PaulR

Right - a rather overdue update! Sorry - work's been rather overpowering lately! Anyway, a random collection showing could be loosely called 'progress' . . . Drop tanks - one is in desert pink, and the other is in grey/green or at least it will be in due course. Xtracrylix paints. Paragon wheels. Hubs sprayed Light Aircraft Grey and then Humbrol 66 thinned and run around the hubs using capilliary action, my fave way of getting crisp wheel hubs. Depends on having well defined wheel hubs however, which luckily the paragon wheels do. Given an oil wash to pick up the detail. The humbrol 66 gives a very pleasing tyre black effect. I've masked off the metal pitot and sprayed it Vallejo medium sea grey. Photos of 23sqn tornadoes tend to show quite a dark radome contrasting sharply with the Barley grey of the airframe, so hopefully this will replicate this effect. This is the rear fuselage built up. You can see the paragon fin correction in place, and it just needs filler to blend it all in to shape. I'll add the paragon thrust reverser mechanism next, along with the Eduard wing glove seals and blade antenna on the fin. I've also go to scratch build the right flare dispensers under the rear fuselage. The italeri parts fit well, but I've found you need to be careful lining everything up to get the best result. The airbrakes in particular needed work to fit well. Lastly; this is my scratch built Phimat pod, built out of a Hasegawa Amraam body - luckily the exact diameter and length. I sanded the nose to get the pointed nose of the phimat pod, ditto the rear. I also added a small piece of stretched sprue at the end and plastic strip shaped and sanded along the pod sides. I still have to add the mounting pylon. I used the Phimat pod on my Airfix Jaguar for reference. Hopefully will look good after a coat of primer. Anyway, there it is. Will make the next update sooner than this one! Paul

Absolutely typical! I hold off for years (literally) from getting my F3s from Ebay, and the s@ds at Italeri decide to re-release this year - two months after I bankrupt myself What makes it even worse is that I finally went for an Airfix Lightning F1/F2/F3 just prior to Christmas for my CMK T.5 conversion . . . and get what gets re-released next year as well! Yours, feeling slightly rogered, Paul PS it will be just my luck that they release it with upgraded parts, like flare dispensers etc . . .

Cheers for the replies, chaps! Paul

Hi there, am doing a 1/48 Tornado F3 build over at the w.i.p. forum, and am going to model a 23 sqn plane used in Bosnia in 1994. On photos I have, they are equipped with phimat pods on the 'outside' sidewinder positions, but I don't know if just one was carried, or two - one on each side. Anybody know either way? Thanks in advance Paul

That's exactly where I was when it all kicked off! I remember staying up for th next 12 hours, making notes on the back of Hasegawa model box lids of all things. Still got them too! This is a complete stab in the dark, but was your college common room Connaught Hall in London by any chance? Paul

Hi there, just a quick idea I'd like to get peoples' opinions or thoughts on. Would it be a viable idea to have a group build based on the aircraft of a specific RAF squadron? I'm thinking here that we could choose a squadron with a long history, colourful unit marks and a wide variety of aircraft and do, well, a group build on it. I was thinking possibe contenders could include squadrons such as no. 6, 11, 19, 74, 92 etc etc. Any thoughts? Paul

Evening chaps, with reference to an earlier thread, here are the initial set of piccies for my 2nd ever online build. I have to admit to a certain amount of smugness; I managed to snag a couple of Italeri F3s on Ebay recently, but luckily my wife suspects nothing . . . Anyway, here are the obligatory box shots . . . . . . plus the aftermarket porn, namely Paragon fin correction, afterburner cans, wheels, slats and flaps, wing pylons, Aeroclub ejector seats, turned brass pitots (more of this later), Eduard P/E and the Xtradecal sheet for 23 sqn. I was humming and hahing about doing in the 111 sqn Flagship circa 2005, but in the end the 23 sqn marks won out - I just think the red and blue suits the grey schemed F3 very well. The other thing is that I have been reading alot about air ops over Bosnia, including 23 sqn's work during 1993/4, just before they were disbanded as a Tornado unit. Various pictures show them equipped with Phimat pods (which I will scratch build using an Amraam missile body - almost identical length and diameter, funnily enough) and a mixture of grey/green and desert pink tanks. These Bosnia Tornados also had various RAM applied to the leading edges of wings and fins, so should make for interesting painting! I may not actually use all of the aftermarket; I might save the flaps and slats set for the second kit, which will be done in those 111 sqn marks mentioned earlier! I couldn't resist having a little bit of play with the aftermarket stuff, so tried out the metal pitot on the nose cone. Absolutely fantastic effect, so much so I may be forced to get more. . . by the by, I don't tend to build in a 'logical'manner; I tend to do things like wheels, tanks, missiles etc first, as these are the bits that are a faff, and end up not getting done otherwise. Anyway, more updates as and when. I think some other chaps said they might start their F3s at the same time, so as to swap tips and ideas; if we can do this without breaking any rules or upsetting the mods, it would be great to see! More anon Paul ps here's a link to a picture of what I am planning do. It's not the exact aircraft, but you get the idea . . .

