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A couple of weeks ago I received a box of spare parts for my scratchbuilds from a fellow BM member (Thanks again, Ben) Amongst the tank bits were the parts for an old part painted Ertl X wing. I've never built one and, me being me, decided a few changes might improve it. It struck me that if these things were dogfighting in atmosphere then a good turning circle would be an idea. So why not use spoilers? same as the Snowspeeder. While I was at it, a different low viz (ish) paint scheme might be good too. And, markings, well, The D day aniversary is coming up shortly! So, onto the pictures. The stand is an old Airfix jobbie, the plaque came with the kit. You can see the RH spoilers deployed. I added a tank side skirt down each side as extra armour. Something like the Fw 190's used. The pilot is from the spares box. A better view of the side armour. The camo is Tamiya rattle cans. The darker one from a distance for the mottled effect. Rather than red 2 or whatever I thought D day stripes might look good, especially with the anniversary coming up. The spoilers are actually made from HO railway fencing. The yellow areas in the wings/foils should be voids but with the spoilers I decided they'd need beefing up. So I added card and a couple of tank bits with Forth bridge rivets in them. And a view from behind. The other side has the spoilers retracted. I added tank wheels and bits of track here on the back of the foils. The R2 astro unit is currently trying to find a vector out of the mancave. I added a couple of service points underneath. More tank bits. And a Spitfire radiator forward of them. It hides a slot in the plastic. And that's your lot. It was an enjoyable build, the only 'straight' (ish) kit I've build in a very long time. But I started another kreiger scratchbuild today! Thanks very much for looking and your comments are welcome. Pete

I have a thread over on The RPF, but I thought I'd start one here as well. Since Bandai never came out with a 1/48 Y-Wing, I have decided to make one on my own. I'm using my 3D printer (Elegoo Mars) to print these parts. The model is from CGTrader and I'm scaling it to the appropriate size, relative to the 1/48 X-Wing. So here we go! I'm going to use this thread to document my build. So here we go! Just pulled these two parts off the printer this morning. I waaaaaay overdid the supports on the canopy because it's a very delicate part, and because I didn't want it warping at all. Anyway. Follow along if you feel so inclined! SB

Hi all, So to go with these two tiny TIE Fighters, I've decided to have a go at this one which was a Christmas present from my lovely wife 😍 Bandai_Solo_Falcon_box by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr What's in the box.. Bandai_Solo_Falcon_contents by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Compared to the Revell Easy kit.. Bandai_Solo_Falcon_size by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Started with the cockpit - primed Bandai_Solo_Falcon_Cockpit by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Started painting. Great detail on those tiny seats. Bandai_Solo_Falcon_Cockpit_1 by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr And all done! Bandai_Solo_Falcon_cockpit_2 by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr More soon, thanks for looking. Cheers, Dermot

Hi to all. This is my recent finish, an old MPC kit. Is quite spartan, positive panels but easy to asemble, is a snap kit. I only added some detalis for the pilot. I tried extensive use of pre shading effect. I finished with Testors and Tamiya paints. I hope you like it. Regards, Pablo

Revell U-Wing with custom base. From Star Wars Rogue One

Hi all and hope you're all staying safe and keeping well. This was a little build to restore the mojo - they're the Bandai 1/144 TIE Fighters from Force Awakens but backdated to Empire-era and one converted to a TIE Brute. Build thread if you're interested is here but to recap: Kit: Bandai Vehicle Model 004 First Order TIE Fighter set Build: One built OOB and one converted to TIE Brute Paint: Halfords Grey Primer, Revell Acrylics, Flory Models Wash Bandai_Model_004_Tie_Fighter by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Bandai_Model_004_TIE Fighter_2 by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Bandai_Model_004_TIE Brute_1 by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Bandai_Model_004_TIE Brute_head by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Bandai_Model_004_TIE Fighters Rear by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Bandai_Model_004_TIE Fighters_scale by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Bandai_Model_004_Tie_Fighters_done by Dermot Moriarty, on Flickr Thanks for looking and stay safe! Cheers, Dermot

