Fleet Air Arm Group Build

MMMMMM Stringbags!!!!!! EVERYONE coming out of the blocks with fire on their tales, er i mean tails!!!! This is going to be the best FAA build yet, me thinks!!!! EXCELLENT work by all !!!!!!!!!!

Sticks!!!!!! Yes, the more the merrier and so it will be with more!!!! Glad to have yous aboard matey!!!

Rum is in my veins!!!!Hic!

Daywalker wrote:

Guy- Oh yes, I forgot about the CMK resin control surfaces!  Have those too.   I do have the porcupine exhausts, can't imagine trying to smooth out the kit parts.

Frank, I haven't seen to many 'bags with the Porcupine exhausts at all! Run a straight pipe like a Harley mate!!!! Get appropriate sized evergreen styrene tubing and heat bend one till it fits the bill!!! Should be easy peasy in 1/48!!! The only 'porcupine' I want is a 396!!!!

Rum, rum, rum..... sounds like lil drummer boy!Hic!

Richie,

You sure you don't want a 427?  Still puzzled over Guy's description of Mac as a pro.  Scoundrel perhaps?

Boba Fett wrote:

Frank: Hellcat is 1/48th. Sorry bout' that! Permission to come abord?

Good ter see ya back fer another tour o' duty Graham!  Time ter break out tha' root beer.

Brian

Really looking forward to seeing the Beaufighter. I always loved them. Wernt they called Whispering death. What a cool nickname.

Ooh ooh Frank, look what I found. Gimmie gimmie gimmie,

http://www.shopcreator.com/mall/productpage.cfm/ModelDesignConstruction/DS48009

...Guy

Beaufighters are cool!

 New Hampshire that pit looks sharp!  Harriers are cool!

Bondo? Uh I got me and and the XO pegged. Who is in the pink?

Guy that is something! Your giving me a guilty feeling cuz I have no Aftermarket stuff for my Swordfish!  Can you still get those PE sets for the riggings nd such?

bondoman wrote:

Aye aye Mr. Eaton, take the helm for a spell. A Beaufighter it is, and does she have radar?

Nah, don't need no stinkin' radar, got a great big fish underneath.

 Arrrr mateys!

All right I've goten some work done one my Hellcat.

I started with setp 1... only after I had painted it I decided to look at some refrace pix and I realized that I could have added a lot more detail so I scrach built a bit of detail even if it's not very acurate to the pix it still adds a bit more intresed to the build.

Well no arguments from me there stickman. Looks like you put some effort into improving the look and when it is painted I cant see anyone else realizing that it isn't all 100% accurate.  It looks cool and will be sharp looking when done !

 I have been toiling with the Albacore in between Naps , work and daddy stuff.  Not a lot of time to spare. But I got thru page 2 of the instructions!.

 Added all the PE and resin bits to the interior and test fitted and teast fitted some more to get the fuse halfs to fit as well as I can.

I promise to try to care enough to get some better pics. I have been trying my best to get some daylight which helps the focus and plan on setting up a tripod and a separate picture table with the works as soon as time allows!  Time Jeeze. That and stronger coffee!

That little PE tool is a godsend! Works great!  Think it is called a bug?

Well then I got the fuse halfs together filled and sanded. Had to really squeeze and manipulate to get it together. Somewhere in the process I must have squeezed to hard and dislodged the entire pilot pit. Didn't notice until I sat back down today and wondered why his seat was sideways!

Anyways Frank gave me an excellent lesson on splitting glued seams and I ended up redoing the whole of yesterdays efforts. This cause much grief and the things that fit before didn't want to this time around?  After a lot of colorful language that could make the good Captain Bondo blush,  I got it together again!

The IP is pretty impressive. PE resin and film give a realistic look!

Got some touch up painting to do and some sanding dust to blow out but it doesn't look too bad considering what it went through and my pleasant demeanor....

Try to get a better look at the inner details. I can't get them little levers to really focus well enough to count em all.

Well anyways I will keep at it and someday learn to take pics if not learn to build models!

Naptime again already! Thanks for looking you bunch of scourilous scalliwags!

Stick man, we here not be a bunch o' rivet counters.  Tis 'bout fun, and I must say your dressing up the ole cockpit is in fine spirit with this here build!

Arron....oooohhhhh yeah you know what I like!  That ALbacore is gonna be mighty purty I can see already!

As fer me build, I got the fuselage halves together, but the the hatch above the engine is going to give me a number of gray hairs trying to fit properly....ugh.  I also had to fix one of the side instrument panels...guess I was squeezing the fuselage halves together a wee bit too enthusiastically when gluing....oops.  Oh well, a wee bit o' glue and she is back where she belongs.  Now....lots and lots of seam cleaning.  Ugh.

