jean

great looking P-40. Your painting skills are awesome! Beautiful!!! I only ever built the exceedingly old tool Revell in 1/72 when I was a youngster, and I loved it! Just bought last week the Academy 1/72 P-40E. So your RFI arrives in the nick of time to show me I was right to get this kit I have anted for so long! Congratulations! JR

you have achieved a beautiful rendition of this iconic bomb truck! Shame nonetheless that it is not in gull grey over white scheme! Congrats! JR

Beautiful Phantom! Congrats!!! But when I see the zillions of stencils all over the airframe, I wonder why I ever wanted to build it... Patience is a blessing! Well done. JR

For a first RFI, it is a winner hands down. Congrats!!! JR

Don't we all know the feeling? Take care JR

Hi Michelle, I am sorry to say that you are now doomed!!! Nobody can ever save you, ever again... You ate of the forbidden fruit. Damn! So now you have really joined the Club. Congrats!!! Anyway, you will have a lot of fun with these goodies. I know it must have been dirt cheap, but why buy the old tool Swordfish? That is the only kit I am a bit critical of. But you don't have to believe me. Well done. JR

Hi, these builds are definitely on the exotic side, and you are to be commanded not to fall for the run of the mill Spitfires and Messerschmitt (like me...). The Do 17 has an interesting camouflage. I like it very much. But removing the paint on the cockpit windows would definitely improve the model. Well done. JR

Hi Pat, you sure must have had fun with this kit, as it is a rather challenging one. But you did well, as it looks like a 693 from end to end! You obviously took some liberty with the camo colors, but there are no laws against free will in the UK. When there were no roundels on the fuselage side, a unit badge should have taken their place. But exceptions were legions... Well done. JR

Hi Pete, I really like your Mosie (never built one), and you did a grand job on your 1/32 black Panther. It almost looks alive! How did you get such a shiny coat? Re thinning your paint, for what it is worth, like you I use enamel paints mainly and a brush (I graduated from the paint roller a short while back). Whether I use Humbrol or Xtracolor, I add 20% of turpentine and it works a treat. Two coats are necessary, and wait for the first one to get real dry, and you do not normally have any ridges between camo colors. OK, correction: there SHOULD NOT be any ridges... But Mr Murphy often comes on holiday near where I live! Great show! And keep having fun! JR

Great you are trying the stretched sprue. A soldering iron may be a bit too hot, unless it is a small one. But beware: this is not going to work with cotton! No way a cotton fiber will get taught if heated up locally. Only polystyrene sprue! JR

Hello Colin, I really like your build! Well done. The only 210 (or is it a 410?) I have, is the old Frog kit.... Daunting doesn't even start to describe it! One method you may use, and which will cost you nothing, is stretched sprue. Use a length of sprue from your model, approx. 10 cm long, and heat it up over a candle. When the sprue start to get soft in the area over the flame, pull at both end until you have a long, thin length of plastic. Do not bring it too close from the flame! Only one way for this to work; practice, practice, and then more practice! But it is fun to see how quickly you progress! So the more you pull, the thinner the plastic filament will be. Once you are happy that it is thin enough, stop and let it cool down. Then you can color it with a water proof marker (better than paint, as it does not thicken the plastic). Then cut a length slightly superior to the length of the needed aerial. Glue one side with a tiny drop of CA glue, then pull gently when dry and repeat the operation at the other end. Trim the excess with a sharp scalpel/razor blade. If the line is slightly sagging, approach a burnt match, extinguished but still glowing, right underneath the line, and it will tighten really nicely. Whatever you do, do not touch the line with the match!!!! Well try that. It is free if you have old sprue from a built model, and it is easy when all is said and done! Have fun!!! JR

Hi Ratch, great paint scheme you chose for this Moth. Never seen it before and it is indeed a sight to behold. And a splendid job on this prehistoric kit! It was the first biplane I built as a youngster and I was so proud of it. And I have another one in the stash, and for unknown reasons I am in no rush to tackle it... Wonder why? Great show JR

Hi Ratch, I am not amused one little bit when watching your Bulldog! I think that your undertaking is damn courageous, considering the kit you started with, and the blasted rigging everybody seems so scared of (count me in!). So super well done for this un-amusing kit bash!!! I love the result. JR

Hi Pierpaolo, this is an interesting conversion, and possibly not as easy as it may seem. I will fully support the use of metal pins to strengthen the wing to fuselage joint. Not simple to do well, but I know you will be up to it! You must be freezing in your beautiful city! Perfect for modelling! Cheers JR

In view f the Tamiya kit, the wee Airfix sibling has nothing to be ashamed of. It is actually quite impressively detailed. This is a kit that is definitely on my wish list, for my Operation Torch theme. Great job John! Have fun!!! JR