Jabba

Added a few more bits last night. After fitting the cockpit to one side of the fuselage (not the side that the instructions say) and then I glued the fuselage together. The spine panel is not glued, it is just there to keep things in position. I also have not fitted the intakes yet as the instructions would have you do. The reason for this is because when I dry fitted the cockpit the side that I did not glue it would not lie correctly, so I would have to hold it for quite a while whilst the glue dried. If I have the intakes there I do not think that I could not have done this. I have also done a dry fit of the intakes with the fuselage held together with clamps and I could fit the intakes quite easily. Hopefully I will be able to do that tonight. With the wings I have fitted the lower centre part and this is without the butt strap, as I have come to the conclusion that it was not added at the date of this build.

As far as I know, The EF-111s did not carry anything on the wings during D Strom. Having just done a check on dstorm.eu, this also says the same.

I have over the past week been building up the cockpit. I will slightly weather this area so that the decal instruments do not look too stark. I have also added the coaming ahead of the Fwd instrument panel, although the kit instructions do not add this until almost the last item. I have done this after struggling to fit it that late and also it keeps the Fwd piece and instrumant panel at the correct distance apart. The other parts that have been built up include the engine intakes, Fuel tanks and part of the lower wing structure. There is still a part to be fitted to the centre line fuel tank, which I will add after it has been sanded. I have also removed the extra seam on the wing fuel tanks, first seeing which one had to removed as the kit fuel tanks are handed. I am still not sure if the butt strap under the fuselage is required having asked in another section of the site, one answer did say that this MOD may not have been carried out until the mid to late 80s.

Thanks you both for your info. If the butt strap mod was done in the mid to late 80s as @Phone Phixer says then it would be too late for the time period that I am modelling XV424 in. As for the time periods that you mentioned for XV470 @iainpeden most of them are roughly the time that an aircraft would have spent at Saints. I was at Saints for about 2.5 years on Phantom majors and our team only worked on 6 aircraft during than time, which included one almost going back to Sqn service when I arrived and one coming to Saints when I was posted out (with much delight). At least now I do know that this mod has something to do with the 100FI mod programme. We did have to odd BAe work teams down at Saints when I was there, but they mainly worked on the outer wings. We also used to post on the team board about the aircraft that we were working on the major mod that would be carried out during the service and the biggest one that I remember at the time was the aircrew NBC mods to the cockpits. I may give Hendon a try, but how long does it take them to get the info back to you?

As far as I know the French Alpha jets were pure trainers, whilst the German ones were the armed ones.

I am currently using the 1/72nd Airfix kit to make Phantom FGR2 XV424 as she was at the IAT at Greenham Common in 1979. This is the colourful Alcock and Brown(e) scheme. I am wondering about the wing and underfuselage reinforcement plates that are already on the kit and whether the belly strap was there. The small wing reinforcement plates I am sure would have been fitted, but I take it not the larger ones on the under side of the outer wings. This then leads me onto the strap under the belly/ wings, would this have been fitted at this time. I know that these items are more than likely asked about before, but I have done a search on the web site and although I can find some things about these as a MOD state, they do not come with any photos so I can clearly see what is what especially a date. Thanks in advance for any help.

Add my name to the list, I am sure that I can build an Iranian Mirage F1 borrowed from the Iraqis (or so they thought that they had only lent them to Iran to look after for a while).

I have made a small start on this one, but nothing the photograph yet. One thing I am not sure about and I have had a look for this, is that should this aircarft at the time have the under fuselage strap?

Thanks both of you. This one did not give up fighting until it ws finished. When fitting one of the pilots open side windows I meerly brushed against one of the aerials on the nose and off it pinged. Luckily Eduard moulded many on these on one sprue and I had the foresight of painting all of these, just incase what happened, happened. The whilst attempting to fit the rear cockpit open piece it went on a journey to the floor. I move almost everything to try and find it with no luck on the floor or the surrounding area where I thought that it had dropped. But when replacing a soft backed book that I have originally moved I felt something between the cover and the first page, yes it was there.

