Category: Painting
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Fokker DR.1 – Part Two – Schwartz

Specifically, Wilhelm Schwartz – in 1918 at Mesniles. That’s the plate that I have based my Fokker triplane upon. The kits that come out of this iconic aircraft all seem to assign it to Manfred v. Richthofen and mould it in red plastic. An understandable choice, as he was possibly the most famous ace of…
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Backed Away From The Airbrush

And no-one got hurt… My daughter – a net-savvy person – heard me chortling about the idea of using cheap vodka for airbrush working. She did some searching and found an Amazon product that could arrive at the door for 1.3¢ per ml. I had no words. She ordered a bottle, and I prepared the…
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Grumman Tracker – Part Three – A Bonnie Aircraft

Bonnie, but not magnificent… The Idea Model Company Grumman S2F-1 model that came to me at a low price has proved to be an excellent bargain. It might not have the precision of a Hasegawa or Tamiya product, but it is here, now, and has built up to a good stand-off model. The Royal Canadian…
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Mitsubishi Betty – Part Two – Not-So-Ghostly Seam

I wondered what that cracking noise was… It was the top fuselage seam giving way. I must have flexed a wing too much and surpassed the tensile strength of the thin cement used to seal the fuselage. Well that’s what undercoat painting is designed to catch – the flaw that occurs before you add a…
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The Odd Modeller

This will be a delicate subject. Give me a moment to put on my hob-nail boots. Firstly, let me say that I realise there are scale modellers with mental and emotional challenges. I sympathise with them and hope that they get adequate professional care to help them cope with life. Secondly, I am not the…
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Curtiss H16 – Part Six – Long Yellow Wings

And a remarkable scale model. The history of the Curtiss H16, as well as the British-built Felixstowe types, is available on the net. They were patrol birds in the WW1 period and undoubtedly endured very hard service over the waters. It is not surprising that so few have survived to become museum exhibits. This Roden…
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Curtiss H16 – Part Four – Donks Are Shön

With my sincere apologies to Wayne Newton… These two donks have been the most complex engines I’ve yet seen in a 1:72 kit. The fuel pipes and cooling assembly alone should have frightened me away, but I was too foolish to run. Over a couple of weeks the constituent parts have been cemented on –…
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Peace On You

That may be a typo… Good luck to you and your modelling. Blessings on your skill and ability. Here’s hoping you find the part that has just fallen on the floor… Contentment need not be left at the door, nor on the sprue tree. You can clip it off and put it in your pocket…
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Swedish NA 16 – Part Six – Uncle Dick’s Kit O’ Doom

Inside every silver lining is a cloud. My week building the Beechnut Models CAC Wirraway into a Swedish NA 16 trainer was a humbling experience. No, that is not quite right – that should be ” bumbling “. With a kit this bad you are feeling your way from the start – over a carpet…

