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My main interest in aviation has to be the random British designs produced in the middle of the century. Designs that looked a bit too absurd to work but actually were rather ahead of its time, such as the EE Lightning, Vulcan, and the TSR-2. Overall the TSR has to be one of my all-time favourite aircraft. Summing it up as "Concorde but it carries nukes instead of passengers", I've always wanted to have a go at building one, and a few months ago I got the chance. If anyone has seen my previous blog of various projects they may have seen this already, but I'm slowly splitting each project into individual threads to make it more manageable. I picked this up on eBay for a relative bargain. Airfix produced a limited run of 1/48 TSRs back in the mid-2000s and they go for a fair bit these days. First thing I noticed was the sheer size of the thing, far bigger than I expected, far bigger than anything I've worked on recently. I had done some reading on the kit beforehand and understood that there were a few issues of which I've taken steps to rectify and will be explained along the way. The first step however was the cockpit. The parts included were rather bare, so I tried as hard as I can to track down a set of the Eduard photo-etch upgrades. This proved to be almost impossible until I found a shop in France which had one. If anyone can find a 1/48 Eduard PE set anywhere else I will genuinely be surprised. The set went together pretty well, although there was a rather large issue with the colouration, as the light blue doesn't seem to match any photos I've seen of the real thing. Matching the shade for the cockpit tub was a bit of a challenge until I found a suitable shade from P3 Frostbite. Photo below is before the fuselage interior was sprayed. And the front cockpit for reference. I was really indecisive on how far to go with the aftermarket upgrades, as the cost is really starting to build up, much like the real thing. I did take the plunge with the undercarriage bays however, as the difference is just too much to ignore. Also since this is likely to be the only TSR I'll ever build, why not go all-out a bit? Again you can see how much detail has been added with the resin parts. Overall I'm confident with the project, although I've encountered some hiccups that I'll go into next time. Given the short lifespan of the TSR however I may go down the "what-if" route a little, primarily with the payload. I've bought a nice pair of WE.177s from Shapeways that I may do up in the later green scheme. I know some purists may be frothing a little at this but it's more just to break up the huge areas of white a little more. Joe

I have been building RAF grey / green jets for a while now and one kits continually eluded me. The Airfix Buccaneer. The kit is getting on & has been out of production for some time. I has a reputation for warped body parts and poor fit - a banana kit to got with the Buccaneer nickname of the Banana jet. I finally got a decent condition kit from eBay and then promptly added it to the stash and left it. Finally dug it out a few weeks ago and got started. The cockpit was a bit bare so added the Airwaves etch but stuck with the kit seats. Other than that I decided to light her up, adding wing tip navigation lights, tail light, nose wheel taxi light and top & bottom flashing anti collision lights. I left the bomb bay removable with ‘penny’ 3v lithium batteries and switches inside. The ladder is a very fine 3D print from eBay. She is finished as XW530 of 12 Sqn RAF Lossiemouth. She has the later short wingtips, so dates from around 88 to 92 although I am sure others can be more accurate on that. If I am honest I wanted to do a Honnington jet, but couldn’t seem to find the right decals. I live not that far from Honnington and sometimes see the last remaining Bucc there on gate guard duties. Anyway, here she is And here she is in the HAS And with lights on How she looks Thanks for looking

Hi Everyone This is the excellent Tamiya 1/48 scale Do-335A Pfeil built out-of-the-box, more or less! I made the crew ladder and nose cowl gun sleeves from stock plastic, other than that I just added the PE seat belts from Eduard. I wanted to recreate a fictitious Bodenplatte type blackened weathering/camo pattern to bring a little more presence to the otherwise tame colour palette usually seen on the Do-335. I’ve also tried a few new techniques to the upper surfaces which I’ve not seen on the usual YouTube channels. I’m trying this on some other kits and hope to share the techniques when I know it wasn’t just a one-off. Anyway enough of the rambling. Kind regards Trace

When I first saw photos of the F-16 Viper Team Demo out of Shaw AFB, SC in 2020 I thought that this was one of the best of many F-16 demo schemes but thought it pretty unlikely I would be able to replicate it. Luckily Model Makers Decals had made this scheme super easy for someone with my patience and I ordered the decals immediately. They provide very clear steps in the instructions to lay all the scales down in sections. The decals were thin enough that the Tamiya surface detail still shows through. I had a few hiccups but overall it looks the part. I added a Quinta Studios cockpit as well, painting the gull gray areas to make it blend in better.

