Artful69

(Insert Grace Randolph meme here) Soooooo ... Package number 4 arrived today - Yeppers that's Sunday here in WA ... BNA Modelworld have this weird obsession with using couriers for interstate shipping. I have no idea why since on their e-Bay web page they advertised Australia Post ... Consequently, instead of arriving inside the usual week and a half this package took 3 weeks. Note to fellow Aussies ... avoid using Aramex/Fastway (or Sloway as I prefer to refer to them). Ok ... I'm impressed with Border Model ... I like their style ... Some may not and that's ok ... but I decided I'd like to get into their kits of the back of a really good look at their in box reviews ... (Insert G.R. "Soooooo") I grabbed these 5 ... Out of all 5 ... This is the likely first build ... as it would be for the Kursk setup I'm looking at. Ironically it's also kit number 1 in their lineup. For some odd reason they skipped a Pz.IV release for kit number 2 and went for a modern Leopard ... I skipped that one and went for kit number 3 ... and earlier model short barrelled F.1 ... I don't know whether the idea for the Leopard was a pre production aberration or theirs ... but pretty much everything since that kit (including their up coming 1/35 aircraft) has followed the WWII line ... and kit number 4 follows a more logical sequence - An F.2 / (early) G ... The next of Border's kit releases (number 5) looks at the peak of up gunning / up armouring / up spec-ing of the Pz.IV - the Ausf.H ... with 4 bonus "chaps" included in this kit ... And the final version of the Pz.IV which was partly an attempt at lightening the vehicle to give it more speed and agility - the Ausf.J ... Once the Border Tiger.I kit hits the shelves here along with the Mk.III Crusader ... I'll snaffle another purchase ... meanwhile I'll halt here and start working out a dio template ... Rog

... And that was my point lads ... His initial question could seem innocent enough - as in "Why do you have the opinion that you do?" Under those conditions if he'd have come back to my reasoning with "fair enough ... just be mindful that the kit does have a few accuracy flaws when compared with other kits (like the Dragon or RFM) - if you have a particular subject in mind that you need any help with, hit me up - I have plenty of resource material on the subject" ... I would have been all ears! ... It was the wording that had me on alert - Though initially I played along and supplied him with the "opinion" that he asked for. Unfortunately his narcissistic personality came to the fore all to quickly ... He may have been right in some of his factual analysis on kit accuracy issues and lets face it - in modelling everyone has their own degree of meticulous attention to detail - and I'll never knock anyone for being more focused on a particular set of details than me. I used to be particularly OCD with my daily routine and discipline ... But when someone expects everyone to pay attention to their logic and reasoning, while dismissing everyone else as "out of their depth" or some other vaguely veiled put down ... it's time to flip the bird! This guy alluded to me being "offended" (which I wasn't - I was actually laughing my ar$e off as I typed my responses) at him "sharing information that I didn't have" and this next bit which was really too rich "You seem to be "offended" that someone else's opinion could be "superior" (your word, I didn't say it). Well, my friend, that's life. That is why you pay for a doctor's opniion, or a lawyer's opinion. They know things." I mean ... REALLY?!?!? ... He's a professional what? Tiger.I Model Connoisseur?? If you need to know anything about Tigers - here's my card, give me a call?? Annnnnnnnnnnyyyyyy-way ... moving on! ** And just so you lot know ... occasionally I do, in fact, solicit advice from our community ... sometimes by asking direct questions ... other times indirectly ... commentary and advice are always welcome - its appreciated that people will take time to offer a response, share their experience, knowledge etc and share references ... for THAT I am grateful ** Rog

