Up next.

Earlier I was going on about what you might wish for. Well, look what arrived in the morning post. When everyone else was building the A-10A I wanted to build the two-seat version - there was always something a bit menacing about it.

On opening the box, I noticed that I was not the first to have a dip. Both cockpits - and they are quite lovely - had already been assembled. Everything else was present and correct and looking really good. Surface detail is superb, but the real bonus is a complete set of ordnance. There will certainly be more on this build later.

Coming along rather well is the Yak 38. As you can see, the nose section is almost complete. The only addition needed was a pair of lap straps to the ejector seat. Nice, isn't it?

Did I mention that both these kits are by Hobby Boss? Well, they are, and if you check the December issue of the SAMI mag, you'll see a more than two pages of previews. Hobby Boss seem to be using the economic downturn to release a big influx of top quality kits at very reasonable prices - this at a time when Hasegawa are pricing similar kits for £60 and upwards. It's good for Hobby Boss and it's very definitely good for the likes of me.

So I'm off to the model shop.

I wish for

If you wanted to complete your Soviet or US Navy collection then the two new releases from Hobby Boss must be a wish come true.

Check out the Yak 38 'Forger', the poor copy of the Harrier, and the F3H Demon, the fighter everyone hated. Like them or not, they are none the less part of naval aviation history. Not too long ago, if you wanted either of these classics you would have to compromise with a nasty vac-from kit or something expensive in resin, and probably accept 1/72 scale. If I had given one of those a go it would have been three months on the workbench and then a short chuck into the naughty box. These days you only have to wish, and as long as you're prepared to pay, you can have what you want.

Not only are both these kits beautifully moulded with four decal options each, but they are also attractively priced. When I've got my references together I will be getting the builds underway. For the moment, can you guess what is in the photo? I'll be disappointed if you can't. It's a project close to finishing, so more photos of it soon.

This just in -

An interesting project was this old Tornado from Revell. It came to me about 70% complete, but reduced almost to its earlier kit form in order to be posted. The owner had done a pretty good job considering it's such a problematical kit to begin with, but I think he had lost patience with it, and I know the feeling. Anyway, with a little extra work and another three weeks, the job was complete.

Also - a preview of two other projects recently completed. First, the EA-6B Prowler in 1/48 from Kinetic.

And second, the old Monogram P-61 (remember it from en earlier blog?) dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century.

More, as always, on these later.

Something old, something new....

...nothing borrowed and mostly blue. A sort of mini-view of part of my current stock. And all will be forthcoming builds. It's only the FW 190 that I'll build right out of the box. All the rest require new decals and/or photo-etched parts.

The old Curtiss Helldiver, although it comes with its own set of photo etched they are mostly for dive flaps, so I've added a fine set of Eduard coloured bits.

Even though the new F-100F offers four aircraft to choose from in the box, including Thunderbirds , it's waiting for a new set of decals. The older P38J will definitely be updated. Have you seen how boring the thing is? Dick Bong's Down Beat?

Of course, the builds will all be on here, just as soon as I get to them...

There's always more

When it comes to our hobby (and the source of my income) I am always grateful that we live in a time of plenty. The choice for the modeller is endless. So why do I have a forty year old kit sitting on my bench? This is my fourth P-61 kit in as many years. Of all the new toolings that are currently available, why am I still dealing with such ancient plastic? Perhaps it's just a case of bad timing. Flicking through the latest Scale Modeller magazine, I see Great Wall Hobby are just about to release a brand new P-61 in 1/48 scale. But I'm too far into this old Monogram kit now to suggest a change, and besides, it is now wired for light and sound, so no turning back, or even away. More of this build later...

For now, here is the Italeri/Kinetic EA-6B Prowler. Very expensive, but I've been waiting for this subject in a new tool for so long I felt I owed it to myself. Not quite forty years, of course.

And so far it's been a lovely project. All together now - more later....

Admiring Eduard

I've had a few projects going simultaneously, and this one has been quite slow out of the gate.

When I first started building Eduard models, I felt that they weren't much above low pressure injection moulded kits. Since then, though, I've had reason to revise my estimate.

One of the reasons for this is Eduard's MiG 21 SMT Fishbed K Profipack, in which you get everything - a set of masks, a double photo etch set (one in colour), two pairs of UB multiple rocket launchers in resin, a superb decals sheet for five aircraft, and stencils for the model and weapons. And not forgetting a full complement of weapons and fuel tanks.

The kit itself is lovely. It's an exercise in finely detailed and precisely fitting parts, which should describe every kit, but doesn't. These days value for money is quite rare, so to get all of the above in the box with a new tooling for around £35 is a bonus worth blogging about.

Here's a photo of the decals. As you can see, they're pretty comprehensive:

And here's the aftermath of a stencilling session - looks like confetti, doesn't it?

And finally here are a few photos of the completed build. It was as much fun as it looks. I used Xtracolour enamels and airbrushed them freehand. I weathered in very much the same way, then added the stencils. It took all day! More, as they say, soon.

Big project, big model, big nose!

The whole premise of building in 1/32 scale is that you get a lot of extra detail for your money. It's not the case with every model producer's kit - there are always exceptions - but the attraction, at least for me, is the promise of more to see than 1/48 can always offer.

Trumpeter's 1/32 Su-25 is no disappointment. This is exactly what modelling in this scale is about. Not only do you get a great cockpit, but also two detailed jet engines AND two sets of landing gear - one in metal. Also, left and right open nose panels with an electronics suite and optional lowered flaps. Then there are photo etched parts and an ordnance load that you wouldn't believe. The photos show less than two thirds of what's included. The decals are beautiful and offer a choice of four colour schemes. All in all almost 900 parts - it's not bad, is it?

And did I mention the superlative surface detail? Amongst the best I've seen - and I've seen plenty.

But how was the build, you ask? Well, mostly it went really well. There were a few minor glitches - usually down to discrepancies in the instructions. Did I use a lot of filler?I hardly had to touch the tube. The wing roots required a line of Krystal Kleer, and not much else.

What I enjoyed the most was the modular concept. I could build up the fuselage, cockpit, engines, landing gear and cabins, and then the wings with extended flaps. Then I could move on to the underwing stores. It was three weeks of building what seemed like several kits out of one box. Normally the painting is my favourite part, but with this model the construction was equally satisfying.

I couldn't finish this project and not consider a follow up. So, more soon on the new MiG 23 ML.