-
De Havilland Heron Mk II – Part Five – Whew
Well, the colour coats are done – the trim stripe is done – the decals are on. The various pieces are being cemented and snapped in. The air crash did not destroy the bird. Every speculative colour scheme that you think up – every set of decals you print yourself – every artistic decision you…
-
De Havilland Heron Mk II – Part Four – Air Crash
Every build has a mistake – a flaw – a piece of bad judgement. In the case of the Airfix DH Heron Mk II it has come in a rush. I was shifting photographic backdrops in the workshop this morning and inadvertently hit the wing of the Heron. It slid off the building stand and…
-
De Havilland Heron Mk II – Part Three – The Suitcase Closes
Always that moment when you have packed up your clothing at the end of a holiday and are gingerly trying to get the suitcase closed – against the pressure of dirty laundry and souvenirs. Will it creak shut…? Before I could latch the Heron together I tested the balance – Airfix said 15 gms of…
-
De Havilland Heron Mk II – Part Two – The Split Heron
As far as the approach to this vintage Airfix De Havilland Heron kit goes, I am – as Kinky Friedman would have put it – out past where the buses run. I am in new mental territory. It started when I did the part count and some dry fitting – I noted the provision of…
-
De Havilland Heron Mk II – Part One – Raised Expectations
And raised rivets, too. I had a happy childhood, and a great many of the happy occasions revolved around model kits. This included a number of the 1950’s and 60’s Airfix products. Merit, Monogram, Aurora, and Revell as well. So it’s with great delight that I see Airfix re-issue classic models from the era. I…
-
Avro Tutor – Part Four – The Yellow Sheep Of The Fold
Well that was an instructive two weeks. I’ve had as much as I can take and the Avro Tutor has had as much construction as it is going to get. Purists will cavil at the lack of rigging but I know my limitations. I will eventually try to rig something but it’ll be a better…
-
Avro Tutor – Part Three – Aptly Named
The Avro Tutor may have taught hundreds of British and Commonwealth pilots to fly. The AZ kit of this has certainly taught me something: never buy another Czech biplane kit. It is a bloody nightmare. A variation on the bad dream that was the Avro Anson ( is it Avro…? ). In this case the…
-
Avro Tutor – Part Two – So Far, So Good
The assembly of the AZ Avro Tutor so far is encouraging. the fuselage is straight and the interior built up nicely – I even managed the photo-etch seat belts as the cockpit is open. The landing gear is solid once the three struts are braced against each other. The tail wheel will never last…
-
Avro Tutor – Part One – A Venture Into The Unknown
I am not a novice in the business of a Czech kit. I know that there are beauties and beasts amongst them – I cut my teeth on one of the latter and am always grateful now when I meet with the former. This AZ model was ordered in the same batch that saw the…
-
BY THE POWER OF MIGHTY MAC…!
I compel thee to spray nice. I have purchased a couple of accessory MAC valves for my air compressor lines. They were not expensive as they are the product of my favourite budget manufacturer; Ustar. I was introduced to the idea of the MAC valve by a Phil Flory tutorial in which he showed the…
The Little World
Close focus on the world of scale models
