Rob G

Ho hum, another one I'm going to miss - that bloody Gnat is playing up and the Sea Vixen has stalled, possibly into a flat spin. Oh well. (Actually, it's the paint on the Gnat that's the issue - Humbrol 11 as it currently stands is complete <insert non-PC word for excrement here>. It just won't gloss up, and looks like roof paint, it's that coarsely grained.) At this rate, I'm thinking I might withdraw from every GB I've put my hand up for, don't need the downers. However, many thanks to the mods for putting in the effort - much appreciated.

You can't keep building after the GB ends! Unfinished GB entries must be committed to ze shelf of doom instantly. ZHERE VILL BE NO BUILDINK AFTER ZE LGHTS OUT! Kidding, of course. Looks lovely, and I'm encouraged to do both of mine.

And Mish, Ascoteer and Jessica. There's a number of talented lady modellers here in BMland.

... can I vote for everything? Really, really difficult to pick a favourite.

That is rather nice, sir. Well done. (The kit glue works quite well for sticking on broken bits. I speak from experience. Put a puddle of it down onto a surface, carefully dip the end of the broken bit in, then put it in place. Hold for a minute, let go. You may Ned to realign it from time to time until it sets up, but it'll work.) (Or you could cheat and use super glue. )

Ahh, the good old 'bou. Slower than a migrating snail, but able to deliver almost anything to almost anywhere. And irreplaceable by anything newer. Nice job!

mmm, Carol.

Very nice work Phil, I'm tempted to get another one after seeing this and finishing one for my Starter Set GB entry. Lovely little kit, isn't it?

I've been browsing the Gallery - for a bunch of OOTB noobs, you guys do ok! Seriously though, I'm most impressed with the work on show - to quote young Mr Grace "You've all done very well!" (That'll sort the oldies out )

Schwing! Fabulous effort that! It really is very pretty indeed.

Great to see another one finished and up in the gallery Stosh. Having fun was what this was all about, so you can count it as a win!

Go man, go!

When is this supposed to finish? I have in my head that it's 2359 Z on the 17th April, but is that correct?

Consider me chastised.

With RNVR heritage in my blood (maternal Grandfather), this may be the spur I need to get started on his last command. That, or the IJN Mikasa that's been in my stash for many years now. Include me in.

It's a possibility, but I really rather fancied one in green. (The last green one one was gone from RAFG by '77 if I remember correctly.) (And to be honest, I don't have time to make a start on it anyway - too many other GBs incomplete, and my local show coming up at the end of the month...)

Personally, I'd be pointing you at the Nikon D5500, the next step up from the D3300. A much superior body, with much better focus ability. However, keep reading. The biggest downside to carrying a dSLR kit with you is quite often the sheer bulk and weight of the whole outfit, especially if you end up with good lenses ie f/2.8 and over 300mm (I speak from some experience - my 200 f/2 weighs 3kg on its own, and is the size of a really big thing). Those factors mean that it will quite often get left at home/in the hotel when you're out on a trip because frankly, they get in the way of fun. Also, seeing as you don't want to spend a fortune (whatever that may mean to you), you'll probably not end up with the quality lenses and instead get stuck with the kit lenses - which are quite good enough these days, but aren't the absolute best. Consider instead something from a mirrorless range, as they're a lot smaller and if you're planning on using it in Auto, then there's really no point in you going to the big system. Mirrorless cameras are quite capable enough for most of what most people want from them.. Here's a link for info http://www.sansmirror.com/ Thom is a working pro photographer and also knows his onions. For your airshow work, 300mm, even on a crop sensor, is the bare minimum you want. Usually, you'll want nearer 500mm. Yes, you can crop after the fact, but it's bad practice. In a pinch, a possibly more portable, more affordable alternative would be one of the superzoom bridge cameras. Here's a link with info: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/2015-superzoom-camera-roundup (Do read the last page where they give other recommendations - there's a couple there that I'd choose over any of the reviewed cameras.) Feel free to PM me if you want to chat about stuff. (And finally, a link for Thom's review of the D5500, which he much prefers over the D3300 http://www.dslrbodies.com/cameras/current-nikon-dslr-reviews/nikon-d5500-camera-review.html ) HTH.

That's interesting Enzo, I've had the same scene in my head for about 15 years. Except mine's going to have a natty SS officer in the sidecar, who refuses to get out and help... To be called 'Arrogance' I've got all the bits (including about 3 motorcycles), as well as a lot of soldiers and a set of Hornet SS heads. Now I just have to convince myself that I can actually pull it off, and then make time to do it all. You'll get yours done well before I start, I imagine.

Rene, if your is meant to be an indication that you do know how to change the title, ignore this next bit... To change the title of the thread, go to the FIRST post you made (the one that opened the thread), then click 'Edit' at the bottom of the post. Once it opens in Edit view, click the 'Use Full Editor' button at the bottom of the post, and you will be able to alter the Topic Title as well as everything else in the post. When you're finished, click the 'Submit Modified Post' button, and you're done! Well done with the XIX so far, I'll follow along for when I start mine and avoid the pitfalls.

I'm not going to even start this one - I have signed up for a stupid amount of GBs this year, and it's not looking like I'll finish any of them, so no point starting another one. :/ Have fun everyone who's entered, and I'll keep an eye on the Gallery.

I still can't build my green Lightning... <walks away, weeping quietly>

Right lads and lasses, a couple more days to get those entries done, have at it with a will. ENGLAND EXPECTS etc.

Update. In a fit of idiocy, I decided that seeing this was going to be built with the wings folded, I should make the nav lights clear, because they'd be right there on top, on show. The recesses were duly filed out, clear sprue was filed flat, drilled, the hole filled with the correct colour paint and glued in place. Another application of the file to make the shape right, and it was on with fine wet and dry and then MicroMesh to polish it to a shine. Yes, I've written red and green on the wing parts - saved having to work it out every time I picked the bits up. And here they are almost done (still a spot more polishing to finish off). I'm actually quite chuffed at how it turned out. Not perfect perhaps (the drilled hole for the bulb needs to be further aft and could probably be much smaller), but acceptable given my usual ham-fistedness with fine details. Tail booms are on, and I'm fettling and fitting the pinion tanks. As moulded, the edges are somewhat thick - photos of the real thing show a definite edge to them where they adjoin the booms, but the kit overdoes this more than a little IMO. A gentle scrape with a #11 blade and a quick blending in with some 1200 grit soon brings them down to a more in-scale thickness (thinness??) Here's one side, with the woodmongery I needed to use to get the darn thing to sit down in place - unfortunately, the pegs left a few dimples in the thin plastic which will need to be filled. It never ends, does it? Work continues, more anon.

A moment's Googling brings this up. Is this what you're chasing? https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/AMU14448

Steve, when I did my Spitfire, I found that trying too hard to spread the paint around gave it those sandy lumps. No evidence, but I feel that it's part drying during that process. Some colours seem to be particularly prone to it (haven't tried the yellow). I ended up using small amounts on the brush and dipping it more often in an attempt to keep the paint edge wet, as well as washing the brush out regularly then drying it before continuing. HTH.