CYA

Disturbing but übercool! It's a pity they don't ship to the continent. Nevertheless, it looks marvellous. Cheers Rob

I think I build this one way back when I was still wearing shorts and shaving was something your dad did. Didn't bother to slap paint on it, I will follow how it could have been done with a bit more effort and who knows I may be tempted to find one and revisit it. Loved the series when I was a kid but bitterly disappointed when I saw it again, maybe I am getting old 😉

I love the sleek lines of the Caudron 712, you do it justice sir! Just a question about the decals, home printed? Rob

Beautiful work, especially the canopies have paid off and show off that remarkable interior very well!

impressive model and wonderful finish! Mine has just moved up on my to do list :-)

Nope, no pics showing...

Hi Crayons, I like what you have done so far! I am about to start something similar so it is a great opportunity. One thing that puzzles me thought is the hair, did it break apart as a consequence of the heat gun? Or was there another reason? Good luck with your project.

Count me in, finally an opportunity to build that Mirage IV with the beautiful Syhart Decals for the "C'est fini" version.

Just read through this one: this is truly craftsmanship. I admire you eye for detail and skill level. Thank you so much for sharing this, there is much to be learned! Rob

Hello, after a break of a couple of years break in the hobby I am finally returning to modelling. My wife and I have decided to stop traveling around the world for our jobs and settled ourselves in a small village in France. That means that I could build something like a man cave again and I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of spring so I can sit actually in that man cave and achieve something. While waiting for that moment to happen I decided to start a project that is surely not OOB: two Helldivers from Airfix in the gentleman's scale. I think these must look pretty familiar to a lot of people. In the box a quite nicely cast but absolutely dated Helldiver, and since there are two boxes, two Helldivers. But wait, only one set of decals, that must be requested from the help desk of Airfix I guess. Also, in the package: and.... I am aware that these were made for the Matchbox Helldiver but since they are almost impossible to obtain...I checked already and it looks like it is usable without too much struggle. The idea is to make one with folded wings and the other ready for take off. I will try to scratch the interior for the second ones since I have only one PE set. First I have done some dry fitting and had a look if the interior would fit, and it it looked like it would. So I have started cleaning out the stubs from the interior and the copious distributed rivets on the exterior. I did made a start with bending some PE and started construction on the pilot's chair but when my fingers started sticking I decided to call it for the day. to be continued....

Interesting to see a Portuguese Spitfire, never knew they flew the Mk1! Which kit did you use for this one? Rob

Gorgeous piece of work, nice story too! Love the photoshopped picture with which you open. Rob

Nice! I just love the pre-war fighters, there's something menacing about those sturdy biplanes. Out of curiosity, what did you use for the wiring? And how did you color it? There's another one in my stash waiting and I think it will be the next one I will start, after I finished my shelf of doom...

Nice little craft, you made a nice one out of that oldie! However, i can't help but notice that you switched the right and left national insignia on the wings! Is that still possible to correct? Sorry to point that out... Cheers, Rob

Hi, I really like this kit, I have started on it but it is on the shelf of doom since I messed up one of the cowlings. But I love the PE set, it makes all the difference! Any reason why you omitted the gas cylinders in the cockpit area, or didn't you just get around that yet? One word of caution about the interior colour; this is not a french built bomber; these were licenced out to the Czech and were czech built. Because of that, there are some differences between the Bloch MB200 and the Aero MB200; the most visible is the angle of the nose in front of the cockpit. There is a step in the Bloch version that does not appear on the Aero. My recommendation, go with the grey interior color. Cheers, Rob

The holes in the wing are present on every model of the UHU I have seen sofar, however I have no idea what they represent. It is a nice model and I am building it as well. Fit is a bit challenging though. Good luck with yours. Rob

This is really an amazing piece of work! True craftmanship, thank you for showing. Rob

Really nice model. This is very inspiring, I just love the design of the planes from the interbellum. I have a number of kits still to do from that era. Maybe it is time to make a start with one of those tiny machines. Rob

Thanks, that is already helping a lot; very nice build in the link. Mine is going to be with floats.... Rob

Hello, since quite some time now I have a half finished model of the Blackburn Shark Mk II on my bench. I want to finish it as a portugese aircraft but I can't find a rigging scheme. The building manual is sketchy at best and there doesn't seem to be a lot of information on this aircraft on the net available. Is there anyone who can point me in the right direction? Thanks! Rob

Hi, amazing build, it is realy nice to see what you can achieve when you put your mind to it, About the Future coat, I would put a second coat on, it is easier to dull it down later then ending up with silvering decals..... Look forward to see the progress, I should do a work in progress soon myself. Cheers, Rob

I would like to introduce one of my models. My topic is militairy aircraft in french service, and this was an unlikely candidate. This japanese float plane was discovered in Singapore at the end of WW II and delivered to the french forces in Indochina after testing by the ATAIU. It was unfortunately crashed after a few months, killing its pilot. The kit was from Arii and the scale is 1/72. Enjoy. Rob

I love this one! Beautiful detail work and a very smooth finish. This build inspired me to start with an old bench sitter from my stack: the LeO 451 from Heller/Smer. You should be very happy with the result. Rob