Rob G

Right, back at it! Having a couple of days away from the bench allowed me a bit of time to mull the wheel question over. In the end, I decided that simply trying to pull .5mm strip styrene around the wheel and then glue it was going to be somewhat of a mission impossible. Thus, I turned to the plastic modellers' best friend, hot water. All will be explained with the following pitchers... Note that the JSU's had steel wheels (with rubber inserts inside, apparently). Thus, this 'tyre' that I'm adding isn't really a tyre, it's more of an added diameter bit of 'steel'. But I'll call it a tyre in the same way that old carts had an iron tyre shrunk onto their wooden wheels. OK? First, true up all the wheel surfaces on the mini-lathe to make a nice flat gluing surface. If you don't have one, a Dremel and sandpaper will do, or even an electric drill. Or you could in a pinch, do it by hand. But it'd take a while, there's 28 wheel halves to do. Note to self: Use a sharp tool next time you do this! Next, cut .5mm x 3.2mm Plastruct strip to length (shown here with the first fruits of a trial run - because I'm either brave or stupid (possibly both), I used the kit wheels for the trial. Good thing that it worked!) then add a bit of tape at each end. I used some packaging tape cut to size, because I knew there'd be a bit of force involved and didn't want it coming loose too soon. 1cm wide tape pieces seemed to work just fine for the 2 strips that would fit on my chosen form. (If you have all your ducks in a row, you'll make sure that you have a longer bit of tube so that you don't have to hang around in the kitchen for half the afternoon dunking bits of plastic into boiling water two at a time. How do you spell 'tedious'?) Then carefully align one end, stick it down and roll the strip tight around the form. Stick the other end firmly, doing your best to align the ends to avoid any 'set' in the strip - you're doing this so that you don't have to fight the plastic, no point in introducing a spiral as well. (No photos, because I forgot. If anyone wants some, I can fake it!) Using a suitable tool (ie NOT your fingers) lined up in such a way as to hold the taped end in place, immerse the whole shebang in almost boiling water for 15-20 secs then swill it around in cold for a few secs to set it. Then unpeel the tape and et voila, a round tyre-shaped bit of strip. The overlap is intentional; I didn't want to commit to an 'exactly right' length of strip just in case there was variation between the wheel sizes, this gave me a bit of working length. Once you're all done and the stove is turned off, you end up with this then it's time to sit at the bench and get funky. I decided on a strategy of 'softly softly' - to that end, each strip was just touched at the inside end with a small dab of Tamiya Extra Thin (TET) (about 1mm's worth), then I slipped it around the wheel (See the 'trial run' photo ^--- Up There somewhere). Using a couple of small pointy tools to hold and manipulate the bits, the glued end was pushed into firm contact, making sure that the whole thing was lying flat on the mat. Allowed to set for a few moments, it was moved aside and the next was done. Then the next. And the next, and the next... etc. Stage 2 is to glue most of the rest of the tyre down, which was done with TET and the pointy tools, until there was only 5mm or so left unglued. Leave it to set up so that you don't have to fight anything, then carefully on with... Stage 3, where you cut most of the overhang off, then gently trim the end down until it's a close fit against the other end. I used a sanding stick for the final trim, and yes... it's tedious. If you go a bit too far, a spot of your favourite filler will sort out any gap. I'll be using super glue. Then use whatever method you prefer to make the edges of the new bit flush with the kit wheel (I used a knife then a sanding stick, with black marker ink as a guide to when it was all flush). Finally, if you've done it right (28 times), you'll end up with something approximating this Inside Outside Everything will need a final turn on the lathe to true up the outside diameter, then we'll see how it looks after a coat of primer. Seeing as there's identical inside and outside wheel halves, anything too ugly can go inside where it won't be seen, and if it ALL turns out ugly, mud will cover most sins. Tomorrow's task is to finish shoeing the beast! Do svidaniya.

Thanks lads. We're on hold for a few days, I managed to score a couple of days away at work. This will continue shortly.

