Category: research
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Douglas DC-3 – Part One – The C-47
‘Well, duh. Of course it’s a C-47, because it is a Douglas DC-3. And It’s a DC-3 because it’s a C-47. And it’s a Vietnam-era gunship in this Airfix kit courtesy of four Air Force figures and a cargo floor that sports a number of mini-Gatling guns on stands. I’m afraid it holds little place…
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Prop Washing
Well, you don’t want a dirty propeller, now do you. Sign of a badly-maintained aircraft, that. All greasy around the spinner, like… Actually, I got to wondering at who decides what colour the propeller on an aircraft should be, and why. Some reasons seem evident, but some are obscure. a. American aircraft prior to WW2…
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Dassault Ouragan – Part Five – Smile
I suppose if you are going to paint a shark mouth on the front of an aircraft – a la Flying Tigers – there is no need to be discreet about it. You’re not trying to hide anything. You might as well make it as big as possible. This seems to have been the philosophy…
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Dassault Ouragan – Part Four – The Colour of The Underwear
The colour of the underwear is always important. And not just in the gusset, either. Trying to find authoritative material about the insides and undersides of aircraft can be a problem. There are air museums, of course, and you get to peer from a distance at what the wheel wells and control surface recesses look…
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Dornier Do.17Z – Part Four – Interniert
” What! ” you say…” The Swiss Air Force never bought Dornier Do.17Z bombers in WW2! ” you say… You say right. They never bought any – they were given one by chance. One landed by mistake at Basle – Birsfelden in April 1940 and the four crew members were interned. The plane was repaired,…
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Dornier D0.17Z – Part One – First FROG
Well, well, well. after all these years. My first FROG model. This should be an experience. This is a model donated by my friend Paul – part of a stash he kept since the 70’s and 80’s. I feel honoured to build it. The box shows age – you cannot expect it not to. The…
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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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Mitsubishi A6M – Part Three – Langley Bird
The Revell Mitsubishi Zero has been completed. It is one of those models that can be built to the standard of the kit but no further. If you look at inconvenient portions of it you can see right through it. But if you look at it from a distance, all is well. The Langley reference…
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Mitsubishi A6M – Part One – Baggie
Look at the yellow price tag on the Revell baggie kit. 50¢. A very important number when you were 13 years old as it was the amount of your weekly allowance. A salary-by-another-name paid by your parents in exchange for making your own bed and doing the dishes. As a valid salary there were no…
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Operating Vs Poseable
Also known as detached parts…and what you do with ’em. As a kid 60+ years ago I built Airfix, Monogram, and AMT kits that had working parts. Ailerons, tail surfaces, car bonnets, ship’s turrets, etc. were made with joints and sockets that allowed things to wave, swivel, and retract. This was a major attraction that…
The Little World 