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Mk.I Hurricane - L1592 KW-Z No.615 Squadron, RAF Kenley, England, August 1940 Kit: Airfix 1/72 Starter Set Extras: PropBlur, EZ Line aerial cable and some scratchbuilt bits and pieces - gun-sight, struts in the radiator, etc. I also thinned the trailing edge of the wings and removed the fabric moulding behind the armament bays - this work included a small amount of re-scribing. Paints: Revell and Humbrol acrylics all applied by brush. The base was made a while back for my first 1/72 Spitfire and all I have done is add the clear perspex rod to display the Hurricane. WIP: Here This was my first build for the Hurricane Group Build and represents a number of firsts for me. It's the first time I have built a Hurricane since returning to the hobby. It's the first time I have risked doing any changes to the basics of a kit - I did some fairly serious thinning of the trailing edges of the wings, removed the fabric moulding behind the armament bays and did a bit of re-scribing - all, I have to say, following the examples and suggestions of fellow Britmodellers. It is only the second time* I have done an aircraft in flight rather than wheels down - although I have done this one as if it has just taken off - with the undercarriage partway up - again based on some examples from other modellers on here. My original intention was to display this and the other Hurricane I am building in the GB in a sort of diorama - but I think I'm going to be struggling for time to get the other one completed by the end of the GB - hence the reason why I'm posting this now. Please note in the first two photos I have removed the clear perspex rod in Photoshop. To take the photos I placed the base for the Hurricane on my Spitfire display shelf that has the sky image as a backdrop. A couple to show how it looks on the base: And finally one to show the underside: EDIT 27/04/16 - self-indulgence time - some Photoshop versions of three of the photos above: I do apologise about the number of photos!! I took many more than this and it took me a while to whittle them down to this many!! The kit just seemed to lend itself to being photographed. Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix *Edit - I had originally posted that this was my first aircraft in flight model but Giemme reminded me that it's actually my second! I'd completely forgotten my 1/72nd Typhoon build for the D-Day GB - doh! Thank you Giemme - you've got a fantastic memory!

Hello again folks, I'd like to share my newly finished Airfix P-40B in 112 Squadron markings. The kit was absolutely great to build and is on par engineering wise with Tamiya et al. A very enjoyable project, and i will be sorely tempted to get another. I didn't particularly want to do the kit finishing options of the Pearl Harbour or Flying Tigers markings so i rummaged around in my spare transfers box for the ones i eventually used. These are from an old Aeromaster set and depict the Tomahawk of Australian Ace Jack Bartle from Landing Ground 102 Egypt Oct 1941. This particular aircraft AN413 was personalised by Bartle with the name Nan below the cockpit. Unfortunately the set i have doesn't have the kangaroo he also added, and i'm not arty enough to go painting skippy on the nose! The decals themselves were a bit thick, and i knew i had no hope of getting the sharkmouth to conform to the contours of the nose so i painted my own. The whole model is brush painted in acrylics. I hope you like... IMG_2768 IMG_2767 by [url IMG_2766 IMG_2765 IMG_2763 IMG_2762 IMG_2737 IMG_2739 IMG_2746 IMG_2747 IMG_2748 Well thats plenty to be getting on with. Thanks for looking. Cheers Greg

JGSDF TYPE 10 TANK Tamiya 1/48 This kit was my project for the Britmodeller 10th Anniversary Group Build. Before starting making this kit I was not aware of this tank at all. I did a bit of checking up on the details and this is a sort of summary from various sources, including Wikipedia and Brett Green's review on missing-lynx.com: JGSDF's Type 10 is a fourth generation main battle tank designed as a replacement for the retired Type 74 and the currently serving Type 90 tanks. Work started on the Type 10 in 1996 and over 100 are currently in service. Weighing in at 44 tons, the Type 10 is six tons lighter than the Type 90 and smaller than its predecessors, but it still manages to pack a wallop thanks to its Japan Steel Works 120 mm smooth-bore cannon. The Type 10's cannon is fitted with an auto-loader which means only three crew members are needed – a Commander, driver and gunner. A coaxial machine gun is fitted, and a further external .50 cal may be fitted to the Commander’s cupola. The Type 10’s uses a nano-crystal steel and modular ceramic composite armour which has significantly improved its defensive capabilities compared to the Type 90. Power is supplied by a 1,200 hp V8 diesel engine and a continuously variable automatic transmission, delivering a top speed of 70 km/h in both directions. The Type 10 also features Hydropneumatic Active Suspension which allows it to adjust its stance and absorbs recoil when firing. The Type 10 tank is equipped with something called a C4I system (Command, Control, Communication, Computer & Intelligence). This can be incorporated into the JGSDF network to enable sharing of information among tanks, as well as connected to the infantry's outdoor computer network "Regiment Command Control System" (ReCS) to facilitate integrated military operations with the infantry troops. As usual with Tamiya 1/48 AFV kits, this was a pleasure to build. Kit: 1/48 Tamiya Kit No. 32588 Paints: Revell, Humbrol, Citadel and Railmatch acrylics all applied by paintbrush. EDIT - THERE IS A LINK IN MY SIGNATURE AT THE BOTTOM OF MY POSTS TO A VIDEO SHOWING HOW I DID SOME OF THE PAINTING ON THIS TANK Extras: Wire mesh (from a cooking spaltter guard) for inside the rear turret basket, aerials from stretched sprue and headlight guards made from scrap PE grills. WIP: Here This tank has a lot of surface detailing on the upper surfaces which I think Tamiya has captured really well: Tamiya also included a commander figure: As the light was quite nice the day before yesterday I took some photos of the Type 10 on my Spitfire display base which includes a sky background: This was my first proper larger scale modern tank build and the weathering of it was trickier than I expected. With the WW2 AFVs I usually build I feel I can usually get away with slightly heavier weathering whereas most photos of this tank online seem to show it on parade grounds or taking part in demonstrations and exercises. There are some very dusty or dirty versions but nothing really worn. I have seen a rather well worn/weathered version in a magazine but it looked like it had been in very heavy fighting for many years. So on mine I opted for some light weathering here and there. Thank you to everyone who took the time to comment in my build thread and to the hosts of the GB. Kind regards, Stix PS The poll is now open in the M3/M4 Medium Tank STGB - make sure your cast you vote!

