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Well, this is me popping my GB cherry! The title of this GB immediately took me to the late 80s and the fall of the Berlin Wall: giving my 18 year old self hope for a brighter future. If I remember correctly, it was a classic car show at the Oulton Park Circuit - I'm guessing in 1990 - where I first saw a Trabant and, to be honest, I haven't seen many more since. The kit I've chosen is the 1:24 scale Revell offering in 'Builders' Choice' guise but, ironically, I'll be ditching all the doves, peace signs and related text This is actually a pretty comprehensive kit, straight out of the box, with opening bonnet and boot and even seat belts! Even so, I can't just build it straight. So I'm going for a car whose owner made it past the wall and to either Spain or Belgium (not sure which yet: I like the Belgian reg plate better, but Spain makes more sense because I'll be ditching all the cold start/heating guff in the engine bay) and was inducted into the local modding scene. Initially, I'd considered doing a Mazda 13B rotary swap because, from what I understand, the 601 was supposed to be a rotary when it was launched but the engine development stalled. On closer inspection, this would be a massive undertaking, so I decided to tune what I have! I'll warn you now, it's going to be obnoxious! My plan is to lower it 4-5 inches with, maybe, -3º front and -5º rear camber on banded original wheels with a very stretched tyre, and the wheels will be wider front than rear, 'cos the rears don't really do anything. It's also going to get a turbo! This will sit where all the heater gubbins currently lives and my plan is an induction trumpet poking out of the leading edge of the bonnet and the exhaust exiting through a 'hater pipe' about two thirds of the way up. Basically straight into the driver's line of sight. I'm thinking I'll cut the grille out and use mesh, so you can see the intercooler sat behind it. Here's a photo of what's in the box along with a spare Sparco seat and steering wheel (left over from my MX5 build), a ZoomOn harness in black for the driver and the paint scheme: ProScale Dodge Ivory with a blue roof - like the estate that was in IWM North (and may still be?) The Ford Engine Blue is way too dark, but it was a by product of trying to find a suitable representation of Mazda Mariner Blue for the MX5, so I'll lighten it with a bit of the Ivory or some such. First thing I need to do is fire up Fusion360 and start modelling a turbo, induction trumpet, exhaust manifold, hater pipe, intercooler and plumbing and some blanking plates to fill holes in the engine cooling shroud left by the removal of the original induction and exhaust. Also some wheels and tyres and a lowering/camber system (design to be confirmed). Looking at that photo, I hope that seat will fit! Excited for my first GB! Thanks for looking Martin

Even though I mainly make things with propellers, I actually signed-up to this Group Build because I have more Starfighters than I ought to have. Anyway, I'm going to assemble this one: It's the Revell kit and i believe is has an issue with the front canopy shape (which I am going to ignore). I'm going to do it as one of the 435th TFS planes based at Udorn, Thailand from June 1966. As they were used for CAS missions (as well as CAP), I'll dig some M117s out of the 'things that go bang' box and hang them under the wings. I'll probably start this after finishing the F-16B I'm currently making a mess of in that Group Build. In the meantime, here's an interesting piece about the F-104s use in South East Asia: https://www.i-f-s.nl/vietnam/

With the 206 build hitting a problem with the decals I decided I'd try crack on with something else. All the parts seem to come neatly inside one big plastic bag, containing sub-bags... Instructions are usual modern Revell affair, lots of decal choices, 66, 67, 68, or 69... I maybe nearly 50 but I'm still childish so you can probably guess which variant I'll do! Interestingly the body is formed of 2 parts, luckily that does make painting easier (the rear part is red, the front section white and blue, though has a couple of small red bits to mask and paint. Also the windows come with pre-painted surrounds (I'm not sure I've ever seen that before) and there are some clear red parts for the tail lights. The lower shell is a fairly flat single piece for the underbody aero - the vertical strakes on the rear diffuser look a bit out of scale. Overall the kit seems nicely moulded (not much if any flash) though the detail does look rather soft. I decided to cut out the air intakes on the front, though I didn't do the neatest of jobs. I also drilled out the side exit exhausts ports. After a days work I had separated and build whatever sub-assemblies I could to aid painting and mounted lots of parts on temporary sprue handles to aid airbrushing. The wheels and tyres look pretty similar but there are separate front and rears (I think the rears are marginally wider) so the wheels I marked with sharpie and added some masking tape over the marks so I can later see which are which if I remove them from the sprue. Ready for primer. The instructions call for lots of mixes of black, grey and silver for the internal parts in various ratios. For now I'm going to prime the shell in white and everything else in black/dark grey (will just add the black to the airbrush without flushing it fully).

