DocRob

Just found some guys to man your 10/5. They are from Nato in Miniatures, # SOGA-14 Cheers Rob

You are a lucky man, with your wife showing interest in your builds. My better half is an engineering consultant who has a deep connection to ships engines, the bigger, the better, automotive parts and other sophisticated stuff, but excludes my modelling in her praises, but I love her nevertheless. My finished kits go into boxes, until there is no more space and then wherever. With you guys here, I started to take photos of my builds, that mean I have some reminders of old builds left now. On my tiny island, there is a neighbor, born in Angola, but Madeira rooted, who was a member of the Légion étrangère with a quite bizarre story of his live to tell, who is very interested in my modelling. I gave him some of my builds as a present. He, a farmer now pays back with lots of fresh vegetables, black potatoes and even some Vinho verde, which is all much appreciated. Cheers Rob

Like many of you, I build lots of Airfix and Matchbox kits when I was a kid, brush painted them and was never satisfied with the result. Getting older, I abandoned modelling completely, but being an engineer I never lost interest in planes and other subjects. In my twenties I was very interested in product design and photography and started with airbrushing illustrations only on paper. About ten years ago, I found myself in a very difficult phase in my life and lost my focus of the future. To relax my ever working sensors and my unsteady mind, I turned to modelling again, using it as a mind relaxing kind of 'lava lamp'. Fully concentrating on a model eased my mind and helped me to get my live arranged newly. What is left of that time, is that I love to build paint and weather, but after finishing a kit, I loose interest in it, the deed is done. Finding you lot here was and is my only modelling connection to the outer world, as my wife is not interested in modelling and most of my friends are not as well. Now my life is perfectly in sync since some years, I'm happy where I am and this reflects well into the hobby too. For one thing there is limited bench time due to lots of other hobbies and slowly but surely my interests in subjects shifts. I still build kits, mostly planes and some Armor preferable in LS, but my mindset starts to change. I consider building wooden ships in LS and have already started one. Other projects involve Steam Punk resin kits in LS which will be displayed in illuminated dios and casted in clear resin blocks. There will be a copper submarine towed to a jetty above a colourful coral reef with some people diving around. These are only a few future projects, which show, that my focus changes to a more; let's call it 'freestyle' way of modelling. This involves to permanently learn new techniques, which I really love to do. What is a permanent guideline in my modelling approach is, that a subject has to fascinate me, be it design-, engineering- or otherwise. There is no fixation on a political or historical background, because if I would do, I would tend to be in the footsteps of Hubert here and don't build WWII birds or armor and specially not Axis ones. Being a little schizophrenic here is part of the deal and yes, sometimes it feels false to build weapons with a high grade of accuracy, which I am very happy not to have seen in action, but hey who is perfect. Cheers Rob

Hehe, thanks Carl, I almost chickened out myself, but for the fixated idea to leave the well detailed cockpit open to show everything in it. The very thick canopy is good, because of it's stability while sawing, but it takes some time to get through with trembling hands. I know about the AMS wheelsets, smooth and threaded, but they seam not easy to source. Living on a little island with a dedicated tax system has it's benefits, but lots of vendors don't deliver here. Thanks Gaz, be my guest , The Nachtigall, of which existed only a few for testing purpose and the Arado 234 in general are really interesting subjects technically. A milestone in engineering, a twin engine layout and fast enough to outpace every allied plane in midair. The engineers didn't bother to install defensive weapons except some backward firing cannons for tests, which proved unsuccessful and therefore where not added anymore. The reconnaissance version flew so high, with very little vibrations, that the delivered images where crystal sharp. There is lots to tell about that bird, which always fascinated me. By the time the Fly kit hit my radar, I knew I had to get one and I suspect, that a future one from ZM might not be looking better oob. The resin of the Fly kit is marvelous and the plastic is ok. The ZM may be easier to build, but until now, I found nothing too difficult to achieve on that Fly kit until now, beeing a short run one. If you do the reconnaissance version, even the needed surgery is limited. Cheers Rob

Thanks Wumm, you possibly could argue both ways. I found no real evidence, being it one way or the other. What I found is a pic of the internal structure of a wooden mock up build. It shows, that there is no internal structure at the top of the fuselage behind the bulkhead of the backwards fuel tank (That is where the camera compartments were in the reconnaissance version. The upper hatches for the cameras have differently shaped outlines, than either the oval window or the full upper fuselage segment. They are bigger than the oval, rectangular with rounded edges. The oval opening for the night fighter version (measured from the kit part) would have been about 60 cm x 53 cm. A very narrow hatch to an already cramped space. Not easy to access, with a flight suit and an attached parachute.

