Search the Community

Hi All, Looks like I've got about a month off work and doctor's orders to take it easy, so it's time I started this behemoth of a kit! It seems like a good subject for a WIP thread as I'll be doing a bit each day for the next month or so - this is a BIG kit and I'll be throwing the kitchen sink at it. I've got a proper digital camera instead of my phone for pictures, so hopefully I will be able to keep a record that is visually explanatory as well as detailed in words. Trumpeter's by now familiar 1/32 Su-27 Flanker-B kit. I bought it seven years ago on my first visit to China - it cost me about £40 at the time when it was double that in the shops at home. Since then I've gradually accumulated practically every aftermarket item worth having, with still some more on the way! The main purpose of the aftermarket stuff is to deal with some of the well-documented shortcomings of this kit. I'll outline those in this post and tackle them as I go. As far as the kit goes, it was among Trumpeter's first forays into the 1/32 jet world in the early 2000s, which brought us several very popular subjects that had never been released in this scale before. No-one really expected to see large aircraft like the F-105, A-10 and Su-27 in 1/32, but Trumpeter surprised us all with their efforts. Unfortunately for all these early kits, though very nicely produced, they were blighted with some fundamental shape problems, and the Flanker was arguably the worst offender. From studying drawings, I think the shape of the Trumpeter kit is based on drawings of the earlier development airframes (T-10-10/11), rather than the production model T-10-S. That said, there isn't a kit in any scale out there that captures the correct shape of the Flanker's fore section (except, I'm told, the new Zvezda 1/72 version), and this kit is very finely detailed in good quality plastic, nicely produced with minimal flash, and fits together well. And it is seriously HUGE! The three Aires sets for the kit - cockpit, wheelwells and exhaust/nozzles: Superb quality - I haven't used many of these Aires add-ons, but they are amazingly detailed: These items are luxuries to upgrade the kit detail - out of the box the kit versions are very much acceptable! Now for the corrective items - all from Zactomodels. These are the intakes and new nose. The kit intakes are too narrow and curved along the bottom profile. The kit nose is much too short and conical and these replacements are spot on. The other problem shape is the canopy - the kit windshield is too sloped and the overall shape is too short and bulbous looking. I did get Zactomodels' canopy set as part of the combo, but since I'll be posing the canopy open, it's less apparent that the shape of the canopy is wrong. I've test fitted the canopy and Aires instrument panel coaming and there is likely to be an interference fit with the HUD as well, so I've decided only to use the canopy accessories from the Zacto set and keep the vac canopy for another day. I can't overstate how very, very good these items are. The quality is the best I've ever seen in resin. The surface is almost creamy, perfect fidelity and very finely detailed. They also fit the kit exactly. This stuff is by no means cheap, but it is good value for what you get. It's also sufficiently accurate to throw suspicion on later releases of the Trumpeter kit which mysteriously "fixed" the intake and nose problems within a year or so of Chris' (Zactomodels) release. Make of that what you will! I also have the obligatory Eduard etch sets for the ejector seat and airframe exterior - some of the exterior is for the FOD guards, but as they are based on the kit intakes, which are quite dimensionally different to the Zacto ones, I won't be using them :'( Decals - I have Linden Hill's stencil set and Guardians of the North decal sets - I've also got some leftover Begemot MiG-29 decals, so who knows what I will end up with?? I'm leaning towards one of these two at the moment - 03 Red or 41 Blue. On the other hand, it would be nice to do a bang-up-to-date 2014 version seeing as these may be becoming very relevant in the coming months! If that were not enough, I also have MasterCasters' replacement wheel set, and the seated pilot figure. The wheels are pretty much exact copies of the kit wheels but without the need to use the rubber. Personally, I have no problems with rubber wheels, and have several completed kits going back eight years with rubber wheels that have suffered no ill-effects. So I may not use the MasterCasters wheels unless I have trouble reshaping the rubber ones. The last aftermarket items (still on their way) are some wingtip Sorbitsya ECM pods courtesy of Wolfpack Designs. I could have also got these from Zactomodels, but I could buy the Wolfpack ones here in the UK. This solves the problem of the kit's mis-shapen wingtip missile rails which are conspicuously wrong and very visible. I intend to build this as a modern-day Su-27 interceptor with R-73, R-77AE and R-27(E)T missiles, so two less R-73s won't make a huge difference. The missiles will come from the Trumpeter 1/32 Russian Weapons Set which I bought years ago and luckily have all the required missiles included. They are not spot on but perfectly acceptable, as I used several for my MiG-29UB built two years ago: Well, that's that little introductory thesis over - the casting blocks are cut off, the resin is drying off after a marathon washing and scrubbing session, the parts are cut to shape - we begin at dawn tomorrow, Comrades! 8) Hope you enjoy following the build, I'll try to be as detailed and explanatory as I can, tell me if it gets too boring or tedious with minutiae!

