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  1. Special Hobby is to re-release the MPM 1/72nd Breda Ba.88B Lince kit - ref. SH72397 Release is expected in May 2019. Source: http://www.specialhobby.info/2018/10/standa-hajek-new-paintings-for-sh72384.html Box art V.P.
  2. "Czech wars" is not over. After the surprise re-release announcement from the AZmodel 1/72nd SMB2 kit (http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235011686-172-dassault-super-mystère-b2-smb2-by-azmodel-re-release-box-artschemessprues-release-december-2016/😞 Special Hobby is to release, in cooperation with Azur-FRROM, a new tool 1/72nd Dassault Super Mystère B2 (SMB2) kit - ref. SH? Armements and fuel tanks will be included in the box. Different boxings will offer the opportunity to reproduce the original SMB2 as well as the Israeli re-engined variant. Source: http://www.specialhobby.net/2016/11/super-mystere-172-pripravovany-model.html CADs Special Hobby, do you hear me, true scale modellers need a 1/48th SMB2 kit... V.P.
  3. After the 1/72nd kits (link) Special Hobby is reported working for 2020 on a 1/48th Bell AH-1G Cobra/Sea Cobra family. Info obtained from a Special Hobby representative at IPMS Belgium National/Plastic & Steel 2019. To be followed. V.P.
  4. After the 1/72nd kit (link) Special Hobby (SH) is to release 1/48th SIAI-Marchetti SF.260 kits. First boxing - ref. SH48207 Sources: https://www.specialhobby.info/2020/09/siai-marchetti-sf260-new-148-and-172.html https://www.facebook.com/specialhobby/posts/1010336579406702 V.P.
  5. MPM/Special Hobby is to release 1/48th Grumman Guardian AF-2S & AF-2W kits. First test shot is on display at the Spielwarenmesse Nürnberg 2014. Source IMPS Germany : http://www.ipmsdeutschland.de/Ausstellungen/Nuernberg2014/Bilder_VH/66.html I really like the look of this aircraft! Source: http://www.aviastar.org/pictures/usa/grumman_guardian-s.gif V.P.
  6. Special Hobby working on SAAB VIGGEN scaled down to 1/72 metal mould made with 3D CAD-CAM CNC technology like Vampire, Gnat, Mirage etc.
  7. Special Hobby is to release a 1/72nd Pfalz E.V kit - ref. SH72514 Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2024/02/norimberk-den-3-4-trubky-platno.html 3D renders V.P.
  8. Special Hobby is to release in 2018 a family of Armstrong Whitworth Meteor nightfighters kits incl. NF.11/12/13 & 14 - ref. SH72358, 72360, 72363 & 72364 Source: http://www.specialhobby.net/2017/12/sh72358360363364-aw-meteory-nf.html Canopies mould V.P.
  9. After the 1/48th kit by Planet Models/Red Roo Models (link), Special Hobby is to release 1/72nd de Havilland DH.94 Moth Minor (ref. 72494) & Moth Minor Coupé (ref. 72504) kits. Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2024/02/norimberk-den-3-4-trubky-platno.html 3D renders V.P.
