Category: Model Airplane
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Ruritania Poste – Part Four – Sprayin’ Weather
I never used to take the slightest notice of Advice To Mariners. It could be blowing a gale round Beachy Head…or Bayswater for that matter…and I couldn’t have cared less. That was before I got an airbrush and a bad habit. The habit is spray painting model aircraft, so don’t be judgemental. The business of…
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Ruritania Post – Part Three – Aviation Réchaufee
No one can accuse the Ruritanian people of being wasteful – they are not profligate in any way. Nor can they be ignored as engineers and scientists – any nation that concocts brandy and aviation fuel from turnips must be accorded a good deal of respect. Thus it is not surprise to see that the…
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Ruritania Post – Part Two – Nothing Goes To Waste
The second classic Airfix kit I am engaged upon for the next few weeks is another of the SM.79 torpedo bombers the Italian air force used in the Mediterranean. One already exists in my collection in the Middle East colours of the Lebanese Air Force – it’s an Italeri kit and somewhat superior to this…
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Ruritania Post – Part One – Box O’ Doom
Every so often you encounter a model kit that is so old, warped, and manky that it could stand for election to the Sydney City Council…and win. This is the Airfix Heinkel He111 kit I have just opened. It is marginally older than Keith Richards but not in as good a condition. It dates from…
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Waitin’ To Paint
Doesn’t it seem that you spend 80% of your time on Earth waiting? As a kid you spend time waiting to grow up and as you do you spend hours in queues, traffic, and meetings. When you are at home you spend time waiting for family members to be ready to go out. When you’re…
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North American F-100 – Part Four – When NATO Meant France As Well
And the French needed American aircraft to fulfil their own defence needs. A long time ago… Long enough to be before the Area Rule in aircraft design – allowing the designers of the Super Sabre a big fuselage space in the mid-rear for the engine. A contemporary of Soviet fighters and interceptors of similar bulk.…
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North American F-100 – Part Three – Dry Fit For The Win
I have taken to adding a new stage to my regular builds – I try to get a mock-up of the basic flying aircraft fitted dry before I reach for the cement bottle. This means taping parts together or even using the Micro Scale temporary adhesive. The benefit of doing it is I catch incipient…
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North American F-100 – Part Two – Even The Little Bits Are Nice
The long slog of a kit build always seems to start with a cockpit. And some are slower starters than others. I particularly dread the PE and resin confections that the Czech small run makers mould up. They sometimes look good when completed but nearly always are an indefinite Tinker Toy as you try to…
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North American F-100 – Part One – The Start Of A Project
I heard a suggestion a few weeks ago and took it on board – a good idea for the Big Local Plastic Model Show. I hope we are granted the blessing of it and are here to participate – in anticipation of which I have started a project to fill two display tables. It’ll be…
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Jet Jig Jive
I’ve just used the second of my new Slovakian assembly jigs for a jet. It is the Tornado GR.1 from Italeri – a perfect testing piece for the tool. There are square fuselage panels to rest upon. The geometry is markedly different from the WW2 small jig – though the construction materials are just the…
The Little World 