Space Ranger

Learstang need not worry. The right of Martians to defend their own black holes is guaranteed by the United Worlds of the Solar System in accordance with the Treaty of Gluteus Maximus and is enforced by the Space Rangers. They (the holes) are no-fly zones.

Hah! Can't fool me. That's the real thing, but cleverly Photoshopped to make us think it's a model!

I'm told it takes leather balls to play rugby.

I have not been a Cowboys fan since Jerry Jones bought the team, installed himself as General Manager, and fired Tom Landry. In fact, I am no longer an N.F.L. fan at all.

For the benefit of my isolated British cousins, the Dallas Cowboys are a popular U.S. National Football League team, sometimes called “America’s Team.” This year they made it into the playoffs but lost their last game in a pitiful performance, so their season is over.

The Dallas Cowboys could have benefited from something similar in their last playoff game.

Clear coating metallic finishes can be iffy, as Charlie Hugo points out. I’d suggest using a water-based clear coat such as Alclad’s Aqua Gloss or AK’s Gauzy Shine. Future/Klear is still a popular clear coat, and you can adjust the degree of “shine” by adding Tamiya’s Flat Base to it.

Ooh! Ooh!

Any color primer will work for a metallic finish; the only caveat being that it must be glossy, smooth, and blemish free. Contrary to what appears to be the conventional wisdom, you do NOT need to use a gloss black primer under any color other than the extremely shiny finishes such as chrome. I use Tamiya's fine surface primer, both white and gray, and Mr. Surfacer. I make sure the unpainted plastic is clean and as smooth as possible, spray the primer (decanted for airbrush application), and polish it with increasingly finer grades of sandpaper (up to and including 2,500 grit) and then buff it with a microfiber cloth. Then I use a tack cloth to remove any residual dust. And it IS possible to use enamel over enamel without any issues whatsoever. I've been doing it for over 60 years, with both brush and spray. Note that enamels do not "dry" through evaporation of the solvent, but instead cure through polymerization. Once they are completely cured (which typically takes around 24 hours, but can take more or less depending on formulation) a second coat can be applied without any problems. Just follow the manufacturers advice.

I have C1's very nice MGB-GT kit and intend to build it as my late lamented '68 U.S. spec Pale Primrose car. But does anyone know where I can obtain some real wire wheels to replace those in the Aoshima kit?

Colourcoats makes a Mitsubishi Zero Grey-Green (ACJ16) enamel.

You’re most welcome. I interpreted your original message to mean that the Andover has the same airfoil(s) as the Viscount. My apologies. The 748/Andover is an aircraft that is not well-known here in the U.S. I don’t think many made it over here. I’ve certainly never seen one! Come to think of it, I never saw a Viscount, either!

AK Interactive Xtreme Metal. It's an enamel that gives excellent results. Available in many shades, but Aluminum, Dark Aluminum, and Duraluminum will get you started. You'll also need their thinner.

I get this message when trying to connect to your friend’s site: ”Safari could not open the page because it cannot connect to the server.”

See here: http://airfoiltools.com/airfoil/details?airfoil=n63415-il and here: https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/coord_database.html All the airfoil data you could ever want!

More likely a slide rule!

I’m inclined to believe now it is either a Heller or Revell kit. I built the original Revell kit when I was a teenager (!), but I remember it as having a different cowling. However, that was a long time ago.

I think it’s a Matchbox Zero.

It’s the Southern Baptist influence.

I know next to nought about the details of Meteors, but it looks to me that, in addition to the thick trailing edges of the wings, the base of the canopy looks awfully thick as well. But even so, I’ll be buying one.

I agree with Rabbit Leader. The best advise is to always use finishing products intended for the modeling hobby, and preferably those from the same manufacturer, as they are designed to work together in combination.

If you have a Mac, hold down the Option key and type 'n'. Then release the Option key and type 'n' again. The n will then appear with the tilde: ñ. There are similar commands for other diacritical marks. For example, hold down the Option key, type a 'u', then type an 'o'. Result: ö. Of course here in Texas, we have our own version of the English language. For example, the plural of "you" is "you all," usually pronounced "y'all" (rhymes with"yawl"). And the plural of "y'all" is, of course, "all y'all." My favorite Texasism is "fixing to," pronounced "fixin' to," meaning "getting ready to [do something], as in "Ah'm fixin' to go to the store." Which, of course, leads to constructions such as "Ah'm fixin' to get ready to go to the store." I am 75 and a native Texan, and I never fail to be amused by how some of my fellow Texans mangle the "Kang's Anglish." I frequently hear "dreckly" used as in Seahawk's examples, and from people who couldn't find Cornwall on a map! I lived and worked in Connecticut for seven years, and folks were always kidding me about my Texas accent. My response usually was, "Ah don't have an accent; it's all y'all that have an accent!'

Macs have a similar feature. On mine, an American flag appears in the header at the top of the Finder. If i click on it, I have these options: Show Character Palette, Show Keyboard Viewer (shows what character is mapped to each of the keys, including Shift, Control, Option, and Apple key), Show Input Source Name (national abbreviation in addition to flag, i.e., 'U.S.' in addition to American flag), and Open International, which opens System preferences and allows you to change the language preferences for everything.

Hooray!

My 1968 US-spec B-GT was Pale Primrose. A lovely car, too, with chrome wire wheels, black leather interior, and electric overdrive. I had forgotten about the three windshield wipers, however. Thanks for the memory! I wish I still had it, but sold it when I decided to go back to university and get married. If I win the lottery, I’m going to buy another one. Seems like there was a significant change in the 1969 US models, also, but I can’t recall exactly what.