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!

A-20 G 'Havoc'

My latest build for my own amusement has been the Douglas A-20G 'Havoc'. It has long been one of my favourites, so how pleased was I to find out that AMT were releasing it. That was about fifteen years ago. I've built eight of them since then! It was a pleasure to work on, but it did have its faults. A terrible bomb bay, a rear turret from what seems like another kit. And the wheel bay, well, that's a lot of room! It does have engraved panel lines, a nice cockpit, great engines and well fitting parts, mostly. So here are some photos of the more interesting parts of the build. I added a lot of extras, and for that reason feel very involved with the result. I think it's a stunning aircraft.

Blasts from a Non-Digital Past

The current Luftwaffe project I'm working on has led me to look up some of my older reference books. I tend to build more Japanese aircraft than German, so I had to visit some dusty, neglected bookshelves. It was here I found a couple of old photo albums containing photos of models I had built in a previous existence, when we owned two model shops. Most of them were commission pieces, or magazine reviews, and I had forgotten just how many kits I have built over the last twenty years, and how diverse they have been! Here are some photos of a few of them - taken on a 35mm camera long before digital came within the range of a modest model builder...

Dornier Do17Z

I mentioned recently the Dornier 17z I have been working on.
As with all Classic Airframes kits, there's considerable input to be made, but the rewards are always worth it.
The cockpit was mostly resin and built up very well, with some convincing detail. I just added the seat belts. The canopy was one thing I thought would be tricky, as is often the case with a limited run kit. I need not have worried - the fit was perfect. The wing and fuselage fit were also fine. The landing gear was more ponderous, and I had to watch out with the front forks.
There is always plenty of rubbing down with these kits, and then the rescribing of the last panel lines.
The bomb bay deserves particular mention; Classic Airframes made a lot of effort to provide detailed resin parts and two 1000lb bombs. These are a nice touch to finish off a lovely model.
The kit offered four aircraft markings in the paint guide - the most colourful scheme is the 3/KG2. This has its spinners, cowlings and rudders in yellow. The decals are thin, the register is good and they responded well to setting solution.
Here are some photos. It's a really rewarding kit of an eye-catching plane.

Self-Imposed Exile

There are periods where I get so engrossed in my work that no-one sees me in any other part of the house, just the work room. My wife begins to believe I am just a figment of her imagination.
When I emerge much later with more than just a five o'clock shadow, and only then because I've finished something, there is cheering on both sides. Me because I have finished something and my wife because she isn't really insane and I do actually exist.

The last round of seclusion was quite productive. First came the AFV Tiger in 1/48 scale. Then, the Classic Airframes SM.79, also in 1/48, and finally the B-17 nose section in 1/18th from MPM. Almost four months work.

The Tiger was a little gem. The first armoured vehicle I'd built in almost four years was a new release from AFV Club. It's beautifully detailed and includes the photo-etched mesh screens for the engine covers. The quality of the parts is second to none.


The SM.79 is not a kit for a novice. It does have lovely detail, especially the engines and cockpit, which are mostly resin with photo-etched parts. I brought all my experience to bear building this, but the results of your labours are so worthwhile with a kit like this.




The B-17 from MPM is a fibreglass nose carcass with a mostly cast resin interior and an assortment of photo-etched parts. Another project not to be entered into lightly! It was hard work every day for four months, but the completion of each module, especially the cockpit, brought its rewards. Positioning the interior was a job in itself. A very unusual and indeed educational subject!

ICM's BF 109F

One of my ongoing projects mentioned earlier is now all done and dusted.
I've been hanging on to the photos so I can out them all on here together to show them in sequence.


Early on in the build, I decided to replace the kit cockpit with the rather splendid Aires resin version. I think it's made all the difference.
Adding the engine cowling to the model proved quite challenging.

Trimming, filling, sanding and a little sweat gave good results. The main assembly went well on the whole. Even the transparencies - a common problem on some kits - fitted surprisingly well.

Masking up for the 'sandgelb', I used Xtracolour 79A. The photos show the move from undercoat to pre-shading, from the lower RLM 65 to the upper sand RLM 79. This has all been weathered to show the effect of hectic operations in a harsh environment. Marseille's aircraft, which this model represents, would be no stranger to that.

The kit decals were not good. The distinguishing 14s were the only ones I could use, along with the rudder score board. The rest were from a handy Aeromaster set. All the decals were sealed with a moderate coat of clear varnish. Later, the panel lines were inked in and the balance of the decals, all stencilling, were applied.
After matting down, the rest of the parts were attached - the landing gear, propeller etc. I decided to have the canopy open to show off the 'front office'.


To finish, I just added the aerial wire and canopy retainer (all stretched sprue) and some insulators (Kristal Kleer).
All in all, it's been a very enjoyable project. Like most kits, it had its foibles. However, it should be more freely available than the Hasegawa version, which could do with a similar update.

The Nose is coming to a close

The model is now entering its final stages. A dry
run shows the cockpit fitted inside the nose shell, indicating a good fit. It's a little snug, but I think that's an advantage. I'll now move on to the bomb aimer's compartment and its attendant fittings. The windows and the turret will be the last of the big jobs. More later.