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Hi everyone, Since couple of months I have received many questions whether there is going to be any fully 3d printed Blackbird in 1:32 scale. I decided to give a try if this achievable with my current toolset and created 3d models. I have launched already a topic in another modelers forum (LSP) but I would like to share my progress here as well because all these Oxcart/Blackbird modeling works have been reported in detail in this forum. At the beginning I was not sure which aircraft I am going to build. To have an idea how big the parts going to be and which one is to be built, I have printed the nose cones of YF-12A, A-12 and SR-71A: I decided to build YF-12A because SR-71A's cockpit details and seats have not been modeled yet and I have some 1:48 A-12 derivatives in progress. I have started first printing the relatively smaller parts using my Elegoo Mars 3 printer. The cockpit parts, main and nose wheels and hubs were printed. Next parts are the wheel bays and struts. Serkan
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Announced (sort of) on their FB page. https://www.facebook.com/Hong-Kong-Models-Co-Ltd-1375731456009809/timeline/ Cheers, Andrew
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Hello everyone. Been a while since I got anything finished - started a few, but only finished this !. There's been some discussion on various FB pages and other modelling sites as to the validity of the markings, and I acknowledge that. But here she is all done with no photo trickery other than editing the size & shapes of the pics. All Tamiya acrylics & Mr Color lacquers with decals from various Eagle Cal sheets and a couple from the kit. As ever, please feel free to make any comments, criticisms or ask any Q's. Cheers from New Zealand. Ian.
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Just realised I've failed to post my build from 2020 of the old Revell 1:32 He 111 P-1. There's no build doc unfortunately but thanks for looking. I've painted it in the kit given KG54 Totenkopf-Geschwader and imagined it having just landed from a bombing raid over England in 1940 and waiting for a reload and a refuel. Not much time for cleaning down so it's a tad mucky. I've used the Eduard interior and exterior PE kits and HGW seatbelts as well as the Profimodeller oxygen system (never again!) Many thanks for having a peek.
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Well this will be something very different and an extended WIP... The kit is the latest creation from Flying Start Models, AKA Tim Perry. It truly is a work of art as is reflected in the price😬, but where else are you going to find a 1:32 Mk3?😉 I'm sure this kit will be of interest to anyone who came through the ATC(Air Cadet) system in the 50s-80s and will bring back many memories! I first bumped into Tim at 621 VGS based at Hullavington at the time. I'm a member of the Historic Flight and we have a fleet of ex ATC gliders ranging from a Grasshopper through the Mk3, Sedbergh, Prefect, Swallow and a Clockwork Mouse, the Venture! Tim arrived for a flight on his motorbike and as I was there with mine too we immediately got into conversation. I took some pics of his flight in the Mk3(AKA Slingsby T.31) and things progressed from there via Facebook. Fast forward a few years and he announced he was making a kit of the Mk3, and not just any Mk3, but our aircraft😍. So of course I had to have one... It took until march to come onto the market but it's available now: http://flyingstartmodels.com/Flying-Start-Models-Collection.html Tim is actually improving things all the time and a new tailplane and harness set are now available and the latest version of the instructions/paint schemes are currently being updated as I write. The kit is available with decals to enable you to model ANY of the aircraft that were produced for the ATC, so you can make your very own personalised version😀, with colour charts for the old silver and yellow training scheme and the later red/white/black colours. If you click on the link above you'll find a link in the text to download the instructions including the colour options. The main 'problem' wit this kit is that it's in resin not 'plastic' however Tim has done his absolute best to make everything fit perfectly and look as close to the original as possible. All parts come still attached to the 3D printing webs which resemble the scaffolding for a roller coaster! The amount of work to get all this to work is mind boggling... The instructions include comprehensive hints and tips for those of us who've never built a resin kit before, so don't feel too intimidated. You DO have to be very careful though as the resin is extremely brittle, but Tim assures me that if you break anything he'll replace it. Anyway, enough rambling and to work... The kit comes in a surprisingly small but perfectly packed flip top cardboard box with plenty of bubble wrap. I started with the fuselage which comes as previously described with its own rollercoaster frame which has to be clipped away bit by bit. Very sharp nippers are a must and leaving a little nub on the surface of the model seems to work best rather than cutting right down to the skin so to speak. The frame is 3D unlike a 'normal' sprue which is basically flat so this requires a bit of thinking as to where to start and which bits to cut next, but you'll get the hang of it😉 Actually the first bit of modelling starts with the cockpit. This is basically the same principle as any aircraft model; You start with the cockpit floor and work up. Individual parts for the seat bases, sticks, bulkheads, seat straps, and instrument panels are provided. There are even instrument(such as they are in a Mk3😁) decals and cockpit placards! The decals seem of extremely good quality. I'm still getting the hang of superglue and I suspect I need to invest in some proper modelling stuff rather than the stuff you buy in the DIY shop; It's all a steep learning curve for me! I managed to snap off the joining bar between the front rudder pedals bit got them to stick in the right position anyway🙄
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It's been a while since the last post I made on the workshop but I finally managed to complete the model of the Fiat CR.42 "Falco" and presents the machine CR. 42 Falco, 83 So., 18 Gruppo, 56 Stormo C.T., Ursel, Belgium, November 1940.I added extras from EDUARD, YAHU MODELS and CMK to the model. I also did the riveting based on the drawings posted in KAGERO. Enjoy watching. You can also see something in the cabin. A close-up of the engine. And a close-up of the riveting.
