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I mean the lines of rivets and slight indentation along the rib lines - looks sort of like a closed venetian blind in my opinion and I've always thought it part of the look of a B-24 - your pic illustrates the effect very well Not a fan of aftermarket - for me its all about trying the best of what's provided (with a little scratch building here and there). I know! I'm modifying some spare bombs to play the part. In terms of visibility I think I can get away with just those around the waist gun position, Using Kermit Weeks' B-24 (apparently in very orginal condition), I think I can get away with 5. Those between the waist and tail won't be visible anyway (at least once the model's on the shelf. Cheers Colin

Of course thanks to Covid that situation already exists. Many shipments have been delayed for one reason or another. Come Jan. no one will really know if the delay is customs or covid related, so really no change. In a way Covid provides a buffer - assuming at least 6 months for things to de-covid, it would be hoped that the import rules and procedures will have been clarified. Cheers Colin

to be honest - another kit. A B-25 is going to be a relatively complicated kit. I think it would be well worth your while getting a more basic model (Aldi has some of the simpler Airfix kits at a good price). You will make mistakes. You will mess up the painting (or at least not get it as good as you like). Everyone does. The first couple of kits are a real learning experience. Save your b25 until you've got a better idea of what's involved and how to go about it Cheers Colin

I think this might be gloss cote specific - always had problems with it. Never had any problem with Satin or Matt cote ... or for that matter acrylic (Tamiya/Mr Hobby) over enamel paints and vice versa (provided appropriate drying time is allowed for. I've never used Vallejo though, and it could be it behaves differently being a true water based acrylic Cheers Colin

The Swordfish is not as challenging as it might first appear - Airfix have done some clever engineering making the wing assembly nearly foolproof - though you'd still have rigging to attend to. On the downside, in my copies (x2) there was something wrong with the fuselage molding - loads of crud which needed cleaning up. Looked like the molds had been damaged in some way - the result was as if there were little pits or corrosion on the mold surface. To get this cleaned up to my satisfaction took about as long as the rest of the build! Cheers Colin

I do plan to model it with bomb bay open (just want to decide on the best way to replicate the venetian blind effect - probably gentle scribing). But the need for venting would explain why the waist positions are often open, I keep meaning to do a WIP but I haven't sorted out a fast and efficient method of photo sharing yet - my current method would double the length of the build! And I think my first WIP will be a little less ambitious than the Liberator! Cheers Colin

I usually select something from my 'shelf of doom' - at least that way I can kid myself I got some value from the kit. If you haven't yet progressed to the SOD stage, perhaps one or more of the cheap airfix kits from Aldi would do. Cheers Colin

Yes, I see that - but I think my approach will be to cut slots in D5 ... but not that far along yet. Foolishly decided to pose the waist gunner ports open which of course means scratch building an interior for the waist gunner's position. Unlike the ball turret I have seen many pics of B-24s with these open on the ground ... I'm guessing it might be for ventilation. Cheers Colin

Perfect -exactly what I needed. Wasn't aware of the troughs for the gun barrels - not provided on the kit part, but an easy fix. Many thanks Colin

I'm building the 1/72 Hasegawa B-24J but having a hard time figuring out what to do with the ventral ball turret. As far as I can make out it was seldom extended on the ground (except for PR pics showing how cramped it was!) But I cannot find any decent pics which show the exact position of the turret when retracted viewed externally. How far in did it retract? Which way are the guns pointing and at what angle? Cheers Colin

Well yes - but consider what Hobby 2000 are doing - re-issuing decent quality kits with much improved quality decals compared to the originals at very good prices. Offering something unique in the decals would require a lot of research and research costs money. If Hobby 2000 charged accordingly, then people would then be expecting improved plastic, photo etch etc. etc. I think Hobby 2000 are doing a great job - I'm buying up everything relevant to my collection as the become available. Cheers Colin

It seems to have stopped snowing and a good thing to. You need to be aware that any sort of animation like this can be a real problem for this with certain types of dyslexia and other disorders. Cheers Colin

Well its your money but a quick look around the site will show people having all kinds of problems getting reliable, consistent results with their brush/compressor/paint combination. Not having a tank will make this more difficult as you will find it difficult to regulate the air pressure. A quick look at amazon reveals a number of compressors with airtanks and one or two airbrushes in the £100 range. I suspect the bundled airbrush will be as good as anything you're likely to buy in the £20 - £50 range - and if they don't suit you, you still have £50 in hand to buy another airbrush. Cheers Colin

It does thin well with IPA. I have a jar of 50/50 mix which is still fine after about 18 months. Cheers Colin

