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Thank you Martin !....harv

Ambitious project Harvey, me likey .

John Absolutely agree. Keep 'em comin Peter

CLOSING UP THE FRONT OFFICE 9/19/21 Finishing up the front office with the last subassembly being the resin seat and HGW seatbelts. The seat looked gorgeous, well detailed and no flash in sight, a few small parts added, of which I used Extra Thin and should have used CCA. The seat was primed, the framing air brushed with RAF Gray Green and the seat cushion brush painted with semi gloss black and lightly weathered with a few washes to look leather like. The HGW Seatbelt set - I frustrated myself for two nights figuring out how to assemble them, as the instructions in the kit again aren’t that clear for a novice HGW user. Thanks, Rob for the advice on how to add the PE, which then went well. Folding over the straps as shown on the instructions, left light, unpainted tabs, so I painted and added a wash to hopefully blend everything together. The seatbelts and shoulder harnesses had already been added, looked a bit thin in width to my taste (but most likely is correct) and then the seat install. Hold on Bucky, not so fast as it didn’t work as I thought, the instructions indicated on what to do and they proved to be of no real help. Placement instructions were vague at best, online searches helped but I shouldn’t have needed to do that. I completed the cockpit framing and of course, fit issues popped up and the instructions again were a letdown; way over complicated and trying to figure out where everything actually went was confusing. To make matters worse, one assembly sequence appeared twice in different steps? I had worked as carefully as I was capable of, scraped off any paint on the male locating pins and drilled out all the female locating holes, struggled and finally had it together. During this step, locating the seat remained unclear at least for me. Finally, the seat was glued into place with CCA and one last job to do before closing up the fuselage; adding the IP or so I thought. After following the instructions and locating where and how the IP attached to the frame was again somewhat frustrating but finally, I had the IP in place. So far, I’ve glued the gun sight and mounting bracket on four times and managed to snapped it off every time, deciding now to leave it off until just before installing the front windscreen. Photographs of the actual Tempest showed the gunsight bracket end tabs to be a bit different and are attached to the cockpit a bit differently then the kits’ – I’m going with what’s in the box as it will be mostly unseen in the end anyway. The oxygen bottle on the rear bulkhead still needs the straps painted and I also need to do a bit of house cleaning and dust the entire assembly. Next up: buttoning up the fuselage Thanks for checking in Peter

Thanks Peter! Indeed! That HK kit is a bear and a large headache. I'll take the SH kit over it any day.

John Nice progress on your P-39 and the best part, you don't have to deal with a zillion part nose that doesn't fit. Keep 'em comin Peter

Welcome aboard George, amazing opener……..

Carl Yup, a milestone in progress and she is starting to look like a Hornet. Getting the paint order all sorted out is always a task unto itself. Keep 'em comin Peter

Craig Congrats on buttoning up the fuselage - a milestone for sure. She is looking mighty good and can't wait to see the Fortress with all the metal skin on. Keep 'em comin Peter

Harv So you're writing the instructions - now 'ain't that something' Keep 'em comin Peter

Gaz Attention to details is nerve racking, time consuming and needs an ultra steady hand - of which you have conquered all. Absolutely looking simply fantastic. Part of the problem on how our models look in photographs, especially closeups, is the un-natural magnification. We're looking at a photography of a small area larger then life and what is seen in the photograph isn't how we will ever see that part or area on the model without a magnifying glass. Closeups are great to check out details and whatever but should never be used to judge the actual work as it's unrealistic. Step back a foot from the model and what you see is what your photographs should show. Applying small decals is a PIA at times. Here is where a super glossy surface works against you as the small critters slide all over the place. What seems to work best for me: I slide the tiny decal into place, after the spot has a drop of wet water (water and a drop of Dawn to break the surface tension) and a few drops of Micro Set - my decal soak water. Position the decal and leave it alone. No matter what you do, it's going to move. Let it dry a bit until it has started to adhere and then with a Q-Tip dampened with my soak water, I very gently tap it with an up and down motion. If it doesn't move, then I'll roll the Q-tip across the decal to remove any excess water and/or air. Micro Sol after dry and all should be good. Personally I always was a huge fan of Letraset Rub On stencils on a flat finish as they were fire proof but time has passed them buy. Keep 'em comin Peter

With the spraying of the 51, still managed to mess it up again and the Pz IV, I did some of the Ju 88. So far really impressed with ICM with fit and detail. The engines need a grime wash but are basically there. The u/c is nice, I added the hinge points with rod…….