It's going to be a while before I actually start this GB build because I've got two other GB builds on the go already - one on the way to being complete - the other hardly started. It looks like I'm going to be the obvious one who makes a Hurricane Mk.I - everyone else who has started their build threads so far seems to be going for more adventurous projects. Oh well....... This is the kit - Airfix's new tool 1/48 version: And I'm going to make it as this version: .......basically because I was lucky enough to see it at the Victory Show a couple of years back - the show takes place less than a mile from our house and the aircraft fly over us all weekend. A few photos from the airshow: If you would like to know more about the actual aircraft there is a website: www.hurricaneheritage.com I also took some close-ups of lots of the detail - which I hope will be useful and I have some video of it too - on the ground and in flight. If I get time I'm currently planning to motorise the prop and have it displayed in flight. If I think time is going to be too tight I may do it without the motor and display it on the ground - we'll see. One thing - I won't have to worry about much weathering! Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

This will be my entry for this GB: I won’t be starting it just yet as I've another GB project to finish first. I will hopefully post some photos of the contents of the box and a bit of information about the actual tank itself soon. Kind regards, Stix

Road to Berlin 2 This diorama was made for the ‘From Russia with Love’ GB. It features three Tamiya 1/48 tanks (a T-34/76, an SU122 and a KV-1) plus Zvezda’s 1/48 Yak-3. I had decided I’d do something similar to my MTO GB build where I made a diorama with three German tanks and one aircraft. My original intention was to have the aircraft flying over the three Russian tanks (similar to my MTO GB project) but when I saw Zvezda had included a rather nicely detailed engine I changed my plans and decided to have it on the ground with the covers off. This meant I had to change my original spacing on the board so I opted to make this diorama as a kind of follow-up to my Vignette GB scene. The three tanks are passing a temporary airfield which is slightly further back along the road from my original Road to Berlin Vignette. These tanks are just responding to the same situation in the fields to the south, spotted by the IS-2 crew up ahead. At the time the people on the edge of the airfield seem oblivious to what is happening on the road on the other side of the bank. The base was made to fit the frame which I got from Wilkos but I ended up doing this one in a bit of a rush to make sure I finished before the deadline for the GB and ended up simpler than intended and with a few compromises. The base for the scene is made from 4mm MDF covered with a layer of Polyfiller which I painted with thinned Humbrol Dark Earth. Over this I used Woodland Scenics Blended turf and a variety of tufted grasses from Army Painter. The trees are also from Woodlands Scenics. The figures around the aircraft are from ICM and the figures in the tank scene are all from Tamiya. WIP for the whole project: Here Yak-3 RFI: Here 3 tanks RFI: Here Finally - a big thank you must go to Peter (Basilisk), the hard working GB host, who supported us all throughout - and everyone who took the time to comment or offer advice in my GB thread. Kind regards, Stix

