Sign me up Mike, I have a 1/48 Has AR 234 nightfighter sitting on the shelf of doom...It has been started but i only made it to the fueselage joining stage....

Hi Julez, good to have you aboard, all done on the leaderboard. Looking forward to seeing that 234 take shape!

Cheers, Mike/TB379

First look at a project, here's my Meteor:

She looks a straightforward build, though with the unusal aspects of the cockpit being inserted through the top of the fuselage after the main structure is together, and a metal noseweight included in the box. My impression is that the finish will probably be enamels, airbrushed in a couple of months' time when the weather clears reliably enough to do the project outside.

Cheers, looking forward to seeing other planes appear,

Mike/TB379

I would still like to jump in with a 1/32 Sea Venom.  Hopefully, this will be the first GB for me to actually complete.  Uncle Sam is trying to make it difficult though.

Hi Screaminhelo,

The old Matchbox 1:32 Sea Venom is a kit that has always fascinated me! I photographed a Sea Venom at a museum north of Adelaide a few years ago and would gladly post the shots for reference.

I'll add you to the list anf hopefully you'll bring that proud bird to life in the next few months!

Cheers, Mike

I will join if I see I can get something in. Am way over 50% complete on my 1/72 Me-262 but have several other candidates. Will keep a watch on the WIP shots from everyone. Sounds like a great build lined up!!!

Would love to have you, Richie -- I'm sure you'd turn in a show-stopper!

Gonna try to cut sprue on the Meteor tomorrow.

Cheers, M/Tb379

I appreciate the offer!  I have a couple of walk arounds but very little on the cockpit.  I am having a devil of a time getting good shots of the seat specifically, and the pit in general.  It seems that everything that I find of the real deal is at least partially disassembled. I am planning on doing it as an FAW.22 and the 53 in Adelaide will be just fine for my skill level.

I'm not sure how quickly I'll progress, I am planning on developing my scratch building skills on this one and I work horribly slowly in the first place.  I figured that a group build will help me to progress a little more quickly than average though.

Hey Mike!

Perfect timing because I've got a Hobbycraft 1/48 P-59A sitting upstairs and I just ordered a resin cockpit and wheels for it. I would like to throw her  into the mix if you don't mind.

I love the early jets!

Looks like there is gonna be some cool builds going on in here, looking forward to seein the WIP pics

Jeremy -- I look forward to seeing how the HC P-59 goes together, that's a rare type that has been under-kitted, and a historically important element of the early jets story.

Cheers, Mike/TB379

Mac I have a book on the story of the Venom. Will pull it out and have a look to see if there are any good office pics.

Hey, that's great, Richie. Also, IIRC, I got some shots from inside the cockpit of the museum specimen (it was available for climb-in thrills), I'll go through what I have and scale them for posting.

M/TB379

Well the best seat drawing I have in the book is a Mk.1, well really that is the only seat pic/drwg in the whole book. However, there is a blurp about the FAW.22 and the few changes made to it. It states that the seats were changed to the Mk.4A, which is very close to the same seats used in alot of the second gen. if you will jets. Here is a link to a restored Mk.4 that came out of a Lightning TF. HTH!! There is a pic of an FAW.22 office. Pic is kinda small, but will scan it and see if it can be enlarged and still look decent. Here's the link for seat pics.

http://www.ejectorseats.co.uk/mkfourpics.html

Well I scanned the pit pic, hopefully it is big enough for you to use, if not let me know and I will see what I can do. HTH

Wow, thanks for the help Richie!  I am working largely from Mk.4 pictures, I only have one good shot of a complete Mk.4a and a couple of shots of the bare frame of the same.  Complete accuracy isn't my goal anyway.  I have decided that it is time for me to venture into simple scratchbuilding and my main goal is to simply produce something that looks more like an ejection seat than what comes in the kit.

Here is my initial work on the seat frames

Which headrest looks best to y'all?

I am definitely open to suggestions and all comments are welcome.

Just noticed how crooked the headrest on the right is.  I'll have to address that if that is the one that I use.

Wow you're off to a good start on the banger!!! Glad to help Helo!!! Well , I have stated several times a quote in a modelling book somewhere I have that, "Representation rather than Duplication is the key". You could really put every bell and whistle on something and truthfully look like crap, or correctlly represent it in a manner that looks right rather than accurate. I mean some things just get way to busy in a small scale to be of any benefit to a judge. Honestly, you are taking the right approach to it. I say build both up and judge for yourself which looks best to you. *whispering* I kinda like the one on the left.

