Tomcat101

Beautifully built and presented. Well done.

Fantastic work especially the impressive paint scheme and delicate aerials. Well done

Looks good. It is nice to see an unusual subject so well represented. Well done.

Looks like you had fun. Well done.

Fantastic!

Hi Everyone, Thank you so much for the kind words. I really appreciate them. Kindest Regards, Tomcat101

Hi Everyone, Thanks again to everyone for the kind words. I really appreciate them. Regards, Michael

It looks good and in an interesting livery. I also wanted to build that old Matchbox kit. Well done.

Appreciate it. Thanks and happy building.

Hi Everyone, Please find attached for your consideration my completed Handley Page Victor 3; a what-if build of a plane that never left the drawing board. Build thread attached Victor 3 What-if for those interested. All comments and suggestions are welcome. Kindest Regards, Tomcat101

At long last the Victor 3 is done. It has been a six month journey and at this juncture I guess it’s time for me to reflect on the effort; specifically what do I think of it and was it all worth it. In terms of the quality of the build I am aware that better modelers than I could have produced a more pleasing result. But it’s my result and I quite proud of it. I got a forty year old Matchbox kit and decided to do something that to the best of my knowledge no one has done before; bringing to life an aircraft that never left the drawing board. I appreciate it’s not everyone’s cup of tea but it’s one of the things I really love about this hobby. Out of box, modified authentic and fantastical, there is room here for all of us. So was it worth it and did I like the result? In a word, yes. For those contemplating anything remotely similar here is what I learned: - You will likely try to talk yourself out of doing something like this – do it anyway – give in to your creativity. - Plan ahead. I kind of approached this build incrementally, which occasionally led to decisions that restricted me at a later point. While there can always be flourishes and changes I would recommend an end-to end plan. - For the fuselage extensions if I were to do it again I would run a single large and several small rods down the length of the fuselage. This would better distribute the load and make the extension less of a stress point especially if it’s a natural hand hold position. - For the wings I would recommend using a hard plastic or metal insert to carry the weight. Sheet plastic is ok for surface detail but it cannot carry the load. I think I got away with it this time but only just. - Dry fit everything multiple times. If you read my wing fitting saga you can see how missing the obvious can be costly. - Accept the imperfections. You are going into uncharted territory and mistakes will be made. Pieces will not align as you anticipate and the sanding is endless. While the result may not be perfect it will be yours and it will be unique. Like all models little things will still get you. For example I attached the refueling probe over a month ago which survived through all the paint and decals only to break right before I intended to take finishing photos. Typical. You got to love modelling. Pictures attached, including my first outdoor shots. All comments and suggestions are welcome and finally a big thank you to everyone who has followed or looked in on this thread. I greatly appreciate the support and the encouragement. Kindest Regards, Tomcat101

Beautifully built and painted model and a wonderful gesture to the lost pilot.

I do not think I have ever seen one built. Nicely done.

Amazing work. Well done.

Hi Everyone, Sorry it’s been a few weeks since my last submission. Life has been a little too busy lately for my liking. This past weekend I finally got a chance to get back to work on the Victor 3 and is was a microcosm of the whole effort. Joy working on my hobby again. A little less joyous when applying what seemed to be the thousandth decal. Humour when maneuvering the oversized airplane around and then hitting my bowl of decal water which proceeded to cartwheel through the air soaking me and the model. And finally frustration when I broke off three of the four Spectre 2 rockets and broke the airbrake a second time. With decals from a series of sets: Meteor, Vulcan, Buccaneer and Prowler among others, now set many strategically placed to hide sins and with rocket motors reinstalled, the end of the project is coming into view. It’s now starting to look like what I intended at the outset. I'll fix the airbrake for next time. Pictures attached. All comments and suggestions welcome. Till next time. Kindest Regards, Tomcat101