Thank you Rick, normally I don't like being observed to closely, but being watched by the masters is just great . Cheers Rob

Thanks Hubert, without evidence I had the same thought, given the rectangular openings in the reconnaissance variant fuselage for removing the cameras. Cheers Rob

I've got one question for the experts here. In the pic you see the transparent part, covering the radio operators workplace. It seems, that only the oval part is transparent. But which part is opening for entering. Only the oval, or the whole rectangle? I'd appreciate every information you possibly have, my Kagero books are no help here, because they didn't cover the nightfighter variant. Cheers Rob

Hola Senhores, today I took all my cojones together and did more of the feared surgery work on the clear canopy. I want the cockpit to be open, so it had to be. I used some Kabuki tape for the borders and added Dynotape on the Kabuki. I did that, because the Dynotape left some black marks on the fuselage after removal. For cutting I used first a scalpel and then different kind of 0,1mm razor saws, because I want to use the cut rectangle as the opened canopy roof. After a nerve tangling hour, I'm now in line for a whiskey to cool down a little. What a relief, I didn't broke the canopy nor did I leave scratches. I then glued the halved wheels together and evaluated, if I use them or if I source some resin substitutes. Dimension wise the wheels seem a little bit off, if the Kagero book is correct. The main wheels have a diameter of 29 mm, where 29,9 would have been right, the front wheel should have been 17,92 mm in diameter and is 18,7 mm. Getting resin wheels, specially with a diamond pattern seems not too easy and therefore I measured all my German resin wheels. The closest was the Do-335 wheel wich has a diameter of 31 mm. The kit wheels don't look too bad, so I might use these after flattening them a little. Cheers Rob

Another masterpiece, thanks for letting us peek. Cheers Rob

Stunning, it looks like the real thing. Cheers Rob

Wow, impressive work on you Sherman. Seeing yours being detailed superbly, I feel ashamed about starting mine oob . Cheers Rob

This is looking superb, nice scratching by the way. Cheers Rob

Same with me here. The Spit to me had the worst 'landing gear down ugliness enhancement factor' of all planes. Looks elegant and sleek in the air, but looses all of it on the ground, because of that spidery, flimsy looking narrow undercarriage. Yeah I know, it was not built to please the eye. I have no 1/32 Spit in my stash, but two XVI's in 1/48 which will be displayed one on the ground and the other flying above. The one on the ground with visible Brassin engine, and cockpit and opened gun areas in camo, while the flying one will be a racer. I often thought about a XVI from Tamiya in 1/32, but resisted, since the 1/48 from Eduard is just great. Cheers Rob

Your little kite looks great so far and benefits from your beautiful scratch work. I just started a Fly Arado 234 and have to say, good that there are not many tubular structures involved but you have to love Fly for their not so common portfolio. Cheers Rob

I wish you luck and a steady hand with the Erbsentarn on the anoraks . Cheers Rob

Muchas gracias Hombres, Yeah Ryan, it is a super cool plane and tres cool kit. Thanks Mike, I never looked for the MDC one, but will gather some information about it. Thanks Wumm, exactly doing the hard things first is my general approach on kits, specially mixed media kits. If something goes terribly wrong it is the way to the bin without wasting to much time and effort. Thanks Carl. The cockpit will be up next and I will dig in the books too. Definitely planned is wiring the instruments. Cheers Rob

