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Foxbat

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  1. Given current affairs I really can't see a Polish company replacing a kit with Russian markings (their VVS Hurricane according to the first post) with a kit of a Russian subject. There are a few French types they could do that would give options for Polish markings, or a world of single piston engined types that would fill gaps in their range. Not long to wait to find out Andy
  2. If the cherry blossom is a clue, and if there is a connection to an existing model then an Aichi D3A1 would be nice. The Airfix kit is as old as me and the Fujimi kit is very hard to get hold of. It is the least well represented of the Pearl Harbour aircraft and soldiered on beyond Midawy as its replacement was delayed several times. A perfect adversary for all those Arma Wildcats. Andy
  3. This kit has one of two parts I've never yet managed to work out how to fit - the radiators. As I remember them the was a bit that stuck forward on the inboard end that didn't mate up with anything so if I lined it up with the leading edge, the radiators were somewhere about the tail plane and if I put the radiators somewhere reasonable the tab stuck out the front. Can't remember what I did in the end but half the decal sheet with the green stripes is still in my stash so I must have finished it somehow Yours is looking good. The other Matchbox thing I never worked out was Mosquito mudguards. Built mine wheels up and hung it from the ceiling which solved that one. Andy
  4. No fees on parcels from Japan under £135. You can take that as gospel from someone who effectively uses HLJ as their LMS and orders about once a month from them. There's a sweet spot on shipping too, where the cost per parcel is spread over three or four kits so the saving is still substantial. As long as one of those kits isn't a 1/72 Emily - that wouldn't fit on the plane and has it's own personal ship Irrelevant in this case, I'll be looking for a Meteor and a few other new Airfix kits from my nearest bricks and mortar shop. Andy
  5. Put my money where my mouth is since I've recommended the same kit here twice recently. I've bought one and started a build thread. Hope it proves useful. Blast From The Past Andy
  6. As a cash strapped schoolboy, this was the first Tamiya kit I could afford, and I built it sometime around 1978. I have fond memories of it and have recommended it to a couple of people on here as an ideal starter for 1/35 armour. Time to put my money where my mouth is and build another one myself, just to see if it is as nice as I remember. I got this kit brand new earlier this week from Models For Sale for the princely sum of £8.99 (yes, really, a 1/35 tank plus figures and change from a tenner), so it doesn't have to be that good to be value for money The current box is unchanged from 1971. There was another release the following year that dropped the figures but I've never seen it. There is a sprue that has the turret and bits & bobs for the hull. Detail is nice enough (apart from that track for the hull fron ) and the mould would be pretty clean if it was new, never mind 50 years old. There are also a set of poly caps that help capture the wheels on the axles. Next sprue has the running gear and commander figure. All the wheels are single row which makes construction and painting so much quicker and easier. That commander can go in the spares box - there's nothing much wrong with him except his DAK uniform which ties him to specific time and place. There is a little bit of flash and some mould lines that I don't remember from last time, but it's really not bad and will take minimal cleaning up. Hull comes as a tub and a deck that has most of the superstructure and storage boxes moulded on. There will be a gap at the side where the storage bin overlaps the track guard - if it bothers you it would be a two minute job to box in with card. Or you could just not look at it upside down. There are battery guides inside the tub and slots in the bottom that betray the kit's motorised toy beginnings. Again, you can fix them or ignore them as you see fit. I'm going to ignore them. Tracks are typical 70's rubber bands with long prongs that you're supposed to push through holes then fix with a hot screwdriver. Small staples will do the same job. There are four infantry figures too, busy being all dynamic. Again, they're time and place specific (early in the DAK's involvement in North Africa, later I believe they would have short boots and caps instead of the long boots and pith helmet options - see Airfix's very nice