To be honest, I am not sure. I have a few kits which I think are limited runs, mainly Special Hobby kits, but I have not built any yet. After building and rigging that 0/400, the ability to put a kit to one side and leave it for a bit has become familiar. But I think I have been modelling long enough now that's its time to be able to move away from the nice and easy builds and challenge myself a bit.

Yeah I forgot, after rigging a biplane like that you should be able to handle any level of modeling-related frustration! Limited run kits are fun though and it's cool to have something that no one else makes. Sometimes I'll build one alongside an easy kit like a Tamiya so I can pull the easy kit out when I get too annoyed with the limited run one.

That might not be a bad suggestion. I was building an Me 262 alongside the 0/400. Even though the 262 wasn't an easy build, it certainly did help to be able to put the 0/400 to one side and work on that. So maybe having an easy kit as the same time will be the way to go. I normally prefer to do one at a time, but theres always room for exceptions.

hi all

been working in 4 other GBs so haven't been here. the pliers look great for bending. i have a basswood strip the correct width for most 1/35 tanks handles. it's 100mm long so it's easier to handle or clamp to something to keep both hands free. i just finished the huill seams on a pair of DML SSNs. thin putty line for most but needed a wider area for more feathering at one spot. have you tried 3M BONDO red putty from the auto parts store? i use it all the time.

I got started on my build  finally - the M7 Priest

I really like those blue clamps Cliff . There much better than the metal with red plastic caps I had been using for quite a few years

Those metal ones would always slip and it was really frustrating , they would hold at first but the slightest bump and they would come loose . I wonder if there is any way of improving them so they don't come undone.

I went and checked my other D-Day landing Craft kits to see what the other kit manufactures were offering

There's nothing provided in Mach 2's LCA craft or the Pegasus LCVP but Trumpeters LCM have several nicer looking ladder rungs for their kit

I'll have to invest in a pair of those bending pliers sets , the ones I tried to make were too rounded across the front and I may need some slightly smaller diameter wire . I can come back and add the rungs latter on I guess , today I would like to get the structure buildings glued to the deck and start adding the other walls and machine gun positions . More pic's this afternoon .

There's some great looking kits here. Plan to with the vehicles, that come in late in the Day.

Bruce: Those look cool! I need more trucks/lorries in my collection. Btw: Hope you're not going to load them up with zombies!!! 

John: Nice selection of landing craft! And funny I came home last night and saw I had one of those blue clamps slapped on a Dragon Sherman trying to glue the outside of one of those annoying four part drive sprockets on so I grabbed a photo, sorry the lighting kinda blows: 

I really like those trucks Bruce and thanks again for the link to those Micro-Mark pliers set . I went ahead and ordered a set today along with a miter box , I look forward to those arriving at the front door in a couple of weeks .

Nice looking Sherman cliff Is it 1/72 scale ? I have two Dragon M4A1's in the D-day stash with Normandy markings which will go on my LCT and today another Dragon M4 showed up at the front door and this one has the Wading exhausts included also with Normandy markings

I got lot's done today

The structure's are glued in place along with the rear and mid walls . I've also started gluing lots of the smaller components that fit on top of the structure , lot's of tiny little pieces that require care and patience

As I say , despite the smaller pieces being a little difficult to handle and fit together , I'm enjoying the build .

John: She's coming right along!

Naw, the Sherman is a 1/35th of a UK Mark V that fought in Burma. Oddly, I have a bunch of Shermans and other American/UK/Commonwealth hardware but all but the Churchill AVRE are post-D-Day! I thought I'd have some sort of choice for sure but that was it.

That's really building up into a nice looking vessel, John.  Good work on getting her ship-shape!

That's looking really nice John. And it looks big for that scale as well. I was expecting something a lot smaller. But looking at the tools you have around it, you can judge how big it is.

I seen some Alclad 2 Stainless Steel at my LHS last week. I'm thinking of using it on my P 47 as a Natural Metal Finish.

What does everyone here think about this?

I have only used their Aluminium and shades there of. Not sure what look the Steel would leave.

Thanks Bish,

From what seen on their website, it's not bad. not real shiny just a little bit shiny.which seems like a NMF airplane looks. I can't get it untill next month, so that will give me time to think on it

Bish

That's looking really nice John. And it looks big for that scale as well. I was expecting something a lot smaller. But looking at the tools you have around it, you can judge how big it is.

Until you mentioned how big the LCT looks Bish , I had not even thought about measuring the length and I suddenly got curious about how many Sherman's and other vehicles I can fit on her deck

The 1/72 LCT measures in at 520mm or just under 21 inches with the ramp lowered and 140mm wide .

The Sherman's are the most important and I have a huge selection of other 1/72 trucks , jeeps and the like to decide on later as to what will fit and what won't .

John: Wow, for some reason I was thinking she was like 1/144 or smaller not 1/72- gee that is big!

