Spad

Hi all First, apologies if this has been asked before (nothing showed up when I searched the site) Can anybody provide me with an FS reference for the grey used on the A-10 seat (ACES II I think?)? Many thanks in advance! Rick

All sorted now. Thanks everybody for the feedback/replies, especially Meindert. Cheers all! 👍

Nicely executed!

Hi all - been away a bit over these last 2 years - all been a bit weird tbh! Anyway, I've not been idle so I thought I would show my face again with one of the things I had been up to. Allow me to show you the result of some unfinished business being dragged out of storage. This kit is definitely a thing of its time period although it basically built very well and featured beautiful fine engraving; such a feature of Esci at that time. I initially started it in mid 80s but got put back into the box when I tried (and failed) to make a scratchbuilt instrument panel. I live under the extended approach to RAF Lakenheath and during lockdown I was witnessing ACM directly overhead on an almost daily basis. It inspired me to dig it out again. Engine compressor faces were roughly a scale 3 feet behind the intake lips so intake trunking was added using Apoxie Sculpt. A HUD unit was added to the panel/coaming and resin seat added. Some scratch detail was added in the cockpit and the bay behind. The kit features very early or even prototype wheels so these were replaced with Reskit examples - lovely! The A/B cans in the kit are pretty soft in their detail so were replaced with A/B cans taken from a scrapped Academy F-15E, as they had much finer detail with separate actuator rods. A belly tank was sourced from the scrap box and mounted on a scratchbuilt pylon. I painted it with Xtracolor enamels with primary decals from BMF Experts Choice range which I bought back when I made the first attempt to build. Kit decals were used for all stencils, but only after a coat or two of Microscale Decalfilm - a trial had shown that they exploded on soaking! I did not fancy the extended built-in ladder in the kit so ditched that in favour of a Flightpath P/E boarding ladder. So, enough of the waffle, I finally completed a long standing (>35 years) ambition - hope you like it. Thx for looking! by Rick IMG_7593 by Rick Smith, on Flickr IMG_7591 by Rick Smith, on Flickr IMG_7585 by Rick Smith, on Flickr IMG_7584 by Rick Smith, on Flickr IMG_7583 by Rick Smith, on Flickr

Hello I have the Hasegawa F-18 Hornet in 1/32 but have bad decals in the box (water damaged...) Can anybody point me towards where I can get replacements? I/m not afraid of mask/spray etc but the logos and titles could be very challenging. Thanks in anticipation (breath being held!) Best Rick

Not satisfied?? Looks pretty darned perfect to me - nice! Tho' as gingerbob says, the ailerons need adjusting so one is up or both are neutral. Either way, love the paintwork!

Breathtaking build(s)! Super impressed with both of them. Stunning rigging and the wood effects just superb. I remember building the DH.4 around about when it came out - felt pretty good about it as I rigged it - with cotton so it looked like it had ship mooring hawser between the struts! A pleasure to view so thanks for sharing!

Nice! Very crisp and clean. Good recovery on the decal issues! 👍 ATB Rick

Coming on in leaps and bounds Bob and looking good! Dave Orage was the name you were struggling for. He took a job with Perkins as a sales agent then set up on his own doing roof trusses for the building trade - diverse huh!?! 😉

@11bravo and @72modeler Brilliant! Thanks guys, some great leads and tips there! That's it settled then for my Modelsvit kit - NMF with puttied/painted wings! I love being a part of the BM Massif! Huge amount of knowledge on here. ATB and thanks again! Rick

Hello I'm having trouble deciding from pics how the P-51H was finished. Does anybody know whether they had the same puttied and painted wings, the rest NMF or if they were aluminium lacquered all over? Or even NMF all over? Thanks in hope Rick

I'll play! Got one or two - I'm sure I can hold myself back on one of them! 😁 ATB Rick

Now that is truly stunning work! I have never seen such a faithful representation of the real thing. Congratulations!

There is a logic to plain zinc chromate as well - why top-coat paint an intake when all it does is add weight to what is designed as a very light airframe. That's 5 votes you have there now, Rob!

Thanks for that fubar57 - I have that "In Action" and have seen that same pic (or ones in the same series) on-line. To me the fin seems to be a much paler shade of grey than the bar in in the national insignia. Personally I never trust descriptive captions without specific names or FS numbers, but I did find this pic which suggests orange/yellow to me (I base this on a comparison with the Insignia Red in the star and bar). http://hikokikumo.net/a5500-60-Sinmeiwa-P2V5-DP2E-Hamano.jpg On top of this any reference online to VC-5 always seems to show orange. The hunt continues....

Hi I'm looking for some guidance on the colours for the checker pattern on the tails of many of the VC-5 aircraft. I ask because I am really keen to build the checker-tailed DP-2E "128342". I spotted the Caracal Sheet 72057 "P2V Neptune PART 2" and bought it as it included that very machine. I have always believed it to be red/orange (aka International Orange) and yellow (Orange Yellow?) so was a little surprised when the sheet arrived and had red checkers (to be laid over a yellow fin). Any thoughts? ATB Rick

Stunning! I am otherwise lost for words. The NMF patina is superb,. What do you do to the metal tape - is it scuffed and abraded after application? As Farmerboy says - I also could be looking for quite some time!

Matchbox!?! Well I can safely say that the only thing that hints at Matchbox is the windscreen framing! You have totally transformed that kit so that not only are the kit's roots pretty much unrecognisable, but you have produced an excellent F.3 into the bargain. I salute you, sir! And I fully understand your views on re-working older kits - loads of fun! Nice one.

Brilliantly executed! And I have picked up a couple of tips and recommendations reading the comments - what's not to love!?! Re the tail sitting, what made you choose the tail prop rather than nose weight? Anyway thank you for winning the battle and showing us the victory, it is an excellent outcome! ATB Rick

Great build there Pete - Love it and can only echo the other's comments! A little smaller than most of your Soviet stuff! Love that little gear on the front of the engine - I guess that must be a power take-off to initially spin-up the rotor? I see you deflected the ailerons - is the stick displaced accordingly!?! 😜 All the best chap! Rick

Magnificent! Very sympathetically weathered and a superb job with that squiggly camo!

Excellent job - never seen that before. Nice work indeed!

Great job - love a nice "Spad"! Restrained but effective, sympathetic weathering - good to see! Pleased to see that the Airwaves etch set worked well (I have the same set ready to go) - you really had me searching the internet for the Aires set! 😁 I would pass-off the wing code thing as a new outer wing panel from a "hanger queen" Must look into that QB stuff you have used. Nice job - like it! 👍 ATB Rick

Hi Pete -so you're still at it with the big Russian stuff!?! Lovely job (as usual) on the Moss - always like seeing your builds! Hello from Norfolk and welcome to the forums - looking forward to seeing some of your other stuff posted (Mil-10, could it be?)😉 ATB Rick