Doccur Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 (edited) Good morning, In this group build I have decided to embark on building 3 kits, which all started life as part of Frog. All 3 however, are Frog Spawn! As a relative youngster in the community (23!!!), I was not about when these kits were widely available. My fascination with these kits started when I was ten or so and I came home from school to find my dad rooting through a huge cardboard box full of Frog and Frogspawn... long story short he drove past a couple of ladies chucking a big box out and he saw something that caught his eye. Turns out these ladies were clearing out their late father's house and thought the treasure trove of kits were worthless! Apparently if he had come by sooner there were a couple of other boxes full of kits which had already gone... alas there are most likely on the big scrap pile in the sky 😂 Anyway, so instead of spending my pre-teens building airfix and the like, I spent it building various Frog kits! Stuff like the Spitfire and flying bomb combination spring to mind. On to the kits at hand though! The first of the three kits is the PV-1 Ventura, which as you can see below has just come in a clear bag with no instructions and a missing canopy part. This kit is interesting as it was never boxed and sold as a Frog kit before they went bust, the moulds were shipped out to Russia when this happened. Furthermore, As I have heard about the unreliabilty of these old decals I invested the measly sum of 6 pounds in some aftermarket decals from 'Colorado decals' which provide a wealth of options. I am still very unsure of which to depict but I am tempted by NZ4600 of the RNZAF (technically a b34 Lexington), which is painted in Olive Drab and Neutral Grey and is currently on display at the Museum of Transport and Technology in New Zealand. We shall see! Happy building Ash Edited May 29, 2019 by Doccur 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDSModeller Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 1 hour ago, Doccur said: but I am tempted by NZ4600 of the RNZAF (technically a b34 Lexington), which is painted in Olive Drab and Neutral Grey and is currently on display at the Museum of Transport and Technology in New Zealand. We shall see! Always nice to see an RNZAF aircraft - Just an FYI, WWII RNZAF aircraft never wore Roundels on their wings with yellow surrounds. Not sure why manufacturers keep printing these and in the that non existent light blue too If you decide on NZ4600, look forward to seeing your progress I did a Frog RNZAF F4U-1 in an earlier GB, and Frog had the decals totally on point colour wise Regards Alan 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted May 28, 2019 Author Share Posted May 28, 2019 2 minutes ago, LDSModeller said: Always nice to see an RNZAF aircraft - Just an FYI, WWII RNZAF aircraft never wore Roundels on their wings with yellow surrounds. Not sure why manufacturers keep printing these and in the that non existent light blue too If you decide on NZ4600, look forward to seeing your progress I did a Frog RNZAF F4U-1 in an earlier GB, and Frog had the decals totally on point colour wise Regards Alan Looks good Alan! Love the US Gloss Sea Blue. As for the roundels, I may have to source some accurate ones if i do choose to do this scheme. Cheers, Ash 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDSModeller Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 17 minutes ago, Doccur said: As for the roundels, I may have to source some accurate ones if i do choose to do this scheme. Hi Ash, Hannants have some Ventura decals for an RNZAF PV-1 if you look to go the RNZAF route. Ventura RNZAF PV-1 decals Regards Alan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevehnz Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 (edited) 58 minutes ago, LDSModeller said: Hi Ash, Hannants have some Ventura decals for an RNZAF PV-1 if you look to go the RNZAF route. Ventura RNZAF PV-1 decals Regards Alan I'm wondering if those are an older printing of these decals, this set as advertised on Ventura's website has some additional roundels that would work better for the B-34, & as shown on the website the colour looks better too, though I'm not sure how reliable that is. Another consideration might be that the B-34 had nose glass rather like the RAF Venturas & so would take some work to replicate, so, much as I hate to suggest it, it would look good in the RAAF scheme as in the kit decals, someone on here did one in the last year or so, maybe @AdrianMF or @stevej60 or even someone else. I thought it looked pretty good, for an Aussie aircraft. I can't find the thread but here is a photo of an Academy PV.1 with the Frog decals' Steve. Edited May 28, 2019 by stevehnz 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 1 hour