I think I said I'd gotten some work on the crazy complex suspension system on the Churchill done. Here's a one side together and the other still in parts:

Here hopefully you can see as I press up on the strut with my thumb the spring causes the leg to articulate like the real thing. So far it's not been nearly as big a hassle as I thought thankfully! 

That's a lot of suspension parts Cliff and the parts move up and down as well ....AWESOME !

I didn't have much luck trying to scratch build those ladder rungs but I'm hoping to do better with making some hand rails .

I'm using Evergreen's 1mm styrene rod

After cutting strips at 11mm long for the vertical uprights , it's easy to bend the rod for right angle corners by squeezing the rod around to almost 180 degrees

It springs back to make a 90 degree corner

With a little drop of glue to the tops of the upright pieces , I then sit the top rail in place

I'll let the glue dry for a bit and then cut some smaller strips to fit between the vertical uprights as the center rail . So far I think it looks okay and it shouldn't take too long to do the rest .

Yeah John, I'd planned on slapping her on a 'quick, cheap, dirty' base by gluing some sand to a base. The suspension is so cool that now I'm thinking I have to have her driving over something, maybe a big hunk of driftwood or a busted up tank trap obstacle. Maybe I'll go whole hog and have her driving over a burnt-out German pillbox or bunker!

The railings look great! I wonder if there are PE parts out there for them but you're almost done now and your scratchbuilt ones look as good or better.  

That's a slick way of making railings, John.  And they look good on the LCT.

Bish

That's looking really nice John. And it looks big for that scale as well. I was expecting something a lot smaller. But looking at the tools you have around it, you can judge how big it is.

You can find LCT's a little smaller, Bish:

But I painted these for the Pacific, not Normandy.

What, no Sherman's in them.

John, those railing looks spot on. I don't think PE ones would look right as they would be to flat.

I guess when I was thinking of the size, I had an image of the type you see on SPR, loaded with troops, not sure which type that is.

Bish

What, no Sherman's in them.

 

I was afraid they'd sink.

Was just thinking, our poor Corpman will need an Ambulance later in the day

Not much to report on the "Hackensack" project.  I've actually started cleaning up the parts, and tonight I got the pieces for the cockpit and assembled some bulkheads using plain old Testors model cement.

The cockpit is only placed in the fuselage half for positioning.  Next I'll give it and the fuselage interior a coating of "dark green", then touch up the walls and seats.  Colors are a bit confusing for the C-47, but since the aircraft is 1/72nd scale and will be closed up, you won't be able to see much inside anyway.

This will be an OOB build for both C-47 and Waco, so I'm not going to spend much time on interiors.

I must admit, even at 1/72nd scale this is a BIG aircraft.  I'm wondering what that 1/48 PBY is going to be like when I get around to assembling it?

Bish:  Sorry for being so long in answering.  I'm going to do the C-47 and Waco glider in take-off position (that is, on the tarmac).  I will have to find something to use as a tow rope, but it will be folded up and lying on the runway.  I've got some nice stuff from Hobby Lobby that they use for bead stringing that I think will work.  I went by Lowe's Home Center to scope out some possible long bases for a runway that the aircraft can sit on.

One thing I still need to find out is how the tow ropes were attached to the back of the C-47.  I don't have a good picture or detail of that yet.

Thanks for looking!

Gary

Sounds like its going to be a great project. I just had a look for how the tow cable is attached but I can't find anything. And the photo's don't help. I often woundered this on the Ju 52, but again photo's don't help much. I wounder if the cable went into the aircraft.

found this about the tow cables.Hope it helps.

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=46124&start=30

Helo- that LCT is looking good. Nice job on the rails. So you going to take all our others builds for a ride when done? Looks big enough to fit us all

GAF

I must admit, even at 1/72nd scale this is a BIG aircraft.  I'm wondering what that 1/48 PBY is going to be like when I get around to assembling it?

 

Gary

Gary this what the 1 48 PBY is like.

http://s734.photobucket.com/user/greentracker98/library/#/user/greentracker98/library/Black%20Cat%20PBY%20Catalina?sort=3&page=1&_suid=1371271441679048343464970845073

They have a wing span of over a hundred feet. Trust me, You'll love it though. I loved mine even with the few hassles it gave me. There aren't many problems with it. One problem i had was getting the nose weighted down with sinkers. I swear I had to use a ton of them.

I thought I had posted the start of my 1/72 Academy Hawker Typhoon, but maybe I missed it.

Here's what you get, including the CMK cockpit set for it.:

I've also bought this kit, to use the D-Day scheme from it. The rest of it will feature in a later build.

The scheme I want is the one on the left.

And a little bit of progress, in between building and painting my Draken. I've drilled out the spent shell ejection chutes, which were molded as shallow depressions, and flattened the tyres.