Tiger331

Nice one.......take care with the Xtradecal decals....they appear much thinner than some of their earlier sheets, with a tendency to fold over, but still go on very nicely in the end.

Notwithstanding the issues with the Intake Fronts/Engine fans on the Academy kit, and comparative costs here in Europe I think GWH will need to produce something extraordinary if they are going to realise meaningful sales from this kit. Time would have been better spent on a new F-105 Thunderchief family or similar IMHO (Yes, I know every kit manufacturer needs every type of aircraft model in their own catalogue but some subjects are still more marketable than others)

Over the weekend I discovered that a few pieces have gone missing during the four house moves that I have completed since I first started this project. The most obvious was the triangular fairing that fits between the front ACES II seat and the rear coaming, so I have spent quite a bit of time building one of these from scratch and also sanding and polishing the prominent central seam that runs along the length of the canopy. I also had to spend some time blending in the nose radome with the fuselage. This work is now all done so I am almost ready to begin the painting stage. I was relieved to learn that the entire lower wing surfaces of PAF F-16s are of a uniform colour; I had feared that some masking of the stores pylons may have become necessary.

............and in discussing the 'outrageous' price of the GWH kit, the only location where this may appear relevant (so far) is the USA......and I think that is a matter to take up with the importers over there rather than the manufacturer. In the UK, the GWH kit works out to be roughly the same price as the Tamiya kit and while it is slightly more expensive on the Continent (Europe) it is still very much in line with the cost of the Tamiya kit here too. As a result, the costing argument does not carry so much weight when comparing one kit with another. I now have both and I'm very happy with each, although I would have preferred a 'bomber' load for the F-14B, given that Tamiya supply primarily the Air Defence weapons in their kits.

Finally starting to look like an F-16. Unfortunately I have completed four house moves since this model was first started and in this process have lost the triangular shaped actuator fairing that is fitted to the canopy and sits between the two cockpit tubs, so I am going to have to scratchbuild one this weekend before I attach the canopy.

I'm calling this one Done ! Fitted the last parts earlier this week and removed all of the masking. Hope to get some good photos for the RFI section in the next day or so.

Anyone wanting a fair and unbiased view of this kit would do well to check out the 'naked review' that someone's model has recently done over on You Tube. He compares it with the Tamiya kit although you need to bear in mind that he regularly references VFM, taking into account the $200 that is being charged in the US for this kit (it is available for far less in the UK) so bear this in mind when you watch it. Looks impressive even though I have little doubt that the usual bunch of tiresome armchair modellers and naysayers will inevitably look to pick holes in it for accuracy and buildability. My only disappointment was with the stores fit provided. I had been looking forward to a 'Bombcat' fit with the appropriate pallets etc but knowing GWH they will produce a version with LGBs etc a little later.

Does anyone know if there is any rationale applied to the fitting of the tailerons on Danish F-16s. I know that in the early days (and even during the European MLU programme) many RDAF F-16s retained the original Block 5 (I think) small tailerons but I have now noticed that some aircraft appear to sport the later, enlarged versions with the angled section adjacent to the trailing edges, as seen on the vast majority of contemporary F-16s. Any information would be gratefully received.

I'm on a bit of a roll (for me anyway) now that I have almost wrapped up my Vintage Classic build of the Airfix DHC-2 Beaver. I have now turned my attention to rescuing a long term resident of my Shelf of Doom, which was about to go in the bin, with the release of a new-mould Kinetic 1:48 F-16 two-seater. The original kit was going to be finished in NATO Tiger Meet markings from 2007 (for which I have now procured the aforementioned new-mould kit). Since I had done quite a bit of work on the older kit, I decided to re-purpose it for our SIG stand at SMW'23, so it will now be finished in Pakistan Air Force markings with the attractive two-tone Grey scheme applied to these aircraft. I had to start by carefully removing the original long para tail associated with RNoAF F-16BMs and replacing it with the short tail version found on early PAF F-16BMs. Unlike most of my planned builds, this one is going to be pretty much OOB. The only additions I will be making are the inclusion of two Hasegawa pilot figures, which have already been installed, and an AAQ-33 Sniper XR pod, which I will source from another kit, since I have misplaced the original from this kit. As you can see I plan to keep it reasonably simple, posing it in 'flight mode'. The Hasegawa pilots took some 'fettling' before installation, with a lot of trial and error. They were finally 'strapped in' with some Tamiya masking tape, suitably secured with canopy glue and finished off in medium Blue/Grey. There is a fair bit to do before I reach the painting stage so stay tuned.

Thanks for the tip on the GWH exhaust nozzles and the Reskit replacements. Like you, I have several Su-27/30/35s in the stash so its probably time to invest in a couple more Reskit sets to accompany them !. I will follow this build closely since I have also recently taken delivery of an MKI.