<snap!> I'm chasing a Matchbox Stranraer for just this purpose! I seem to have developed a bit of a crush on civillian flying boats, floatplanes and amphibians. Currently in the 'must start this soon' pile are 2 Catalinas to be made in Australian colours, and I'm also after an Italeri Sunderland to do devious things with. I guess it joins my recent Australian Twotter crush - no less than 6 of them to build on various schemes. And I have photos of some Canadian floatplanes that I saw in Victoria BC that I need to build too. Sigh. Time to put the military stuff away, methinks. Oh, nice work Trev!

Ooerr, Queen Bessie of Buckinghuge Palace and Phil the Greek. What a pair to find on a beach. In other news, the Lightning is coming along just dandy. Stop faffing about with kid's stuff and do more Lightning stuff, eh.

That JSU-152 might be a project for you to contemplate. I believe that CyberHobby has a pretty good version that's a lot cheaper than the new Tamiya kit.

While I wait for the local hobby shop to get in my preferred Gunze Sangyo paints so that I can continue with my F-16s for the Cold War GB, I thought I'd do a tanky thing. I had planned to do the 1/72th Tamiya Sturmovik for this GB, but I'm a bit aeroplaned out right at the moment. I have here the CyberHobby JSU-152 '3 in 1' box, with a bonus set of Red Army figures. This one was in my stash cull box, but not as a serious contender - if someone had bought it at the last swap meet, no worries, but it didn't have to go. Therefore, seeing as I's still got it, it'll be built. All reviews tell me that this is a nice kit, the only significant flaw (according to Cookie Sewell, whose opinion I respect) being the too-small road wheels, which can be mostly fixed by the addition of plastic strip to bulk them up a bit. That will be the first order of business, then we'll proceed from there. There's a choice of 3 variants here, the Big Mother JSU-152 with the 152mm howitzer, the leaner (but not much lighter) JSU-122 with the 122 mm AT gun, or the JSU-122S (the sports model ) with a different version of the 122mm gun. I'm going to do the 152mm version because, why not! Kit comes with Magic Tracks, which are apparently not too painful to assemble, and it looks pretty nice - Dragon do good work as a rule. Blah blah history, I won't bore you with it, those who already know most likely know it better than I do (not difficult), those who don't but want to can look it up (lots of stuffs out there, including videos on YouTube), the ones who don't care either way... don't care. It was a WW2 AFV, with a big gun, and it played a major part in the Russians' successes against the Germans during the war in the East and on into Berlin. The 152mm version was especially useful in the house to house fighting that was engaged in during the final days, where its short barrel was better than the much longer barrels of the 122mm variants, which often had problems getting around city corners. The tentative plan is to do it as a vehicle mid-way through having its winter whitewash applied, stuck to a base with a couple of figures in the process of attempting to hide 47t of stronk Russian tenk with old brooms and a thin coat of watery paint... The box art option gives me the whitewash over green that I want, and Mr Dragon tells me that it's a vehicle from the 384th Heavy Artillery SP Gun Regiment, Czenstochova, Poland, 1945. On with the pix. Box. Instructions and decals. Plastic bits. No detail closeups, it's a plastic tank and I'm sure we're all familiar with what that looks like. And just for interest, the 122S gun (left) vs the 152mm howitzer, showing the length difference. Well, that's me away again, building photos as they happen!

I would imagine that it's down to whoever the importer is, as Tamiya apparently don't much care about any market outside Japan - that's where they sell the bulk of their kits, which explains their sometimes odd choices in what they kit.

Well, one's from the Corner of Doom in the stash, and the other is meant to be a quick build, just to be able to participate. Quick build, yeah right... And I had to do something about the LERX, it was hideous as supplied; even I noticed, and F-16s really aren't my bag (baby). (Sorry, I can never stop at just 'bag', always have to add the extra - darn you to heck, Austin Powers.) Smart is as smart does Col - shame that it didn't work Well, it did, until I managed to snag it again(!) and break it again, this time beyond repair. 'Twas a simple matter to cut the whole broken rail off and replace it with the rail from the butchered wing ^--- up there. I almost got the angle of the dangle right, too. I think that if I'd used a bit of ABS Plastruct instead of the PS Evergreen that I used, it would have worked more betterer. Oh well. Anyone got the port side wing for an Italeri F-16 kit that they don't want? I have one that's kinda in need. (Joking - I'll hit the local club guys up at some point in case any of them have a bomb they no longer want.) Update as and when.