For the first half of the Second World War the Panzer III Medium Tank was the main German battle tank and only started to lose that reputation after the appearance of the Panzer IV Ausf F2 in March 1942. Until then the Panzer III had been the only German designed tank armed with a gun designed to penetrate enemy armour. The Ausf L version was in production from June to December 1942, with a total of 653 vehicles being manufactured. It was in production while attempts were being made to fit a 7.5cm gun to the Panzer III were under way. The L version was armed with the 5cm KwK39 L/60, although that gun was proving to be increasingly ineffective against thicker Soviet tank armour. The Ausf L was given 20mm spaced armour on the superstructure front and mantlet, and thicker frontal turret armour. This was the first 1/35 Dragon kit I have made and, I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed the build. This was also the first kit I have attempted a whitewash finish on. Up until this project I have avoided any AFV builds that required this. The Dragon instructions suggest a worn whitewash appearance for this vehicle so that is what I have attempted. As I don’t have or use an airbrush I had to work out the worn areas as I applied the whitewash. I have included a photo of the brushes I used for applying the whitewash and weathering at the end of the photos. Kit: 1/35 Dragon - Kit no. 6387 Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Citadel, Railmatch acrylics all applied with brushes Finishes: Vallejo Snow and Mig European Mud applied by cocktail stick Figures: MiniArt Extras: Tamiya Jerry Cans and lead wire for cables WIP thread: Here As usual I need to apologise in advance for the number of photos - there are a lot!: Some closer views: And with the MiniArt figures: The stippling and fine paintbrush I used to apply the whitewash and weathering: Well, as I mentioned above, I thoroughly enjoyed this project and intend to make a small scenic base at some point – probably after the Sherman STGB. I want to thank everyone who provided assistance, support and encouragement in my WIP thread – as always it wouldn’t have turned out like this without everyone’s comments and suggestions. Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

This is going to be my next project for when I'm not at home and have odd bits of time when I can do some kit building. It is a follow up to my Airfix 1/76 Tiger 1 build which can be found here: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/234971585-airfix-176-tiger-i-yeah-that-old-one-upgraded-a-bit-update-071214/ I didn't have all my usual stuff available for the Tiger build and it's the same with this one, so I have to keep it simple. As soon as I'd finished the Tiger I knew I couldn't not build another tank and decided that, following making three German tanks, I ought to do something British and opted to do another 1/76 kit from Airfix; the new(ish) Cromwell IV: I had already read Paul AH's review of this kit http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/78263-cromwell-iv-tank/?hl=cromwell and so I had a little foreknowledge of what to expect, but I was still rather pleased with what I found when I opened the box. You have to understand that I am relatively new to tank kit building and know next to nothing about the kits that are available. Anyway this is what I found inside the attractive box - 2 sprues of light grey plastic: The detail seems to me to be rather nice: The tracks - which aren't rubber bands!: I'm especially pleased with these after the rather woeful tracks that came with the Airfix Tiger. I think there has been a mixed reaction to these tracks but I will give them the benefit of the doubt for now. I think they may be okay once painted and weathered. And it's good they arrive pre-sagged! Nicely detailed wheels: Decals for the two versions: Sample of the instruction sheet: And finally a separate painting guide: All-in-all a rather nice kit for £6.99 from a local toy shop. I'm going to make a version without the hedge cutter and probably without the deep wading gear. I will see about the latter later. I have made a start but I will do separate post for the bit I have done. Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

