Artful69

Dunno about refs Gaz ... but this might help? https://www.ipmsstockholm.se/home/modellers-guide-to-focke-wulf-fw-190-variants-part-i/ Rog

Heya Ron ... Do you have the book reference handy? - (book, author, publisher & page number)... None of mine refer to 'remaining hulls' being used ... Mind you - they don't elaborate very much on the N, save for what I've mentioned above. This book of yours looks like a reference with a bit more history on the type ... I'd be interested to look at the werk numbers for the designated units! TIA Rog

@Clunkmeister & @Martinnfb ... VERY good idea guys!! ... Becomes the first port of call for any questions ... IF what you're looking for doesn't appear there ... do your own research and then share your findings so it doesn't have to be done again!! Rog

The Panzer III Chassis was in constant development and revision from 1936 onward ... The earliest variants (Ausf.A-D) had completely redesigned suspension set ups at each change as they worked at figuring which was the best all round performer ... The Ausf.E (the first 'mass' produced model for combat) had the 6 road wheel torsion bar set up that remained for the rest of the war (subject to a few tweaks here and there) ... From this point onward most external variations in design occurred above the chassis - but the chassis itself received a few subtle modifications over time, largely to do with armour upgrades, track upgrades and strengthened suspension (as opposed to reconfiguring it). The Ausf.J chassis was lengthened slightly to accomodate a new engine. Examples for modifications to the superstructure above the chassis include, but are not limited to: commanders cupola, turret stowage baskets, spaced armour (or vorpanzer), bolted on armour, smoke launchers, exhaust positioning and size, hatch styles etc. The only notable retrofitted panzer III armament (as opposed to additional armour) was the 50mm KwK 38 L/42 to some of the later built Ausf.F vehicles and the Ausf.G ... The Ausf.H being the first variant where the shorter barrelled 50mm was standard fitment from entry into the production line. The Ausf.J also had the longer L/60 retrofitted to replace the L/42 once in came online - this had already been planned, it was just a case of the L/60 being a late arrival when the first Ausf.J's were ready to roll off the production line and deployed. From all accounts I've read, The Ausf.N was developed in conjunction with the Ausf.M ... and was actually more of an afterthought that occurred when some new ordinance came online that made the short barrelled 75mm L/24 a relevant, versatile weapon again ... by this stage nearly all Panzer IV's still in operation had been fitted with the 75mm KwK 40 L/48 (although a few stragglers still mounted the original L/43 upgrade) and the StuG.III's popularity as a cheaper and more effective combat vehicle using the same main weapon, meant that some damaged-but-salvageable Panzer III chassis' were actually converted to those instead. This left the Panzer III's still scheduled for production as being the only viable option for reinstallation of the 75mm L/24 and were given a new designation - the Ausf.N. I haven't read anywhere that Ausf.J's or L's were retrofitted with the weapon and re-designated. All Ausf.N's appear to carry the same upper structure modifications as the Ausf.M (The wading exhaust muffler at the rear being the most prominent along with the additional armour and commanders cupola). Rog

Ron ... For the gun adaption - not bad at all!! ... I noticed a while back that the KwK 37 L/24 on the Panzer IV had the rounded mantlet cover while the Panzer III Ausf.N, equiped with the same gun, used a squared off mantlet! ... I've ordered a Panzer IV Ausf.F gun and mantlet set (designed for a Heng Long kit) to adapt my Trumpeter Panzer IV Ausf.F2 ... and I'll use the leftover Mantlet in the Trumpeter kit to convert a Panzer III Ausf.N ... Just be advised that you'll need to utilise the Trumpeter / Monochrome / Gallery Models / Heller kit to create a true 'N' ... (or a lot of scratch building!!) as it was developed alongside the Ausf.M which had a number of readily seen modifications over the 'J's and 'L's before it. Nice lateral thinking on the gun adaption though! ... I'm looking to try to backdate a Das Werk kit to an Ausf.E at some point ... I'll have to scratch the mantlet to mount the twin MG's and also scratch the 37mm though!! Rog

