Artful69

So ... just to remind me when I come to fix mine ... what do you do? - cut 2mm off the rear edge, glue it and fill it to the wing and the assemble slats as normal? Rog

I grabbed the 410 a while back ... I have the Walrus in the stash already (as well as the Catapult mentioned above) ... Resin kits can be a pain, I'm told ... I have the GMF Hs.129B-3 in the stash and I'm told there'll be a fair bit of fiddling'n'filling to get it to go together - obviously one to do once I have some resin experience ... but as far as building goes - HpH are the closest to a reasonable IM kit that you'll get (or so I'm told) in terms of assembly and they are certainly well detailed - with enough being supplied in the box so that no AM is really necessary. If you do what should be done with every model kit (IMO) - measure 3 or more times before cutting and dry fit a few times before 'sealing' - I don't foresee too many dramas. As an aside ... I'm told MDC are shutting down the retail side of their business - shame, that - but for Bob's sanity I guess it's a decent option as opportunities open up ... If you want a 1/32 Hawker typhoon or a more accurate Arado 234 (than the new Fly IM one) then now would be the time ... Mirek and the team at HpH usually select subjects that have a minimal chance of being made in the 1/32 IM world - the only exception being the Arado 196 (Revell) which, let's face it, no-one saw coming! ... and even then, HpH got some AM correction gear onto the market for that one anyway! ... I don't think you'll see a 1/32 Me.410 IM on the market for quite some years (if at all) so HpH will be 'it' I'd say. Having said that ... HpH don't tend to 'limit' their runs - which means they'll always have some stock around ... no need to panic about missing out! Cheers Rog

Awesome Matt ... One of my online ref's ( http://www.tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/nazi_germany/Panzer_IV.php ) shows an F1 from Tobruk in March 1941 - It just goes to show you really have to be careful!! To date, I have an Orange Box Pz.III Ausf.G in the stash ... so perhaps one or two more of those ... a couple of Tamiya Sd.Kfz's too ... I also have the Dragon Pz.IV 6301 Ausf.E 'Vorpanzer' and 6315 'Ausf.F1' kits atm ... I was unsure whether to buy additionals of these or go for others, particularly CH 6512 - 'Ausf.D Vorpanzer' and DR 6779 - 'Ausf.D DAK' Considering the siege timeframe: 10 Apr 1941 - 27 Nov 1941 ... Any suggestions re: which kits would be best or appropriate decals for any of the above vehicles? Rog

A couple of arrivals this week ... I've wanted to add this one to the stash for a long time ... When I came round to get one GMF weren't producing them any more ... I tracked one down in Canada to buy ... 3 months to get here - by boat!! (seriously a WTF moment - who does that any more?????) ... still, the prize was worth the wait in the end. Another I've wanted for a while ... an RAF Mustang More to come ... later Rog

Hi All ... I posted this on another forum without much joy earlier ... ... help? It's time for me to order some more gear!! I'm updating my collection of ground gear ... specifically for two dio's I'm designing: Kursk ... and Tobruk 1941 (siege) ... 1/35 scale. Kursk, I pretty much have sorted ... thanks to numerous references in my possession ... but Tobruk is proving a tad more difficult since many of my references refer to the British/Australian side of things. As far as DAK is concerned ... I find reference to machines used in general, throughout the war ... but I'm getting confused with was Rommel had available to him at the time ... I'm assuming the odd Pz.I and II ... but as far as Pz.III and IV are concerned I'm unsure about the 'Ausf.' used at the time and therefore which Dragon/Cyber Hobby kit(s) I should utilise. I know for the Pz.IV that the 'D' was around ... but also the 'E' and 'F' were too? ... and to make matters worse ... the spare parts bin was raided and we have 'franken-panzers' (bits of all of those thrown in!) ... So ... Focus ... Tobruk 1941 ... * Which Ausf. for both III and IV? ... * Which Dragon/C.H kits would be best ... either as a stand alone kits or as base kits and grabbing AM decals?? * I have a preference also for Magic Tracks over the new DS arrangement ... but that wouldn't completely scare me off as tracks can be grabbed AM. Rog

Dave ... I've spent the last few days looking around all the major web-stores ... in multiple countries ... at separate track links ... Thank's for the tip!! ... Kaizen do look good ... or at least good enough for me! ... but I have the same issue as with Fruil track links - in that everyone is just about out of stock of every item except a couple ... I'll have to do a bulk order somewhere in order for the shipping to be viable for me ... Know anyone who could bulk order without charging drug money and with certainty of delivery? Rog

