Thanks Dan, and thats coming on realy well. Can't wait to see the markings on.

Fabulous progress Dan. That is going to look really sharp with the decals on.

She is lookin' good Dan. You're making me want to build a night-fighter... 

Thanks Bish.

Thanks Joe Rix.

Thanks Gamera.

Thanks Johnny: Yes the light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter.

Decals went done great, and soften up pretty easy. Putting the spirals on the propeller cones where a little tricky. The red line decals ripped and tore very easy, but I can clean those up with some paint.

Now that loks much better. And good job on the spinners, i have not had any luck doing those.

Your 110 looks right sharp with the decals on. good to hear that you had little hassle with them. Looks like you're about ripe for bringing it home.

Yeah, the spirals on the spinners look perfect. The touch-ups you did don't show at all. 

I snapped a bunch of photos Saturday. Wasn't until I uploaded them to PhotoBucket that I noticed I don't think I have a good photo of the whole diorama though. Sorry, I'll try to get one by next weekend.

Whoa! Those photos really bring some life and realism to your fantastic dio. Not to mention that that is some fine photography. Is that taken at your home? If so, you live in beautiful countryside. Thank You for the excellent pics.

Cliff, now that sir, looks wondeful.

Just can't beat natural lighting, really brings things to life.  All those extra details you spent time on paid dividends at the end.  I fully enjoyed viewing these final photos of your build - congrats!

regards,

Jack

I've actually got some updates on the Corsair that I can share. I've painted the ends of the wings and the aft end of the fuselage MM white in preparation for masking of markings and insignia. My photos are rather poor in showing the extent of white paint.

I've also used copper wire to simulate the brake lines and the ignition wires on the HVAR rockets. I have some PE ignition wires for the rockets that indicate that they run from the end of the rocket into the wing just forward of the flaps. But, reference photos in my books actually show that they run into the back of the rear launch stub. Hence the copper wire. In addition, some painting on the props is done. Just need to paint the hub.

Hey thanks guys! I was worried outside was a bit too much clutter. I really need to set up a good photo booth.

Joe: Thanks, the whole things not my property though. And your Corsair looks great! I've never got around to doing the wiring like that but it looks sharp.

Now thats nice G, i really like the cherry blossom. Its a great looking build and relly nice scene. Nice set up for the pics as well. You wnat me to use one of those or wait until next

Looking good Joe, thats a nice touch on those rockets.

Thanks Bish! I was worried there wasn't a photo there that really showed the entire diorama from a good angle but if one works for you please go ahead and post it.

Thanks Bish. It was actually rather tricky to drill the holes in the back of the launch stubs. But, the effort was worth it.

Gamera

Joe: Thanks, the whole things not my property though.

You mean to tell me that you don't live in a huge stately manor that encompasses vast acres of real estate?

Ok G, got you added. I think that one shows off the whole scene nicley and i just had to inclde the top of the gate.

Again, great build, thanks for sharing it with us, its nice to see a What If tank that isn't German.

JOE RIX

Thanks Bish. It was actually rather tricky to drill the holes in the back of the launch stubs. But, the effort was worth it.

 

Ye, i can well imagine. I know drilling small round pieces like that is not easy.

Thanks Bish, honour to join you guys and thanks too for running a great GB! 

Joe: actually I live in a secret underground volcano lair.... 

That's an excellent and original dio Cliff, great idea well executed.

Cheers

Tony

Bish: Your build and the diorama are nothing short of stellar. I keep telling my self that one of these days I'll get around to it but I haven't mustered up the courage yet. lol

Dan: That paint work and your decal application of those spirals are amazing. I've applied the decals and masked off and much prefer the masking. I practically go through a 1/2 bottle of Microsol per spinner every time I apply one of those decals. lol

Gamera: I aspire to be as good as this kind of work. I hope you are as happy with that outcome as I would be if I did something like that!

