Viking

That is gorgeous, a beautiful airliner. Looking forward to seeing your next build. Cheers John

Boeing 737 in uniform. 1:144 -TG Decals. The Boeing 737 in all its versions is the worlds best selling jet airliner, with over 10,000 having been produced since 1967 and production still continuing. A very small proportion of these can be found serving in a military role with various air forces around the the globe. New from TG Decals are two sets of decals covering the 'Classic' 737 -300, -400, -500, and a single 'New generation' -800, all in use with South American Air Forces. 44003 Boeing 737 in uniform. Part 1. The first #44003 covers one Mexican 737-800, and a Peruvian 737-500 with two variations. Suitable kits will be the Revell or Zvezda 737-800, and a Daco-Skyline 737-500. It would also be possible to shorten a Minicraft 737-300 or -400 down to a -500. The 737-800 is in overall dark grey, including the wings and tailplanes which on their civilian counterparts would be in light grey colours. A splash of colour on the rudder stripes and national insignia on the engine cowlings sets if off nicely. Black titling for 'FUERZA AEREA MEXICANA' goes where you would normally expect to see the airlines name, giving an mean and purposeful look. There a nice line up of 3 of them on Airliners. net Here. The next two options cover a single Peruvian 737-500, FAP-356, from 2015 when it wore an overall grey low-viz scheme, and 2018 when it was modified with a little more colour. Like the Mexican machine it is painted overall grey, although in a lighter shade. The differences are that the later version has a full colour flag and '100' logo on the fin, a badge by the front doors, and red 'El Peru Primero' titles on the side. Delivered in 1995 as a Presidential/VIP machine and still in service, FAP-356 has been a regular visitor to European airports, so could well line up on any 1/144 scale airport ramp! The decal sheet itself is screen printed to an extremely high standard. The carrier film looks to be thin and minimal, while the colours are spot on. Most impressive is the sharpness of it all. The details on the flags and badges are absolutely perfect and can only really be appreciated under a magnifying glass. As well as all the subject markings, the sheet contains an abundance of stenciling and a full set of cabin windows for both aircraft. A nice touch is a block of diagonal red & whit striping to put on the underside blade aerials. Also included is a set of two complete pre-cut masks for the cockpit glazing. One is for the Mexican -800 (without eyebrow windows), and the other for the Peruvian -500 (with eyebow windows). I always like to keep the cockpit glazing clear on my models, so these will save a fiddly masking job. 44004 Boeing 737 in uniform. Part 2 There are four 737s on this sheet, the same -300 in two different schemes, and a pair of -400s in similar schemes. Both Daco/Skyline and Minicraft offer kits of these versions. All are 'combi' aircraft with a large freight door on the forward port side.. As with set 44003, a set of cockpit window masks is provided, both with eyebrow windows. A very useful looking nose and anti-glare panel mask is also on the sheet, for the Columbian versions. All Combi versions have a reinforced 'lip' at the bottom of the cargo opening, which will not be on the Daco or Minicraft kits. TG have helpfully provided these as four self adhesive vinyl stickers. Two are in silver. to apply to the Columbian aircraft after painting, and two are in black to apply before painting the Chilean options. The first is an ex-Lufthansa -300 operated by the Chilean Air Force with the ID number 922 on the wings. It is depicted as it was in 2010 in an overall light gray finish that covered the whole airframe. Apart from a small Chilean flag near the nose, the whole thing is very much 'low-viz'. Looking at photos of it on the internet, it seems to very clean and well maintained with a gloss finish, so is possibly used as a VIP transport. It also seems to have made several visits to Europe. A second option is provided for the same aircraft, 922, as it appeared in 2017, by now in a much darker overall grey finish. It has lost the small colourful flag on the nose and even the door outlines are black over the dark grey. Even the overwing escape markings are solid black with a couple of white arrows. All in all a very secretive looking military aircraft. The third and fourth offerings are Columbian Air Force -400's, two different aircraft in similar schemes from 2015. They are overall medium grey with light grey undersides, and a wavy demarcation line between the two colours. Both feature black nose cones and anti-glare panels, topped off with very smart lining around the cockpit windows. A splash of colour is provided by the Columbian roundels and flag on the tail. The top of the tail fin sports a yellow flash much like those seen on US transports. Within each is the individual aircraft name 'Atlas' or 'Cronos', after mythological gods. Again these aircraft seem to very well maintained and have a glossy finish. Again the decals are superbly done, with beautifully sharp printing and good colour density. The carrier film is very thin and almost invisible, so they should perform very well. Conclusion. TG decals is a new name to me, and I have to say I am very impressed and I love the more unusual subjects. The decals are beautifully printed and of the highest quality. Although it doesn't say where, the instructions state that they were printed in the USA. I'm guessing that this was Microscale. They are well researched and the instructions are excellent, being in full colour and with top, bottom and both side views of each individual aircraft. Each individual decal is numbered and its location noted on the instructions, something not always done by other decal manufacturers. Another much appreciated fact is that paint references are provided for Model Master, Humbrol, Tamiya, Gunze Sangyo, Vallejo, Revell, Like Colour, and Hataka. Well done TG, these sets are beautifully produced and presented and deserve to do well. Review sample courtesy of