... and I picked up 3 for a steal at a hidden away hobby store in Melbourne when they were all but extinct for retail worldwide - except for ridiculous prices on e-Bay!! The schemes are nice too ... Rog

Oh God ... I only wish!!! ... That and a 1/32 Ju52 transport ... Please???? ... Someone?? ... ANYONE!! ... Rog

I can definitely understand why Magic Tracks would drive some people insane ... I've almost had to be committed once or twice, myself! ... but for detail, track sag etc individual links were always worth the pain to me ... if you hear any more on those snap together items - or for any other Panzer type, for that matter (especially Tigers, Panthers and other late war vehicles) that are in the "Not-Ridiculously-Expensive" bracket ... please let me know!! Rog

Yeah ... I'm definitely not a big fan of the "rubber bands" ... That's why I started replacing most of my older tooled Tamiya collection with newer tooled Dragon stuff. The new tooled Tamiya stuff, however, is excellent in every other way, and they usually include figurines - which, these days, are as decently tooled as most others on the market. I wish Dragon would give us the in-box option of either DS or Magic-Tracks, rather than just assuming everyone loves DS ... it's almost getting back to 'toss-the-coin' stage now ... nice box art!! Rog

Okies ... Time to chip in again ... To kick off ... ever since I got that first ZM kit (He.219 Uhu) I've been wanting to buy an original boxing and 1st edition of their very first kit ... and thanks to an Austrian connection, on LSP, who was willing to part with it - I have it! Next a couple of handy reference books from Classics fame: the Me.210/410 - a handy reference for building that awesome HpH kit (and perhaps modifying) ... and an old favourite of mine, the Ju-52 - which I am hoping will be useful for an IM or Resin kit in 1/32 someday. We call all dream!! ... Meanwhile ... I'm loving this moulded Dragon Zimmerit stuff ... I did some with putty on a Tamiya kit a while back - It turned out ok looking, but definitely not to scale and rough as guts - now an effective paint mule ... Enter: Another kit for the "Late War" diorama. I've wanted to do an FAA Corsair since I bought the birdcage ... Corsairs are awesome aren't they? I can certainly understand why John builds a lot of them ... anyway, scored this one for half the price they retail for here from a connection in Hong Kong With my "Kursk" diorama deep into the design stage, various AFV and figurine collections almost complete ... and German LSP's of the campaign lined up ... It was time to add the main opposition air support contender to the list: Finally ... for this post anyway ... I couldn't resist those flared pants!! ... shades of the Bee Gees and Stayin' Alive: Rog

Got me ... I just imagined a social worker saying: "Show us on the Fw190 model here, where Eduard touched you" lol Rog Christmas Day was my break - the joys of the Mine-Spec working environment and shift rosters. Back on topic ... Well ... The only time I paid large amounts of GBP for postage was when I grabbed my Ju88A-4 ... and that was only because I grabbed about 4 more kits at the same time and it was sent via courier ... From memory that cost was about the 42.00 GBP mark - close to double the norm!! ... So given that sort of cost - I'd say you were fairly ripped!! ... I'll PM you a link I think people are slowly getting the idea now, that RoG are just a name ... a shell of the company that brought us the Ju-88, He-111 and the Arado-196. They are owned and, effectively, managed from the other side of the world now - Financial reasons, being the determining factor behind what is released and how - the passion for what is created is missing (Spewing!! - since they didn't get a Do17z to market before the takeover!) ... Recent releases, while still very price competitive, haven't been anywhere near the old RoG standard of accuracy. Every kit out there has flaws ... but for me, the types of errors being made are weird ... and as you correctly point out - they are errors that other companies have avoided by using a little research and attention to detail, many moons ago! ... If the adjustments aren't made soon, we'll be finding a bunch of suits sitting around the boardroom table, later on, asking themselves why their business plan was not as successful as they'd imagined it would be - with no clear answers because they've ignored market feedback ... Very much unlike the new breed - HK Models, Zoukei-Mura and HpH (and to a lesser degree - Dragon / Cyber Hobby) who are constantly engaging their market - Passionate about what they do, looking for input from those who know what they are talking about within the modelling community and wanting to grow ever better - to get it right! Having said all of that ... The latest Fw190 offering from RoG looks like a decent attempt has been made, there are heaps of details not around on other releases - and the price point will be attractive ... It's just that, given what we have had released in the recent past, I'm content to hold off until I see what ZM's offering is like in comparison ... Dollars not being a major issue for me! ... I'm sure the Revell kit will sell well ... Rog

