Simon Cornes

Well worth the effort Steve. It shows how much we learn in 4 years!

I stand corrected!! You learn something new every day!! Thank you.

If I remember correctly one tool kit was metric and the other imperial so not interchangeable!

No, Wedgetail E-5A !! If they can't get away from River Joint - but then who on earth came up with Air Seeker??

I suspect they'll sit tight and wait for a large proportion of their investment to be re-paid and then we might know what happens next - in another 12 months!! You never know, if the props are supplied as blades and hubs then the likes of AMS might produce resin paddle blades? Its only one master blade to make after all!

No doubt HKM will do a Dam buster Special and maybe a Tallboy version, in fact I wouldn't be surprised if they did both in one box. Then a pure B.III with paddle blades, bomb aimers full bubble and higher astrodome and at some point they'll do a tail turret fairing although I wouldn't be surprised if the aftermarket trot one out quick and get a few easy sales before the HKM official version. Maybe different tyres as well? If things went really well then why not a B.II? the power egg would be the same for all engines so it would just be a rework of the nacelles. Sounds like easy money for HKM once they have the first kit into the market place but I wonder what the sales potential is for the Lanc - more or less than the B-17? I wonder how many B-17's they've sold so far? I am a WNW fan and it was suggested recently that there are maybe 1,500 modellers - world wide - who regularly buy WNW kits so you might expect a similar number for the B-17 and Lanc? No doubt HKM have done their homework!!

I've just had a look at the Pocket Bond website and there is a shot of the sprues but I can't engage then enough to see how they're doing the propellers - separate blades and hub or in one unit? The former would make more sense if they are going to offer both needle and paddle but I can't see the sprue shot well enough to make a decision!

Thanks Ian, thats clarified my thinking! Full steam ahead!

Hi Artie Yes I would like a Swift please. The Scimitar shows that you and your friends are more than capable of doing a great job! I presume we will be able to PayPal you the 50 euros? If you could just confirm which address to use please? Thank you Simon

Ah, mine are with another 7 or 8 castings all done in one piece. I think the bit that has snapped off is actually a main gear retraction jack so the part is okay. I have now rebagged all the smaller parts in separate bags so they won't be banging into the big bits! Really impressive kit though!

I think you'll find the resin canopy as part of the large casting which includes the wing fences, etc. Looks like a Swift belly tank!

Mine arrived today! Well, its certainly a heavy chunk of resin. Comes in a very sensible box which logically opens at the top. A very impressive kit but for a few caveats:- First, all the resin is in one bag. The wings and fuselage centre section are relatively massive. There is one casting that includes a solid resin canopy. On my kit one of the small parts on this had snapped in half and broken off. I suspect it was hit by a heavy chunk of something in transit so maybe the smaller part need additional protection or separate bagging? The damaged part can be repaired as the separate bit was in the bag. Second, the nose gear yoke was short shot due to air in one half of the mould so I will have to make the missing half. Third. I'm not sure about the font for the underwing serials? Fourth. Pictorial instructions and a page of A4 in Spanish. An English translation would have been useful Fifth. A parts map of some sort would also be useful. I have the Warpaint so the drawings in that should inform me as to what some of the bits are. This must sound very wingey but I am really very pleased with the kit and I'm glad that I have second one on order. It looks to be very buildable and the surface detail is very, very good! Simon

So the kit should be available October/November but is it better to wait until the version without the clear nose mouldings? From the stuff I've read the mould will be reworked after the clear plastic run is completed and replaced with grey plastic parts. So that means that you can't really produce a fully camouflaged aeroplane with the original parts because the lack of texture will make it look very obvious compared to the rest of the airframe? Or will HKM include a grey set of nose mouldings with this limited edition kit? I would be very interested to know what the first boxing will include - any ideas? Thanks Simon

I heard today when I visited Clifton Curios. It is indeed sad to lose yet another of the 'originals' (Dick Ward most recently before) and as has been said, he allowed our hobby to continue through the bad times - there was always Hannats, no matter what happened to the rest. I certainly hope that the family carry on with the business otherwise we will all be stuffed! I had the pleasure to speak to David at a couple of SMW's and he was certainly a hands on operator. I also had the occasional run in with him - a point in question being X72256 - Post War Lancasters where I was convinced - and still am - that the red of SW364 was way too bright. David said it wasn't, I thought it was - no point arguing but he took the trouble to e-mail me because he was totally focused on what his company did. We are all considerably better off because of the influence of Hannants and David in particular. RIP and thank you.

I read in Airforces Monthly that the Australian Wedge tail is on the horizon as an E-3D replacement? Makes sense and reinforces the 'All American' airforce we are getting! I also saw images of the Tempest. Grief, it looked ugly!!