Hi all, My third completion of the year so far is the Academy F86-30 Sabre of 39 FIS/51 FIW. This Is Capt. Charles McSwain’s machine based at Suwon (K13) in 1953 and was option one on the kit’s decal sheet. I wanted to build this one as it is just so colourful, with fantastic nose art on the port side. Also I thought it would be a good way to get over my fear of natural metal finishes. I’ve never built one before and I really want to build the B47 I have in my stash so I need some practice! This was mostly built from the box, the only additions being some PE which added cockpit details and replaced the seat. I used Vallejo Metal colours (steel, Alu, white alu, dark alu and silver) for various panels on the airframe then weathered with clay washes and oils to try to replicate the duller finish visible in the colour pictures in Ospreys Front Line Colour No2. All in it was a reasonably straight forward build with only a few small fit issues. The decals however were a different story. The carrier film was a bit resistant to Sol and Set needing work to settle down nicely. The yellow tactical bands were a total fail being brittle, poor fit and refusing to conform. I ended up masking and painting the yellow and black bands instead. I also painted the checker boards on the tail as well. Other than that you can judge the results for yourself. Feel free to comment and give tips, as I said this was my first nmf so it’s not perfect and next time I would spend a bit more time on the prep as there are a few areas where I can see some faint scratches. Happy modelling.

Hi folk's my Monogram build again way out of my comfort zone is their 1/48 Moon landing complete with Luner lander,base and figure's.Nice molding and even gold foil for the area's covered.This was a snip off E-bay at £15 posted.

Never created SEA camouflage before, never built a Thud before, so yes, this is THE opportunity to do so. Here‘s the victim: As the kit decals do not offer a sharkmouth option I shall go ahead and purchase this from a well-known online shop from the UK: It will most probably be the „white lightning“ from 17 WWS in RTAB Korat. Looking forward to another great GB with you guys!

While the @Homebee sleeps, I'll crack his news - 3! On Moscow "МИР ДЕТСТВА 2021" ( WORLD CHILDHOOD 2021) expo , has announced a 1/48nd of Yakovlev Yak-9 from Zvezda in 2022. B.R. Serge P.S. As far as I understand, the whiskey truck overturned on the street @Learstang , in addition to the overturned candy truck!

My aircraft WIP started off with a couple of 1/48 RAF Phantoms I was building, but somewhere along the way I started putting together a background to photograph them with. This turned in to a hair-brained scheme to build a Hardened Aircraft Shelter (HAS). I live near Wattisham and have taken some photos while passing of the site, and using google maps I got started on some plans. A full size hanger in 1/48 would just be too big, so a single aircraft HAS seemed do-able. So this is what I was aiming for: Most of the build so far is on my other thread, so I won't repeat it all here. Suffice to say it got rolling with a bit of rolled up cardboard: The main structure is about 76cm x 45cm. But then add the apron in front, doors, vent at the back, annex, etc, etc. Its got pretty big.

After losing interest in military aircraft kits for a bit, then modelling altogether (briefly), I’m now trying to rekindle my interest for the hobby. I’d been deliberating over what to make from my stash, and considered a 1/72 Victor, Vulcan or Sea King, a 1/48 Lightning, or Canberra with TT.18 conversion, before deciding it’s best to start with a simpler kit. Hopefully this Meteor kit gets me back into the swing of things! A familiar one to most on here, with some great builds I’ve seen. I’ve two in the stash, with plans to do one as ‘Winston’ sometime, and perhaps I’ll buy another to do in 56 Sqn colours. This one, however, I’ll be building out of the box, in its 111 Sqn markings. Plenty on the sprues! Very nice decals, both options look good, but I’ll be going for this camo one: Some questions, if anyone could be so kind as to let me know please? 1). The instructions say Humbrol 56 undersides; shouldn’t it be high speed silver? 2). Did this aircraft fly without the all yellow fin? 3). The presentation of the fuselage registration number for WL123 looks to be in an odd font, is it correct? Should it look the same as for WH364?

Hi all - this is Academy's 1/48 Bf109K-4 kit, finished in the colours of '265' - a machine discovered at Amberg at the end of the war and carrying no unit markings - just the last three digits of the werk nummer roughly sprayed onto the fuselage sides. Several b/w pics of this plane (unusually of both sides) are in circulation, so the markings and camo pattern are easy enough to identify. The actual colours, not so much. I did build this a/c a couple of years ago from a Hasegawa kit, but it got trodden on recently during some redecoration work at home (the less said about that, the better). So a couple of years on and this is a chance to 're-imagine' some Luftwaffe late-war camo colours, and un-painted (but not necessarily 'bare metal') undersides and put a replacement '265' back on the shelf. Anyway, enough chat, here's the pics..

This is the plane This is the kit, more to follow…

Evening all. I would like to add the second 1/48 Kinetic FRS.1 to this GB, this time XZ457. The only extras I will be adding (thus far) are the spare seatbelts from the Kits World 3D printed "Tornado" MB Mk10 seatbelt set.. And some reference material.... I can see the fun and games the @DaveJL is having with this build - sometimes it is better to go second... Thanks for looking, Icarus

Here is my build of kinetics F-16D, unfortunately this kit is simply atrocious, every aspect of the build I had issues with and the amount of filling and sanding needed to get the kit to a decent standard was simply laughable. Anyhow I pressed on and this is the final result, on a more positive note I used Quinta Studios Interior set which really lifted the interior to the next level. I will be using them again for some of my better kits. As always critique and comments more than welcome.

Here is my build of Eduard's BF109 G-6 in 1/48 scale, not much to comment really on this kit, everything went together really well and no issues at all I can really mention. Any critique and comments more than welcome.