Given the time before this one kicks in, I'll put me 'and up wif an Object 279. They built two of them, I hope it'll be allowed. I must step up my search for more wee chaps in Soviet NBC suits...

I've seen this done with 1/144 models, never with 72th. Nice work! And also nice to see a movie version, something different.

S'funny, I don't think I've ever had a kit that's missing bits. Closest I ever came was an old Matchbox FW190 (iirc) that was a bit short shot on the spinner. I was 13, I built it anyway. Half the sprues in my stash will most likely spontaneously disintergrate now.

A new Aussie FSV would be good, to replace the old Tamiya one.

All the Group B rally cars, for sure. And an RS 2000 Escort with the twin headlight nosecone thing (and full engine detail). And a decent, new TR7/8 also with full engine detail as appropriate (preferrably the non-US spec body) and Aussie Ford Falcons from XA to XD models in all body styles (someone wanted a Mad Max Interceptor - there is one kitted, but it's not quite right for thems as is fussy) ... and... I could go on. Realistically, more time to model and better skills would be ace.

I'm still looking for a kit for this GB. I absolutely refuse to pay the stupid prices that Hasegawa 72th kits are going for, and I don't want to do a pig in 48nd. But I've got time. And if I don't get one, I've got a stash.

And here's stuff I forgot yesterday. After this, I won't darken your door until I start painting, I think. I'm going to use smaller photos, to save using up your bandwidth (and to hide the ugly.) The 'modified' wing from many years ago (I did it while I was married, and that ended 15 years ago, so... We were young once, and foolish.) Both birds together, the single seater sans nose cone. I might leave it like that, see if anyone notices. And the missile rail that I broke, repaired. Caught it in my shirt, didn't I. Since it's such a small piece in such an exposed location, I couldn't just glue it and hope for the best, neither could I drill and pin it. Instead, I cut a slot and stuck in a bit of plastic sheet, secured by Tamiya Extra Thin, then capped with superglue. Should work (and if it doesn't, I have spare wings to cut the whole rail from). That is now definitely it until something happens that needs to be reported to fulfill the GB terms. Laterrrzzz.

Tell ya what, you buy them and send them to me, I'll build them and send them back. Then you can paint them and keep them.

I like building, hate painting. Which is why I seldom finish anything. I absolutely despise painting.

So yeah... blah blah here's some words. And now some more words, to explain photos. Here's the old 2 seater. Here it is with dry fitted wings. Because F-16s have 0 degrees of dihedral, I wanted to make sure that that was so in both cases. Hence, I dug out my old Lego stash and made a jig. That's a BA file in the background, btw. An Iron Maiden for F-16s, complete with stretchy straps. And it worked, too. On both of them. That's all, until I do more and inflict this rubbish build upon you again.

You could always try painting it yourself. I saw a good tutorial online somewhere a few months ago, I'll see if I can find it again.

So, on we go. I actually started this kit a few days ago then had a crisis of faith, but decided to go ahead and make a thread anyway - worst that can happen is that I once again fail to finish, right? Box. Yes, $14.99 down to $7.99. Even at $7.99, it's a bit steep. But oh well. Sprues Boring grey already. And instructions mit decals. As supplied, and as used. As I said, I started this a few days ago, so here's where things stand. Driver's cab. Fully detailed, right from the box. Not. Sadly, all my excellent artwork washed away when I started cleaning up the sanding debris from joining the fuselage - used water-based pens, didn't I? Numpty. No matter, I'll stick the pens back in there and wiggle them around a bit before the canopy goes on. Ain't no-one going to be looking at THIS cockpit anyway. Italeri specify 10g of weight in the nose cone - I could barely manage 4g. Hence the 15g weight epoxied behind the driver's seat. Trials thus far suggest that it'll be enough... You can clearly see the No. 130 stamped into the fuselage - all of the Italeri Falcons that I've seen have this same number, whatever the box may say. Because of getting excited, I forgot to take pix as I went, but here's the fuselage all joined up. The intake is tricky, but nothing that some careful fitting of plastic sheet can't fix. Then some filling - thankfully, Perfect Plastic Putty is easy to remove from the areas it's not needed that are hard to sand. You may be able to see the white bit there. The strake edge as supplied by Italeri is somewhat reminiscent of a railway sleeper, so I attacked it with 400 grit and managed to almost replicate the knife edge that General Dynamics specified. It's since been smoothed off and made all pretty. The Tamiya tape was there to preserve what little detail there is in the cannon muzzle. More shortly.