Brian

Guy that is going to look just fine when painted!!!! I have said this before and I will keep saying it!!!! It is a term I read in a modeling book, Creative Gizmology! Which basically would mean to replicate not duplicate!!! You have achieved this, it looks right even though not completely accurate! Number one, as long as you are happy with the outcome what else matters!

Aaron, you amaze all of us!!! That is really looking GREAT!!!! Should be a real doozie when finished!!

bondoman wrote:

Men, the Group Picture is just back from the censors.

Didn't anyone tell Nam that pink shorts are to be worn UNDER your dungarees?  SHEEESH!  I see the Sarge has his good Sunday cap on as well, and the fellow in the cool headgear looks rather dashing IMHO.

sfcmac wrote:

Anyways Frank gave me an excellent lesson on splitting glued seams...

LOL, looking good McNeal!  Even with your hectic work schedule, Daddy and Hubby duties, and what not- you're still setting a difficult pace to follow!  You'll be through all of your builds (including the Sunderland) before I get glue anywhere NEAR my Stringbag.

stick man- Very well done!  I like the way you do your details, a man after me own heart!   As the others said, 'round here we choose fun over 100% accuracy.  Glad to see you having fun with your build and posting pics.

Nice work Sfcmac that will look so cool when it's fully painted! The painted cockpit already looks very cool

Thanks for comenting on my build guys I'm REEEAAALLLY haveing fun with it.

stick man wrote:

Nice work Sfcmac that will look so cool when it's fully painted! The painted cockpit already looks very cool Thanks for comenting on my build guys I'm REEEAAALLLY haveing fun with it.

Now about that avatar, hassenpfeffer breath...

Hey Mac the Vickers gun has a drum mag, right? so whats the big banana under it? Shell bag, mebbe? An' it's a good thing they brought their red porta-potty; anyone check to see if DRat and Nam are in there?

Smoke them if you've got them, sailors.

Capt. Bondo is in the building

Fell out of my rum soaked haze long enough for a progress report, mostly roused by the, uh, lady, in the background.  (just why is it Gregers is tatooed on her bazoom and not me??)  The second less interesting picture shows where I built up the aft top fuselage to get a little arch in it.  It just looked too flat there compared to photos, different there than on the Spitfires.  Headache is setting in, need more hare of the dog....

jeaton01 wrote:

(just why is it Gregers is tatooed on her bazoom and not me??)

Indeed though, I often ruminate as I sit staring at a glass of Barbados' finest, in the little hovel called the Officer's cabins, and look at Nam's frilly shirts left hanging over the roundhouse windows, what it would take to even record all of the aircraft involved in that last great unpleasantness, let alone those blighters who wish to build them all.

I do have one more GB to finish, and by my eyes worked on it this Dog Watch; to wit the PBY SuperCat. As soon as she is finished, I'll break into the Stranraer for the good Commodore Gregers, what might be a crossover here.

Thank you for the support for the Coastal Command, I get the picture about low level prowlin' around with a torpedo, and Merry-Oh we go.

Aaron - I dont know how you can get so much done in such a short time. I would still be chasing around those tiny levers and trying to get them unstuck from everything but where they are suppose to be. Frank has a secret method for splitting open a fuse other then the Hammer & Chisel method ? hmmmph

I hear "Dunkin Donuts" has really good Coffee

Once again, im gone for a couple of minutes and John and Aaron are almost finished. You guys are in a serious groove over here.

Aaron your pushing Wingus and Dingus too hard man, give them air. Hows the Lovely Dee MAc Sarge? I hope your treating her exceptionally nicely, you scurvy dog.

Capt Bondo, is the Gabbi the other build you have going on or is there more?

...Guy

I have been finishing up loose projects cluttering up my work space. Some of you might remember the Monogram TBD Devastator I was working on for Navy that had a decal fubar. I have searched high and low looking for a replacement...... This morning a stumbled upon a "star and bar" decal of the right size and color. Only problem was the "bar". Here is how I solved the problem.

The Missing decal

Next came the replacement decal and the dot added.

Second cut a pie shape from another decal of the same

And Repeat

Finally One more closer to being off the bench to make room for the 1/48 Roden Gloster Sea Gladiator.

John, the Seafang is looking splendid.    Those props do look dangerous.

TempestJohn, good luck with your Doctor's appointment.  Hope all goes well.

Sean, nice save on the Devastator decal.  Very resourceful.    As for the Gladiator my 1/72 Airfix Gladiator is very sparse on the details so I'm hoping you're going to take lots of progress pics for me so that I can follow along.  

Yes, goodluck with the Dr's, John.

Sean, Great save on the decal. The devastator is looking 'Devastating'...Geddit, geddit? oh get out of here, what an audience, dont know why i bother.

Looking forward to seeing what Roden can do with a non WW1 subject. Should be a corker.

...Guy

Johnny, hope all goes well!!!!

Sean, GREAT SAVE!!!!!