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Hello! Here is another model that landed in my workshop, the first one because in such a large for me scale 1:32. And the hero that landed in the workshop is Fiat CR.42 "Falco" in the already mentioned scale 1:32 from the company ICM. 32020. In the box we find 6 frames of grey plastic and one transparent, a decal and a manual with two variants of camouflage. On the frames the manufacturer has placed a whole range of accessories for building various versions of the "Falco", which is included in the ICM offer. Returning to the mouldings, ICM has included different surfaces on the model, so where the surface is covered with sheet metal it is smooth, and where it is covered with canvas, apart from the realistic reflection of the canvas deflection it also has a different surface texture corresponding to that of the canvas. ICM has also included in the instructions a template for making masks for the windshield, but I will write about it later when I am at that stage of building the Fiat. ICM has also released a very nice supplement not only for "Falco" in the form of a set of Italian pilot figures, which will also fit other models of Italian aviation. I'm going to use following extras while building my model: Eduard 33979 Eduard 33271 seatbelts. Yahu models YMA3267 instrument panel CMK 5141 main wheels - ordered and waiting for delivery. KAGERO TOPDRAWINGS 102 Fiat CR.42
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LUBLIN R.XIII D 1:32 LUKGRAPH It was supposed to be from FLY both "Tunnan" but life has verified the plans as always. As a tribute to the fallen crew there is Lublin R.XIII D in 1:32 from LUKGRAPH. The model will be built in the colours of the 1st Platoon 26 EO (observation squadron) of the 2nd Air Regiment Cracow. The probable designation of the aeroplane is the letter E on the fuselage, the military number of the aeroplane is 56-126 and the under wing number is 16 K. The crew consisted of Lt. obs. Leon Wrzeszcz and Staff Sergeant Pilot Adam Baran. On 1.09.1039 the aircraft was shot down by ground fire and crashed in the village of Piasek near Strzebinia / Lubliniec, the crew died. The deadline for making the model is very short, because I want to make it in time for the unveiling of the newly-made memorial at the site of the plane crash. So much for the story, and now for the model; in the box we have everything we need to build it. From the extras there is an instrument panel available for it in the company YAHU MODELS YMA3231, which I will use in the model. Thanks to the companies LUKGRAPH and YAHU MODELS for their help. ps. There will be a little surprise in the next post.
