Sorry to hear about your paint issue Gary, it happens to the best of us mate. Love your attitude though!

Thanks for the great rundown Pat, it's going to be very useful.The kit arrived yesterday and it's very interesting comparing the original with the current version.

Great work on the Vega Piers. Very much looking forward to seeing the final result.

Dodgy

lostagain

...

Pat, Thanks for the detailed rundown - sounds like the model is still in pretty good order for its age. And it looks with your careful approach to the wings has worked out well. Would you advise Dodgy and others following you to glue on and clean up the lower wing rather than assemble the whole wing and glue it on after?

Hi,

I couldn't say for certain which is the best approach, but I would siggest "giving some thought" to the two different approaches and then going with whichever they decide works best for them 

Gary: Sorry to hear that, she was coming along so well. 

Pat: And yeah, thanks for the run-down, looks like a complex kit. 

Some interesting comparisons between the new release and the original. The box is twice the size for the same kit. The new plastic seems much softer and has several pin marks and flash, which the original does not have.

Dodgy.

Dodgy, one of each! Were you planning to build both of them?  Interesting that the new box is that much bigger. Did the new boxing have the bits in bags?

lostagain

Dodgy, one of each! Were you planning to build both of them?  Interesting that the new box is that much bigger. Did the new boxing have the bits in bags?

 

Yes. Another difference between the boxing's was the sprue arrangements. In the older boxing the sprues had been cut to fit the box. In the new boxing they are as they came out of the mold. I have no plans to build the original. I have a few old Airfix, Frog and Aurora kits still in their boxes and have them on display as a bit of a nostalgia thing.

Dodgy

Looking forward to your build too Ferg.

Now - the Vega has proved interesting. It didn't look right the way it was, the wing seemed too far back. So got a set of drawings from 'Models by Wylam' , and it looks pretty good, though the canopy is several mm back from where it should be - there should not be a space between the back of the cowl and the canopy. This was pushing the wing back. So I now have hacked into the canopy area to fit the wing in the right spot.

Now I have tested and trimmed the interior parts. Pretty basic, I will add several other bits that will be invisible once it is closed up. There will also be a big petrol tank in there too.

Then I put in the windows. The model has spots for 5 window on each side, each shown as a raised rectangle. For Winnie mae only one window was required on each side To outline it properly, the raised area was first outlined with a sharpie, then sanded back to remove anything on the raised area. Then a hole on each corner and the in between cut out then tidied up. Lastly sanded to remove the sharpie marks that show through the white paint.

Piers: Wow, nice improvement to the kit! Never thought of having to modify the thing. 

Dodgy: Looks cool, neat looking aircraft. 

I haven't been feeling well so instead of dragging out the airbrush for a dozen other projects I NEED to get done I sat down and worked on the Type 89 here. 

My hat's off to FineMolds for modeling the running gear in such detail though most of it will be covered up by the shield on the side. Still, I'm glad the Japanese switched to the bell crank running gear for later tanks- much less work on me...

Cliff, that is some fine detail there on your type 89! I have a couple of Fine Molds Kit, from Giblhi films, and seeing the details in yours, I look forward to building them.

I am moving forward with the Vega. I have done some painting inside the fuselage, trying to recreate the plywood interior. I have detailed the IP and chucked a few bits on the walls. Now I have to decide whether I want to keep the cowling on and just cut out the front of it, or cut it off and work out how to stick it back on with the cowling rear properly defined.

Thanks Piers- it is a neat little kit.

Great work there on the Vega! I've tried woodgrain decals for stuff like that but they don't work that well around curves and decals. I think you've got the right idea there.

Thanks Cliff, there been a lot of faffing about on this, and it will continue when I get home from this trip. There is the big fuel tank to go in the cabin and th windows, then it can be closed up.

Pretty basic but thats standard MPM.  Probably going to spend most of my time with the Vac canopy.

Sorry folks been away from the bench and the computer for a couple of weeks. I have the two wing assemblies on the Heracles completed and ready for installation, but have decided to install a basic interior. This will have to be completed before closing up the fuselage and installing the wings, so not a lot of progress.

