a Eduard 1/48 scale Hellcat Mk.I Hellcat Mk.I JV131, 800 Sqn FAA, HMS Emperor, June, 1944 I don't have the box and the instructions because it is my half of a Dual Combo kit that I bought with a friend (he had the Mk.II) These are the sprues and accessories that I would like to use.

Hi all, I was feeling a bit bruised by my Tarpon struggles (paused for a while) 😞, so I thought a nice stress-free, OOB build was required for restoration of flagging mojo. I decided on Airfix' 1:48 Sea Hurricane MkIB, AF955 as flown by Lt. 'Dickie' Cork DSO DFC, 880 Sqn FAA from HMS Indomitable during Operation 'Ironclad', the campaign to recapture Diego Suarez in Madagascar, 1942. I could not find too many images of the actual aircraft other than the one below second in line (copyright IWM): Built OOB with the addition of Eduard seatbelts and masks, finished in a mixture of AK Interactives and Humbrol acrylics. Critique and comments welcome as ever. Anyway, here she is - thanks for looking! Roger

I have been off work self isolating so this kit has had some serious work on it the last 3 days. Only just put a coat of matt clear on last night and its still a bit tacky. This is the AZ kit which I believe was originally a Vista kit and has been issued by several different comapnies since its debut in 1996. The sprues were nicely moulded mostly flash free but the plastic used was soft and greasy feeling, it didnt cut or sand very well and where I would normally cut with the sprue cutters and give it a few goes with an emery board I instead ended up doing a lot of careful shaving away of material with a fresh 10A scalpel blade. Dry sanding just left deep scratches no matter what grade of emery I used, wet sanding was better but I had to be careful or I think I would have had a fuselage resembling a lace curtain pretty quickly. The etches for the wing folding were from the Airwaves brand and were nicely etched but were very thin and bend prone and didnt quite fit like the etches were 1/74 scale. All paints were Vallejo Air and splashed on with Hairy sticks as I really have fallen out with my airbrush at the moment. I painted the wing fold interior parts in Interior Grey Green which might be wrong I have seen the very few colour photos of original Fulmars and its 50/50 wether it should be Grey Green or Aluminium. I had a bottle of grey Green so went with that. I glued on the canopy with Ultra Violet setting resin glue and I was very impressed with it the canopy can be manipulated removed replaced tweaked anything the resin is liquid till you apply the Ultra Violet light then it sets within about 2 minutes, I left mine on the window sill in the sun for about 3 hours. When the resin is set its hard can be scraped or sanded and takes paint very well its also opytically clear so a little bit going on the see through parts of the canopy doesnt matter I missed a little bit which can only be seen with a magnifying glass in the right light. The fuselage letter number decal is wrong for my chosen aircraft it should be black 7R not red 7R but I ballsed up the correct decal and had to scrap and start again. I made a few mistakes in the build but it was a good learning experience and I am looking forward to doing more FAA folding wing jobs maybe even a Barracuda which looks when folded like it was in an horrendous accident. P1000870 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000883 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000871 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000872 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000871 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000876 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000875 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000877 by Stuart, on Flickr P1000882 by Stuart, on Flickr

For this Group Build I am building one of the 806 Naval Air Squadron Fulmars flown by Lt William Barnes one of the top scoring Aces of the Royal Navy. The difficulty with aircraft flown by 806 NAS in 1940 is that the serials were not documented by the pilots but what is known is that Barnes flew 6A / serial unknown. So my model will be without a serial. I have built the Special Hobby kit before, there are plastic, resin and etch replacement parts in the kit and there are a lot of them... Obligatory sprue shots Cockpit progress to date.. No seats in yet, and lots of work with a paint brush still to do... Observers cockpit Hopefully I might get to spend a bit more time working on the cockpits tomorrow and get them close to being finished.... Thanks for looking in..