Another couple of packages at the Post Office today ... Both were expected, yet I was expecting the larger one to be ... well ... larger! It was pretty frustrating for me when I went to order the 'Tiger' book in hardcover ... the newer edition exists only in paperback - so it was off to eBay to try to find the older edition in hardback. It's well presented, new with a fitted plastic sleeve over the dust jacket! The bigger box holds the HKM A-20G Havoc although I was suprised at how small the kit box is compared to the B.25 ... and it's the same with the Airfix Spitfire! There's no comparison to the Hawker Typhoon box ... It's closer to the Tamiya 1/32 size, just thicker Still waiting on the Val and others ... Rog

BUT Carl ... That's the point! I was charged $105 AUD for shipping to AUS via Japan Post w/tracking ... It arrived via Fedex 🤷‍♂️ (If I was charged the Fedex quote originally on the shipping options page, it would have come to $4-600 ... Again ... total INCLUDING shipping came to 2/3 what I would have paid here with FREE shipping included ... Any way you read it - it's a win! Regards Rog

So here's a little member participation story for you ... Humour me! Find brand new (or as near to brand new condition as possible) 1/32 kits of the following: Hasegawa ST-28 (Ki.61) & ST-34 (A6M5c - new tool), Tamiya Spitfire Mk.IXc, DeHavilland Mosquito FB Mk.VI. Note their prices and any cost of shipping them to you. Add up the total and compare with my total at the end of this post. ...... ..... Done?! ... Ok, on we go! If you're a regular viewer of this particular thread you might remember that I was chasing up a 1/32 Tamiya Phantom.II E or EJ a while back so I could slap some RAAF roundels onto it. I had a few back channel offers for second hand kits and while I ended up scoring the E that way, at the same time I found a brand new EJ (the only retail one I could find!) at a decent price. I decided to be nosey and went exploring their website looking especially for kits that have sold out elsewhere and was amazed - not only at what was available, brand new, to purchase ... but some of the ridiculously low prices they were going for. I book marked the page and went back there recently. When the Phantom E/J arrived I was impressed with the condition it arrived in - the kit box still wrapped in shrink plastic and not a dent or blemish. It was the middle of the COVID fiasco, so shipping of any kind was brutal if at all permissible, but these guys had a deal with DHL and I thought the cost of the shipping was quite reasonable considering the size of the package and the destination (Japan - Australia). Anyway I was trying to find a Tony somewhere (near on impossible now unless its second hand) and I thought to revisit this store to see what was what. 4 kits later ... but not at 4 kit prices!! This rather large box was couriered by Fedex ... who refused to deliver to my post office - even with a signature supplied by the post master (who is a JP) ... so I had the inconvenience of picking the parcel up from their depot, about 30 mins away ... And that's about where all the negatives in this story end because the box was well handled, well packed and the kits arrived in pristine condition - so very hard to get these days!! With bubble wrap galore! I found my Tony! ... and picked up the new tool (2015) A6M5c Zero and because they were so cheap to get ... A Tamiya Spitfire Mk.IXc and DeHavillind Mosquito FB Mk.VI Now ... before I bring up my invoice total in AUD (which includes the shipping) and break down individual costs ... I'll provide some standard Australian retail pricing numbers for context. IF (and it's becoming more of a big 'IF' all the time!) you can still find a new 1/32Hasegawa kit here in Aus, you're probably paying $100 AUD give or take a few, depending on the kit. Tamiya kits are NOT cheap here ... $185-$210 for the Spitfire and $330 for the Mosquito ... free shipping for large orders ... on average that is $730 AUD. My total out of Japan including shipping? - $490.36 ... yep, that's just over 2/3 of the normal pricing - less if you take off the shipping cost, but my comparisons are always based on 'delivered' values ... Hasegawa Ki.61 $65 AUD Hasegawa A6M5c $46 AUD Tamiya Spitfire Mk.IXc $95 AUD Tamiya Mosquito FB Mk.VI $187 AUD Shipping $105 Rog

Hi all … Im not actually flogging anything here - hence the post in ‘modelling discussion’ … BUT … I hit a rich vein of Japanese kits out of Japan … Hasegawa, Tamiya etc … Got any kit you’re chasing that’s a ‘tad’ too expensive where you are? … Send me a PM with the kit you’re after - (number if a specific boxing) and your whereabouts in the world and I’ll get you a price including trackable shipping! Rog