My modelling year has been spent in GBs and, although I've had a great time, I have missed just being able to take my time with a build. I have plans to do a few more builds outside GBs next year so we'll see what happens! First completion of the year was a 1/48 Tamiya kit built in the Made in Britain GB: Crusader Mk.III / British Cruiser Tank Mk.VI T126799 - 6th Armoured Division - Tunisa Kit: 1/48 Tamiya Paints: Humbrol and Revell - all applied by brush. The tank is built OOB but I have added some stowage items WIP: Here RFI: Here The next kit to be finished was another 1/48 Tamiya kit but this time in the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt GB: Republic P-47D Thunderbolt - WZ-P - No.226551 As flown by Lt.Col. Benjamin Mayo, 84th FS, 78th FG, Duxford Air Base, 1944 Kit: 1/48 Tamiya "Bubbletop" Paints: Citadel, Humbrol and Revel - all applied by brush. Built mostly OOB apart from a few bits of scratch-built plastic and wire in the cockpit and wheel wells. Work In Progress: Here Ready For Inspection: Here The Hawker Hurricane STGB was next and this was my chance to build the 1/72 new tool Airfix kit: Mk.I Hurricane - L1592 KW-Z No.615 Squadron, RAF Kenley, England, August 1940 Kit: Airfix 1/72 Starter Set Extras: PropBlur, EZ Line aerial cable and some scratchbuilt bits and pieces - gun-sight, struts in the radiator, etc. I also thinned the trailing edge of the wings and removed the fabric moulding behind the armament bays - this work included a small amount of re-scribing. Paints: Revell and Humbrol acrylics all applied by brush. The base was made a while back for my first 1/72 Spitfire and all I have done is add the clear perspex rod to display the Hurricane. WIP: Here More photos: Here The Starter Set GB was next and my entry was: Airfix's 1/76 Cromwell Mk.IV WIP: Here The Spitfire Tribute GB for Edgar Brookes was next and I decided to build Tamiya's 1/72 Mk.Vb: Mk.Vb Supermarine Spitfire EN821 from No. 243 Squadron, Fighter Command Kit: 1/72 Tamiya (No.56) Extras: Eduard Photo-etch Zoom Set SS213 and EZ LIne Paints: Humbrol, Revell and Citadel acrylics all applied by brush WIP: Here RFI: Here The Great Patriotic War GB started in May and I decided to build two IS-2s - Tamiya's 1/48 version: Russian Heavy Tank IS-2 - Model 1944 ChKZ 88th Independent Guards Heavy Tank Regiment - April 1945 Kit: 1/48 Tamiya Extras: Hauler Photo-etch HLX48324 and stowage from a Tamiya Jerry Can set Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Railmatch and Citadel acrylics - all applied by brush WIP: Here RFI: Here .........and the 1/72 Italeri version - which was a gift from Sgt.Squarehead: Russian Heavy Tank IS-2 1943 Version Unknown unit - Berlin - April 1945 Kit: 1/72 Italeri Extras: Tow cable produced from 0.2mm Lead wire and stowage from a variety of other 1/72 figures sets. Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Railmatch and Citadel acrylics - all applied by brush WIP: Here RFI: Here Then in the Vignette GB I made a base for the Tamiya 1/48 JS-2: "Road to Berlin" - 1/48 Tamiya IS-2 Kit: Tamiya 1/48 IS-2 (built for the Great Patriotic War GB). WIP: Here. RFI: Here. Figures: Tamiya and ICM Base: 4mm MDF mounted in a Wilkos 7in x 5in picture frame Scenery: Filler over expanded polystyrene, painted with Humbrol Dark earth and then a variety of turf scatters, grass tufts and trees from Woodlands Scenics, Greenscene, etc. applied. The fencing was wooden coffee stirrers mounted on square strips of softwood and the road sign was created in Photoshop. The Vignette: One of the IS-2s in the Russian tank column, en route to Berlin, is passing the female army traffic controller who has just given permission to proceed. Just at that second there's an alert that there's possibly German troops/armour in the fields/forest to the south. Some of the IS-2 troops/crew are more alert than others and instantly spring into action - the others are getting there more slowly as the tank commander smiles as he brings his large gun around ready for firing. More photos here. Next, in August, I completed my first Fw.190 in the STGB of the same name: FW190 A-8 'Brown 6' WNr 175140, JG26, Melsbroek, Belgium, July 1944 Kit: 1/72 Airfix Starter Set Extras: Tamiya tape seatbelts and EZ-Line aerial wire Paints: Humbrol, Revell and Citadel acrylics all applied by brush WIP: Here RFI: Here Also in August I spent one frantic weekend building this Tiger 1 in the Blitzbuild GB: German Heavy Tank - Tiger 1 (Early Production) No.931 - 3rd Panzergrenadier Division - Totenkopf - Kursk, July 1943 Kit: 1/72 Zvezda - OOB Paints: Humbrol, Revell and Citadel - all applied by brush Build time: approximately 19 hours WIP: Here My four final builds of the year have been in the MTO GB which is, as of posting this thread, is still ongoing. My first completion for this GB was: Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.L No.1 10th Panzer Division 1943 - Tunisia Kit: 1/48 Tamiya Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf.L Paints: Humbrol, Revell and Citadel all applied by brush Extras: Stretched sprue aerial and Tamiya stowage items from the Jerry Can set. The rope for the stowage was made from some of Mrs PlaStix's thread. WIP: Here RFI: Here Next completion in the MTO GB was: Panzerkampfwagen VI, Tiger I (E), SdKfz 181 No.131 in Tunisia Kit: 1/48 AFV Club Tiger 1 Ausf.E Early Version Paints: Humbrol, Revell and Citadel all applied by brush Extras: Skybow Tiger 1 tracks, plus wire and plastic strip for the grab handle and step that were a feature on the front of the hull WIP: Here RFI: Here The next two are just about finished but I haven't taken any RFI photos yet. First off is another Tiger 1 - this is the 1/48 Tamiya Initial Production kit: Tiger 1, No.731, 'Norbert' This model below will probably be my last completion for the year although I intend to make a base for these 4 which I hope will be done in the next week. I will add some pictures in this thread when it is finished. The final one is this one: Fw 190 A-4 of II./JG 2 Flown by Hauptmann Dickfeld, Tunisia with working propeller The diorama for the above models is now complete and the full set of photos of it can be found in the Diorama section Here. Here are four photos as a sample: Well I have completed 14 projects this year - that's the most I have ever managed - more than one a month!!! All my kits this year have been brush painted and I thoroughly enjoyed making all of them. I have had fantastic advice, encouragement and support from loads of people on Britmodeller who, I believe, make a great deal of difference to my modelling - so thank you to everyone who has taken the time to comment in my threads. I have already got some ideas of the kits I want to make next year and I'm looking forward to taking part in some more GBs - possibly not quite as many though! Comments and Suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