Hi chaps. It's been a long time since I posted on here. As I've just been laid off work, for at least the next month due to coronavirus, I have decided to throw myself into my modeling again. This kit has been in my stash for about 3 years, I picked it up at the huddersfield show. It's an old airfix kit of slave 1. There's no scale on the box, but I seem to remember reading it was something weird like 1:83! As you can see the box has seen better days. Have made a start, and will post up the obligatory sprue shots tomorrow. Matt

Hi all With this model I think I am going close a 12-month period in which I am going to finish 6. Something that I have never done. Although I have some models in process, I did not feel like continuing with them, so I looked at the Bandai boxes related to STAR WARS that I have in hiding and decided on this kit. What can I say about him that hasn't already been said? Gorgeous detail, gorgeous and finely detailed pieces and a perfect fit. A candy. The construction is already quite advanced and I decided to start this post because I think I will not stop its assembly. Of its assembly I can say that it has been a suffering due to the fact that the arrangement of the different pieces has been chaotic in sprues. If you had to build a leg you had to take a piece from sprue C1, another from sprue C2, another from sprue A and two other pieces from sprue B (it is an example, it has not literally been like this). Something that has been very heavy. Well, the cockpit. I have painted it entirely using Vallejo MC paints. Andrés S. Hi everyone.

Managed to pick this up dirt cheap from a toy store. Nice little toy, and again, great for a practise piece. I could have spent a bit more time on it but quite happy how it came out for a quickie. Before After (obviously)

So my Snowspeeder is done, and it's fair to say I'm very, very happy with this. As happy as I am with anything I've done. The Fine Molds kit is a little cracker (and I mean little). Painted with Artic White from the excellent Hataka "Orange Line" Lacquers and weathered with Flory Wash "grime", Tensocrom "smoke" and a little bit of oils. You know how I said it was small? Here it is on top of a YF-23 in the same scale....

Hi Everyone, I got a request from a colleague to paint her fresly 3D printed Baby Yoda figure. It was a surprise for me that such a 3D model can be downloaded but nowadays everything is possible. So she passed me over the figure which was originally full clean "snow white". Just like a Snowman (with funny ears, obviously) or like a sugarcone, but I liked it. When discussing about the paint process "just simply paint it to green and sandbrown please" I pointed out that the 3D printer she used has a low resolution therefore massive sanding and filling will be required to have an acceptable result. And this painting project will be a bit longer than she thought. Finally we got the deal and I took the figure home. As a first step, after some 2-3 hours of sanding over the back of Yoda's head, his nose and the letters on the stand, I have applied a full cover of 1500 grade Gunze Black Surfacer / Primer from a rattle can and left it drying for one day. Next morning I checked the result and realised that the figure and letters are still not smooth enough, so it was fully re-primed with 500 Grade Surfacer hand applied and sanded after drying. Finally it looked OK to start the painting process. To get a uniform shade, a new layer of black 1500 grade Surfacer was applied and let dry for a day. The first colour I used was Mig-023 Protective Green mixed with Mig-247 Hellblau. Highlights were applied using overdiluted Mig-247 Hellblau. After some drying time I enhanced the lower areas of the head and the palms of Yoda’s hands with light layer of Mig-023. Now it looks like a faded crocodile but looks OK to me. The only thing missing is the diffuse “hair” he has on the head but that is not what I am able to apply. The back of the head is OK and way more smoother than the original 3D printed surface was. After taking the photos, I have observed some minor holes on the top of the head which will be addressed in the next step – filling-up and some hand painting to complete the head.There are other very structured surfaces all around the figure but as I could not attack them with any sanding stick, I decided to live with these structures. Anyway, Baby Yoda is a strange alien life-form so his skin can be very structured just like a crocodile, cannot be? The plan to follow is to mask off the head and the hands, then paint the haircloth he wears. I will likely paint first the deep shadow using Mig-043 Shadow Rust and than apply the main color using Mig-025 US Moder Vehicles and Mig-027 German Sand Beige (for some specific areas as color variation) and finish the haircloth using Mig-036/037/038 wood colors (highlights). More to come soon! Tamás