Good evening all, I've been given the go ahead to release images of my most recent completion which is Revell's new 32nd Sea Hurricane Mk.IIC! The kit is comprised mostly of the existing tooling of the standard Hurricane Mk.IIB, however, it now utilises a new set of wings to add the canon armament! The scheme shown is one of three choices in the box, with the other two (really nice schemes!!!) to be announced soon. It was a privilege to build this for Revell again and is now in Luke's safe hands to be photographed for the back of the box! I kept the build clean with a small amount of exhaust and gun stains to roughly simulate a few sorties, she was finished in Hataka Orange Line paints. Sea Hurricane Mk.IIC, NF699, "Libby". More to come soon here --> https://www.facebook.com/jamesbuildsandmore

Afternoon all, Latest completion from me - Revell’s 1/144th scale Boeing 747-400 with DrawDecal’s British Airways decals. It’s been built out of the box, other than my usual mod to these kits in adding some height on the cockpit crown area with some Milliput to correct the profile. Although it’s getting a little long in the tooth now, the kit still builds reasonably well once excess flash is removed! I was really sad when BA retired the 747 - not only is it one of my favourite commercial aircraft but I’d flown on them more than any other type and thought I’d do my own little tribute to ‘The Queen of the Skies’. The real thing was my last 747 flight when she brought me back from Australia once… the ‘Kangaroo Route’ is now 777 or 787 and it’s not quite the same. Long live the Queen! All the best, Tom

Hello, this WIP is about a Catalina. I got a 1/48 donated for a rebuild. I will turn it in a Dutch Catalina of no 321 Squadron Royal Netherlands Naval service serial Y-45 in Rose Bay, Australia. The kit was in parts, badly torn apart with a lot of broken parts. What I can see is that it's almost complete I think. It was originally painted in a British camouflage of sea green and dark sea gray over sky. I have put it in oven cleaner and let that work for 2 days. This is for now the result; As you can see the top side of the wing is already partially painted in Pru Blu Humbrol 230. I couldn't resist testing the paint since it's an old can.. I got the Dutch Decal sheet with this Catalina included. I will keep you posted!

I've recently mentioned this in the Modelling and purchase plans/wishes for 2025 thread. It's a kit I bought for my dad to build in the hope that it would be good at a larger scale. The reality was, it was just too complex and fiddly and in the end he barely got started on it. He died in November and my mum mentioned that it was still sat at the box, so I decided I'd finish it off for him. Here's what we have... Here's what was in the box... And here's what has been started and the tools that have been used What I always look for in a sprue cutter is the ability to also cut carpet My dad was an extremely practical and resourceful man who had pretty much every tool you could possibly need. So I feel like my mum may have had a hand in this particular decision. As for the build... If it was just my build, I'd be thinking of something like James Rudland’s Outlaw Racers Porsche 356 Coupé but, even in his younger days, this would have been too 'form over function' for my Dad. In terms of real cars, he'd lower them and fit wider wheels to improve handling more than looks. So, really, I think I'm going to build it OOB (maybe a smidge lower 🤔) with a couple of nods to my dad. One will be the registration plate that belonged to his Mini and the other will be a dark blue (in my case Porsche Manaus Blue) similar to the colour of the kit car he built. The next step is to try and dismantle what has been built and paint it. Thanks for looking Martin

Its been a little while since I have done a GB...the autumn was manic at work...but as with every New Year I have resolved to join more GBs and get my productivity up. Its not that I haven't done any modelling. I was inspired over Christmas by some of our colleagues in the maritime section and am current bogged down in PE like this: I have never been too confident with PE so this is a bit of a learning curve. Anyway I need something a little less eye straining so though I might join this GB (if I may) with this: I turned 50 a couple of years ago. One of my neighbours is a figure painter (as am I) and we had discussed model building. He clearly had been chatting in the street as for my birthday I had a range of model gifts. They were all gratefully received but many, such as this, were not my usual modelling fare. Anyway when it came to this GB I went searching through the stash (another resolution is not to buy more model...failed already on another count) and found this. Mods I hope this qualifies? It has a pretty low part count for a decent sized model which bodes well. I may make a base for it to go on. Lets see. The paintbrush and paints are going in the bin. The glue is always useful but wont replace my Tamiya extra thin for most jobs. Here are the sprues: There are two sets of the last set of sprues. Thank you for looking and as always all comments appreciated. Cheers Dave