Evening chaps, with reference to an earlier thread, here are the initial set of piccies for my 2nd ever online build. I have to admit to a certain amount of smugness; I managed to snag a couple of Italeri F3s on Ebay recently, but luckily my wife suspects nothing . . . Anyway, here are the obligatory box shots . . . . . . plus the aftermarket porn, namely Paragon fin correction, afterburner cans, wheels, slats and flaps, wing pylons, Aeroclub ejector seats, turned brass pitots (more of this later), Eduard P/E and the Xtradecal sheet for 23 sqn. I was humming and hahing about doing in the 111 sqn Flagship circa 2005, but in the end the 23 sqn marks won out - I just think the red and blue suits the grey schemed F3 very well. The other thing is that I have been reading alot about air ops over Bosnia, including 23 sqn's work during 1993/4, just before they were disbanded as a Tornado unit. Various pictures show them equipped with Phimat pods (which I will scratch build using an Amraam missile body - almost identical length and diameter, funnily enough) and a mixture of grey/green and desert pink tanks. These Bosnia Tornados also had various RAM applied to the leading edges of wings and fins, so should make for interesting painting! I may not actually use all of the aftermarket; I might save the flaps and slats set for the second kit, which will be done in those 111 sqn marks mentioned earlier! I couldn't resist having a little bit of play with the aftermarket stuff, so tried out the metal pitot on the nose cone. Absolutely fantastic effect, so much so I may be forced to get more. . . by the by, I don't tend to build in a 'logical'manner; I tend to do things like wheels, tanks, missiles etc first, as these are the bits that are a faff, and end up not getting done otherwise. Anyway, more updates as and when. I think some other chaps said they might start their F3s at the same time, so as to swap tips and ideas; if we can do this without breaking any rules or upsetting the mods, it would be great to see! More anon Paul ps here's a link to a picture of what I am planning do. It's not the exact aircraft, but you get the idea . . .

Cheers for the comments chaps! Paul

Hi there, after having this kit lying around 1/2 build for at least 5 years, I have finally finished it! It's the Classic Airframes kit with Aeroclub fuselage and intakes, and it definitely the most difficult kit I have ever built, with God knows how much filling and sanding. Anyway, I was planning on doing the squadron leader's aircraft from 213 sqn, with the overall silver scheme with black and yellow trim, but the amount of putty put paid to that idea. However, I caught a really interesting article in MAM about the Short Range Fighter scheme of Medium sea grey, Light Slate grey and PRU blue, and as luck would have it the example shown was in 213 sqn marks. That was it really! Anyway, while it won't win any competitions I am pleased with it and it looks good with my Classic Airframes Hornet and Venom. Good to have it off the shelf of doom, but I wish I'd put in more nose weight - it's a confirmed tail sitter . . .

