Landlubber Mike

Looks absolutely fantastic Peter!! Good luck tomorrow my friend.

This thing looks really amazing. I'm a sucker for odd aircraft too. Size wise, I guess it would be like building and storing one of those remote control flying planes that people build. I wonder how the sales of their 1/48 Do-X went - another big one. I'd probably consider a 1/72 or even 1/144 version of this beastie.

Thanks Rob - I think I have that exact same jig so will try that out. Great job! I'm also not a big fan of thin CA - I use it only sparingly in limited situations because it runs so much, and even then, I use an applicator to do so. I find medium CA better for my purposes. Also, the thin stuff I have from Starbond smells so much more than the medium Starbond for some reason.

Rob, looks fantastic! Well done on the complicated assembly. A few nights ago I was trying to do something similar on a 1/700 build I was working on. I didn't like the kit support poles, so I made new ones out of brass rod. Took a while to get everything lined up for sure. Mine wasn't anywhere near as complicated as yours, so mucho respecto for your work! If you don't mind me asking, do you have a good way to cut brass tube? I don't think you can use a typical metal cutter as it will crush the ends. Do you saw yours? I think i have a sawing jig that can work for brass tube, but just curious if you have another easy way to cut it.

My condolences Ernie. May he RIP.

I ended up picking up a new Belcher tail for my kit. It's certainly lighter than the solid version (yellow below), and it seems like some of the lines are different. Panel lines are a little lighter as well on the newer version. Just thought I'd post in case folks were considering picking up one of his replacement tails. Both versions are really well done, it's just if you want to save a little weight, the newer version might make sense.

I'm with Kevin - both are looking fantastic! You must have a big desk to host both those big models!

Wow Peter, that is looking great! Love the Yellow Wings scheme!

Have you ever tried Tamiya 2-part epoxy putty? I used it on my SH Buffalo to fill some large gaps fix some other issues, and really liked it. I find that with larger areas, things like Tamiya's basic putty, Mr. Surfacer, Vallejo putty, etc. can shrink and require multiple applications, especially since the putty is considerably softer than the surrounding plastic. The two-part epoxy putty - for me at least - seemed much better for larger areas.

Really excellent PE work there Rob. This is looking fantastic!

Nice looking subject and kit! Thanks for the review Fran.

Thanks Kevin - I need all the prodding I can get, especially since now I'm down to 5 months to finish the group build! I'm just about finished with the Wildcat and Buffalo - hopefully by tomorrow. Putting together finishing touches on the dioramas. I got a little flustered this weekend when I received some brass rod that I ordered for my 1/700 builds. Were really bent! Put me in a bad mood and I wasn't up for hitting the bench.

Ha! I'm trying to finish up at least a couple of the ten plastic builds I have going on. Hoping to get two done in the next couple of days and then will start. Of course I've been saying that for a few weeks now. Just a little hard to get much momentum going as my kid activities take up a lot of time and I end up being too tired or unmotivated to hit the bench in the evening.

Chris, that's really interesting about the tail. The black primer really shows off the difference in panel lines. I just looked at other builds that used the Belcher tail, and I didn't see others have that issue. I wonder if they just scribed the panel lines forward of the tail to match the tail? I did reach out to Mike Belcher to ask about his hollowed tail. He said that when he first did the tail, the PBY-5A wasn't out so tail sitting wasn't an issue. When the amphibious version came out, he realized that the tail weight would be an issue and came out with the hollowed tail. I'll probably buy another tail just in case I decide to do it with wheels down. Interestingly, some logs say the landing gear never failed, but this guy - who built a spectacular one - said his broke in a day 😲 https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235078382-revell-148-consolidated-sa-10a-catalina/

Wow! This really turned into a beauty. Given all the apparent kit issues, this is a testament to how skillful you are 🙇‍♂️

Nice job Peter! Great fortitude in hanging in there with all the issues. This is going to be spectacular!

Chris, thanks for that info. I might go ahead and pick up one of the newer tails as I'm not sure that I want to risk hollowing it out. Of course now that I'm looking at the Belcher website I'm seeing lots of interesting goodies...

Funny, someone gave me a smaller Delta bandsaw because he was upgrading, and I bought a Sherline lathe for my wooden ship models. I barely used either, so took up pen turning and now those tools actually get some use. I might need to look into a router to be able to make nice bases like the one you made. Looks fantastic!

You've got a really beautiful piece there. Will set off the Schnellboat very nicely. Did you router the edges? Looks very nice. How did you do it? I know you do full size furniture so maybe you have a router in the workshop.

Really coming along nicely Kevin. That base looks beautiful - I love Padauk. I used it for the first time on my La Renommee build on MSW and loved how nicely it works and finishes.

That came out great - the panel lines match up very nicely. Don't forget what you did on yours because I might have to send you mine whenever I get to the kit! Did you end up hollowing the inside of the tail? Mine is completely solid which means substantial weight. I think the later versions had hollow centers, but mine must be one of the early iterations.

Congrats on a fantastic build Ernie! Really nice job!

Wow, that worked out perfectly, nice job! I'd probably need a stiff drink before attempting that!

Wow, really nice work! And if your production is meager, mine must be pathetic

Looking good! There's a relatively inexpensive book out there on how to build the kit that might be of help where things make no sense: https://www.amazon.com/OS2U-Model-Kingfisher-Hoover-Instruction/dp/1729343538/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1XP6MZADJIB9T&keywords=kitty+hawk+kingfisher&qid=1674142262&sprefix=kitty+hawk+kingfisher%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-2