nmayhew

Wow Think that about sums it up? :)

Hey Nige Thanks for the review I cannot help but think that when shelling out lots of money on aftermarket (remind us again how much this is?) that resin barrels are just not the way to go My guess is that the detail freaks will probably buy this, and then buy master barrels on top... That's a lot of dosh The resin does look nice, but for me half this set is in the wrong medium Thanks again for bringing your reviews here - whether I agree with your conclusions or not, I really like them Nick

Now now Steve But I kind of take your point However, if it means the Spit is all the better for it then I am happy It's not like my current stash is empty etc etc

Hi Petr Thanks for the news Very disappointing but I guess 'it is what it is' as they say! Just a shame as you seemed to be so close to having it all ready? Best wishes Nick

i finally got.... ...my extractor fan out of the box and set up thank you Grant

well not my cup of tea, but depends on what you want to model exactly? also depends on how bothered you are about accuracy - there is still no correct gondola for the up-gunned P or H models -1 through -4 sadly Alley Cat will not be making these as i had hoped, and I don't think there is anything else on the horizon still, I guess a Merlin 111 is probably a better plane? am thinking P-51 here and all that...

just be thankful the wheels aren't rubber tyred!

yes it is a matter of interpretation, but to help a more side by side comparison, here is the fuselage from the Britmod build as i said, it looks cool, but is way sharper than the heavy mottle finish that WNW profile depicts my take is that their profile is closer to the pictures in their instruction booklet than the model above, but then again he chap above isn't making 'my' aircraft... i guess once I am brave enough for turnbuckle torture then i will have a spray and see how it looks? thanks again for your input cheers Nick PS as an aisde, I just followed some US ebay auctions and WNW go for 'normal' prices over there - we really are in our own little price bubble

Thanks for the BritMod link - I must have missed that The build is quite eye catching but the (impressive) masking and DIY lozenge complete with overspray doesn't look too much like the WNW profile / pictures they show I presume you are suggesting spraying small patches of each lozenge colour then overspray? That would seem to achieve the desired effect... I posted because although that seems the logical solution, I haven't actually seen anyone do this. indeed I just haven't seen too many of these period (and yet there is always a bidding frenzy on eBay it seems for the Hannover?) The last two links required a registration / membership btw Thanks Nick

Hey Jim Saw that, but they don't do the fuselage mottle / lozenge as far as I could make out Or did I get that wrong? Cheers! Nick

cheers Matt maybe i missed it? this is the bird i plan on doing (one day!)...

I ask because I am damned if i can find any either on here, LSP or Britmodeller... I want to see how people handle the fuzzy / mottle type finish over the fuselage lozenge that is required no decals are supplied for this in the kit, and I have done a quick trawl and cannot find any aftermarket either Nick (just tentatively dipping his WNW toe in! )

Nice - that's a mean looking beastie!

Wonderful tutorial!

May we ask why? Given the popularity of the subject that does seen rather strange.

Yeah right! Not sure UK stores know the meaning of the word 'sale', certainly not in any meaningful sense In my experience "25% off" when the original price is like on and half times what I can get it for from the Far East is known as 'taking the p*ss' Still, well done to all you guys Stateside for your purchases - very jealous! Maybe I can purchase vicariously??

hi, i have been researching P-47s based at ALGs near to where I live in Kent I came across these pics of 3T-S 420211 and wondered if anyone had any more info or pictures showing the nose art in a bit more detail? the wiki blurb from the first pic is as follows: "Republic P-47Ds of the 22d Fighter Squadron, 36th Fighter Group, at RAF Kingsnorth, England. Serials 44-20211 and 44-19864 identifiable. The aircraft behind 3T-S/44-20211 is P-47D-22-RE 42-26041 coded 3T-A and nicknamed "Doogan". Aircraft 864 was lost to ground fire on Christmas Eve of that year with LT Charles J. Loring, Jr. at the controls, and he became a POW. During the Korean War, Loring was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor." if all else fails, I am looking at making "Angie" before she was adorned with all the nose art etc - some splendid chap has done a lot of research here: http://www.512thfightersquadron.com/webBooks/Angie%20Evolution%20Diorama.pdf it seems there is lots out there on P-47s once they hopped over to France, but from a modelling perspective, I am only really interested in them during that narrow window when they were here in Kent... cheers Nick

