depressed lemur

Long pointy airplane, what's not to like? What will be the scheme though? so many choices, so many difficult ones as well.

Hobby Boss A-4M Skyhawk. VMA311, 1977 Paints Vallejo, Mr Hobby and Tamiya. Total build time 22 hours 15 minutes including kip time. Build thread here

OK, times up. Calling this done after 22 hours 15 minutes. This has been a very enjoyable build with a really good fit throughout. With more caution I believe even the small amount of filler I used probably wouldn't have been needed. The decals were excellent in their application and conforming to to shape, even settling over the vortex generators on the wing. I expect that I will fettle this more in the future to tidy it up a bit, but it still looks the part. These Blitzenbuild challenges are a real blast and clear the cobwebs away from the drudgery of researching every last detail before even gluing 2 bits together. Almost going back to our childhood and going from box to brmmmm noises in a day. I would like to thank all for your support and comments along the way. See you at the next one.

Getting on for three hours to go. Decsls on awaiting a coat of Future to seal everything in. Then it is undercarriage time. Nearly done.

Although there is a decal for the rudder, I don't think I could get it settled in time so a bit of masking is required And, after a bit of red. 4 hours to go.

Light Gull Grey upper painted. Made the stupid mistake of forgetting to mask the air brake Wells, so this will need repainting unless the airbrakes fit well. We shall see. 6 hours left

The time is getting on for half eleven which means eight hours to go. As you can see, there has been a massive application of white. Now time for another coffee. I was going to cheat and keep this clean, but while the paint dries enough to mask I might get some ordnance assembled.

Thanks for the comments chaps. Day 2 in the Big build house. Where else, other than a Blitzenbuild, are you going to find a cup of coffee and a left over mince pie as a relatively acceptable breakfast. And they are off (part 2)

11:30, My eyes are starting to go, so time to pack up for the evening. Time for a night cap i believe

At the three hour ish mark This is where you have to double check everything to make sure you don't miss an important protrusion.

An hour and a half and we have a basic cockpit A bit rudimentary like an 80s kit, but not bad.

And we are off 19:30, Monday 28th is the target.

Coming along very nicely. Keep going Little H

My god, it actually is starting to look like an aeroplane. Certainly one of the most ambitious projects I have seen.

The decision has been made. This is going to be my entry 1/48 scale but still small enough to fit in my ever diminishing space. I have no idea on how this will go together having not experienced Hobby Boss kits before, but it looks fairly doable in 24 hours. Selected scheme will be As these always look clean in photos so weathering is going to be minimal. Start date will be tomorrow afternoon after the last family leaves and I get my bench back.

Go, Little H. a great kit and can't wait to dip into this Blitz build!

Due to family limitations we are having Christmas tomorrow, so I am glad for the extension. no idea what to build yet but 24 hours option is a go. Have fun guys

There are some very nice photos there and show some very interesting weathering on the fuselage. The F-16s look very clean to just aft of the canopy where the panel lines start to become visible, whilst the Have Glass looks like a fresh factory paint job. Thank you for sharing these

Nice job there. It is amazing how different she looks with radials and a solid stepped nose.

The other consideration here will be passenger comfort. If any of you have experienced a lively landing in heavy winds it can be quite an experience even at the front and rear extremities. How much will this be enjoyable sat halfway out on the wing is anybody's guess. On the really negative side, those who pay for the window seat will get a really spectacular view if it goes down. If I recall, the crash of American Airlines DC-10 flight 191 resulted in the removal of cameras from the nose gear showing live on the screen in the cabin for that reason as it was believed that the passengers could see the whole event.

I have used Tamiya sheet through an Epson printer to create a mask for the splinter scheme on a Saab Viggen. You really have to leave the ink over night to let it fix to the paper before you use it, If you do it earlier then the ink can rub off. As Mike says,check out your printer's paper path first, but full sheets should be no problem.

Put me down for the Blitzenbuild. Once again I will be handing cash over to the local model shop in return for a Christmas present wrapped and ready for opening on the day of the build. After last year's build I found it insanely entertaining to open a package not knowing what is inside but knowing that it will be completed in 24 hours. Highly recommended that option.

Well done Little H. Really nice build and a good subject for the build. Keep up the good work

Airfix boxing of Cromwell and King Tiger Paints a mix of Mr. Hobby, Tamiya and Vallejo.

Go Little H. This is looking really good keep on going