Silverstone 2

Fw-190 Series is a must What info do you have regarding this?

Hi Matt, I was bought one of these last Christmas. Still haven't started it yet, building the Dragon 1/35 at present. I've been watching your build, which has some invaluable info for things to watch out for. How well does it go together in general, despite the large pieces that will have some degree of warping. Keen to see how you will tackle the painting on the interior. Inspiring Build by the way!!! Phil

Does anyone Know when/If this will be released in the UK? Or will this have to be purchased from abroad? I've seen it on EBay.co.uk from HK sellers. Thanks in advance Phil

Commission build of the infamous Airfix 1/24 Spitfire Vb Built OOB except for some scratch built engine detail & PE RAF 1/24 Seat Belts were the only addition as well as the small can motor inside the engine (note wires tucked into the bottom) Tamiya Acrylics used with polyurethane Gloss & Matt varnish used for final coats. A friend of mine bought the Airfix model a while back and here is the finished example:

Thanks for all the nice comments! Incidentally i'm having to move her on, due space If anyone is interested in purchasing this Tomcat please let me know? Phil

Some More:

Just recently finished the Tamiya Tomcat: More To Follow:

Some more and better pictures: Some of the underside:

The Airfix 1/24 Mosquito is a superb bit of engineering, goes together effortlessly. Although too big, I'm going to be doing a Tamiya 1/48 version soon for a commission build. The new Tamiya Spitfire, P-15, F4-u and Zero are all extremely precise fit too.

The A-7E goes together really well, no problems on any of the large pieces. Fit is good all round with minimal clean-up and small amounts of filler required. I think Trumpeter has improved considerably over the years although I think this kit is almost 10 years old now? To achieve a seamless intake at the front is not too hard either, just careful prep and the right sanding tools. The F-14A from Tamiya has it's issues especially when it come to intakes, again though this is 20 years + Really goes to show how technology has been improving. I'm looking forward to building the F-16C. AIRDOC decals on the A-7, I have to say are a must though. Stock decals aren't the best looking IMO.

Here is some photos, of the very recently completed 1/32 A-7E My apologies for not taking more photos during the build, this was mainly due to not having the correct setup until now. The current builds: 1/24 Vb Spitfire (commission) and the 1/32 F-14A and all future projects,will all have more info and pictures. My stash is getting quite big now and i'm also starting some AFV builds very soon. I've got 3 Tigers, including the 1/16 King Tiger in the pipeline and the HK 1/32 B-17G. So there will be a lot of threads appearing soon. VA-22 (USS Enterprise) LOW-VIS camo with AIRDOC decals: I'll take more photos tomorrow when I have better light.

The A-7E is now painted in the Low Vis camo, scheme of the late 80s. I've used MM's Light and Dark Ghost grey, results are pleasing. I've also use MM's Gloss before decaling too. decaling is commencing now, more photos to come...need to get some more background materials for proper photos! On a different note: I would like to use a different medium for glossing and matting at the finish. Has anyone used Windsor and Newton's UV acrylic varnishes? To me there has always been a concern is losing surface detail with too many coats before the finish of a model.

Great work, That new tooling does look very good! Amazing how much that looks like it's going together well, rather than the original Airfix versions. Particularly like the Flap details in the upper wing halves. Phil

Some interior and U/C shots: Some weathering.....

Has been a while since my last posting. Started work on both Tamiya 1/32 F-14A and the Trumpeter 1/32 A-7E back in Early spring. Lots of domestic obligations....like moving house have slowed these 2 builds down. Now that the family is settled in and I've got a workspace, I've made a bit of progress! First the 1/32 A-7E - Air Doc decal sets will be used for the "Low Viz Tactical Scheme" This has been a fun build, even managed to get a seamless air intake too, after many an hour of careful attention Sorry there have not been earlier photos of the build progress: The A-7 does come together in a very pleasing shape after a while:-) It's a big aircraft in 1/32 but it's a good scale for this subject. Looking forward to seeing it next to the F-14A "Top Hatters" My apologies for the photo quality, I was trialling the IPhone camera but it's useless in anything but sunlight More to follow....

The most impressive scratch building and accuracy I've seen on any forum. You are seemingly able to create the most complex shapes and profiles better than most large scale model tooling can achieve!!! Truly amazing work!

Amazing finish on your Red Arrow!!! Could you tell me how you got the Perspex rod to be such a good shade of blue? Did you boil the Perspex tube and simply bend it to suit? Phil.

Build was not a problem, although lots of time needed to get lines and profiles correct. 747 Struts do need some rework, to get right. Everything you would expect from an early 80s model technology. Decals are very good but lots of flash to remove.

Hope you like the photos of AJ-J Crew figure to finish painting now to complete....

Some more pictures...... More to follow......

Eventually finished the Tamiya 1/48 Dambuster. After starting this back in November, it's been a lot of work....... Decided to make it AJ-J in the end, using Xtradecal instead to get the right size wing roundels. More pictures to follow, good old Photobucket has just crashed! Again....

At last the new 747 SCA + Discovery are now finished: 747SCA: 747SCA + Discovery Shuttle After all this time and effort, i'm unfortunately going to have part with these two magnificent aircraft due to space. So if anyone is interested in purchasing them both, as a display piece? Please PM me and let me know. Thanks for looking.

The cheat line decals work a treat on the shuttle! Just making sure only water is used so there is very small adhession, just enough to stay on. Simply removed with very little effort after airbrushing.

Yes indeed.

Some more photos: I've rested the shuttle on the struts only, to check out the geometrey of the attitudes between the two aircraft. The shuttle will sit about 2mm lower when pressed home on the pins. The result has been extremely pleasing: It will not be long now util these two will be finished. I'm going to keep it so that the shuttle remains removable as will be the same for the display-stand. More to come....