CANicoll

And NO sprue!!

Gap? How do you apply it? Since you can make it somewhat as thick or thin as you want, do you just kind of brush it on/in? Mine is mixing in an Tamiya Extra Thin bottle, with the brush in the cap. @nmayhew: Interesting the point you make about clear vs color sprue. I've always found clear styrene to be very brittle and easy to snap. Some gray styrene (Tamiya I think?) bends significantly before it snaps. I just used the gray sprues from my Catalina build as there is literally feet of it extra. I wonder if aged styrene works very well (from 1996!)? If I had thought about it I would have pulled some Eduard and/or Tamiya sprue...

Despite being very distracted with the Catalina, and a lot of woodshop stuff (we have an amazing workshop here) did make some much needed progress on the Voodoo. Got the fuselage together and the wings attached. The wing tops have a tab that goes into the side of the fuselage. The fit isn't perfect and needed some putty to close up. My 'Sprue glue' wasn't ready yet so had to settle for some putty. Already painted the camo color behind the intakes before attaching the wings. Have masked the gray underside where it comes up on the side of the nose. The bummer are the seams and the raised panel lines. Very hard to clean up the seams and not obliterate the lines. Like on the engines/exhaust. Painted with Metalizer Exhaust and banded with Burnt Iron as a start. Ordered some MRP Tan so when that arrives (later this week? with the Catalina masks!) will start on the camo.

Here is the late update... So, yeah. That IP decal. It slid off the paper just fine. And that is the end of the happiness. So for your viewing pleasure, this gives you an idea of what happened next: Under the dictionary definition of 'decal fracturing' this image appears: So this MIGHT be a good time for me to try out masking the national insignia. There are not many markings on a Black Cat anyway. Back to the IP - trying to remember the tried and true skill of dry-brushing... I spent way too much time trying to find my AirScale instrument decals (which somehow have gone missing(!) and then decided at 1/48 scale it would drive me nutty putting over 20 decals on this panel... Plus, I'm not really sure what a bunch of them are anyway. For a Mustang, you can find anything. Catalina? Not so much... Worked on the cockpit trying to pull a bit more detail into the sea of green. I'm really lacking much in the way of color references other than current planes and restoration efforts - some of which contradict each other in terms of colors used. The idea is that the seated pilots will obscure the seatbelts, but I'll add tape belts to go from the seat to the figures. That's it for tonight!

Yep, those were the ones I meant not the radar antenna on the tail. Sorry for not being clear. Thay last picture must have quite a story with it!

Hey John, Changing over to a Pacific theater P-51D will be fun to watch. I found a couple of pictures of your 'new' bird, showing off the twin antenna. Good luck! Chris

Making progress on two fronts - the Catalina and also the Voodoo. Have masks ordered for all of the clear parts on the Cat, as well as another bottle of Black primer which will also likely be the main coat for the bird. SB was kind enough to let me know that they expected the masks in the coming week (and they came in yesterday!) so got my order in. Been working with the IP, trying to highlight the gauges and, this is really embarrassing, just realized there is a DECAL to use. Will get to that shortly here! The Cat references seem to show a pretty blah cockpit - not a lot of color other than green. Hoping to come up with some placards or SOMETHING to brighten up the front office a bit. Seems like the plane was assembled, then the paint folks came in (was going to say guys, but more than likely it was women doing the work!) and sprayed everything. Definitely will work on some washes and some other detailing. Yes, the ejector pin marks are an embarrassment. Will see about those and what will be visible. Starting work on the waist gun section- with the black non-slip applied to the walkways. This area will be pretty visible so hoping to really get some nice detail in there. Lots of clean-up to do yet. The piece at the bottom is the seat for the nose gunner. Dry fitted the seats after doing a bit more painting. REALLY hate the idea of covering up all that great detail - after starting to paint the seatbelts. Ha ha! But, there is more bulkhead painting to do here to liven things up a bit. If only a bi. More later!

Never tried it but ironically enough, I also have a bottle of Tamiya Extra Thin that is just about finished, and a separate bottle of sprue bits for god-knows-why I've kept. I agree with you about the CA Gap filling - ALWAYS seems to dry too hard and then doesn't sand right. We ALWAYS have a lot of extra sprue to use! Ok, going to go create the mixture. Thanks for the suggestion!

Oh yeah, MUCH better! Perfect re-fit and looks like it was always that way. nice job!

Great start on an awesome kit! Welcome aboard! Chris

And working with you and the other administrators as well!! You all set the (right) tone!

It could be a SHINY build!

Agreed, Spent a lot of time with Maru at SMW in Telford and also in Phoenix at the US Nats. We sat next to each other on the (long) bus ride out to Pima and back. Wonderful person. Just can't imagine what that other site is doing...

Love the weathering, perfect!!

Maru, you got BANNED? OMG. What has LSP come to? I moved over here a few months ago and you will be much happier here, and I know I am not alone (see all the above messages) to see you here! Good to hear from you, my friend and glad to see you are still about. Happy New Year, Birthday buddy!

