desmojen

The Eduard FW190 came with pre cut Kabuchi tape masks, they were rockin' those were! I'm not at all keen on the vinyl ones though Jen.

I think that with a lot of newer, better quality kits, the framing is not so easy to see if you are using Tamiya tape. Especially if you're not comfortable using it. Try using Bare Metal Foil. It is a lot thinner than Tamiya tape and it's possible to easily see even the lightest of lines in it. Place a chunk on the canopy part and smooth it down, first with a cotton bud or your finger, and then with a cocktail stick. You should be able to see the canopy framing very easily now. Use a nice sharp pointed blade and gently run along the edge of the frame. If you hold the blade at the right angles it will pretty much follow the framing by itself. Then you just weed out the foil from the framing with your scalpel blade and fine tweezers. Foil is harder to remove than Tamiya tape, and will leave a residue that you have to polish off but I find it easier to use, and less likely to peel away from the corners etc. Jen.

My main project until I get my Harrier bits through. I'm hoping to get this finished in time for Telford. If I do, and if I'm happy with it, I plan to enter it into this years Trumpeter comp. The model was bought from Hannants a few months back (paid for with a voucher I won in the Splash GB, thanks David , but it's taken until this week to really get going on it. So far, I've built the cockpit up and a few of the larger subassemblies are starting to come together. The cockpit looks quite basic when you gather the parts together, but as you start to paint it, things spring to life. I made some belts for the seat out of lead foil and some etched buckles cut from belts that were left over from last years 262. Obviously, it is otherwise OOB. I chose to paint the interior parts in a colour based on RLM78 of all things. I failed miserably to find a picture of the cockpit of a PM model, but based on photos in a Kagero Topshots book of some seats I decided I had a choice of a mid grey or a light blue grey. I went with the blue because it looks far more interesting! Once I was finally happy with the cockpit, I did some work on the nose intake ring and then assembled the front part of the fuselage together. The fit is best described as fairly sporty in places I think! I basically chose to sacrifice a decent centreline joint in order to get the best fit possible on the nosecone. As you can see, it isn't great. I put a load of lead inside the intake piece, and then I put some more in the little avionics bay since I had no desire to display it open. Here's a pic of the main bits I've done so far. I've started on one of the engines, I have another that I haven't yet glued together. After a lot of dry fiddling, I can see that the engines are not very visible even with the hatches open, even less so since I planned to open only one hatch. I toyed with not having the hatches open at all, but decided to stick with having one open since it would be a crying shame to lose the engine detail entirely. More progress soon! Jen.

Apparently the pressure needed is quite high I tried to make a chamber using my Dyson it worked well enough to pull the sides of the container in, and make it bloody hard to get the lid off after (Blu Tak seal) but the rubber didn't even think about releasing it's bubbles! I've had varied success with mould making up to now, which is why I get my moulds made by a friendly, well known resin bits producer to assure good quality. if these things do work, I'd love you to let me know. Even if they were only good enough for prototyping it'd be a help to me until such times as I can afford to lay out nearly a grand for a vaccuum chamber Jen.

I loves it I do Jen.

Here's one I finished a week or so back. This model has been built from a 1975 boxing of the Airfix Vb kit. It's all OOB apart from a few small points. I boxed in the wheel wells with plasticene and had to rescribe the panel lines because of the amount of filling that was necessary. I also removed the tail aerial mount and slightly modified the aerial post since the aircraft in question did not have an external aerial wire. Other than that, it is exactly as Airfix made it, including the very old decals. I used the model for a little experimentation with airbrushing techniques. I tried doing some post fading of the camouflage colours, as well as some preshading. It worked quite well, but isn't that obvious in the photos. I had a lot of trouble getting a match for Ocean Grey in acrylic and ended up using Humbrol enamel in the end, the other colours are Tammiya Sky Grey and Gunze Dark Green, with Tamiya Sky spinner and rear fuselage band. The model was built for the CBK SIG 1977 Airfix catalogue stand at this years Telford show. It was an awful lot of work, but I'm pleased with the end result. Jen.