  10. Short Sunderland Mk.V 'Fighting Commies in Europe and the Far East' (SH72162) 1:72 Special Hobby The Sunderland was developed by Short Brothers to an RAF requirement R.2/33 for a long range general purpose flying boat. It is thought Shorts took their work on Imperial Flying Boats to design the Sunderland, however the RAF requirement was released before the Imperial Airways requirements, and Short's decided to pursue both at the same time. The Sunderland would be a large four engined flying boat with both defensive and offensive armaments. The large wings with would mount 4 Bristol Pegasus engine were able to hold 200 Gallons of fuel giving the aircraft a 14 hour range. For defence initially four guns were mounted in a rear turret, two guns in the nose turret, and two guns on each beam. Later a dorsal turret would be added. Offensive weapons were carried internally and winched out under the wings through doors in the aircrafts sides. Later aircraft would also gain 4 fixed forward firing machine guns. German pilots nicknames the Sunderland the flying porcupine and there are numerous cases of Sunderland fighting off superior numbers off attacking aircraft. Radar fitted to these flying boats enabled them to become accomplished submarine hunters. Production shifted to the Mark III in December of 1941. This had a changed hull to improve seaworthiness. With 461 built this was the most numerous mark. Due to concern about increasing weights and the subsequent lack of engine power the Mk.V. In Australia Sunderland crews suggested that the Pegasus engines be replaced by Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp engines. as these were already in use on Catalinas and Dakotas. Initally Two Mark IIIs were taken off the production lines in early 1944 and fitted with the American engines. Trials were conducted in early 1944 and the conversion proved all that was expected. Along with the new engines Hamilton Hydromatic constant-speed fully feathering propellers provided greater performance. Also a Twin Wasp Sunderland could stay airborne if two engines were knocked out on the same wing while. Production was switched to the Twin Wasp version and the first Mark V reached operational units in February 1945. Defensive armament fits were similar to those of the Mark III, but the Mark V was equipped with new centimetric ASV Mark VI C radar that had been used on some of the last production Mark IIIs as well. A total of 155 Sunderland Mark Vs were built with another 33 Mark IIIs converted to Mark, more were planned but the end of the war led to the cancellation of these orders. The Kit This is a new boxing of Special Hobby's new tool Mark V from 2019, now re-released. The parts breakdown on the spures would also indicate other earlier marks are planed as well. This is an impressive kit with good quality large mouldings and a full interior. Construction starts in the cockpit. The instrument panel and pilots seats are built up onto the deck with the control columns being added. The cockpit bulkhead goes in and there is an additional seat to fit on the bulkhead. At the other side what appears to be the navigators position goes in. The lower deck under the cockpit then is assembled with its bunk areas for crew rest on those long flights. The next stage is to build up the weapons carriers and the rails which winch them out under the wings. 8 bombs are provided. The top and main decks can then be joined and the weapons section added to the rear of this sub-assembly. To the front is added the mooring deck/access to the front turret with a realistic grating effect to the floor, Additional parts can now be added inside both main fuselage halves before you can think about closing them up around the main internal section. The modeller can have the weapons windows open or closed but this needs to be done now as they swing inwards. At the rear of the main cabin the gunners position and access to the top turret parts need then to be added. At the bow the anchor needs to go in. Only once all this is done can the fuselage be closed up. The exterior now needs to be looked at, The main top insert for the turret goes in, then underneath the hull step part is added. Both of these being inserts to allow for the different marks to be kitted. At the rear the vertical fin and separate rudder go on, then the tailplanes, here the moving surfaces are moulded in. The main wings go on next. These are conventional left/right upper/lower surfaces; again the moveable surfaces are moulded in. The wings have large tabs which slot into the fuselage which should help then fit on correctly and not droop over time. If you opted for the bombs slung out under the wings now is the time to add the racks there. We are now on the finishing straight. Still on the main wing the four engines are assembled, and added on. The two main wing floats then go on. Next up its the gun turrets. All these are fitted from the outside which is a great help when it comes to masking and painting them as separate items. The front turret can be mounted slid back for mooring or in its forward position. The front boarding door can also be open as all the structure behind it is in place. The props and exhausts go on here. The last step is to attach all of the external aerials. Given there are four on the top, eight on each side; and two on the wings it's probably better left until after painting! If wanted by the modeller then beaching gear is provided for the aircraft. Clear Parts These are of the same excellent quality as the other kit parts, and again it can be seen there are parts for other marks on the clear spure. Markings The decals are printed by Cartograf so that guarantees there will be no issues with them. A generous four aircraft can be modelled using the kit decals, SV566/Z - No. 209 Sqn RAF, Seletar, Singapore 1951-53 Flown by Distinguished Czech Pilot Vaclav Bergman. S.50.4 French Naval Aviation, Lanveco-Poulmic 1951 NJ177/V - No. 209 Sqn RAF, Seletar, Singapore 1953 PP117/4X-W - No.203 Sqn RAF, Detached to Finenwerde, Hamburgh British Zone Of Germany, 1948. This aircraft participated in the Berlin Airlift carrying mainly coal and salt. Conclusion This is great new tool of an important though often overlooked aircraft for the RAF. The kit is very detailed indie and out. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  11. Special Hobby has just announced a new tool 1/48th Martin Baltimore Mk.I/II kit - ref. SH48160 Source: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235016099-novelties-from-special-hobby/ V.P.