Cheers for the advice - I shall mull this over! I'll have a dekko at the Wingnuts 1/32nd job, although it's not really 'my' scale. At the risk of pushing my luck, would the Eduard kit make the postwar mkIV? Is it just a case of adding the four balded prop? Thanks again, Paul

Hi all, while I am normally an RAF WW2 onwards type of modeller, I am increasingly getting interested in WW1 and interwar RAF. The F.2b looks like an interesting build - I thought perhaps an interwar silver job. Checking Hannants shows both Roden and Eduard do 1/48th versions, but which would people recommend? The weekend version of the Eduard kit looks good for a first foray into biplanes, especially its price, but I'd rather have a good build over money considerations - to a point! Would be grateful for any guidance from those in the know! Paul

Cheers for all the input gents! My Heller Sabre will therefore emerge in the fullness of time as a 93sqn slatted Mk4 courtesy of Modeldecal . . . Paul

Hi all, now I know Sabre wings have been done to death, but I have become confused . . . In short, are the slatted wings in the 1/72 Heller sabre appropriate to make a slatted RAF Sabre F4? Illumination from those less confused than me greatly appreciated! Thanks, Paul

Hi, am mainly a aircraft modeller, but do occasionally drift over to armour. I used to do more armour 20 years ago, when the only real player was Tamiya, but since then other manufacturers seem to have waded in, such as Dragon. Question is, what is the benchmark brand now? I've recently built the Tamiya Porsche King Tiger and Late Panther G, and these both seemed very smart, but I'd like to know where to go for best accuracy, ease of build, value for money etc. Thanks for any comments, Paul

Hi Jon, new sheets look v.interesting! Any update on the eta for the RAF update 5 sheets with 1435 Flt and 6 squadron Typhoons - am itching for these sheets! Regards, Paul

Hi Col, reference the 43 sqn decals - well, you have several choices, but look up Xtradecals for 43sqn across the years. All the ones for 43sqn I have are 1/72nd, I think. My previous Italeri F3 in 1/48th was finished as ZG757 in overall Medium Sea Grey and in 43sqn marks including a very fetching checkerboard tail. You can get this on Xtradecal X48056. HTH, Paul

F3 it is! I'll crack open the kit and post prebuild pics just after new year. If people want to join in with pics and tips on their own F3 builds without treading on mod toes, that would be great. Might have some spare F3 decals if anybody needs any. Paul

Hi Col, You know, a mini GB might be very interesting - the F3 has always been one of my fave aircraft, and what with its retirement this spring . . . do you think others would be interested? Paul

Hi all, am actually in the throes of finishing a kit (specifically a CA vampire FB9 with aeroclub fuselage and intakes . .. it's only taken about 4 years . . . ) and was casting my beady eyes over my frankly absurd stash. Have narrowed my next major project down to two choices, both of which have been made possible by two recent Ebay victories! I've not done an online build before, so I thought I might cut my teeth with one of these. What would people be most interested in? Cheers for any comments, Paul EDIT: OK, I seem to be incapable of setting up one of those fancy poll type things (any guidance for the terminally dense?), so here are the choices . . . 1/48th Airfix Lightning into a T5 with CMK set (Pink Flamingo markings?) or 1/48th Italeri Tornado F3 with multiple Paragon, Eduard and Aeroclub goodies. (Full colour 111 sqn boss bird from 2005, or 23sqn Bosnia 1994?)

Hi there, was reading hereabouts that Model Alliance were planning on releasing decals for 6 sqn and 1435 flt typhoons at Telford. Did anyone pick up a set, or better yet have pictures of them? Would be interested to know exactly what's on the sheets! Ta, Paul