For my next project I have decided to do something outside a GB again. Last year, I realised, every build I had done had been done as part of a GB and so I promised myself I would do more kits outsdie GBs this year. This will only be my second but, I started the year with a non-GB project and I'm going to end the year in the same way. Having recently built two Shermans in GBs (Meng's Toon Sherman in the Blitzbuild GB and Dragon's 1/72nd M4A1(76)W VVSS in the Radial Engines Rock GB) I was initially thinking of making another Sherman in the same GB. I then realised the M3/M4 GB starts at the end of this year and felt I might get Shermaned out. I thoroughly enjoyed building Dragon's 1/72nd Sherman so thought I could risk trying my first 1/35 Dragon kit. Having looked at the few I have in the stash I opted for a smaller project first: I got it a while back in Ian Allen's Bookshop in Brum and, having looked at the contents, I reckon it was a bit of a bargain: I know it sometimes retails around the £40 mark but still........ Back of the box: and the sides: All of the versions this kit builds in to appear to have a worn whitewash finish so this will also be a first for me. So, as usual, I'll start with some photos of the contents: Sample of the instructions: The plastic - and there's a lot - although if you check out the first instruction page above you can see stuff not used in the blue blocks: and 2x these: Lower hull: Turret: Tracks - these are the Magic Tracks but there are two ejection marks on each piece - which is a bit annoying: Photoetch and decals: Clear parts: Some closeups of some details on the lower hull: Over the weekend I had a lovely time assembling parts onto the lower hull: Including the first couple of pieces of PE: Fit has been mostly very good although the instructions leave a little to the imagination. Some of the diagrams do not show the whole picture which results in a bit of guesswork here and there. I have been using Brian Krueger's review from IPMS/USA to help me as he has lots of very useful suggestions of what to look out for during the making of this kit. There are some seam lines to remove on some parts but no flash so far. Speaking of seam lines - I also started work on the running gear wheels - all of which require the seam lines removing from the centre of the tyres. More next weekend when I will hopefully be getting the painting started. Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

The three tanks below were built for the 'From Russia with Love' GB. As there are a lot of photos of each I will post them in three separate posts in this thread. All three tanks on the diorama: Russian Tank T-34/76 Model 1941 (Cast turret) This first tank here is Tamiya's 1/48 T-34/76 Model 1941 with the cast turret. When first encountered on the battlefield the T-34s were described by German Tank General Von Kleist as 'the finest tank in the world'. It was, at the time, far better than contemporary German tanks. It was as a result of these tanks that the Germans developed the Panther and Tiger tanks and it was only as the war went on that the T-34 variants lost their superiority. The T-34 was fitted with 76.2mm gun which was also pretty impressive at the time. Another thing to note was the fact that the cast turret had several handrails which could be used by Russian soldiers who were transported on these tanks - this was one of the first tanks to be used in this way. The T-34 and its variants went on to be one of the most produced tanks of all time and a few are still in use today in some countries. As with most of Tamiya's 1/48 armour it was a real pleasure to build. Kit: Tamiya 1/48 T-34/76 Model 1941 (Cast turret) Extras: Stretched sprue aerial (although I hadn't fitted it when I took the photos below) Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Citadel and Railmatch acrylics all applied by brush WIP for the whole project: Here Diorama photos: Here Yak-3 RFI: Here SU122 and KV-1 below

Over in the GB section, as part of the De Havilland Mega GB, I built Tamiya's 1/72 De Havilland Mosquito FB Mk.VI. I decided to make it as if it were in flight so I purchased a couple of motors so it could have working propellers. Because it would need a base to house the batteries and switches I decided to use a small Wilkos picture frame on which I decided to create a small scene. I decided to use Zvezda's Snap-fit German Howitzer kit as the focal point of the base and the result can be seen below. Aircraft Kit: 1/72 Tamiya De Havilland Mosquito FB Mk.VI/NF Mk.II Howitzer Kit and figures: 1/72 Zvezda Snap-fit German Howitzer Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Citadel and Railmatch Acrylics - all applied by brush Base: Wilko's picture frame A lot of photos of the Mosquito can be found here The WIP for the whole project can be found here A rather shaky YouTube video of the scene can be found here The whole scene: The Howitzer and crew on the base: And finally a few from low down to try to give an impression of the aircraft flying overhead:

Dragon M4A1(76)W VVSS 2nd Armoured Regiment - Polish 1st Armoured Division - Holland 1944 This was my entry in the Radial Engines Rock GB. It followed hot on the heels of my Toon Sherman in the Blitzbuild GB It was actually a really enjoyable build and I reckon the details are really nice for this scale. The M4 Sherman was the most numerous medium tank used by the United States and some of the other Western Allies in World War II. It was found to be generally reliable, relatively cheap to produce and available in great numbers. Thousands were distributed through the Lend-Lease program to the British Commonwealth and Soviet Union. It was named after the American Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman. The M4A1(76)W VVSS Sherman was fitted with the Continental Wright R975 Whirlwind 9 cylinder radial gasoline engine. The WIP can be found here. Some on my Spitfire display shelf with grass matting: Finally I made a bit of a display base using a small picture frame from Wilkos as a starting point: And then, surprise, surprise - I took some more photos of it on this base: And did I mention that the model is quite small? It's the 1/72nd Dragon Kit: And finally - one with the Toon Sherman: Thank you to the host of the GB and everyone who took the time to comment in my thread. As usual I will post some black and white images when I get chance. Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

Yak-3 White 6 Lieutenant Marcel Albert, 1st FAR “Normandie Niemen”, 303rd FAD, Autumn 1944/Spring 1945 It’s been a few months since I have built an aircraft model but, for the ‘From Russia with Love’ GB, I decided I’d do something similar to my MTO GB build where I made a diorama with three German tanks and one aircraft. My original intention was to have the aircraft flying over the three Russian tanks (similar to my MTO GB project) but when I saw Zvezda had included a rather nicely detailed engine I changed my plans and decided to have it on the ground with the covers off. It was a lovely kit to build and apart from when I had a bit of an issue with how I had painted the camo colours it was one of my most pleasurable builds to date. The Yak-3 is a great looking aircraft which was developed from a Yak-1M airframe and had a strong resemblance to its forerunners. The Yak-3 was superior to the Yak-1 – it was lighter and with smaller wings, powered by a Klimov VK-105PF engine - it was much faster and more agile. It was also better than most of its German opponents – especially at low altitudes where most aerial combat in the east took place – and during the last ten months of the war Yak-3s played a key role in defeating the Luftwaffe. Just under 5,000 Yak-3s were produced between late 1943 and early 1946. “White 6” (as I have built this model as) was flown by Lieutenant Marcel Albert, 1st FAR “Normandie Niemen”, 303rd FAD between Autumn 1944 and Spring 1945. Yak-3, “White 6” carried a white arrow/lightning bolt on either side of the fuselage and had a tri-colour spinner. Kit: 1/48 Zvezda Yak-3 Extras: Tamiya seat belts and EZline aerial wire Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Citadel and Railmatch Acrylics - all applied by brush WIP: Here Tank RFI: Here Diorama photos: Here As I mentioned above - this Yak-3 was made for a diorama - so here are a few pictures of it in place - more photos of the scene can be found here Finally - a big thank you must go to Peter (Basilisk), the hard working GB host, who supported us all throughout - and everyone who took the time to comment or offer advice in my GB thread. Kind regards, Stix

It will actually be a while before I start this project but this is the kit I have been planning to build for this GB since April 2015, when I signed up for it: As most will already know the M4 Sherman was the most numerous medium tank used by the United States and some of the other Western Allies in World War II. It was found to be generally reliable, relatively cheap to produce and available in great numbers. Thousands were distributed through the Lend-Lease program to the British Commonwealth and Soviet Union. It was named after the American Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherman. The actual M4A1(76)W, which is the Sherman Tank this Dragon kit is based on, had a Continental Wright R975 Whirlwind 9 cylinder radial gasoline engine which obviously makes it suitable for this GB. When I get chance I will take some photos of the contents of the box. Once I have completed my builds in the 'From Russia with Love' and 'Made in Britain II' GBs I will make a start on this one. Kind regards, Stix

Well it's been great fun down in the Blitzbuild GB! If you haven't taken a look yet make sure you do - or, if you've got a spare 24 hours free before midnight on Monday evening, build something of your own! I chose to build Meng's Sherman and what a great kit to build. I think it took me about 18 or so hours of actual build time from start to finish. Because I needed to make it in a limited amount of time I opted to use Humbrol's rattlecan matt Olive Drab for the main painting but everything else is applied with by brush and it's all OOB. WIP: Here Start time: ......and finished time: The photos: Some on my Spitfire display shelf: Thank you to Enzo Matrix for organising the GB and everyone who took the time to comment in my WIP thread. Roll on the next Blitzbuild GB! Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