Here is my build of kinetics F-16D, unfortunately this kit is simply atrocious, every aspect of the build I had issues with and the amount of filling and sanding needed to get the kit to a decent standard was simply laughable. Anyhow I pressed on and this is the final result, on a more positive note I used Quinta Studios Interior set which really lifted the interior to the next level. I will be using them again for some of my better kits. As always critique and comments more than welcome.

Finally decided on my entry, I will be building Airfx’s 1/48 Vampire in the kit suppled scheme for No. 442 ‘City of Vancouver’ Squadron. Not sure when I will start as I have two ongoing builds in the Century Series GB, a build still to start in the Revell-Monogram GB and the F-5 STGB starting soon.

My kit bought for less than a tenner from Kingkit scrapyard. It’s missing one horizontal stabiliser but I should be able to make a resin cast from the one that’s still in the kit. In this scheme; SEA and a shark mouth what’s not to like

With the delightful work by JeroenS on his MiniArt 1/35 LANZ D8532 Tractor, I was drawn to work on a similar era tractor, based on a Ford Model T. This isn't a Fordson tractor, which was specifically designed by Ford for agricultural use. This is a conversion of a Model T car to farm use. It seems after-market and bespoke conversions of the Model T car were not uncommon. As you might expect, these tractors varied wildly, with the one common bit being the powerplant and transmission. Google did manage to find several examples close to this kit, one of which was apparently a 5/8-scale model built by Ford as a gift for his grandchildren! This 1/48 while metal kit is from Wiseman Model Services. It's the first I've attempted in this medium. My first task was to identify all the parts. There's some very fine detail in these castings, as well as some flash. The 4 pages of instructions are more more descriptive than prescriptive, with 2 pages referring to a Kerosene Locomotive that was the basis of this kit. This will be fun!

Hi everyone Well I finally got her finished, my 1/48 Airfix Chipmunk. It really is a lovely little kit, well detailed, well thought out and well moulded for me it was a real mojo restorer after quite a long modelling drought. I built her OOB and only added some seat belts from Eduard, I finished her in the No 2 FTS colours as I think its the quintessential scheme for a Chipmunk. I'd like to thank everyone for their support and I think its about time I finished this old girl.. Cheers everyone Iain

Rummaging through my attic and found a very old MAP set of Albatros plans, with nothing better to do I went through the whole pack, all the B,C and D series, of all of them I liked the look of the C IX it’s essentially a two seat D series with ( for the time) a very unconventional wing arrangement. The plans. Not having access to a photocopier any more and with time in my hands I decided to draw up some 1/48 sketches my hand, these will be my working drawings.

While the @Homebee sleeps, I'll crack his news - 4! On Moscow "МИР ДЕТСТВА 2021" ( WORLD CHILDHOOD 2021) expo , has announced a 1/48nd of Mill Mi-35 from Zvezda in 2022. B.R. Serge P.S. But if you think need to merge this branch with the Mi-24 from Zvezda in 1/48 - no problem!

At the end of WWI no. 1 were equipped with Sopwith Dolphins but also managed to obtain a number of Fokker DVIIs which they flew side by side with the Sopwiths, indeed several pilots preferred the Fokker. I'll be building the Blue max 1/48 Dolphin and an Eduard 1/48 DVII for the GB. I will of course refrain from all the obvious jokes aboot Canadia(it's a Simpson joke) ehhhhy. Right I've gotten that out of my system, modelling next

Hello all, Here is my recently completed 1/48 Kinetic Sea Harrier FRS.1, marked as XZ451 of 801 Naval Air Squadron (formally of 899 NAS), which was credited with downing an Argentine Dagger and Hercules during the Falklands conflict in 1982. The build thread is below. Extras used included Eduard etch, Eduard mask, Neomega ejection seat, Aires exhaust nozzles, Flightpath FOD inserts, Flightpath 1000lb bomb and Master pitot tube. The paint is mainly Tamiya acrylic (XF-77 for the Extra Dark Sea Grey) with the weathering done using a mixture of Flory wash, Abteilung oils and Tamiya sets. I added some details to the cannon pods along with adding the rudder strakes and correcting a few issues with the kit. As this was an 899 NAS machine up until 4th April 1982, it felt only right to display it with both squadron patches: There are better finished models out there, but I'm happy to finally have a SHAR in my collection. Thanks for looking and stay safe Dave

My bench has been jammed full of 1/32 aircraft builds (my regular choice of libation) so I decided to mix it up a bit and switch gears from 4 engine heavies. At least temporarily. I've got a few Valkyrie kits in the stash, mostly Hasegawa 1/72 kits but also a couple of their 1/48 ones. There's also the Max Factory 1/20 release that I'm hoping to start later this year. So the 1/48 Strike Valkyrie seemed like a nice warm up build for big brother. Here's the kit in question: Sprues are in two colours plus clear. Here's the blue ones which are dedicated to the Strike bits. The airframe parts are in white. I started with filling many of the ejector pin marks in the visible areas. I had to full some a couple times to get them flush. Carl