Piers your Vega is looking good. Taking of the cowl and reattaching it will be a challenge, but I reckon it will pay dividends.

Gamera, the Japanese tank is coming along nicely. Love the detail.

68GT, that Stuka looks like a very nice kit. Looking forward to seeing the finished product.

Dodgy

Piers: Looking forward to more when you get back from holiday.

69GT: Ohhhh looks cool! 

Thanks, but this kit is a real turd!  Hope I didnt pay a lot for this thing.

68GT

Thanks, but this kit is a real turd!  Hope I didnt pay a lot for this thing.

 

Hahahaha, ugh, yes we have all had that feeling 68GT.

Let's see how you go polishing this one!

Next steps on the Vega: the extended range fuel tank, the cockpit floor and control column are all in.

Then closed up with seams being closed progressively to hopefully give a nice solid bond, then the seams were covered.

Next I have opened the bag on my Huma Arado Ar68. It was going to be a cross with the Junkers GB (Jumo engine), but no sign of Bish.

First impresssions are a nice little kit but no locating keys and the fuselage has flattened out a bit over the years. The nose comes as a separate pieces to cover a number of variants, so I thought I would be clever and add the nose bits on early for a better fit, but the flat fuselage means that is not a good idea - the cowling top doesn't fit that way.

68GT: I've never built a MPM kit but I've seen them before. I figured it was a limited run kit and would be a bit rough. 

Piers: The Vega is coming along great! And the Arado is interesting. She looks like she's going to be a rough ride too. Looking forward to seeing how you bring her up to speed. 

Hi folks. I have not posted for a while, but that doesn't mean I have been idle. I have finished including an interior for the HP42. I have included the main passenger seats, cockpit detail, radio operators compartment and bulkheads, {still to be trimmed}. Please note - these are not to scale and are not detailed. Their job is simply to give an impression that there is something behind the windows. Smoke and mirrors. Painting starts next.

Dodgy

Wow, that looks great.  Can't wait to see how it turns out. 

Pat 

Thanks Pat. I'm more of a builder than a painter, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!

Dodgy.

Really good work there Ferg, that is great interior detailing!

Yeah, the interior detail there looks fantastic! 

Thanks Piers and Gam!

Dodgy

I got the Type 89 almost painted. Not crazy at all about how the paint came out, first time I've used this brand and it didn't want to dry and built up way too thick. So I'm going to have to clean up a bunch of little places. If this thing wasn't so much work to paint I'd strip her and start over. Got a lot of stuff I want to finish before the end of the year so I'm probably not get much done until next year. 

Her in the Silly Putty- I'VE BEEN SLIMED!!!

That's looking great mate!

Dodgy

Cliff, great painting there, super result. It does look hilarious under the silly putty!

What was the paint brand that caused you the issue?

I am back from holidays, I will get some progress on mine up soon.

Thanks guys!

It was Meng brand paint Piers. First time I've used it. It's an acrylic which I really prefer. I'd been using a set of Gunze Sangyo laquer based paints designed for Japanese armour but I'm find it a PITA to use. So I was happy to switch to the Meng acrylic.  

I sprayed in the basement/cellar as I usually do- 24C and with a fan running to circulate the air. It could have been a little warmer but that's the normal tempature and other paint dries just fine. 

Going on holiday myself next week and then going to be trying to finish up stuff for the end of the year. Will be back to work on the Type 89 first of the year next year. Am going to try to start fewer GBs and get more stuff finished!!!  

Done a bit more on the Vega, taking it apart a bit to get it better.

The Vega was together and I needed to take the cowling off so the cowling/fuselage join would look half decent. So I carefully cut off the cowlng and managed not to make a complete hash of it.

Then I got the cowling off and have been cleaning it up. The bits of plastic sticking out the front are guides that I stuck on before gluing the halves together, so there would be supports to hold the cowling in position.

Next to put the canopy in place - it should go well forward of where the model seems to have it.

Looking like a real challenge at the moment Piers, but I have no doubt you'll get there and do it in style!!

Dodgy