  12. Happy New Year everyone. This will be my entry in the group build. It’s been in the stash since long before the Airfix kit was released. This is a good opportunity to build it! A quick look at the contents of the box: Three sprues of grey styrene, Some resin detail parts in two different colours. There is also a small PE fret with seat belts and instrument panels. I also have these after market goodies: The mask set is for the Airfix kit, but I’m hoping they’ll fit this one🤞 I was originally going to build the box top all black scheme, mainly to speed up the painting process but looking at the instructions this calls for the AI radar aerials to be made up from microscopic pieces of resin and wire. That’s not going to happen. Instead I’ll be doing this aircraft: Plate in the Osprey volume on Defiant, Blenheim and Havoc Aces. L9446 was used by Flg Off. Reg Peacock to down a Ju-87 on 18/8/40 for his fifth victory making him the only pilot to achieve ace status flying the Blenheim. This fits in well with my collection of aircraft of the aces. Decals for the codes and serials are on the way. A start has been made, all the parts have received a wash and I’ve commenced the process of carving and sanding more or less Blenheim shaped pieces out of the flash and blobs. Huge ejector pins have been ground off with the rotary tool. This very much a short run kit, no locating tabs or pins and some fairly crude moulding of the smaller parts. Dry fitting, to the extent it is possible, is not encouraging. Thanks for looking. AW
  13. This one came as a complete surprise to me: https://www.specialhobby.info/2020/11/news-from-special-hobby-112020.html
  14. Special Hobby is to reissue soon its 1/72nd Heinkel He.59B kit (link) under ref. SH72428 Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2023/11/sh48428-heinkel-he-59b-nahled-obtisku.html Box art & decals V.P.
  15. In (June?) 2022 Special Hobby is to release a 1/72nd Aero Ab-11 - L-BUCD "Blue bird" on a long flight over Europe, Africa and Asia - kit - ref. SH72471 Source: https://www.hannants.co.uk/product/SH72471 V.P.
  16. Special Hobby (SH) is to reissue the 2002 Azur 1/48th Latécoère 298 kit (link) in its Vintage Treasure edition line - ref. VT48001 Box art https://www.specialhobby.net/2024/01/v-tiskarne-jsou-prave-v-tisku.html Source: https://www.specialhobby.net/2023/12/vt48001-latecoere-298-148-nahled.html Schemes: French & German V.P.
  17. My last kit finished this year - 1:72 Hispano Aviación HA-1112-M1L Buchón. My interpretation of aircraft no. 71-5 "MAPI", serial C4K-9, 71. Escuadrón, Ejército del Aire, Gando Air Base (Gran Canaria), Ifni War (Spanish Sahara), 1958. Special Hobby kit built "out of the box" with some scratch. Thanks for watching!
  18. I’m convinced. Place holder for Special Hobby Baltimore 1/72 to be built as a 13 Sqn RAF, 454 Sqn or 69 Sqn aircraft (research and serial codes to be tied up to confirm aircraft to be built)
  19. 2 years ago I got to spend a few hours at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, a destination I had been long hoping to visit. Due to the limited time, I did have to rush a bit through the massive collection, spread across 5 large hangars. I had a list of aircraft I wanted to concentrate on photographing for future builds, but when transitioning over to Box Car, I couldn't help but notice a Douglas A-20 tucked to the side. While not my favorite plane, I enjoyed playing this aircraft in the video game War Thunder. I made sure to take a few pictures, and made note to look into building a model of it. Turns out Special Hobby just put out a gunship version, and Tally Ho! offered a set of decals available, so I just had to make one myself. NMUSAF has some decent pictures available, and Im sure I can get more if I contact the museum. https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/196256/douglas-a-20g-havoc/ The build will mostly be out of the box, though I may need to make modifications to match the museum aircraft.
  20. I've paused on the Sea Fury for a bit, most likely I won't finish it in time for the end of the GB. I was planning to get back to the VF-1 Wolfpack Tomcat and get that finished. Then I saw this kit sticking out of the pile. I built one previously as an RCAF Sliver Star so had some familiarity with the kit. Anyways, I always wanted to do one in the Mako One paint scheme. For the longest time, I could only find decals in smaller scales. Then I found Above and Below did them in 1/32. So after opening the kit up to play with sorting the intakes- in my opinion, the most challenging part of the kit I ended up getting a bit carried away.