So ... Who here has heard of Andy's Hobby Headquarters?? ... Well ... I'm subscribed to this You Tube Channel ... which I find very useful for Modelling news, In box reviews and build reviews ... not to mention the cool hints and tips. The guy is about my speed - detailed but not overly pedantic. I don't have time to watch all of his videos ... but those I do I always leave a like and a comment for - because with You Tubers, this little action helps them out... Usually it's something uplifting or encouraging. In this case Andy was giving an overview of the new Border Tiger.I kit ... Like any kit ... from any manufacturer ... I assume that it has it's deficiencies - that's always a given. Quite frankly ... looking at the RFM, Takom, Meng and Border model kits from recent times, I'm staggered at the increased level of detail available ... Compared to the "benchmark" Dragon kits of the late "noughties" there tend to be less sprue and sub assemblies - for pretty much the same result. Add to that Takom's new "Blitz" style of link-and-length track arrangement and a similar thing from Border Model and suddenly you have highly detailed kits that don't take a lot of time to build! So I left: "We've come a long way since Dragon Tigers!! ... Waiting for this one ..." Ok Rog ... I hear you say ... I grabbed my popcorn to watch you rant ... where is it?? ... So ... I think there's one that pops up on every forum at one time or other ... (Radu on LSP for example) ... People who know it ALL ... and are excellent in starting S%$T-fights because they can't resist sticking their nose in to provide you with a correction or some sort of unsolicited advice ... you know the type? ... the ones that think you bought something / are approaching a task a certain way / have a certain viewpoint - only because you lack their superior level of knowledge or wisdom - which they are all to ready to provide you with all while doing their best to remind you of how inferior to them that you are ... and when you try to politely tell them exactly where they can go and shove their superior attitude ... they seem to think that you can't handle a "conversation" with someone who is trying to "help" or that you can't handle "facts" or "truth" ... all the while missing the point of your ire completely. Well ... Thats what happened with my comment on Andy's ... Some AH who goes by the handle "Davey Byrden" decided that My Opinion was all wrong ... "My Opinion" mind!! "Could you explain what direction we've come a "long way" in ? I don't believe you can say this kit is better than a Dragon Tiger kit in every respect. So how are you judging it?" An innocent enough looking question yeah?? ... Just look at the way its phrased though!! ... Do I mind explaining myself (as if I had the audacity to blaspheme against his Holy Opinion) ... He doesn't believe I can say what I am saying (as if I give a rolling rats rear end!!) ... So he want's to correct my "errors" - but he can't do that without making gross assumptions you see?? - so he starts off here by trying to find out why I look at this kit the way that I do. So ... I'm happy to provide him with my judgement - which is really me just giving him my opinion. He follows up with exactly what I expected ... trying to lecture me on what my misconceptions were and why my opinion was wrong ... Of course I can't just tell him to go forth and multiply (and believe me I sincerely wanted to!!) and that of course - is when the faeces hit the propulsion device in a big way ... and from the couple of follow up exchanges we had I still can't tell whether he just thought his opinion was right or he didn't get that his approach was all wrong - it was like he was looking for an argument ... of course the result is always the same - he wanted to blame me for his pi$$poor attitude toward someone having a different opinion. I scrolled down and looked through a couple of the negative comments on the vid - and sure enough - this idiot shows up on them agreeing the that kit is poor - but disagreeing as to why ... I think he got the message though ... Rog

Well ... Here in Perth Western Australia it's pretty much same old same old ... We did have a 1 week patch of rain in January following a slightly unusual weather system combination of a Cyclone out in the middle of the Indian ocean coupled with a weird seasonally unusual intense low pressure storm of the southern most tip of the west coast. But my greatest sympathies go out to that lot over east ... if it isn't a major famine ... its a well overcooked flood!! Rog

I recently ordered a locally patented product for my ute ... The "Ute Barrier" from South Aust .... It's a cool adjustable device for dividing up the tub of the ute into compartments so that stuff doesn't roll around everywhere ... It might be a cool Idea for bigger pick up trucks in the USA also?? ... It arrived today - although It might be a few days before I get time to install it ... when I do I'll post some pics ... but I have a priority on setting up the modelling bench for a serious assembly line first. Rog

Package number 3 arrived today ... no modelling stuff though ... It's my "Ute Barrier" ... pics and info on the car thread ... Rog

lol ... I wish I had my modelling budget!!! Lost count ... know I can go in the stash room and get petty much whatever I want whenever I want though

Today box number 2 arrived ... I had forgotten exactly what I ordered apart from these ... Because I wanted to depict a platoon on the march I needed a few of the same sort and as stated previously these "Blitz" kits seem to be the right kits for the job ... Decal variation for the tank numbers will be provided via a Dragon kit of the same ilk with an oversupply!! ... I need a Tiger for that Kursk dio (and a Pz.Kfpw.IV Ausf.G) ... But this one is not it ... The markings in THIS box are for Whittmans tiger (options are for both at Kursk and later) ... after seeing the Tiger kit Border is about to release in the not-too-distant future ... AND with the markings for 2 Kursk vehicles in the right unit (S.Pz.Abt 505) - the decision to hold on the Tiger acquisition FOR THE DIO was made ... This Tiger is a Rye Field Model kit that was on sale with a decent discount. As you can see ... The box is fairly chunky ... This is because the kit contains a full interior AND alternative clear parts for the upper hull and turret ... It will make a great solo display piece ... although without using the markings ... *** Interlude: I've never felt uncomfortable building or displaying German arms for WWII (or Japanese for that matter) ... even with the crooked black cross thing on the tailplane of aircraft or on flags draped across tanks for IFF. A military arm or weapon is just that - regardless of the regime. However I draw a line at assembling and displaying anything SS related - the politically fanatical wing of the military ... which is why this tank will be displayed without Whittmans makings when it is done. *** I feel that you can never have enough figurines laying about for Panzer crew or auxiliaries ... so I grabbed a couple of boxes that caught my eye. The Tamiya one has 4 complete figures and 4 torso only Rog