BTW whats the handle, got a few helos here lol

Hi Mac (high mach? Sounds fast...),

As promised, here are the research photos of the RAN Sea Venom preserved at dast Jets Fighter Museum, Paraffield Airport, South Australia. I took them in January 2007.

There ya go -- hope they help!

Cheers, Mike/TB379

Mac, nice looking seats so far, looking forward to the WIP pics

WIP on the Meteor -- here she is with the fuselage together and the dorsal seam mostly dressed:

She should be a fairly straightforward build, by the looks of it. Some metallic to spray in the engine bays and intakes, then I can get the wings together. There's even a kit-supplied solid metal counterweight that goes behind the cockpit!

Cheers, Mike/TB379

simpilot34

BTW whats the handle, got a few helos here lol

Not quite sure what you're getting at there.

I do agree with you about the one on the left, it looks a little more the part.

Mike-Thanks for the photos.  You have a nice shot of the nav's office and the pipe, both perspectives that I haven't seen yet.  They will be helpful.  I'm looking forward to your Meteor.  I've always liked the lines of the plane.

Now I just have to find my Miliput so I can get to work on the cushions and chute pack!  I will post some more when I have a little more progress.

Mike, I shouldn't.... too many irons in the fire as is right now. But since you're running the GB till Dec I should have plenty of time. Please put me down with the FineMolds 1/48th Nakajima Kikka.

BTW: great work on the Meteor so far, i built one a few years ago and it's a gem of a kit.

Mac: great seats! Hope you're posing the canopy open so all the detail is visable.

Mac -- you're most welcome! I might have a large colour three-view as well, if I can find it I'll post it.

Gamera -- I know what you mean abou too many irons in the fire, I'm swimming in half-built kits right now myself, and just yesterday priced the materials to build a new display case, something that'll take me about two years to fill...

I'll update the order of battle with your project and hope you can come aboard later in the year!

Cheers, Mike

Mac - I like the headrest of the seat on the left... looks right to me. Maybe add some bolsters to the seat backs so they don't look so thin?

I don't tend to get caught up in completely accurate builds but I sure like them to look the part! I've heard Richie say "representation rather than duplication" many times and that method really works for me. I've learned a few things from that Richie character but everytime I plan on throwing something extra at a build, that phrase always comes to mind.

Nice start Mike! Must be a change of pace to glue the fuselage together before the cockpit gets built. Does your kit have the clear engine covers? I have the Tamiya Meteor kit that comes with the buzz bomb and the engine covers are clear. Just wondered if all of Tamiya's Meteor kits come like that.

Jmabx -- yes, they do, but I'll be building her standard. Yep, it's a real novelty to be able to join the fuselage as the first step! The engineering looks excellent throughout, though there's a fair bit of cockpit detail missing. I doubt it'll be noticed, though! This is the first time I've ever tackled the Meteor. Teamed with my Me 262 for RD II and a P-80 I have underway for FSM, I have a great lineup of very early jets for the display case (when I build it...) Throw in a MiG-9 and a Heinkel Salamander, maybe a Yak-15 and a P-59, and the Gen-1 jets are mostly covered!

Cheers, M/B379

Thanks Jeremy!!! Appreciate the kind words!!

Sorry Mac, handle was referring to your name, but I see that it is....Mac. So question has been answered. I probably saw that before and just didn't click lol. Was having a blonde moment, even though my hair is brown.

mike the Meteor is looking good so far!!! A mate at work has recently bought that kit as well. Am looking forward to your WIP pics!!! Will tell him to have a looksie and watch your build.

Thanks, Richie, I'll work on the Meteor some more this weekend. I meant to do a bit tonight but got stuck into decaling the SA-2, and that's a long job. Still, the end is in sight, I should have the missile done tomorrow, dusted and all, and be able to spread my attention further, such as the S-199 for IDF II and get some masking done on the 262 and 190s.

Cheers, Mike/TB379

Gamera:  Not sure if the canopy will be open yet.  It depends on how the office turns out.  I just decided that since it is a big kit and I scooped it up for $5 that it would be a good candidate for my first attempt at scratching a cockpit.

 Jeremy:  I have plans to add rails and CADs to the back once I get a basic frame that I like. 

Keeping an eye in here, good start.

Check out a Venom by Phil Brandt, for inspiration, on LSP

http://www.largescaleplanes.com/articles/JetAge/PhilBrandt/SeaVenom/SeaVenom.php