JohnRatzenberger

Who reads the small print :)

Today I got the opportunity to start cleaning up parts and studying the photos to see if I could figure out what went where. I've got a handle on most of them, but I'll just keep cleaning and fitting until I'm sure. I have to drill out the barrel some more - it has a plug about 1/4" down which is just too obvious. I trolled the 'net for a while and came up with a firing drill manual that has a sketch of the various accessories, and I can scratchbuild them or use generic tools, etc.

Ron, Try this link http://www.wwi-models.org/misc/FrenchWW1/SPAD/ylcolor7.html Seems a "fatty varnish in linseed oil was added between the coats of the clear dope, resulting in an overall, "warm" yellow color."

I would not get focused on the serial number on a movie set. Good detective work, James, to come up with those pix !

What paint brands do you use, Ron ? "Unpainted linen" is probably CDL = Clear Doped Linen and there are several very light tans which fit the bill. Of course, French linen may be different than Brit linen color, I don't know .... Does this kit use the old Airfix paint numbers, perhaps M14 Linen Matt ? That would be Humbrol 74 or equivalent, even lightter. I usually use Mister Kit acrylics for WW1 - they may have a French linen, I don't know.

And here's mine. As you can see the kit is 10 years old ... Here are the parts, per instruction layout, and themselves. The two parts #52 are circled because they are missing. After a while I figured out they are just brake shoes and I can fabricate them if needed. I did email Panzershop and got a response next day, so I am hopeful they will show sometime ... I washed them and inspected them in detail a few days ago, which is when I found it was missing parts. The parts look pretty good, well-cast, good runners, no warpage. There are no part numbers on the runners so you must match shape to the provided sketch. The instructions consist of 3 more pictures like these two - an assembled model with part numbers called out, but no instructions of any sort. It's not complicated but one would like to know of any "do this first or else" issues. I should start tomorrow; this will be a relaxed build and I have some research to do on the details of the gun itself and the possible gear that would go with it. From what I can see, the gun itself is completely represented, with all the sights, gears, and whatnot present. I am hoping for some WW1 Brit arty crews to be released one of these years ... I also have an 18-pdr needing a crew, well actually two needing crews ...

Size alone says that it isn't of the Tiger Moth family ... IMDB credits Paul Mantz with the flying sequences, even though the movie does not. Perhaps something in his background/history would give up a clue. I suspect it was cobbled together from spares ....

Well, I don't see an artillery piece in the list, so I'll join with the Panzershop 1/35 British 6" BL Howitzer, a resin kit. The gun looks well detailed, but there is absolutely no equipment, ammo, etc, to go along with it, so it'll be somewhat bare bones.. Maybe in the next 4 years, I'll find something.

From a Group Build I just finished -- do an auto in an aircraft paint scheme, inspired some real world examples of Mustangs and such in 8AF markings .... There are two similar topics up in the aircraft forum .... Here was my inspiration; Billy Bishop scored 13 of his 72 kills in this machine while with 85 Sqn in 1918. Let me first thank Aston Martin for such a great looking automobile and then Matchbox for capturing that car in just a wonderful kit (1/32 Ulster PK-301). Cleanly-molded, well-fitting, almost flash free, and the rubber tires and chrome parts are just excellent. It is almost OOB except where I grafted on a 1/48 S.E.5a radiator, which in retrospect I really didn't need to do to capture the SE5a look .... Over-painting the chromed kit radiator in PC-10 would have been good enough. Oh, yes, some Eduard 1/48 WW1 seat belts also. The stitching (Eduard again) wasn't part of the original plan, but came to me in a vision while in a long meeting one day .... The paints are Mister Kit acrylics, very popular among WW1 aircraft modelers. I did two coats of Future before the decals, then two coats of Humbrol gloss clear afterwards - all brushed. Details are in various Vallejo acrylics. I think the only enamel is the Model Master Chrome Silver on the hubs - for some reason these were not chromed parts in the kit, I guess my only (very minor) criticism. After I put on the "tail markings", I began to wish I were artistic enough to have made them sweep back from just behind the cockpit, but it's probably better that I didn't try .... Wouldn't have been any place for the big "Z" .... I forgot to photo it, but if you look underneath, you might see the underside is in CDL - details count.