Is that "touching" of the inappropriate nature? ... ;) Rog

Hi Steve ... all the best for the season btw! Whenever a new Revell kit comes out that I fancy ... I generally grab it from a UK supplier, along with a few AM items that I'm chasing (to spread the shipping cost, which is not all that bad via Royal Mail compared to other parts of Europe, USA and Canada) ... VAT tax is also removed (outside EU) which makes the kits even cheaper!! I grabbed my Heinkels, JU88's, 109's and Spitfire that way. Even though the AUD exchange is rather bad atm ... I usually come out in front to the tune of between 15-25% cheaper than Aus' retail all things considered. Still maybe more expensive than a Hasegawa bought ex Japan or Hong Kong, but the sting is way less! ... Jury's still out on whether I'll bother with this one though ... since I'm hungry for the ZM offerings next year!! Rog

I figured ... But along with Cees' comment ... You never know - it might have been looking like I was having a winge!! All good!! Rog

Mmmmmm perhaps this post has come across the wrong way ... I'm not in the least disgruntled or dissatisfied lol ... Rather, I'm pleasantly surprised, impressed and the general mood would best be described as speculative and hopeful ... Genuinely interested in what's next!! Rog

lol ... Cees ... Lets just say that I'm not dissatisfied ... just interested Rog

Well ... Telford was obviously wonderful ... I stayed up much of the night (Other side of the world and all that) - watching reports come in on multiple forums (among other activities at home) ... HKM never cease to amaze me with what they are capable of in such a short history ... So ... We have a DH Mosquito Bomber strutting her stuff down the catwalk ... release date not too far off I would imagine. We have a Lancaster Bomber in mock up mode - ready for some final tweaks before entering production. A B17F that is somewhere not too far off also, I would Imagine. The FB Mosquito should be following shortly after the Bomber ... But what next?? ... certainly with all of these releases slated for 2015, this company is gathering some heavy momentum. One Telford visitor to the HKM stand has declared that a Vickers Wellington was given a distinct mention amongst a variety of subjects, by Neil ... and if the subject is seriously under consideration, will definitely be a must have kit for me!! - a Mk.III with four gunned tail end charlie for me Please ... Apparently the Halifax might be a future possibility also - but given it's widely known (to those that are close to the company) that HKM are reluctant to proceed further down the "Four Engined Heavy" road in the foreseeable future - this could have been a specific "leading" type question ... the answer purely designed not to 'dash' anyones hopes. Well ... what next? ... by all accounts, the company must be in expansion mode ... having gone from producing 1 quality kit in 2 years+ (the B25 Bomber) to a couple of kits each year ... and at least 4 (known) about to be released in 2015. Although nothing is official - I find myself dreaming of the possibility of a nice Wellington ... and others HKM - Dare to dream?! Rog

O.M.G. ... James, thank you!! ... She is sex with wings *sigh* ... These guys really are the ducks nuts Rog

Oh cool!! ... thanks Rog

Once again ... a great review on LSM - Thanks Mike!! ... do we have a review on the props and spinners?? If so could we edit a link in there somewhere? Rog

James ... This, I'm finding, is one VERY pleasing trait about this company ... They are salt of the earth - they listen to those who are accepted by the modelling community as knowledgable on particular topics ... and they are not afraid to admit error - are prepared to re-work their designs under guidance ... This is a sign of TRUE humility and passion for making sure a product is the best that it can be ... Give them a few years and we could very well see Tamiya / Zoukei-Mura type - "All-in-one" kits coming from them! ... I ... and, I believe, the great majority of others ... have no issue in waiting for a product while it's being refined/re-worked for this sort of reasoning ... Roll on 617 variants!! Rog

God I hope there's a early war British bomber in there somewhere ... Beginning in 'W' and ending in 'N' ... Do17z ... Beaufighter ... Ta154 ... Ju52 (ok it's 3, not 2 - but who's REALLY counting!!) ... Rog

I have a Trumpeter one in the stash ... I'd been told hat it was one of their better pops - so I'm expecting it to be decent ... did I miss something?? If it is ... why would we need another (** insert standard moan about too many 109's etc here**) ... Rog

These guys really aren't mucking around ... and more power to 'em!! There are always differences between CAD and plastic ... but from past experience, in HK's case, those differences turn out to be - really not much at all. Roll on the Mossie, roll on the Do-335A-0, Roll on the Lanc ... and a B-17F ... crikey, they're making up for lost time! ... What's next? Rog