Anybody else bought this? I just received mine which I'd bought mainly on the promise of the Daco designed decal sheet, I've got several other decals designed by them for the 146 and they all include silver metallic decals for the leading edges, ailerons and elevators - I was rather disappointed to find that although they're shown in silver metallic on the Revell promotional shots and decals for these are on the sheet, they're printed in a very pale grey/off white. Is it just me, have I got a sheet that missed the silver print, or are they all like this? PS The decals for the passenger window silver surrounds appear to be just carrier film, looks like my sheet at least completely missed the silver print pass 😞

I’m at the start of a project to convert a 1/32 MDC Typhoon to a car-door type using an abandoned Revell kit as a donor of relevant parts: Ideally I’d like to create a “servicing dio” using this piece of deliciousness: which is the (expensive) CMK Sabre engine designed for a Tempest kit. I know the Tempest had the fuel tank betwixt engine and cockpit: unlike the Tiffie: but “ignoring” that fact, is it feasible to fit it in your knowledgeable opinions gentlemen? In my enthusiasm, am I being blind to any obvious pitfalls or clangers? Any thoughts or observations welcome.

Boeing 747-400 Ed Force One (03780) 1:144 Carrera Revell The so-called Jumbo jet was an aircraft of firsts, developed in the 60s by Boeing to reduce the seat-price of a jet airliner by creating an aircraft so large that it could haul over twice that of its nearest rival. Its design hinged around the production of large, high-efficiency engines, which both GE and Rolls-Royce agreed to develop, using high-bypass fans to conserve fuel and extend range, mounting four of them on the massive wings of the aircraft. The first aircraft rolled out of the largest build shed in the world in 1968, flying the next year, and receiving type approval that same year. It was also the first wide-bodied airliner, and got the Jumbo nickname due to its sheer size, adding a half-deck behind the raised cockpit installation that gave it additional carriage capacity, and a unique side profile. After the initial -100 variant entered service with Pan Am airlines, other orders followed with sub-variants further widening its appeal. In 1971 the -200 series was unveiled, adding more powerful engines and an increased maximum take-off weight. A shorter SP was also developed, as was a -300 series that took the -200 as a baseline and lengthened the upper deck to increase capacity. The -400 series was developed in the mid ‘80s with improved range and a modern glass cockpit with matching avionics, new more powerful, efficient engines, and the use of more modern materials to lighten the airframe and improve range. The scope of the project was such that it encountered problems with manpower and technology difficulties that delayed its initial entry into service until 1989, with capacity of up to 524 passengers or the equivalent cargo when configured for the transport role. The ultimate transport variant of the 747 was based on the -400 series, named the 747 Dreamlifter, which when unpainted looks more like a 747 in a hot-dog bun, without the style of the competitor Airbus Beluga XL. The last major variant was the 747-8 that shares the same powerplant with the 787 Dreamliner, and was similarly upgraded to modern standards, the final airframe leaving the factory in 2023, marking the end of the 747’s production run due to the changing requirements of the airline industry in a post-COVID world. The band Iron Maiden have long used a custom-painted jet airliner to transport themselves, crew and equipment when on tour, initially using a Boeing 757, but more recently flying a 747-400. The name Ed stems from the band’s mascot Eddie, and is a riff on the US President’s jet, Air Force One. The livery is customised for each tour, and the aircraft is often piloted by lead-singer Bruce Dickinson, who is an accomplished pilot, often seen flying biplanes and other warbirds at air shows. They upgraded due to a need for the extra capacity of a 747 to cater for the huge quantity of gear they carried on later tours, outgrowing the 757, but at time of writing 747 registered TF-AAK has been grounded at Kemble for the last few years under the ownership of Air Atlanta Icelandic, where she is scheduled for scrapping at some point. The Kit Revell’s original 747 kit dates back to the 1970s, but the -400 series Jumbo was released in 1993 and was essentially a retooling due to the differences that had accrued to the airframe in the meantime. The kit arrives in a long end-opening box with a painting of Ed Force One wearing the ‘Book of Souls World Tour’ livery, and inside are four sprues and two fuselage halves in white styrene, a small clear sprue, a large decal sheet, and the instruction booklet that is printed on matt paper in colour, with profiles for the decals on the back pages. Detail is on a par with kits of its day, including engraved panel lines, window cut-outs on the sides and the windscreen although there is no interior, basic boxed-in gear bays, plus the option to pose the wheels retracted or deployed as you wish. There is a little flash creeping into some of the moulds now, most of which is limited to the sprues, but the very tips of the flap track fairings