rbeach84

Below are some location maps for nearby shipping 'resources' to include FEDEX, UPS & USPS (the post office is actually just a few blocks off...) These may be useful if you are bumping up against your baggage limit for a flight out. Used Google Maps to obtain these screen grabs, as you can see. The "Pinewood Plaza" location is for a UPS Drop Box. I also must assume that all three services can do pickups from the Embassy Suites or even at the Convention Center (and I'll try and confirm this...) Regards, Robert USPS: UPS: FEDEX:

Clare! Did you have any images of the restoration you might share? Regards, Robert

So, in short, the Forum is not hosting the pictures directly; just links to "external" storage/ sharing sites such as Photobucket or Fotki (perhaps...) "Z", did you have a specific post that shows what you meant by 'small pictures'... technically, I wouldn't have thought you would have been unable to insert even small images (unless they are being interpreted as 'smilies' or such.) R/ Robert

Bill, Cybermodeler has a decent exterior w/a of the NMUSAF exhibit (post restoration.) Plus an oldie site had shots of the bird pre-restoration at a Tripod page: http://seiran01.tripod.com/web6.html Regards, Robert

Ron, can I stay in your attic next year? R/ Robert "Smartas!" Beach

Cool! Shows it is buildable, after all... great job. Robert

Likely two more than me, David! ;^P I was shooting video of the Con site and environs, including routes into the place from the interstate (vendors who are unloading at the dock should follow a slightly different route, btw.) Now I just need to figure out how to post these things fro everyone to see! Regards, Robert

Thanks, Chris - that was fast! What is that thing, anyway? Is it an armored cover for a hatch? R/ Robert

PG, to what glaring flaw do you refer? Inquiring minds want to know.... ;^P R/ Robert

Hey, JC! I used to live in Milton (flight school at Whiting...and later stationed at NAS-P) Do you know any of the guys in the local model club such as Eric Buckelew or Bob Waltman? I've been trying to talk Eric into coming to a convention for years, but he's a victim of some past 'drive-by modeling elitism' and is down on IPMS because of it... too bad, I think he'd have a great time plus he's an excellent figure modeler (well, he's an excellent modeler, period.) I just want him to visit and use the CON as an excuse... anyway. Yes, there is a lot of what you said going about, with all the 'electronic, digital access' we're enjoying these days. Guess that mentality is where the generally negative phrases of "snap judgement", "rush to judgement" and "judge & jury" came into being. However, I try to keep some positive slant to such discussions to help keep things balanced. Stating the obvious all the time (that the perfect model kit hasn't yet been made) is counterproductive though admittedly, many times the comments can be informative - as long as the released product is actually in hand to be evaluated. When I visited with Bob B. & crew at Accurate Miniatures (the original company) back in the 90's, he very kindly shared how each kit they did required multiple test shot evaluations before things got sorted to their satisfaction. Since this meant transit time from China for each iteration, it did take a while to do it right. Great bunch - I'm glad they added so much to the modeling scene before they had to call it quits. Tough business! Big picture vs little picture, as always. Regards, Robert

John, you lunatic! Say, wait a minute that would *only* be ~ 16.5 feet... that would (only just) fit in my garage... :^P After seeing a 1/48 scale Hindenberg at the San Diego Air & Space Museum, I starting thinking it might actually be possible... also, check out this bit of 'madness' - http://www.kampfflieger.com/store#!/~/product/category=404881&id=1780408 12 different 'liveries' included... R/ Robert

Ye-HaH! Hmm! Wonder how hard to mate a Trumpie Panther forward fuselage to Two-Gar to make single seater? ;^P Robert

Gil, it looks like the top of the gear well will make a convenient place to secure the internal pylon bracing, too. Those intakes look like good candidates for casting from a one piece mold as well. R/ Robert

Gene, not staying for Saturday? ;^( R/ Robert

Gil, were you going to do a WIP thread on this kit? What about that lower wing? Regards, Robert

Gil, sorry pal, I wish I'd known so I could have given you a heads up before you got going. That is the hard way to do the job. Check out my vac a/c series on our club website, specifially removing the parts: http://hamptonroadsscalemodelers.com/vacuform-aircraft-modeling-part-4/ Much quicker and more precise. Too easy to over sand if trying to 'free the kerf'. Carry on, brave modeler! Regards, Robert