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Good evening everyone, I thought it might be worth shifting my attempt at the RAF Centenary Groupbuild to the WIP area, seeing as I never had chance of meeting the deadline! (The build can be found by clicking here) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So, To bring everyone up to speed: -I plan to build a representation of the Panavia Tornado ZA326 in its iconic raspberry ripple colours. I'll be using the 1:32 Tornado GR1 kit from Revell and an abundance of plasticard, to model her with a plethora of panels open (nose, side electronics bays, ground equipment connection points, the spine, and maybe even an open engine bay!) Here are a few select images which visually describe the process so far: (Note that the paintwork on bits and bobs has been tidied up since these images were taken) What's the plan of action going forward, then? -Nose electronics bay -Nose hinge and detailing -Cockpit wiring -Fuselage panels and internal gubbins -Fuselage rescribing (+rivets, should they be required) -Engine bay (there might be a bit of a surprise in that regard, stay tuned!) -Wings -Other (landing gear, etc) It will be a slow (I've got a summer placement in a research lab at my university) but hopefully steady project. As for references that I'll be using: The good General's own Tornado build The Tornado SIG The ZA326 group's Flickr Stay tuned for more! Best wishes, Sam
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Now that I have got my Defiant completed I'm trying to tackle a few models I've had on the go for a while and this Hawker Hunter has been crying for attention for a while now so I decided to crack on with it. Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr I purchased it one Christmas from Modelzone for about £10 in the sale and is one of the best bargains I ever had and is definitely one of Revell's best kits in my opinion. I ended up getting the True Details cockpit for this one. In all honesty I don't think the cockpit tub and instrument panel offer much difference over the kit parts. Especially as everything is black inside the cockpit. Where this set adds value to the model is in the ejection seat. It is a stunning piece of resin and to date is probably the best after market resin ejection seat I've ever used. The sidewall detail is also very nice. The photos below show the improvements I made to the sidewall detail. Although resin sidewall detail looks nice as a stand alone part if it is fairly thick and is stuck onto the inside of the fuselage it can make the fuselage even thicker and look like a detailed part that was stuck on as opposed to part of the fuselage. I decided to sand the part down and get it as thin as I could and in the end I was just left with the detail part of the sidewall and managed to sand away all the backing completely. A couple of smaller boxes and wires were lost but these were easily replaced or reattached to the side of the fuselage. I wished I had taken a pic before I sanded them down to show the difference. Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Here is the unpainted cockpit tub with the kit rudder pedals. Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Here is the painted cockpit. First off I sprayed the Interior Alclad black primer. I then made a couple of mixes of HU33 Black and HU67 Grey to add some shading. I then painted all the switches in gloss black to make them stand out. The Instruments were also painted gloss black and had the dial detail dry brushed in white. Paint chipping was added using a silver pencil. The floor near the rudder pedals also had some zinc chromate primer painted round the silver but needs further black painting over and around it to blend it in. Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr The ejection seat was almost perfect from the box. The only detail required was the ejection handles and an arming pin made out of a plastic disk and a piece of wire. Revell 1:32 Hawker Hunter by Marks CVS, on Flickr The cockpit needs a few touch ups before I can close up the fuselage but overall I'm really pleased with how it turned out. Thanks for looking.
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Hi everyone, This build has been a long, long, time coming but what better time to start it than after a first COVID vaccination! To cut a long story short, over the years I've often seen the helicopters of the Midlands Air Ambulance charity flying over- whether it's coming into the QE Hospital in Birmingham, flying over our home now and again, returning to Cosford, or even while out and about. They do remarkable work and it's only right that I have a go at modelling such a fantastic machine. My previous foray into a 1:72 G-OMAA can be found here, but this time I will have to make my own decals and have a much better go at the interior. Here's the base kit: Colour scheme-wise, there are a few variations when it comes to decals. Although the 2 photos (from Cosford 2019) shown below would be good to use, I also have other reference material with the "Babcock" logo replaced by the "Bond" logo- it's a minor point, but I think the white lettering makes for a slightly more aesthetically interesting model. As you can see from the above, there are a lot of decals to try and replicate. Let's get cracking! All the best, Sam
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Hi all, I've finally finished replicating the only existing Ho-229 V3 in the world that was previously being restored at Smithsonian museum and I'm quite happy with what I ended up with. The reference photo I used from Smithsonian air-space magazine is here:
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Hello fellow friends from britmodeller! It's my first time ever posting here and I'm planning on building a Ho-229 by Zoukei Mura as a start. These late ww2 doomsday wunderwaffes wielded by the axis never cease to fascinate me. Maybe it's true that they were rushed by the desperate engineers who attempted a last ditch effort at turning the tide of the war, that they either came too late to do anything useful or cost questionable amount of resources, but the concepts behind them are still quite imaginative even in today's standards. I'm planning on making this post as episode one of my wunderwaffe series including stuff like V2, Ho-229, Me-163, Me-262, Mammut tank, Kikka and more, starting from Ho-229 for its appearance in Wolfenstein: The New Order. Now that the kit has finally been restocked thanks to Volks USA, I grabbed two of them as soon as I can while they're still there. My plan is to build a heavily weathered Ho-229 like the one being restored in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum because... I love chipping paint with hair gel. So here we are, admiring the box art of a Ho-229 that just scored a Lancaster kill in an interception: (Let's just ignore my messy workbench for once) Interestingly enough, the box is a hybrid of top opener and side opener. Something I've only seen in Zvezda kits. Instruction manuals from Zoukei Mura are really something else. Having this Bauanleitung laid on my workbench really makes me feel like a German aviation engineer in late April 1945, wondering how to get my job done while being bombarded by both B-17s during the day and Lancasters at night. It's by far the most comprehensive, detailed, unambiguous instruction I've ever seen in my short model life... Or am I not supposed to disclose this STRENG GEHEIM Nur Für den Dienstgebrauch material here? Maybe I should remove this post before any Gestapos show up? Since it's easy to find out-of-the-box sprue reviews and build reviews for this kit pretty much everywhere now, I won't be posting photos of all the sprues in the box. I'll show them when this build unfolds, of course.
