Tony G

Great job as usual, love the detail on the heat shield. How you maintain motivation is amazing. I hope you have not just been lazing around stress free, enjoying yourself instead of modelling. You are only permitted so much stress-free enjoyment per year before the modelling police come knocking. They have threatened to cut off my sprue’s if I do not get on and do something.

That has got to be one of the best back seat ladder ever produced. Mind you it was only used for the light blue boys, real Obs slide off the wing. Well done yet again. Crack on don't, keep your end up and don't let your rear end grind you down, as the actress said to the bishop.

I zoomed in on the finished pylon and I could not tell the difference between yours and a full size pylon. amazing !!!!!. I know what you mean about cameras. I thought I still looked like I did when I was twenty, boy was I wrong. Its a pity we cannot photoshop our actual bodies. Keep up the good work, it is a honour to be able to watch your progress and a master at work.

Hi Anthony Amazing, the quality of detail is off the chart. Those pylons are fantastic detail. That’s a another item that has contributed to the many dents in the top of my head. I cannot comment on a luggage pod, never seen one, the navy version was a toothbrush in the pen pocket in the flying overalls and the booze and ciggies stuffed in the panel behind the cockpit. When finished it should be displayed alongside a magnifying glass so people can truly marvel at the level of detail you have produced. All the Best Anthony may you and your family have a great Christmas.

Hi Anthony all looking good. I think you have captured just the right amount of grubbyness on those nose doors.

The pitot tubes in the intakes are in both left and right intakes. I am unsure what you mean by the splitters, do you mean the varible intake ramps or the upper and lower vents on the intakes. let me know I may have some phots to help.

Yes I was on deck for the last Launch I was on the Ark Royal for all the last commision and 012 was the last Phantom off. A sad day it was knowing that our toys were going to the RAF that those deliquent children would only break them. My aircraft 013 was later scaped because the RAF broke its back. The piano I am not sur,e I think it was the Wardroom Piano be given a final send off before the ship decommisioned.

I would go for 013 but I am biased as I was a plane captain for that Aircraft on the Ark Royal final tour

Looking great Anthony, Very sorry to hear about your wonky hole, nothing worse, hope the operation went ok.

Normally the Tufnol rubbing strip on the step and the step closer blade on the door were left unpainted (a honey brown colour), unless someone got an urge to paint them.

In these days of doom and gloom it is great to hear some good news for a change. Please pass on my best wishes to your son and the hope he reaches a fully recovery as soon as possible. Its great to see you back at work after what must have been a very traumatic period for the whole family. The new additions are looking great. The back end looks simple but there is a lot of detail in that area but with your skill I am sure it will be perfect.

Hi Anthony When I hear of the struggles that people like your young son, you and your family are going through at this time, it makes our materialistic lives seem very insignificant in comparison. May I wish your son a heathy outcome from what I am sure is going to be a traumatic period and that he comes through his treatment with best possible results. Oh and your outer wings are great to. It amazes me how these tooms in later life needed so many repair and strengthening plates. All the Best Tony G

Cheers All, But the Arizona RC model comes with its own receiver and speed controller. Once I found where the on /off power switch was on the boat I have cracked 90% of the RC connections and what each should do. Except connection 13 which also connects to the mast top light, I think it is a low battery indicator connection, will see once the battery has run down. My next task to try and separate the hull from the deck, which unfortunately has been bonded together trapping all the RC parts and motors inside the hull with what looks like a silicone sealant, that should be fun.

Hi Rich. I could not get any joy from Trumpeter spare parts web page, I emailed the Trumpeter Contact email address still no joy. Hi bbudde That is the web site I downloaded the standard Arizona build instructions, I could no find the RC version

Hi can anybody help Please I am desperate for copy the manuals for the Trumpeter 1/200 Uss Arizona Bb-39 1941 Radio Control 2.4g Battleship. I purchased a part build to finish off but it came with no build instructions or instructions for the radio control setup manuals the kit comes with. I can find the basic Trumpeter 1/200 Arizona manual online but not the radio control version of the kit. I am a bit lost without them

I have neve seen an RN Phantom look that filthy except after firings while waiting to be cleaned. Airframe/ Engine ground crew plane captains had pride in their own aircraft (cab) and would never allow their aircraft to get in that state.

Excellent job Anthony, I see you have even put the hole in ready for the drain tube on the side of the intake. If you tell me you are going to go back over the fuselage and put in all the slots and crosses in for all the screw heads I will send the guys around in the white coats to take you away. As always great job, keep that motivation going. I look forward to each and every new addition to the build, no matter how small.

As ex 892 Sqdn it is always great to see such a great model being produced to such a high standard, GREAT JOB. Just as a note there are no horizontal sensors on the tail fin on RN Phantoms

Morning Anthony (it is here) Your panel works is extraordinary. Those two outer wing panels with over 300 hundred panel screws, Wow, Naturally I will be counting them to make sure you have not missed any of the screws !!!!!! Not. I can still remember the joy of having to remove those panels and the fun of having to drill out immoveable screws. Keep up the good work and motivation, you are on the downward stretch when those little details really make a difference for when the toom is finished and that warm glow you will get every time you gaze upon your work of art

Hi Anthony, now back from Hols You have been busy while I was away, lot of fine work to catch up on Ref your query on barrier cutters. They are on the lower fuselage as well as the upper, as the scars on the top of my head can witness.. I believe all UK phantoms had the ability to have barrier cutters fitted on the nose. These upper and lower cutter panels, have a barrier cutter fitted to one side of the panel and are held in place with 4 panel screws. The panel can be removed and rotated to have the barrier cutter housed if not required within the fuselage. Or exposed to rip hole in engineers heads

As noses go, yours now looks handsome and perfectly chiselled. Well done Anthony obviously the break did you good. I am off to Tenerife for a couple of weeks (I need winter sun) before heading off diving again in Egypt in April. Top tip. That fin looking thing in the picture lying under the nose goes on the back not the front, hope that helps.

We know you want your model to be a cut above the rest but you do not have to take it literally. Front seat coming on a treat but try to keep the blood loss down to a minimum

Well Anthony just caught up with your progreess now back fron my diving holiday in Egypt. I do not know what is so controversial about your progress pics, but Egypt blocks them but now home I can see what you have achieved in all its glory, fantastic well done. I agree to an extent regarding the suggestion about the yellow chromate. It is all very subjective, it depends how far into the periods between deep service when the sills are repainted and are a nice black to as the months progress when it wears through to areas of primer and eventually to areas of bare metal. This applies to most areas of high wear. The same applies to the internal edges of canopies and sceen edges. Keep up the fantastic work

As you are not adding aircrew you will not have to bother with the loose nut in the front seat