on the wings have been subject to a little mould-damage, so will need to be sanded or cut back to the correct tapered shape, also taking care to remove any raised ejector-pin marks from the interior where they may interfere with the fit of the model. Panel lines on the fuselage are crisply engraved, while those on the wings are a little less well-defined, appearing a little wider by comparison. This should start to harmonise after a coat of primer however, particularly after buffing of the surface. Construction begins with preparation of the fuselage, drilling out some extra windows and filling others so that the layout matches that of the real aircraft, taking care with correct shaping of the cut-outs, and when filling, that the filler doesn’t obliterate any surrounding detail. The nose gear bay is the only assembly that is trapped inside the fuselage, fitting a three-part strut and two pairs of wheels to the axle, which may be left off until after painting due to the vertical locating pins. The bay and some nose-weight are then enclosed between the two fuselage halves, putting it to one side while the glue cures, and dealing with the seams in your preferred manner. The wings are similarly straight-forward to make, slipping A U-shaped clear part into the leading-edges to portray twin landing lights before applying glue, and leaving them to set up, carrying out the same process with the elevators, which have raised ejector-pin marks on the interior, some of which may impede fit if not removed by cutting or grinding. Once all the seams have been dealt with and the glue fully cured, the flying surfaces can be slotted into the fuselage sides on their tabs, adding winglets to the tips of the main planes, which will need some de-flashing beforehand. The 747 is powered by four engines, making up two pairs from three tapering exhaust components each, then inserting the appropriate exhaust into the rear of the location specific cowling, and adding the intake fan to the front, noting which engine relates to which position under the wings for installation once the glue is set. The inner main gear bays are two shallow boxes linked together by a tab, into which the T-shaped struts and two retraction jacks are installed, sliding two pairs of wheels, one side with an integrated axle, through the bogey at the bottom of the strut. The completed assembly is then glued into the rear of the belly insert on a pair of pins, which is installed and glued in place, taking care with the seam lines to minimise clean-up. The outer main bays are moulded into the underside of the wings, fitting another T-shaped strut with retraction jack in each side, with another four wheels and their axles slipped through the ends of the bogeys. There are a total of six open bay doors around the main bays, and another two under the nose, but if you have elected to build the model in-flight, there are eight closed doors to cover the bays. After fitting the clear windscreen and position light over the cockpit, another is added under the belly, finishing off with a pair of antennae under the tail. Markings This is a special boxing, and as such there is only one choice of markings, unless you have bought the kit just for the plastic. The decal sheet is commensurately large, and there is a full set of window frame decals for the sides and windscreen, all the door frames, plus large tail art decals to personalise it further. From the box you can build the following: 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. Conclusion There are many Iron Maiden fans to be found in the modelling hobby, and they should get a lot out of this re-release, particularly if they missed out on previous issues. It should also appeal to anyone in the market for a B747-400 with their own decals. Highly recommended. Carrera Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

Finished photos of the Revell Auto Transporter I built last year. A wip thread can be found here. The model is quite nice, though a challenge to paint with the very long frame and treads. The rear upper deck is designed to raise and lower, though the 'rams' are difficult to get to work once painted. To make loading the lower deck easier the upper deck at the front also opens. Given the length of the trailer it was difficult to photograph in my usual setup, so apologies in advance. Last couple of photos as the trailer is now being used.

Now that the Tamiya jeep is nearly done - just have to spray a matte coat and add the windshields - I'm turning my attention to the Revell 1/48 P-51D. This is a release of the old Monogram kit that was originally released in 1977 and that I built in the early 80s. I'm pretty sure there was limited paint involved - just build it and decal it! I picked this kit up at a local hardware store that actually has a small stock of Revell kits and Testors paints. I'm planning on doing the Robert Welch scheme which I find more interesting than BBD - plus the checker cowling decals are a bit beyond my skillset right now. All interior parts were primed with Mr. Surfacer 1000 and then given a coat of green chromate (4:1 ratio of Tamiya XF4:XF5). I was going to airbrush the instrument panel today but it's too cold in my garage where I do my airbrushing - even with a space heater on the bench the paint wasn't flowing well through my Paasche H.

