Peterpools

Mike Thank you so much for your very kind words - a truly incredible kit and a very satisfying and rewarding build.

Thanks Kev for the heads up - I'll be following the build and just back from his start and there are a few issues. My kit is going to be shipped on Monday and right now I'm working on the Tamiya P-47D Razorback and hoping when it's done in about three weeks' time, I'll be ready to start my Marauder. After looking at the build thread on BritModeller, one of the weak spots is the IP and possibly the front office. I'm hoping Quinta or Eduard has their upgrade sets out by then, as I really don't want to start mine without them. I'm sure they have been working on their AM upgrade sets for some time and hoping it won't be too long of a wait. .

Thanks Rob, so very much appreciated. When the mood strikes and times permits, I'm sure you will be diving into your 'D' box and turning out a gem.

Rob Sorry to read about the Tamiya glue spill and the trailing edges, always a bit of a letdown when things go south and then a lot of time needs to be devoted to restoring the model to where she was prior to the needed repairs. No doubt, your repair work will be perfectly done, with not a hint of the work to be seen. Congrats on finishing the rigging on the left wing - looking so good.

John Awesome build and a great save from the SOD. Cammo and finish are superb.🏆 i

Paul I guess it's just like everything else these days... prices just keep skyrocketing and there will be point, where the kit or whatever, just isn't worth the money and we walk away.

John Awesome work and has to be close to a record for you in how quickly the Spitfire moved through the bench to completion. Wing roots/fairings came out perfect and if you hadn't said a word, it would be impossible to know all the work it took to correct the fit issue. Cammo and finish are perfectly done. 🏆

HI Paul Thanks so much for your thoughts and experience on using the pinvise. Since this is a newer version, I'll be careful to purchase the correct new set: AT-SHD with the drill bits. My go to drill bits is a Tamiya three case set and the bits themselves are of excellent quality. I now understand what the differences are in the drill bits and found the set with the new pinvise on eBay. I rarely shop or buy on Amazon. 👍

Mark Looking so good - your modeling and decaling skills are perfect and a pleasure to follow.

Rob Amazing and brilliant work. Skilled and steady hands are two modeling skills you surely possess and use to the fullest. I can't thank you enough for the very detailed tutorial with clear and sharp images photographs, A picture is worth a thousand words and never truer.

Mark Will be looking forward to your comments after testing them out.

Paul Nice additions for sure. When you use the Dspiae please do a review, as I'm always looking for a better pinvise and heard very good things it. Will be very much appreciated.

Same here and will be doing some online research.

Carl Making some mighty nice progress and no question one of the messiest part of any build.

Thanks Carl, so very much appreciated and completely agree - the high vis, colorful markings are the way to go with a minimum of weathering to show off the scheme and aircraft to its fullest.

Marks Thanks so much and glad you like the finish, which I try to keep consistent from build to build. At times a bit of work but just how I lie them.

Thanks Carl, just a wonderful build experience as always. Next up on the bench if they arrive in time for my next project, should be two Tamiya /148 P-47D Thunderbolts, a Bubbletop and razorback with Quinta details for each front office. My collection of Jugs is slowly but steady growing, as they were aircraft built right here on Long Island during the war. The Republic in Farmingdale and Grumman in Bethpage factories back in the day were maybe just 30 minutes apart by car, as long as the growing Long Islands world famous traffic was bumper to bumper. If memory serves me correctly, I think both were on the same line of the old LRRR as well.

Martin. thank you so very much for the compliments on my Tomcat and build thread presentation. A tremendous kit, well engineering and yet Tamiya included many build challenges along the way. I do enjoy doing the updates and I'm guilty of spending a lot of time on the presentation and photographs, all of which are focused stacked and tweaked in both Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop, to be sharp front to back and colors adjusted as needed.

Carl Looking so good and yes, the cammo does come shining through. Nothing like masking the old-fashioned way and just makes us appreciate paint masks more and more. Times and the hobby certainly has changed over the years and what ever happened to those wonderful, raised panel lines?

Thanks Mark, as it's my preferred way of building and finish, so as to be consistent in appearance with the balance of all the other models in my mini museum display case.

Thanks Rob, so greatly appreciated. A fun and very rewarding build - so worth the cost and then some.

Thanks Chris, I tip my hat to Tamiya for some tremendous engineering and no shortcuts. I found the panel lines to be of the same depth and size, making the application of the Flory and Ultimate washes easy and results consistent. And of course, all those stencils went down with no issues whether Tamiya or Furball. I have noticed that Tamiya's decals, even though they look the same from kit to kit, have greatly improved and no longer need to be replaced with the AM variety unless the kit schemes are not of interest. For my way of working, the key is the decal prep work and the smoothest, glossy surface to work on.

Thanks Kev. Pure and awesome Tamiya, as I looked forward to each work session at the bench. Getting ready to make room for the Big Cat in the Display case, as I have two more glass shelves on order and then it's full to the brim.

Thanks Fran for the review and photographs of the kit in detail. Ordered and waiting for the kit to arrive. Surely will be a summer build for me.

Thanks Paul, very appreciated. I found by breaking up the stencil work over a few days' time and having a goal to reach, it made the work go a lot faster and was actually fun. If I tried to do it all in once and from work session to work session, no question, I would easily have run out of steam and most likely still be doing them. 😉