Messerchmitt Bf 109F Robert Michulec MMP Books £15.99 from MMP Books This is the second of Mushroom Model Publications' Yellow Series books I have looked at, the previous covering one of Messerschmitt's lesser known aircraft, the Bf108 Taifun. The same cannot be said for the Bf109 - arguably the most famous aircraft ever, and I say this as a confirmed lover of the Spitfire. This book is in the same format as the Taifun volume, but looks at just one variant of the 109, the F or 'Friedrich' as it is commonly known. It is 128 pages long, and covers the Bf109 F from development, prototypes, production and experimental airframes. It contains numerous colour and black and white photographs - the former largely museum walkarounds; scale plans, technical drawings and colour profiles. Although the Table of Contents would indicate numerous sub-sections, I think the book can be looked at in three main parts: development and production; colour profiles; and walkaround. The first section provides the briefest of backgrounds and looks at the Bf109 E or 'Emil'. We then quickly look at initial development and prototypes, which includes W.Nr. (serial) and Stammkenzeichen (four letter aircraft code) where know. There is a particularly interesting section showing the various supercharger intakes that were toyed with on the Versuchs (prototype) airframes, before a production standard was agreed upon. We then look at the main variants such as F-0, F-1, F-2 and F-4, along with the Trop and 'z' versions. Included here are plans in 1/48 a large colour profile in pull-out format. The Friedrich upper wing was unusual and different from all other 109s - both before and after - in its use of a single sheet of metal ie no panel lines for almost all the wing; I do not think the plans have this correct. Different engines and different propellers are covered. I like the fact that the book actually gives you serial numbers of the later, and illustrates the differences side by side; these are subtle and not often visible in period photos if the angle is not kind or clarity lacking. However as far as I can tell they miss the point that propellers were directly related to engine type, which is quite an important characteristic when studying the Luftwaffe. They are also rather ambiguous in the treatment of the Trop aircraft; those far more knowledgeable than me assert that there were no F-2 Trops - the supercharger intake of these aircraft was such that it could not take the attachment of tropical filter. And whilst they do seem to cover the use of external braces at the tail well, no mention of the two types of seats used that I could see is disappointing. For those interested in one-offs and experimental aircraft, there are some nice pictures of Galland's two upgraded Friedrichs, as well as an airframe fitted with underwing rocket packs (not WGr 21s in case you thought you knew about these). The first section takes us to page 52; the second comprises the colour profiles - some thirty or so. There are a number of upper and lower elevations included which is always nice. Time does not permit me to examine the accuracy of these renditions, but as always, I advise caution when choosing to model from profiles, as even the best make mistakes. The final section is entitled Detail Photos and begins on page 78. It provides 45 pages of detailed information on pretty much all aspects of the airframe, through colour and black and white photos, technical diagrams and some CG / 3D renderings. The modern colour pics are all walkarounds of the F-4z at the Canadian Museum in Ottawa (WNr 10132). The problem here is that although the book acknowledges parts have also been used from another airframe (WNr26129), they do not say what variant this other plane was, or more importantly what parts have been used. I am almost as suspicious of museum pics as I am of colour profiles, if detailed provenance is not given. Many of the technical diagrams are taken from the original manual, complete with scribblings in German. These are complemented by period photos both of 109s in the field, and from images in flying manuals etc. Conclusion I am inclined to be a little more favourable to this book than the recent Kagero Monograph on the Friedrich, perhaps because it has less pretensions, and is a lot easier to read; even though I think some of the technical information is similarly 'foggy'. At £15.99 for the MMP title, there is probably more bang for your buck in the Kagero book. Should Valiant Wings bring out a title on the Friedrich - as they have for the Emil - that would be the book I would go for in a heartbeat. Recommended With thanks to MMP Books for the review sample. To purchase directly, click THIS link. Nicholas Mayhew

no images!!!!

Wow This is pretty hardcore stuff Most impressive

wonderful detailing work what are your impressions on the kit itself no you are getting a bit more 'stuck in' to it? there have been some (oft rather heated) discussions on Britmodeller regarding the accuracy of this kit - but from what I can gather it is pretty decent overall, with some detail discrepancies that most (though not all) will be happy to live with personally, i love the Hornet shape because of its affinity to the Mosquito, but as a subject would give it a miss because it is post WWII very much enjoying what you are bringing to us here on LSM with this thank you

TSR.2 in 1/32

Remind us who is doing the Do335 again?

Ben makes a good point: you can model a WWII version from what I understand with their conversion bits? Exciting stuff! Did you get to speak to them at all? Thoughts on 'Mossiegte'??

Beautiful!