Hi all, prompted by the recent article about 41 sqn in an issue of AFM, I thought I'd have a go at doing ZA600 in her overall MSG scheme. Happen to think this is the best tornado scheme since the desert pink of GW1, as it shows off the red and white squadron markings to good effect, as well as being simple to paint. The basic kit is the Italeri effort, with Airwaves GR4 conversion, Aeroclub EJ seats, Paragon thrust reversal mechanism (but not the afterburner cans - mine were way too small in diameter??) and the Paragon fin correction. For what it's worth, this kit has had two lives; I originally did it in 12 sqn 90th anniversary markings courtesy of Model Alliance, but I made a real hash of it. It sat on my shelf for a year, and I was about to bin it when I saw the article in AFM about 41sqn, and so I sanded it down, refilled and generally made good before spraying it in Tamiya's Medium Sea Grey 2, which I think is a really good version of this colour. It's certainly alot closer to my mind's eye than, say, the Xtracrylix version which is way too dark. Anyway, really got into this refurb project, and added extra details with reference to the AFM article and Airliners.net photos of ZA600. I added an Isracast Litening targetting pod, which I modified into the RAF version (where the intake is on the portside of the pod, rather than the starboard) by the simple expedient of sawing off the front end and glueing it on 'upside down'. The Paveway IV was equally a homebrew effort based on the Hasegawa GBU-12, with the saddleback made of millput and the lumps and bumps on the nose made of scrap plastic. I was really pleased with the final effect; if I was able to cast resin I'd have made some copies. I also caught the new'ish T shaped antenna that seem to be appearing on the rear-undersides of current GR4s. Finally, I put on the 41 sqn marks from the Xtradecal Tornado sheet. These are intended for the F3s the unit used to have, but the GR4 markings are identical. I added the EB-G BoB anniversary codes from a modelsheet of white RAF codes. The only thing I would like to have added was the new TERMA countermeasures pod, but until someone brings one out I stuck with the Sky Shadow pod. Anyway, here it is for what it's worth - a 'test Tornado'. Next up; An Italeri Tornado F3 (a a recent Ebay victory!) with lots of resin and PE goodies, to be done as ZG753 - the 111 sqn boss bird from a couple of years ago, and to my mind one of the two best F3 schemes! (The other being 23 sqn, but that's another story!) Paul

Hi all, prompted by the recent article about 41 sqn in an issue of AFM, I thought I'd have a go at doing ZA600 in her overall MSG scheme. Happen to think this is the best tornado scheme since the desert pink of GW1, as it shows off the red and white squadron markings to good effect, as well as being simple to paint. The basic kit is the Italeri effort, with Airwaves GR4 conversion, Aeroclub EJ seats, Paragon thrust reversal mechanism (but not the afterburner cans - mine were way too small in diameter??) and the Paragon fin correction. For what it's worth, this kit has had two lives; I originally did it in 12 sqn 90th anniversary markings courtesy of Model Alliance, but I made a real hash of it. It sat on my shelf for a year, and I was about to bin it when I saw the article in AFM about 41sqn, and so I sanded it down, refilled and generally made good before spraying it in Tamiya's Medium Sea Grey 2, which I think is a really good version of this colour. It's certainly alot closer to my mind's eye than, say, the Xtracrylix version which is way too dark. Anyway, really got into this refurb project, and added extra details with reference to the AFM article and Airliners.net photos of ZA600. I added an Isracast Litening targetting pod, which I modified into the RAF version (where the intake is on the portside of the pod, rather than the starboard) by the simple expedient of sawing off the front end and glueing it on 'upside down'. The Paveway IV was equally a homebrew effort based on the Hasegawa GBU-12, with the saddleback made of millput and the lumps and bumps on the nose made of scrap plastic. I was really pleased with the final effect; if I was able to cast resin I'd have made some copies. I also caught the new'ish T shaped antenna that seem to be appearing on the rear-undersides of current GR4s. Finally, I put on the 41 sqn marks from the Xtradecal Tornado sheet. These are intended for the F3s the unit used to have, but the GR4s are identical. I added the EB-G BoB anniversary codes from a modelsheet of white RAF codes. The only thing I would like to have added was the new TERMA countermeasures pod, but until someone brings one out I'll stick with the Sky Shadow pod. Anyway, here it is for what it's worth - a 'test Tornado'. Next up; An Italeri Tornado F3 (a a recent Ebay victory!) with lots of resin and PE goodies, to be done as ZG753 - the 111 sqn boss bird from a couple of years ago, and to my mind the one of the two definitive F3 schemes - the other being 23 sqn! Paul

That's fantastic Shaun - a great help! Many thanks, Paul

Hi there, am wanting to model a 23 sqn F3 as per the Bosnia deployment in 1994. I 've got pictures of Code EW and EG actually in theatre, but unfortunately I can't read the serials. EG might be something like ZE15? I've looked at the normal sources - Airliners.net and my worryingly large collection of magazines and books, but can't see anything. Was wondering if anyone had the British Aircraft Serials book from 1994 or something similar that might help, or could confirm any other code/serial tie ups for other 23 sqn aircraft deployed at this time? Many thanks for any assistance, Paul