jargonking

Here's the latest CAD pics....

As my main interest is sci-fi I was already buying most of my kits direct from Japan or the USA as they were at least 50% cheaper even after shipping....the main importer setting the joke prices in the UK was Amerang, Modelzone's owners....hmmm..... The main reason I'll miss MZ was for paints which may prove a little problematic now that Royal Mail are refusing to deliver them. I'm with Chadders on the 'death of modelling' too...the UK market may seem big but it's tiny compared to the markets in Asia, the US and Eastern Europe, and there's still plenty of independents and shows if you bother to look....

Gordon, a quick way to improve the eyes would be to paint in the fleshtone across the top and bottom of the white of the eye so that the iris meets the eyelids.... Looking forward to seeing this build as I have one of these in the stash....

Been a while since I was on this build as I've had a lot of other stuff going on... Just been messing around with my camera trying to get some interesting night shots....see what you think.... Deckard makes a call.... The lights help highlight the figure.... I think the graininess gives it that misty, acid rain feel... The advertising screens are still imperfect but I think it adds to the atmosphere.... Another atmospheric shot.... Deckard drives away leaving the papers blowing across the sidewalk.....

My dad flew these in the RNZAF out of Wigram

Chester have had more stock in....picked up an Atlantis (ex-Aurora) Black Bear and Cubs which was new on the shelves and a Dragon Apollo 17 with Lunar Rover which has been there for months. They still have lots of Tamiya sprays in plastic boxes on the floor, some new Revell cars, lots of Moebius Dracula kits.....armour is thinning out...

With VAT at 20% you pay import duty on any package where the value of the goods PLUS the shipping exceed £20 so it makes sense to order lots of smaller value items than grouping them together....you pay more in shipping but are less likely to attract customs charges.... That said, most of mine that come straight through the Post Office seem to dodge the fees yet every single parcel handled by Parcel Force gets hammered.

By coincidence I just received the Acreation etched set for the FM Falcon yesterday....well worth a look.... http://www.culttvmanshop.com/Light-Freighter-172-Detail-set-from-Acreation-Models_p_1120.html ...although it's currently showing as out of stock.

Yes but the banks have been ripping us off for years...I'd like to see a breakdown of the £8 and also see how much Royal Mail make from these charges annually

It's not the VAT I have an issue with, it's the so-called 'handling fee' that gets my back up....I picked up my Moebius Tumbler today that I ordered from Cult in the US. I added in some decals and etched brass to make the shipping worthwhile...total order $100, VAT was £13, handling fee was £8! It's just profiteering by Royal Mail pure and simple....

To be honest I don't understand why MZ should be upset by people sharing the vouchers as it's still generating sales that they would be unlikely to have otherwise, and to make the extra 20% worthwhile the punter has still got to spend a decent amount of cash. The vast majority of people using these vouchers will be diehard modelmakers and regular customers who have supported MZ in the past. Maybe if they had issued vouchers or had a loyalty scheme set up months ago then they might not be in the state they're in now.

Actually you're right however on closer inspection of the receipt it's worked out around 45% off the original marked prices so I'm guessing the prices on the boxes don't tally with the tills....

Ha, looks like you got two!

No problems using the voucher in Liverpool....all I had to do was stick my name and address on the back and I got 20% off the already 30% reduction....which obviously equates to 50% off. Picked up a Dragon 1/9 Avengers Nick Fury, Hasegawa 1/48 P39Q Airacobra Thompson Trophy Racer and a Dragon 1/35 T-28 Super Heavy Tank for just under £65 all in!

I think the vouchers are the same for everybody....mine has the same number....

Talking of cleaning airbrushes...if you need to do a more thorough strip down clean then try using an ultrasonic jewelery cleaner. I picked mine up for about £16 in Aldi a couple of years back...they get them in at least once a year...you simply place your airbrush bits in the bath, switch it on and it does the rest for you....

Just looking at those decals Steve....while we've got this nice weather try taping them to a window to let the sun bleach out the brown stains, then give them an overcoat of clear lacquer and you'll be good to go....

Chester had a delivery today from both the warehouse and the remaining stock from the Trafford Centre....there's lots of Tamiya sprays in plastic boxes on the floor at the far end, looks like the aircraft and cars have been filled up again...lots of Academy stuff, odd Tamiya cars and bikes, lots of Revell Star Trek downstairs.

Here's his site...the kit is still in the planning stage, he posts pretty regularly on Facebook.... http://randycoopermodels.com/

Randy Cooper is planning a 1/18th resin version sometime soon.

My Tumbler is on it's way...

No more progress on the weathering till probably Friday when I can get a full day in on it...might even get it completed... Meanwhile my Batmobile collection is almost complete...these arrived today... first up the unloved Clooney version...actually I quite like the shape of this one... Next the classic '60's version with what has to be the greatest boxart ever to grace a sci-fi kit, that's going straight in a frame...this is the deluxe version with the photoetch.... One thing I couldn't resist was this bargain from Hobbylink Japan...just a fiver!...maybe I'll try a German Batman diorama...would that be Fledermaus man?....

Each LED has its own resistor soldered to the longer anode (+) leg...a red lead is then soldered to the other end of the resistor and a black lead to the shorter cathode (-) of the LED. All of the various red and black leads can then be spliced together and fed off a single power source...in this case a 9v battery.

Base coat of Satin Black acrylic auto spray is on and it's starting to look the part....just some touching in to do and start weathering before applying the decals...I'm going to hand paint inside the intakes as I was wary about too much paint building up as I tried to spray them.... Eye level with the pilot.... Overview showing the contrast with the airbrakes...

Final assembly before the paint goes on.... The joints between the exhaust segments were a real pain to deal with...notice the lack of any engine exhaust detail here....I did consider hollowing out this area but the work involved far outweighed any real payoff so I decided to leave it as is....