yeehah1

10-12-07 What do you guys think of the Revell kit? Looks like a nice littel kit with the parts to make a single seater ( although there aren't any single seater options in the decals provided with the kit. I thought it looked cool...just picked one up from a not-so-local hobby shop. Liam

07-12-07 I read some of the early Altias...terrific story...didn't like the anime, but hope they try again. Looking forward to seeing this done Liam

27-11-07 The Model Color Vajello paint (white lids) is fragile..care has to be taken and yes, it takes awhile ot cure...I never worried too much about the cockpit elements but always left it overnight before gloss coating when doing the cammo. I would never use the Tamiya thinners with this or any other acrylic. Tap water (depending upon chlorine content) should be fine and the 50/50 ratio works well...try it a little thinner as well....60 water, 40 paint. The colors themselves are beautiful and they generally brush on well, but like all brands, they have their troublesome colours.... If only they could make decent paint brushes..... Liam

25-11-07 Well, as Jen says, Model Color and Model Air are two different animals. Thin Model Color at least by 50%. I would be wary of using tap water..I did until I recently had problems getting Klear to self-level. Apparently the council here have added cholrinr ot the water which, even when the paint had dried, repels the Klear and causes werid things to happen to the Gamesworkshop spray I use. I would recommend thinning and brush painting using distilled or de-ionised water...just to be safe. Model Color is fragile, but I think that they do recommend using a primer first for hte paint to bite into. It's an effect that be used to a nice effect if you spray silver first, then paint the top color and then run your grubby mitts over...gives a natural wear'n'tear effect ot cockpit elements sometimes. Model Air ( black top) is meant to be formulated for use with an airbrush, but I sometimes drop a little water into it. Love both paints but my main squeese now are Lifecolour paints. Liam

25-11-07 What's the difference between the Tallboy and the Jonnie Walker referenced above?? Liam

24-11-07 Both sets of paints have good reps and decent ranges of colors....and accurate. If you want hte real deal as far as British cammo colors go, then Xtracrylics is the way to go. Bear in mind that you would need to thin the Xtracrlyics down. Others better informed than I can tell you better. I would actually use colors from both ranges....if you like...all the British stuff from Xtracrylics and all the rest from Vajello. Liam

19-11-07 I am building a couple of Mustangs in 1/48. One is a Hasegawa kit and the other is a Tamiya kit. Both are P-51-D's. One set of instructions refers to one canopy as the "Dallas" canopy. Ok. They look exactly the same. What's the difference?? Thanks in advance Liam

17-11-07 Thanks for the help guys! Liam

17-11-07 Thanks, I'll check them out. It's a great help to know which ones to zone in on! Liam

16-11-07 Can anyone recommend to me what would be the best quality Hurricane in terms of detail and accuracy, please? I am thinking Hasegawa, but would like to hear other opinions. Thanks in advance Liam

14-11-07 Is it any good? Also, same question about the Esci 1/48 Tornado GR1. Thanks in advance Liam

12-11-07 Nary a one...I didn't expect any, to be honest as I thought that there were too many small superficial flaws for it to warrant a judges interest. However, I was also under the impression that judges could be swayed by the character of a build. A mate suggested that he thought the majority of the entries were a little clinical in their execution and I would have to agree to a point. Mind you, the Marauder was jaw-dropping. And I really liked the Huey diorama. See, I saw some of the judges...what kind of experience is necessary to judge at this level...given that Telford is the, what, League Championship or World Cup final for modellers??? I had thought that the unusall-ness of the subject might have raised enough eyebrows to warrant a recomendation. Pity there's no feedback given..it would be nice to know what to look out for next time...Battlestar Galactica '05 resin Viper anyone??? Liam

12-11-07 Done and done! With cowling...the thing that really sets it off, I think. It was really cool to see her up on the competition table at Telford...I can only imagine the head sratching that must've gone on whe nthe punters ( and judges, I think) came across this one! At least it wasn't "just" another Spitfire or Me109...but it was a bit of both, actually!! Liam

08-11-07 Having MAJOR problems getting the Future to dry level. It's a brand new bottle bought yesterday, but for the 5th time, the finish has pooled and given a streaky finish, the paint job underneath was smooth and perfect. This is only on the spinner and prop blades. Using Lifecolor acrylics..really freaking out about this as I need to finish it tonight to pack tomorrow for travel to Telford. Everthing else came out ok. Final weathering done last nigth..engine glued onto the business end etc...canopies tonight. Liam

06-11-07 Yup, I know. On the other side, it's grand, but I seemed to have inadvertantly superglued the one you saw on at a slight angle. Hadn't realised it until after the cowling was formed and reckoned it was too far alonf to rip asunder. As I said, too many flaws to win gongs..but it's a good learning experience that dug me out of a rut and marked an entire slew of "firsts". It's not a bad build overall....maybe in a few years I'll try something similar..thinking of making the 1/32 Revell Hurrican as an Irish Air Corp machine,,,hmmmmmmmm Liam