HO/OO figure sets for examples) and again they're going straight in the spares box. Instructions are the standard Tamiya concertina. They have a lot of notes on unit organisation and an explanation of the differences in DAK uniforms over time but it's all in Japanese. Painting guide is basic in the extreme and gives no colour call outs (I don't know when Tamiya introduced their own range, I'm guessing some time after this kit appeared). There are decals supplied for 5 options though, and they cover just about every scheme the Pz. II carried which is great. I've done a bit of digging and fortunately German divisional markings often changed over time so I can pin the units, location and probable colours down: 1. 18th Panzer Division, Operation Barbarossa, Summer 1941 - overall Dunkelgrau (RAL7021) 2. 3rd Panzer Division, summer 1943 - Olivegrün (RAL 6003) or Rotbraun (RAL8017) splodges over dark yellow (RAL7028) 3. 15th Panzer Division, North Africa 1941 - overall Gelbbraun (RAL 8000) 4. 21st Panzer Division (after its reorganisation and redesignation from 5th Light Division) 1942/3 - Braun (RAL8020) with spots of Grau Grün (RAL 7008) 5. 6th Panzer Division, spring/early summer 1943 - overall dark yellow (RAL7028) I have my own preferred matches for all of those, but that's a can of worms for another day Time to just build it now. Andy
  7. Linden Hill did one a long time ago but I've never seen it. Great Wall Hobby did a limited edition release with the Swifts markings that is still available. That's all I've found in 1/48. GWH Swifts Andy
  8. When you and she are ready for the step up to 1/35, seriously consider this from Tamiya: Pz.II Bin the figures and what you have left is a lovely, simple, well engineered build with no flash that is small enough to brush paint and cheaper than a lot of modern 1/72 kits. It was my first 1/35 tank when I was only a bit older than your daughters and still one of my favourites. As a 1970's mould it has accuracy and detail issues compared to modern kits, but as a starter that you can be proud of when it's done it takes some beating. Andy
  9. That Challenger is a nice surprise. Briefly wondered what they have lined up for missing number 32602 later in the year, but that code was the German infantry that came out late last year. Andy
  10. Late to the party, but I'd agree wit the above - a Maultier (mule) conversion of a late model Opel Blitz with the simplified wooden cab that replaced the original rounded steel one. Quite unusual, Google finds lots of Maultier pictures and lots of Einheits pictures but I haven't seen one (yet) that matches your model and has both. Andy
  11. M3 half track and M7 105mm GMC. There has never been a kit of either in 1/48 and Hannants show none currently available in 1/35 The original M3 kit dates back to 1975 and the M7 is from 1984 so maybe those gaps point to new tools. They are the only real gaps left from the allied side in NWE 1944-45. Andy
  12. Great to have these available again and at a very good price - so good I've pre-ordered mine and got another 10% off that Andy
  13. It's interesting (to me at least) that in the past Airifix have done straight reboxes of Academy kits, but this year they're being a bit more subtle. As mentioned above the Pz. III Ausf J is a European one where Academy have made theirs DAK specific. Also the Acdamy Brummbar is an early one where the Airifx is a mid production. The StuG IV is less clear cut as the pictures I've seen of both look essentially identical and neither specify a production period. I get the feeling that having tested the water, these are now collaborations to cover as many bases and sales as possible without taking them from each other. Andy
  14. Two reasons why I'd like a new one[1]: the old one has long been out of production and there will never be another run which means I can't just pop to my LMS and pick one up, and (probably related) the price of unbuilt old kits is often more than the price of the new one[2] - (diminishing) supply & (steady) demand and all that. Andy [1] I'm only qualified to speak for myself, and then only just [2] five of the eight on eBay this morning are priced between £75 and £123. One of the cheapies was only listed today and is already at £24 with nine days bidding to go. Another is at £69.95 and has no box. My favourite seller of pre-owned kits has none in stock and I can't remember last time I saw one. Google also doesn't find much.
  15. Got the scale wrong, but I thought this was a very Airfix type. Looking forward to it, never built an Anson but I really should. Andy
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