Well the big one is finished! The Tamiya one remains stalled, especially since I've recently discovered that I've lost the entire tailplane!!! Anyone got a spare one? Quick pic of the Trumpeter one, It's a lovely model, there are a few pitfalls waiting to create extra work for you but on the whole a thoroughly enjoyable build. Model is due to be featured in MAI, I'll let you know when. Jen.

I'm not sure how the USN aircraft of this era always manage to look so colourful when they are essentially only grey and white! I love it, such a pretty little aeroplane. Nice one Ian. Jen. (hankering after a 1/32 USN Toom )

Love the posed bondome, really finishes it off Jen.

Stunning work Len - really! Jen.

Bean cans aren't made out of 7025 stoopid! Jen.

I may well have a tin of 166 in my big tin of Humbrols. You are welcome to have it if I do... Jen.

I've joined the Harrier SIG Bill, you can't look at the pics until you do. I expect the website joining details will be through before long. At the moment, I'm erring towardsthe Flightpath set, but it would be nice to see some pics or something of what you actually get in it. I've seen pics of the Heritage stuff, but the feedback seems variable, and some of the stuff in the pictures doesn't look mega. Also, the Flightpath set contains a lot of extra stuff (not that I'll be needing the sidewinders!) Is that fact that all the sets are for a GR3 going to have any impact? Jen.

I picked up a lovely copy of the original Airfix 1/24 Harrier GR1 at IPMS Avon for a song. I will be building it for this years Telford show to put on the Classis British Kits SIG stand. Now, I need to build it fairly quick but I don't want to go OOB on it. It's just too basic as it comes, especially when it comes to the cockpit and undercarriage. I've joined the Harrier SIG for references and inspiration but I'd like your opinions of the detail sets which are available. As far as I know there's only the Heritage bits and the big Flighpath set. What do get in that, and is it worth the money? Any help gratefully appreciated! Jen.

Yay!!!!!! I vote for that one Jen.

Can't you do a Euro1 one with teeth???? I can't decide! Jen.

indeed, that is very Nice work on the metal bits too. Jen.

You got a link for that then? I fancy a helicopter with proper full control, and that sounds like a nice price I bought one of thoe twin rotor bug type ones (bottom right in your pic) in Hong Kong for about a tenner. Whilst it is a lot of fun, it isn't very controllable and teaches you little or nothing of how to fly a helicopter. It is great fun for scaring cats with though! Jen.

The site Kiwi has linked is probably one of the best you could go through. I think you'd find that the scheme is whatever the US standard was for that aircraft at that time. Jen.

Super cool Is that mickey mouse camo? I have a Dragon Sherman Firefly to do some time when I get a few minutes Jen.

Cool pic Doc! My weeny Talisman is to 1/100 scale. The photos I was given of a real one were much smaller than that one in your pic, maybe they do a range of sizes or something? Perhaps the one in my pic was a mock up. I rang the guy it was made for tonight, he says they now need five doing I respectfully declined and suggested they use mine as a master to cast resin ones from! Jen.

Here's something a bit different! A friend of mine asked me if I could make this for him to sit on the deck of a ship model his firm had made. It's called a Talisman and is a remotely operated vehicle submarine thingy. Quite sporty looking too I reckon! I made it by casting a chunk of resin in a suitable size, then sawing and sanding in between measuring and drawing until I was happy that it resembled the one in the plans. The thrusters are made out of tiny sections of aluminium tube and bits of locking wire, and superglue, and some swears! There she is perched on top of a Tamiya paint to show scale reference. It's 43mm long overall! Not the easiest thing to photograph, being black and tiny. Hope you like Right! Back to my areoplane thingies Jen.

Dudes, it's really easy to sit here and decry the USAF for this. All I'm going to say is this. Don't. Jen.

Cracking job. That's a real ugly airplane, and not one of Matchboxes better kits if I remember right. Great stuff Karl. What's next? Jen.

I use Revell airbrush cleaner, works a treat. Others use cellulose thinners which also works. Jen.