Good Afternoon chaps, Right ho ! Seeing as building is slowing down on the Swordfish and its in to painting, weathering and final assembly my mind has begun to wonder onto what's next..... Cue fanfair !!!!!!!! Yes I know its hopelessly ambitious and it might all end as a horrible disaster but either way I'm determined to have fun and hopefully learn a few things. Not sure how long this will take or how much of the extras will find their way into the final model as its all new ground to me. Hope you'll follow an idiot on his intrepid adventure !, if you do be warned lol Toodle Pip ! Alan

As I mentioned in Chat, I've decided to get off'f my derriere and actually build something for a change. Not only that, I intend to finish this one! I have to do this because there is absolutely no room left in the Cupboard of Shame. I've half made up my mind to commit to entering a build in every remaining GB this year, which will be quite a feat for me. I considered the one I've chosen for this GB for the Gollden Years GB but as it is such a good fit here I felt I might as well do it now (as Arnie would say). Besides, it's not like I don't have anything else for the GYGB . Given the time limit this will be OOB and only lightly weathered - no Spanish School here. So, to start with, here is the obligatory sprue shot Not much flash considering its vintage (1975) although there are lots of seam lines and the sprue gates look horrendous in places. Obviously, detail is a bit soft by modern standards but I imagine this was quite a well received kit in its day. Time to get stuck in. The first session produced this The driver was held in place by a blue-tac cushion whle I sorted his arms out. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the fit. The layout of the parts on the sprues, by contrast, is an absolute dog's breakfast - plenty of picking them up and putting them down as I hunt for the right part. Another session later gave this Ready for some paint! TTFN Andy M.

Another couple of 1/32 scale Spitfires. Firstly the old 1/32 Hasegawa MkVb in the "Nightfighter" boxing. Quite an old kit but builds up nicely. Finished in the markings of 111sqn W3848 JU-H based at Debden. Sprayed overall black using salt as mask for the chipped paint. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Next is Revell's newish Mk.IX finished as MJ250 UF-Q of 601Sqn based in Italy in 1944. Nice kit but has some odd omissions and errors, no seat armour for example. Revell show this aircraft as having clipped wings, which I have done, but others seem to think it had standard wings. Clipped wings were relatively unusual on Mk.IXs. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Greetings chaps, First attempt at a wingy thing for many years and first attempt at a work in progress so forgive me any mistakes. First one being I've already done quite abit of the build before I've plucked up courage to post ! Interior and engine are assembled, painted and fitted, body is sealed and any gaps sealed, thought I'd give it a blast of primer next and see how it looks ?. Not sure if I should attach the supports or photo etch struts to the wings before painting ? Need to mask the lights off on the wings too before I prime the wings ! Really enjoying the build so far, and the kit does not seem to be fighting me too much, just nervous of starting painting it !, let alone weathering it....gulp ! Any hints tips or suggestions greatly received ! Thanks, Alan

This is the recent Revell boxing. Nice straightforward build, only slight issue being the exhaust stack contact points which could be a bit more positive. Markings are all homemade stencils. Regards J A.