06-11-07 Iain Art: Heya. Mike and I have hada conversation about the bulbous nature of the BF110 nose as supplied in the Revell kit and once I had the cowling as I wanted it, I gave it a good sanding to smooth it out and try and streamline it without loosing the curavture, which is, I feel, the signature shapre of this conversion. I am spraying on the crosses and codes, so when they are done, I'l lattach the engine and drop the cowling in place with the spinner and post a pic. Liam

05-11-07 Update time.... This is the cowling..it's all one piece, but photos I have seen suggest it was in two parts. Should I chop it?? Bit of detail inside. Not too much as I wanted to make sure it fitted on top of the engine for when it's not on show. Profile shot. Okay, based on conversations on Mike's thread and close examination of the photos of the real thing, I went with a camo scheme, rather than one overall color. The actual scheme itself is a hybrid of two Me109 schemes...one from the 1/32 Hase kit and the other from an example in the Aero Detail book on the Me109 G model. Base color is RLM 75 and the cammo is RLM 74. I have had major problems with Future on this and have had to repaint twice...apparently, Future goes bad and doesn't self-level. One new batch later and it works ok... Not to mention the fact that I now have a cold. The crosses and letters will be spray painted and the swazie will come from a spare decal sheet..later tonight after I get some chicken soup and rest! She won;t win any prizes at Telford, there;s too many flaws that I haven't got time nor, right now, the energy to address, but overall, she looks the biz. A worthwhile and learning experience, which is what I believe model-,making is all about really. I did lot's of stuff I wouldn't have considered doing before, and to be honset, not sure if I would do all of them again....but look what I have as a result of stretching myself a bit. Thanks for all the support and all the advise...will post pics when done... Liam

03-11-07 Ok, I would like to know a little more about this, especially if there are marking available... According to this month's Model Aircraft Monthly (vol 6,issue 11, Nov 2007), an article Croydon Airport states that BEA operated two Ju 52/3's (captured), converted, as did British Airways Ltd (page 46, the little blurb text under the photo bottom left). Does anyone have anymore information on this and if there are, actually, any markings available or if it might be possible to cobble them together? Thanks in advance Liam

03-11-07 I have a mate who uses an Aztek A4702 airbrush and he wants to use Alclad paints. As we know, to clena the brush afterwards, you need to use Cellouse thinners, right, so he's afraid that might damage the inside components of his airbrush. He says it's all plastic. I dunno, I have never seen an Aztek brush, never mind using one. So, would it be ok to use cellouse thinners to clean out his airbrush?? Thanks in advance Liam

30-10-07 Just completed this for a g/b on the Forum-that-shall-not-be-named...had started it a number of months ago, and then got down to business withthe MesserSpit. The idea was to build the classic Monogram kits straight fro mteh box, except maybe for decals...no scratch building or aftermarket allowed...to follow the spirit of how we used to build when we were kids.... Some minor fit issues and the decals were a little thick and didn't line up where they should have, but overall this is a really tasty kit, lovely detail and strangely heavy. No weights were used but the kit, when built feels almost as heavy as a diecast model! Liam

29-10-07 God, I am such an idiot! So sorry, Col. A true brain-fart moment there. Had a sleepless night last night and not thinking straight when I posted the reply. There might be a Corsair book in their line....the Avenger book was published in 2005 and there is no reference to a Corsair book. But that doesn't mean that there isn't one.... Aero Detail have one on the Corsair, I think it's no.25. I have no idea if they cover the FAA or Corsair 2, but maybe someone here has a copy that they can check? The Aero Detail books are amazing as well...Japanese and English text, superb detail photos and drawings. Again, sorry for the blunder. That's my Homer moment for the day done then... Liam

29-10-07 Col. Try Wings and Wheels Avenger TBF/TBM in Detail book ( Special Museum Line No. 34) Avenger in Detail. It describes itself as a "photo manual for modellers" and it ain;t far wrong. It doesn't deal specifically with Avenger II's, but does mention the FAA A vengers and hte difference in the cockpits. It is FULL of detailed photos and drawings as well as beautiful, detailed 1/72 and 1/48 scale drawings on what looks liked a folded poster arrangement. Gorgeous book....Bill Clark got it for me from Hannants...highly recomended Liam

25-10-07 S'okay Mike, found it. I was thinking, just to liven the paint job up, that I'd use Jen's suggestion( kinda) of RLM 75 overall on top with RLM 70 along the spine and ( what looks like) cammo stripe on the wings. Now, I know nothing about Luftwaffe cammo colours or designs, but isn't there a Me109 pattern like this from around the same time? Some sort of wavy line along the spine with straight-line demarcations across the wings? Can someone post a drawing showing this as reference for me please? Pretty please?? Liam

25-10-07 Apparently, much the same thing...they abandoned their first attempt completely and then after a few months had another crack at it. It worked the second time around and by all accounts, was quite successful and a popluar little go-buggy for Luftwaffe pilots looking for a joyride.... ...until the Americans broke it in a bombing raid! Liam (cowling just about done...broke a piece sanding it last night and need to re-do it....will post piccies tomorrow. Mike: did you have an issue with the camo job on hte original? I seem to recall an thread here where you and Jen discussed a demarcation line and such....can you link to it agin please?)

25-10-07 Excellent. Tally-ho! Liam