  21. Definitely my last build of 2023 ! This is the Special Hobby kit of the Percival Pembroke, which also includes parts (cabin interior, nose, short wing tips) for the earlier Percival Sea Prince T.1, as used by the Royal Navy's 750 Sqn to train navigation and ASW. A rather obscure aircraft (although 41 were built), the Sea Prince saw wide use by the RN, in Culdrose, Lossiemouth, Brawdy and Hal Far (Malta). As well as radar (with multiple displays for the trainees), it has a small bomb bay and wing pylons for practice weapons. Sea Princes were used from 1951 until 1977 when they were finally replaced by the Jetstream. The earlier short-nosed Sea Prince C.1 and later long-nosed C.2 were used for transport and logistic purposes (Valom has a kit out for this variant). The RAF also operated an upgraded version of the Prince with extended wingtips and a greater range/payload, known as the Percival Pembroke. It's quite a difficult kit to build, requiring lots of filling, sanding and then filling again, but it's definitely worth it, although I really hate brush painting that fluorescent paint ! Merry Christmas to all! FredT
  22. AVRO Anson Mk.I ‘Anti-Submarine Annie’ (SH48211) 1:48 Special Hobby Originally designed as a fast mail carrier in the early 30s, the original AVRO design was amended in the mid-30s in response to a specification issued by the Aviation Ministry for a reconnaissance aircraft that could also perform other roles. It beat a similarly militarised De Havilland Rapide and was awarded a contract for series production with the name Anson after an 18th Century Admiral of the Fleet. At the outbreak of war it was still performing its given roles, and was engaged in the Dunkirk evacuation where it surprisingly managed to shoot down two Bf.109s and damage another, as they found the low speed of the Anson hard to gauge, overshooting straight into the line of the nose-mounted .303 machine gun operated by the pilot. She was thoroughly outclassed as a front-line aircraft though, so was soon withdrawn from fighting service to form part of the training fleet, and as a communications ‘hack’. Despite its withdrawal from service, more aircraft were built, and they were used as trainers for radar operators, navigators and as a trainer for pilots that were destined to fly multi-engined bombers. Its replacement in maritime service was the Lockheed Hudson, which had a hugely increased range and speed, the Anson only being capable of a four-hour endurance that prevented it from covering much of the Atlantic or North Sea before it had to turn for home. It could carry a small bomb load however, so could take offensive action if it was to find a U-boat on its travels. Following WWII, Faithful Annie as she became known was used as a civilian and business aircraft, although some of the wooden-winged examples that were used overseas began to suffer from problems due to the humidity’s effect on the timber areas. Not all Ansons had wooden wings though, and some of the wooden winged aircraft were refitted with the improved metal wings, although even these were eventually retired, leaving only one airworthy by the new millennium. The Kit This is a rerelease of the Classic Airframes kit that originated in 2006 before appearing in Special Hobby boxes from 2007 onwards. While it has been superseded by a new tooling that is fully injection-moulded, that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have its own appeal, particularly if you like to include resin in your builds for extra detail. The kit arrives in a top-opening blue/white/grey themed box, and inside are five sprues of grey styrene of various shades and textures, a clear sprue, thirty-six resin parts in two bags, a sheet of pre-painted and nickel-plated Photo-Etch (PE) that is found in the same bag as the two decal sheets. The final item is the instruction booklet that is printed in colour on glossy white stock, with painting and decaling instructions on the rear pages. Detail is good, although the kit won’t fall together if you shake the box. There is a lot of detail present however, enhanced by the quantity of resin, much of which will be seen through the extensive glazing. Construction begins with the floor of the aircraft, adding two sections of spar running spanwise across the middle, fitting the port fuselage side and moulded-in framework behind the window frames. A bulkhead is fixed to the rear of the floor, with another short length and its bulkhead behind that, adding radio boxes and other gear on and around the spars. A pair of resin bucket seats are painted and detailed with pre-painted four-point PE belts, one fitted by the radio equipment, the other to the front behind the control column, and a simpler box seat by the navigator’s table, the occupant held in position by lap-belts alone, as his seat has no back to his seat. Another shallow seat has lap-belts glued on and is placed on the front spar after adding two folded PE toppers to the starboard end of each spar and a cross-brace between the rear edge of the map table and the spar. The single .303 machine gun in the nose is inserted into a groove along with its ammo feed, which requires the trough to be cut out from the port fuselage half before the almost complete interior is inserted into the port fuselage after adding a