my last built : not a easy kit voila voila

This aircraft was built from the Eduard premium kit with supplied brass etch and masks, only addition I made was the map in the cockpit. Painted with Mr Colour lacquer paints used with 400 leveller thinners. This interesting camouflage schemes were rendered on the aircraft of JG 54 by the unit’s ground personnel in the summer of 1940. They applied vertical to diagonal lines of RLM 71 in an attempt to darken the light blue fuselage sides. The standard scheme of 02/71/65 was applied, along with the quick identification attributes. The period scheme was applied to Yellow ‘13’, with which, on August 12, 1940, Lt. Josef Eberle managed to cross the Channel and belly land in France despite personal injury. The wingtips and fin of Eberle’s aircraft were painted RLM 27 Yellow, lighter than RLM 04 that the spinner, tactical number and background of the III./JG 54 emblem were painted. The bottom wing color RLM 65 extended marginally to the upper surface. Some sources erroneously identify this aircraft as an E-3. Despite having tempted fate once over the Channel, he was not as successful on October 9, 1940, when he lost his life in combat with RAF fighters. Thanks for looking

Announced (sort of) on their FB page. https://www.facebook.com/Hong-Kong-Models-Co-Ltd-1375731456009809/timeline/ Cheers, Andrew

Just got back from overseas to join the fun. I know I still have lots of unfinished stuff to complete, but I just can't resist in not participating in this historic GB. I will tackle my first Wingnut Wings kit, but chickened out from rigging by choosing the Junkers D.1 A latecomer in the Great War with only 40 built, it was a revolutionary design for its time. The aircraft I am building was one of five abandoned at Hombeek in Belgium and discovered by the Allied inspection team in January 1919. It is speculated that this aircraft did see action before the Armistice. The Wingnut Wing kit looks very nice and I hope I will do it justice. But as I am a bit of a resin junky, I will use some detailing sets. Mainly to enhance the engine as I intend to keep the side panels open. I keep my fingers crossed to finish this build within the 16 weeks. Cheers, Peter

OOB, paint scheme from Barracuda Decals although the checkerboard nose was painted as the decals didn't fit properly. Regards J A

Williams bros 1/32 Caudron renault C.450. Airframe no. 6910, As flown by Helene Boucher, before the 1934 paris airshow. Lovely kit, Detailed the cockpit, rescribed the plane, painted with vallejo french blue acrylic. Coated the decals with liquid decal film, but the red, white and blue bands broke up. left the canopy loose. hint for anyone building this, the under fuselage joint is long and very weak, so you need to reinforce it. thanks for looking'

my last built , enjoy : voila voila

Evening all, This has been a real labour of love, I bought this kit on the 16th Aug 2003 from OTW designs, as it would happen life got in the way and coupled with a slightly warped hull I popped the build to one side and forgot about it. I spied the hull 82.7 inches of it in the loft and decided to have ago again. After years of storage and a few moves thrown in she suffered some slight damage to the brass work. I've repaired most of the broken bits and cleaned up some of the decking as after 11 years its tarnished a bit ... Link to Bob Dimmacks company who make the semi kit. http://www.otwdesigns.com/ The conning tower is a fibreglass molding with a PE deck, all the fitting are either accurate armour or scratch built. More to follow when it's light outside, the hull is 7ft long so quite difficult to get a good picture of. Dan

Even more than usual with my builds, purists look away now! For those of you still here, welcome to pure sentimentality. My dad (1926-2001) had been with 73 squadron in Malta and when the Matchbox kit came out he brought it but never got round to building it. Then somewhere along the line it got lost/ thrown out when he moved into warden-controlled housing. The Christmas before he died (2000), my wife and I made and painted the Airfix 1:48 version as a 73 sun plane, which he was thrilled about and could even remember working on the original plane. But it's very faded now, so this GB gives me the chance to pay my respects to my dad and build a replacement. I know the Matchbox kit has lots of flaws but I've decided that my dad would've built it OOB, and so will I. And if the rumours about Revell are for the worse it might yet turn into a Revell tribute build as well. And so to the kit etc. Not the Matchbox boxing, but figured it won't matter once it's made up! now to the contents I remember the long thin Matchbox packaging so was taken by surprise at how compact it all is in the Revell version. Alas, no three colour plastic. I was amused that Revell talk of this as a classic mould and admit that it's ex-Matchbox; seriously I think that's a very honest thing today, nowadays with Airfix I don't know if I'm paying for a repop or a smart new moulding. First up will be the engine etc. I'll leave as much exposed as I can- what with dad having been an engineer it does seem most appropriate. Haven't decided if there's any place for the jolly good sport of a pilot that's provided but probably not as I get bored painting them! Also, there'll be a friendly email to Revell as the decals have got some water-damage and I don't fancy lining a super thin black band. I won't be starting promptly at 00:01, but hopefully before next weekend something will have happened.