On the morning of 30 September 1938 Gladys Taylor left the family flat in Edward Henry Buildings on Cornwall Street, just by Waterloo Station, and headed for Downing Street. She probably walked over Westminster Bridge and past the Cenotaph, commemorating the dead of the First World War. That marvelous Mr Chamberlain was returning from Germany having secured peace for Europe at Munich and averted another major war and she was going to see his return. "The Crowd in Downing Street was the biggest that had ever been known there. It had waited for about four hours, standing tightly packed, mostly middle-aged women.". It was a cold, wet, windy evening but still they waited. Then Chamberlain arrived from Buckingham Palace, the way for his car cleared by mounted police. He entered No. 10 Downing Street and then, apparently somewhat reluctantly, but in response to the demands of the crowd, appeared at the window above the famous front door of Number 10 to give a short speech. "My good friends, this is the second time in our history that there has come back from Germany to Downing street peace with honour (a reference to Disraeli's return from Berlin in 1878). I believe it is peace for our time (prolonged cheers). We thank you from the bottom of our hearts, and now I recommend you to go home and sleep quietly in your beds" (Cheers.) With a last smile, and a last look at the surging, happy crowd below, Mr and Mrs. Chamberlain turned and disappeared. The people still wanted to sing something. Someone started "God Save the King" and at once everyone, police included, sang it with all their might." I can only assume that Gladys Taylor took Chamberlain's advice and took herself off home to bed. The rest, as they say, is History… All quotes are from the News Chronicle of 1 October 1938. Gladys Taylor was my Great Grandmother and we have a photograph of her in Downing Street on 30 September 1938. Front row, third from the right, two feathers in her hat. Once my mother told me about the photograph I decided that it would be quite in order to do a little model to commemorate her presence at this historic event. Now, I don’t fancy trying to create a scale model of Downing Street with a crowd of around 5000 people but there’s an easier option. Neville Chamberlain arrived back from Munich at 3:41 in the afternoon of 30 September 1938 in a British Airways Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra, G-AFGN, with a 'Perfect three point landing". There are plenty of photos of it arriving and a film of Chamberlain disembarking. He then gave a brief speech (you can listen to a recording of it on the Wikipedia page on the subject) before heading to Buckingham Palace to meet with the King, and then back to Downing Street. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_for_our_time The aircraft was a Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra, and in a Ploughshares into Swords job Lockheed created from the Super Electra a patrol bomber which was named the Hudson in RAF service. To do my own reverse Swords into Ploughshares I’ll be converting this Revell boxing of what was, according to Scalemates, originally an MPM kit. Handily it appears the kit was also released in Super Electra guise by Classic Plane and a lot of the pieces needed for the Civilian original are in the Revell box. Will do the sprue shots etc. when everything kicks off! Anyway, hope a 1930’s airliner once used by a chap who really did “Give Peace a Chance” meets the bill? Cheers, Richard.

Oman strikes again - This time it’s a Hawker Hunter of the Omani Air Force. When i saw a photo of an Omani Hunter, i fell completely in love with the heavely sun bleached bluish/grey camo scheme. The model is built a few years back, but since i lately have posted quite a few Omani birds here on BM, i thought this should be posted as well. It’s the well known Revell kit, built mainly out of the box. Thanks for stopping by 🙂

Irrational to start a KUTA thread for a kit this big, as there's only ten days left - unless we get an extension - and enough KUTA threads already for one man. But. For a long while I have felt the desire to get back to painting something in RLM 65/70/71 scheme. As there's no GB in the horizon, where I could build a proper Luftwaffe bomber this year, 💔, I must leave my four Junkereses, two Dorniers and a Heinkel rest in pieces. All kits bought after the WW2 Twins GB we had last year . Their time will come! Luckily, on my shelf of shame is this bigger Heinkel, the 177 A-5 Greif, that I started in the Bombers/ground attack etc GB three years ago. Today I got reacquainted with the kit, it's instructions and where did I leave it back then. I started by attaching the navigator's cupola base, a pair of bomb bay doors and ended up first joining the port wing halves together and the attaching the wing to the fuselage. No IKEA-build this time Please don't ask me about the progress of the Kittyhawks or the second Me 410. Or maybe you can ask about the latter - but not the Kittyhawks V-P