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Hi, SPARKIT Models is a new French company that proposed 3D printed detailing sets, guns, wheels, ejection seat, engine. You find products in various scale, F-8 Crusader USN & French Navy ejection seat, Mirage III B/C/BE/E/R/RD wheels, MIRAGE IIIE/BE/R MIRAGE 5 - ATAR 9C EXHAUST, Mirage IV wheels ... https://sparkit-models.com/en/ Some sample products: Vickers gun S-3 Viking INTAKE AND EXHAUST SET : JAGUAR A AND E - MK.4 JRM EJECTION SEAT F-4 PHANTOM II - MK.H7 EJECTION SEAT US NAVY T-2 Buckeye - WHEEL SET DH VAMPIRE/SE535 MISTRAL - WHEEL SET (LATE TYPE) MIRAGE IVA/P - WHEEL SET Next product soon: Fouga Magister CM-170 Wheels Possible to follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any suggestions. I will update here with new products. SPang
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My first visit to the realm of 32nd scale. W.Nr.334186 possibly from Kg(J)6 found belly landed by US troops in March 1945, the photo is highly contrasted and colour assumptions could be made but the paint scheme is similar to other late build 334### aircraft. The build was good and any issues were my own, I couldnt get the cowlings to fit well but have seen others manage it. It's not an award winner but looks great in the cabinet. Quick boost Spinner for the hasegawa kit was used and is a must imo, as the kit spinner is strangely blunt shaped. The fit on the kits prop base is perfect but the blades needed shaving down to fit the correct key hole shapes in the QB spinner, Painted in a mix of SMS, Aqueous, AK real color, AK xtreme metals, Tamiya, Vallejo, and even some Citidel in there... Markings are painted using Montex masks and stencils are kit decals. Weathered with a mix of Enamels, oils and AK weathering pencils. The photos are the best I can manage though. Cheers
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Another kit completed, I pre-ordered this one as soon as it was announced because I wanted to get my hands on it. The Jaguar 420 seems like an odd subject for a kit, being a short-lived four-door saloon. That said, Airfix did a very good job of capturing the car's shape and details, even the leaping cat bonnet mascot is quite well reproduced. What was less good was the amount of flash and sink marks that needed addressing, particularly sink marks around the headlamps. I added some basic door cards to the interior as this, like many Airfix closed cars, doesn't have any detail for the insides of the doors. This isn't really visible on the finished model but at least I know it's there. I've also replaced the kit side windows with some thinner clear plastic for the quarterlights and left out the door windows entirely to provide a slightly better view of the interior. It's a pity you can't see more of the interior as the seats, dashboard and steering wheel are quite nicely reproduced. I was inspired by the box art, and the sighting of a similar real 420, to go for metallic gold, something close to Jaguar's Golden Sand. The interior is supposed to be Oxblood, this was mixed by eye mostly using Tamiya NATO brown with a bit of white and red. The dashboard was painted various tans and browns before getting an orange clear coat. There's a reasonable representation of the 4.2-litre Jaguar XK straight six under the bonnet. If you wanted, you could go to town adding all the extra reservoirs, wiring and plumbing that the kit lacks. It's also worth noting that as far as I can tell the inner wings are nothing like the ones on the real car. The underside looks pretty realistic. It's a bit of a shame that the rear suspension isn't assembled as a complete unit (as it would be in reality) before mounting to the body as it's quite difficult to get the springs located correctly. Whoever designed the front suspension is a complete sadist as the steering linkage attaches to the chassis under the front crossmember but above (from this perspective) the anti-roll bar, so has to go on after the crossmember and ARB assembly. If I did this kit again I'd probably modify the scuttle ventilation flap so that it was in the closed position, change the windscreen wipers and maybe even the windscreen glazing itself. The tyres are painted Tamiya NATO black, which I think gives a nice, realistic colour.
