JohnT

Not as disappointed as I was when I realised the typo mentioned in my last post

Jadlam sent me an email earlier that made me blink a bit. - "Tamiya Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II 1:24 61124" 1/24 I thought Tamiya 1/24 I thought Only £70 odds in price and I thought perhaps I smell something not quite right here - once my brain kicked in and I looked hard at the box top Sadly only 1/48 and not 1/24 That said it will be a cracking kit if Tamiya have anything to do with it. Buy one and enjoy it !

yes they are @Peter Roberts I haven’t started and there may be a casting block to remove on they very top but otherwise they are ready to go. He is a small outfit so delivery time can be some weeks so it’s a plan ahead job. The P-38 I am doing has quite a bit of resin being added hence my purchase

Jeff @MrB17 if you ever feel the need to go for metal undercarriage legs and want something that looks the business then have a peek at Synthetic Ordnance Works web site. His stuff is really nice and while not that cheap it does add something to a big model. I bought the P-38 set and with the chromed section they do look way better than I could make the kit parts. link to his website :- https://synthetic-ordnance-works.com/collections/all

Now you mention it I think I recall that too but on the other hand age and

And I spotted one he filmed for an episode of Foyles's War I think - right under a small bridge in a Spitfire

Absolutely what the other guys have said And I am keeping my fingers crossed that after all the great work you have done in this masterclass the Tamiya announcement due in a couple of days isn’t……. Well just like actors only referring to “the Scottish Play” let’s not say any more

I had seen the astonishing and funny video of him in a Spitfire giving the late Alain De Cadenet a fright and haircut at the same time as a low flypast but had not seen this compilation in a very short video of him doing the same thing in the Gnat https://youtu.be/ljofhhdDGPo I have put it in as a link in case of copyright issues Enjoy PS. Not sure the Reds would get that low today or that the powers that be would sanction it either

@Corsairfoxfouruncle yes indeed. Going to start the P-38 in the GB but with my build rate it won’t be finished anywhere near the end date Everyone that helped gets an honourable mention in dispatches plus a beer or coffee next Telford. Don’t forget to collect

Big thanks to @Corsairfoxfouruncle for pointing me to Makatar masks here. They arrived today - quite quickly too I must say - and look like they will do what I need. So that's the last piece of the P-38 jigsaw in place and the modelling can commence !

Cant blame him. My understanding and confirmed from a quick internet search on business forums today is that a retailer really needs to see a mark up of 30% + to be able to think of making any money. Some look to more. Certain large supermarkets (we know who you are !) even buy at £5 and sell for £10 with 100% mark up to the customer but use the power of their national retailing outlets to leverage big discounts from manufacturers. 10% isnt worth getting up in the morning for tbh. You will make more money at the end of the year but not working if its a 10% margin on all goods.

@Alpha Delta 210 yes it’s funny how contact with a type can foster affection. Pilots can get seduced that way too. Seriously though I think that’s arguably the best Lizzie photo I have seen. Thanks for showing it

Just hitting the sack but had to share a fleeting thought If getting the perfect kit to build and doing it really is the Holy Grail how come I used to get way more fun and excitement from building a very basic (being polite here) Airfix Mosquito very badly way back when I started modelling than I do now????????? Just sayin’

Lovely photos. Agree the head on Lysander is great. Quite how you managed to make the Lizzie dynamic is beyond me but you have ! She wasn’t flying straight and level with you falling off the ladder at the time Nicely composed. I like the or Spitfire shot too. Good timing and composition with the wings level to the cloud colour division. Nice

Interesting topic. Could there ever be a perfect kit or a perfect build for that matter? I really doubt that. Perhaps it’s the inner desire to achieve perfection that drives humans on, that makes painters do artwork after artwork, golfers try for the perfect round and so on. The real question is - if an infinite number of monkeys had an infinite time to build models and were given an infinite number of 1/32 Trumpeter English Electric Lightnings would a perfect model ever result? Nah!!!!

Jamie. It’s obvious you run a business. I never cease to be amazed at folk that are astonished at things like taxi fares and work out if a trip costs £X then multiply that by number of trips a day and the driver is well off! Once costs of running a business comes off the net taxable will be minimal Based on figures above of a 10 per cent margin a retailer whose margin is only 10% gross will find his costs - wages, electricity, insurances, building taxes etc etc etc will more than wipe that gross margin out. In other words he/she gets about £10 on a sale and pays out £20 plus to do the sale. How fast does he go bankrupt? I think there won’t be a crowd wanting that business. I suspect buying direct is more the business model Kotare are looking at. That could be because they have worked out what the maximum the buyer will pay and looked at manufacturer costs and concluded that there isn’t enough fat there to feed both them and a retailer as well. Lastly I do hope they are successful and go on to do an early Mk1. And if looking for a good scheme perhaps a 603 City of Edinburgh Auxiliary Squadron machine? “Auld Reekie” the mount of Pat Gifford. He was the first pilot to shoot down an enemy bomber in British airspace in the Second World War when he brought down a Ju88 attacking Royal Navy ships in Firth of Forth on 16 October, 1939. So perhaps a decent subject for a kit. There is a lot more to Gifford and it’s well worth a read at the 603 history.

