tomprobert

I have also considered hiring an articulated lorry for the weekend 😆

Cheers, gents - your kind words are most appreciated.

Ha ha - it does take up a fair bit of real estate! Cheers, Neil. I’m unlikely to bring it this year as there’s not space in the car what with other models and baggage, etc. It'll no doubt make it at some point though. The trouble with buying Titan kits is the import taxes. It makes an already quite pricey kit extremely expensive - sadly unless he sources an importer into the UK I’m unlikely to take the plunge.

Oh NOW we are talking!

Many thanks, Matt - and yes, restoring raised detail can be tricky but I’ve learnt a good, easy and straightforward trick to repair lost panel lines through sanding and joint work, which I’m happy to share: 1) Taking great care to ensure you’ve aligned some dymo tape (or the like) with the existing, undamaged, panel lines, take a very sharp scalpel blade and score the surface of the model as necessary. This will leave a very, very thin scored line, but nicely raised lips/ridges either side. The deeper you score, the higher the ridges. 2) Now run a small amount of Tamiya Extra Thin along the newly scored line. Be careful not to add too much as the delicate ridges will melt away. I use the extra quick drying type of TET which seems to work better than the normal. Leave to dry for a couple of hours. 3) With some very fine sandpaper, lightly sand the ridges so they are smooth and uniform. The TET will have melted some of the plastic into the scored line, but the ridges will remain and are just fine enough to replicate the raised line. If they’re too high, sand a little more until they match the kit detail. 4) Spray a light coat of the primer of your choice and viola, a nicely repaired and raised panel line. I did just this with the Lanc featured here and you’d never know the difference between my repairs and the original kit parts. As will all things, the more often you do this, the better you’ll get. I learnt this when building some of the Monogram classics of the 1970s and it’s now my go-to method and takes away the fear of damaging any raised detail. You can also do the same with raised rivets, using a sharp needle. I hope that’s useful? Tom

Many thanks, Roger - and yes my poor eyes did struggle! Fear not, though, as I have a 1/32 version waiting patiently for when I eventually finish my Stirling. Very kind - thank you. Absolutely, John - I’ve got all the 1/48 Monogram classics too and they are well worth the time and effort in my humble opinion.

Very kind - thank you. I think a lot of us have them lurking in the stash but many are put off by the raised details and, by modern standards, slightly dated detail. It can, however, scrub up very well! Agreed - and thank you. You’re quite right about the aftermarket for this kit - there’s loads. I, however, decided to build it more or less out of the box for simplicities sake and it was very enjoyable at that.

My word that is GORGEOUS!

Evening guys and gals, Here's a model I completed today - Tamiya's classic of the mighty Lancaster in 1/48th scale. My model represents a B MkIII of 300 (Polish) Squadron, based at RAF Faldingworth in early/mid-1944. I picked this up for a steal on a well known auction site a while back, shortly after HK Models released their new kit and thus a lot of these were being sold off cheaply. Whilst the Tamiya kit is of 1975 vintage, it still builds up well and holds its own against the newer HK rendition well: I actually like the raised surface detail (which although a little overdone in places is a more life-like rendition of the real aircraft) and whilst it has the odd tricky element during construction - namely the fit of the engines - it doesn't take any major effort to put it together: Painting all the bombs took nearly as long as building the entire model - that is one impressive amount of ordnance! I painted it with my trusty Badger 200 using Xtracolor enamels, and added a Flory 'grime' wash and did all the exhaust staining with Mig-Ammo pastels which are really easy to work with: Decals came from Techmod and were superb, bedding down over the raised details without issue: All in all a very straightforward and enjoyable build, and whilst I need to get hold of the newer HK kit one day, I'd happily build another of these if the opportunity arose - you can't beat giving an older classic some love! Tom

This is exceptional work - I’m thoroughly enjoying following your progress on this.

I had a quiet, wife and child-free afternoon at home today, so thought I’d have a bash at the tail feathers. The parts are nicely moulded, and fit the plans well: Once I had scored around the parts and broken them free, they were thinned down on some course sand paper: The masking tape ‘handle’ keeps the pressure even and therefore everything nice and true - it’s actually quite therapeutic and a nice way to wile away an afternoon… Fast forward a couple of hours and the tail feathers have been glued together - careful trimming and sanding has meant barely any filler is needed - and I’ve taped them onto the fuselage for a look: And alongside another of the RAF’s heavies I’ve been working on of late: Whilst the tails are separate I might actually paint the outer faces of the fins as they’re very manageable right now, so it might be time to commit to a scheme… More when there’s more, Tom

Monogram's classic 1/48th B-17G

Koster/Revell 1/48th combo to make a Fortress MkI of the RAF:

I've got to a stage now where the major construction of the wings is more or less done. With the nacelles sitting pretty, I then set about adding the Fonderie cowl flaps, bought some QuickBoost carb intakes and added those, made up some oil coolers from some bombs from the spares box, and then test fitted the Fonderie props for fun! This morning I gave the wings a quick spray of primer to tie everything together, and I must say I'm pleased with how they are now looking: Time to start detailing the gear bays and bomb cells, me thinks... More when there's more, Tom

As far as my research suggests, B-17s did indeed have these field applied. No two aircraft appear the same!

