What is on your bench right now ? Share a picture :)

[BlrwestSiR]

Calling this one done:

[Count0]

  On 5/18/2025 at 9:36 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

Calling this one done:

 

Expand  

Nice chromatic richness, as the Spanish modelers would say. Oil's or acrylics?

[Count0]

Another Lego jig. Airacobra advancing at a glacial pace...

And murderers row of small models in various stages.

[BlrwestSiR]

After finally getting the Takom Ho229 combo kits, I couldn't wait to start hacking one up. 

@Martinnfb and I have been talking about the 2 seater  B version which doesn't have the right nose and cockpit for the proposed night fighter variant. Right being subjective since it was only proposed. Anyways, that led to the idea of doing it as a What-if. I thought of a USN carrier based version say early '50s. 

So here I am. 

Fuselage inner frame. 

Cockpit with styrene side panels to make a tub. 

Mocked up. 

 

[Martinnfb]

Sweet, can't wait for the finalized look .

[belugawhaleman]

  On 6/6/2025 at 4:19 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

After finally getting the Takom Ho229 combo kits, I couldn't wait to start hacking one up. 

@Martinnfb and I have been talking about the 2 seater  B version which doesn't have the right nose and cockpit for the proposed night fighter variant. Right being subjective since it was only proposed. Anyways, that led to the idea of doing it as a What-if. I thought of a USN carrier based version say early '50s. 

So here I am. 

Fuselage inner frame. 

Cockpit with styrene side panels to make a tub. 

Mocked up. 

 

Expand  

I have the single seat version, I'm interested in how these things build up. 😀

[BlrwestSiR]

  On 6/6/2025 at 5:57 PM, belugawhaleman said:

I have the single seat version, I'm interested in how these things build up. 😀

Expand  

So far, the fit has been good. There's some light flash in places that needs clean up. Definitely doesn't have as much (internal) detail as the ZM kit for good or bad. The wings have only three main parts- upper and lower halves plus a wing rib at the root. 

The big miss is the lack of painting instructions. I would suggest maybe downloading the ZM instructions for detail colours. 

[DocRob]

  On 6/6/2025 at 4:19 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

Cockpit with styrene side panels to make a tub.

Expand  

Kit is looking promising, Carl. I´m eying the two seater, as I have only the ZM kit. Are you sure, there should be a tub. After looking at some pics, I think there is only the tubing.

Cheers Rob

[HubertB]

  On 6/7/2025 at 12:31 PM, DocRob said:

Kit is looking promising, Carl. I´m eying the two seater, as I have only the ZM kit. Are you sure, there should be a tub. After looking at some pics, I think there is only the tubing.

Cheers Rob

Expand  

Well, the soon-to-be-released ZM kit has some for the twin-seater (but not for the single-seat V3 you can do with the same box)

https://www.zoukeimura.co.jp/en/sentiment/oyajiblog_137.html
 

Hubert

[DocRob]

  On 6/8/2025 at 3:20 AM, HubertB said:

Well, the soon-to-be-released ZM kit has some for the twin-seater (but not for the single-seat V3 you can do with the same box)

Expand  

Thank you Hubert, I didn´t dig deeper, but maybe, the cabin of the night fighter was planned to be pressurized. Sitting under the plexy canopy with one of these weird looking plexy helmets wouldn´t be helpful at night with all the reflections. While testing the Arado 234, the reflections proved to be a problem for the night fighter role, even without the helmets.

Cheers Rob

[FullArmor]

Trumpeter E-100.

[BlrwestSiR]

  On 6/8/2025 at 9:31 AM, FullArmor said:

Trumpeter E-100.

Expand  

Looks imposing. I built the Amusing Model version a couple years back. Simple but enjoyable. 

[BlrwestSiR]

  On 6/7/2025 at 12:31 PM, DocRob said:

Kit is looking promising, Carl. I´m eying the two seater, as I have only the ZM kit. Are you sure, there should be a tub. After looking at some pics, I think there is only the tubing.

