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Depending on the depth and nature of the scribing, the klear coat may be your problem. Unless applied very thinly this can fill the lines to some degree and round the edges meaning that the wash won't stay in the lines when you wipe. Try your technique on a test piece without Klear coating. I realise you may be trying to protect the underlying paint from the wash - to that end I usually use a watercolour wash, then Klear (sprayed) afterwards to seal it. Cheers Colin

For what its worth I've worked in one form or another in online user support for 30+ years. If people need help, they will click on the first thing that says "Help" regardless of any caveats, underlining, colors etc. etc. All the see is the word "Help". The other thing I've learned is "punters don't scroll" they will only look at the options on the screen in front of them, and if they see anything that remotely fits their needs, they'll click on it. With that in mind, I think what I would do is remove the phrase "help and support". I also note that many of the help required is to due with image posting. So I would replace "help and support" with "Forum issues" and "Posting images" or something similar ... c'mon, this is a modelling forum - ignoring instructions is SOP 😀

I think Johnson's changed the Klear formulation making it unsuitable for our uses, but then re-released the original formulation under another name. In the UK the correct stuff is "Pledge Revive-it", which dries within 10 - 15 minutes (though I tend to let it harden for a bit longer) Yes this is a risk as it has a tendancy to pool if applied too heavily. Thinning with IPA can help avoid this, but I prefer airbrushing to ensure the thinnest possible coat. I think many would say you should use a varnish designed for the purpose anyway. But in my experience, Klear seems tougher and less susceptible to finger marks than some varnishes I've tried. It is also much, much cheaper than any modelling varnish I know of! Cheers Colin

Don't disagree with any of the above, but I do airbrush it thinned 50/50 with IPA and the cleaned with the cellulose thinner I use for all cleaning, Cheers Colin

I think this is because many volunteers are or will shortly be returning to their normal work ... looking ahead there may be fewer sites, or there will be uncertainty as to which sites will be staffed. Cheers Colin

So really I'm a vinyl guy, but I do have a collection of some 800 CDs which I have ripped and stored on a drive connected to a cheap IOTA tablet, which in turn is connected to my hi fi. Sound quality is not bad (I can listen to it) but am thinking of buying a DAC in the £100 range with the hope of improving the sound quality. I'm also looking ahead to the summer/fall when Spotify will be starting CD quality streaming. Just wondering if any of our members have experience with DACs. At the moment my short list includes Topping D10s SMSL M100 mk2 iFi Zen Dragonfly black I have no interest in portability or driving headphones - this is solely for use with a tablet connected to a hi fi system By "improving sound" I mean a more expansive sound stage and better definition. I'm not interested in "enhanced" sound (boosted bass or similar). Anyone comments on the above items or are there others I should consider in the same price range? Cheers Colin

Well I was in Hobbycraft today (finally able to buy some paint!) and noticed that they have completely discontinued Airfix kits (btw any remainders are at clearance prices) and replaced them with a greatly increased range of Revell kits. Doesn't seem likely that such a big retailer would do this if Revell were planning to stop production. Cheers Colin

The inflation calculator https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-1633409/Historic-inflation-calculator-value-money-changed-1900.html says it should be £2.75. Of course that's not quite fair as petroleum based products would have been hit much harder than average during the period. Cheers Colin

Less than I expected. This is a big kit. Cheers Colin

Is it? As a fairly recent returnee it seems to be thriving compared to the state of things 20 or so years ago Cheers Colin

Just file that away for future reference next time eye browse are raised regarding one of your 'essential' purchases 😀 ("but it was less than the price of a pair of knickers") Cheers Colin

Were you using an oil or acrylic based clear? Clear may not be a problem except with regard to getting a uniform finish, but I presume this coating would also resist the application of weathering materials which may be a big issue for some - nothing looks odder than a well weathered aircraft with bright clean markings! I'm sure these new decals will have their uses, but perhaps not as a complete replacement for traditional decals Cheers Colin

I gave up modelling some 25 - 30 years ago, and pretty well left everything in the corner of the loft as it was - unmade, part made etc. Then a 3 years ago I decided (can't remember why) to start up again. I hadn't really seen my stash for many years and it was great fun getting reacquainted and finishing a few of the old kits. It was also nice that I had most of the modelling tools and a surprising number of viable paints which meant restarting didn't mean an enormous outlay on tools and materials ... at least until I was sure I was well and truly hooked again. Cheers Colin

Will a 1/72 version follow? Cheers Colin

I'd play safe and go with parafilm. Regardless of what you coat it with, the adhesion of the decal will still be the weak point. Cheers Colin

Yes it is - with care, you need a fresh blade to ensure a complete cut to ensure you don't pull away a corner. I think the trick with sol-r is getting the thickness right. It's possible to spread it very thinly which then makes it hard to lift after painting. I usually include a bit of tape under the mask sticking up so i can use it to lift a part of the mask to aid removal Cheers Colin