window, adding a resin bed for the bomb aimer, a fire extinguisher and two blocks of dials on the wall. A scrap diagram shows the completed interior once it is emplaced within the port fuselage, which should help with the arrangement of parts in the nose. The starboard sidewall and framework are glued to the opposite side of the interior, spacing them to the correct width with the roof framework. The starboard fuselage can then be brought in after fitting a square window behind the main windows, plus another small one in the nose, and two recognition lenses under the bomb-aimer’s position under the nose. A small fairing is attached to the wing root fairing on both sides, and another resin equipment box is glued into the starboard nose. The pilot’s instrument panel is built from a blank shape with a coaming for one decal option and sidewall behind it, fitting rudder pedals to the back, and layering two printed PE panels to the front, then gluing the throttle quadrant into position to the lower right along with three PE levers and two more on the main panel, inserting the finished panel into the port fuselage for one scheme, locating the quadrant on a peg moulded into the cockpit floor. An insert for the top turret is detailed with three-part lower framework and a bicycle seat, adding the upper framework, Lewis gun with plate mag and two-part clear dome after main painting is complete. Don’t forget to mask the hole, and similarly mask and paint the clear parts in the meantime. The instrument panel minus coaming is used in two decal options that have less aerodynamic windscreen panels, so the top won’t be seen. Firstly, the nose cone has a tubular recess inserted from behind, and is glued to the front of the fuselage, installing the top turret insert and the upper glazing for the interior at the same time, and selecting your chosen windscreen and gluing a ring sight into the front roof frame. The coaming-free instrument panel is glued to the underside of the windscreen 4.5mm away from the front lip before it is glued into position. The sloped canopy is glued over the cockpit where the instrument panel already resides. The wings are prepared by inserting a roof and bulkhead panel with a nick cut from each side into the lower along with the twin-strut gear leg and cross-brace, painting the details and gluing the upper wing into position. This is repeated on the other side, as is the insertion of the retraction jack, followed by the two-part nacelle front. The wings are butt-joined to the fairing moulded into the fuselage, and the joint would be strengthened by adding stiffening material or a pin to the equation. The elevators are each two parts, and these too butt join with the tail and would also benefit from strengthening of the joint. A diagram at the bottom of the page shows the correct dihedral of the wings, and the elevators are shown in red, as they would otherwise be invisible due to the wings being at the same height. The Armstrong Siddeley Cheetah IX radial engines have the 7-cylinders moulded as one, adding a reduction bell to the front, a spacer to the rear, and an exhaust collector ring around the rear. You are shown the arrangement of the push-rods in an additional diagram, but you must make them from 0.4mm wire from your own stock, each length 5.8m long. Another diagram shows the arrangement from the front, and once you have it painted to your satisfaction, the largest resin cowlings with extended bulges can be slipped over the engine and glued in place via the locators shown in red through the drawing. Two resin exhaust stubs are glued into the collector rings through the oval holes in the cowling, repeating it for both engines, which is probably best done after main painting is completed. Detailing of the exterior of the aircraft is the last task, starting with the underside, fitting the two-part wheels in between the twin struts, and gluing the resin radiators under the nacelles. PE actuators are fitted to each of the ailerons and elevators, adding a pitot under the nose, and the yoke with separate wheel under the tail. Flipping the model onto its wheels, more actuators and hinges are dotted around the flying surfaces including the rudder, with an antenna mast and D/F loop fixed on the roof over the interior. The two-bladed props are each sandwiched between two plastic washers, and have a PE detail plate on the forward face, sliding onto the short peg protruding from the engine’s bell housing. Two small clear lights are glued to fairings near the wingtips, painted clear green and red, adding a length of 0.2mm wire between the mast and the tail once the rest of the model is completed. Markings There are three decal options on the sheets, all wearing either A or B variants of the early war green/brown upper surfaces, with sky or silver undersides depending on which decal option you have chosen. From the box you can build one of the following: K6285/MW-F, No.321 (Dutch) Sqn., RAF Carew Cheriton, late 1940 EG359, Groupe Artois, Escadrille Arras, Point Noire, French West Africa, 1943 N5331/5, No.6 Air Observer & Navigator School, Staverton, early 1945 The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. The third decal option has upper wing roundels that originally had the white painted out, but the paint is shown wearing badly on the decal sheet, as it was a well-worn machine that the instructions advise was filthy, especially on the underside. Conclusion Whilst this isn’t the newest kit on the block, it should result in a good replica with careful building and painting, taking the time to test fit and adjust fit as necessary. