Jay Gee

Thanks Doc. I think the Special Hobby was the better kit, it had better detail and went together with a better fit.

G'day all, Here are a couple of P-40Ns done up on the colours of 75SQN (Special Hobby with Eduard interior) and 1 Aircraft Performance Unit (Academy). Both markings are from DK Decals. The 1 APU aircraft is in NMF and painted with Alclad Aluminium while the 75SQN is painted with Tamiya XF-62 Olive Drab and XF-53 Neutral Grey. I went with the NMF as I have some P-51 builds in mind down the track so wanted to test out my skills, which need a fair bit of work in regards to surface preparation while the Olive Drab I found is quite difficult to photograph. The 75SQN build was A29-521 "Svengali". On 9 August 1944, 12 aircraft were on a patrol when 3 out of the 4 aircraft in yellow flight suffered a collision. Yellow 3 struck Yellow 1 (A29-521) before becoming locked in an inverted spin with Yellow 4, crashing with the loss of both pilots. The collision ripped off the aileron and 25% off the LH wing from Yellow 1, exploding the .50 cal ammunition. FlgOff Jacklin flew the 200 miles back to base and landed without incident. The aircraft was repaired and later on served with 78 SQN. Anyway on the models, hope you enjoy. JayGee. Below are some pictures of the real Svengali from the ADF Serials Newsletter, which show how tough these work horses were and the dangers faced in the mopping up faze of the war.

@Geoffrey Sinclair Thanks again for the tip to NAA, very handy indeed as it lists A/C serial, pilot names, dates etc. I had searched this site in regards to my Grandfathers war service but didn't realise Squadron war diaries were listed as well. I'll definately be making some time to have a good read through and with the dates you've given will help me narrow down a time frame. Some top shelf information right there. @Magpie22 Thanks for the reply and for the great pictures, I was wondering how long it would take before you had seen this. In the photograph of the 457SQN aircraft, do they have the 30Gal slipper tank fitted as well? Or is it the fairing from the radiator I'm seeing? A bombed up, fuel tank fitted, shark mouthed Spitfire definately looks the part! What you don't know about RAAF Spitfires isn't worth knowing, although I'm not too sure about your footy team. Go Blues!

Great work Geoffrey thanks for that info. I'll have a look through and that should get me started.

Hello all, I've been searching high and low regarding RAAF Spitfire bombloads and I am out of ideas on where to search. I've found a few photos of the locally designed bomb racks and some mention to dive bombing missions, but few photos of RAAF Spits loaded with bombs. What I'm after is the type of bombs used. Were they British or American 250lb? Or were both types used? Did all 3 squadrons (452, 457 & 79) carry out dive bombing missions? If so when did they start? Any info would be appreciated, thanks. JayGee.

Brilliant work General, nicely done with the adjusted landing gear. Although looking at the back of those engine exhausts made my ears hurt!

Excellent job Ben, what we can see of the landing gear looks great too.

Very nice job there Mark, beautiful finish.

Great collection of choppers there. Nice work.

Thanks for the kind words gents. Thanks, I hadn't really given much thought to USN schemes but after how this turned out I might have to do some more. Luckily I could drive to where I was needed so I could take it with me. It was either do a kit in my spare time or drink. I think this was the much healthier option.

G'day all, I had to go away on a work trip for a few weeks so thought I'd take a kit and some tools with me to keep my sanity. A great kit straight out of the box which made it a fun build as well. Since getting back into modelling around 7 years ago I jumped straight into using an airbrush, however this build was my first brush painted model in over 20+ years. I have a lot of respect for the work that you brush painters do, but since tackling this my respect has increased further. I think I'll stick to my airbrush. Before this build I didn't realise what a mine field USN Dark Blue was (especially with the different ANA blues that have the same number), so I went with Humbrol 77 Navy Blue Matt followed up with some floor polish to get the gloss finish. Looks alright to me and my wife likes the colour too. Following this build I'll try not to get too wrapped up in colours, so I'll finish off my Olive Drab P-40N, move onto some Luftwaffe builds and maybe make a start on a RAAF Foliage Green Spitifre Hope you enjoy!

That is some brilliant work right there. Well done. How do the SMS paints go? Are they a good colour match? I'm looking at getting some.

Excellent work as always Roman.

Great work there Patrick. Will have to get a few of these myself.

There is a video on youtube showing a flight inside a restored B-24. Just after take-off they tap the brakes before selecting the gear up. Also with the C-17 when the gear is selected up, the brakes are applied automatically to prevent the gyroscopic effect. Given the length of the B-24 MLG and the rotation of the C-17 gear it makes sense. Back onto the original post regarding the colour according to my copy of Southern Cross Mustangs, from K-15NTs onwards the rub strip was painted yellow zinc chromate. But looking at most pictures it was left bare.

G'day lasermonkey, I won't be able to answer all your questions but I had a go at modelling this aircraft last year. The collector rings had white heat resistant paint on the forward section of them (maybe this aircraft had a recent engine change?). There are quite a few threads on here about the collector rings. I painted mine exhaust colour (not copper!) and then added white to the forward LH engine. You are correct with the landing lights, when configured for rocket firing these were blanked over. Also the DK Decal sheet had an Australian flag on either side of the nose like a lot of 455SQN Beaufighters but looking at your picture they don't seem to be there. If you go with standard Coastal Command colours, stripes and codes you'll be right.

Excellent work! I never realised how dirty these things got and going by the original photos you've nailed it.

Great work Tony, you just need a silver PR41 to add to the collection.

That is some fantastic work there Steve. Been wanting to do a RAAF Dak for a while but you may have changed my mind.

Yes the Fs are used as normal and the Gs have been around for a few years now. http://www.adf-serials.com.au/3a44.htm

Correct, half were pre-wired and have a few extra lumps and bumps on them not found on a normal F ready for antennas to plug in.

Wow, that is top shelf modelling! Also where do you get those over sized novelty coins from?

Excellent work Beggsy. Love the paint job.

Great work Russ. I was thinking of doing some Kiwi stuff, but I think I'll quit while I'm ahead after seeing this.

Lovely work Ray. Take care in the lockdown.