Artful69

... and now ... for part.2 or 'B' or whatever ... of "Birthday Splurge Part.3" ... With some VERY low Tamiya prices being offered by one of my favourite Aussie outlets ... I decided to grab a few while they were on sale, rather than just the 'one-or-two' I had been planning to do (I realy wanted to have a look at a Tamiya kit - never having one before!) ... and so ... Figuring I'd 'pair' the Corsair up with a Zero if i couldn't find a decent FAA option I elected to go with the A6M5 ... but they sent me the wrong kit in error! ... so knocking a further $20 of the sale price - and postage ... they forwarded the one I originally ordered! While my contact was doing up the first order ... and knowing that this kit, too, has been discontinued ... I figured I'd snap one up ... I might not build it - but it would make a great present to someone who cant get hold of one in a few years maybe? ... who knows? Ok ... so the only Tamiya kit I really wanted to get wasn't actually in stock - or on sale once back in! ... Huh! ... So I went to another Aussie based Tamiya importer with low prices (not as low as the sale prices ... but not much more ... had to pay for postage though!) ... The Revell Bf109G-6 is the second one now ... I packed it in with the ZM order from the USA. And speaking of doubling up on kits ... There's a few OOP kits I wanted to have my hands on - multiple amounts of, too!! and so ... Which leaves me with my Japanese contact ... who supplies me Hasegawa with a lot less pain than USA, Europe or local pricing ... Finally my old little leather desk mat was getting on ... so I bought one of these 'u-beaut' cutting mats I've seen around ... big kits require big mats - so this ones 914mm x 609mm Hope you've enjoyed todays viewing!! Rog

Ok ... Time to flick through "Birthday Splurge Pt.3" ... Bit of a story with some of these ... so ... kicking off ... A StuG ... or more accurately a StuH with zimmeritt, from Dragon ... along with one of the only Pz.III variants I still had to get ... the Ausf.H Reading all the conjecture about the Bf109G-6 ... I decided to grap a Trumpeter kit, to line up against the Revell and Hasegawa of the same ilk. After opening up the ZM He.219 kit and thinking "Holy ****!!" I decided to grab a couple of other ZM kits, before they disappear - as some of these are getting to be rare now ... so a couple of P-51D's And a couple of Fw Ta-152H-1's ... and even though it's not my kind of subject matter - chasing down the one I scored as a gift before was difficult ... so I thought I'd grab another before it disappears... ... so while I was at it ... I grabbed another one of these ... One of the only models of early war panzers I was missing was the 35(t) ... this ones a new release from Academy. It has very good in-box and build reviews. These things are cheap as chips ATM ... for what they are: the best manufacture of a Bf.110 on the market. I honestly think that the reason for the price drop is that: not too many people out there have cottoned on to the fact that the kit can be assembled without the huge external fuel tank! While I was grabbing the ZM stuff and the Pz.35(t) ... I thought I'd chuck this one in to 'spread' the freight cost from the USA ... Time for intermission Rog

well ... The Bf108 can wait for all I care ... But a Ta-154 would be welcome!! ... Still think it's a typo though! Rog

Well ... my 2014 will be a bit up and down ... still putting the finishing touches to the "Afrika Korps" Diorama ... At least I have a name for it now "Planning the next move" ... I'll be starting (around December-ish) a side-by-side build of the Bf109-G ... by Trumpeter, Revell and Hasegawa ... to see if there is any real fuss between the three ... all will have various corrections and PE work done - along with the same paint and markings, so esentially it will be a "Time/Cost" comparrission build - for my own interest. And I want to build at least one of my Tamiya kits, one of my Zoukei-Mura kits and an Eduard Bf109E-1 ... to add to my experience CV. Heinz Bar's Fw190A-7, Walter Nowotny's A-5 (when decals arrive!) ... and my Pz.35(t) to add to my "France May 1940" dio' Rog

Likewise!! ... surely not 1/32??? Perhaps a typo there ... 1/48??

Ahhhh Steve! ... thankyou! ... I have seen the bulge, although to be honest, I wasn't sure of which marque was which - not all Google references are reliable and I am definately not an expert on the 410. The bulge shouldn't be too difficult ... maybe some un-used oil cooler/water cooler intakes for shape + a bit of flat plastic and some putty to adjust size and fit ... Weren't the spent shells kept onboard inside the fuslage/gunbay though ... as with the Hs129B-3?? Thanks again! Rog

The second and third parcels arrived out of Japan today: * Hasegawa 1/32 FW190A-8 "JGr.10" * Hasegawa 1/32 FW190F-8 "Schlachtgeshwader 4" * Hasegawa 1/32 FW190D-9 * Hasegawa 1/32 Messerschmitt Bf109G-6 Rog

Yesterday ... my second lot of * Zoukei-Mura 1/32 Ta152H-1 * Zoukei-Mura 1/32 P-51D Mustang ... and * Revell 1/32 Messerschmitt Bf109G-6 arrived ... and today ... * Tamiya 1/32 Mitsubishi A6M5 Zero Rog

Nick ... I was wondering if it would be too much drama ... to chuck in one of these?! http://www.greymatterfigures.com/index.php?p=2&id=161# Obviously, Grey Matter only sells the barrel ... would the rest of the "gun pack" be seen from looking through the cockpit windows? Apparently the A-1 was upgunned as well as the latter B variants ... so the rest of the aircraft shouldn't be a problem ... so I'm thinking that appart from the obvious modification to fit the cannon, it will only be an issue of finding the correct markings and some masking?? Rog