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  23. Aero A-12 The First Record Breakers (SH72466) 1:72 Special Hobby Between the two World Wars, Czech company Aero created several aircraft for their own country’s use, many of which were biplanes. The A-12 was a light bomber and reconnaissance aircraft that was a development from an earlier design that reached production after flight tests and subsequent alterations that gave the airframe the look that became synonymous with the type. It was used as the basis for the A.11, which despite an earlier number, was a later design. The A.11 served with the Czech Air Force solidly, where they were well-respected by their crews, and when they were finally withdrawn from front-line service, many were refitted with dual controls so that they could be used as training aircraft. Most airframes were out of service, in private hands or destroyed by the time WWII came around, and were considered too old to be used by the Germans, with just a few originals and replicas remaining today, one of which is at Kbely museum in Prague, so I might have some pictures somewhere, but still haven’t remembered to look. The A-12’s performance and reliability were factors in competitors choosing the type for air racing use, and on the 7th September 1924 at least five airframes were prepped for the 2nd Air Speed Race for the Trophy of the President of the Czechoslovak Republic. They competed in various payload categories over a circuit of 200kmh, and five world records were broken on that day, one by a competitor that didn’t finish, but his time over 100km was fast enough to break the speed record for his class and the distance covered before his engine failed. Four other A-12s broke records that day, which must have been quite good for the company. The Kit This is a new boxing of a tooling of the A-11 from Special Hobby, and the kit arrives in a small top-opening box, with three sprues of grey styrene, a small clear sprue, a bag containing a print-base of 3D parts for the radiators, instruction booklet and two separately bagged decal sheets within. Detail is good, especially the louvred engine cowlings and cockpit interior, as well as the fabric covered wooden wings, which have a subtle undulating ribbed surface moulded into them. Construction begins by making up the cockpit floor from two sections, adding a couple of detail parts on the starboard side, then fixing it and a small bulkhead to the starboard fuselage half after painting the details that are moulded into the interior of the fuselage and taking care of a few ejector-pin marks if necessary. A crib-like stowage area is made up from two parts plus an inverted A-frame, and that has a seat fixed to the front of the frame, installed just behind the cockpit floor, with another bucket seat added further forward for the pilot, and fixing the controls into the front of the cockpit. A bulkhead with rudder bar is glued at an angle to the front of the cockpit, with radio gear applied to the centre of the port fuselage half, along with a compass that has a decal applied to the top. The fuselage can be closed after adding the instrument panel with decal, and a skid is inserted into the tail at the same time. A rectangular panel line must be filled in the tail end of the fuselage, replacing it with a circular panel once the area has been made good, following the dimensions given on the scrap diagram nearby. Under the fuselage a rectangular insert with a small clear window is fitted, and two 0.8mm holes are drilled 1mm inboard of the wing root fairings, again according to a scrap diagram with measurements. One decal option requires a circular fairing to be fitted over the rear cockpit opening, then the two lower wings are fitted into slots in the fuselage, and a scrap diagram shows that there should be zero dihedral to them, as with the elevators, which are each inserted into the rear fuselage on two pins and have their separate flying surfaces glued to them, with the rudder pushed into a slot in the rear to complete the empennage. The pilot is in an open cockpit, so a tiny windscreen is added to the coaming in front of the opening, fitting two L-shaped exhausts to the top cowling and the 3D printed radiators on the cowling sides. The upper wings are moulded as a single span part, with an insert placed over the narrow centre section to achieve the thickness of the fuel tank, and the semi-circular scoop over the pilot. A pair of cabane V-struts are installed in the underside of the wing, with four more Z-struts added slightly outboard, and finally a pair of interplane struts are fixed to the outer wing bays on each side. A transparent impression of the upper wing is shown above the rest of the model to show it being installed from above, and the following two diagrams show the location of the rigging lines, which you’ll need to supply yourself, using your preferred method to complete the job, adding a wire brace to each of the wing rigging wires where they form an X from the