Hi everyone It seems like an age since I have done anything vaguely model related. My Lysander build stalled so I started a 1/48 Eduard Mk IXe Spitfire (lovely kit and should prove to be a mojo restorer), that also stalled, I looked at starting the 1/48 Airfix Mustang to be built as a MK IV, that didn't even get off the ground (pun not intended)...ummmmm what to do? I've changed job roles at work so now not only do I get paid more but I work less hours...Happy days! The knock on from that is I have a new vigour for modelling. So I had a tidy up in the work shop and had a think about what I wanted to build, I didn't fancy resuming any of my stalled kits (they have all been packed away nice and safe), and I spied the 1/32 Revell Spitfire Mk IIa on the shelf and on opening the box I found that I had bought all of the Barracudacast bits and bobs to correct some of the kits short falls. The kit itself looks to be ok, the fuselage detail might be a little heavy for some but I quite like it and with a little work I think that it will build up into a pleasing model. As ever I have made a start on the cockpit, to be precise the instrument panel, now this is still very much a work in progress but I think that that once detailed and painted it should look ok. I started by drilling out the instruments and thinning the IP panel, my original intention was to create a new back for the IP with circles of plastic punched out to try and replicate more realistically the instruments as they are set into the IP, it looked ok in principle but the Airscale decals didn't like adhering to it so I gave it up as a lost cause... ..Next up I created another IP back plate but this time I stuck the Airscale decals straight onto the plastic and this seemed to work much better... ..and here it is placed behind the Revell IP (which is a beauty).. ..Well that's that for now. Thanks for looking in and catch you all soon. Iain

Has anyone had any experience with the MDC Spitfire I spinner for the recentish Revell Spitfire IIa 1.32 kit? I read somewhere that one person found it a trifle too small for the spinner hub, and I was hoping that was an isolated incident, but I thought it would be more fun to find out before buying it. Any information you have is most appreciated!

Hello all, I've been away a long time, and this is the first time this Hunter has seen the light of day on Britmodeller. This is a 1/32 Revell Hunter F.6, with the Xtradecal Black Arrows roundels applied, and hand cut cheat lines to get S/L Brian Mercer's first mount as a Blue Diamond. Paint used was Testors Blue Angels Blue, the closest I could get to the specified colour. I used the squadron emblem from the kit, as I could not find one with a green cobra that fit. as soon as I find one, I will replace it. Next one up to complete a set of aerobatic team Large Bore (Avon 200) Hunters is the Swiss Team. looking for ward to your thoughts on the build. TW