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I think this is the final Matchbox car kit missing from @Rabbit Leader's build list PK-308 Porsche 935, which is in Martini colours as raced at Watkins Glen in 1976 (according to the kit packaging). It was bought on eBay on Monday evening, so I'm impressed that it arrived so quickly. It's been part started but I think it falls well under the 25% completed rule. It also needs decals as these are completely absent. On the white paper and cutting mat is everything that came in the box. This is what arrived assembled. The body shell had a slight twist when it arrived, but I soaked the shell in warm water and think I've managed to straighten it out. The parts of the body seem correctly aligned so I don't think it was an assembly error. The body needs a few more panels adding but the good thing is that it can all be assembled as a unit before being joined to the interior/floor assembly. I think the first step will be to finish assembling the body, then get it primed and painted. I don't build many competition cars, so I'm a bit nervous about this.
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This is an extended set of photos from the Matchbox 50th anniversary group build. I'd have preferred one of the other car subjects, but it was one of the last car kits that no-one had picked and I wanted to help fill out the range of kits built. The kit I had came from eBay and the multi-part body was partially assembled (wonky but I managed to mostly correct it). The decal sheet was absent but I bought a decal sheet from Indycals in the USA, these weren't an exact match for the originals as I think they were scaled down from decals to fit a kit of a slightly different 935. You can (or, at least, I can) spot where some splicing was required and places where the decal didn't quite want to go where I wanted it. The kit itself is very nicely moulded with no flash and what seems like a good level of detail. Fit was quite good although some holes needed opening up and the mating surfaces for parts could be very small. Probably the worst part to build was the front suspension, which is very fine and very fiddly. Anyway, here are the pictures: Tyre lettering was picked out first in white paint, then with matt yellow. The side stripes are made of three separate pieces, this side was the second one I did and turned out slightly better as a result. I found some Humbrol number 15 Midnight Blue as a good match for the Martini dark blue. This was used on the wheels, headlamp surrounds, wing end plates (the original kit decals included the background, but the replacements do not) and even touched up a few gaps in the decals. The multi-part body caused some problems with bits breaking off, you can see one of the cracks here. This is probably the best view of the modification made to the stripes to fit the NACA ducts. The engine looks a little crude here but could probably be detailed up. The engine looks a bit better from underneath, I added the ribbing to the transaxle as I didn't like the look of the plain moulding. I'm pleased that at least one of the exhaust pipes lines up, the other (wastgate?) pipe was a nightmare that only fitted where it touched a couple of other parts. It would probably be better to cut out the tail pipes from the bumper and fit some tubes to the ends of the exhaust system. You can't see much of the interior as it's mostly black, but I went for Tamiya NATO black for the seat to provide a little variety, a touch of light brown for the gear lever knob. It looks like the clear coat reacted with the decals slightly but only at the top of the bonnet/boot lid. Despite the issues, it has to be said that this built up into quite a satisfying little model.
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I have to brag because I still have a brand new 1:32 scale SAAB J 29 B "Tunnan" from FLY 32023. FLY has released "Tunnan" in B and F versions and I managed to get both of them and both will be shown here. For this model FLY has also released masks to paint cabins (artm32011) and wheels (artm32014) which I also have. This is a quick in-box of the kit. I will do rest of in-boox pictures as soon as I have some time.
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I have to brag because I have still new from FLY 32022 - SAAB J 29 F "Tunnan" in 1:32 scale. FLY has released "Tunnan" in B and F versions and I managed to get both of them and both will be shown here. For this model FLY has also released masks to paint cabins (artm32011) and wheels (artm32014) which I also have. This is a quick in-box of the kit. I will do rest of in-boox pictures as soon as I have some time.
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This is my second entry for the group build, I fancied doing one of the classic 1:32 car kits. When I checked the list of Matchbox kits I thought about revisiting the Jaguar SS100 or Mercedes-Benz SSK that I built when I was young, but I fancied the idea of building one of the kits that hadn't yet been part of the group build. The two subjects that held the most appeal were the Rolls-Royce Phantom and the Citroen 11 Legere. In real life I like the Citroen as a technological pioneer and for the low, sleek lines (particularly as in the coupe and roadster modelled here). Here's the box art, I found this kit on eBay described as complete and as new. Overview of the sprues, which certainly seem to be in great condition. Most of the body parts are moulded in black. Red for the floor, interior and engine. Rubber tyres with "Michelin X" and size markings moulded into the sidewalls and a tread pattern (is it authentic?). Lots of chrome parts; some make sense (e.g. the bumpers) and some don't (e.g. the suspension parts). The worst element is the glazing, which is full of mould marks and distortion. I may try cutting new glass out of clear plastic sheet. The kit can be built either as a coupe or roaster and the box art gives some nice inspiration for alternate colour schemes. It is also tempting to assemble the kit just in its multicolour plastic glory. You even get the option of having the bonnet open and a rear dicky-seat. Here's a quick overview of the instructions, for a small and fairly old model it is quite complex and detailed. The multi-part body looks like it might be a challenge to assemble and paint. My current thoughts are to go for the roadster version (better to show off the interior and dashboard), in a light colour for the body, or maybe a two-tone. I'll have a look at pictures of real Traction Avant roadsters for inspiration. I don't build many 1:32 scale cars (or 1:32 anything) but this looks like a step up in quality and detail from the 1:32 Airfix car kits that I've built. I hope you'll enjoy the build journey with me.
