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Picked one of these up on the 'Bay' last week. Personally I think it's a very nice kit with lots of options to play with.

Great stuff! Many thanks!

Hi Folks! I have the 1/48 Skunkmodels US/NATO Weapons Set but can't find the instructions and was hoping that some clever soul might be able to point me in the direction of a set? I've tried the Skunkmodels website but get an error message suggesting it doesn't exist. Any help would be appreciated. Cheers!

Awesome!

Thanks Chris! About the fuselage, 267 was an odd one in that it appears that it started with a shortened fuselage which was then lengthened with what I can only assume to be a 'plug' but it was still different from later versions with the 'steel band' further forward than on later models. The stores were a right pain, especially since references of what was carried were really scarce. I could find images of four different versions of Skyflash, two of which had the photo-tracking markings and I picked one of those. I also found references for both two and four sidewinders of different variants along with different drop tanks. They even had different coloured sets of pylons. Hence my build is a 'mish-mash' of what I could find.

Thanks for all your comments folks! They're really appreciated and help encourage me to work even harder on my next build. I'm still trying to decide on what my next build will be. I was thinking of the F-16 Wild Weasel but have a hankering to build the F-4J "Vandy" Black Bunny

Thanks Folks! Much appreciated!

Thanks Scott It was the 1/48 Italeri ADV. Definately not a fun kit to play with. Looking forward to tucking into a nice new Academy or Hasegawa now

Right, calling this done (finally!). Might pop a couple of pilots in at some point in the future but that’s for then. In the meantime here is ZA267 – the middle of three Tornado F.2 Prototypes – in a later configuration complete with the lengthened fuselage. This is my third plastic kit since taking up model making after a 25 year gap and my first jet since a Tamiya F-15 back in 1988. As mentioned above, the kit is mostly OOB except for the Eduard PE set, scratch built parts, AMS pitot and custom decals. Paints are a right old mixture, starting with Halfords yellow filler-primer (terrible), Revell Aqua Colours (ranging from the good to awful), AK Extreme Metals (superb!), Alclad Mil-Spec Enamels (fantastic!), Mig Washes (great!), Alclad Aqua Gloss (great!) and Klear Kote Matte (still waiting to dry properly L). Almost everything was airbrushed. Ordinance is a mixed loadout based on available references (big thanks to Canbera Kid on this front!) and the nav lights are my first crude attempt at lighting. This was a nightmare build. Nothing went as planned. Paintwork had to be redone, parts broke, fit was terrible, decals failed. That it didn’t end up ‘crashed’ in the bin was a miracle but what I learned that I can apply to my next builds made it all worthwhile. At some point I plan to build an MRCA prototype to go alongside but for now I’m taking a break from custom builds. One thing I did learn from the build is that I really don’t get on that well with acrylics. I found the Aqua Colours to be extremely user friendly but a bit too random in application. I had a similar experience on my spitfire builds but decided to persevere. My brief attempt with Vallejo was even worse, resulting in a clogged airbrush and a fun packed clean up. By comparison, the Mil-Spec enamels were a revelation. Yes, they brought back childhood memories of paint fumes and sticky fingers but in terms of control and results they were great. Same for the AK Metalisers. I also learned a whole world of respect for the manufacturers of decals given the challenges I found trying to create my own. And finally, I learned the value of patience, perseverance and a well maintained airbrush

Hi Lionel There's Porthmadog Models. Nice little shop with a wide selection that I popped into while visiting Snowdonia last year.

If I could paint like that I'd be well pleased.

Hi, there really wasn't much to it. My email from 14/06/17 via Modelcollect. Contact us: "Hello! Is the B-2A Spirit ever going to be released? It was originally due March 2017 then pushed back to June 2017 but still nothing while other kits are still released. Any update would be welcome." Their response from Jiangwei Li on 15/06/17: "Dear sir, we will ship out the goods at Aug of 2017. best regards jiangwei Li"

Got an email from Modelcollect a couple of weeks ago saying the kit should ship in August.

Awesome! And brings back some wonderful memories of building the Hasegawa version of this back in 1987 I have an Academy F-4B, VF-51 decals and all the bells and whistles in the stash waiting to be built up like this. Great job!!

Hi, in terms of exhaust effects I guess it depends on the effect you're after. I've practised using an airbrush with a guiding template and very thin washes. My first attempt was on a couple of Spitfire builds for both the exhaust and the gun ports. More recently I did this on the underside of my F2 Prototype using rust and black thinned washes.

Me

I'm still waiting for the Alclad Matte varnish to cure properly, including on the remaining parts, but hopefully this will give a good impression of progress. The build is of ZA267 in one of its later configurations. Every reference I found showed multiple loadouts, some with one sidewinder, some with two, some with the fuel tanks, some without. I found multiple variations of the Skyflash with at least two of the test shots, the above being one version. The kit is mostly out of the box with the exception of the Eduard F.3 PE set, the dummy Sky Shadow pods and outboard pylons which were scratch built while most of the decals are either AM or custom made. Oh, and the nav lights work but I'll leave that demo for later. Nothing about this build has been easy but I've learned a lot. Hope you like.

Almost there....

Oddly enough I also had the tailerons snap. Sorted it with aluminium rod inserted into the tailerons which then just slot into the available holes in the fuselage

Had a similar problem with a 1/48 Italeri Tornado and took a similar approach to the above except instead of inserting paperclip I drilled holes large enough in both the pylons and wings to insert tiny neodymium magnets. Now the pylons simply snap on and off as required.

Grrrrr.... Alclad.... Grrrr..... Build is all but complete except for waiting for the Alclad Matte Kote to cure so I can finish final assembly of the parts. I used this to tone down the shine from the gloss coat but if its anything like the acrylic matte varnish I've used I can expect to wait a couple of weeks for it to cure. Main problem I have now is choosing my next kit to build in the meantime...

Wwwhhaaaaaaattttt... ?!?!?

Hi folks! I'm trying to find a good rust effect paint that I can airbrush in thin layers to build up a convincing rust effect. I have seen products available from Mig, Vallejo and AK Interactive but I'm struggling to find reviews. Any help and advice would be appreciated. Cheers!

As mentioned, I've not yet tried them but they're supposed to be a mix between clear and the respective irridescent colour. That's why I bought them, so that they could be sprayed over the off-white base and provide just enough irridescent colour to provide the aztec effect.

Utterly... stunning! I'm hoping to build a 1/48 version but you've set the bar so high I might need a step ladder