tempestfan

That's precisely the one I was referring to - Ginter Naval Fighters #108. @Tailspin Turtle, I am always for letting the money go where it belongs instead of one of the big platforms, but unfortunately it's 50 bucks at his site. Add to this s&h, import VAT and the carrier's "mishandling fee" for doing the customs it will probably end up north of 80 € - which is double that of what I paid for mine. If he does transatlantic shipping in the first place...

That bedsheet sadly is missing from my copy... Are the basic drawings the same as in the Aero Detail (IIRC also by Mr Nohara)? If you'd like anything specific translated, drop a PM after arrival.

While the Fujimi and Hase kits in 72nd are much more refined, there were also mid 60s kits of the B by Airfix and Revell, with both being reasonably accurate for a B (but not the later versions they later had add-ons for). Both kits were in production literally for decades, in particular the Airfix, so should be rather easy and cheap to find - not so sure regarding the Fujimi in the "easy" aspect. It may make sense to use a cheaper older kit in light of the required chopping, in particular if you do it from scratch. As @Giorgio N said, the -1s were a rather diverse breed. IIRC, the radome diameter and length grew considerably, with the final ones looking quite similar to the B, apart from the "flush" canopy. In particular if you are going the scratch route, potentially helpful could be a slim booklet I bought at the Aviation Book Shop in 1991 (those were the days :-)), but it covers only the early stages and is probably unobtainable these days. No idea if the planned further volumes were released? The Aeromodeller range had some drawings that did not look that bad (reprinted in one of the Aircraft Archive Post War Jets volumes). But if you want THE reference on the -1, get the Ginter book by the wonderful gentlemen Tommy Thomason @Tailspin Turtle. It wasn't cheap when I bought it and has now a significant "ouch" factor (at least the offer I just had a look at), but it is the only publication I am aware of that systematically and comprehensively traces development of the early Toom.

OT I know, but... Reinsehlen is a mere 35 miles south of Hamburg city centre The MPM kit really is from the Dark Ages, but quite some improvement over their early Smer/Heller-based 262 versions... Those u/c retraction struts remind me of the Italeri D-9.

As I need something to touch, I ordered the book a year ago. Not cheap especially with the ancillary cost, but worth every Cent/Penny IMHO.

Well...the rear part of the starboard cowling/nacelle looks rather brownish, but this is probably exhaust discolouration.

Otherwise, Verde Vómito would have done a great job @GiampieroSilvestri - I just had a look if I have HDL 48-25, as I bought the entire remaining decal stock off a Hamburg shop when it closed down, including loads of HDL - but unfortunately the 48ers do not go higher than #20. Probably the shop never ordered any newer sheets "because we have so many of the older ones". That's the spirit @Diego: I guess you do not need any of your older sheets for documentary purposes? Long time no see, by the way I still get shivers when I remember our Dortmund trip with the team - was that in 1999?

@fightersweep - oh well, life has been rather busy in the past 3 years in particular... Well, I bet there are some on a certain collecting forum that would be interested in your Heller kits, in particular as many of the black boxes are rather scarce and have gorgeous Bergèse artwork. Well, I branched into Heller, too, back in my active collecting days... To get back to the Potez, a quick google brought up this thread which is not particularly relevant to your question, but may be of help re interior colours. And it confirms that there must have been something in Replic not later than February 2002...

Tsts... you should be building Airfix kits from T6 boxes Which makes me wonder how your collection has developed in this respect? Long time no see, somewhere else... I had a look in some ancient Polish booklet which covers Polish units in Armée de l'Air and RAF service, as I thought it might have a diagram of a 631 in it, but regrettably not. I ***think*** Replic had a big feature article on the 631, but that must have been some 20 years ago. I'd have a look if you told me where the box(es) with the Replics is/are...

Just the same regarding Frog 45 years earlier - the Frog moulds were NOT "sold" to the USSR because DunbeeCrombexMarx went bankrupt (IIRC that happened, but somewhat later), but as an attempt to be able to offer product at unbeatable prices. Or as regards Airfix in 1985 - "they" (actually there was no "they" as Airfix was merely a trademark then) did not "break down", but General Mills as ultimate owners decided to divest non-core businesses including toys. Perhaps it makes people feel better if someone's exit from business is down to bankruptcy, or it is an unconscious reflex to think this.

Hey, that would be cool, buying without paying crazy customs duties and handling fees! But I assume stocks will not last till Lingen - if that one will happen in the first place... Looks like I'll have to fold the rear seats flat and drive to Delmenhorst in January - 1.800 liters should accommodate a couple of kits

Some people would consider getting divorced like being released from jail...

@Blimpyboy: Oh yes, the Gakkens! There were also at least two volumes on the Zero in their "Pacific War history" series - regrettably, one of mine was missing a chunk of pages, which may have been the scale drawings I was after (the Raiden book had a very good looking set of drawings). Anyway, the Gakkens and many other Japanese-only books are really tough to find unless one has the ISBN - with the latter, one stands a chance on the usual book sites, but without it's almost impossible. No idea how they stood the test of time, but I always liked the Maru Mechanics. I think they had three volumes on the Zero and a "special" combined issue, but the MM's are generally tough to get in Europe, and the Zero books apparently even harder, as I first noticed them only recently when trying to compile a list of the series.

While we're at bad kits, also avoid the Starfix, which you may come across and think it's a bargain. Though I'd probably prefer it over the PM blob...

I am pretty certain the Matchbox kit was designed taking very long and hard looks at the Bentley drawings. The surface detail is Matchbox‘esque, but not as bad as others. I still consider this one of MB‘s best.