Grant

Great minds think alike! Those decals look fun... cheers Grant

Entry no. 1 will be this one. With a 'then and now' theme to my current model building plans, this GB has come along at just the right time. cheers Grant

Entry no. 2 will be this one. I see another one from this team in the GB, with decals for the wings. I will have to mask my wings, I wonder which will be easier! cheers Grant

This looks colourful! I have just concieved a plan to build various 'Then & Now' display team models, and lo and behold there is a GB starting up! Please count me in with: 1) Frecce Tricolori F-86 (a 'then' to my already built 'now') 2) Turkish 'White Swans' F-86 (The F-5 'now' might follow, but I don't normally build that quickly!) cheers Grant

I always thought it was very cool to have the W30s operating in New York. I managed several hours in a BIH W30 on the southern North Sea gas fields 20odd years ago. The view was great, the cabin roomy - it is such a shame that we didn't continue the line. The only bits you could use from a Lynx kit would be the main and tail rotors. Everything else is different, though you might get away with using the tailboom. Apart from that it is definitely a scratch build job. Having relinquished the Design Authority for the type, I don't think Westlands even has the drawings anymore. cheers Grant

Following Jen's call for WWII models for the Splash table I hunted around to see what would be interesting to do (as my Splash Stash consists of Schneider stuff!) and came across this French aeroplane. With my new found French modelling friends in Brest it seemed like an ideal model to do. Inside the box are 2 light grey sprues, a single vac-form canopy and a small PE fret. The external detail is finely indented but the are no locating pins - which gets interesting when you get to the float struts, as the exploded view instruction can be a little vague in some areas. I went with French cockpit blue, although the instructions do not mention any colour, and used some left over PE belts from an EH101 fret. The exhaust stubs and rear fuselage window have been left out, as I reckon I can get the exhaust stack in through the torpedo well after all the painting is done and the window will be done with crystal clear. To stop paint getting where I don't want it the holes will be temporarily filled with crystal clear. All joints are butt joints, so some stubs have been added from sprue to make the joints a bit stronger. As the 1/72nd kit doesn't come with a beaching trolley, the plan is to have this moored at the dockside, as seen in one photo I found on the web. cheers Grant

I have an old Beaufort kit that was so badly molded there was no way it was going together. Most of the time though, it is the back of the cardboard box I use as a spray booth. And like Jon, I start somewhere out of site! cheers Grant

Lovely model and great weathering. The only problem I can see is that you have posted this just as I start my 1/72nd version and I now have a class act to follow! cheers Grant

Obviously chucking out time at Waddo'. The Vulcan arrived today, after a photo op at 10000ft with a Jet Provost. And the Jordanian Falcons are also in. Shame about the early arrival of the Vulcan, but at least the weather is looking good. See you in the field on Friday. cheers Grant

Nice pair Dave. Your getting very good at PP8 and that's a particularly nice nose on the Danish one Cheers Grant

I think I need a BIG semi-circle, rather than, what turned out to be, a question mark! Good job I bought some spare rod. cheers Grant

Well I did get the model finished for the club competition night. Didn't place, but well beaten by some excellent models - see link to club website in my sig below. So here is the finished article. First in close up... And then flying high over Stonehenge. Not too sure about the pole. I may have to re-visit that, what do you reckon? cheers Grant

Mini me and John installed, so on with the canopy and a quick spray of Halfords best before the blue. The blue went on OK yesterday. So the reveal will be tomorrow, just to make sure the paint IS dry. cheers Grant

Very Nice! Like the added control run details - got my work cut out matching that! cheers Grant

I think there might be more plastic in the rod holding it upside down over mini Stonehenge than in the plane, and there will definitely not be any dancing dwarves. I have given them some dwarf bread and sent them on their way. cheers Grant

Who picked this fiddly little paint scheme anyway? Oh yeah - me. Red painted and masked ready for the yellowy-orange... Then I can paint the blue. H65/white was definitely too green and H47 on its own was too dark, but I reckon H47/white in a 50/50 mix looks about right. cheers Grant

Nice Spitfire there Serelle. I like the weathering, particularly the underside. A bit too shiny for me, I always think the smaller kits look better with a flat coat, unless it is a high gloss colour scheme of course! Always difficult to pick yellow or white from a B&W source. I had the same problem with natural metal or white recently. In the end you go with what you like. You, after all, are the one who is going to be looking at it the most. Looking forward to seeing more of your work. cheers Grant

That is lovely rendition. Nice paint job, subtle weathering (how all my model kits look in my head!!) Great photos too. cheers Grant

That was the original plan, but now I am thinking it might be a little 'green', so I have some H47 to try as well. That's nothing - there are several EH101s that I have worked with that are now in museums! And, yes me too, I flew in a Chippy out of Filton in 1977 whilst in the ATC. No details recorded for posterity, sadly. Ready now to mask the canopy, and stick a mini-me inside, before spraying. cheers Grant

I have smoothed off the cowling and taken down the rivets (slightly) with a light sand and I have mostly taken off the fabric tape lines. Perhaps a bit too much, but you do have to get close to the aircraft to see them. I have also added anti-spin strakes and a rudder trim tab; and drilled out all the openings on the front cowling; I have definitely wimped out of cutting the whole nose off and thinning the back edge of the cowlings! Nearly ready for that pale blue - which I will have to mix (never had much success in the past) cheers Grant

Stunning. Vacform biplane and fully rigged! More details please - there is a is a lot of detail on that top wing and engine. How d'ya do it? cheers Grant

With points being awarded for age of mold used I went for the Airfix Chipmunk as one of my offerings. Having flown in John Beattie's Chippy in Portuguese colours and taken this shot of Stonehenge from it (without throwing up!) I knew what I wanted to do with it. And while searching the web for a picture of Stonehenge to put underneath it, I found a small desktop model that is about the right size to suspend the model over and tell the story of a very enjoyable flight. It all looks good in my head, lets hope it translates to 3D. cheers Grant

What a useful little on-line article. I don't do ships, but it will prove useful for flying boats. Good find Darren. cheers Grant

What Jonathan said - although I use wire wool. Same effect, nice smooth finish and a really good key for the paint to come. cheers Grant

Positively pornographic! Lovely details shots there Kyrre. cheers Grant