This is my Fine Molds1/48 Snowspeeder. Cracking little kit, but teeny tiny even in 1/48 I wasn't too fussed about 100% accuracy when painting the interior - especially as I struggled to find decent ref pics, I was looking more for the effect of making it look "busy" and I am very happy with how its turned out. Rest of the construction will be 15 mins work, then I'm going to try pre-shading this one. Looking forward to some heavy weathering

Hello again folks, I thought I'd share with you my latest project, For this I took a bandai K-2SO and decided to give him a new job, hence the name change, so may i present K-SSU, or 'K-series Stormtrooper Support Unit'. He's been tasked with assisting Sandtroopers on the planet of Tatooine, looking for hidden rebel sympathisers. I didn't feel the need to do a WIP due to it already being covered by Andy Moore with his fabulous K-2S0, but for anybody thinking about grabbing one and having a bash, then push the button, you wont be disappointed. (please excuse the mass of pics)

R-33K Protocol Droid Bandai 1/12 Another repaint of Bandai's C-3PO to add to the collection (I still haven't built this kit as it's intended subject yet). As with the previous ones, this is a non-movie droid of my own design by the name of R-33K, or Reek to his friends (if he had any). He's clearly not had the best of lives, and is probably even more decrepit and useless than Boris. No real modifications to the kit apart from the various hacks and gashes, and the missing arm, the joint for which was made from spares box bits and a few lengths of wire. Thanks for looking Andy

Resistance A-Wing Fighter (06770) 1:44 Revell Star Wars has given us tons of memorable space ships to add to the annals of cool designs, and one that made its debut as a bit player in Return of the Jedi is the Kuat Systems A-Wing. It has been in various other Star Wars universe shows since and has been seen in the new trilogy too, although I’m yet to see the Rise of Skywalker, so no spoilers. The Kit This is a re-release and has been timed to coincide with the new film but has no Rise of Skywalker branding, just the generic Star Wars branding with Darth Vader in the top right corner of the box, which is end-opening, and has twenty five parts either suspended between two clear inserts, or in small bags to prevent loss and chaffing. The kit is in brick red and what I call “Star Wars Grey” overpaint, plus some of the innards in a darker grey. The interior of the hull contains the light and sound unit in dark grey with the batteries preinstalled, but isolated with a small clear pull-away tab, with the two yellow LEDs projecting down the exhausts to provide some illumination to the cut-away outer exhaust ports. The clear parts are painted with light grey framing, and a four-colour pilot figure is included with an olive-drab jumpsuit and red/white helmet, which would benefit greatly from a dark wash to bring out the details even if you’re not planning on detail painting. Everything snaps together as per the instructions, and detail is really quite good for the target audience, with lots of visual interest, plus a clear canopy that can be opened or closed and a pair of light diffuser inserts for the engines. Construction is fast, taking less than five minutes once I figured out that numbers AND letters were included on each part (more haste less speed), and everything clips together pretty firmly without the need for glue, although I’d recommend some for the more delicate parts such as the wingtip weapons. The landing gear is supplied and can be retracted in a rudimentary fashion by pivoting the legs into the open bays that would whistle terribly in atmosphere. The wingtip weapons have a key on their attachment pin, but be sure to mount them with the hollow “anti-sink-mark” cut-outs facing downward, or fill them and repaint. As usual with these kits there’s a grille for the speaker to render its tune, which in this case is limited to two sounds activated by a button on the right to the side of the cockpit rear. On first press it plays a take-off and shooting noise, with a similar swooping and shooting noise, repeating each one in turn on subsequent presses. As you press the button the yellow LEDs light and stay on until the sound effect has completed, which should give little Johnny or Jemima adequate time to complete their manoeuvres before going dark. Conclusion This is intended to be a toy that gets a pounding from a child of 6 or over, so it’s made of stronger plastic than your average model for longevity. It does have a good level of detail for a toy though, and at 1:44 scale it’s a good size. If you decide to give it to a child they’ll be very happy with it (if they like Star Wars), and if you build it as a model, there’s plenty of scope for repainting it and adding some details. The canopy isn’t the clearest in the world, but that’s probably due to the flexible plastic is has been moulded in that is unlikely to maim the child if it breaks during rough play. You can get the same kit in blue if you’d prefer, or you could repaint it to a scheme that suits you. Highly recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