Hi all, I first started this one in 2022 for the Revell Monogram Group Build here but unlike @RC Boater Bill who did a lovely job on his, mine didn't get finished in time - here's how she ended up with overspray and other annoying issues. Revell_HH-3F_Wip_shelf But a recent KUTA group build over on IPMS Ireland gave me the motivation to finish it. First up was sorting the rotor blades. Revell_HH-3F_Wip_18 Then re-masking to sort out the paintwork Revell_HH-3F_Wip_19 Happy with that! Revell_HH-3F_Wip_21 Then masked again for the blue cheat line, sponsons and other parts. Revell_HH-3F_Wip_22 Decals from a Superscale sheet and then made a go at the float bags on the sponsons. This was a small piece of sprue glued on and then rolled out some Green Stuff on top. Revell_HH-3F_Wip_23 Revell_HH-3F_Wip_24 Good enough for me. Revell_HH-3F_Wip_25 Added the last bits (pitots and scratchbuilt winch) and she was done! I know the main rotor blades are upside down I can live with it. Revell_HH-3F_Pelican_1_USCG Revell_HH-3F_Pelican_2_USCG Revell_HH-3F_Pelican_3_USCG Revell_HH-3F_Pelican_4_USCG Family photo with a Hobby Boss Jayhawk. Revell_HH-3F_Pelican_5_USCG It's a kit that really shows its age (1969) but I'm happy with how it's turned out and looks ok from across the hobby room. Revell_HH-3F_Pelican_7_USCG Thanks for looking and happy modelling. All the best, Dermot

Hi everyone, With Nuremberg Toy Fair officially underway, I've been given the go ahead by Luke at Revell to share this top secret project! I was honoured to be given the opportunity by Luke, to build the very first test build of the new Meteor in 32nd by Revell. This is the first full 3D printed build up of what will become the kit later in the year, hence why the surface may look a little rough, as it is 3D printed and not plastic injection moulded yet. Luke was over the moon when he collected it as this is the culmination of hundreds, if not thousands of hours of work, to finally be able to see it built up for the first time. This is now on display at Nuremberg Toy Festival over the next few days for the modelling world's eyes to view. I'll post some more detailed photos in the coming days on my Facebook page linked below so that people can see the amazing detail on the engine, wheels bays and more. Thanks again to Luke and Revell for this and I can't wait to crack on with the other builds that will soon fly my way! Disclaimer - This is as finished as Revell wanted it... in Primer to show overall shape, size and details only. This is the very first full 3D print with no plastic parts and so surface detail is not final. https://www.facebook.com/jamesbuildsandmore/