Those World schemes really started to grow on me once they scrapped them! Blue Poole, Bennyhone, and Chelsea Rose are my favourites, so great to see one here. Very nice quartet Mike, and chance of a shot of all 4 lined up? Cheers John

What a superb DC-8, beautifully built and finished. Those JT3D engines really alter the look, improving what is already the No.2 * most beautiful jet airliner ever built. Cheers John *In case you need to ask, It's the VC-10.

Well that is a great start to returning to the hobby, can't wait to see what you will do next. It's a very nice build, nothing wrong at all. Follow the advice of master modellers like Skodadriver and Turbofan and you'll be knocking out real stunners in no time! Cheers John

Count me in as another who likes that scheme! Like Ian, this just says 'Manchester' to me,. Superb finish as usual Dave, another beautiful build. Cheers John

Not heard of Ascensio decals before, seeing this I'll definitely have to look them up. Lovely build, I think the is the first one I've seen with the flaps and slats out. Cheers John

Lovely neat job there Ian, that livery suits the 700 very well. I love the super smooth finish you always seem to achieve, doing it in blue must be even harder than white. Cheers John

I'm playing catch-up on RFI as I've had a busy week, so I'm really glad I didn't miss this one Dave. It looks right on the money, a big improvement on the Revell kit. Interesting about the AA windows, also Ian comments about the engines and your method of dealing with them I haven't built a Zvezda 737 yet so this is all valuable info. Cheers John

I see the latest Wingnut Wings email newsletter contains this teaser: "New model on display at Chattanooga; -32068 1/32 All new model in development for 2020 to be revealed on 7 August (Chattanooga time)." Please let it be a Sopwith 1½ Strutter. It'll go so well with the Pup, Tripe, Camel, & Snipe, and there are so many markings it can wear, including some great French ones. What do you hope it will be..... Cheers John