The first package arrived in my Latest series of acquisitions ... I finally snaffled the Revel boxing of the Dragon Bf.110C ... There are some markings for a B.o.B bird (the main reason for the purchase of this kit) plus the added bonus of not having to constantly compare the Dragon instructions with the errata sheet i have on standby from the last effort. And then the first couple of a series of Takom kits For a "Kursk" project ... These "Blitz" kits should do the job nicely! ... Three more packages inbound ... 2 are modelling related Rog

Steve ... Once again ... thanks for the translated info ... and now I can decipher some of it for you ... III-k will be referring to the earlier model short barrelled KwK 38 50mm / L-42 ... a mistake made by the armaments department which began and ended with the early Ausf.J - though retrofitted to some Ausf F, G & H models as well ... Long outdated, this will account for the small numbers making up a divisions strength III-l will be referring to the later long barrelled KwK 39 50mm / L-60 ... The weapon originally requested of the ministry for arms production for all Pz.III's ... and was fitted to all Later Ausf.J's and then K, L and M variants ... III-7.5 is referring to the Ausf.N - the final iteration of the Panzer III - which was basically an Ausf.L or M with the main armament swapped out for same short barrelled KwK 37 75mm / L-24 that the Pz.Kpfw.IV used at the beginning of the war - and finally replacing the IV in the infantry support role ... So in fact, these are the NEW short barrelled variant being used. IV-k will be referring to the earlier model short barrelled KwK 37 75mm / L-24 ... leftovers from the Ausf.D through F1 variants ... long outdated and again will account for the small numbers making up a divisions strength here. IV-l represents the longer barrelled high velocity KwK 40 75mm / L-43 of the Ausf.F2 & G variants used during the campaign (easily distinguishable by the type of muzzle break used) ... Later versions of the Pz.Kpfw.IV (Ausf.H and G) would upgrade to the KwK 40 75mm / L-48 which would improve velocity, range, accuracy and penetrative capabilities - though still nowhere near a potent as the KwK 42 75mm / L-70 of the Panther. ** Insert Edit here!! ... Upon further research it appears that the L-48 upgrades began in March of 1943 and some of the Ausf.G variants present during the campaign were equiped with these ... although which ones, I have no idea! ** In short though ... The info provided (along with the translation) tells me all I'll need really ... In 3.Rgt Panzer Platoons seem to be made up of 4 tanks ... The Panzer III Ausf.M's then to stick together in traditional MBT formations in tanks 1-4 whereas the Ausf.N's and Panzer IV Ausf.G's seem to be a mixed bunch ... I still haven't found any direct evidence of Sd.Kfz.252's attached directly to these companies - even though we knew there must have been - so I have no idea which variant and what markings ... yet ... Rog

... And you sir - are a steely eyed missile man! That is one great bit of research Steve ... I mean - I honestly spent about 5-6 hours on and off trying different searches on Google to try to find out info - Trying "Pz.Abt 505 Kursk 1943" I got not much at all - except for about 3 pictures and a bit of info about the Heavy detachments at Kursk in general (apparently the 505th suffered less casualties / equipment losses than most of the others) ... One decent thing that MY research netted ... I'll be buying and using the new Border Tiger.I kit when it makes an appearance here ... From the MBK review, in the instruction sheet it has 2 markings in the kit for 505 at kursk - none of the other kits to hand have any for the 505th and the Border kit looks to be super! Also ... You provided a LINK in your first post ... and my dumbass brain somehow interpreted that as ordinary, underlined text - for whatever insane reason So I've bookmarked the link ... and I'll actually LOOK at the info you've given me a link to ... a little later today. I'm thinking of starting this one up as a WIP too ... input will be most welcome - And I promise to actually LOOK at links in future! Rog