After a significant period of no motivation here is my break out kit. Completed with Ginze Acrylics, artists acrylics. Happy Modelling Ian

Ok, this probably won't be your typical Work In Progress thread. This started out as me trying out some pre-shading techniques which I've never really used before. I usually build 1/32 aircraft but thought the Falcon would be a great test subject for pre-shading and for me to see how it works (or not). The kit is the Force Awakens release of the Falcon. For AM, I've got Tyridium's lighting kit and the Green Strawberry PE. I started with the main hull sections. I used Tamiya NATO Black for the pre-shading on the bare plastic. Over this, I started to fill in the panels using Gunze H338 thinned down to about 70/30 thinner to paint. I went back and did the mandibles to match.

First Order Heavy Assault Walker 1:164 Revell You might have heard of a series of films called Star Wars, and if you haven’t, why haven’t you used your internet connected device to get someone to retrieve you from under the wardrobe? The second film in the Sequel Trilogy as the three new films have become known introduced a host of new vehicles and ships, one of which was the Heavy Assault Walker with a designation AT-M6, and the nickname Gorilla Walker amongst the fandom due to its resemblance to the silverback gorilla in some ways. It is a gargantuan lumbering behemoth, dwarfing the previous AT-AT walkers by some significant margin, and is fitted with a massive forward firing cannon and heavy frontal armour, perhaps from lessons learned on Hoth? The Kit This is another of Revell’s rather good Build & Play range, and due to its size it has a fairly high part count for the range, at 46. It’s fairly close to 1:144 so wouldn’t look ridiculous next to a 1:144 AT-AT, but as our only other option for a model (note that this is a toy once complete), is a box scale offering from Bandai, it’s probably your best bet at the moment as a child AND as a modeller. It arrives in a standard B&P end-opening box with the large parts suspended within the clear packaging and the smaller parts in a number of clear bags hidden inside. It is moulded in dark grey styrene with only the cannon tip in a clear red styrene that is pre-assembled on the electronics module that fits within the body. Construction begins with the head and its lower half is detailed with a cockpit that also has two cannons moulded into its lower and has the neck detail moulded in top and bottom. The top of the head clips into the bottom and is joined by more cannons on each side above the dropped cheek armour. The lower hull is fitted with a rear bulkhead and is complete by its missing side and a smaller front bulkhead, then is topped off with one side of the upper armoured body The back-mounted large canisters halves are clipped together and inserted into the first side, then held in place by the opposite hull plate. At this stage your walker is legless, and these are the subject of the majority of the rest of the build. The front legs are highly armoured and have different feet than the rear legs, which resemble the legs of the ageing AT-ATs on a larger scale. The rear legs are made from the feet up, with the lower leg halves clamping around the foot’s pivot-point, then having the upper leg parts added that are held in place by the pivot pins at the knees and at the “hip” joints with the hull. Repeat this again, then move onto the front legs. These have a large flat foot that resembles the gorilla’s hands curled under to walk, and these too are clamped in place by the heavy lower front legs. Again the knees and hips are joined by pins that are pushed into place, and the penultimate job is to push the ball at the base of the neck into the socket in the lower front of the hull. The pre-assembled cannon unit is finally slotted into the recess in the hull over the head, and is operated by pushing down on the switch that activates the LED behind the clear red cannon tip and plays one of two samples, the first of which is the heavy clanking noise of the walker... walking, and a fusillade of cannon and blaster fire for the second sample. Both of these are well represented and seem to be direct copies from the film. Conclusion This is intended to be a toy that gets a pounding from a child of 6 or over, so it’s made of stronger plastic than your average model for longevity. It does have a good level of detail though, and at 1:164 scale it’s close(ish) enough to the kits from Bandai to mesh with their range. If you decide to give it to a child they’ll be very happy with it (if they like Star Wars), and if you build it as a model, there’s plenty of scope for repainting it and adding some additional details. Highly recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or 4