Hola fellow Modellistas, after some positive resonance in another thread, I will do a WIP about my build of the Fly Arado 234. I bought the kit some years ago and always had the itch to built it soon and as a nightfighter.B-2N version. Now, that ZM announced a new 234, I felt it is about time to build mine without being tempted to buy a new one. I call that, err, stash management . I always had a soft spot for the sleek and slender silhouetted Arado jet. It's technical advantages, design and engineering makes it a standout. Generally I don't really much enjoy to build German subjects, but some are so fascinating, that I make an exception. The kit looks great in the seemingly small box, the plastic is a little crude in spots and the amount of cleanup is a little higher, than with some of the usual suspects, but nothing to worry about. The resin parts are breathtaking in detail and seem to fit very good to the plastic. on some of the bigger parts it's not even necessary to remove the pouring stubs. I will not bore you with a review, because James made a brilliant one in our place in the web. This is a different version of the 234, but all the main components are the same. There is not a lot of AM around and I will use the masks from Fly, seatbelts from HGW, a Neptun antler from Master and last but not least the Yahu Cockpit set, which is not a PE IP-board, but single bezels with dials. This is clever, as the kit provided are good and very visible and the different panels which consist of instruments are in various different places in the cockpit. The dials and bezels are printed in Colour and in a very shiny finish, and the manual recommends, that you cover some flat base on the bezels and keep the dials like they are in high gloss finish. I also have the two Kagero monographs along, which show a lot of plans, renderings and pics, but unfortunately don't show the night fighter layout. An here is where the trouble starts. I have no idea, how the window of the operator in the back looks. Even the Fly boxart of two different issues show a rectangle window on mine and a oval window on the actual version. If somebody can enlighten me, I will be pleased. The Yahu set Being a short run kit without locator pins test fitting is a lot and so I cleant the mayor components and was positively surprise, be the seemingly good fit. I decided to start with the surgery of the fuselage and canopy, because if I would have had a mayor fail here, there would have been no WIP. First was the fuselage opening for the operator in the back. It is necessary to remove a rectangle part from the fuselage, to insert the provided clear part. I used dynotape for the borders and cut with a saw and scalpels. After a little sanding it looks like this. And here is a little preview of what's in the fuselage. The backward facing place of the operator is supplied in resin parts, which seem to fit without cutting and grinding, splendid. I only cut the cast block of the backward bulkhead, only to get the opening in it into the fuselage. The second area of surgery was the canopy and it proved to be not too easy. you have to drill elliptical holes for the struts which carry the Neptun radar. Boy, how I hate to drill, grind and cut into clear parts. I used the measurements in the manual and copied them onto Kabuki tape onto the canopy. Then I drilled and grinded. You have to be precise while doing it, anticipating the angle of the struts. The result looks like this. The upper struts are a bit to much to the back, but I hope, I can arrange the struts properly, because filling and drilling again is no option. I did all these surgeries, before applying a coat of Future to the cockpit, which hopefully enhances the clearness and makes applying the provided decals trouble free. Like James, I firstly wanted to open the front and rear canopy, but after the drilling job, I'm not that sure anymore. While cutting the fuselage with the dynotape, I noticed black residues after removing the tape, a killer for a clear canopy. So for now, the bird will stay closed up. That's where I am now, reading my books about the 234. Be warned, that will not be a fast build, because there are others in line and I will do it proper. Hasta pronto Cheers Rob

I'm not picky with the scale. For me it is about the 'WANT-factor'. If there is a kit which attracts my sensors, I add it to my stash, mostly with a more or less fixed idea of the finished build. Although I prefer 1/32, I'm not dogmatic about it. My size limit are twin engine planes in 1/32, so the announced B-17 in 1/48 scale is my go to option. I have lots of 1/48 planes and 1/35 armor and even a few 1/72 kits and Steam punk and Sci Fi stuff in 1/20 and 1/32, Cars in 1/24. About figures it has to be at least 1/48, better 1/32, 75mm or even some 1/10 busts. I have no fixed plan in buying stuff, like only allied planes in 1/32, I'm always in search of interesting subjects and love to be carried away by influences and ideas and sometimes influencers, like you . Cheers Rob

I never expected this , twin engine layout, 1/48 and definitely not a Corsair. Pity that they never built a twin Corsair . The Ventura though is a very interesting plane and I look forward to you doing some twin magic. Cheers Rob

Maybe this will be my next project. I always wanted to build the Arado 234, but why now. The answer is easy, I want to do the Fly kit before somebody (namely ZM) is tempting me with their version. I will do a nightfighter version, but am not decided if it will be mottled or splinter camoed. So far the kit looks great, the plastic is a little crude in some areas, but that's no real deal breaker. the numerous resin parts look great, finely detailed and on some you don't even have to remove the cast plugs. If you do a two seater version, you have to do some fuselage surgery,..... I'm going to far in this thread, maybe I do a WIP. Cheers Rob

What I have are some subpar pics from Pensacola, showing a SBD-2 And a SBD-4 from Yanks Air Museum in Chino Belly is looking off white to me. Hope these pics help a little. Cheers Rob

I'm leaning in, though I have no information to share, but the very same kit in stash, that might be one of my next builds. I'm all ears, gents. Cheers Rob

Your Tiger is looking pretty cool in it's half metal appearance. I like the look of your fine PE work, and it's almost a shame to see it covered with paint. Will there be any dents and bruises, because PE is perfect to replicate that. Cheers Rob

Thanks Mike, my cave is the coolest part of the house, but with summer lurking outside the potential distractions raise to infinite. Cheers Rob