Noice!!!! … We could do with a whole lot more panzer crew members in various poses!! Rog

I thought the Mojave is a Desert?!? Rog

Some gear arrived during the last week here at the post office ... and more will be arriving during the two weeks I'm at work ... The wrapped and strapped packages are 2 LED work lamps ... I put one together ... it has balancing issues so I might have to find more weight for it. Next box was the latest arrival from Metro Hobbies who had just received a hearty batch of ZM gear ... My collection of SWS kits is now up to date, with no 1/32 or 1/48 kits outstanding. ... As expensive as they are, I decided to get 2x Kotare 1st edition kits ... I'll definitely build one ... and either build the second one or auction it on eBay later when the prices do that thing they do for difficult to find stuff. I took this time out to locate the last of the BIG tanks in my line up ... and a BIG box arrived (with a handle!) with the King Tiger! As tends to be the case with the 1/16 Trumpeter stuff ... several boxes are inside the main one ... and as is customary at this point - a turret shot for the record! ... Both turret types are included in the kit. Rog

Most other German vehicles follow a typical Teutonic efficiency when it comes to vehicle designations ... Except the Panther ... Normally starting with Ausf.A (Version or variant 'A') and then progressing B, C, D and so on ... The Panther was an oddity because of its release timeline. While the Ausf.A was supposed to be the first production version ... development was a little slow for Hitler and Co who desperately wanted Citadel to be a thing - before it couldn't be. Thus the Ausf.A was put on hold and a process of production worked out that resulted in the Ausf.D being whipped through the design and production phases in order to have some physical units ready for Citadel. I say physically ready and not 'ready', ready - because they were far from it ... having not been given any real trial time to iron out the 'kinks' ... and kinks there were - plenty of them! To be sure, it wasn't a complete disaster ... of those that actually got to perform beyond the opening days chaos, a few acquitted themselves well ... The high velocity 75mm was more accurate and hit harder at a longer distance than it's big brother, the 88mm equipping the Tiger ... or any comparative Soviet piece ... and in that respect contained much better optics also (not a high bar by any stretch given that the Soviets struggled to hit the side of a barn door because their optics, by comparison, were complete garbage). The Ausf.D was however, plagued with varying troubles. The main recorded complaint was gearbox failure ... although there were fuel leaks, hydraulic leaks, electrical failures, engine seizures, engine fires, weapons jamming - the list goes on ... in essence, all of the sorts of random issues usually ironed out in pre deployment testing. Two rather alarming issues raised by crews during Kursk and shortly afterward were: the lack of the bow ball-mounted MG.34 close defence weapon (apparently it was easier to manufacture a 'slit' with a covering armoured door) ... and also the shot trap created by the rounded main gun mantlet. Not all issues were rectified by the time the Ausf.A entered service and the tank became a continual work in progress until the next consolidated production run, the Ausf.G Rog

Yeah ... so it's the newer tooled kit! I bought the old tool kit about 10-15 years ago - not good! The Dragon kit was far superior even though they got the Magic Track wrong for one side initially. I saw all the 'accessories' kits advertised at the time I went looking - with the indi-tracks it will turn out awesome! Rog

If this is the newer tooled one (It looks to be), it's a great kit of a Kursk Panther ... none of the fit issues of some of the older tooled kits and plenty of accurate detail. I almost pulled the trigger on this one when gathering Kursk vehicles, but went with the Takom one, mainly because of the link and length tracks on sprue (I've never liked the Tamiya rubber band style ones) ... having said that I've seen some great builds of this OOB and they manage to get the tracks to look not half bad! ... Enjoy! Rog

I find it rather annoying that some local suppliers refuse to import certain kits ... but at least I know where I'm at right from the start!! ... After months of mucking around with my usual supplier here (Will they? Won't they?), I decided to go international for these kits - Germany to be precise - which arrived at the local post office few days ago.... ... and even with shipping charges they were more than reasonable ... 1/16 scale of my favourite chassis and variant The Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.M. ... I might do a comparison with the Das Werk kit while I'm on my week off. I'll probably score another Das Werk kit or two later on ... but these two provide me with the the capacity to build an Ausf.L and M. I want to work out what I'll need to backdate on a J to create an Ausf.E or F early war Panzer.III also. Rog