ago, stevehnz said: I'm wondering if those are an older printing of these decals, this set as advertised on Ventura's website has some additional roundels that would work better for the B-34, & as shown on the website the colour looks better too, though I'm not sure how reliable that is. Another consideration might be that the B-34 had nose glass rather like the RAF Venturas & so would take some work to replicate, so, much as I hate to suggest it, it would look good in the RAAF scheme as in the kit decals, someone on here did one in the last year or so, maybe @AdrianMF or @stevej60 or even someone else. I thought it looked pretty good, for an Aussie aircraft. I can't find the thread but here is a photo of an Academy PV.1 with the Frog decals' Steve. Hi Ash, I have a couple of sheets of Frog decs for the Ventura, and from the above it seems they should include RNZAF or RAAF markings - I will check. Pete 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterB Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 Ash, As this is one of the relatively few kits on the Frog Cocardes site that is not actually reviewed, I had no idea what decs were provided, but as you can see they are French and Australian and in good nick. Should have guessed from your pic of the kit but have to admit I am wooly on the difference between RAAF and RNZAF markings. If you want them they are yours, just let me know. Looking forward to the other build we have discussed. Pete 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOCKNEY Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 Hi Ash Great choice and one of the Twin engined bombers that everyone forgets about. Delighted to see it here, really looking forward to seeing you complete it, good luck. cheers Pat 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted May 28, 2019 Author Share Posted May 28, 2019 10 hours ago, stevehnz said: Another consideration might be that the B-34 had nose glass rather like the RAF Venturas & so would take some work to replicate Ah drat! Might have to reconsider my options... I might even be tempted to do the example with yellow and black stripes 🤨 8 hours ago, PeterB said: Ash, As this is one of the relatively few kits on the Frog Cocardes site that is not actually reviewed, I had no idea what decs were provided, but as you can see they are French and Australian and in good nick. Should have guessed from your pic of the kit but have to admit I am wooly on the difference between RAAF and RNZAF markings. If you want them they are yours, just let me know. Looking forward to the other build we have discussed. Pete Thanks very much @PeterB! I shall let you know Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted May 28, 2019 Share Posted May 28, 2019 If you need spare parts, you can always get an Academy Ventura. It is supposedly based of the FROG kit. Back in the late 80's, I bought about a dozen different FROG decal sheets through a UK-based mail order business. One of those sheets is for the Ventura. Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Leader Posted May 29, 2019 Share Posted May 29, 2019 Great to see this kit included within this GB along with a marvellous back story to go with it. There's nothing wrong with being a young'n and liking old kits as in some way it helps one appreciate the hobby and how far it has advanced since then. I don't really recall seeing too many Frog kits when I was young as they had already gone belly-up by the time I was seven. I do however, remember reading plenty of UK magazine advertisements and wishing I could get my hands on some of their extensive and exquisite back catalogue. Not that easy to do without the commodities we take for granted now. I hope you enjoy building this kit and taking part with all of us here. Your builds(s) will be watched from far and wide. Cheers and best of luck.. Dave 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOCKNEY Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 Hi Ash Have you had any more thoughts on how you are going to proceed with your Ventura ? Cheers Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted June 29, 2019 Author Share Posted June 29, 2019 (edited) @JOCKNEY Hi Pat! I have indeed! I am going to complete this as an aircraft of 145 squadron RCAF, based in Newfoundland. This will be in a colour scheme of intermediate blue over light gull grey. I am trying out the xtracolour range for this one so it will be a bit of an experiment. This is the specific aircraft I will Be modelling: This one hasn’t even been touched yet as I focus my efforts on firstly the FD2 and then the anatra. Once the FD2 has been completed I will begin with this! I don’t want to make the mistake of having too many pots on the stove at the same time! cheers Ash Edited June 29, 2019 by Doccur 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob S Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 On 5/28/2019 at 5:17 PM, Doccur said: This kit is interesting as it was never boxed and sold as a Frog kit before they went bust, the moulds were shipped out to Russia when this happened. There was a bloke at a Model Club I was a member of in the 80's who reckoned he had the opportunity to buy a Frog Ventura at a Hobby Shop in Sydney in 1977. Next time I'm in Brisvegas if I catch up with him must ask him if he stands by his recollection! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted June 29, 2019 Author Share Posted June 29, 2019 6 minutes ago, Rob S said: There was a bloke at a Model Club I was a member of in the 80's who reckoned he had the opportunity to buy a Frog Ventura at a Hobby Shop in Sydney in 1977. Next time I'm in Brisvegas if I catch up with him must ask him if he stands by his recollection! As far as I’m aware, some boxes and test shots were produced. So it could be possible! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyW Posted June 29, 2019 Share Posted June 29, 2019 2 hours ago, Doccur said: @JOCKNEY This one hasn’t even been touched yet as I focus my efforts on firstly the FD2 and then the anatra. Once the FD2 has been completed I will begin with this! I don’t want to make the mistake of having too many pots on the stove at the same time! cheers Ash That's a good bit of advice, if only I listened to good advice! My take on it would be to get a bigger stove. 😁 I'm looking forward to seeing your builds though, especially the FD2 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted August 15, 2019 Author Share Posted August 15, 2019 And here we are, onto my last kit of the Group Build 😢 Need some opinions people. I’m torn between going with the scheme shown above (intermediate blue over light gull grey), or these two other options: Decisions, decisions 🤦🏻♂️ Cheers, Ash 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike romeo Posted August 15, 2019 Share Posted August 15, 2019 Can't help you decide, but I prefer either option compared to the original one! Everything looks good in TSS, but a schwartzgrun (sorry, foliage green) PV-1 would look very striking. Decisions, decisions! Regards - and welcome. Martin 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsairfoxfouruncle Posted August 15, 2019 Share Posted August 15, 2019 3 hours ago, Doccur said: Need some opinions people. I’m torn between going with the scheme shown above (intermediate blue over light gull grey), or these two other options: Decisions, decisions 🤦🏻♂️ SF*V please ! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsbody Posted August 15, 2019 Share Posted August 15, 2019 I vote for the RCAF scheme! Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Leader Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 Do you really need to know my answer? I'll send you a tin of Humbrol 149 if you don't have one!! Cheers.. Dave (who also thinks SF-V stands for Super Frog Ventura!). 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted August 19, 2019 Author Share Posted August 19, 2019 On 16/08/2019 at 14:45, Rabbit Leader said: Do you really need to know my answer? I'll send you a tin of Humbrol 149 if you don't have one!! Cheers.. Dave (who also thinks SF-V stands for Super Frog Ventura!). I knew you’d chip in Dave! I think the people have spoken... pay day tomorrow do a trip to Hannants website for paint and a decal sheet is in order! On that note... would Humbrol 149 be your foliage green of choice? (I understand there is quite a debate surrounding the colour) Cheers, Ash 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit Leader Posted August 19, 2019 Share Posted August 19, 2019 2 hours ago, Doccur said: ... would Humbrol 149 be your foliage green of choice? That’s opening up Pandora’s box! I know DK decals themselves call out 149 however a number of people baulk at Humbrol paint. Foliage Green has been quoted as being similar to US Medium Green 42 or close matches to FS24092 & FS24096 (note 2 - Semi Gloss). Like most paints, I wouldn’t get too concerned as paints tend to fade quite easily in our harsh climate. I’m happy with Hu149 but I’d be committing a modelling crime if I were to say this is a definitive paint match. I approve your choice. Cheers.. Dave 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted August 19, 2019 Author Share Posted August 19, 2019 1 minute ago, Rabbit Leader said: I approve your choice. Well if it is good enough for a native it’s good enough for me! Cheers again Ash 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doccur Posted August 19, 2019 Author Share Posted August 19, 2019 Alas! The best laid plans of mice and men etc... that particular decal sheet has gone out of stock at Hannants 🤦🏻♂️ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now