Because I can't keep a promise to myself, I've decided to do a quick and nasty build of an Italeri F-16 for this GB. Not my favourite type, but certainly a popular choice in the 1:1 world. My interest in Fighting Falcons is purely in their use as canvases for Tiger Meet markings - as most will be aware, there have been some truly fantastic bits of artwork done over the years. This won't be one of them. I'm doing Italeri's F-16C/D 'Night Falcon' kit in the plain old 3-tone grey camo that was the F-16's dowdy delivery feathers , with nowt but small red and white roundels, serials and a teeny tiny Danish flag on the tail to break up the boring grey expanse - no show ponies here, tyvm. Hang on, the title says 'F-16A'. Yes indeedy it do - Italeri made maximum use of their moulds and basically supplied all the bits needed to do all the early Falcons in one box, all stemming from kit #130 (I think). Not very well done mind you, but done. In my stash raiding, I also found a different version (F-16A/B 'Nato Falcon') of the same kit that I'd started as a Dutch twin seater, and for some weird reason (I can only blame youth and ignorance, because it was started many years ago), I'd cut off the leading edge of the wings, with the obvious intention of making them drooped. It didn't work. None of the slots I cut line up, and it's... not nice. As a consequence, I'm going to use a set of wings from yet another Italeri F-16 on the 2 holer and finish it while I do the single seat Danish bird, seeing as I'll have all the boring greys out anyway. At least the Dutch bird will be prettier to look at, with a decorative motif applied to her tail. I may post tiny updates on her, but I won't be entering the Dutch one in the GB, wrong era (1998, and not very well built, either ). At the very least she'll be sometimes visible in the background, no doubt. Now follow along carefully, this might get confusering (move your lips if you need to...) I'm going to use the markings from the Danish aircraft in the 'Nato Falcon' box on the 'Night Falcon' kit, along with the instruction sheet. The stencils &c will have to come from the 'Night Falcon' kit, because the 'Nato Falcon' ones will be going onto the Dutchy. The Danish aircraft I'm (badly) (mis-)representing will be E-198, specified on the instructions as being with Esk723. Which, according to F-16.net, she was, between Jan 84 and Sept 88. I think that fits the timeframe nicely. As an aside, has anyone here ever looked at F-16.net? Amazing piece of work, if not a little obsessive. Useful though, for thems of us as know nothing about lawn darts. Next post, the thing will start, all proper-like.

60 now? Good grief, will the server support it? Stix, if you require a helping hand, I'll step up as co-host (I should have lots of time, seeing as I never, ever finish anything. )

Skids, the Lets flew an amazing variety of aircraft between the wars. For those who like to build common aircraft in uncommon markings, it's a good mine.

What Ced said re airbrushes and Mr Budzik. First rule of airbrush pulling-apartery is.. Don't ever force anything. If it doesn't unscrew, rescrew, slip, slide or wobble when it should, have a good, long look at the instructions to make sure you're doing it right, Then look on t'interwebz for more info, then soak it in summat strong for a while if you think it may be gooped up, and only then should you make a start using gentle force. Escalate force slowly and carefully, and if something feels wrong - STOP and rethink. If the bit you're undoing moves, but not easily, resoak it. When all else fails, make a start with the hammers and chisels. (I joke.) Airbrushes are basically simple, but are, as has been said, made up of soft bits with fine threads on them, and do strip easily. Once you get that one worked out and are comfortable with it, graduate to an Iwata or something similar - it's like getting out of an old Datsun 120Y and into a Subaru BRZ. Have fun!

Hmm... y'all know what I'm gonna say, doncha? I'll take Latvia. Again. Because I have many to build. Question. In the situation of Latvia, being as they were an unwilling part of the CCCP for so long, is a Soviet-built aircraft serving in Latvian national markings during that time period eligible? If not, no problems, but I'm sure similar questions will pop up over all those old vassal states. I'm probably going to do a Camel 2F.1. Get those Eduard kits built before Wingnut Wings releases theirs...