This aircraft is built for the 1/32 Eduard kit straight out of the box, only personal addition is the map in the cockpit and a set of Air Masters canons. The Messerschmitt Bf 109E fighter of Franz von Werra, shot down over England, where he was taken prisoner in January 1941. Von Werra was sent with other German prisoners to Canada, where possibly he became the only German airman to make his escape from there, returning to Germany via the still neutral U.S.A. Von Werra was also a skilled fighter pilot, although his results weren’t anywhere near those of the Luftwaffe’s top guns. He most frequently flew as a wingman of Hauptmann Erich von Selle, the commanding officer of his unit. In this role, he scored four victories during the Battle of France – a Hurrricane, two Breguet 693s and a Morane MS.406. Despite this initial success, von Werra’s tally did not advance any further during June, July and larger part of August, despite the fact that operations against the RAF were being flown almost daily. Then suddenly, on 28 August, von Werra returned from a mission claiming 9 aircraft destroyed. According to his report, he first shot down a Spitfire during a general melée, then became detached from his unit, spotted three Hurricanes on a landing circuit and destroyed them one after another. Lastly, he zoomed low over the airfield, setting additional five Hurricanes on fire. Then came the day of 5 September, when von Werra was shot down. On that occasion, II./JG 3 was flying as an escort to a bombing raid on Croydon. On the return leg of the raid the bombers were attacked by a swarm of RAF fighters. Hauptmann Von Selle, leading the thirty escorting Messerschmitts, gave the order to attack. At the exact moment when Selle rolled his aircraft to starboard to initiate a dive, another gaggle of Spitfires jumped them from behind, their guns blazing. Von Selle’s aircraft avoided the bullets. His wingman, Franz von Werra, did not have such luck; a well-placed burst damaged the engine of his Bf 109 and knocked off his radio. Without engine power, the German pilot was unable to shake off the attacker, which followed him in a dive, squirting the Messerschmitt with a series of short bursts. Ultimately, von Werra had no choice but to make a crash-landing. This he did, putting down his aircraft wheels-up but otherwise intact on a field at Loves Farm, Marden, Kent. The identity of the victorious British pilot remains the subject of debate until this day. Some researchers claim that the pilot who was responsible for the shooting was F/Lt John Terence Webster of No. 31 Squadron. Others believe it to be a shared victory by P/O George Bennions of No. 41 Squadron and P/O Basil Gerald Stapleton of No. 603 Squadron. Yet others have attributed the same achievement to F/Lt Paterson Clarence Hughes, an ace of No. 234 Squadron with a victory tally of 14. Officially, the credit originally went to ‘Stapme’ Stapleton, but Hughes final DFC citation in the London Gazette of 22 October 1940 awarded him a half credit for the same. (The spitfire site n.d.)

This last one is a side-by-side with my earlier Hasegawa A-8: Regards J.A.

Hi, Here is my latest build. I decided to renovate my "old" Flanker built in 2007 In progress here: http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=44533&st=0&p=464100 Nose: Zactomodels Pitot: Master Models Exhausts: Aires PE for bangseat: Eduard Decals: Linden Hill Windshield: Scratch Air Intakes: Scratch It is still far from perfect. But I find it better than the previous one. Thanks for watching! Comments are welcome ;^) Rom

Hello gents, I do at times wonder what guides us in the choices we make with regard to the kits that we build; I don't generally step outside the boundaries of the proper scale for model aircraft - 1/72 of course - and yet somehow I have found myself in possession of the Hasgawa 1/32 J2M3 Raiden as well as the Tamiya A6M2 Zero in the same scale. I do have a fondness for both aircraft obviously or else I shouldn't have bought them in the first place, I like the elegant lines of the Zero and the slightly stubby but powerful terrier-like look of the Raiden - in addition its Allied reporting name was 'Jack', the same as my own terrier (his name I mean, he was not involved in the Second World War and had no Allied code-name; also I like to think that if he had been involved he would at least have been on 'our' side but sometimes his behaviour does lead me to wonder...) Anyway as they say, we are where we are, and thanks to a scandalously low-price offer from Tiger Hobbies I am now the proud but perhaps a little bemused owner of this: ... and the box contains the following; instructions and transfers: ... and the following sprues: Some points of interest from my initial cursory look include several optional parts including a different set of propellers, a really nice pilot figure with three optional heads and a choice of arms, a one-piece slide-moulded forward cowling and optional open or closed canopy parts. I didn't really have anything in the way of references but fortunately Nick Millman's Aviation of Japan blog has a .pdf available of colour notes for the Raiden which is done in his usual exactingly thorough way and will, I have no doubt, prove invaluable. It's on the right-hand side of the webpage, scroll down a bit if you are interested in obtaining a copy. I'll have a peruse of that and work out what paints I need to use. Cheers, Stew

I have already announced my intent to do two 1/72 Hurricanes but I figured I might as well tell you part 2. I will try to build the Revell, 1/32 Typhoon. Ordered some replacement decals (noticed the damage on the ones I have) and I will give this beast a try as my second Group Build kit. Greg in OK