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Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin Wingnut Wings 1:32 Of the aircraft produced by the Sopwith Aviation Company, the majority such as the Tabloid, Baby, 1 ½ Strutter, Pup, Triplane, Camel, Snipe, and Salamander were all powered by rotary engines. Only the Dolphin and Cuckoo made it into wartime service with an in-line engine. The Dolphin using the same 200Hp Hispano-Suiza V8 fitted to the SE.5a and SPAD XIII, and the Cuckoo (although it was too late to see active service) used the Sunbeam Arab . The main design aim of the Dolphin was to give the pilot improved all round visibility, seating him close to the top wing, with a completely open centre section. The top wing was also negatively staggered (I.e. further back than the bottom wing) to assist with visibility. There are all sorts of complex aerodynamic features associated with negative stagger, suffice to say that it never became popular. Patchy reliability of the Hispano-Suiza engine notwithstanding, the Dolphin became a very good high altitude fighter and was favored by several aces, many of whom earned all their kills on it. Initial deliveries were at the end of 1917, with twin Vickers guns over the engine and twin Lewis guns pointing upwards in the centre section cutout, giving the Dolphin is classic aggressive look. In practice the drum fed Lewis guns intruded into an already cramped cockpit, so often only one was fitted and the weight saving also benefited performance. Comparatively few Squadrons were issued with the Dolphin, only 2 going to the RNAS and the rest to the RFC, although of course both services joined to become the Royal Air Force on April 1st 1918. Within three years of the Great War ending, the Dolphin was completely retired from RAF service, although a small number carried on with the Polish air force. Over many years the RAF museum gathered a large number of parts from several Dolphins, and today a beautiful restoration/replica can be seen at the Hendon museum. The kit. I bet few of us saw this one coming! It suddenly appeared on Wingnut Wings website in early December, just in time shoot straight to the top of every Great War aficionado’s Christmas List. Packed in one of Wingnut Wings standard silver edged boxes, the artwork features a 23 Sqn. Machine in combat with a Fokker Triplane high above the western front. Lifting the lid reveals three large sprues, one smaller sprue for the engine, one for the clear parts, an etched fret, a set of decals by Cartograf, and Wingnut Wings sublime instructions/reference booklet. A bonus is that you also get that buzzing feeling of excitement from opening a new Wingnuts kit! Sprue A. This holds all the smaller and detailed parts, with some superb moulding. Note how good the Lewis guns are, and the underseat box for storing the ammo drums. Also the fuel tank is a very impressive single part. Everything is sharply defined, with some very delicate detailing. The parts cover a lot of the interior fittings, as well as exterior components such as the undercarriage, struts, bombs, choice of propellers etc. There are a couple of wing mounted Lewis guns for option E, the 87 Sqn machine. Unusually for an aircraft of this period, the guns were mounted on the lower wing outboard of the propeller arc, and fired by cable. I don’t know how successful this was, but it must have limited the rounds that could be fired, as it would not have been possible to change the ammo drums in flight. Note that the centre section Lewis guns would have been omitted, this was an ‘either or’ option. The instrument panel has the usual compliment of super fine decals for the dials, all of which are readable under a magnifying glass. My references state that the panel itself was gloss black painted American pearwood, confirming the colouring instructions. Sprue B. Here we have the mainplanes, with separate ailerons. The lower wing is a full span single piece moulding incorporating a section of the lower fuselage. This has the twin advantage of making a strong unit and removing the need for you set the dihedral. The two upper wings are also single mouldings, with beautifully depicted fabric and rib tapes. All the wings have thoughtfully been given their sprue attachment points along the leading edge, thus eliminating any possibility if damaging the fine trailing edges when cutting from the sprue. This is another subtle example of how Wingnut Wings think of things from the modellers point of view, and why they stand ahead of all other manufacturers. The training edges are remarkably thin, perfectly capturing the look of the real thing. Sprue C. As well as the windshield, the clear panels for the pulley inspection covers on the wings are provided. Option B is a night fighter fitted with lamps on the wing tips, rudder, and fuselage, all of which are on this sprue. Sprue D. The Dolphins distinctively shaped fuselage is found on sprue D, along with the tailplanes, fin & rudder, cowling parts, and interior frames. The