You can tell I've been away for a loooooooong time when I had to read this thread through from start to finish to catch up on the news - Big shout out to Fran for starting the thread ... a whole bunch of news and opinions condensed down to 5 pages so far ... Lovely! So now I'll throw in my 2 cents ... I'm waiting for that Whirlwind!! Of the advertised lot here, the P.40 is the standout for me ... as long as GWH are accurate - otherwise I'll stick with Hasegawa ... The Gladiator looks great also ... I don't know if Infinity will have their 1/32 Val out this year but I'll be in for one of those. Border look to be producing some AWESOME 1/35 Armour kits so far ... but with only a few (good to excellent btw) build reviews around the place I can only say that they LOOK accurate and like they'd go together well ... I honestly don't know how well Aircraft will sell in 1/35 - but I will say that if they are anything like their armour counterparts at least they should be detailed and accurate ... perhaps Border are already creating airfield vehicles and dio stuff in 1/35 that will suit them them?? ... I don't have any issues with 1/35 A/C ... I won't be buying them though! What I WILL be buying - as soon as the suckers are released here - Is their new Tiger I (Early) ... Just had a walk through the sprues with MBK and it is delicious!! I've said this elsewhere ... Tamiya really cemented 1/35 scale a while back smashing out 3-5 kits per year ... but when Dragon came along producing sometimes 5-8 different kits every MONTH they COULD have swapped it over to 1/32 easily and everyone would have followed suit ... they didn't - so we're stuck with 2 different scales. I'm about to go on an expedition into the world of Takom Blitz kits ... they are decently priced, look like they are accurate, have lovely detail and are a relatively simple build with link and length tracks as opposed to those rubber band things (ugh!). I don't care how detailed the DS tracks were for Dragon - in my mind they were a step backwards from Magic Track ... I suppose this Neo (link and length) stuff is a good compromise?? Anyway ... Kits I'm miffed are not here are: Trumpeters 1:16 Pz.Kfpw.III Ausf.M and StuG.III Ausf.G HGW's 1/32 A-20G Havoc HK's 1/32 Ju.52 and can SOMEONE ... from SOMEWHERE - even Trumpeter/HobbyBoss (JUST KIDDING!!) ... PLEASE kit a 1/32 Do.17z with BoB markings ... Rog

Steve ... I just dug this up a little while ago ... This (of course) does not list the combat strength of various divisions and units but it DOES give a listing of units under their various commands ... Does the circled section indicate the 2nd Panzer division ... and if so ... would they have been likely to encounter vehicles such as the Tigers of the 505th listed below and in the column to the left? Rog

W.O.W ... Thanks for digging THAT lot up ... I didn't find anything like that during my hours looking online yesterday ... I don't know how you distilled that info from the text provided ... but you're a champ for doing so!! I'll definitely go hunting around using the search parameters you've given me ... At the moment though I'm trying to work out unit organisation ... and it's like finding a needle in a haystack. My Pz.III.M kit directs for markings for any of 5 or 6 Kompanie's AFV's in 3.Rgt ... Yet unless they mixed them up with other variants - that can't be so because both the Pz.III Ausf.N and Pz.IV Ausf.G have markings depicting vehicles in 6 Kompanie ... --- All the Dragon kits I have to hand at the moment have the appropriate decals 2x Pz.IV Ausf.G (one with Magic Track ... One with DS) ... The Pz.III Ausf.N has Magic Track ... and although the Pz.III Ausf.M kit has DS only - it DOES contain surplus white numerals which will come in handy for other M kits. I'm about to pull the trigger on a couple of the Takom Blitz Kits which should be more than suffice ... I doubt I'll need heavy interior detail with figurines poking out of every available open orifice and the link-and-length track style is MUCH better than DS I think ... I figure 4x III.M's, 2x III.N's and a IV.G ... If I can identify a specific Späh vehicle I'll throw that one in to the mix as well ... I might need to get additional solid white decals in the correct font and a wider selection of panzer crew figurines ... Thanks again! Rog

Assistance required ... So ... I'm wanting to create a Kursk On-The-March style Dio ... similar to the B&W photo below ... And before you correct me on markings ... YES, I know this is a different division ... I'm just using the photo as an example of the type of scenery I was wanting to create. The closest info I can find for what I want ... as per the below photos ... According to the Dragon Pz.III.M kit I have the insignia is from the 2.Pz Div (white trident looking marking no.2 on the decal sheet), the coat of arms on the turret schürzen is from Rgt.3 (shield marking no.1 on the decal sheet) and the solid white Panzer ID numbers (marked A on the decal sheet) Now ... aparently, at Kursk, There was a whole bunch of Pz.III.M's, N's, Pz.IV.G's sporting that Shield emblem ... and I what I need to know is: How were the regiments made up ... where the Kompanie's mixed III.M's and N's and IV.G's or just 4 or 5 tanks of one sort?? What was the organisation ... Where these 3 types the only ones or did they include StuG's, Panthers or Tigers alongside?? ... What I might also need is a acquire additional white numbers, shields and or 2nd Panzer insignia TIA for any assistance ... Rog