Lamborghini Countach LP500S (07730) 1:24 Carrera Revell Designed as a successor to the Lamborghini Miura, the Countach was developed in the 1960s, the bodywork designed by Bertone using a new stylistic language that was dubbed the “Italian Wedge”, which gave the vehicle a dramatic style that made it the subject of a poster in many boys’ bedrooms. In line with many of Lamborghini’s designs from this period, the primary mechanical concern was to wring as much performance from it as possible, giving their owners the distinct feeling that their car was going to try and kill them if they took their mind off driving for even a fraction of a second. The prototype was designated LP500, and was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 1971, followed by some scaling-back of the design to a more practical LP400 in time for production in 1974. The 400s ran a 3.9L engine, while the later 500 series had a substantially larger block at 4.8L or 5L, depending on the variant. Further down the line the S suffix was introduced to denote Sport, with even more performance than your average Lambo. Following the launch LP400 model, a 400S was introduced in 1978 with a revised bodykit, and an optional V-shaped wing at the rear that was incredibly popular, even though it reduced the vehicle’s top speed by around 10mph. It was the era of the flamboyant wing after all. 1982 saw the first appearance of the LP500S in production form, with a larger 4.8L engine, and some improvements to the interior fittings. The LP5000 Quattrovalvole followed with a bored-out engine, zero rear-view thanks to a hump over the engine cover, and the switch of materials on some panels to Kevlar. The 25th anniversary edition was based upon the Quattrovalvole, but with many panels restyled to update the look, while the performance was the best ever, driving it from 0-60 in 4.7 seconds, and a top speed of over 180mph. When it came time to consider replacing the Countach there were two schools of thought. The LP150 was intended to be an evolution of the design, while a totally new project that would become the Diablo was running alongside for a short while, eventually becoming the replacement, while the LP150 remained a one-off prototype. Lamborghini definitely made the right decision. The Kit This kit was originally released by Monogram in 1988, and has been reboxed several times in the intervening years in different packages and revised decals. This is the first reboxing in over a decade, and it arrives in one of Revell’s smaller end-opening boxes with a painting of a bright red Countach on the front, and some detail photos of the actual model on the back. Inside the box are five sprues and a bodyshell in white styrene, a clear sprue, a bag of four flexible black tyres, decal sheet, and the instruction booklet that is printed in colour on matt white paper, with colour profiles of the decal option on the rear. The kit is a product of its time, and comes from an era when toolings were produced manually, and included features could be considered toylike by modern standards. The mouldings have been preserved well over the years, although there are a few sink-marks evident on the wing and frunk panels, plus a few ejector-pin marks that you may wish to deal with before putting the kit together. Construction begins with the engine for a change, joining the two halves of the block and transmission, adding details to the centre between the banks of pistons, and a ribbed sump in two parts. The serpentine belts and other ancillaries are mounted on the front of the engine, inserting a pair of four-port manifold tubes into the sides of the cylinder banks, and a suspension frame at the front. The lattice framework around the rear-mounted engine is prepared by adding two rails, then inserting them in the rear of the floor pan with a partial bulkhead running across the rear of the bay. Radiator baths are inserted on either side of the bay with hoses leading back to the engine, adding a few extra parts inside the bay before installing the engine, which by now will have been detail-painted, feeding the four down-pipes through the rear of the compartment, trapping them between a three-part rear, then inserting two twin exhaust tips and a number plate holder under the rear. The drive-shafts are mated with the engine through the sides of the bay, fitting a hub to the end and bracing them with a pair of coil-over shocks, one on each side of the hub. A two-part intake assembly is fixed to each cylinder bank to complete the engine. The two-seat interior is based on a tub that is detail-painted, has the two-part dash with dial decals applied, a steering column with moulded-in stalks, and separate wheel at the front, gear shifter, hand brake and rear window, with more than twenty decals applied to the tub to increase the perception of detail. The pedal box is inserted under the dash, and two seats with moulded-in quilting are installed in the rear of the tub, setting it aside while the front of the bodyshell is detailed. A spare tyre is moulded into the frunk between the front arches, adding a cross-brace, brake master-cylinder and other small details, then inserting the side-light and indicator faces into recesses and covering them with clear lenses. The slab-like bumper has a pair of clear-lensed fog-lights pushed into recesses, fitting it under the bonnet along with an air-dam to complete the nose, save for the frunk cover that is added later. At the rear, the distinctive air intake “ears” are fixed to the body behind the side windows with separate grille parts at the front, mounting the windows in their cut-outs after painting the roof lining to match the bodywork, inserting a rear-view mirror, and painting the rubbers around the clear panes. The interior tub and engine cover are inserted from inside, adding trunks behind the NACA-style intakes on the body sides, fixing a suspension sub-frame under the frunk so that the floorpan can be mated with the bodyshell, mounting hubs with single coil-over shocks to the sub-frame, using the scrap diagrams to guide you. The frunk cover and windscreen are the last major parts of the bodyshell to be installed, although some important smaller parts are still to be fitted. The wheels of the Countach are one of the aspects of this kit that shows its age, as they aren’t as realistic as they could be. The tyres have almost solid rear faces, into which a circular dish and a pin are inserted, applying a decal to depict the gold-coloured calliper, then topping that with a rendition of the alloy wheel with five holes and studs moulded-in, inserting each one into its arch without glue. It is my understanding that the Countach had wider wheels at the rear, and the box painting backs this up, but all four tyres are the same width in this kit, which gives the finished model a slightly spindly, lifted look in pictures of the model on their website. The rear of a Countach is a distinctive shape, which is a single part that has two clear lenses pushed through from behind before it is fixed in place at the rear of the vehicle. The V-tail is mounted on a separate pair of struts, and here are some sink-marks that will benefit from filling before construction begins. A narrow strip is glued over the vestigial rear window, and a huge single windscreen wiper is inserted into a hole in the scuttle, adding just one wing mirrors with separate mirror part to the left door sill, as the kit is left-hand drive. Markings You can paint your Countach any colour you wish, or choose a production colour for accuracy. The profiles show a bright red vehicle along with the exterior decals that are dotted around the bodyshell, and a choice of British, Swiss, Italian, Austrian, German, Belgian, Netherlands, French, and an American number plate, which can be cut from the sheet to depict the approximate thickness, unless you would rather apply the decals over a piece of styrene sheet cut to size. Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This kit was tooled while the Countach was still new to the public consciousness, and was designed in a bygone era where kits were simpler, less accurate, and they are sometimes described unkindly as toy-like. It scales out in gross dimensions, but the omission of accurate wheel sizing puts it at a disadvantage when it comes to the modeller that is looking for extreme accuracy. Recommended. Carrera Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

