AWOL

That was a very busy two weeks. Having completed most of the projects from the 'things to come' list, I decided to indulge my fondness for jet aircraft. My first indulgence was the Dassault Rafale. Revell has just released the Rafale B 2006 Tiger Meet. This is one of the few modern jets I like.


Post war jets are the real interest for me. I recently spotted an old Monogram kit of the McDonnell F-101B. On inspecting the contents of the box, I was astonished by the amount of superb detail on it. What year did it say? 1985? To get this level of detail in a modern kit you would need a pallet load of resin parts. I had seen enough. A few minutes later it was mine, and my trip to the dark side of century fighters was complete. So, here is a picture of said fighter approaching completion. What do you think? Was it worth the fuss? I'll do an appreciation of this model a little later. It was a hell of a build!


Coming up, hard on the heels of the F-101 is the Hasegawa 'Tony'. This will be a very colourful model. Does this mean I am returning to normal? What's normal in this hobby?

Hot off the Benches

Recently completed is this Junkers Ju 87, as mentioned previously on here. It is of course the Hasegawa kit in the Revell box. Although it is one of their older products, it still has a lot to offer. Beautifully engraved panel lines, excellent part fit and lovely detail.

I added the bracing bar to the pilot's seat, seat belts, some extra levers and a wiring loom, and some other odds and sods. No matter how good a kit is, I can't help myself adding a few extras. It's always worth the trouble.

The Tony - Always a Winner

Here's one that didn't appear on that last list. The Ki-100 has always been one of my favourites, and I was lucky enough to build one for a client recently. Hope you enjoy it the way I do.

The Shape of Things to Come

Suddenly I seem to have work on every inch of my work bench, and I thought I'd share it with anyone who might be interested.

• I've just put the finishing touches to a Revell/Hasegawa Junkers Ju87. This will be leaving here shortly and going to a very good home.

• I'm on with an Eduard Focke Wulf 190 A8. It's a very complex build for such a small model, even though it's 1/48 scale. Another ten days, on and off, should see it finished,

• The Tamiya Heinkel He 162, or 'Salamander'. A nice little kit, bags of detail and beautifully engineered. A fortnight will see it offered up for sale.

• A Revell Dassault Rafale B two seater - my birthday present. Sounds like pretty standard stuff but great detail. I'm taking my time, just tinkering it together. Maybe another month or so on this one.

• The biggest project - the Focke Wulf FW 200 'Condor'. This is a kit I've wanted to build since long before it hit the shelves. Trumpeter have made a beautiful job of it and now I'm making good on that. It's getting the works - not just the Eduard interior and exterior sets, but lights and sound in a full diorama setting.
  

Photographs will follow of builds mentioned here. Expect to see the new Ki45 Toryu 'Kai' making an appearance on the bench soon!