I’ve just seen the terribly sad news on The Grace Spitfire’s Facebook page that Richard Grace, of Air Leasing at Sywell, has passed away. I quote: We are profoundly sad to announce that on the evening of October 15th 2024 Richard Grace lost his stoic battle with ongoing illness. Richard leaves behind his wife Daisy, their two children Allegra and Stirling, and his sisters Olivia and Nicola. More information will be given when appropriate. His immediate family, and his wider family at Air Leasing and Ultimate Warbirds Flights, would like to request your respect in giving them the space and privacy they need to grieve this terrible loss. What a terrible loss to the warbird world, not to mention his friends and family. Blue skies.

Many thanks, Ian - no, the engines are provided in white metal by Sanger. They’re actually quite nice - when I’ve finished the wings off I’ll take some better pictures.

Some more progress to report with the Halibag... Over this last week I have managed to get the engines hung and blended in - the 'home made' upper fairings on the inboard engines has been a reasonable success and I think I've just about got away with my plastic card/Milliput bodge-job! I removed the power-eggs from the outer nacelles and once again made a simple firewall from plastic card, upon which the white metal engines and the Fonderie parts were attached: And then, once again, everything was blended with more Milliput and sanded smooth... There's lots of re-scribing needed, and then I'll need to make and add the oil coolers, carb intakes and cowl flaps. Still plenty to keep me busy! More when there's more... Tom

Having read @Jonners cunning plan above, it sounds as if he’s most definitely on to a winner. I must confess that I usually turn a blind eye to most inaccuracies but I can see where this kit is out - I agree that correcting it is the best course of action as it’ll only bug you going forward and once you see it, you can’t unsee it on a relatively small aircraft such as this. I love seeing a vac getting some love on here - inspiring stuff!

Mmmmmmm… this has given me an idea for my 1/48th version nearing the paint shop… markings are very simple in this and it might just be doable. It’ll certainly make a nice change from the usual overall grey.

Let me be the first to congratulate you on a stunning Fort, Neil. Beautifully executed and weathered to perfection.

TJD models at Sutton-at-Hone near Dartford is fantastic. Really good range of all kinds of kits as well as lots of paints and accessories. Easily accessible from the M25 just near the Dartford Crossing if you’re ever around that area. It’s my go-to model shop in north Kent!

Many thanks, James - I actually made a start last night using Milliput White. All a bit rough and ready at the moment but some sanding and polishing will hopefully yield something acceptable eventually…

Indeed. There are on Merlin variant as I built the wings for that a few years ago, but no sign on this version…

Some more progress on the Sanger Halifax to update you on. Not as much as I would like, I hasten to add, as work has been manic of late and I've not had as much time at the bench as I would have liked, but I imagine many of us are in the same boat when it comes to our hobbies... Anyway, I've been working on the inboard nacelles of late as these are some of the trickiest parts of a build such as this. Here's what you get in the box - or more accurately bag: As you can see, the parts are fairly basic, but thankfully I have now have a spare set of the Fonderie kit's power eggs and cowls, which will be an improvement over the rather crude Sanger offerings. So, with the parts removed from the backing sheet, I have cut off the engine itself, as well as the oil coolers (which are not the most accurate in terms of shape) as well as the carb intakes which will also need some serious remedial work: I next removed the u/c doors (storing them safely for later) and made the firewall and forward bulkhead where the new Fonderie front sections will be hung: The nacelles were then glued to the wings, ensuring the angle of attack was correct (careful consulting of plans is vital here!) and making sure both sides were identical: But... there's a problem... As you can see, the join to the wing is rather... erm... poor. The upper faring is completely missing on the inboard engines, so this is going to have to be remedied, I think, with my trusty Milliput. I've scoured the kits parts over and over, and there's no sign of any upper fairings - the engine parts themselves are molded without them. The good news is I've checked the outboard motors and there is a faring of sorts, but in the meantime I'm going to have to go some serious work to get these passable. Anyway, onwards and upwards. More when there's more... Tom