This is my entry for this side of this GB. It is the Eduard 1/48th kit of a Messerschmitt Bf 110G-4 of STAB II/NJG1, Langensalza in 1945. The only things that are not OOB are the exhausts and wheels. The build thread is here:-

Calling this one finished now. I was going to add the aerials from the fins to the mast on the canopy, but when I got some of the rigging stuff off the cardboard I could not see it so that was that. I would like to thank @81-er and @modelling minion for the encouragement that they have both given thoroughout this build.

For this GB my entry will be (If allowed) a RAF Phantom FGR2 in the bright Alcock and Brown memorial scheme that was applied and the aircraft appeared at the IAT in 1979. As part of the scheme there is also the recognition of 30 years of NATO. For this I will be using the Airfix kit with the decals coming from Xtradecal. I did go to that IAT and remember taking some photos of the aircraft (Where they are now I do not know) and then went on to build it using the Matchbox kit and Modeldecal markings. I still have the instructions for this set somewhere and these probably have better detail information as was Dick Wards style. Another good thing about this scheme is that there are very few stencils and after doing a few Phantoms over the past few years I am very glad of that. The kit box. What is inside the box. Kit instructions. Kit colour schemes Kit decals. Xtradecal decals and instructions.

Will be there on Saturday.

Almost James almost. Still a few things to add which may seem not too bad, but are probably the worst things to add at this time of the build. One of these was the aerial and these were fitted over a 2 day period, fitting the rear ones one noght with the forward ones the next. Mind you I did try to detroy the model once more by not placing on my workbench fully and I did manage to catch it with no damage before it fell too far on its journey to the floor. I have also done the exhaust stainng on the wings. Next up is the wing fuel tanks. These and the mounts are painted up plus I have redrilled to holes, but unlike @mark.au I have not fitted any decals. Those I will hopefully fit tonigh or at least one. Then it is the hopeful run down of some of the smaller parts and the rest of the glazing.

And having ask Imgurs customer support about this with no reply yet, I don't think that they even know what to do.

That is what I do Mark, except when I do delete the new album created by Imgur, the photos then disappear from the album that they were put into and then also from the thread that they were put in.

I guess that Imgur do not know either as I have yet to have a reply to my request, even though they do say that they are looking into the problem.

Thanks for your kind words, just do not look too closely. I have now fitted the wheels, exhausts and the U.C doors. When I started fitting the U/C doors I removed one from the sprue and then saw that I had not painted the inner part. So undeterred I then fitted all the doors, waited a good 24 Hrs for them to sweet and then carefully painted the inside. It was also the same with the small bar at the front of the main U/C legs which I guess hold the doors apart. Anyhow as with most of this kit one side is better than the other. I also did try to fit the etch brass plate close to the landing light on the Port wing, but one moment it was in my tweezers the next it was gone so the area was painted black. I have a bit of weathering to do for the exhaust staining and then the part that I am really dreading, the fitting of the aerials.

Some more progress has been made. I have fitted some of the canopy sections plus the rear gun. The canopy part that fits of the the upward firing guns did so very well much to my surprise after all that has gone on with this kit. I also got rid of the gap that is the lower guns in the nose. A bit late I know, but I just drilled some plastic rod, fitted these into the gaps and then removed the top part and did a bit of filing. I have also painted the exhausts and wheels, but I will have to get a drill out again to make the main wheels fit onto the axle a lot better.

Are these any good? https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/X72307?result-token=KrZFI https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/X72308?result-token=KrZFI

Thanks Mark.

Mark another quick question or two. What colour did you paint the fuel tanks as I cannot find any info on the instructions that I have (or I am going blind) and where did you get the decals from?

Thanks Mark for your insight about the parts that I asked about. I did manage to get the rear gun fitted last night and it was quite harmless. I have today fitted the glass work around it and to my amazement the fit of this was very good, almost the best fitting part of the whole kit. As for the fuel tanks I have yet to sand them down, but I shall start on that tonight.

Very nice indeed Mark. I totally agree with you final comments about the kit, plus the ones about the fron aerial supports (not looking forward to fitting the aerials). I do have a couple of questions (maybe that both are the same). How was the fitment of the rear gun, as it looks to me on paper and looking at the actual part very weak? Similar with the wing fuel tanks?

I have just had a look there and no they are not there. They have just disappeared. I am now asking Imgur help about this. Hopefully the answer will be in plain English not computer person speak.