... And don't bother expecting anything resembling customer service with that purchase either ... you'll probably only get vague, non-commital, answers in asking the question, IF the e-mail is answered!! T'was a headache I'd rather forget!! ... I haven't even given the kits more than a cursory glance since they arrived, so annoyed was I ... I thought it was me (because I can be a little anal sometimes) ... but zero bother with Sprue (USA), Dragon (USA), Frontline (Aust), BNA (Aust) and Model Hobbies (UK) ... even Mirek at HPH (Czech) was great - considering the language barrier and all!! ... Still ... I may be tempted ... at least for one or two more. Rog

Konichiwa dudes!! ... Just arrived ... 1st of 3 parcels from Japan ... containing: * Hasegawa 1/32 FW190A-6 * Hasegawa 1/32 FW190A-7 Rog

I would've grabbed a Mk.VIII too ... except it has that awful looking pointed tail!!! Rog

Oh ... Don't get me wrong ... I grabbed a couple along with a Tempest and Hurricane. I think they are a decent kit just going off reviews and my own look in box. I was referring to the pain involved with the customer service. Rog

True, true ... and if you have no dramas in the purchasing, all well and good At that price, even I am tempted to venture back into Hades. Rog

mmmmm ... Hasegawa with Montex A-3 conversion prehaps? ... don't roll them dice bro, the drama ain't worth it!! Rog

Wishing you trouble free ordering!!! Rog

I'm avoiding the MDC unit because it's Vac-Form ... and the Fisher unit is resin and very well detailed ... I looked at the Squadron offering myself, initially thinking it was IM plastic - but it was Vac Form - gutted! ... You prefer Vac Form ... Or just have one handy? Rog

Well this is interesting to hear!! ... I ordered a set of brass undercarriage and a couple of canopies from Fisher Models - The gear is for the Tempest, the canopies were for the MDC Typhoon (one spare - in case I buy another kit!) ... Hopefully it's just a 'one kit oddity' ... if not I'll probably be using my spare! Thanks for the heads up Cees! Rog

Darn! ... Postal services must be getting quicker ... With Tamiya prices heavily reduced out here atm - and my curiousity as to what everyone is raving about ... I snaffled a couple ... well, ok - more than a couple ... My Spitfire (above) came from a different supplier ... Today arrived from Melbourne: * HKM 1/32 B25-J Mitchell Bomber (ok ... so it's not my usual cup of tea being PTO ... but the kit is good, and it's OOP now so it might become a collectable) * Tamiya 1/32 P51-D Mustang (Has to be an ETO one for me so #60322) * Tamiya 1/32 Vought F4U-1 Corsair (what the hey, it looks cool - if I can make a decent FAA bird I will ... If not I have plans for the next bird on the list - which didn't actually arrive!!) * Tamiya 1/32 Mitsubishi Zero A6M2b (Which is NOT what I ordered ... I ordered a A6M5!! ... I will call Melbourne tomorrow and see how to sort it out!!) And from USA: * Zoukei-Mura SWS 1/32 J7W1 Shinden - "Ah, My Goddess" (Again ... not exactly my cuppa ... but it is a ZM kit and the original has been OOP for some time now ... These ones are quickly becoming rare as rocking horse poo Also!) * Zoukei-Mura SWS 1/32 Heinkel He.219 Uhu (I decided to add another to the collection! ... This one may become a rare bird in the future also - stores are already beginning to find them hard to get hold of!) Still more stuff on route ... the second parcel from my US supplier for one! Cheers Rog

Today ... another arrival ... My first Tamiya kit ... * Tamiya 1/32 Spitfire Mk.IX Rog

You will love it!!

She's a nice bird!! ... and that is a nice kit!

Me neither, but holy cow - that's 1/35? - and the box is as big as the B-17's!!! (thats your feet right there at the bottom of that pic right?) ... You can see it's ancestory in the wheels and sloping armour.

Actually you can credit yourself and that build with the inspiration to purchase the first kit! ... admittedly it didn't take much ... the 'III' is my favourite chassis in any guise. But when I opened the box, read through the paperwork, and saw sequential unit numbering on the marking options (a rare thing in a kit indeed!) - I could feel a whole new diorama coming on!! ... I jumped online and ordered these other 2 while they still have stock !! Rog

Ok ... it seems that "Birthday Splurge Pt.3" has some earlier arrivals than expected Today in the mail are .. All the way from USA - hey that rhymes!! * ZM 1/32 Ta152H-1 (Slipstream edition) * ZM 1/32 Mustang * Dragon Wing-tech 1/32 Messerschmitt Bf110D-1/R-1 "Duh ... Dam ... Dacbuckle - thingy" - It will end up as the standard 110 anyway. * Revell 1/32 Heinkel 111 H-6 * Cyber Hobby 1/35 Pz.Kfpw III Ausf.L "Vorpanzer" x2 ... (yep got the 1st one and love it so got another two!!) * All NEW ... Academy 1/35 Pz.35(t) ... (yep thats a 35 (t) - and a good one!) * Dragon 1/35 10.5cm StuH 42 (w/zimmerit) * Dragon 1/35 Pz.Kfpw III Ausf.H From a Melbourne supplier: *Trumpeter 1/32 Messerschmitt Bf109G-6 (Early) From another Melbourne supplier (who is not well known at all) * Eduard 1/32 Messerschmitt Bf109E-1 x2 (this kit is OOP ... so I grabbed another couple off the same guy who sold me the 1st one!) More on the way! Rog