sprue

Some years ago Lewis (Bob) Hodges 161 Squadron was a neighbour of mine and I recall asking about the mods to Lysanders. The rear seat for passengers was a very basic bench, no straps as ingress and exit from the rear had to be tout suite and further more very often there were more than one passenger on the return trip so it was squeeze in where you can. Here are some pictures of a model of one of the Lysanders flown by Bob.

I note that Hannants are taking preorders for the 1/48 Arma MkIIc !

Thanks guys for your thoughts. I think Troy has hit the nail on the head as apart from what’s in the box the review is useless. I’ll wait for the Arma offering as a MkII is what I’m after.

Thanks for the replies. It looks promising from the cads but then we are still waiting for Arma Hobby to release theirs.

Has anyone had experience of these, any pitfalls to note. I've been searching for online reviews without success. Mike

My Aunt and Uncle took me to Elmdon airport in the 60s to watch them take off and land. I seem to remember most were Aer Lingus.

Brush painted!

A lovely build and the colour wartime photographs are intriguing me. What is the colour of the wheel hubs?

Thanks Tail Dragon this is most informative. This forum never fails to amaze me, such a wealth of knowledge. Thanks again. Mike

I recently acquired through eBay the Tamiya kit 61051. Upon opening the box I saw that I have the original moulding which has the F3 wings with airbrakes etc which are inapplicable to the F1 and was corrected by Tamiya in a subsequent release. I have the Modellers datafile for the Meteor but the scale drawings do not show the underside of the F1 and the longer undercarriage fairings. Can anyone point me in the direction of a plan or drawing so as I can modify the kit? I would also appreciate comments on any other mods I need to make to bring the kit up to scratch. Thanks in advance. Mike

Well done. As always with problem kits the question is, which gets beaten into submission first...you or the kit?

Master class

Thanks for the input much appreciated. Luckily, I have a 1st edition of Enemy Coast Ahead and I have a copy of Paul Brickhill's "The Dam Busters". Both of these books were written while military secrecy was still observed and therefore, they don't contain the details which are now available to other authors. Max Hastings book is a good read and throws new light on some old legends. I'll look into the other books mentioned and take it from there. Thanks again Mike

Thanks for the tip it works a treat.

same here can't see the pics

There seems to be a plethora of books on this subject, and I'd like to hear some recommendations please. Mike

A lovely rendition of the Tamiya mossie. I've built a few of these and in spite of the kits age they are still the bench mark. The weathering looks perfect. Mike

A master class

I hadn't noticed before but the footage of the Lancasters departing always shows the rear turret traversed towards the camera. Was this a standard takeoff routine or just for the occasion? Mike

I remember many many years ago I used to drink at the White Lion at Warlingham in Surrey. An old boy was telling me his story of how he baled out of his Hurricane, and on the way down a local farmer shot him in the backside as everyone believed what the BBC was saying. That Germans were being shot down in great numbers; it therefore seemed unimaginable to the farmer that the man in the parachute could be anything other than enemy. I bet he wasn't the only one to get a warm greeting after baling out.

According to The Design And Development of The Avro Lancaster, Royal Aeronautical Society publication D.C. Wood C.Eng FRAeS " The Merlin engine itself underwent changes for production reasons (Merlin 22 1280 bhp with two-piece cylinder block) and power development, ( Merlin 24 1620 bhp). Sub-contract manufacture by Packard produced the Merlin 28 (1300 bhp with Bendix carburetters), Merlin 38 (1390 bhp version of Rolls Royce Merlin 22) and the Merlin 224 (Packard version of Rolls Royce Merlin 24). All these engines were directly interchangeable although Lancasters with Packard built engines were designated Lancaster Mk III as they required a different set of engine maintenance tools." Hope this helps. Mike

I'm about to start on a 1/48 Mustang in a bare metal finish and I'm tempted to try acrylic paints which is quite a departure from my usual solvent based paints. Which brand of acrylics does the team favour and which are the most accurate for colour and easy to use? I'll be grateful for any tips especially preparation for decaling.

5: Modelling flaps down? When parked on the dispersal area, prior to engine start, would the Lancaster's flaps be extended or retracted? With the engines stopped the aircraft has no hydraulic pressure and therefore the flaps and bomb doors droop under the effect of gravity.

I've just enquired with Airfix about Humbrol enamel paints and the official word is they have all been withdrawn; but my correspondent didn't know why or wasn't free to say.

Thanks chaps I think I'm heading in the right direction.