Collin

Ah....the radar transmitter box. We opened that every preflight and checked out the cooling bottles below the box for the proper levels. I think there were a few bit balls we made sure were not tripped there as well. Looks great. Cheers Collin

Small Update. Still need to do all the little things (paint the air refueling hatch, static wicks, gear and gear doors....you know, all the little things that take forever to get done!! Cheers Collin

OOB build. Wanted to try my hand at freehand airbrushing with the new AK paint line. Looks ok to me. Cheers Collin

Someone was asking for a scale comparison....I found this online. It's a huge kit. I have one in the stash and each time I see a build of this kit, and for sure the beautiful build by Korlik64 above....gives my interst in building this beast a boost. Cheers Collin

Wow, I haven’t seen the inside of the stbd aft avionics bay since my last preflight years and years ago. Nice job. The port bay was normally empty (from what I can remember). It was great place to freeze the fish you caught in Wake Island, as you flew back to Japan at altitude. Cheers Collin

Second tank build which is unfamiliar territory for me. Built this years ago but now just getting around to painting and weathering it to completion. It's a recovery build for me to get my mind off of aircraft models for a little bit….and it's worked. If you are in a rut and need something to get the model juices flowing again, these kits are super easy to build and finish. It worked for me. Off on a vacation for a week (look out Prague/Vienna/Budapest) and then back home to pull out an aircraft model. Now I just have to figure out which one :-I Cheers Collin

Date of photo 1974. Looks like a static at an airshow display, and the pod is small enough to fit nicely on the rear lower fitting of the MER under the centerline. It's not a LAU.

Always great to see a Mighty Viking being built. Will be watching with acute interest!! Cheers Collin

Actually built this back in 2013 while on deployment. Tamiya 1/48 JS-2 Out of the Box. Sat assembled but unpainted on a shelf for the last 6 years and after my recent Prowler build (see the aircraft section)….I needed a break from aircraft and just do some painting and try out those fancy oils and pigments folks have these days. Great little kit (actually all the 1/48 Tamiya armor are fun and super easy builds with great detail for the scale). Highly recommended for a fun little break. Cheers Collin

A few more pics:

Count me in for at least one early model -38...but count me in for a lot more if they make a J or L variant!! Cheers Collin

Kinetic 1/48 EA-6B dressed up in VX-23 garb circa 1991-ish. You can dig around the in progress section to see the build in-progress...needless to say I am glad it's done and I'm ready for a beer. Cheers Collin

Great idea on the lamp stand. Is there any issue with model weight/size and flex in the metal lamp stem supporting the model. Im always looking for in-flight base ideas and yours is for sure a winner. Cheers Collin

I almost "impulse" bought the 1/200 Hasegawa 787 band 777 for about $20 bucks a pop at a hobby shop a few days ago to build them in-flight. How do they go together? Nice builds. Cheers Collin

A huge shout out to David W. Aungst, who I happened to see creating F-14 tail decals for a project of his. One of his F-14's carried the earlier Strike Test airplane-swoosh marking. I asked for a few and he printed them up since this Prowler carried the same marking around the same timeframe. We have been exchanging emails on how best to put them down since they are delicate and printed on white backing. Following his directions they went down tonight with little fuss. A light brushed on coat of Future and they look terrific. One curled up a little bit (I was warned), one of the hotter decal setting solutions melted the port marking a tad, but not enough for me to cry about. The results below....Thanks again David!! Cheers Collin