Ok ... Gotta ask ... Is this your first Border Model kit ... and how does the detail/fit/finish compared with Dragon, Takom, Meng etc ... I have to be honest ... I've considered pulling the trigger on some of these newer kits with the separate track links ... I've gone off Dragon since they ditched Magic Track in favour of those rubber band things. Rog

No - there is no 1/200 SBY Yamato ... Just wishful thinking Rog

HK did a Uhu?? ... When? Where? How? ... I've got the ZM one ... and I know Revell did a couple ... Rog

Swoon over that kit!!! ... another Macross lover ... Now if I could only get my hands on an SBY 2199 in 1/200 ... with Falcons/Seagulls etc ... that would make my year!! ... and probably be the biggest box in my stash ... as it is it'll be a toss up between the HK heavies, the Airfix 1/24 Mosquito or the Trumpeter 1/16 Panther ... Don't have time to measure them ... Rog

Ok ... I'll bite ... all in 1/32 of course ... - A Dornier Do.17z - A Junkers Ju.52 - A new tooled and accurate Mk.Ia/b Spitfire ... by either Tamiya or ZM - Same for the Mk.Vb - An accurate Bf.109.G-6 (although I think ZM has one in the works - It'd be nice if Tamiya upscaled their excellent 1/48 version) - The FLY Model Hurricanes are lovely ... but I'd like a Tamiya or ZM one .. Mk.I of course. - A.20 Havoc ... HpH were doing one in resin, then it was going to be HGW ... then it was going to be plastic ... and now it's vapourware!! - A Boulton Paul Defiant - A Vickers Wellington - A New tool Beaufighter Rog

Corvette ... swoon! Is that the set up that was designed to win Le-Mans?? The exhaust - headers (1 & 3/4 primary's in a 3' collector) and hi-flow cats included was AUD $1599 from a local called Empire Performance ... Designed by the guy who does the dyno tuning specifically to fit the Holden Commodore - it's a modular stainless steel unit. The VCM OTR intake complete with blanking panels was $575 ... It has a K&N panel filter ... OTR systems were specially designed here for the Holden Commodore (exported there as a Chev SS) by a number of companies ... My Auto Tech didn't like them because engines that he'd rebuilt had filth all through the intake manifold. He suggested the pod filter set up (again K&N) which was designed for the previous model (Exported there as a Pontiac G8). I searched forever and couldn't find one in stock and was eventually advised by K&N Australia that we wouldn't be getting any more into the country. Mitch, from WA Performance - who has been working on Holden/GM products for over 30 years - and who was used by Empire to do the post mod tune said that the first OTR models didn't pinch the filter tight enough or the casing expanded in the heat and let too much unfiltered air through and that was the likely reason for my Auto Techs aversion to them. He said the second Iteration of the VCM was much better all round but suggested I clean the filter panel every 2-3000 Km's anyway ... so with that in mind, I bought a spare - so I can wash, dry and re-oil at my leisure I'll have to keep your tip handy for cleaning my ... tips!! Rog

Actually I'm no hoon ... so it won't be sideways round any corners soon ... BUT the thing drives so much less restricted ... the sound is to die for - expecially cold starts in the morning! ... and I'm averaging 1L/100Kms less in fuel consumption. I can't wait to get the videos edited for the Tube ... Rog

yeah ... for whatever reason the URLs wouldn't take from Imgur ... I could of directly uploaded but it takes F.O.R.E.V.E.R ... I found a workaround to fix ... but its a pain in the sphincter ... still quicker than a direct upload tho!! Rog

On December 2 & 3 my ute went in for some minor performance modifications ... Intake ... and exhaust ... As you can see the results are impressive ... I'm told that HP at the rear wheels is indicative of Kw at the fly wheel ... Stock ... the ute made 270Kw at the fly wheel ... which would have been about 270HP at the rear wheels so a 90HP gain from an OTR (with MAF retained), engine back free flow exhaust ... and a tune not bad eh? ... Thats's a 1/3 power gain. Rog

Im sure its a good rivalry ... Hard fought and intense ... but quickly laid aside when enemies arrive ... Like ANZACS ... We give the Kiwis heaps (and it's returned!!) but they are our brothers in blood in the fight. My AFL football team (Adelaide Crows) song is played to the Marine Corps Hymn ... "The Pride of South Australia" ... Dad was often found whistling Colonel Bogey when I was growing up ... decades long after leaving the BEF. Rog