Category: Model Airplane
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Blackburn Buccaneer – Part Four – Sleeker and Sleeker
The last posting about the Bucc was a little discouraging – you saw the massive seams and holes in the thing for what they were. Like seeing an old actress without her makeup on. Well this time you get the effect of art and science. The holes have been filled and the layers of lacquer…
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Blackburn Buccaneer – Part Three – Well, It Is…
…What it is… The engine compartment is full now, and it’s time to mate the sections of fuselage and attach the wings and tail. The initial dismay at the fit of these things can be alleviated with a little discrete carving and sanding, and the lips of the mouldings at least come pretty close to…
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Blackburn Buccaneer – Part Two – The Hollow Man
No, wait – that was Bing Crosby. This Airfix model of the naval strike fighter is nowhere near as empty as he was…but nevertheless there’s a lot of unused space inside. Note that the dear old instruction sheet makes this painfully clear – though I will say that it is entirely adequate for the job.…
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Blackburn Buccaneer – Part One – Not A Straight Line…
Note: This is the post I meant to put up today…but failed to find. I repeated myself re. the Spitfire, so I have taken down the morning’s column and published this one instead. Not a straight line anywhere on this plane, I should think. But that’s not a bad thing – there were few straight…
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Stein’s Air World – We’re Hiring Now
I have been called to account by the Commitee of Scale Righteousness for the paint jobs on the aircraft that appear in Stein’s Air World. Several of the senior members have pointed out that there are glaring inconsistencies in the shade, hue, intensity, and reflectance of the various aircraft. I have been told that there…
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De Havilland Twin Otter- Part Six – Alta Oil CF-ALO
The Twin Otter lives again. And with a fresh coat of gloss paint, too. CF-ALO is now ready for delivery to Alta Oil flying out of Wet Dog Regional in Alberta. Her skis are stored in the hangar against winter and the wheels are in use today. WRRegional doesn’t really like pilots fitting them until…
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De Havilland Twin Otter – Part Five – Any Colour You Like
As long as it is white. Henry Ford is spinning in his grave. Civil aircraft all seem to start life as brides in white. From the factory demonstrator to the feeder-line delivery, they all get a gloss coat of white paint. I suspect it is cheap, durable, and meant to be highly visible. As well,…
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De Havilland Twin Otter – Part Four – They Said It Couldn’t Be Done
But they didn’t say it to me. When I saw the separate wings for the Twin Otter with no tab to fasten them back onto the fuselage, I started to worry. I know modern cements can do a great deal to weld plastic surfaces together but those long, thin wings stretch out quite a distance…
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De Havilland Twin Otter – Part Three – The Airliner Window
Airliner windows are a nervous part of model building for me – at least in 1:72 scale. You see, it is too small to make them easy to handle and too big to get away with decals or painted dots. The first time I tried putting individual plastic panes in was on a Northrop Delta…
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De Havilland Twin Otter – Part Two – ” I’m Melting…! “
That was the catch cry of the Wicked Witch Of the West in the Wizard Of Oz when Dorothy threw a bucket of water on her. I’m here to tell you that this was just fiction; I tried it on one of the in-laws and all I got was yelled at. No melting. Next time…
The Little World 