Category: British aircraft
-
Handley Page Jetstream – Part One – Airfix Too Early

Occasionally you can get caught out by events…or by your own eagerness for business. This has happened twice to Airfix kits that I have encountered, but has not dimmed my pleasure in building them. The first model that made me aware of this was the original Airfix 1:72 Blackburn Buccaneer. I was given a historic…
-
The Shady Business Of Uploading Images

Or how I tried to tame the computer. Here is a typical image of a model airplane. One I built. Modest model, modest builder… Now I am trying to see if it will save, then preview, then publish. If you are confused, please don’t be concerned. I have been so for years and it is…
-
The Curse Of The Were-Lancaster

Or FrankenHalifax. Or worse “ The Superfortress That Took Over The Lounge Room “. We’re talking about aircraft model kits that have dazzled their builders with large-scale detail. The 1:32 and 1:24 scale kits that are the talk of the modelling world right up until they are built and the proud owner tries to find…
-
Sopwith Triplane – Part Three – Black Maria

As a straight-out-of-the-bag build I could not have asked more of the Revell Sopwith triplane. It cost me nothing, it delivered a lot of pleasure. The plastic parts fitted as well as any baggie would…but yielded well to the cut and sand that you normally expect to do. The interior is a seat and a…
-
Sopwith Triplane – Part Two – The New Techniques

I have decided to risk navigating this PaulPlane in only two uncharted waters: the use of the new decal technique and a new finishing varnish. The third experiment – the plastic rigging – will be postponed until a slightly larger model offers. It’s nice stuff, but a little thick for this job. The decaling system…
-
Sopwith Triplane – Part One – Beige Baggie

My next PaulPlane is another Revell baggie from storage in his shed. This one has escaped the effects of the heat and even the decals look viable. It is also going to be the subject of another new experiment – I have had luck with rigging older planes so far with rubber string and thin…
-
Hawker Demon – Part Three – I Was Right

Well, it had to happen some time, eh? The Airfix Vintage Classic Hawker Demon is a colourful gem. The decision to pair it with the Bristol Bulldog was brilliant; it is every bit as good. The building fit was straightforward – once the sinks and posts had been dealt with. Very little filling needed on…
-
Hawker Demon – Part Two – That Sinking Feeling

Bovril would have prevented this… Actually the problem is ejector post marks in the wings of the Demon. They are as marked as any I’ve ever seen, but fortunately Airfix configured the mould to place them on the underside of the wings and tailplane. Equally fortunatly I have an unused tube of Mr. Hobby white…
-
Hawker Demon – Part One – VC Airfix

That’s ” vintage classic ” as it says on the box, but the VC connotation is not at all inappropriate for many of the re-issued Airfix kits. They can really be prize winners. This was a kit that nagged the eye in the shop for a number of months until I had completed the Airfix…
-
Gloster Meteor – Part One – Old Airfix

From the stash of an old modeller – with a few surprises along the way. This kit was in the legacy stash of an old club mate. I purchased it with several others to build in tribute to him, but did not have a fixed project in mind. He had apparently intended it to become…
