Landlubber Mike

Get well soon Ernie!

Ben, your work is absolutely fantastic. The attention to detail(s) is incredible. Love the figures you included, and the Vickers looks really amazing. Netflix just added another WWII in color series. I just finished the war in north Africa episode - your jeep looks like it could jump right into it!

If interested, let us know!

Looks fantastic! Enjoying seeing this come along!

Ernie, hope you feel better soon. And many thanks for running the Christmas drawing again Looks like I'm the lucky winner of the 1/32 Trumpeter P-40E, P-40M, or P-40N kindly donated by @seiran01. To be honest, I have a few other projects at the moment and I think this one would sit on the shelf for a while. Would anyone else like to build this kit? I'm happy to transfer the prize to someone else who would (1) build this in the near term, and (2) be willing to post a build log for the forum. Would be my pleasure to spread a little extra holiday cheer. Just let me know, and I can let Seiran01 know. Merry Christmas everyone!

The cockpit looks fantastic - those Quinta packs really dress up cockpits nicely, especially on modern aircraft with all the dials, etc. Not sure what to tell you on your intakes issue Peter - good luck with whatever you decide, sounds like you have some good options and I'm sure you'll come to a good solution.

A 1/32 Ju 52? That would be a pretty huge model. The 1/48 version is pretty big.

Hi Ernie, sorry to come late to this, but I'm happy to contribute a $100 gift card to modeling website of winner's choice. Can I also be added to the recipient list as well? Happy holidays!

Ben, nice score on the Auntie Ju! I'm surprised this subject isn't modeled more, as the aircraft was so versatile and used in so many ways (and for years, I believe was used as a commercial plane in some countries). The corrugated exterior is a cool look too. When I decided to start building model planes, this was one of the first I bought for the stash (now I have two). You probably have seen, but you can get a lot of goodies for this kit, including a number of sets from CMK for the engine (4044) interior (4043) and exterior (4061). Eduard also has a bunch of neat looking PE sets, including one that allows you to add a number of seats in the interior if you want to dress it up. Master X also sells conversion kits to make it a float plane and a ski plane. I managed to find both sets after a lot of searching, so maybe I need a third kit to do the base version and then the float and ski versions 🙄 Looking forward to seeing this one come alive in your skilled hands! Happy holidays!

Wow, looks very promising!

Agreed! Thanks guys!

Merry Christmas everyone!

It works really well. I use it a lot to pre-form bends for planking wooden hulls, particularly at the bow. Wet the end of the wood, run it through the roller a few times, and you have a nice curve that makes pinning and clamping the plank to the hull a lot easier. It's a bit pricey on the Micromark site, but you can get it for a better deal when they offer sales and discounts.

I bend wood when building wooden ship models. There are a variety of ways I do it, but it depends on the wood, size, shape, etc. You can: soak in water and pin to a forming jig and let it dry soak and microwave (or soak in hot water) and shape it soak and use a hair dryer use a rolling tool to put a bend into it soak the wood and use a heating element to form the curve Given the size, I'd consider soaking the wood, then clamping it around a forming jig. Let it dry and hopefully it's in the shape you want. When I am trying to shape hull planks, I will soak the plank, then pin it to the hull. The next day it should be dry and in the shape I want. I can't necessary do this with certain dense woods like ebony, but instead found I need to use that heating element tool in the last picture to get a fixed curve in the wood. I'm assuming the pine you're using a wood will be much easier to bend. Just make sure to soak and then bend slowly. Sometimes it might take multiple tries to get it into the shape you want. Sometimes the wood will spring back a bit, so you might need to soak and clamp to a jig with a touch more curve than you want so that when it springs back, it's in the shape you need.

Hey Ben, thanks for the tip on using Xerox imaging plastic. Really appreciate it! This is the Bugatti version I have (there is one with the spare strapped to the side of the vehicle and then I think a yellow version): Opening the box the kit looked ok - will see how the parts fit when I start working on it. Along with this one and the Auto Union, I think I have six other kits that I managed to snag on deals on eBay (couple of Alfa Romeos, couple Ferraris, a Maserati, and a Mercedes-Benz). I think these racers are some of the coolest looking cars, and where Revival does an especially nice job, at least on the metal kits, is with the wire wheels. Plus, with the open hoods, you can add some neat little details to the engine compartment. I still need to get a little better at car modeling. In some ways they are simpler than ship and plane models, at least when it comes to construction. The paint job, however, to me seems much harder and critical to get right. At least with ships and planes you can hide things with weathering, washes, panel-liners, etc. A little harder to do that with cars. The other thing that I haven't quite figured out is what to do when it comes to the finish and weathering, adding depth, and different textures like leather. Folks usually don't add washes or depth to the body of the car. If they don't do that when it comes to the engine and interior, then to me it looks very plastic. If they do do that to the engine and interior, then there is a bit of a dichotomy because the body is usually a solid color with a gloss coat. I haven't done enough car models to figure that one out.

I think Revival has an eBay store - at least I think I remember seeing their store selling these kits a year or so ago. Not sure if they are still selling though. I need a replacement glass for my Auto Union Type C. These kits pop up from time to time on eBay. Usually they are listed in the $150+ range, but you can get lucky and win auctions for under $80. A month ago I snagged one of the metal Bugattis for $70. I'd probably stay away from the plastic ones, as I think they don't come with the wire wheels. The pre-made wire wheels in the metal kits are really really nice, and were a big seller to me.

Wow, this is really nice Ben!! Love it! The Kublewagen is really cool, but together with the figures and scenery really brings it to life.

Thanks Ben, really appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions!

Holy cow, seriously nice Kevin!

Looking good Peter - getting to the primer stage is a big step!

Incredible work as always. That engine is sublime, wow!

Really nice work. Love the colors!

Nicely done Drums! I'm working on putting a 1/350 IJN destroyer into a sea base much like yours, as well as a couple of 1/700 models. The sea diorama brings the ship to life!

Looking really good, nice job!

Beautiful PE work!