Cheers Rob

Expand  

Thanks Rob. I don't think there was actually any 2 seaters built so it's all mostly conjecture. As Hubert said, ZM is doing their 2 seater with a tub. That's what gave me the idea to do mine in the same way. 

[BlrwestSiR]

A quick radome fairing for my Horton. I made it from a P-51 drop tank and Apoxie Sculpt.i did a test fit on the canopy too.

With the wings dry fitted:

[FullArmor]

  On 6/8/2025 at 3:02 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

Looks imposing. I built the Amusing Model version a couple years back. Simple but enjoyable. 

Expand  

Thanks. I will try to add more surface details like: flamecut seams, weldbeads, and overall rough unfinished texture to enhance otherwise very monotonous looking hull.

[FullArmor]

  On 6/8/2025 at 3:02 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

Looks imposing. I built the Amusing Model version a couple years back. Simple but enjoyable. 

Expand  

Would it be possible to get a picture of that?🙂 Please share.

[BlrwestSiR]

  On 6/8/2025 at 3:48 PM, FullArmor said:

Would it be possible to get a picture of that?🙂 Please share.

Expand  

I'll grab a couple when I get home. 

[BlrwestSiR]

Okay, here's a few pics. The Amusing kit has the Maus turret rather than the one in the Trumpeter kit. The camo is a combo of different schemes to reflect a vehicle built from sub-assemblies. That and I I wanted to have fun with it. 

I did a simple mod to the side skirts to make them removable. 

 

[FullArmor]

  On 6/8/2025 at 6:32 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

Okay, here's a few pics. The Amusing kit has the Maus turret rather than the one in the Trumpeter kit. The camo is a combo of different schemes to reflect a vehicle built from sub-assemblies. That and I I wanted to have fun with it. 

I did a simple mod to the side skirts to make them removable. 

 

Expand  

exquisite. Thanks. Those removable skirts are nice! If I'm not mistaken, this is not a maus turret.

[Count0]

  On 6/6/2025 at 4:19 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

After finally getting the Takom Ho229 combo kits, I couldn't wait to start hacking one up. 

Expand  

Oh come on now! You know they have to marinate in the stash for at least a year!

[Count0]

  On 6/6/2025 at 6:19 PM, BlrwestSiR said:

I would suggest maybe downloading the ZM instructions for detail colours. 

Expand  

It's a good call, but on something that never made it to prototype stage, colors are kinda open, within reason, in my mind.  

Late war, paint inside cockpits and wheel bays was possibly just a suggestion of the intended color. One self appointed expert at the local was trying to state that a thin (nearly transparent) coat of RLM 02 was the German version of Aotake... He was corrected very quickly. LMAO.

[BlrwestSiR]

  On 6/9/2025 at 3:45 AM, Count0 said:

It's a good call, but on something that never made it to prototype stage, colors are kinda open, within reason, in my mind.  

Late war, paint inside cockpits and wheel bays was possibly just a suggestion of the intended color. One self appointed expert at the local was trying to state that a thin (nearly transparent) coat of RLM 02 was the German version of Aotake... He was corrected very quickly. LMAO.

Expand  

I'm skipping right over the RLM 02/66 debate and going straight to Dark Gull Grey! 

[Martinnfb]

Whatever US Navy used would work no?  Post war, Zink chromate or white?

[BlrwestSiR]

  On 6/9/2025 at 3:13 PM, Martinnfb said:

Whatever US Navy used would work no?  Post war, Zink chromate or white?

Expand  

Gear bays were white. Easier to spot leaks. Cockpits were grey. I think sometimes black on late '40s, early '50s 

[Count0]

  On 6/9/2025 at 3:13 PM, Martinnfb said:

Zink chromate

Expand  

Ze Germans don't speak Zinc chromate. Some kind of dark grey seems like a safe bet. Maybe raw aluminum for the tubes.