What @Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies said. I seem to recall that some targets were covered by two or three aircraft in the expectation that some would not get through and noting that in the face of defences that bombing accuracy could not be taken for granted even with the effect of nuclear weapons. Plus having 300 airframes does not necessarily equate to 300 operational aircraft in the event of an unexpected crisis. Also over the life in service there would be losses due to accidents. I also read that the V Force would arrive on door step of the Warsaw Pact before SAC and were supposed to create inroads for SAC to follow. I’m not sure about that but certainly given geography the V Force might have been first to test Soviet defences

Thanks for pointing me in that direction. I’ve ordered a set of 1/32 rounders with red border masks. Not used them before and a bit hesitant but at least it’s not rigging or natural metal finishing I will have a look at sizes when they arrive. The stars and bars on the booms of the P-38 look to be sized to fit but all will be revealed once in hand. Can always look at their same set in 1/48 if needed Thanks again

Great pics and thanks for sharing. Happy days. Ditto @canberraman

Car Insurance Claim Form Question 1. How did the accident happen Answer. I was driving in good weather on the B4086 within the speed limit. The road was dry. Suddenly and without warning a Vulcan bomber overtook me on the inside damaging my near side paintwork and staining the drivers seat cover

Anyone know of any decal manufacturer that does such a thing and which might fit a 1/32 P-38 Lightning? Even if not designed for the Trumpeter kit. I have had a look on line and the only thing I could see was a set for the P-47 Thunderbolt. TIA John

Fantastic find from the mists of time. I don’t recall these ones but do remember a WW1 card diorama which I had and rotated my Camel; SE5a, Albatross and Fokker Dr1 and the DrVII on. All Revell products and not a bit of rigging in sight Finished between school and bedtime. Blitzbuild ? Nowt on a ten year old. Easy done if you substitute imagination for paint Happy days Looking forward to this though

Well spotted @Corsairfoxfouruncle sharp eyes there. Looks like more than just a two colour paint job.

Pete not shouting but there are a few misconceptions in there. The reason so many modern aircraft designs - F-22, F-35 and BAe Tempest all look similar is that the stealth criteria dictate that shape so as to meet mission requirements. It’s not new, compare North American Sabre with the Mig 15 for example. Same with modern cars. The design is dictated by the job We don’t really have fighters an bombers any more. Aircraft are too expensive and have to be at least a little bit multi role. It’s back to money. Too many types in the inventory and costs shoot up. Again the USA buck that trend. Collaboration is required between countries in aircraft design and manufacture because the costs are astronomic and other than trainers etc no country beyond the USA can really afford to go it alone. Some try with varying degrees of success. France was never really involved in Tornado and actually held up their end of the Concorde deal when the UK wanted to pull out early on. That’s another story though. Last the F-35 gets a bad press in the ugly stakes IMHO. She is no beaut for sure but she is not that bad. I’ve seen worse - a lot worse Everyone loves a Harrier but she was a wee porky pigeon with elephant ears. Still loved her too mind

Reading the above my experiences of commercial leasing come to mind. First six years in not a long time in business. That length of time makes me raise an eyebrow. I suspect that there was quite a bit of chat in the background and unless one knows what warnings or alternatively what "promises" were being made at the time one does not have a complete picture. Without that one does not know quite who the "villains of the piece" are. Second, local authorities are usually not great at maintaining consistency - mind you commercial landlords aren't either at times. The problem for local authorities are many. Circumstances change, constituents and voters demands change, Councillors and policy changes etc. In the past few years the news seems to be that attitudes of locals are changing and income/ jobs from tourism etc is less vote worthy than the pressures on homes. No comments either way. Its a tricky situation and a balance needs to be found there. Changes like that do impact into the desire of the local authority to recover the land for other purposes whether that be housing or job creation. In my view the operators of the museum, having negotiated only six years guaranteed occupancy, should have been planning a remove from pretty much day 1. TBH I might even have passed on the site in the beginning but that's being unfair to the people dealing with the situation at the time. They might have been lulled into a false sense of security by promises, nods and winks (really from politicians??) or alternatively might have been told that 6 years was the end of the line. I'd suggest an FOI request on all passing emails etc but even then I've seen the "Look don't worry this is just a formality and we do this all the time. A renewal is standard. No problem." Only then it changes with the times and people in charge and now is a problem. All in all you stick with whats on the paperwork in day 1, plan for worst case scenario and if that's not needed then that's a bonus. I hope the people at the museum find a new home. I was there a few years back and it was a good afternoon mooching about. Perhaps some funding might be found to assist in relocating exhibits? I have a nice 1.5 acre field if they are interested and it would be permanent but Scottish Borders might be a bit far. One last thought - Do local authorities, folks in charge generally and pressure groups really value aviation heritage??? Given whats happened at East of Scotland Air Museum and other museums/ old airfields around the country I really do wonder about that. Perhaps closing most of the small museums and putting the resources into maybe 4-5 mega museums like say Cosford, Duxford, etc as 4-5 national service types museums spread across the population and geographically across the country with sate of the art facilities (inc fly- in?) with education and conservancy centers of excellence might be a better way of saving aviation heritage ???