Peterpools

Carl Some very interesting and unique builds for the year - so very well done. I still just marvel at how you keep so many projects going at the same time and all seems to flow so well. 🏆

Thanks Chris, so very much appreciated. The kit has been a gem; all Tamiya in fit, detail, accuracy and looks. Agreed, that their decals have been improving and I have used them a few times in the past year. No trick with their X22. I thin out the X22 with Mr Hobby Self Leveling Thinner 60% thinner to 40% X22 and shoot at a working pressure of about 15 - 12 psi, using a .35 tip. A mist coat to start and then building up the layers. The last few layers, I thin out the mix to 2;1 thinner to X22 and it goes on nice and wet. Whie I almost always use a .2 tip for air brush work, when it comes to the clear coats I'm at a .35 for 48th scale models and for 32nd scale, I'm either at .4 or .5 as the wider spray angle makes for a smooth application.

Thanks Kev, you hit the nail right on the head -fun, enjoyment and relaxation.

Carl Nice surgical work for sure and looks like you're zeroing on the painting stages of the rescue.

Phil Nice going and I'm glad you found the Dspiae Circle Cutter easy to use and works well. I've had mine for well over a year and haven't used it as of yet but surely will. The masks you made for the markings worked perfectly.

IT’S DECALING TIME With the paint work done, the Corsair was glossed with Tamiya X22 and while drying over night, I needed to make a decision about the decals. To be honest, the kit decals are fine and quite useable. I had been seriously considering using one of the decal sets in the Magic Factory Dual Corsair kit, which are by Cartograph and glad I did – the decals are superb. The Magic Factory’s kit decal sheet contains four sets of markings, two for each kit but only two sets of Stars and Bars are provided, as it should be, so down the road I’ll need to replace one set of US markings. I used the kit decals for the white sealant tape that goes over the oil access panel, as the decals needed to fit over the curved access panel lines, doubted the Model Factory decals would work as well and then added the missing detail & stencil decals from their decal sheet. The tape lines and stencil data for just this area consumed a good number of hours and some prominent carrier film to worry about. The Magic Factory decals included almost all the stencil data for the Corsair (I’m not a big stencil data guy), I didn’t use very many as I also wanted to save the majority of the stencils for the two Magic Factory Corsairs. It's been years since I didn’t cutout and remove the clear carrier film and the two “29” decals and parts of the white sealant tape decals have a lot of carrier film left in place and I was curious to see how well Cartograph decals would allow the carrier film to disappear - no time like the present to give it a go. The decals went down beautifully using the full Micro System, both Cartograph and Tamiya. I’ll now have to wait until after I apply the remaining two clear coats to see how I did. With the decaling finished and drying, I turned my attention to the remaining parts and at this point, almost all are painted, decaled where needed, ready to go and then the final assembly – the finish line is almost in sight. Please excuse the dust .. as usual, I forgot to dust the Corsair before taking the photographs

Gus Awesome gifts for sure. I built the Tamiya F4B a few years back and to this day still feel it's the best model kit on the market - just perfect in every way. Enjoy

Ralph Looking mighty good and a nice POA ... going to look so good as the famous Killer Bee.

Ralph The old Revell Gemini Capsule looks mighty good and would hope when you build the kit, you do a build thread for us.

Carl Pretty neat redo project and now even a dinosaur is sharing space on the bench. Looking forward to seeing him/her in paint and ready for action.

Scott Looking might good as the Blue Angels Blue is looking mighty smooth and glossy. I would just keep doing what you are doing, as the results speak for themselves - a sunglasses shine.

John good call and onto your next build.

Thanks John and of course the only way I'll ever catch you in the number of builds is if I hire an army of elves to work me 24/7 for 12 straight months. 😉

Thanks so much Mike as they were all fun and enjoyable builds. Wish you and your family the best wishes for the holidays and the New Year.

Thanks Scott .. it turned out to be a good build year despite all the time my wife and I take care of our medical issues. Yup, don't rush to just add one more to the list. Enjoy the build at your own pace and the build goes into next year's count not that there is award other then looking at the display case and admiring your own work and the self-satisfaction that goes with it. 🏆

Thanks PW, very much appreciated

Dennis Perfect gifts for sure.

Carl Looking mighty cool. Agreed about the wash to bring out the details.

Thanks Kev, you surely hit it right on the head when it comes to Revell. terrible boxes and their kits all have a few issues but when done, they look great in the display case and well worth the time and effort. For the money, they can't be beat.

Thanks Carl, much appreciated. A good modeling year for me.

Thanks Dennis so very much appreciated. Nothing to be jealous about, as life has a habit of getting in the way. Peter

Thanks Phil So very much appreciated. It surely has been one of my best years at the bench.

John Surely would be but KH's QC was just outstanding and way too high of a cuss factor.

My completed builds for 2023 a good year for me at the bench. Just jumping the gun. a bit Monogram/Revell 1/48 Kingfisher Airfix 1/48 Sea Fury Tamiya 1/48 P-38H Lighterning Kotare 1/32 Spitfire Mk1a ZM 1/32 Me 109 Revell 1/32 Spitfire Mk II GWH 1/32 P-40 Flying Tigers Tamiya 1/32 Spitfire Mk XVIe

John Good move ... one reason why KH is no longer around.