Joe Rix: Progress looks good on the Corsair. BTW............sorry to hear your luck in regards to the crash landing on the linoleum floor. Yikes!!

Everybody: If you ask anybody closely associated with me in the modeling realm about my thoughts on landing gear, they'll tell you that I cannot stand this part of an aircraft build. To me it's the one thing that can absolutely make or break an aircraft build outside of a really obvious flaw or wing dihedral especially when it comes to shows. I judged aircraft at the last show I went to back in February and it was the one area of the build that was the deciding factor in a lot of the aircraft that were candidates for an award. Outside of the show and award realm, it's really irritating to spend a lot of time and put all kinds of work into a build only to see it either lean because the gear wasn't set up right or to see two landing gear legs that are waaay off in angles. I've got an Fw190 A8 build that I had such an experience with. It still sits in my display cabinet but has the flaw of incorrectly angled gear. I put all that time into the build and neglected to get the angles right and it really shows when it sits right next to my Fw190 D-9. So I get really nervous during this part of construction. This build is no exception to that rule and is IMO a lot harder to get the angles right because the gear has to be assembled in separate pods and then inserted into the fuselage as the halves are joined which is one aspect of this kit that REALLY sucks. I think I've got it though after a lot of time aligning and making sure everything was just "so-so". I didn't care for the RLM 02 that turned to more of a 66 after my shadowing attempts though, I can tell ya that!!
Here's this (and last) weeks progress so far:

I've also now got the fuselage halves together and am in the process of taking care of the necessary body work in regards to seam filling. No pics of that yet but will post some more of this build starting on next Tuesday.

Tony & Mustang: Big thanks guys! It was fun to go a little off the beaten path here, glad you guys like it. 

Mustang: Yeah, I know what you mean- had the that issue of finishing the whole model and then setting it down and noticing the gear is crooked. I just want to shoot myself... 

The detailing and washes came out great though, crossing my fingers everything lines up. 

Thanks Joe. You should give it a try, just an aircraft and a few figures can make a nice dio.

I never knew you struggled so much with undercarrage legs. I like the

look of those bays, the legs look good to me.

@DanTheMan: I love the way the 110 is turning out! Definitely my favorite Battle of Britain era German aircraft. Kind of like scale modeling "comfort food" for me, if you know what I mean.

@Gamera: Those cherry trees were really what that diorama needed, I think. It really adds just that extra bit of atmosphere to the scene, and ties the predominantly pink geisha together with the rest of the mostly brown/green surroundings. 

@JOE RIX: I know, right? That why I stopped being a predominantly aircraft modeler: so much of the annoying stuff (dihedrals, landing gear, antenna cables, etc.) and not enough of the fun stuff (freeform painting, weathering, etc.). However, all of the aircraft in this GB are really making me want to return to the fold. 

Bish & Gamera: Thanks fellas!

Moff: Thanks for the comments (and I'm Joe-mustang1989-lol) Joe Rix is that "other guy". These days aircraft are ALOT easier for me after doing some of the crazy stuff I've been doing with auto builds.....or rather what they're doing to ME. Outside of the aftermarket detail stuff, the aircraft seem to almost put themselves together as opposed to the hacking, cutting , fabbing and all those other situations I seem to get myself into with auto builds. I swear this Pro Street VW Bus I'm building now's gonna be the death of me.

Everybody:   I got the fuselage together and the camera upper and lower fuselage clear panels glued into place as of last week. This weeks progress so far has seen the installation of the wings. The body work is immense but nothing compared to what I'm going through with my other build at this point. Posted below is the progress so far with the problematic seams noted in red. Lots of filling and sanding in all four areas.......

Good to see that coming together Joe. I didn't know there were camera ports on top. Going to have to make sure i check my 72nd kit when i get to it, i am sure that does not have those.

Mustang: Looks like you've got things under control. I know what you mean, I've been working slowly on a Kinetic 1/48th F-16 and the detail is great but nothing fits. I think the kit is half putty by now....