I've just noticed from the Revell release sheet for 2020 that the company is boxing the Bandai kit of the B-Wing. I hope that will be a lot lighter on the wallet! The Bandai Death Star II + Imperial Star Destroyer also get the Revell treatment, but in 1/14.5 Million and 1/2.7 Million

'tis the season to build Star Wars, fa la la la la, la la la la Kit Manufacturer: Bandai. Scale: 1/144. Paints used: Vallejo Model Air. Clear coats: Tamiya semi gloss and Windsor & Newton Galeria Gloss/Matt varnishes mixed 50/50ish (because I ran out of Tamiya semi gloss). Weathering products - Flory washes overall, AK Interactive Bearings and Grease enamel wash. Aftermarket - Picture frame, rose gold copper wire, Tamiya Diorama Texture Paint (snow). Krystal Klear for sticking down a couple of the stickers on the Snowspeeder. I assembled these models in 2017, with a grand idea of sticking an arduino inside the body of the AT-AT, to control a couple of fibre optic strands in the chin guns, for a guns firing effect, and an LED in the "head" for the red "windscreen". Decided to abandon that idea as it was never going to be visible, just too small an effect on the guns at this scale and you don't see a red "windscreen" lit up in Empire anyway... ...So it sat for 2 years waiting for me to paint it all and put it on a base! Surprisingly the stickers on the Snowspeeder were as thin as decals, and didn't pose any problems, apart from a couple peeling on me... The purists will say "that's Luke's Snowspeeder", "your AT-AT is grey". It's not, I didn't put the specific markings on besides the grey stripes. I also really didn't fancy masking off the grey stripes on the Snowspeeder and painting them orange instead. And, I know. I would have preferred to have achieved that whiter grey look to the AT-AT, but I didn't, for reasons... I was going to buy a Rebel Alliance turret from a seller on Shapeways, I'm glad I didn't as there wouldn't be room on the base and due to limited display space I couldn't go bigger/longer on the base... Photos - Tried to get a "person standing on the ground looking up" view with these, unfortunately they're not much different to those above as I couldn't get my camera low enough - Couple of photos "from above" - Thanks for looking.

Kylo Ren's TIE Fighter (06771) 1:70 Revell Kylo Ren was Supreme Leader Snokes' young(ish) apprentice and plays a substantial role in this sequel trilogy so far, with the promise of more in the upcoming Rise of Skywalker that is on release now (at time of writing), with the hope that it ends the series on a high note. Ben Solo as he was named from birth usually gets around in a large black Command Shuttle, but also has a modified/prototype TIE Fighter known as the “Silencer” which bears a family resemblance to a First Order TIE in a larger and extended shape. It is introduced in The Last Jedi, playing an important part in devastating the Resistance’s command crew, and causing some substantial upset over the demise of some much loved characters, and how one major character saves herself. As of writing I’ve not seen the closing chapter of the saga, so whether it makes a final appearance remains to be seen. The Kit This is a re-release and has been timed to coincide with the new film but has no Rise of Skywalker branding, just the generic Star Wars branding with Darth Vader (Grandad) in the top right corner of the box, which is end-opening, and has twenty parts either suspended between two clear inserts, or in small bags to prevent loss and chaffing. The kit is in dark grey styrene as befits the ship, and the black “solar” panels are pre-painted at the factory to a good standard. A large chunk of the central hull contains the light and sound unit with the batteries preinstalled, but isolated with a small clear pull-away tab. The clear parts are painted with framing, and a small Kylo Ren figure in black is one of the smallest parts, which could do with a flesh-coloured blob of paint to make him show up better (in TFA he flies helmetless). Everything snaps together as per the instructions, and detail is really quite good for the target audience, with lots of greeblies added to the wing panels and hull, plus a clear entry hatch on the top of the cockpit that can be opened and closed. I have actually built this kit before now, and it looks really good once made up. I added a little wash from the Ultimate Wash range (Dark Dirt IIRC), and that really brings out the detail with little effort. I also masked up the canopy and sprayed some clear varnish over the wash to fix it in place. The button to activate the lights and sound sits on the rear engine deck, and lights up the engines, playing three sound effects: A TIE scream A volley of fire from its weapons A TIE scream with weapons fire at the end for those swooping attacks The sound quality is good for the task in hand, and comes from a small grille under the hull that is decidedly not canon! Putting my thumb over it doesn’t seem to reduce the volume much, so if you elect to cover it over it should still be audible. The single red LED that powers the engines is spread across the whole exhaust area by the vertical prism-like vertical stripes, which makes it quite effective. The only real weak-point of the model is the moulding of the wing-tip weapons in flexible plastic to avoid any eye removal in rough play. These parts have a tendency to toe inwards slightly, making them look a little bent. If you were building this as a model, you may wish to find a solution to this by either casting your own parts, or scratch-building some new ones. I doubt little Johnny/Jemima will care a jot though, as long as they’re having fun. Conclusion This is intended to be a toy that gets a pounding from a child of 6 or over, so it’s made of stronger plastic than your average model for longevity. It does have a good level of detail though, and at 1:70 scale it’s close enough to the kits from Bandai to mesh with their range. If you decide to give it to a child they’ll be very happy with it (if they like Star Wars), and if you build it as a model, there’s plenty of scope for repainting it and adding some details. Highly recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