This was the fourth kit I made for the MTO GB - the first 3 being German tanks. It forms the final part of a small diorama called 'Kampfgruppe Tunesien'. This was only my second Fw190 kit build and I decided I wanted to make it because I had thoroughly enjoyed building the (slightly tricky) Airfix 1/72 new tool kit and came to appreciate what a great looking aircraft it is. I used Tamiya's A3 Fw190 kit and slightly modified it to represent Fw190 A4 ’Black Double Chevron' as flown by Hauptmann Adolf Dickfeld in Tunisia. As I wanted to use it 'in flight' I had to find a way to get the propeller to work so I used an Airfix prop motor. Kit: 1/48 Tamiya Fw190 A3 (converted to an A4 ) Paints: Humbrol, Revell and Citadel all applied by brush Extras: Aerial cable from EZ-line plus an Airfix propeller motor. WIP: Here Diorama RFI: Here Edit: 04/01/17 - New Photoshopped image added: Some photos - the first few were taken before it had been fitted onto the diorama base and were shot against one of my desert backdrops: Now some photos of it once it had been fitted onto the diorama base. The idea is that it has just taken off and is flying low over a group of tanks on the ground - I have used Woodlands Scenics palm trees to try and disguise the metal support tube: For some of the wider shots the sandy background wasn't big enough so Mrs PlaStix suggested using a blue sheet as a backdrop which works okay: And now one (for now) of the Fw190 over the diorama base: This is a video to show the propeller working - it was filmed before I had finished the build: I'll post a couple more from the diorama once I have them organised and then, when I have posted the photos of the full diorama in the Diorama section, I will post a link here. I thoroughly enjoyed building this aircraft and thanks must go to all the Britmodeller members who offered advice and support throughout my project. It was a great GB to take part in and, if you haven't checked it out out I would recommend a quick look! Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix Edit 04/01/17 - as mentioned above - some extra photos with some Photoshopping:

Well, here is my latest completion the 1/48 Spitfire Vb from Airfix. Its the most recent tooling, and when completed is a good looking Spitfire. The build was not as easy as i expected however and i fell foul of the precise engineering of the kit when closing up the fuselage, which led to problems fitting the cowling section in front of the canopy. Much teeth grinding and sanding ensued before i achieved fit of sorts. I have to say i was a bit disheartened by this what with it being new Airfix, but heyho its done. The undercarriage is a bit over complicated and weak for me so i will have to be careful when moving the model around. Markings are from Sky Decals and represent Squadron Leader Geoffrey Northcott's machine from 402 Canadian Squadron. EP120 still flys today and was retsored to flying condition around 1980 after a stint as a gate guardian. Many of the LF (clipped wing) Spitfires were converted standard Vb's and led to them being referred to as the clipped, cropped, and clapped Spitty (some being repaired war weary examples). Here, hopefully, are the pics. Thanks for looking, Greg. IMG_2522 by G DSC, on Flickr IMG_2521 by G DSC, on Flickr IMG_2520 by G DSC, on Flickr IMG_2519 by G DSC, on Flickr IMG_2523 by G DSC, on Flickr IMG_2524 by G DSC, on Flickr

Here's my 1/72 Trumpeter MiG-31 for the From Russia With Love GB. You can find the build thread here. First off, I know, I know, there are a couple of horrific seams! This build was completed as I was in the final months of my PhD, so for me it was something to take my mind of the thesis and help me relax. It was also a chance to test out @HATAKA OFFICIAL paints and some new oil based weathering techniques. Probably not the best way to kick off my first RFI, but I thought I would get the excuses out of the way early Anyway, to the build itself. I was impressed with the fit and how the kit went together with the one exception of the intakes. Struggled to get the seam sorted out, and in the end I decided not to go too far and lose too much detail. Painting went very well, brush painted @HATAKA OFFICIAL Red Line paints and was very pleased with the finish. I tried out some oil paints for the weathering and was satisfied with the outcome. For me, it looks like a MiG-31 and that's what matters! With any luck this will be one of my final brush painted kits! Sorry for the terrible pictures, but hope you enjoy nonetheless!

North American Mustang IV No.112 Sqadron, Italy, 1945 This kit was built in just over a week - I started it on December 25th and finished it yesterday, 2nd January. In my head I thought it would only take a couple of days but I was enjoying the build so much that I decided to put a little more time into it. This is Airfix's Starter Set version and, as I have said before, I don't think most of Airfix's Starter sets are suitable as starter sets - not for real beginners anyway. There are a couple of tricky bits during construction and some of the smaller parts are so fragile they break while being removed from the sprues despite a great deal of care being taken. It is mostly OOB (apart from the bits which broke and some Tamiya Tape seat-belts)) although I did paint it in the 'Firewall' camouflage pattern that the original aircraft was painted in. Kit: 1/72 Airfix Starter Set Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Citadel and Railmatch all applied by brush Extras: Tamiya tape seat-belts, styrene for the control column and aerial WIP: Here Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