Sol Neo is ammonia base latex, Sol R is water based. Sol Neo may react with certain finishes - definitely does with Future. I use Sol R, but not sure if Sol Neo has any particular advantages for some applications. Cheers Colin

I think that's correct - Mr Surfacer can be thinned (I use Mr Color Thinner), so you can make any grade as thin as you like. Cheers Colin

I really wouldn't waste my time - if for no other reason than it takes ages to dry properly (days). If you want to use a Humbrol varnish, try Matt Cote (comes in a glass bottle). More reliable and faster drying and does not go yellow. Yes - it can do - in recent years, the issue of paint has become very complex and confusing. As to the costs of buying online, this is because paints are now considered a hazardous material when it comes to shipping. A lot will depend on how committed you are to the hobby. If its just going to be the occasional model then maybe making do with what you can find locally may be the sensible thing to do. If, like me, you've returned to the hobby as a big part of your life, you can apply some strategy to your purchases to make the shipping more paletable - for example, from Hannants you can combine paint with model purchases for the same shipping costs. As the kits are often cheaper than the local hobby shop, this helps offset the costs. Also - especially as you are just restarting - you will need a number of different paints, so by thinking of what you might need in advance you can stock up. If I need one or two colours now, I'll try and anticipate what I might need in a few months time and/or buy 2 or 3 tins of the same colour I know I will be using a lot of. Ultimately, compared to 45 years ago you have many more options, and thanks to the 'net, much more (too much?) information. That said there is nothing wrong with going old school and building kits the way you used to. Whatever you enjoy more. But it is worth having a think about where you see yourself going in the future. Cheers Colin

Yes, unfortunately Humbrol has undergone a number of re-formulations over the years and sadly have nothing like the Humbrol authentics range of old (one of the best model paint ranges ever). Sometimes the answer you need can turn up in an unexpected section (it is not unkown for discussions to go off on a tangent!) So I would suggest using Google to search the site (unfortunately the site's own search engine is a little lacking). For example, try the following in Google mosquito interior color site:britmodeller.com (that last bit restricts the search to Britmodeller) Deliberately avoided that hornet's nest! There are various opinions on this as well as pros and cons. In my case, I am (almost) always going to give the exterior of the model an appropriate final coats to produce the desired matt/gloss finish and protect the decals, so it doesn't matter what finish the underlying paint is. My favorites Colourcoats and Xtracolor have a satin and gloss finish respectively. For interior details, I will usually use paint with the desired finish and not varnish. For details work I often use acrylics, partly because of the fast drying. As to what varnish to use ... can open, worms everywhere! Though probably safe to say you should avoid the Humbrol tinned varnishes. A search on recommended varnishes will offer plenty of recommendations, including materials from the fine art world, or in my case, Future floor polish. Cheers Colin

Many companies promote their own colour range which may not include the colours that were actually used, but are their closest approximation. Sometimes they will suggest a mix (but not always). If you then use this possibly inaccurate colour and translate it to another brand (using a conversion table which itself is going to be an approximate match in many cases) you are heading for a world of trouble. Humbrol 85 is essentially a semi-gloss black. How shiny it is in application can vary - esp. with brush painting - it does need to be extremely well mixed before using. Anthracite grey is in fact a very dark grey. I have no idea where a mix of humbrol 85 and 49 comes from. Possibly something like Humbrol 32 would be better. As for the interior - I think the colour you want is Humbrol 78 (cockpit green) which is a pretty good match for the green used by RAF WWII aircraft. Ultimately, you best bet is to research the actual colour used - probably some 90% of the references for a colour match to the real thing will be found here on Britmodeller rather than trying to interpret the colours suggested in the instructions. I appreciate you may be using Humbrol for reasons of availability/convenience, but I think most would agree that Humbrol is no longer the enamel paint it used to be. If you don't mind ordering on line, then the Colourcoats or Xtracolor ranges are both better paints and offer a better range of subject specific accurate colours. If you are not wedded to enamels, you might also want to look at one or more of the acrylic paint ranges which have developed and improved immeasurably since you last modelled. Cheers Colin

That's a fair point - I was thinking more of the type of thing we use for mounting artwork and the like which need to be safe Cheers Colin

I think I would try a contact spray adhesive - there's a whole range with various strengths. But it would get round the even coverage problem The problem with poly glues is that they are designed to melt the plastic so unless you are using quite thick laminations, some visible distortion is likely. Cheers Colin

and yet the traffic cams tend to do it just fine ☹️ I suspect the problem with many CCTV installations is they are simply not maintained - I wonder when then camera was last given a bit of a clean and test Cheers Colin

Maskol contains ammonia (Klear's Kryptonite). I use Mr Masking Sol-R which is water based (you can dilute it if you want) and works just fine over Klear Note that there are two flavours of Mr Masking Sol - 'Neo' which uses an ammonia/latex mix and 'R' which is a water/latex mix. Cheers Colin