WOW, quite a fantastic opening ! Very nice work and photography. Welcome to our home......harv

They’re too expensive just to have a barrel poking out and the mount in the turret is for a GPMG. The 1911 mounts are impossible to get because they were all removed and trashed when they were replaced by GPMGs.

Amazing airbrush control.

Carl Can't understand how your post office as they did accept the package already and just hanging onto it makes zero sense. I found the build on ARC and the kit looks as if it will take me a good year to build. http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?/topic/318474-saab-ja37-viggen-jetmads-132/page/2/ I have the Whirlwind, kit looks very good and I'm assuming it will be a easier build then the tempest as the cockpit looks a lot more traditional. Keep 'em comin Peter

Richard Welcome aboard - an amazing story and thank you for sharing Keep 'em comin Peter

Copy Carl Harv: great idea to make fit easier!

This will be looking awesome when finished Gary! Great work on the decals. I have a tipp for you for the small decals: When I apply them, I don’t press them on with a paper towel because then they might move. I use a cotton swab and carefully roll it over the decal. This will take out the bubbles but the decal won’t move. HTH Kai

Hi to all, I would like to share this model produced in 1/35 scale several years ago (about twenty) by Dragon for the 'Nam' series and in which I have always been interested: Huges OH-6A Cayuse nicknamed 'Loach' omni companion of the Bell Huey UH 1 -D "Iroquois" (but also of all the other versions present in the South East Asian theater). The version chosen is the E TROOP, 1/9 Cav, 1st Cav. (AM) Lai Khe, Vietnam 1970 and this work is part of a larger project that is nearing completion: 'American Chopper': As anticipated, the project (which will be available shortly) and called 'American chopper' would like to represent the end of a mission having as its object the extraction of American soldiers fortunately landed at the base with a wounded and in the background, Vietnamese (proposed by Noy's Miniature) the two helicopters undergoing maintenance to get ready for a new mission. This is the photo image of the project: The Dragon Kit: The kit has all the merits and above all the defects of the older models such as the too obvious rivets, at the limit of the scale, extractors in abundance, closures not always perfect and plastic without going beyond the decent. Moreover it must be said that the model in question, despite everything, was at the time I bought it (online from Russia) absolutely difficult to find in stores and also online, which is why I trusted my instinct and not only had Lucky enough to receive the kit (albeit just damaged but from time to time the seller was correct to mention it in the negotiation) but I was also able to find the Eduard accessories (now out of catalog for years) and the unique CMK ones still in the catalog: Eduard Pe : Set of interior and exterior photo etched detail CMK : Detail set of parts in resin turbine Allison T 63 -A 5A + hatches and engine support The completed model: ....................and how we got there: shots from the wip: model mock up: CMK : Allison turbine assembly, coloring and fixing: colors from the Chameleon series (Metal Shift) Opening intervention (not programmed) due to the necessary weight addition with shotgun reloading sinkers: The ultimate gallery: The context : Da Nang fragments - Noy's Miniature UHD 3D Display for more info & pics :APM .......................the project does not end there: Erika is ready to leave to discover the sequel 'American chopper' and you? Thanks for visiting and your time George

Decalzzzzz.....with an emphasis on the zzzz Surprise, Surprise, Surprise exclaims Gomer Pyle. The hand-hold and toe-kick decals don't matched the molded surfaces. I dislike little decals. You can't apply as much pressure on them to get the air bubbles out. If you do, they move. I uh... look forward to slicing all of the tiny bubbles once the matte coat is applied. Anyway... this one can sit for a couple days. Happy Modelling!

Thank you harv. Bomber_County He flew out of Cape Bon, Tunisia, then several bases in Italy...Taranto, Foggia, and Paesteum, then finally Corsica. His targets were mostly in Italy, but also Greece and Yugoslavia, driving out General Rommel and the Nazis.

I've used a couple of SMS paints and they are pretty good. I don't even bother to thin them they spray well straight from the bottle.

Now that's definitely jumping into the deep end. Using an AM set and being the guy who gets to write the instructions as he goes. Good plan on gluing the fuselage floor to one side. That should help with placing stuff. Carl