rs2man

The other day I did a deal with a guy in the US for some resin items and asked for his PayPal details . He mistakenly made a typo in his e-mail address which I didn't notice so I sent the payment to that address . Even though It's an e-mail which doesn't exist , PayPal have taken the money from my açcount . Their help FAQ page says there should be a cancel button on the transaction but there is not . Their phone helpline is as much use as a custard lighthouse since It's one of those automated things that won't deal with anything out of the ordinary and I've been waiting for over 24 hours for their online chat to respond . Does anyone have any idea how I can actually speak to a real person so I can get my money back ? John Green Nantwich , Cheshire

Very nice . That really looks the part .

The Heller E-Types are ok kits but still require a fair amount of work to get an accurate result . My main issues with the kits are the poor wheels & the dreadful windscreen which has the bottom of the frame & the bottom half of the windscreen wipers moulded to the body & the rest of the frame & wipers moulded to the screen . Some delicate wiper-removal work , Bare Metal Foil & some etched wipers are required . As regards the Gunze kits , the Hi Tech version is a glaring example of complexity for the sake of it . Much of the detail is supplied as white metal castings which on mine were very rough & would all have been better moulded in plastic . The bumpers are white metal & unplated , there is a large amount of photoetch including the complex but impressive-looking wheels , much of the interior is moulded in vinyl or some other form of flexible plastic & they give you a bag of dressmakers pins which they instruct you to cut down to use as pivot points for the suspension . There is the possibility of a really impressive model in the box , but you'll have to work very hard to get it . Coming to the cheaper all-plastic version of the Gunze kit , its main uses are as a donor of rather nice wheels & tyres to improve the Heller kit & a nice set of plated plastic bumpers to replace the white metal horrors in the Hi Tech version . Should you decide to build the basic Gunze kit it is , unlike all other E-Type kits , a curbside with the bonnet fixed shut & no engine detail . It also has silvery grey decals for the headlamp cover brightware since the Hi Tech kit supplies etch & the bright beading between the wing & centre section parts of the bonnet isn't there at all - there's a groove in the bonnet moulding because the Hi Tech kit gives you some aluminium rod to fit in the groove . All in all , I suspect that the Heller kits give the best chance of a decent 1/24 E Type that doesn't cost the earth so the work involved in getting them right is more than worthwhile . I find it strange though that 58 years after the E-Type's launch we're still waiting for a definitive kit in 1/24 .

This morning in Nantwich I saw an immaculate 1968 Morris Minor Traveller . A delightful and still extremely useable little vehicle .

I've had exactly the same issue with 2K clear - I had to leave it for a couple of weeks to dry before it was properly hard . I suspect it needed more hardener . Something else to watch out for with 2K is that you can't spray automotive aerosols over it as they cause it to craze , at at least it did when I tried it . I was assured by the car body shop which gave me the lacquer that it should dry quickly & , once dry , was impervious to other paints , but that was definitely not my experience . One final point - when you come to polish the body , ensure that you use an ammonia-free cutting compound such as 3M Finesse-It , since the ammonia in the old-style compounds (known as T-Cut in the UK) attacks the 2K coating .

When I manage to beat it into submission , my 1/32 Tamiya F-4J is going to be finished as a Blue Angels aircraft using the CAM Pro decals for the 1969 team . First off , does anyone know if these aircraft wore the usual stencils ? I've looked at photos online & it seems to me that they did not , but I could do with confirmation . Second , a photo I found of the number 1 aircraft from 1969 appears only to have the upper pitot on the fin - is this correct ? Finally , could anyone comment as to whether the Blues aircraft were likely to be seen with the wings folded ? I'm toying with the idea of folding them because it reduces the amount of room the model takes up & also avoids the need to correct the excessive dihedral on the outer panels . Any assistance would be much appreciated . John Green Nantwich , Cheshire

I'm very much the same . I bought SAM right from the very first issue but started losing interest when Jay Laverty took over & mucked about with the format . The last straw , however , was when his Falklands War 30th Anniversary issue was almost entirely Argentine aircraft .

I would have been happy if the Tamiya kit was up to Tamiya's usual 1990s standards , which it clearly is not

Thanks to everyone for the very helpful comments .

Thanks for that John . Took a bit of finding , but I got there in the end

Yes it does . It also shares the ridiculous dihedral of the outer wing panels

Last night I started work on a Tamiya 1/32 F-4J & so far I can't say that I'm greatly impressed with the fit of parts or quality of moulding . The separate rear fuselage underside section looks like it'll need several shims to close gaps at the front & has a really prominent mould join down the middle , the panel which fits into the front of the spine (I assume it is where the IFR receptacle goes on the USAF version) needed a plasticard shim under it to get it flush , the IFR probe well needs shimming as well & when I cleaned up a mould seam on the spine I found there were several areas of sinkage along the panel line . Knowing Tamiya's reputation I really expected better . Has anyone else had similar problems or have I got a rogue kit ? John Green Nantwich , Cheshire

I have to disagree - the best looking rally car ever is a group 4 Escort RS in 1981 Rothmans livery

Yes I would agree . Sadly , the Viewt is just a 1300 Nissan Micra with a modified body

As usual , the first thing I did when I got through the door at Telford was to head to the Wonderland Models stand to see what they were offering at ridiculously low prices . I'm glad I did because they had some Ebbro 1/20 F-1 cars at substantial discount due to the boxes being somewhat crumpled . I picked up a 1967 Lotus 49 & a 1973 Lotus 72E for £34.99 each - bargain !!!