Oh-Laah-LAH! Yes that canopy could just be suffering from test-shot-itis... wise modelers wait until the kit is in production before hammering the 'smash-it!' drum too hard. That said (he-he), *if* the production kit does have the canopy problem, the best solution will be to quietly and furtively sand down the cockpit sill a tad, so the rear is lowered just enough to do the job. With luck, the rear seat headrest won't object, either If I wait long enough, I may not have to build my Fonderie Miniatures Cougars at all... Regards, Robert

Mark, good to see you are enjoying the ol' contest circuit. Any words of wisdom on building the Dora kit? I'm sure it presented some challenges... Again, congrats on your successes in competition. Regards, Robert

Ohh! My head is spinning from all the tangential cultural and pop-cultural references... Help me, I can't get up! R. Robert

What kind of tours are you thinking of, Mike? There are several 'family' destinations nearby that just require transportation to get to (some require tickets, of course): Busch Gardens Theme & Water park (in Williamsburg) Colonial Williamsburg The Williamsburg Pottery (Shopping Outlet Mall) Jamestown Settlement (historyisfun.org) just up the road from Hampton Nauticus Maritime Museum - in Norfolk (www.nauticus.org) The Virginia Living Museum (thevlm.org) just up the road from Hampton The Mariners Museum (www.marinersmuseum.org) in Newport News, just up the road from Hampton The Virgina Aquarium & Marine Science Center (http://www.virginiaaquarium.com/) in VA Beach The Chrysler Museum of Art (http://www.chrysler.org/) in Norfolk - arts, crafts and such. The Children's Museum of Virginia (http://www.childrensmuseumva.com/) in Portsmouth all these can provide at least a day's worth of 'entertainment', depending on any youngster's interests. and of course, Virginia Beach. General listing of events can be found through several sources, including: hamptonroads.com/events Plus, each of the Hampton Roads cities have their own listings to promote tourism. I just recommend a bit of online research to 'flesh out' an itinerary and if you have any specific questions, just give the local crew a holler - nothing like having the 'inside scoop' on things. For example, every Saturday evening during the summer months, the city of Norfolk has an free outdoor, live band playing for residents at the Oceanview Park, which is just out of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel heading 'south' (aka I-64E) so readily accessible from the Hampton side of the river. It provides a nice evening of setting in a park listening and/or dancing to the music while the yard-monkeys play run-about. I'm sure other such tidbits can be offered by others in the local chapters, so keep the discussion 'up'. Cheers! Robert

Only just saw this... and the fact it failed on Kickstarter. I suppose not enough folks who might have been interested heard about it... neat idea, perhaps try again later? Regards, Robert

BUMP! Hey, looking at the pix and the helmet is set high on the collar. Looking closer, it almost appears as if you are making it a practical (aka 'working') piece! Is that so? Regards, Robert

Ah, the wet-dream of the 1:48 scale modeler - the airliner! Every since seeing a rather large (probably 1:50 scale) display piece at a travel agency, I have desired an airliner in my favorite scale (same goes for the Saturn V rocket...) 1:72 scale is obviously more manageable than quarter scale for airliners, but given the size of current kits in the 1:32 scale range, a 1:48 scale airliner isn't impractical from a purely technical production aspect. With the often constant cross section fuselages that lends to being molded in 'rings', plus many repetitive interior components (not to mention repetitive landing wheels...) which reduces the costs of tooling overall. Still, the market is very constricted for any kit that exceeds the $60-$80 threshold which a 1:48 airliner would certainly do. We'd have to start looking at the wooden ship kit marketing paradigm (craftsman kit with low production runs), not the mass-market 'car kit, pocket money' paradigm we tend to adopt. Why don't we get a bunch of guys together to pick a subject, research the heck out of it, make some masters for multi-media production and run off a couple of hundred - just to see where it goes? Heck, we might even find some 3D CAD 'sensei' amongst us who could produce the 'boilerplate' digital model that could serve as the starting point for any number of production outlets. The biggest hurtle is usually the research to properly define the subject well enough to start cutting material - and who has that on hand? Of course, you can also take a paper model design and enlarge it to 1:48 scale: http://www.skylinepapermodels.com/products/172-scale-airliners?pagesize=12 and a new B-767 in the works by the same guy: http://www.papermodelers.com/forum/design-threads/22827-skyline-b767-1-72-a.html Something to chew on... nice analysis, BTW, Gaston... Regards, Robert