Hello fellow modellers, welcome to my first WIP! The kit I’m working on is a Revell 1/32 Mirage III: This was a surprise Christmas present from my wife, I hadn’t built a single model for over 30 years! So, I was to build this shiny Mirage, but to be honest it didn’t quite appeal to me. Of course, its livery is splendid… …but I never saw this particular jet ‘in the wild’. The decal set offered two alternatives, an Australian version… …and a French Mirage IIIRD: In 1984 I visited Gilze-Rijen airbase to witness the NATO Tactical Air Meet, which was an impressive event with masses of different aircraft types and numbers, like Canadian Starfighters, RAF Jaguars and Phantoms, USAFE F-4s and F-15s, Belgian F-16s and Mirages, German F-4s, and French Jaguars and... Mirage IIIRDs! One of these Mirages was Mirage IIIRD 368/33-TQ: To keep the memory of this exercise alive I decided to build this particular reconnaissance jet. I joined britmodeller.com in January 2021, but I never intended to start a WIP because I was quite intimidated by the high skills and superb results by most of you lot. However, @The Spadgent appeared to build a similar kit, check... ...and he and @81-er encouraged me to show some of my progress, too. So, here I go! First an overview of my desk, with the supplies spread out to give you an idea: Documentation (the upper photo was taken during TAM 1984 too, by a good friend of mine): Aftermarket stuff: And what I've done so far. The manual warns for the danger of tail sitting for the E and O version, but to be safe I added a redundant nut to avoid this for the RD version too. The 'inside job': My box with preliminary stuff: And for the final result, I decided to add the pilot as well. Meet Jean-Claude: He is supervising my progress: That's it for now. I hope I can entertain you with upcoming posts, and feel free to comment! Cheers, Rob

Hi all, It's been a while since I last posted, but I finally got round to finishing and photographing my most recent build. Commissioned by Revell to be displayed on their stand at Scale Model World 2024, this is their most recent boxing of their lovely 1:72 Arado E.555, part of their new "P-Series" of kits. A kit first tooled up in the mid nineties, it still holds it's own today if you're a fan of Luft'46 subjects like I am. A bit of work on the leading edges but otherwise, everything went together without a hitch. Working with the Revell UK team, we came up with this "What If" scheme whilst utilising the existing decals provided in the kit, to show what can be done with a bit of imagination! I also used Coastal Kits Display Bases to give it some context of size in the images. Please enjoy these photos and any questions are welcomes and I shall answer when possible! Cheers!

Source: https://blog.revell.de/2024/modellbau/scale-modelworld-reveal-hawker-hunter-t-7-t-7a-in-132/ V.P.

Hi fellow modellers Here is Revell’s 1:48 Mosquito B MK.IV well the less said about this kit the better poor fitting parts and vague instructions and please don’t get me started on the undercarriage absolutely awful. this model nearly ended up in a bin on more than 1 occasion, anyway I’ve not let a kit beat me yet and I’m certainly not going to start now. hopefully I’ve done it some justice Finished as DZ415 of 627 Squadron RAF Woodfall Spa in early 1945 Tamiya paints used throughout thanks for looking and happy modelling

I'll be jumping in with the Revell 1/144 kit to start with and some decals made by a local. I'll be out of the country on the start date but will dive in when I return!

I started this model in 2022 and after applying the decals I lost a bit of interest. The decals were home made but I wasn't able to print decals for the slime lights. Then I came across a sheet of decals in the spare box that looked useable. Think they were from a Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane. So today, I cut them to size and applied it to the model. I think it looks great. Tomorrow I will give it a clear coat and start the weathering process. Also busy with a base to mount it on.