front. A faired fuel line joins the upper wing to the fuselage near the pilot’s position, which is best inserted after the wings are joined. The model still needs its landing gear, using two V-shaped gear supports and their interlinking aerofoil clad axle that are inserted into holes in the underside, and have a choice of two styles of wheels added to the ends. The two-bladed prop has an aerodynamic spinner glued to the centre, and the axle moulded into the rear slides into the hole at the flat circular front of the nose. Markings There are five decal options on the two sheets, all of them record breakers save one third place, and all are camouflaged in a similar three colour pattern that is subtly different on closer inspection, but the individual markings and competitor numbers help to differentiate. From the box you can build one of the following: Aero A-12.36, Race #22, World Record Breaker of 250kg payload 189.765kmh over 200km track Aero A-12.24, Race #20, World Record Breaker of 250kg payload 202.13kmh over 100km track Aero A-12.unknown, Race #11, World Record Breaker of 500kg payload 202.988kmh over 200km track Aero A-12.36, Race #21, World Record Breaker of 500kg payload 196.099kmh over 200km track Aero A-12.43, Race #17, third place holder in 500kg payload category at 183.568kmh over 200km track The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas. This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film. It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain. The second decal sheet contains just two number 17 decals for the fifth markings option (E), as both underwing numbers were printed in reverse on the main sheet, although the reversing of one underwing number seems inconsistent between the competitors depicted here. Conclusion The A-12 is an interesting aircraft from Aero that was overshadowed by the A-11 and its variants, and this group of racers are rather attractive in their camouflage, their race specific decoration taking them away from the norm. The detail is good, and should appeal to a broad range of modellers, including the 3D printed radiators. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  24. Big, you say? Well okay. It's almost the biggest model in my stash, the Special Hobby Westland Whirlwind Mk.I. It's big: And it's been unstarted for too long: Did I mention that it's big? While waiting in the stash it has accumulated quite a bit of aftermarket; a set of seatbelts: Some resin wheels and cannons - I'm not that comfortable with the idea of the resin cannons which I think would be more vulnerable to breakage than the kit's plastic ones, but if they look much better I would probably go with them: ... and finally, canopy and camouflage masks. What can I say? I'm lazy and I'm prepared to pay any company that offers to indulge my laziness So I'm set. See you at the start line gents Cheers, Stew P.S. It's big
  25. Greetings to everyone once again. Re.2000 in export version for the Hungarian Air Force, the Hungarian version of the name is Heja 1. The kit from SH contains a minimum of plastic, a lot of resin parts, a photo-etch board, a decal and two vacuum canopies. All the little things are shapeless pieces of plastic, so it was easier to make the small details yourself, the resin parts are also far from being of the best quality, and even the vacuum canopies had to be bathed in futura three times before they reached a relatively acceptable quality. And only the decal did not cause any complaints But not everything is so sad, I just had to work hard. So, in a nutshell, the following has been done: the rear support niche has been sawed out and made (the SH does not have one at all), and the support itself has also been made; the keel is cut and installed at the desired angle; The landing gear struts are made entirely from scrap materials, and the wheels are from Equipage; All deflectable surfaces of the wing and tail were cut off and rearranged, thick edges were ground off, and the ribs were restored; the antenna, radio equipment under a canopy, navigation lights, exhaust pipes along with fairings were made independently; a lot of different small things were added to the fuselage, pipes, breathers, air ducts, casings, etc. The jointing was restored anew. The engine deserves a separate description. The original one, although cast in resin and quite neat, looks like a toy. I turned to Vector products. Of what Vector has in 72nd scale, the most suitable for conversion is the French Gnome-Rhone GR-14. By replacing the gearbox housing, the GR-14 became a Piaggio P.XI, although the housing had to be slightly adjusted. The hood was cut and adjusted to accommodate the installation of the engine, which also made it possible to add more scale to its edges, make the necessary air channels under the cooling louvres, etc. Push rods, high-voltage wires were added, and at the final stage, three-beam supports for attaching the engine to the hood along the perimeter and a synchronizer were added rotation of the screw. The propeller spinner was also machined independently, because The shape of the standard one from the SH set does not correspond to the drawings. The model is riveted. Acrylic painting (Tamiya and Hobby Color). *Sorry for the automatic translation
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