Commentary & background: Here is a round-up of what has (to my knowledge) already happened for these subjects: In 1:48 scale: Curtiss F-9C-2 Sparrowhawk - der Kampfflieger (papermodel @ ecardmodels,com) A GOOD (Monogram-ish) F9F-8 Cougar - as opposed to the FM kit? SOC-3 Seagull floatplane - Wings48 (vac) (Don's Models) F6C-1/P-1 Hawk biplane (Army and Navy versions) - Sierra Scale (vac-OOP) F2H-2 Banshee (Korean war version); Collectaire (resin-OOP) B-47 - Sanger (vac); Combat Models (if still in business...) P-3C Orion - Tigger Models (vac) F-86H - Collectaire (resin-OOP) P2V Neptune - Combat Models (vac) Hu-16 Albatros - RVHP (resin) Fi-156 - Tamiya Short Sunderland - AlphaFlight (resin-OOP); Combat Models (vac) PBM-3 Mariner - Combat Models (vac); Pend Orielle (resin-OOP) B-45 - Collectaire (resin-OOP) C-54 - Execuform (basic vac) AJ Savage - Collectaire (resin-OOP); Combat Models (vac) X-2 - X-Plane aka FM (ltd-OOP) XP-67 - Combat Models (vac) Scimitar - Dynavector (vac-OOP) Javelin - Dynavector (vac- OOP); Airways (vac-OOP) Ki-67 - Sanger/Contrail (vac) Ki-21 - Sanger/Contrail (vac) Ki-57 - Sanger/Contrail (vac) Halifax - Founderie Miniatures (FM) (ltd-OOP) C-46 - Combat Models (vac) Curtiss F11C-2/BFC-2 Hawk - Lindberg with conversion/update kit from Model Shack; Classic Airframes; der Kampfflieger (papermodel) Possible with existing products as conversions (if someone made the conversion) T-37 - Monogram/Revell AT-37 reissue with conversion parts (new fuselage)?P-80A - Monogram/Revell P-80C reissue with conversion parts? FJ-3 Fury with wing-fold option - Grand Phoenix w/ AM wing fold Not previously offered G4M2 - Tamiya kit is G4M1 version, M2 had laminar flow wings as well as engine change... F-86A and or E WITH early (non 6-3) slatted wing (once offered as resin conversion by Cutting Edge) B-32 B-23 B-18 Short Stirling TBU/TBY Seawolf Curtiss A-18 Me-323 (Gigant) Il-4 Coronado Constellation Most of these subjects are obviously not seen as 'viable' by the main players (and a Seafang is?) since most have been only 'treated' by the limited run, cottage resin/vac folks - if at all. Personally, I think high quality 'multi-media' kitting of these would be the most feasible way to economically produce reasonable & affordable products. The idea of vac parts for the larger components with resin & metal detail parts ala Koster's standard would be an excellent way to address these subjects. Remember the Fw200? Koster's kit sold for $70 when released and was superior to the more expensive Trumpeter kit for accuracy and detailing - and included resin, white metal and PE detail parts plus at least two decal options, to boot. But then, Bill Koster was an engineer with a previous career in manufacturing and a lifetime of experience as a modeler before he started KAE, so the level of quality he achieved isn't really surprising. He did it by providing a balanced product that took advantage of tech suited to low-run production without sacrificing quality. The only drawback was the general adversion to vacuform parts within the hobby (a problem not shared by professional modelers, BTW.) If the desire is for "Tamigawa Miniatures" grade injection-molded wonder kits that only require snipping parts and tossing on a little glue and paint, then don't expect to ever see these birds on your shelves. However, if the mature enthusiast can overcome his/her fear of removing parts from a plastic sheet to the point of providing a lively market, then it may just be possible to see a talented producer go to the trouble of making kits of these subjects. Knowing that production will be inversely proportional to the final model size and expense marches with production levels, it is a tricky, sticky wicket from the get-go. The only way, I believe, these will appear is through collaboration (ignoring the thin chance a rich guy will get involved, like with WingNut Wings.) So, start a 'lobby' or 'club' simply for the purpose of promoting production of a subject, collaborate on the research and market definition and then search for a partner to produce a kit. Whether this is injection or low-cost multi-media will be driven by the 'lobby's' findings. Otherwise, get scratchbuilding! Here are a few more to consider: 1930's air racers (talk about variety!) Unlimited racers Real-space vehicles Sport balloons (hot air) Boeing Clipper Regards, Robert

Well, thanks for explaining that Ed. I believe the idea that this is a 'hinky advertising ploy' is more on the mark. Apparently.