Rob G

I might sell mine on, there's no way it'll ever look this good.

As much fun as this thread is, it's also quite depressing. There's no way I'm ever going to be able to dig my old AIrfix Herc out of the stash and finish it, knowing how bad it actually is. Although, seeing as my Dad brought it home for me from a work trip when I was 12 or so (yea and verily, many, many decades ago), it's probably a family heirloom now, and shouldn't be buggered around with any more than it has been.

I've been watching some videos, and it seems that the early models (4 blades) start at 0 pitch, the later ones (8, 10, 12? I can't count that high!) start feathered. There is of course a huge amount of difference in the blade shape, the early ones are like the side of a barn.

There's not a lot of wild Lotii here in Aussie, they don't like the climate (too blinkin' hot old chap, what.) So as a result they are rich man's toys, not daily drivers, and tend to be very expensive indeed, old or not (the new ones... cheaper to buy a Porsche.) Roundy-roundy racing is a rich man's game (except for speedway, which is for bogans.), so I imagine that with the financial situation worldwide, anyone involved on the actual work side of it is suffering. Heck, I'm in the coal industry, and I'm suffering. For everyone's elucidation. bogan1 ˈbəʊɡ(ə)n/ noun Australian/NZ informal derogatory noun: bogan; plural noun: bogans an uncouth or unsophisticated person, regarded as being of low social status. and also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bogan

Boo. That is a spot of bother. I hope it heals quickly and correctly.

I believe that the term is 'wingman'.

Lotuses (Lotii??), 911s, 205s, racing MGs... crikey you BM people must be rolling in it. I'm stuck with a 6 year old bog stock WRX (which I'm not allowed to drive in the way that Subaru-san intended, due to draconian speed limits, harshly enforced by the anti-fun squad.) Still, I don't have to put up with UK weather, so it's all good. Ascoteer (I'd call you Debs, but I don't know you so it'd be rude) - back on topic, I point you in the direction of Airmodel, who do vacform Herkybird conversiony thingies, that may (or may not) be of use, or you may have already seen them and said "Meh." http://www.airmodel.de/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=hercules&XTCsid=gkrs8vhccmk4ne08i8fbj061f4 I've got a few of his full kits and a conversion or 2, and they're pretty good.

Works for me Alistair, great idea!

pfft. What planet do you come from?

My 3rd favourite WW2 a/c, looking good. For future reference, if you forget to open up the mouting holes, try holding the wing up to a strong light - sometimes the holes will show as brighter spots that you can mark and then drill. At least, it's worked the 3 or 4 times I've had to do it.

What about ex-military types in civil colours? I'm thinking specifically of the TAA and QANTAS Catalinas that ran regular passenger/freight ops to various remote bits of Australia and dominions in the 40s- 70s. And while I think about it (although not for me), the BOAC marked Mosquitos during the war.

'oo 'err Missus, that's a corker, innit? Another one that I have in the stash (sigh) and will probably never work up the bottle to start. Lovely job!

If it counts for anything, I'd like to see either #1 or #2. Special schemes are always good, and there's never enough love shown for the bog standard trash haulers; it's always the rare specials that get built. By that token, make it a firm vote for the Bosnia machine. I'd share photos, but all I have are RAAF versions.

That looks just as ugly as the real one. Which is a compliment, really. Well done, that man!

In single purchases from a Facebook group that I'm a member of, a Doyusha 1969 Subaru R-2 Deluxe and an Aoshima GReddy/Rocket Bunny tuned Toyota 86... there may be some cross-pollination going to happen. ::evilgrin::

Add me to this one too. Can't stand the things, boring grey lawn darts that they (mostly) are, but I do got all the Tiger Sqn versions hat have been released by Revell and Italeri, as well as a couple of aftermarket decal sets. I suppose I should make an effort to build one, one day. Oh, and a few of the other special markings schemes, too. The Belgian one with the Spitfire plan view is a particular favourite for the markings alone.

I've had a look at the detail photos linked in another post, and to my mind, if you're going to do workable track, I'd be looking at flat drive belts as used for record players and suchlike. Should be available from one of the big electronics places over there (can't recall the name.) The other option is fine strips of very thin plastic sheet. I'll be watching and waiting to see how this goes, intriguing subject.

I built the Matchbox Mossie a few decades ago, and have the Paragon Highball conversion to go into a Revell one. And a couple of different decal options in the decal stash, too - Luftwaffe Mosquito, anyone? Count me in.

9.2? A lot smaller than I expected. I'll have a look, just in case...

I'd recommend going all-Nikon for your lenses. Sigma do OK, but I've yet to find any 3rd party lenses that compare to Nikkors. Almost everyone I've spoken to has ended up replacing their Sigma glass with the real thing at some point, so save yourself some money, time and trouble and just start out right. The other thing to consider is which way around the zoom collar works - every Sigma zoom I've ever used has the zoom the wrong way around ie the collar rotates the other way to the Nikon lens for any required action. Not a big thing maybe, until you miss a shot because you went out instead of in. And if you're going to use the Sigma as your main lens, when you get to the serious stuff through the big gun, I think it will be an issue - the last thing you need when shooting under pressure is to have to think about how your gear works. I could rabbit on for hours. (Yeah, I'm one of those sad sacks.) PM me if you want pick what little brain I have, and either way, enjoy your new thing. Because it'll be a very nice new thing.

Ah. I don't recall the inspiration for the vignette being mentioned in the commentary. And although I've seen the movie, it was many, many years before I saw the magazine article, and obviously I didn't make a connection.

eh what? A Hurricane GB THAT I MISSED hearing about? My 2nd favourite wingy thing, and I missed the GB announcement? What the heck is going on here? Despite my thus far woeful record of GB completion, I'm in for this one. Don't know what with, but I have options. In the stash. Or I may go and buy that all-blue Hasegawa one at the LHS, just for summat different. And now, I'm off to update my GB spreadsheet calendar thing.

Aaron, what diameter is that roundel? I may have some spares. If you can let me know the size, I'll do some digging.

I've been thinking about this, and I recall a small vignette I saw in a modelling magazine many, many years ago, which some of you may remember. It was small, with a brick or stone wall about 10 scale feet high running somewhat down the middle of it, surrounded with bushes and brush. On one side of the wall was a US patrol, all sneaking quietly, the patrol leader in an obvious listening pose. On the other side of the wall was a German patrol, all sneaking quietly... Both teams were about equidistant from the same end of the wall... The tension in the scene is unbelievable, you just know that in the very near future there's going to be something ugly happening. And all in a space of not much more than 6" square (from memory). My point is that it CAN be done, we may just have to be a little more creative than we'd usually be. I look forward to seeing what all you come up with.

72th Great War machines are not my thing as a rule. However, in an effort to show solidarity with those who cheat by enslaving pixies to do their building for them, I'll be in for at least one of each of these.