CANicoll

No moss grows under your feet! The belts look FANTASTIC. PE? What seat is that? Or have I just been missing the detail in the seats I've been building all these years?

I have about 50 kits, and maybe 15-20 of them I may or may not build. Try not to go crazy accumulating kits, but harder when I'm attending Nats or SMW. I've sold a few of my most desirable kits (WNW kits that I would never get to build). Gary's idea of the auction house is a good one.

Plane?

John, Stunning work! Hard to hide defects in a gloss paint, and even more so when it is white. GREAT job!! The finish is phenomenal. Love you followed the history of the aircraft and now have two versions of the aircraft. I've not really done that yet, but have built the same aircraft in different scales (1/72, 1/48, 1/72 - Big Beautiful Doll). Did you use the Revell flaps, or something aftermarket? I have one of the 'new' Revell P-51D kits left and have one last set of the AMUR flaps for it. Chris

I wonder if the brown behind the tiger is the original fuselage color, before it faded? Seems too dark, but the picture is great for all sorts of build ideas!

Gary, GREAT picture of the aircraft. I (wonder if this) image this has been colorized? But showing the wear (and the replacement panel at the wing root) is pretty cool. As well as the faded blue Chinese marking on the left wing. Good stuff.

I hear you Gary. Seems like when I need to make seatbelts it takes me the better part of an evening - and that is having worked out a reasonably reliable method for assembling them. It is still a PITA... And I'm rapidly coming to the same conclusion regarding the 1/48 cockpits. In 1/32 the detail is so much more accessible. It really gets lost in 1/48. Sigh... Maybe I'll sell some of my 1/48 kits... Happy Sunday!

Sweet!!!

Making a little bit of progress, working on the cannons and cockpit. However, I was hugely disappointed with the Tamiya decals for the instrument panel. Two of the three decals tore rather easily. Hard to see in 1/48 scale, but not in the photographs. Far left, the bottom of the two gauges tore and folder back onto itself. The Yellow gauges both also tore making it difficult to place the rest of the gauges. I have some touch-up work to do. Had a bit more success with the cannons, but hard to see with the gunmetal paint. Used the Neutral and Dark MIG washes to bring out the bulkhead detail, and a bit of dry brushing with some Vallejo aluminum. This will be a pretty 'clean' aircraft. Worked on the cockpit tub a bit - surprised there was not a bit more color and wondering if my paint is a bit too dark. Right now it sports a gloss coat but I'll matte that later. The seat is dry fitted for the moment, until I get some HGW seatbelts (which are proving a bit hard to find except from HGW directly). There is a strange reflection in the pan of the seat. Beats me! The washes brought out the plumbing on the back bulkhead pretty nicely, I think. That's it for now.

Hey Mike! I'm kind of going in the other direction lately, more OOB although I do have a couple of 1/48 Eduard Mustang kits and the Revell 1/32 P-51D that I have a ton of AF for. As you said, soo many options but can't wait to see what you are going to do with your builds. I've not used a CMK resin kit for a long time - I keep forgetting they are out there. Also have to look at Quickboost and Aires as you suggested. I usually find more of those when I go to Telford for SMW, but I'm not going this year. Hmm. Lots of ways to spend $$! Chris

This is all fantastic! Now I'm interested in doing a build. Count me in as a watcher! Have always been interested in the AVG and in my school years I did a writing project on the AVG, giving them Mustangs! Years ago I bought a copy of Tex Hill's autobiography, which my wife sent to him to be inscribed for my birthday. A prized possession! No help at all on the colors, but this sits above my workbench: Tiger Fire by Nicolas Trudgian. Signed by Chuck Older, Dick Rossi and Tex Hill. Can't imagine any pilot flying by a wounded enemy plane that was not clearly finished. So much for the composition!