I need some help from Fleet Air Arm experts. As you may know by now, I am trying to build a collection of aircraft used to score air to air victories by Fleet Air Arm Pilots. Two pilots I am trying to focus on at the moment are Lt William Barnes (6 confirmed victories) and S/Lt AJ ‘Jackie’ Sewell (5 or 6 Confirmed victories) who both flew Fairey Fulmars with 806 NAS. I want to join in the “Go Navy” Group Build with at least one Fulmar (Barnes or Sewell) and may build a second in the MTO GB later in the year but to do that I need to identify aircraft flown be Barnes and by Sewell in their air combats. Previously I turned to Aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm 1939 to 1945 Sturtivant & Burrows - but the air combats I am looking for are in the Unidentified listing against the Fulmar. Recently, I purchased a kindle edition of a new book 806 Naval Air Squadron. The FAA’s Top Scoring Squadron of WWII Brian Cull & Fredrick Galea (2019). There is an appendix of 806 Naval Air Squadron (NAS) claims which gives me the information I am looking for, dates, claims serial number and aircraft marking (letter). As you you would expect, I was delighted until I started to compare the information with that in Fleet Air Arm Aircraft 39-45 and I find inconsistencies. Like; Fulmar N1866 was involved in air combat 3 months after it was written off, N1940 was involved in air combat before it was delivered to 806 NAS. I know that history is dynamic and information is always being discovered and updated and that Fleet Air Arm Aircraft was first published in the 1990s and 806 Naval Air Squadron is a 2019 book. I also understand that I am looking at secondary references and I don’t have access to the primary references but is there anyone on the forum who can help me identify one of the 806 NAS Fulmars used for a claim for either Lt Barnes or SLt Sewell? @iang, @Seahawk, @Lee Howard, @tonyot Lt WLL ‘Bill’ Barnes Claim. Cull & Galea Sturtivant information 02/09/40 2 x S79 destroyed. Fulmar N1879 6B. Unknown. Deld. 806 NAS 07/40 04/09/40 S79 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar N1879 6B. Unknown. 17/09/40 Z501 Shared Destroyed Fulmar N1940 6A. Unknown. Deld. 806 NAS 28/10/40 12/10/40 Z501 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar N1940 6A. Unknown 10/11/40 Z501 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar N1940 6A. Unknown 10/01/41 Ju87 Destroyed. Fulmar N1940 6A. Serial unknown (6A) 16/01/41 Ju88 Destroyed. Fulmar N1940 6A. Unknown 19/01/41 2 x Ju87 Destroyed. Fulmar N1866 6Y. Not listed. Deld. 806 NAS 08/40. Cat Z 06/10/40. S/Lt AJ ‘Jackie’ Sewell 04/09/40 2 x S79 Destroyed. Fulmar N1865 6Q. Unknown. Deld. 806 NAS 06/40. Cat Z 10/05/41 12/10/40. Z501 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar N1865 6Q. Unknown. 01/11/40. Z506 Destroyed. Fulmar N1866 6Y. Serial Unknown (6Y). Deld. 806 08/40. Cat Z 10/05/41. 10/11/40. Z501 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar N1865 6Q. Not listed. See N1865 above. 10/01/41. S79 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar N1865 6Q. Serial Unknown (6Q). 18/01/41. Ju87 or Ju88 Destroyed. Fulmar N1881 6F. Not listed. Deld. 806 NAS 06/40. Photo in FAA Camouflage & Marking of N1881 6H. 20/04/41. Z1007 Shared Destroyed. Fulmar Unknown. Unknown 22/04/41. Ju88 Shared Probable. Fulmar Unknown. Unknown 25/05/41. He111 Destroyed. Fulmar Unknown. Not Listed. Thanks in advance..

Take a look at this gem well worth the watch...one day the big liz and big taffy will be like this👍😆😬🤔 https://youtu.be/e6ZFTawb73I

This is my entry into the What-if section of this Group Build, you could say I was somewhat inspired by @Kallisti ‘s various builds of American aircraft in FAA colours. Apologies if this is treading on your toes! I also happened to make a little Monogram 1/72 version of this aircraft when I was younger and not brave enough to adorn it with the yellow and black stripes. (That might give a hint of what I am going for). In the mid 1940s Westland started development of a carrier strike aircraft, with an engine layout similar to that of the Bell P-39. This resulted in interest from the Air Ministry and official specification N.11/44. The prototype W.34 was powered by a Rolls Royce Eagle H-24 engine, which was later cancelled. The aircraft was then planned to be powered by either a Rolls-Royce Clyde or Armstrong Siddeley Python. The Clyde was later cancelled but the airframe was planned to be fitted with a Napier Nomad, which was also then cancelled. Hopes rested on the Python to power the aircraft. (This where we differ from reality) After protracted development of the costly Python turboprop, the Wyvern was coming in over budget. The first prototype of which flew in 1949 and needed many modifications. The then Labour government had major economic issues to contend with and was looking in to all ways and means of cost cutting. This resulted in a defence white paper of 1950, in which Minister of Defence Emanuel Shinwell advocated the cancellation of Westland W.34 in favour of a cheaper, more versatile aircraft. The logic being that a Strike fighter was unnecessary with superior jet aircraft coming into play, Sea Hawk etc. It was decided, to the chagrin of the FAA, that the more conventional multi seat Douglas Skyraider AD-5 aircraft would be purchased to fill the gap of the cancelled Wyvern. This would be able to fulfil the role of a Strike aircraft, as well as that of COD. It’s wide fuselage meant that the aircraft had potential for further role changes in the future. Therefore, an order was placed and all squadrons that the Wyvern was intended for were equipped with the Skyraider AD-5. In keeping with the naming of other strike aircraft being named after mythical beasts, the Skyraider was dubbed the 'Cockatrice' in FAA service. The only differences being that this aircraft had the capacity to carry a torpedo and unguided rockets. This aircraft served well into the 1960s and served with a degree of success during Operation Musketeer in Suez. Along these lines the Whif model I shall be exhibiting will be a FAA ‘Cockatrice’ of 827 Naval Air Squadron based aboard the HMS Eagle during the Suez crisis. This shall be modelled using the Revell/Matchbox 1/48 Skyraider and using decals for the 1/48 Wyvern from Berna Decals. This shall of course be in that classic EDSG over Sky, with Yellow and Black Invasion stripes. I shall start on this as soon as I finish my P-40 STGB commitment… I am very much looking forward to it Cheers, Ash

