Category: 1:72 scale
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The Scale Of My Problem
I have a problem*. The scale of my model airplanes is 1:72 – and that is the general scale to which I wish to build my model airfields. I have been lucky so far – the British card kits from Superquick and Metcalf are mostly in 1:72 or 1:76 ( an acceptable compromise ) and…
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The Bow Pen Revisited
An earlier post mentioned the draughtsman’s bow pen as an instrument to paint the lines on 1:72nd canopies and I sad I was going to experiment with it. Experimentation finished, I have decided that it is the preferred method of work for the future. I admire the people who can mask canopies and spray paint…
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” It’s Very Toy-Like “
Ever hear that said when someone is looking at a die-cast product in the shop? Or a plastic kit with only a few parts? Ever hear it when someone is looking at a painted scale model? And said with a sneer in the voice? Well if it is ever said to you, or of your models,…
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Spitfire Mk IX – Part Five – Nothin’ Says Lovin’
Like Hispano Suiza 20mm cannon. And they can be affectionate out to quite a considerable distance. Far better at a cocktail party than a .303 machine gun. Well, the British wanted to be as friendly as they could in WW II and ended up equipping a number of their fighters with this sort of auto-cannon.…
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Spitfire Mk IX – Part Four – Is This A Decal Or A Tarpaulin?
I spent one morning recently decalling airplanes – a simple but delightful exercise in cut and paste. The surfaces of the planes were a clear smooth gloss and the first two decal sets – from Hobby Boss – were all that you could want. They were not pretentious markings – just stars, numbers, and a…
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Spitfire Mk IX – Part Three – The Grey Ghost
I am currently working with three bottles of undercoat paint – but not because I need to. Any one of the three choices would be fine…except I cannot resist trying new brews as they appear in the hobby shop. I am perfectly satisfied with Tamiya undercoat in the spray can and have used up many…
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Spitfire Mk IX – Part Two – The Patchwork Quilt
I am always in awe of the kit builder who has every seam perfect, every wheel straight, and every panel line scribed out. Awe and horror. Awe, horror, and unreasoning anger… Well, it’s not quite that bad, but I do regard perfection with some suspicion. Fortunately the Matchbox Spitfire Mk IX is a very soothing…
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Spitfire Mk IX – Part One – Never Look A Gift Kit In The Box
I was at dinner with a group of friends in Sydney when one of them pulled out a couple of old 1:72 kits from a shopping bag. They were historic remainders from his teenage stash…and as he’s distanced from that somewhat, they are truly historic. One’s a Matchbox Spitfire and one’s an Airfix Buccaneer. I…
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Blu, White, Or Yellow?
Tack, I mean. Which stickum do you prefer? I’ve been googling about BluTac just now and apparently the formula is non-toxic, rubber based, and secret. It is made by the original people and half a dozen imitators – two of which I’ve been experimenting with. Useful for tacking posters to dorm wall and kid’s drawings…
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The Sock Drawer
Whenever some cartoonist wants to suggest that someone has no life – and way too much time to spend living it – they have the poor individual sorting out his or her sock drawer. It is meant to be hilarious and pitiful at the same time, like parliament in Ottawa. I think this is entirely…
The Little World 