Hi all ... For those that are Corsair experts here (John I'm eyeballing you!!) ... I'm wanting to convert a Tamiya Corsair into an F4U-1C (4x 20mm cannon) ... apparently the aircraft was developed in tandem with the F4U-1D - but that doesn't necessarily mean that the 2 aircraft share the same design throughout. 1. Is the 1D a better starting point than a 1A ?? and 2. Is there an available conversion for the 1C anywhere?? ... and, if not ... 3. Are there any drawings or references for any differences to the version I'm converting (including wing/cannon etc) Rog

Thanks Ern … It looks like your typical limited run kit - but with lots of extra detail … the price is about right I’d say, on par with current price increases across the board and given that it’s a limited run kit so bound to be more expensive also. Had this one on reserve with the local hobby store for the last year and it should be arriving in the next month … If I can get away with my usual brass barrels upgrades, I’ll be happy … tho I may shell out for some hollow exhaust tips. Rog

Hubert … Again … this post is in direct breach of the rules of this forum. I do not need to be lectured to by you or anyone else - I am quite capable of doing my own research, should I wish to. Your ‘essay’ (of which I have tried my best to ignore for the most part and restricted my read to a paragraph or two) holds a heavy bias on certain ‘truths’ while ignoring others as ALL political arguments do … This forum is for modelling purposes. In respect for ALL members on it please remove your political views and stick to the subject matter and rules prescribed. Should you feel so passionately about a particular politically related subject - there are forums for this elsewhere. Rog

True … but besides the point … No-one should have to hide from someone breaching forum rules … Rog

I think none of us have ever had an issue with religion on the forums … as Christian as I am, if I ever saw anyone posting bigoted crap against anyone Jewish, Islamic or Hindu for example, I would make the same comment as I did relating to the Ill-informed political crap posted above … support who you want, for whatever reason you want … just don’t post it here - I don’t need opinion rammed down my gullet!! Rog

I for one am sick of the political comments still being allowed on THIS forum … can we please leave the virtue signalling to the other forums and focus on modelling … I’m sick of seeing Ukraine this and Ukraine that with blue and yellow flags everywhere as if they are the righteousness of God while the other is portrayed as pure evil (just like the western press, the elites and political establishment want it!!!) … They are BOTH responsible for the mess that is happening over there - tragic as it is … can we leave our personal political opinions OFF the forum like the rules explicitly state?? TIA Rog 😡

Heya Ern ... Thanks for the feedback!! I must have been a little vague with my comments about HPH's business ... I was specifically referring to their involvement with the manufacture of models ... not the entire company ... The main focus of their model building is museum and private contracts ... My bad lol. I don't think the IM version of the SB2C is necessarily bad ... just poor in relation to its competition at that price point. It's certainly better than the resin version of the same subject! The overall point was: IM type kits are very rarely manufactured to perfection - especially on the first go ... Even ZM kits can provide a struggle to some ... So if you're going to charge that much money? - produce something popular and done as well as can be done as your first subject. I, too, hope they don't go sooky-sooky-la-la and throw the toys out of the pram... take the 'L' for the poor choices initially and keep progressing ... Besides the Me.410 and the Beau ... I want that bloody Do.17 !!!! Rog :)

I've been informed that it's going to retail here for around $270-$300 AUD ... Also Max ... the resident model guru at Metro Hobbies, tells me that it fits like a Tamiya kit ... the leap in HKM quality is that good! He's built everything going ... WNW kits, the lot! So when he says it the best kit he's built with no exceptions ... (it may not objectively be so) but I'm inclined to take his word for it. Lots to look forward to I think? Rog

The command vehicle was very useful in the early stages of the war ... Up front with the panzer divisions but just rear of the direct engagement. More armour than the Panzerspähwagen (though only to protect against small arms fire), yet just as quick and manoeuvrable while also tracked allowing great cross country capability - so as to avoid unnecessary direct entanglements with AFVs. The bow machine gun was for close defence against infantry - but there are several observation ports that can be used for close defence also. An odd looking thing, but surprisingly useful in 1939-40! Rog