Hi Mike, I'm going to stick with the 5A. I think there are enough differences between the two that I'm not up to in terms of scratch building. Plus, I'd probably finish in June, 2024!

Found this website which has some nice pictures of a RAAF PBY 6A - but close enough on the details for my build. Definitely shows the pinched 'waist' aft the gun blisters which I hope the resin tail will also show off. Consolidated PBY Catalina - Destination's Journey (destinationsjourney.com)

Hi folks, The Voodoo is getting ready for paint and realized I don't have the proper colors for the three-color SEA camo. I have the greens as MRP 101 Dark Green and MRP 102 Green, but the 'Tan' I have is the 'Sand/Tan' MRP 396 which looks way too light to my eye. I see SB has a Sand MRP 395 which seems to look closer. Any suggestions or ideas on the 'right' colors for three-color SEA scheme? This is my test for when I get to the 1/32 Phantom which I will do in SEA camo as well. I also see that there is a Green/Brown/Tan 3 color camo scheme. Not sure about that one. Thanks in advance! Chris

I agree, wow! Beautiful build and the linen effect is amazing. Your cockpit detail is really something. But your sharing of your incredibly detailed build logs is beyond wonderful - thank you for sharing your information and skills!! And the vignette is terrific and really adds to the story. THANK YOU for showing how you did the base! That has always represented a huge challenge for me and I am grateful you are sharing your tips. Chris

Peter - Just Beautiful! What a great aircraft and subject and you did wonders with a terrific, but difficult kit. Shame about the radio hatch and not being able to see the detail inside but that Quinta placard on the door is excellent. And you are really a master with the MRP paints. I know, they go on so nicely, but as we've discussed, they only reward excellent prep which is your forte. There is just something about the AVG planes that really grabs the attention. Maybe the biggest complement is all the people here who are saying that maybe they want to try the kit now they have seen yours! FWIW, I have a full set of the Molotow Blackliners I'll send you to try out if you want. Check them out and send them back when you are done. .05, .1, .2 and .4mm. Black, not Chrome so not sure if you will find a use for them. I also have the 2mm Chrome pen and the 2mm Liquid masking marker but can't remember how I used them years ago - probably on the oleos. Must not have made a big impression?

I think the Quinta stuff is better than the Eduard color PE but I have not seen in-person their LOOK/SPACE lines yet but the reviews I've read point to Quinta for better quality but Eduard for lower price. I did use the Quinta bits in the SU-92 I built and was very impressed with it. YOUR 'pit looks amazing! Whatever is used still has to be applied correctly and yours looks great. That fading on the engine cowling in something else. I may have to look back at Quinta for a future build. What surprises me is that they don't have a set for the 'New' Revell 1/32 P-51D. Lots for Tamiya, Airfix and Eduard esp in 1/48 scale. Hmmm....

One of my favorite aircrafts after building one in 1/72 and realizing all of the detail and the unique shapes involved. Plus, I do like the Tri-color scheme. Your build looks amazing Ernie! The MRP Paints are terrific but they are so thin they show every wart and imperfection under them - which in your case is showcasing how beautiful your build really is. LOVE the flaps. Somehow I missed it - did you drill out the kit flaps or did you go the PE route? Hmm, 1/32 for props, 1/48 for jets. I have to admit - the occasional 1/72 build is pretty nice to get something built fairly quickly. I have used a 1/72 build in preparation for a 1/32 (or even 1/48) build just to get familiar with how the plane goes together and check out the painting and detail references. What did you use to mask the canopies?

I'm not a huge watch guy, but I do have a Seiko 150m divers watch that my dad gave me in 1978 as a HS graduation present. I was disappointed it wasn't a car, which is what a lot of my friends got, but he had his reasons for that. The watch band is on backwards to make it easier to attach to what was then a dive gauge holder. In excellent condition and still works!

I've had similar lifting problems with MM in the past - long before I learned the benefits of primer. I definitely like it for interior work and where I'm not masking the exterior. I didn't have too many problems spraying it, especially once I got a new airbrush and moved on from the Aztec I was using to get started. It is really surprising how poor the TD IP looks compared to the kit IP. Off-center gauge recesses, and generally soft detail really don't show well. At least the seats are pretty good and the sidewalls should spruce up the cockpit nicely.

CMK/SH and Eduard have also had a HUGE presence at SMW in Telford, England, and agree with Hubert - they are all great folks to talk to. I've had lots of conversations with those folks and they have been patient and helpful. I do like the CMK resin (and their strengthened landing gear) and of course the Eduard bits and bobs in addition to their kits. I'm happy/upset they have re-released their P-39 kits. Happy they did it, upset my wallet is likely going to take a hit. Those are some of my favorite kits in 1/48. I'm pretty sure about 5-6 years ago I took hundreds of pictures of the SR-71 at Udvar-Hazy for the HPH folks. They were particularly interested in seeing all of the access panels around the aircraft. Gigabytes of pictures. Supposedly it is a 2023 release according to various modeling websites... It would be nearly a meter long in 1/32 scale!!