Peterpools

Rob Terrible news that your 'beloved dog' is seriously ill - wishing the best for a speedy recovery.

GOODBYE MERLIN I’ve tossed and turned for nights trying to decide if I wanted my Spitfire with the engine cowlings on or off and its Merlin engine on display as well. Looking at my finished Tamiya 32nd scale Spitfires in the display case, all three have the cowlings off and their Merlin’s displayed. Obviously both my Kotare and Revell Spitfires have their cowlings closed as no engines came with the kits and honestly, I prefer their clean lines. So, after building the kit's Merlin, I decided to just use it as the support for the engine cowlings and it's time to say, Goodbye Merlin. So that’s the decision, which will show off the Spitfires beautiful lines. Test fitting the four major cowl panels and the fit isn't that great. Looking at photographs of the actual Spitfires, a good portion of the cowlings aren't that great of a fit as well.

Nice paint work representing 'your daily driver' and tackling those hinges will be a big improvement.

Scott The Cutlass looks so good wearing her Navy White and Gray. Right with you about the heat, as here on the Island, we we're also in a record heat wave with temps hovering around 95F yesterday, today and forecasted for tomorrow. Add in the humidity and it's hot and dangerous. Glad the cave has AC.

Rob I'm front and center and ready for the journey. Now those rocker covers surely weren't what you expected but I guess ion a multi media kit, the unexpected is to be expected. I can see the pitting and maybe some filler might be needed?

Martin Good call.

Martin I vote yes, go for the extension.

Scott The guys have pretty much covered almost all the reasons why your AB is 'spitting' at times. I've had the issue at times and for the most part, the paint seemed to be accumulating on the tip when the working air pressure was too low to how much the paint was thinned out. I paint at very low working PSI - around 12-15 psi's and at those low pressures, sometimes there isn't enough working pressure to keep all the paint from starting to build up on the tip. I usually paint with either MRP lacquers or Tamiya acrylics and my AB of choice is the H&S Infinity Plus. Just a measure of good technique, I'll test the AB on a small piece of paper numerous times though out a painting session before moving onto the model surface. At times, I'll clean/dab the AB tip with a Q tip with Mr Color Self Leveling Thinner to remove the visible drop of paint. The lower the working air pressure, the more frequent the tip paint build up will be.

Rob What can I say that hasn't been said already. Absolutely an incredible build to the highest standards; a stellar build of a meticulously engineered kit. A joy and pleasure to be along for the journey. Looking forward to being front and center for your Shelby Cobra adventure. Absolutely agree there should be a `Finished Cars and Bikes´ section. 🏆🏆🏆

Scott Nothing more important than your health and your family's health. Just stay inside while it so hot and build.

John You're on a 109 role and the Hasegawa kit is going to be a winner. Love the scheme and your painting plan. Geez, you're flying through this build and I'm still crawling on my Spitfire.

Hubert Always felt models set on a simple scenic base with a figure is the perfect way to display and present them. I'm encouraged by your figure painting work to dive in and try some of my own. I have a few projects coming up after the Spitfire that I want to add a few figures to and am going to give it a try.

Scott So glad you recognized the signs of heat stroke and reacted as quickly as you did. Being a senior, I only venture out in this weather in the early morning or after dinner when it has cooled down. If it's still too hot and humid, inside I stay. - just way too hot and demanding for me.

Hubert Absolutely a treat to see your Cutlass back on the bench and underway as the first project to be worked on in your new home and Man Cave. Completely agree about as the years march on, learning to cut ties and limit the amount of AMS is so very important in my eyes as well. I'm close to 77 now and just enjoying what is in the box has moved to the top of my modeling list, with detailing falling close to the bottom. As Rob pointed out, it's a rare day to be able to follow two Fisher Cutlasses under way - what a treat for sure.

Paul Nice stat on a 'cool' looking subject and not seen very often. Yup, nothing like Tamiya for fit and engineering.

Chris First and foremost; so glad Mom is now in her new surroundings and settling in. Congratulations on reaching and passing the daunting milestone of completing the stenciling awesome for sure. 🏆🏆🏆 A double congrats on working your way through all the gear issues and she looks great on her Nikes! Sometimes the camera position and focal length will cause distortion, especially if a wide angle lens or setting used and objects close to the camera will appear larger and a bit distorted. Looking mighty good 👍

John Nice to learn a new way of preparing and working through the painting phase of a build, with a well thought out game plan. Already have been making more detailed notes on my painting guide for the Spitfire.

HI John Absolutely a stellar build, as the cammo and markings are so unique, home grown, and perfectly done. So glad you decided to pick up the fight and retackle those few issues that originally had the 1090 back in the box. It's so easy to see how much thought and planning went into working out your painting guide. On most of my builds I do something of the same, working out the paints and colors I'm going to use on the kits included painting guide but nothing as detailed as yours. 🏆

John So glad you pulled back down the 109 and finished the build - another gem for sure. 🏆

Rob My dreams of a MFH Cobra are going to be through your build and I can't thank you enough for doing the Cobra as your next project. The incredible number of parts are staggering and the build will be a joy to follow. I'm onboard for the entire journey, my seat is front and center (at a premium price at the box office.

Chris Looking mighty good and just keep chipping away at those mere 60 stencils 😉

Carl Looking mighty good.

Awesome. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and the Nautilus are wonderful memories of a time gone by - both watching the movie on Walt Disney on TV and in the movies.

Mike, thanks so much, as it is a pleasure to work on a kit that isn't loaded with poorly fitting parts and vague instructions. I used to soak and wash the kit frets and parts in dawn for a good few hours, then go through the rinsing and drying procedure years ago but with 32nd scale everything is so large, it became a lot of work, so I settled into the routine I am still using. I don't think it matters how the kit parts are cleaned, just that somewhere before priming, the mold release agents are removed. I also agree that the quality of the primer is so very important in 'biting' into the plastic, so it can do its job. Once I'm into the various painting stages, I will use my Tamiya anti-static brush to give the model a quick dusting between coats, trying to keep the painted surfaces as clean as I can. Sometimes it works fantastically and sometimes it doesn't, as some dust /sanding particles find their way into the paint. Oh, the joys of painting.

Thanks Rob, very much appreciated. I just find that preparing the model for primer these days has a few much-needed steps to help remove fingerprints, oils and hidden sanding dust. Of course, somehow, some always seems to evade my efforts and then need to be dealt with after priming. Just give it my best and move on.