Stephen Hawkins

Nice. I am just finishing mine and I agree. It went together well and nothing adverse to report. A little filler in the wing root was all that was required. And I enjoyed the build enough to think about getting a second. Perhaps I am just not fussy enough. Steve

The Attacker is especially amusing as it has no wheel bays for the undercarriage. I did might in Silver as a Prototype...... Steve

I found this kit very difficult back in my yoof, as the upper wing was very heavy for the struts to bear. Well done.

Always remember going past 72 Sqn hanger when the doors were open, one night. Looked like a load of dinosaurs in there. Working on the visiting Chinooks at the time..... Steve

I think this is a great kit. I have built several. Profipacks and Weekenders. Profipacks are really wasted on me as my skill level is not really up to it. Also the base kit is so good that I do not really feel that I have lost out much. And I have a soft spot for Airacobra's, especial;;y the P400s and D models. Nice work. I must get another. Steve

I have built the same model from Milicast in desert colours. I am a fan of their kits, but they are not the cheapest out there. But they are great for all the more esoteric stuff. Stvee

Even if the Squadrons out in the far east were equipped with the same number of latest Spitfires, they still would have lost. Always up against it. Little or no early warning and when the japs turned up, they did so, 'mob handed'. Always out numbered and always climbing to meet the opposition.....Mostly when they were on their way out. Steve

I have an Otter as well, in the stash and have done a couple of their C15 trucks. Overly complicated and not for the beginner. The chassis really could have been molded as one piece instead of 25 pieces! But they are well detailed. Just steeling myself for the Otter. Cheers

I should have mentioned the individual track links....They are very small ...Oh dear! I would be wary of the template, and try to build them on a flat surface instead in sections. Glue them to the wheels in sections before the they go off too hard. I spite of that trauma I have done two. Good Luck Steve

If you buy one of the their Bren Carriers, you get an Boys anti-tank rifle to use in your Otter..

Mostly its display for me. I do not have the space to display many 1/35 kits. But I do build the odd 1/35 kit when the mood strikes me. Mostly old Tamiya or Italeri. Then there is also the cost. A new release 1/35 kit can be getting on for £50 in the UK, and that is too much. There is also the shear breadth of coverage. 1/72, 1/76 and 20mm have got it covered, if you look hard enough. And there is a choice in detail level and construction material, of the subjects you want to build. If you want to build all the cruiser tanks that served in the desert, then it will have to be 1/72, 1/76 or 20mm. Or all versions of the Vickers Light tanks (A, B, C and AA?) I find 1/48, 1/56 and 15mm a bit of a distraction, same old candidates in a different scale.

Actually its the Armoured Carriers, Wheeled, India Pattern, Mk IIC or Mk III...I am after....

I am doing North Africa as well. I like the idea of a Theatre, then investigating the hardware that the protagonists used. But you have to be careful. More that one time I have been caught out by box art. A Wespe or a Panther depicted by a palm tree - that does not mean they made it to North Africa! Even sweated over an Attack 'Grille' under the mistaken notion that they made it to the Desert. Doh! You can soon run out of normal injection molded kits though, by restricting yourself, they only make what they can shift quickly. Then you have to start chasing the more esoteric stuff. Anyone for a reasonably priced Indian Pattern Reconnaissance Car? Hurry up Millicast! Steve

Recently I have been quite impressed with some of the kit by Plastic Soldier (1/72). Especially where one kit has 3 vehicles all of different types - Marder kit for example, has 2 different versions of the Marder II and the original 38T tank that they were based of, same with their Panzer III kits. Excellent value for money. I hope they manage to bring more kits out this year. For detail, I also like Milicast (1/76). But they are resin kits. if you visit their site, you will be amazed with the many types of vehicle modelled by them. And they are accurate. I have also recently done a few of IBG kits. A couple of Bren Carriers and some C15 trucks. They have, however, gone a bit mad on the 'parts count' competition, where they break down the model into far too many parts for the size of the kit. This makes them difficult and frustrating to build. Individual track links for a 1/72 Bren Carrier, anyone? That said, the do look good when done....Their range is also limited. I have also done Airfix, Hasegawa, Italeri, amongst others. The older kits tend to be less accurate, though. I have also looked at some of the other war gamming models, both metal and resin, with some limited success - scale accuracy does seem to be an issue though. The beauty of these kits, is that the are not so big that you struggle to store/display them Cheers Steve

I have just used this link and was able to see the video via Windows Explorer. Great video, its just a pity it wasn't in colour. Would have saved a lot of grief. : ) Steve