fuselage shows some really outstanding detail, with very stitching and fasteners. The interior frames are moulded with a lot of the metal brackets and copper piping on, and will look really spectacular when painted up. There is a fair bit of internal rigging to be applied using your favourite method, but all is illustrated clearly in the very comprehensive instructions. Every stage is clearly explained, and if you are not familiar with Wingnut Wings Instruction books, they are better described as reference manuals. Assembly sequences are clearly explained with CAD drawings, and period photographs showing the details of the real thing. The fin/rudder features really excellent rib tape detail. The early and late versions of the Dolphin had some subtle variations which are catered for on two sub sprues. The differences are in the tailskids, side radiators, and central cabane frame. The tailskid differences are that the early was wooden, and the late made from steel tube. This being a Wingnut Wings production you get both. Interestingly there is a late production front cowl(D8), marked as ‘not used’ on the sprue plan, and pointed out on a photo of the real thing on page 19, so at least we know that a further release of this kit is probably due in the future. Sprue E. This one has been seen before, in the SE.5a kit. Having previously made the SE.5a, I know that it builds up into a lovely little representation of the 200hp Hispano Suiza. The only difference is that the Dolphin had a different intake manifold & water tank unit, which is supplied on sprue A as part 22. The only thing you might want to add is some ignition wiring from the magnetos to the spark plugs. Etched brass. Lap type seat belts, gunsights, gun cocking levers, and a footstep surround are all supplied on here. There is also a removable nameplate with ‘Wingnut Wings’ logo and ‘Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin’ etched on it. These present on all of Wingnut Wings etched frets if you wish to display a nameplate with your finished model. Decals. The sheet is printed by Cartograf, which pretty much guarantees the quality. Printing is sharp and flawless, the colours are excellent, and carrier film is minimal. Best of all is the mass of little stencils and instrument faces that add so much to Wingnut Wings finished kits. Sopwith liked to apply their company logo onto fittings like struts, and you get a full set of miniature ones here. These little items really catch your eye when looking at a finished kit, like when you notice that around the fuel filler opening it says ’Main Petrol 22 Gals’ in letters about 0.3mm tall. These little items really catch your eye when looking at a finished kit, like when you notice that around the fuel filler opening it says ’Main Petrol 22 Gals’ in letters about 0.3mm tall. Options. Option A. Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin C3785, RNAS Dover, early 1918. Option B. Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin C3803,”Red Star 6”, SARD, March 1918. Option C. Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin C3824 “U”, JW Pearson (12 victories) & CE Walton (1? Victory), C Flight, 23 Sqn RAF, May to July 1918. Option D. Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin C3879 “Q”, RB Bannerman, C Flight 79 Sqn RAF, August to November 1918 (17 victories). Option E. Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin C8163 “A”, HJ Larkin, A Flight 87 Sqn RAF, August to November 1918 (11 victories). Conclusion. Another absolute beauty from Wingnut Wings, and one that has made many Great War enthusiasts very happy. The quality of the mouldings is absolutely top class with intricate and sharply defined components, fine surface details, and no flash or sink marks. As always, there are parts on the sprues that make me wonder ‘how do they do that?’ such as the Lewis drum ammo box (part A30) and the main petrol tank (part A20). I now take it for granted that fit will be faultless, as it always is on a Wingnuts kits, provided you keep paint off all mating surfaces. There is a moderate amount of rigging to be done, both internal and external, so I would place this one in the lower middle range for experience required. The view into the cockpit should be very good, revealing all that woodwork, copper piping, and instruments to advantage, and leaving the top cowl off will expose that lovely engine. With its pugnacious and aggressive look, the Dolphin is bound to find its way into most collections, and it makes the perfect companion for the Sopwith Camels released earlier this year. With Wingnut Wings producing the Pup, Triplane, Camel, Dolphin, and Snipe, all we need now is the 1 ½ Strutter to complete the line-up. Oh, and I’d quite like a Sopwith Baby too please! There can only be one verdict - Highly Recommended. Review sample courtesy of As an aside, there are few references on the Dolphin. However, there is one book which supplies virtually everything you could need. I got mine from 'Cross and Cockade' a few years back.