It's been a while since i last posted a completed build, you know how life gets in the way..lol So here's my Bandai 1/44 Scale Slave One from 'The Empire Strikes Back'. Your Thoughts are appreciated. .

Hi all. After some problems with the snow used in this small scene (that of AK) and changing the base for a larger one, I can show the work completely finished. For those who want to see the work done on the ships the links are: I have finished it in a month and a half, without messing with any other model in between which is a double achievement on my part. For the short time that I took to do it and because between the beginning and the end I have not taken a different model. Bandai kits related to the Star Wars saga totally and absolutely recommended. I have done some more and I have many others. From the first I can say the same and from the second I can say that the detail is equally impressive. The only but is its price. Even on the other side of the world it is high, here it is simply prohibitive for a normal pocket. Regards.

Millennium Falcon (06777) 1:164 Revell Build & Play The Millennium Falcon seems to have been a main stay of most of the Star Wards films to date. The Kit As part of Revell's licencing of Star Wars from Disney they are releasing a whole host of kits for modellers of all ages. This is aimed at the cross over between toys and kits in that its pre-painted and ready to go with some easy click together construction. The unit also has a sound & light modules built in complete with batteries so its ready to go. Construction is fairly simple. First of all all the parts which are fitted from the inside are added. To the top section the upper gun turret, to the lower section the landing gear, side parts and the battery module (remember to remove the plastic tab which holds the battery contacts apart). The batteries are in a screw locked compartment so cant easily be removed by children. The upper part of the cockpit section is also added. The rear engine is added and then the two sections can be closed up. The radar is added and its good to go. Conclusion There is always the debate as to are these a model or a toy. I think they are a little simple for a model but a great toll to get children interested in doing something a little more advanced, and for the right age group that only has the be encouraged (Revell recommend this for Age 6+. Recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

Poe's Boosted X-Wing Fighter (06777) 1:78 Revell Build & Play From Star Wars the last Jedi Poe Dameron is a resistance X Wing pilot who brings Finn and Rey into the story. As an X-Wing pilot he has his own fighter. The Kit As part of Revell's licencing of Star Wars from Disney they are releasing a whole host of kits for modellers of all ages. This is aimed at the cross over between toys and kits in that its pre-painted and ready to go with some easy click together construction. The unit also has a sound module built in complete with batteries so its ready to go. Construction is fairly simple. First the X Wings lock together, then the lower hull is added. The the cockpit and Poe figure are added along with the front landing skid and rear bulkhead. The hinged canopy is added to the top hull and this can then be joined to the lower. Parts are added to the rear of the hull. Then the engine pods and laser cannons can be added to the wings. Finally the rear landing skids are added. To activate the sound module a tape has to be pulled out. The batteries are in a screw locked compartment so cant easily be removed by children. Sounds are played by pressing the droid behind the cockpit. Conclusion There is always the debate as to are these a model or a toy. I think they are a little simple for a model but a great way to get children interested in doing something a little more advanced, and for the right age group that ony has the be encouraged (Revell recommend this for Age 6+). Recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or