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lasermonkey

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Posts posted by lasermonkey

  1. I bought a Lightning today and having followed this topic, decided to check the canopy. Using a loupe, I can *just* make out a faint flaw on one of the quarterlights. I would never have noticed it if I didn't know to look and on my example I think is perfectly acceptable.

  2. What you need is Eagle Cals sheet number 21, which was available in 1/72, 1/48 and 1/32. I think it may be out of production now, so I would recommend keeping an eye out on eBay or your favourite online shops.

  3. I made a start on mine last night. I spent until about 2am scouring the internet looking for pictures of a suitable subject, but still haven't made a decision, although the pale blue and brown of G-EMSY is tempting, even if the necessary masking isn't!

    I really need to get hold of all those Aeroclub letters!

  4. My Tiger Moth arrived this morning and having read with interest about the cowling step, I couldn't help but tape the fuselage halves together and offer up the cowling. I found that a little filing of the locating tabs and squaring up the port fuselage front above the tab seemed to make the step pretty much disappear.

    Despite having way too many kits on the go, I think this one will be jumping the queue!

    • Like 1
  5. Their Mark 1 in 1/72 was a new kit and it was a replacement to their old 40-50 year old kit. Also the James May TV show helped a great deal.

    I have to say the Tamiya MK I is a better kit, and in Japan it is cheaper than Airfix.

    The bold move to release a 1/24 Mossie also brought good reaction - but a new tool Mustang in 1/72 did not bring such a reaction, nor did the P40 or the Typhoon - only to those who have the old kits and stick by the Airfix name...Hasegawa's kits are far superior of the same types.

    As I say I think Airfix should not worry about retooling or upgrading their old kits...they are nostalgic but lets face it they are behind the times...I feel Airfix should stay on their course of new subjects - The Javelin is lovely, the Sea Vixen superb, the Canberra's are great and the 1/24 Mossie is a plastic wooden wonder...I cannot wait for my Typhoon...but a retooled Defiant is not for me, I'd want a remade one as I'd want a remade MK I spit. The retooled version was OK but the Tamiya version so much better.

    Really? While the Tamiya kit may have finer panel lines, the Airfix kit captures the shape way better (and has more options in the Mk I/II boxing).

    I'm also not seeing the negative reaction to the new P-51D, P-40B and Typhoon. The Airfix P-51, IMHO has a better cockpit, a dropped flap option and the best wheel well in 1/72. I don't recall anything about shape issues either. The Hasegawa kit is expensive, has a poor, shallow wheel well and no dropped flap option. And seeing as Hasegawa has yet to do a Typhoon in 1/72 or P-40B......

  6. Am I right in thinking that the problem part is the underside, from the gullwing section rear wards, and that it doesn't slant up enough? It was quite a while ago that I did mine!

    If so, I think I made the section quite thin (and therefore more flexible) and superglued it.

    I've yet to find a kit of a spitfire where the wing to fuselage joint doesn't require some effort to fit well.

  7. If the lid is plastic, you definitely shouldn't leave anything stronger in there, such as IPA, paint thinners, etc. We had one at work and while we used IPA in the tank, we always made sure it was removed after use. Well, one of the apprentices forgot to remove the IPA and the lid had all weekend to deal with the effects of evaporating IPA. The plastic crazed, broke and in some places, went quite soft. It never was the same after that!

    If you do want to use any thinners, I would advise using something like an old 35mm film canister to hold the thinners (and any airbrush part you want to clean) and sit that inside the ultrasonic tank, with water inside to help transfer the ultrasonic energy. That seemed to work quite well.

    • Like 2
  8. A few more I can think of:

    AIM/Rugrat: Airspeed Courier; Airspeed Envoy; Bristol 142 'Britain First'; de Havilland DH84 Dragon; de Havilland DH86 Express; he Havilland DH90 Dragonfly; Westland Wessex.

    AML; Arado Ar 79; Siebel Si 202

    A Model; Aero 45

    Azur: Cierva C.30; Fairchild 91; GAL Monospar

    Dekno: GAL Monospar; Miles Falcon; Spartan Executive (must get one of these!)

    Dujin: B.A. Swallow II; de Havilland Moth Minor; Desoutter 1; Miles Mohawk; Miles Hawk; Miles Gemini (I am *so* glad I got my hands on one!) plus a lot more (I can't remember them all!)

    Huma: Fieseler Fi 5; Focke Wulf Fw 44; Klemm Kl 25; Klemm Kl 35; Messerschmitt M35

    Kiwi Resins: Auster J series; de Havilland DH83 Fox Moth; Percival Vega Gull

    Magna: de Havilland Dove; Percival Q6 Petrel

    MPM/Special Hobby: Douglas DC-2; Lockheed Vega Model 5; Lockheed Vega Model 5 Floatplane; Lockheed Orion; Lockheed L-10 Electra Lockheed; L-12 Electra; Lockheed Lodestar; Vultee V1

    Pavla: Cessna T-50 Bobcat; Fairchild 24; Miles Messenger; Siebel Fh 104

    RS: Airspeed Envoy; Curtiss Hawk; Zlin Z-XII;Zlin Z-XIII; Zlin Z-212

    I have a few Aeroclub Tiger Moths, Fox Moths and a Comper Swift in the stash, but I will now be on the lookout for the Klemm, Puss Moth and Widgeon!

  9. Hi guys, I have quite a few walkaround type pics on my photobucket site ( www.photobucket.com/albums/1003/lasermonkey ) which you are welcome to use. Please be aware there are a lot of sub-folders to go through too!

    I used to be a Friend of Duxford and consequently managed to get quite a few interior shots, so those might be of use. I was also a member of the SVAS and got some access to a few of the aircraft not normally available to the general public.

    Cheers,

    Mark.

    (Full name for photo credits- Mark Mills)

  10. I have a 'made in the UK' tin of. Humbrol 56 and that suffers from the same translucency as the aforementioned RLM enamels. I was really hoping that moving production back to the UK would have sorted out the QC issues that Humbrol has had of late.

    I also have a large stock of Gloy and Compucolour enamels, as well as lots of old Humbrol, some even dating back to the early sixties! Coverage is excellent and the smell! Ahhhhh! Takes me right back!

    I think that the Gloy 74/75/76 combination is spot-on. I'm using it on a brace of new Airfix '190s at the moment.

    Incidentally, I bought a tin of the Humbrol RLM 02 and the coverage is very good if W&N flow enhancer is used. I think it's a little on the dark side, but does have that greeny, browny grey thing going on.

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