Moving on from the Revell 1/32 Me262 to the Tamiya 1/48 Me262 is quite a difference. Have to REALLY magnify to see what I'm doing. Also, really torn on how to build/display this bird. I was going to open up the nose to show off the guns and the (small) fuselage hatch as well to show off the interior. HOWEVER, this kit comes with a pilot figure and I really like to show pilots in the seat. So, could show it in flight, which would be cool. I have the Hobby Boss kit, and could open THAT one up instead. Also, I have the old (2004) Cutting Edge Cross Dressing Stormbirds decal sheet - which opens up other options as well (and could also be used on the HB kit). Thoughts? Here's the box... And a closer look at the Cutting Edge options. I'm not really sure how appealing I find any of these options. Maybe the first one... Tamiya provides a sheet showing the camo pattern for one of the aircraft, as well as instructions on how to make it 1/48 scale. The wing camo is actually pretty simple with easy reference points so I would just mask it freehand. Seems like there is a basic masked camo pattern, then added mottling over the standard patterns. Have not looked into this at all. Also a nice 2 pager in English and Japanese on the ME-262 and comparison to the Gloster Meteor F.1. Really frustrating is that Tamiya for some reason refuses to reference the RLM numbers. (WTH is "RLM Grey"??) And I've not found a good cross reference table online either of Tamiya to RLM. I'm currently using the Revell color references - which is not perfect either. But, I really do like the inclusion of a pilot figure - even if it doesn't have posable arms. I may just have to cut an arm off of a figure in my stash (probably from on old Monogram kit!) and see if I can get it connected to the joystick. Or maybe move the pilot figures to the HB kit and open up the Tamiya kit?. BTW, the HB kit doesn't include a nose weight, and if the nose is open, will be hard to load up any weight up there. Right now the basic cockpit tub is together and painted RLM 74, and the interior is painted aluminum so not really much to show off at this point. (Painting using Vallejo Model Air and Metal). I do want to pick out various cockpit controls, especially since I have Udvar Hazy's Me262 and excellent photo references to work from. Not that hardly any of it will be visible in the end! That's it for now! Chris

Oh man. This is the first I've heard about the texture on the ZM plastic and wonder if it is restricted to the 109 kit? I have the ZM 1/48 F4C Phantom in my closet so will have to take a look at that. Can't imagine why they did that to the plastic! Options. Ugh... I am with you on options 2 and 3. I can barely CUT a straight line, or rescribe panel lines without going off-kilter. I think I'd recommend foregoing the rivets all together and then wonder how many people will really notice (other than it being etched in your memory for posterity). It will also get you onto the Has kit a bit faster... Your primer looks terrific Good luck!

John, how did you do the screws? Drill them out a bit, or use a sharp toothpick? Looks terrific against that gloss white paint. Gloss white! Wow... Chris

This review came about when I went to reorder a refill for my trusty (and very often used) Tamiya tape 6mm tape dispenser. Somehow when I was on SprueBrother's website I also ran into the ZM brand of tape, which retailed for 1/3 the cost of the Tamiya tape. A 5-pack of 6mm ZM tape sells for $4.80, a single 5mm spool is $1.00 while a single pack of the Tamiya tape retails for $3.00. SprueBrothers does not have a multi-pack of the Tamiya tape for sale, and I have not found a multi-pack of the Tamiya tape anywhere. Since this tape is something I tend to run through pretty quickly, I wanted to see what differences there are between the two tapes and if I might save a bit of money. I use all three of the Tamiya sizes, but seem to run through the 6mm the fastest. Here are the retail packages: Looking at the tapes themselves, they look and feel (and smell!) the same. They are the same size, to my eye anyway: The Tamiya tape has a white center, while the ZM cardboard center is black. In the picture below, the Tamiya tape has the green tab, while the ZM's tab is yellow. The both seem to have the same opacity, and same/similar stickyness. Applying the tape both act and feel the same way. Both seem to have a sharp edge and are equally (in)elastic - they both stretch about the same, before tearing. That is, they hardly stretch at all. What I was not able to test for, in a short period of time, is how the adhesion ages over time - does the ZM lose its stickiness over time? I don't know, but the longest I leave tape on a model is a few weeks and that is usually for masking a canopy. I also use the tape to hold down masking materials, or for masking, but that is literally for minutes. My takeaway at the moment is that both tapes are equally useful. As I use the ZM tape on my current build, I'll update this review as appropriate. If anyone would like to add their own experiences with both/either tapes, please do! Chris

Loki, my rescue cat, often voices her own opinions on things.

