Tag: Czech kits
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Potez 63-11 – Part Two – Having A Fit
A tight fit. The Azur model of the Potez 63-11 is probably fairly old in the Czech modelling world. I think the firm that makes these models has retired the name in favour of their ” Special Hobby ” marque. This one is from the multi-media days of styrene/resin/brass. So far the fit of the…
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Avia B-135 – Part Two – Pretty Darn Good
For a short-run Czech kit. The dry fit for the Avia has been a pleasure. Say what you will about the rudimentary nature of these kits, there is a wealth of engraved detail in the parts and the dry fit has been exemplary. Deep in the tiny cockpit are stick, seat, straps, dash with glazing…
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Grumman F3F – Part Two – The Cockpit Of Thomas Hobbes
The cockpit tub and landing gear platform of this American shipboard fighter are evidence that the Czech kit makers believe in free will. No part of the fuselage compels the struts and legs to be where they should be – they must do it of their own accord. This was probably sound philosophy during the…
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Boeing X-Plane – Part Three – Big Donk
This is the biggest small piston engine in my collection – until I locate a 1/72 B-36… The four-row piston engine – 28 cylinders and I suppose 56 spark plugs – was a massive effort to put more power into the air. It was so powerful that it needed to be split between two contra-rotating…
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Boeing X-Plane – Part Two – Mind The Gap…
I was greatly encouraged while during open stage of fuselage construction by the fact that the two halves fitted together almost perfectly. And the big, sturdy wing halves did the same – even the wing tips had minimal ledging. This can be a real problem for some kits as there is little to fill or…
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Bellanca Pacemaker – Part Four – PE P/O
Or what to do when you cannot get your hands round the throat of the person who designed the kit. I make no complaint about the mould-cutting shop. Or the injection plastic line. The design department are mostly blameless as is the decal office. My venom is reserved for the acid-pocked faces of the photo-etch…
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Vultee Vanguard – Part Three – Hate, Loathe, And Despise
If I told you I hate, loathe, and despise kits that have separate blades and hubs for their propellers you might get the wrong idea. Many 1/72 planes have this feature and the two, three, or four-bladed props sandwich in between a hub and a spinner and end up looking fine. I reserve my negative…
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Fiat CR.32 – Part One – ” Chirri “
Not just the bare bones, but the entire animal! A nationalist Chinese fighter of the 1930’s straight out of the box! And it is one I haven’t built before. How could I refuse the email lure from Metro Hobbies? And it’s an AZ model from the Czech Republic so I know it’ll eventually be good.…
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Farman NC 223.3 – Part Seven – L’Éminence Grise
By the time a large scale model gets to the Mr Surfacer 1000 stage I no longer have any authority over it – the command structure is reversed. In a way, it is comforting to surrender the initiative in this way. Oh, there will be patching and sanding and other attendances but the die has…
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Farman NC 223.3 – Part Two – Short Run Need Not Be Vile
I think Forrest Gump would have enjoyed short-run Czech kits – he had a philosophy that would have coped. I may send my next Prague bomb to Tom Hanks. The fuselage halves of this angular bird could have been a disaster – no locating pins and a very long run for twists and warpage. But…
The Little World 