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Greetings, hope you are all doing well! This is my latest completion, Hasegawa 1:32 Boeing P26 A Pea Shooter. This is quite an old kit, the plastic was hard and brittle, one yellow sprue was more like bakelite. I built this as part of a club build and put in a bit more work for this one. Quite a bit of work went into the cockpit. The instrument panel was replaced with a spare Kingfisher decal and I built up a front piece for it. The seat was replaced with my first attempt at vac forming and the rest of the cockpit was embellished with various bits and bobs. Typically when the fuselage was closed up you couldn't see a lot so here are a couple of WIP shots The back cushion was shaped out of miliput and lap straps were meant to be made from tape but found some Corsair ones which looked much better. I also added some cockpit placards to add a bit more interest. The gun barrels were replaced with brass tube. The kit comes with raised detail but I removed this as the joins while being not bad werent really good enough to keep the detail. The panel lines and rivet detail was then redone, using the rivet wheel for the first time (a second first!). All the paint work is from the airbrush with copious amounts of masking tape and ALOT of patience! The only decals were the badge behind the cockpit, the '23' and the 'US ARMY' on the under side. For the engine I replaced the push rods and exhaust/inlet piping with brass rod and some wiring harnesses added. There is a lot mentioned regarding the fit of the cowling around the engine so with this in mind I added a couple of thin slivers to widen the cowl. This worked really well and I didn't have to do too much faffing around in fitting out the cowl. It was still a right pain though and had to be done slowly. For the rigging I opted for rigid stainless wire, cant remember the size but it was quite fine. I think it is slightly over scale but it serves its use. The kit comes with all the rigging holes open so its a big invite to throw it in there. I did simplify the rigging between the spats as there is a bullet shaped fairing where the wires crossed. This just got far too complex so was left out! I think that's about it, quite pleased with how it turned out especially after that paint job! Thanks for looking in! Bob
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No, this build won't include Browning machine guns, rotating number plates or an ejector seat. This is more about refining some of the details of this venerable kit, and taking a trip down memory lane as it is another kit I built back in my early teens. I've been working on this in the background of my other builds for a few weeks. This is the box art, which I think is slightly different from the version I built the first time around. I knew that the biggest issue would be the body, with a mix of flash and sink marks to correct. Here is the body straight out of the box and you might spot a little flash if you look carefully. What I wasn't expecting was the panel lines, I'm not sure if they were originally designed as raised edges or recesses, but over the years they have become both and neither at the same time. I decided I'd take the risk to try and scribe the panel lines myself. The front end is where the worst sink marks are found, and the bonnet scoop needs opening up. At the back Airfix simply didn't bother with half the boot shut line. Careful work with scriber and razor saw, I've tried to get the lines as steady as possible but they may be a little wobbly in places. Creating the bonnet panel gap was really tricky. The passenger side. Boot panel gap added, Not sure how accurate it is, but it's better than nothing. To try and get the tail lights fitting properly they were added to the body before any paint so that I could make good with filler. I've also had to scribe the fuel filler door. Front valance fitted and checking that the chassis fits. Pity about the gap at the edge of the floor, not sure there's much can be done with that. Starting to open up the bonnet vent. And cut open. Great gobs of filler! More filler on the valance. First coat of primer, just to see what further correction is necessary. Not quite sure about that face. Driver's side. At least the door gaps don't look too bad. Even the boot gap doesn't look too awful. Something I knew I'd need to address would be the kit wheels. As with the Airfix Jaguar E-type I built last summer I decided to go for some slot car wire wheels. First mock-up with the wheels just plonked in the arches. One handy thing is that you don't have to cut away any of the chassis to fit these wheels, the boss sticks out pretty much the same distance as the boss on the kit wheels. Sitting on the suspension, it looks better at something closer to the proper ride height. The suspension is not too badly represented, the rear assembly is quite fiddly with its separate coil springs and radius rods. It's probably not going to get much more than a quick spray with black paint. Plenty of rubbing down has happened (and camera lens was cleaned). That window line isn't right and needs improvement. That looks a bit more like the correct shape. Underside primed and rubbed down, Those stub axles need to be a little thicker for the wheels to sit better. Something else I noticed was the complete lack of detail for the sides of the interior, I'm not sure how much detail I'll add but I felt that some sort of representation would be better than nothing. You also get a weird gap where the rear seats and wheel arches don't quite meet. Adding some styrene to correct the gap, yes it needs trimming down. To keep this build well away from the best-known DB5 it isn't going to be silver or anything close. it will be burgundy with a black interior. I'm not usually a fan of black interiors but it feels right for this sort of Aston.
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The re-issued Airfix kit A most enjoyable build.