I was in the FAA Museum at Yeovilton, the other day and I was looking at a little watercolour sketch by S/Lt (A) Val Bennett R.N.V.R. who served with 1770 NAS. He wasn't an official war artist, but he recorded his surroundings as he travelled in service. So a unique (often colour) record. This sketch was a view of a couple of Grumman Goose and several Supermarine Walrus, parked up on hard standing in what seems a busy squadron scene. I assume it is 749 NAS as this seems to be where the FAA Geese ended up. I can't find a copy of this sketch on the internet, but for those who want to have a look, (if I remember correctly) it is in Hall 2 in the war in the pacific exhibition to the left of the hall. What drew my attention was the bright yellow markings carried by the Geese on their otherwise TSS upper surfaces. The fuselage spine is panted yellow with a chevron running from the centre front of the fuselage backwards so making an arrow shape. two more parallel strips are either side, spaced equally along the span of each wing so the pattern looks like / / /\ \ \. l Questions that come to mind are; Why were they applied? i.e. were they to help calibration, orientation or visability Were these markings standard throughout the squadron? i.e. there is a well known photo of FP503 code W2W (see Air Britain - FAA Aircraft 1939-45), It doesn't clearly show the upper surface and I wonder if it would have had said markings. When were they introduced? the sketched Geese appear to show type C.1 national markings, whilst FP503 has the earlier type A.1 markings, so the markings might not have yet been applied when the photo was taken. Discuss....

Hi, everyone. I have a question about the form and style of the ventral tanks used on the F6F Hellcat. On Sprue Q of the big 1/24 Scale Hellcat there are 2 ventral tanks. Only one is mentioned in the instructions, this uses parts Q14 and Q15 and has the joint seam top and bottom and an aerofoil section between tank and fuselage, as detailed in Step 292. The other is parts Q12, Q13: it has no such mounting section, just 6 legs and a fuel pipe: there is no mention of the second one in the instructions! Why are these parts included? could Airfix be planning a later, possibly night fighter version? Anyone have any ideas?

Hi all I would like to build this little beauty. I will be building an FAA machine and would like to build it pretty much OOB. I am still finishing my very much modified Blackburn Shark in the Frog Squad build, although it is very nearly finished so this will act as a place marker until I can start. Resin parts cut from their Moulding plugs. I damaged the back of one of the U/C bays and so have covered it with plasticard. The rear cabin seat frames got damaged during cutting off and so I have sanded all but one off (needed the reference an will replace with brass rod, so much for OOB !!! Thanks for looking and good luck to all doing builds All the best Chris

I'm building the big Hellcat...it really is BIG. The kit is progressing well, I'm at the point of building the wings. My plan is to have the guns and ammunition panel open on one wing: I assume this would only happen with the wing down in the flying position. QUESTION: Was the Hellcat able to have one wing folded, the other extended, or did they fold/unfold together? I have found lots of photos of folded wings and unfolded wings, but so far not one with one folded and one unfolded. Can anyone help with an answer?

Hot on the heals of the Sea Venom comes another little-publicised Royal Navy jet, the Supermarine Attacker F.1. This kit is even more basic than the Frog Sea Venom! This is all there is ... Look at these! Most basic decals of all time? Luckily I had these left over on an old aftermarket decal sheet!

Martlet complete, this was a lovely little kit with plenty of detail, no real fit issues and brilliant decals, it was really good as a Mojo booster and something different from my usual subjects. Airfix 1/72 Grumman Martlet Mk IV Tamiya XF 77 (EDSG), XF 73 (DSG), Mr Color 26 (Sky) Uschi Fine rigging thread for aerials Weathering with oils.

After a visit to the superb Fleet Air Arm Museum recently, I decided to find a few Navy bargains on ebay, one of these being this ancient 1/72 Frog Sea Venom. It looks like a nice simple kit and a sojourn back to this scale after a lot of 1/48 kits. I also picked up a Wyvern, Gannet AEW and Sea Harrier in this scale, so if the Venom turns out ok I might do one of them next. Fairly basic Frog fare, reasonable simple decal sheet (hoping they don't break up in the water!) and I even ordered some FAA colour scheme sprays too. All set to go. Well, after Blue Dot Festival anyway. Who knows how to turn matt into gloss once it's sprayed on and dry? Is it fraught with danger and bubbling/running/changing colour? What do I need - is there a 'magic' spray I can use over the whole airframe?