Gotha UWD (32053) 1:32 Wingnut Wings Developed from the Gotha G.1 landplane (Wingnut Wings kit 32045 reviewed here) designed by Oskar Ursinus, the 'Ursinus Wasser Doppeldecker' (UWD) was completed in December 1915. Only one was ever built and was given the serial number 120. It underwent trials with the German Navy in January - February 1916 during which time it was modified with balanced ailerons, extra windows, and a 'probiscus' device in the nose for dropping bombs through. Sometime during 1916 (possibly March) UWD 120 was used operationally on a raid on Dover. Little else is know of its use, until it was written off in October 1916. The low mounted engines and high fuselage was to minimise the effect of engine-out induced yaw, by keeping them as close to the centre line as possible. In turn this meant moving the fuselage up and out of the way. Another unusual feature was that the crew were located in an armoured ‘bathtub’ that formed the forward section of the fuselage. The kit. Presented in Wingnut Wings classy silver edged box, the Steve Anderson artwork shows the UWD in flight, possibly near the white cliffs of Dover. The painting shows it being escorted by a Friedrichshafen FF.33 floatplane, so I really hope that Wingnut Wings are going to release one of those at some point. As with the similar Gotha G.1, the large box is packed full to the brim with parts. It is interesting to note that although both kits appear similar, the only common parts in each box are the sprues A and B, all the others are different. Apart from the fact that the UWD is on floats rather than wheels, it is also powered by different engines. It used the 160 hp Mercedes-Daimler D.III rather than the G.1's 150hp Benz Bz.III engines. Sprue A. This large sprue only just fits the dimensions of the box, containing a variety of parts common to both the landplane and seaplane versions of this kit, mostly concerned with fuselage and some of the flying surfaces. The rear fuselage has been moulded as a three sided section, of the bottom and sides. The top section fits onto this, and at a stroke eliminates any fuselage seams. Well technically the joins are along the top corners of the fuselage, but they should be a doddle to deal with. Careful gluing with thin cement run along the join by capillary action should mean virtually no/almost no clean up will be required. Full marks to Wingnut Wings for this one, flat sided fuselages are always a pain to eliminate the seams from if they are done in the conventional manner. Some very fine items are also included, such as pilots seat, framework, pipework, the throttles, instrument panel, and gun type camera. Construction starts with the cockpit, which is where many of these items will end up. Sprue B. Here we have all four main wing panels, and the horizontal tailplane. Again all is faultlessly moulded with very fine scalloped trailing edges, and delicate sagged fabric effect. Strut mounting holes are clearly defined, as are some small holes showing where to drill for rigging attachment points. (The struts themselves are cleverly moulded with ends that will only fit into the holes they are destined for). The lower wings have large tabs on them that fit to the large single center section from Sprue A, and automatically set them at the correct dihederal Sprue C. The smallest, containing the clear parts for the windows and windscreen. A new approach to packing has these inside a heat sealed plastic bag, and inside that they are protected by a wrap around of a'cling film' type sheet. All parts are beautifully thin and clear. Sprue D. There are two of these, holding the floats, cowling parts, struts, and other duplicated parts. The floats are moulded as a single unit of three sides, with a separate top pice, in the same way as the rear fuselage has been done. Again this makes construction a simple task and practically eliminates any joining seams. What is really apparent is the sheer size of these floats. They are enormous. I had a recently completed WnW Sopwith Camel nearby when doing the photos, and couldn't resist showing a comparison. Sprue E. Again there are two of these sprues provided, for the Daimler-Mercedes D.III engines. These are different to those in the Gotha G.1 kit, which has Benz Bz.III engines. I may have mention in previous reviews that I often start building these kits with the engines. They are so beautifully moulded and everything fits precisely, so you quite quickly have a little jewel of an engine ready for fitment later in the build. Note that the magnetos are not fitted until the engines are in place, as there are new ones with long control rods attached (G33 &G34) to reach up to the top wing. The only thing you may want to add is some ignition wiring from fine fuse wire. As this is an engine used by many aircraft, the same sprue appears in many of Wingnut Wings kits. This means that than half of the parts are not needed, including a set of four beautiful propellers that can go into the spares box. Sprue G. More floatplane specific parts, notably the forward fuselage 'pod' and a lot of struttery. There are various windows and openings in the 'pod' that make it quite different to that of the Gotha G.1. Page 21 of the instructions notes the parts to use or omit if making Option A1, in the 'as delivered status. It also states that you will need to fill in two of the nose windows, so a decision needs to made early on. The mouldings are absolutely beautiful, with sharply defined detail, great delicacy/finesse with some very fine parts, free of flash or sink marks, and no distortion or warpage. I showed them to a fellow modeller who was absolutely amazed, and speculated at how much work goes into designing and producing mouldings of this quality. Etch. For once this is quite small. The model only requires a lap belt for the pilot, and a cooling jacket for the LMG 14 Parabellum. A nice touch is a little brass plaque to display with the finished model. Instructions. If you have never seen a set of Wingnut Wings assembly instructions, then these will be a real treat. Printed on twenty four pages of heavy high gloss paper, it is as much a work of reference as it is an instruction booklet. The CAD drawings of assembly stages are interspersed with period photographs (thirty seven in all) of actual machines and their details. On thing I particularly like is the CAD drawings of completed sub-assemblies in full colour, as these are a great help in understanding how everything goes together. Unusually the whole biplane wing unit complete with floats, is built as single unit to which the fuselage is attached. Marking Options. Just one, as only one was ever built, but there are small variation if you wish. By leaving off the 'probiscus' filling in some of the nose windows, and using the unbalanced ailerons, you can build it as version A1. This is shown in the instructions, and represents the machine as it was delivered for trials. Version A2 is in the same colour scheme, and represents the aircraft as used in service. A. Gotha UWD 120, See Flieger Abteilung 1, March 1916. Decals. Printed by Cartograf, the sheet is dominated by the large 'cross pattée' markings, with dozens of smaller details for things like stencils and instrument faces. There are around twenty for the cockpit alone, and another forty four to go on the twenty two 10kg Carbonit bombs stored in the nose. The fine detail is beautifully printed and readable through a magnifying glass, and given that the cockpit area is highly visible on the finished model, it should all look fabulous. Conclusion. It must have made sense to produce this model alongside the Gotha G.1, but don't make the mistake of thinking that the only difference is that one comes with wheels, and the other with floats. This is a Wingnut Wings kit, so no corners will have been cut. If some parts differed between aircraft, then you get new parts on the sprue. So much so that only two of the eight sprues are common to both kits. Personally I really like this aircraft, it has all the things I like about early aviation. It was built at a time when ideas were being tried out,and 'The Rule Book' didn't really exist. Only now, 100 years later, do we find it strange looking, because we know what a conventional aircraft should look like. It will build into a large model, and is certain to provoke questions from anyone seeing it. It is not really one for the beginner, but if you have built any of Wingnut Wings two seater kits then this one should not give you any problems. It is just bigger, not any more complicated. Highly Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Nice build, and orange day-glo & silver always looks cool. Cheers John

It is indeed Adam. Boris (after Boris Becker) the guinea pig. Sadly he expired in February this year so I must get round to changing that picture. His brother is still going strong though.

Mary had a little lamb It leapt around in hops It hopped into the road one day and ended up as chops.

Too right Adam! In my defence your honour, I plead that this thread is from 8 years ago, well before the Zvezda kit was even thought of. Cheers John