These shots were taken during a previous visit to the AAC museum. Not the best I'm afraid, since access was limited and the cockpit is high off the ground but hopefully they give you some pointers. The black seat frames and yellow cushions are not peculiar to AAC types but I did use other colours for my own DHC-2 Beaver build.

Nearly there...........! Managed to get the matt varnish applied over the weekend. The only issue was that I had overlooked the prominence on some of the rivets so there was some minor silvering on one or two of the decals (and in spite of my use of decal solvents). Fortunately the majority of issues were with the large '8019' on the fuselage sides, which I managed to paint out and then apply another thin layer of varnish. In spite of a busy Sunday, which involved a lengthy trip to help my daughter with her relocation, I still managed a bit more work in the evening, fitting the cabin access steps, pitot probe and the wing mounted aerials. A couple more evenings this week should see this one done.

All great things come to an end......there is only so much time when you are working in a small aftermarket company, I guess.......just like Aeroclub, PP Aeroparts and many others that have gone before. Nonetheless Philippe has done a wonderful job over these thirty years (is it really that long ?.....I can well remember the first products) and I count myself a loyal customer for most of that time. I have used more than one (?!) resin pilot in my models over the years and will surely miss the eager anticipation that went with every new release. A HUGE Thank you to Philippe, Cathy and PJ Productions Bon Chance !

Selwyn, Given the ingenuity of both the RRAF and the SAAF during the various sanctions period, I am not surprised to hear that. In fact, I seem to recall that I mat have read that before but forgot and just wanted to double-check. I noticed that they only appear on some of the fleet....not all had them fitted. Thanks again for confirming

Calling all Canberra experts ! I have recently been viewing a Royal Rhodesian Air Force video and noticed that at least one of their Canberras was sporting what looked like an array of aerials (or mounting brackets) on the underside of the nose area. It looks like there was at least four present. Does anyone know what they are ? Thanks

OK....good..........seems you were lucky and avoided the batch that had flat windscreens and received one with the 'standard' part.

I don't want to put a dampener on this (since I too have been looking forward to this particular boxing) but there appears to be an issue with the clear parts (and the wraparound canopy in particular) with the new AC-130J kits. I have seen several reports over on ARC regarding the same issue, so please check your own kit. The windscreen appears to be completely flattened although this could be due to the fact that the clear plastic in this kit has been reported as noticeably softer and more 'flexy' than in previous kits (C-130H and J for example). It looks as if the plastic is so flexible that the part could be 'wrapped' around the fuselage without breaking although there could be an issue with the central window panes being too flat. Not sure how one will all get on with ordering replacements from Zvedza under the current circumstances too so buyer beware

OK......finally got back to this project last week after an extended period away from Estonia and my modelling bench. Masking and main coat applied and then left the model to dry for a couple of days during our hot and humid summer. I used Vallejo Model Color Glossy black (70.861) with some distilled water through the airbrush which has provided a nice finish for the decals. No need for a Clearcote or Future undercoat. Started the decalling process earlier this evening. I'm using the new Xtradecal sheet to replicate a DHC-2 Beaver operated by the ROCAF. As I suspected, the decals have gone on well over the Vallejo paint with my usual formula of Microsol and Microset. I will now leave this to dry off for a day or so and then apply the semi-gloss sealant before doing some minor weathering and or shading to break up the rather uniform overall black colour.

Enjoyed the variety of combat aircraft types in this selection. Saw most of these (or variations thereof) during my four extended deployments to Nellis for RED FLAG in the early-mid 1980s. Thanks for sharing

Those were the days.....................REAL aeroplanes.....F-101s, F-4s in the wraparound scheme, SAC FB-111As etc etc. Thanks for sharing !

Nice one !.......................Gotta love the Phrog...................one of my favourite rotary wing beasts. I remember Norton AFB well.....used to fly in and out quite a bit during the early 80's courtesy of the TTW at Lyneham.

David, TOTALLY AGREE..........................I have been waiting for a mainstream Mk.19 in 1:72 or (preferably) 1:48 scale for decades !

Only just noticed the photos from Friday !.....................what a pity given the quality of what was on display. Hope it is better at the weekend

Nice selection......highlights for me are the fully armed two-seat Eurofighter (I thought we had retired all of these ?) and the Finnish Air Force F/A-18C special. Great set of images for those of us that are unable to be at the show. Thanks for sharing !

I am amazed that Special Hobby have persisted with this release. If the Airfix kit was fairly simple or had turned out to be sub-standard in terms of accuracy etc, I would have understood but given the superb reviews of the latter, I am really not sure how many mixed-media Special Hobby Anson kits will now sell. Investment in upscaling their Mirage F.1s to 1:48 would have been my preferred option !.