Category: Modelling materials
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The Bellanca Ball-Ache
I’m being unfair to Bellanca – I could have chosen Beechcraft or Bristol. The alliteration was the thing – a ” B ” aircraft maker was needed. Let’s start out by saying there never was an aircraft called the Ball-Ache. There may have been many that induced the condition, but that is a matter for…
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Proper ‘Ard
Say that in a Matt Ball accent. The question of drying times has arisen in the past and I’ve made decisions that have bit me in the Arsenal F.C. Progressing from Tamiya acrylics to Mr. Color lacquers and modelling in an outside workshop/shed for much of the year has meant that there were a whole…
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Dornier Do.17Z – Part Three – Perfect Plastic Putty
Since being introduced to this material two years ago I have found my respect for it increasing. It’s English and fairly specific to the plastic kit hobby but really does fufil its purpose. The purpose is best circumscribed – the filling of broad, shallow depressions. It does not form a structural component so you cannot…
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Dornier Do.17Z – Part Two – A FROG Of A Different Colour
The experience of the FROG Dornier is interesting. The kit is an older mould and has raised panel lines but no rivets. I don’t mind as it will have a dark finish anyway. But it is an older kit. Thus the fit in some places is approximate. The fuselage is excellent, the wing box assembly commendably…
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What It Says On The Tin
The English modeller, Matt Ball, has an expression he uses when he’s on the Flory Models vlogs: ” It does what it says on the tin ” – spoken in his local accent, it’s a great endorsement for whatever product he’s tried. Because he actually has used the product and it has performed well. I…
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My New Favourite Thing
And like many of my favourites, it is cheap and plentiful. It also fills a long-desired need and is available from Officeworks. And I have a full packet of it…how much better could it get, eh? The miracle product is A4 -sized sticky label paper. Avery and others make packets of it in all sizes…
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We Need A Gluement
We have cements that bind together two similar substances by chemically melting one into another – and we have glues that bind by surface tension or bonding or magick incantations to dissimilar surfaces and set as a sticky interface – but we really need something that will do both. The cements are fine, but the…
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Curtiss Hawk Model 75 – Part Three – Trench Warfare
The fit of the parts on the Revell Curtiss Hawk was very good – square, plumb, and true, but the top surfaces of the wings stood clear of the fuselage fairing by a good millimeter on both sides. If this part was subject to no stress nor expected to flex in any way, it could…
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Mitsubishi Peggy – Part Four – A Detour
I have an ongoing problem with model kit building – one that is exacerbated by the fact that I build my kits in three locations. This involves hauling kit boxes and part-made structures around with me. The problem is that parts can go missing. I have tried to prevent this by adhering to the practice…
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When To Close The Doors Of The Hobby Shop
A. Never. Hobbies can occupy 25 hours per day and enthusiasts need things ASAP. This means selling paint at 3:00AM. Use cheap staff and chain them to the till. b. At the end of the day. 5:00 is the accepted end of the day unless you want to go to 6:00 in case there might…
The Little World 