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Hi everybody, My first build in this section. I used to build 1/35 AFVs but switched happily to 1/72 aircrafts a few years ago. I was looking for a vehicle to place on a small scene with an AH-1G and found this: I know this brand has a reputation for tough kits that belong to some red room of pain buuut... ...They have made real progress lately, this model comes from a rather recent mould, the level is detail is good with a rather high number of parts and a small PE fret, the moulding is clean aaand... ...I did not have much choice in terms of Vietnam War area airfield vehicles anyway! More seriously, this is a good little kit with very decent fit of parts. The interior would be OK for the turret versions but not quite so for this open top version. It lacks details and is incorrect in some areas. As I decided to open one the side doors, improvements were necessary. Still there were no issues that plasticard, masking tape, copper and lead wire could not remedy. I focused on the interior first: - I added details to the crude driver seat is crude - I scratched the passenger seat as the one provided in the box is fantasist - The wheel arches sides are too steep (blue arrows). I sawed them off and replaced them with plasticard - The driver compartment floor is wrong, the winch compartment is missing, as well as the pedals and radio equipment - The fighting compartment seats and seat belts were missing along with the fire extinguishers, radio (the one I did is fantasy but will be hardly visible) - I scratched a side door as I had drilled and cut off the original one - I added the door handles, the vision blocks and other bit and bobs. I then turned my attention on the open top fighting compartment. I had scratched the top armoured plate in 0,2mm plasticard as the box offering was much too thick. As a result, the folding roof doors and MG shields looked really odd in comparison. So, I scratched them too... Dry fitting shows that the fit is not bad at all and that the interior remains visible: Next, I will paint the interior, glue everything together and finish the exterior detailing.

This may turn out to be a fairly straightforward build after all, but as I mentioned in the chat section I have had bad experiences with the two previous kits I have tried from this manufacturer. I recently managed to build their BMP-2 in a GB but it was not easy - poor engineering meant quite a bit of surgery was needed, there was a fair bit of flash, poorly placed sprue attachment points and pretty poor instructions. A year or so I ago tried their T-59 tank and ended up abandoning it as not only did it have the same problems but the white plastic they used just would not take any sort of glue including CA. This does look a bit better moulding wise, but a combination of link and length track and explosive reactive armour tiles makes for a lot of small parts and combined with rather pathetic instructions still makes me feel downright uncomfortable, so as I am already building 2 tanks for other GB I thought I would throw it into the mix. Pete

Latest completion, my attempt at the ACE Models Saladin Mk 2, painted to represent a vehicle with the 1st Queen’s Dragoon Guards in Aden, 1966 (the same time my dad was serving there with the RAMC). Brush painted with Vallejo and Tamiya Acrylics, pretty much out of the box except for the turret searchlight (a modified headlamp left over from a build of the Roden Rolls Royce armoured car), and a bit of wire mesh over the rear engine deck. A bit fiddly in places (which can’t now be seen), but pretty happy with how it turned out. Build thread can be found here:

My next project is another 1/72 scale model - the FV601 Saladin Mk 2 by Ace Models. I picked up and built a JB 1/76 kit during the Christmas Break (previously posted in RFI, but possibly not visible now due to the recent issues with Village Photos), and while gathering information during that build came across this Ace Models kit on-line. Didn't take long to order and it only took a week to get across the country from Melbourne. I'm trying out a new photo host, so hopefully this works. First the box top: Inside, the main parts are on three sprues of a reasonably hard plastic. Some very small parts, but the sprue gates are pretty fine. There are six vinyl tyres and a tiny decal sheet. The instructions are printed in a rather fetching green colour, and at first glance look quite complicated, but once I got started they were OK. What drew me to this kit in particular were these markings: My dad served in Aden with the RAMC at this time and he remembers seeing these armoured cars around the place. Not sure about the green - I would have assumed it would be more likely to be deep bronze green considering the time period. Certainly the images of this vehicle appear to show a very dark green for the camouflage (Ace Models have a great website with some good photos of the real thing as well as some in progress model photos and links to walkarounds). I actually started this during the week on our Australia Day public holiday. There are a lot of fiddly little bits to deal with, not unlike the IBG models I have been building. There is also a bit of flash with means some careful clean up, which is tricky with the little bits. So for example for each of the wheels there are five separate parts: But it does look good once completed (the tyre is only on temporarily), the close up though is rather harsh at showing the slight excess of Tamiya Thin Cement which did evaporate. Note the detail on the tyre. Ive left the tyres off the wheels for now as I gather they needed to be painted first to avoid nasty interactions with the hard plastic. I suspect that's due to plasticisers from the softer tyres migrating into the harder styrene. I got so caught up in putting together the "hull" and"undercarriage" together , I forgot to take photos. There are something like 40 plus separate parts needed, with some fettling needed along the way. I also added some weight before I put the "top deck" on. A few little bits of clean up to go and some minor filling, but pretty happy with how its going.

ACE Models programme-catalogue 2021 is online and downloadable here: http://acemodel.com.ua/pages/2021_cat.pdf V.P.

ACE Model (http://acemodel.com.ua) is to release in 2018 a 1/72nd Kamov Ka-25 "Hormone" kit - ref. 72307 Sources: http://acemodel.com.ua/en/model/675 http://acemodel.com.ua/pages/ace_2017_catalogue.pdf V.P.

ACE Models catalogue 2019 is online and downloadable here http://acemodel.com.ua/pages/ace_2019.pdf Source: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2285412501747896&id=1847368942218923 V.P.

Dear fellow Britmodellers, here's my first contribution to the "Vehicles" gallery - my 1/72 ACE Models Austin HP8 Tourer. Bought this kit @ GoModelling show in Vienna last year. It's supposed to sit alongside a Spitfire on a vignette (one day). Added rear mirror (scrap photo etch from the spares box) & windshield wipers (from stretched sprue). The kit's convertible hood was too crude for my taste and was replaced by scratch-built item made from rubber gloves. Hope you like my tiny car! Photographs by Wolfgang Rabel. Close-ups in this scale are pretty unforgiving, but to show off my detail work, here's the windscreen wipers ... The rear mirror is a piece of scrap photo etch: And here it is in it's full size …. my smallest model to date! Thanks for your interest, best greetings from Vienna! Roman