Just curious, why did you sell the Eduard 1/48 kits? Prefer to concentrate on the larger scale aircraft? I have to say, moving from the 1/32 Revell kit to the 1/48 Tamiya ME 262 is a HUGE shock. The Tamiya kit is SO SMALL!!! CN

Really nice work, Gary, and love the attention to detail. Cockpit looks terrific, even the tiny bits! Regarding the pilot figure, what about moving the focus forward? As has been noted - the pilot would be facing forward, so why not move his mate to the front of the aircraft? I have a few of the Eduard 109s (1/48) in my stash and am considering doing those next, or maybe a brace of mustangs... You have me leaning towards the 109s, however. You have so much good work going on here, its hard not to try and follow on what you have been doing. Very inspiring! Chris

Martin's pictures got me thinking about the finish, so tried something I have never tried before and that is an overall white wash to tone down the paint/decals and try to effect faded paint. Used a Flory Light Weathering Wash over a matte finish. Used a wide brush to put on the initial coat, let it sit for a bit, then continued to brush some to even out the puddles. Let that sit for a few minutes, then wiped with a very lightly dampened paper towel (and in some cases, a slightly damp wide brush). Reasonably happy with the effect, but definitely need more practice with this. Thoughts? Chris

Yeah, Gary - exactly. The aircraft we see now, have been through an awful lot so you are right - is this how the aircraft REALLY looked? I remember the excitement when the HK Lancaster which was oil-canned beautifully (I think anyway), as well as the AMUR P-51D flaps. But how to achieve that on a 'regular' model? I'm not willing to give it a go, at this point anyway. Thanks Mike! Just plodding along. Chris

Love it Martin, thanks!!! I love to see how the actual seams and skin look. Thank you for posting. Chris

Thank you gents! Gary, I didn't realize the Me262s had their seams puttied, like the Mustang wings. That certainly explains a lot of the visual on the aircraft. Rob, appreciate the pictures since I've not been able to get out to the Smithsonian to see the one there. The one in Pensacola is very glossy! BUT you did get me motivated to search their website and I think I found the subject for the 1/48 version I'm building. The Tamiya box actually has these decals included. Peter - hope to get some build time in this weekend!

Quick update - got a matte coat on to seal in the decals and provide some bite for the weathering. I've hardly noticed panel lines on the ME-262s so am going to concentrate more on fading the paint. There are also so few access panels so not much done in the way of washes. There are quite a few stencils on the aircraft, but also very difficult to see with the camo. Here is the after-decaling. Also drove myself crazy with the Uschi lines for the antenna wires as well as the canopy retaining lines. Still have some clean-up to do. The canopy lines (.003) are so thin that they really are not noticeable. Just to the left of the arrows. Worth it? It is one of those things where I know the lines are there (unless I forget and run my finger through them!). Also started on a 1/48 Tamiya Me-262 A-1a - build thread to come. Things are SO SMALL in 1.48 scale!!! Those canopy hinges are HUGE, but I didn't want to mess with the clear plastic to shave them down. Also kind of figured they are pretty hard to see in general. The wing root seam is pretty pronounced on this side - will have to do something about that...

Gary, I use a very fine-tooth razor saw to remove the clear parts from the sprue - 72 teeth or better. I get a flush cut and no stress cracks. Cockpit is looking GOOD and I am very envious of those seatbelts. I never can get the stitching or lettering to come out so clearly. Chris

Peter, Looks terrific and the color research always adds a big positive in my mind. "Why is this color used, and not that one" is usually an interesting exercise (thinking of the Lou IV Mustang pictures and the ongoing debate of are the colors blue or green). It is also what makes following your builds so interesting. Very happy to see (and hear) that the chemo effects are lessening, and that you are able to adjust and continue the high-quality work you are well known and respected for. Also very happy to see that no one is immune to the 'I wish I had done this first' phenomena. One thing I do follow is your build strategy which has helped me in the past to avoid certain problems. The light band on this aircraft just gave you time to continue your masking skills! I can't remember an aircraft where I painted the light band, masked over it, and continued with the rest of the aircraft. Still working on that one! The Whirlwind is one of those iconic designs and I'm delighted you are doing the build. Looking great! Chris