Mr T

1/72nd Canadair CT 133 Silver Star, 21463, of 400, City of Toronto, Sqn, 1955-6 Platz/ Italeri Kit. The Lockheed T33 Shooting Star was chosen by Canada to provide a jet trainer to met training needs for the RCAF and eventually for the RAF. The aircraft were built under licence as the CT133 Sliver Star, and the major difference from the Lockheed aircraft was the replacement of the original J33 engine with a licence built Rolls-Royce Nene unit. This was a little heavier than the J33, but was more powerful, giving the Silver Star a better performance than the T33. Some aircraft were later sold abroad, some ending up in France. External changes to the Nene powered aircraft were minimal. An exhaust port on the port rear fuselage and different inlets on the nose are the most visible. The model uses the very Platz kit, mine was the Italeri re-boxing. The kit goes together well and is nicely detailed. The WIP for it is here Thanks to Zebra for hosting this GB and encouraging me to look in the stash and decal bank, and to Enzo for keeping us on the straight and narrow.

The hot spell put paid to any photos for a few days, but the Silver Star is finished and will go in the gallery later today.

The colours are actually Humbrol 106 Ocean Grey and 163 Dark Green. The gloss varnish and the somewhat indifferent photograph on my part makes the model look darker than it actually is. Photos of the real thing taken under different conditions seem to show that the colours were fairly dark. I have my doubts about the Ocean Grey as bring a good match for the MAP shade. The kit stencil decals are on and most of them have decided to surrender and stick to the surface. There are still a few spots of apparent silvering. Experience shows that when you think you have eliminated the silvering, a matt varnish coat reveals you have not. The Flight Colours decals are much better, or at least the three I have used are.

Welcome to the forum, your models look very nice from the pictures. I am a 72nd scale aircraft modeller, and been modelling pretty well from coming back to the hobby in about 1977-8, although lost most of them in the course of moves etc. Stay safe in these awful times for your country and people.

Painting completed on the CF116. I used the newish Humbrol acrylics in the dropper bottles with the shades that are supposed to be a match for the Canadian camouflage colours (that appeared to have changed at fairly regular intervals as standards and suppliers changed). I was pleasantly surprised how well they worked, both with a brush and being airbrushed. Certainly an improvement on the ones in tinlets. The photo shows the model glossed and ready for decalling. I have started adding some stencils from the kit sheet and remembered the one thing I really disliked about what was otherwise quite a nice kit. The decals are dreadful. They are not that thick, but have absolutely no give in them whatsoever. Even with near boiling water and extra strong decal setting solution, they are reluctant to settle on anything other than a flat surface. Next update will depend on how long the decals take to put on.

Looks an interesting build and that colour photograph from 'Life' is gorgeous. I am sorry to hear about the accident. This modelling lark us more dangerous than it looks! I still have a scar on my thumb from when I managed to run a Swann Morton No11 blade through it. Mrs T was a District Nurse then and had a load of dressing stuff in her car. A few Steristrips and bandaged up, and it healed up OK. I recall when I was a student nurse doing my stint in A&E, haematomas under nails was a regular. I have a memory of a heated paperclip to burn through the nail to release any blood or pus. Relief was instant, with the patient thinking the Casualty Sister or Doctor who did itbwas a miracle worker.

Hi TeeELL, Could I add my name to the list of those interested in some Javelin rear ends. I still have a number of Airfix and Heller Javelins, but knowing now the mess Airfix made of the retool puts me off the FAW9. I am impressed by your design skills, it is something I am keen to learn about, but not sure where to start. My career etc, was on the less technical side of things. Regards, Martin

Not forgotten the GB, but progress has been very slow due to finishing off other models ahead of the F15 from earlier GBs and the heat has made painting, except at about 3 o'clock in the morning. Our house is a bit like a storage heater, it takes a while to heat up from the outside in, but for the same reason, it takes time to cool down once it has warmed up. Not usually a problem until you get an extended spell of hot weather. Started on the cockpit and worked out how to build the revised launch rails for the Python, and so more substantial process soon when something solid to photograph.

For years I had a Tamiya Spraywork kit that was a single action airbrush with a compressor that was powered by one of their RC car batteries. It worked OK for about seven or eight years, but spares were non existent. I now have a Sparmax Premair 35 and an Iwata Neo. Both good brushes and work well, although I think the Iwata is easier to clean. I also have an unbranded airbrush bought as part of a kit with my original compressor. It works OK, but is a pig to clean. They seem to be a bit hit and miss quality wise and if I was buying a first proper airbrush again, I wouldn't go down that route. Cost of spares is something worth thinking about. At some stage you will at least need a new needle as they are fragile. I have recently bought a new compressor as my 15 year old one was beginning to have reliability issues. An Airgoo Ag326, that is probably a re-badged Fengda. It has an air tank and that has made a difference, especially when trying a spray a narrow line. I frequently use a hairy stick, as I am a bit old school.

After reading some interesting and indeed, moving comments and stories I am reminded how broad a church 'scale modelling' is. It may be that because modelling covers so much ground that it is relatively easy for people to take up some quite entrenched views on what consistutes a 'good' model. I enjoy looking at other people's models and can appreciate their skills, even though I cannot match them. We all model for different reasons and put in the skill and commitment we feel we can afford and our sense of proportion permits us to devote to a hobby. For me, the demands of parenting and earning money from my career took priority over building models. Now I am retired and my children have ostensibly grown up, things have changed. As others have pointed out, people's back stories influence what they do, think and believe and some allowance needs to be given for that. I enjoy modelling, not only because I am interested in what I build, but the benefits it brings to my mental and physical health after some challenging times. I do worry that we do seem to be heading towards a society where things like social media and instant communication, make it easier for views to become more polarised, not just in politics but in other ways as well.

Followed by ZJ231 as I write.

ZJ197, an AH64 Apache, has just flown over on approach to LBA, bit of rarity up here.

Do you buy candles by weight or length? Might be the latter, but I just look at them and think, 'that will be long enough'. I also thought candles were sized by some arcane system like champagne bottles, and based on some 13th century bishops foot size. Although perhaps I imagined it, the world today seems to slipping the bonds of reality.

Very nice General. My, it is a big beastie. Seems to have been a bit of fad for seriously big fighters in the fifties. Vacuum tube technology and big engines presumably bring part of the reason. I remember reading an article on the XF103 in an early edition of the quarterly Air Enthusiast magazine in the late seventies/early eighties. That was big as well.

The FAW1's usual missile load for air to air was Firestreak. I think only the FAW2 could carry Red Top. Other than that, I am pretty sure the weapons available were pretty much the same.