I built this small scene for the 70s NATO vs Warsaw Pact GB. I originally started with Modelcollect's 1/72nd T-64 MBT Mod 1972 kit - which is beautifully detailed and a joy to build. (If you decide to build one please be aware that the instructions are a bit wrong in places - I have detailed the problems with the instructions in my WIP thread). With the kit almost complete I realised that it would look good in a small vignette - in a scene similar to that shown in the box art for the kit. I also have a photo of an actual T-64 Mod 1972 in a similar location. There are no soldiers in the art work or photo. I think figures often bring a model to life and I was then lucky enough to find some suitable figures in a model shop in Birmingham a few weeks ago. The base is 4mm MDF with the surface built up with filler. Over this I applied various brands of turf, bushes and tufts and finished it off with two Woodlands Scenics trees that I had left over from a previous project. Kit: 1/72 T-64 MBT Mod 1972 by Modellcollect Figures: 1/72 Italeri (the tank figure was from a different set/manufacturer - I'm not sure which at the moment - I will try and find out when I get chance) Trees: Woodlands Scenics Turf, bushes and tufts: mix of Woodland Scenics, Greenscene and Army Painter Paints: Humbrol, Revell, Citadel and Railmatch - all applied by brush WIP: Here Tank RFI: Here The scene depicts some Soviet soldiers and a T-64 waiting and watching somewhere near a border in Eastern Europe. Please remember the tank and figures are all 1/72 and I have taken the photos fairly close up to them! Edit - 15/03/17 - These photos were taken over last weekend in daylight. The previous photos, which I took under electric light, are below these. I do actually like the appearance/light quality of the original photos - they have the appearance of the scene being set in the evening - which it was! New photos - on a white background: .....and some on my Spitfire display shelf: Below are the original photos I took one evening when I had just finished adding the figures so the light is just the electric light in the room. I have now added the photos above which were taken in daylight. Plus a three in black and white: Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

This GB wasn't originally on my radar until I happened to see this, what looks to be a rather nice, kit from Modelcollect: It comes with a metal barrel in the box and link & length tracks rather than band type tracks that the original release came with. The band tracks were criticised as a bit of a weakness by reviewers early on so the manufacturer may have changed them as a result. I will be making it alongside my current Tamiya Panther build so progress might be a bit slow. I will get some sprue photos taken when I get chance. I will be doing it as one of the T64s in East Germany in the mid/late 70s. Kind regards, Stix

The A27M Mk.IV was the first major production version of the Crowell and had the latest Meteor engine. Over 1,935 of these were produced with several hulls types and the new 6-pdr re-chambered as a 75 mm (2.95 in) Q.F.Mk.V/VA gun. It was the most common version of the Cromwell. The Cromwells were developed from the start of WWII and first saw action during the Normandy campaign, although it didn't reach it's full potential until fighting reached open countryside where it's superior speed and agility came to the fore - here it made great advances in pursuit of the enemy across France, Belgium and Holland. It was a fairly reliable tank which could reach speeds of over 65mph. The main gun was a duel purpose affair which was able to destroy anti-tank guns at long range or penetrate the frontal armour on a Panzer IV at normal battle range. More information about the Cromwells can be found here. For this project I'm going to use Tamiya's 1/48 kit: I'm going to try and enhance it a bit using this Hauler PE set: And, if I get the time, I may also make use of some of these: I won't be making a start on this for quite a while though as I'm currently building three Russian tanks in the 'From Russia with Love' GB. Can't wait to get started on it! Comments and suggestions welcome. Kind regards, Stix

Ancient kit I picked up on the cheap at Edinburgh show last year just as something to play with. Finished ages ago just never got around to taking some pictures. Thanks for looking.

I always loved the Mosquito ever since seeing the film '633 Squadron' as a youngster. Oddly I don't think I've ever made a model of one - so this will be a first. For this project I will be making Tamiya's 1/72 FB Mk.VI as MM417, EG-T from No. 487 Squadron RNZAF, based at Hunsdon, Hertfordshire in February/March 1944. © IWM (CH 12415) © IWM (CH 12412) The above photos are available to be shared and re-used under the terms of the Imperial War Museum's Non Commercial Licence. According to 'Mosquito Aces of WW2' by Andrew Thomas; On the 26th March 1944, MM417 EG-T flew it's last mission when it led the attack on coastal defence emplacements which were under construction at Les Hayes and was hit by flak during the mission. Wing Commander I S Smith was forced to crash land back at Hunsdon. The crew survived but the aircraft was wrecked. Many people here on Britmodeller will already be aware of this kit: I'm also going to use a bit of photo-etch from Eduard: It's not nearly as nicely detailed as current Eduard sets but it will add something to the cockpit area: I won't be starting this for a while as I've got other projects on the go. I will get it washed in warm soapy water in the near future so I will post some sprue photos at the same time. Kind regards, Stix