Bill_S

It used to be that I would hold off on aftermarket until I was ready to build a particular kit. Not true any more! Quinta Studios cockpit for Tamiya's F-16 and a Yahu panel for the Ho-229. To me, Zoukei-Mura's instrument panels are the weak spots in their kits.

I'm trying to think ahead here, Ernie. Would the HpH catapult qualify? My Arado 196 is probably over 25% complete, but that sizeable resin sets has been calling my name for a few years now. I, like Hubert, have a number of float planes in the stash.

I found out the hard way - not all pipe cleaners are created equally. Imagine my surprise when I peeled off the tape...

I'll be another that will be watching intently - I just got this kit myself. One thing that I really like about Z-M instructions; each page has the recommended colors listed. No thumbing back and forth to see what colors are required for a particular assembly. I'm surprised other manufacturers don't do this.

Ernie, I think the Wet GB is a fantastic idea! I would be interested in the others as well. When do we start?

I need to buy less and build more.

She's got legs! And Houston, we have lift off. We'll see how the Future holds.

Enough said.

This arrived from BNA Model World in yesterday's mail. I had never heard of KASL, so I had to take a look... The casting is top notch; it remains to be seen how well it fits.

Another warm welcome to LSM, Scott! Fantastic work on the Wildcat!

Grail kits... to me, they change over time. As a kid, I saw the picture of Revell's Snake Stuka on the side of a box, but I could never find one (though I have one now). Then there were the "Lost Three" from Revell: George Tony, and Jack. I managed to grab those, then the Scratchbuilders Rex conversion became the Grail (I built that one). Nowadays, if I see a new release that piques my interest, I grab it - though nothing in recent memory has been elevated to Grail status. The only planes I would pay dearly for are (as Hubert mentioned) a B-58, and a 1/32 SR-71.

Peter, I could mask the walkways - easy enough. These ARE AM decals, purchased direct from the source. My main issue is that there a s***load of small stencils... Tamiya provides decals for a low-viz version, and this is to be a brightly colored bird.

They peeled, Peter. I don't thing there is any glue on the back side of their decals. I has the same thing happen on another of their sheets.

Peter, I ordered this kit yesterday; I can't wait to open it and sniff the plastic. It will probably be my vacation build. I'll be spending the month of February in sunny Florida.

Nearing the finish line on this one. Canopy is masked; ejector pin divots are filled and drying. I started laying down some decals from the data stencil sheet. Am I going to have to glue down every single stencil? Never again, Milspec!

Beautifully done, Scott! I had a similar experience with non-adhesive decals recently. Peeled them back a bit and applied a drop of Future applied with a micro brush. Worked great.

Thanks for the info on the two-seater, fellas. I almost pulled the trigger on it, but I thought it was a lot of money. I'm glad I held off.

Mail call... Happy birthday to me! Now I just have to figure out. Do I... Get the two seater conversion set Make a skeletal version Spring for the woodgrain decals Choices, choices...

Major update: I sprayed the bottom with FS17875 (Insignia White), which should provide a gloss finish. I don't know if the pressure was too high or what - but the finished coat had a definite rough feel to it. Almost as if I got a batch of flat paint. Out came the sandpaper, followed by a good rubbing with #0000 steel wool. I thinned the next coat heavily with Mr. Leveling Thinner and achieved the result I was after (same bottle of paint). I forgot to grab a photo at this stage. Next comes the Light Gull Gray (also glossy). I saw Peter's post on the rolled up tape to provide a feather edge; I'm too lazy and my results would be too inconsistent, so I grabbed a couple of lengths of floral wire... Tough to see in the picture, but the tape just covers the wire and sits a bit above the surface. These were long runs along the fuselage; the wire was plenty long enough. For masking the forward fuselage, I tried something different. That's good old-fashioned pipe cleaner. The end result in both instances was acceptable. I'll let the paint cure for a couple of days, then on to the next step.

Looking forward to this one, Peter! I like MRP paints, but my go-to black primer is Mr. Surfacer 1500 black thinned 50/50 with Mr. Leveling Thinner.

Some inspiring work there, Carl!

At last. A couple of minor seams to fill. Got that damned seam on the canopy removed, too. It still needs a Future dip.

My plan is to do some figure sculpting to go along with this one. New ground for me.

Thanks folks. I'm trying very hard to keep this one out of the box. No WIP for this one, though I'll be sure to post some photos once it's completed. Our local contest is September 18th, and I'm trying to get the Zero, the XB-70, and the Tomcat done in time for it. Maybe I should just ship the kits to John B...

Yes, Martin. Type 21 (A6M2)