Nigel Bunker

Shaun How's this for a comprehensive build? And on Britmodeller too!!

Before we too wound up about colours, look at these pictures by Monet. they are of the same haystack, painted under different lighting conditions. What interested Monet was the expression of transient appearances – the motif itself would be unvarying and viewed always from the same angle, only the light would change, depending on the season, the weather and the time of day. His method was to work on several canvases at once, devoting perhaps no more than a few minutes at a time to any one of them. It was necessary to work swiftly to capture the ‘moment’ before it dissolved. In this he was greatly assisted by his stepdaughter Blanche, who would slide the canvases into position on his easel. On 7 October, in full flight, he wrote to Gustave Geffroy: “…the further I get, the more I see how much work it will need to convey what I am searching for: ‘instantaneity’, and above all the external ‘envelope’, the same light spread everywhere…”

To my eyes, the tonal value of the dark colour is a close match to the roundel red, and this ties in to a memo found under the carpet at the MoD when the offices were refurbished. An extract from the memo dated 01.04.45 (obviously written after a liquid lunch) from Flt Lt Julian Clary says "........Now this nasty war is over, why don't we repaint the fighters in red and pink to show we are now friends with those lovely Russians......" This is obviously conclusive proof, and Bader's plane must have ben a trial aircraft in this scheme. How much does Neil Robinson pay for articles?

The old 109 tail can be cut down from the one in the kit. Get the basic shape, then fill and rescribe, and you're there. Fortunately, the tail is a separate item, which makes the job easier. Steer away from the AS variant and the job becomes simpler. You just need to source the old style canopy (unless the plane you're modelling has the Erla canopy). Have a go.

Well I'm converting one back to F-2 standard, so the answer is yes. Get some plans and away you go.

Nice to see a decent choice of decals though. And don't forget this kit is designed to replace the old 109 which kids still bought. It has about the same amount of interior detail as the Spitfire I & V, which is what i suspect Airfix were aiming for.

I always treat Mr Lucas' ideas with a big pinch of scepticism. I normally rely on the works of MJF Bowyer or Ian Huntley, both of whom were actually around during WW2 and made contemporary notes. Discoveries made 60 years after the event I treat with caution. It's not the notes some Civil Servant issed that count, it's what the squadrons and MUs actually did. Interpretation from B/W photos is unreliable, even in terms of shade - photographs degrade over time.

I am currently building the 21st century kit and the cockpit walls are really thick, so unless you wand to do lots of thinning down, I'd forget it. Besides, after some painting, the 21C cockpit comes out quite nicely.

72nd scale - a Rafale update set so we can do something with those Italeri kits (you might sell a few across the channel) and as has been said before, the missing pylons for the RoG Typhoon

the Lee Hawkeye is a copy of the Fujimi one - rumour has it that the Hawkeye sold by Heller is the Lee kit. Certainly the Heller kit made up into a passable Hawkeye - it will be a cold day in Hell before I pay over £30 for a Hasegawa one.

Even better if it was in the shops! Dear old Airfix are getting a bit presumptious with adverts in the press months before the kits hit the shops.

Just to advise you of something that may be of interest. On Tuesday 28th April at 7 pm there will be an illustrated lecture on "Wycombe's contribution to the aviation industry" by David Scott & Ian Simmons, and as this subject covers from the birth of Geoffrey de Havilland to the F-35, it should be a good evening. To be held at St Birinus & St John's Church Sycamore Road, High Wycombe, HP12 4TJ. Admission will be £2.00, and this normally includes refreshments at the interval. I look forward to seeing any other Britmodellers there.

I remember hearing that when 25 Sqn became active on the Tornado F.3, the CAS was ex-25 Sqn and had "suggested" that 25 was reformed. Regrettably I cannot find any paper documentation (magazines, etc) to support this.

Bring back 74 Sqn - Tiger striped Typhoons rule!

Anyone know if the Eurofighter uses a recce pod? Not at present Anyone know if the Eurofighter will ever use a recce pod? Waits and waits for crystal ball to clear.....................

Use the light grey and if anybody says anything say it discoloured at sea whilst on the carrier.

I think the Trumpeter kits are way overpriced and so I will be voting with my wallet. If RoG can sell a Hunter for under a tenner, then it should be possible to do the same with a Lightning. And I won't express my thoughts about the mess Trumpeter have made of the rear of the Lightning.

Thanks Lee - yes Aifix as the basis - still my favourite 72nd scale Mossie.

Thank you Lee - I am going to build my own cockpit interior anyway - isn't Plastikard wonderful?

For personal reasons, I abhor the Nazi swastika and all it stands for. I don't make models that display it. Just my personal feelings. I don't force them on anybody else.

Found one in Camoflage & Markings by Bob Jones. Job done.

Does anybody have, or can direct me to, pictures of Mosquito T.III in RAF service during WW2. I see they started manufacturing them during 1943 so presumably some must have been in use during WW2, but I can't find a picture of one - post war, plenty of pictures but that's not what I am looking for. Any help would be much appreciated.

For what he's done for this hobby, John Adams of Aeroclub should be knighted.

Two Bobs have A-10 decals on offer at the moment $3 instead of $11. Check out their site.

Excellent Graham. Married, eh? That's modelling time reduced by 75%! Seriously, congratulations to you and your wife. Cheers Nigel