I use an AS-18 type and while it may not last forever, its worked perfectly well for me for nearly 3 years with nearly daily use. The tank I think is essential to ensure a smooth airflow with no pulses - though I have heard that using a long airhose can help smooth the airflow. With airbrushes you get what you pay for but it is perhaps not a bad idea to start with a cheap one and find out what you really need longer term. That being the case, many of the AS-18 compressors come bundled with a cheap airbrush or two. Mine did, and while one of them was useless, the other is still giving good service ( I use it just for primer). A good airbrush is worth the money, but you do need a bit of experience to determine what would be the best long term purchase. Cheers Colin

Yes an amazing paint ... when I returned to modelling after a 30ish year hiatus, my Authentics were still fine. Sadly my stock is now depleted. Modern Humbrol I find inconsistent - sometimes it's fine, sometimes not (could be due to age of stock) and I find its keeping qualities relatively poor - I don't think I've yet managed to use up a tin before it goes off. On the plus side, Humbrol is readily available so great when you need something right now. Sovereign and Xtracolor require mail order (for most of us) so that means planning. Cheers Colin

After using Tamiya and Gunze (and I do still use them occasionally), I went back to enamels (specifically Xtracolor, Colourcoats and if necessary Humbrol). I just find I have much more control and consistency with these. One thing to keep in mind is that many of the new weathering materials and techniques assume an acrylic base and will destroy an enamel finish. Cheers Colin

You wish ... I have white floor tiles in mine, and still bits disappear. Looking at your setup the carpet monster will have alerted his companions 'waste bin monster' and 'slightly ajar drawer monster' in readiness to receive. And of course you have completely forgotten about the micro black hole which hovers over every modellers work bench. Cheers Colin

That's interesting - I tend not to use the metalcote aluminiums since the advent of AK Interactive metals, however I do still use the Metalcote gunmetal and polished steel. Both of these buff up beautifully after 20min or so drying time. Is polished aluminium a special case? Cheers Colin

Don't know what it will do to the paint, but it will gum up your airbrush! Vallejo and Mr Color are not compatible. As I understand it you should use Vallejo's own thinner, Windex or just water. Given its readily available, I'd try water first, Cheers, Colin

Yes it does, very nicely. I use MCLT with both Mr Hobby and Tamiya paints. Cheers Colin

These certainly do the job for a reasonable price, but be aware they are quite noisy which may or may not be a problem for you Cheers Colin

Well my local Hobbycraft certainly favours 1/48th. As does at least one of my dedicated local model shops - indeed its quite depressing as the space allocated to 1/72 seems to be increasingly encroached upon by the 1/48th section every time I visit. I suspect that 1/72nd may become the niche scale within a generation of modellers. Cheers Colin

It's weird - you may be right, but at the same time, I see far more 1/144th scale kits which 30 years ago was pretty much the preserve of airliners and other large types - now there seem to be loads of single engine types available. Perhaps it's just that everything has been done in 1/72! (obviously it hasn't but possibly everything that would shift more that a dozen boxes has). A more cynical explanation might be the profit margins are better in 1/48th. Capital costs can't be that much different, material costs negligable, but bigger boxes = bigger prices. As a die hard 1/72nder it's disappointing to see so many new models released initially (and maybe only) in 1/48th - Tamiya P-38 and Airfix Walrus spring to mind. I get that 1/48th has a lot of advantages with regard to detailing and possibly buildability, but for those of us who are themed collectors 1/72 still seems the ideal scale as it is practical for both the largest and smallest prototypes. Cheers Colin

An interesting resource. In trying to find out more about it, I went looking through their Google Group and found this https://groups.google.com/g/box-art/c/H3sLhud-wao Which perhaps explains their intentions. They claim to operate under the 'fair use' (fair dealing) exceptions of copyright law. In the UK 'fair use' is contingent on the following Has the use of the work impacted negatively on the market for the original work? If the creator or owner has lost potential revenue through the re-use of their work, it is not likely to be fair. Was it reasonable and necessary to use the amount of work that was taken? I think it is a difficult judgement as to whether or not this site falls under fair use - some parts probably do, some don't. To my mind part of the problem has been copyright law not keeping pace with technological developments. One could argue that only by a voluntary, collaborative effort could such an archive be created and that the 'public good' of such an archive outweighs any technical copyright infringement. Would it be better if boxart were lost forever? I think it is clear that the operators of the site do not gain any financial benefit which may need to be shared with the copyright holders. The articles are perhaps a step too far - they draw an analogy to libraries, but it is a false analogy as libraries do pay subscriptions and indeed (in the UK at least) authors are paid royalties based on book loans. Keep in mind the statistic the 1% of the general population are psychopaths. Which means that 270 Britmodellers fall into that category - and of course its open to discussion as to how modellers compare to the general population😁