Same as Mark & Mike, only I use a soft toothbrush to "scrub" gently with .... One brush & pan to wash, one brush & pan to rinse. I generally let parts sit 5-10 min in the wash, then "scrub" and drop in the rinse. Once I've washed 'em all (& checked under the suds for strays), I go "scrub" in the rinse and put the parts on paper towels to dry.

Yes, an interesting kit - nice review ! here's another, at a "competing" site http://www.amps-armor.org/ampssite/Reviews/showReview.aspx?ID=2806&Type=FB

Yes, I've done that also .... I have a bunch of GMM PE around. Good idea on the handwheels !!

Snagged the Montrose/Randall off evil-Bay very inexpensively, about 1/3 of what 3 others went for about same time. After I get it, I'll see if any 1/350 or 1/400 aftermarket might spruce it up ... and find a 1/376 Jeff Chandler

Thanks Ed, Rick Lots of good info there. I'll go looking around, but I still want a new-tool 1/350 ....

Thanks, Ron. No the Revell kit was 1/376. In real life they are two different class of ship, but really somewhat similar in size, etc. The Randall was a Haskell-class APA based on the Victory ship. The Seminole was a Toland-class AKA, based on the C2 cargo. The APAs were really for troop-landing transport while the AKAs were more for cargo, and are sometimes called Attack Cargo not Attack Transport. I guess either would do - I just want something with all the cranes & boats & stuff .... I guess I would settle for a good 1/700 kit ....

Don't know that, Ron - I can only remember building the Revell kit, long ago ....

There's the old Revell USS Randall in 1/376 but that's all I'm aware of. I'd really like one in 1/350 similar in detail to Trumpeter's Liberty Ship kits ... and of course a bunch of aftermarket ...

Mark, the Bus and Fire Engine are very early 20th century vehicles, not 1930's. Airfix has issued both kits separately, with the "Dewars" being the 1910 bus and the "Old Bill" bus .... and the Dennis is just the Dennis ... both are good kits. I wish I had found your dual kit, just for my collection ... congratulations on it.

Thanks, Gil ... A picture is worth a thousand words, or in this case, one NO .... I did some adjusting of hooks and lines until SWMBO informed me I was one hole shy of redoing the ceiling .... Part of the issue is the light weight of the models -- the refueling lines put slight pressure on the left side of the Lightnings and cause them to twist .... I have it angled such that people entering the room can be suitably impressed but then aren't allowed any further :)

like when you were a kid .... In this case, we were having a Matchbox / Ted Taylor Tribute GB on UAMF and I decided to do the Victor K-2 tanker, which Ted did the instructions for. Well, what's a tanker without something to fuel-up ? Enter a Matchbox Lightning and 2 Revell non-Matchbox repops, some after market decals, hooks and fishing line ... And we have a RAF demo at an air show ....

Ron, I'll have to dig around to find my source, I think it was from an old RAF FR (and thus suspect), but here's the particulars. built as Tomahawk IIA AH896/RM-Y of 26 Sqn (SA), Gatwick, summer of 1941. These aircraft, although considered 2nd line, performed some recon, interdiction, and attack on the continent and stood by to repel any invasion. 26 Sqn received Tomahawks in Feb 41, this particular one from 403 Sqn RCAF, and started conversion to Mustangs in January 1942 with the last Tomahawk gone by January 1943. From the color profile you can see it is DG/DE/Sky and has the black port wing, which is what attracted me to it. There are a few distinctive markings -- a large black aircraft code "Y" under the starboard wing, a small "H" under the nose left over from 403 Sqn, and a small Springbok heads on each fin flash. This latter will cause me some difficulty -- if a seach of the decal stash doesn't turn something up I'll have to assume away the problem of put a suitably shaped brown splotch on instead. Otherwise the markings -- spinner, band, codes, etc, are standard. I'm an early war type and go looking for black/white/etc undersides ....

Nice, Ron !! I did that kit and just loved it; have a few more in the stash to get around to. Here's mine, not in kit markings.

Well, actually it seems to have broken again .... there go the atta-boys ...

Well, one of y'all must have fixed something as tonight the edit tool bar is back functioning ....

Nope, just came back from several sub-forums, no joy. Looked at my profile, don't see anything there ... The edit toolbar is still greyed out. The little "expand toolbar" thing on right side does nothing.