lritger

And with that, I think we can close the thread, LOL. :) Glad someone mentioned the lower cowling- that has bugged me since I saw the initial sprue shots. I know "Red 7" actually has an Erla lower cowling- most folks don't realize that- and even so, it doesn't have the beefy jowl look of the Eduard kit. I suspect the issue is that the kit designer must have rendered the lower cowling sides parallel, when in reality they taper outwards slightly from front to back; that would mean the forward lower cowling would need to angle inwards quickly towards the spinner, which would give the effect se

Oh, I know Jennings. Believe me, I know. But they have a habit of keeping everything in-house, as you well know... *shrug* Lynn

I rarely post here but since this one sort of sits in my wheelhouse, I feel compelled to note there's something rotten in Denmark. If that pic of the Hasegawa vs Eduard wings isn't Photoshopped, there is something severely weird going on. As has been hashed out repeatedly over on HS, Eduard used a G-14 rebuilt from some wartime wreckage as their primary pattern aircraft and that led them astray in some detail areas such as the now-infamous wing root pimple and the supercharger intake base. What I'm wondering now is, are the wings that bodged up on the rebuilt aircraft? I don't think we can

Aw man, why another blue tail? Sure, I love the Enterprise, but why not lemon yellow, white, willow green, or red for the tail group? The Enterprise wasn't the ONLY colorful USN air group in the 1930s, ya know. Whatever the case, I'm sure it'll be drop-dead gorgeous when done... :) Lynn

Save your money for the Hasegawa kit- it may have a few small issues, all kits do, but it would have to be carved from soap with a flint rock to be worse than this thing. And if you don't believe me, simply wait for a writeup from a qualified reviewer who actually does know the subject and is willing to apply a critical eye to the kit. Lynn

Frank, you're killin' me over here. Actually, let me correct myself... you're finding these things before I am, and I'm very grateful for your efforts in sharing this. What's killin' me are all the little things that need to be fixed to get this thing looking right. :-/ I spent the weekend working on the engine and cowling gun platform... I got all 24 spark plugs installed and drilled out now, ripped off and rebuilt the starboard wiring loom since I did it wrong the first time, built a new hydraulic tank for the landing gear hydraulic system, and am working on the lines and linkages which

Damn, Frank... the wheels look great, but what a pain in the beau-tocks to get there. I just wanted to drop a quick note in here and tell you that you're a certifiable friggin' genius... I read how you made the cooler flap drive chain using copper wire, and decided to try that last night with some .010 lead wire. Folded a length in half, twisted it together, then flattened it using the back end of my scalpel... and hooooooly crap, it came out PERFECT. Seriously- it looks amazing, and this is a trick I will be using again and again in the future. Thanks for the idea! While I was in there,

Y'know, I got the Quickboost wheels as part of the review package, and I was thinking something wasn't quite right with them but couldn't put my finger on it... thanks to you, I now know exactly why they looked odd to me. I just hadn't gotten around to comparing them to photos. Guess I'm going back with my first option, an idea I cribbed from Erik Whipple... I'll cut the center hubs out of the True Details Bf 109B-E "tractor tires" and use those with the kit tires. Thanks Doug! Lynn

Kuba, just to touch on the tailwheel tire... I think they may have mastered the tire from the one mounted on WNr 4101 at the Royal Air Force Museum... the photos below are pretty conclusive in this regard. The tire resembles a P-51 tailwheel tire more than a 109... tell me if you agree. It definitely does not match standard 109 tires, although it won't be too difficult to reshape... I haven't measured the diameter yet, though, so I don't know if it's too small or not. The tail wheel well looked a bit shallow to me too, but I thought it was hardly worth mentioning- it will be very easy to co

Fabric... of course! That makes perfect sense, and probably accounts for the "indented" look you referred to earlier. You could do that with lead foil, and it would look great... cool! :) You're absolutely right that this is head and shoulders above any other 1/32 Emil on the market, no question. And I fully admit that I'm much pickier than your average modeler when it comes to THIS particular subject- especially Emils. :) There are lots of things I like about the kit, such as: - gorgeous, delicate engraving with subtle rivets- the sort of thing other (cough *TRUMPETER* cough) manufact

There was a plug which went in that hollow recess, which sometimes stayed, and sometimes didn't... Plugged wing roots: Bf 109E-3, 2./JG 2 Bf 109E-3, WNr 1190, 4./JG 26 (yes, the exact same aircraft that currently resides at Duxford... this is a January 1940 photo) And open wing roots: Bf 109E-1, 2./JG 26 (taken 9 May 1940): Bf 109E-4, 4./JG 2: Bf 109E-4, II./JG 11: And as to the gap behind the cowling... those things got beat to he|| in service, but they were supposed to match up fairly well, as you can see in this pic: Bf 109E-4, Gruppenkommandeur in JG 53: Making the co

Oh, it's not the ONLY place they missed the boat... Yes, there's more... now, I admit, I am a tough sell, since I've been studying this aircraft since I was in grade school, but some of these things are really, really basic mistakes- the sort of thing that they could have gotten right with a 5 minute Google search, or just by looking at the photos in my first book... which I know they have, because I personally gave one to Vlad at the Anaheim Nationals. Let's just say I'm not as impressed by the kit as you are, mostly because I see a lot of missed opportunities. I am glad w

Hey Frank- Since you're devoting so much time to making this "right", you don't want to simply block off those wing roots with flat panels... The rest of your work is looking excellent so far... I'm doing a full Monty build review for the IPMS Journal, and I've got a whole list of gripes about this thing over on the IPMS boards. Like I said over on HS, your supercharger intake looks MUCH better than the kit POS, and you're right about the stick and seat... thank God I still have one of the 1/32 Cutting Edge Emil interiors and extra seats! ;) I had two, but used one in an ongoing conver

Ok, as an avowed Tomcat lover, I feel dirty for even thinking this, but... that is a gorgeous bird. Lovely plumage and all that. :) So how difficult was the basic kit construction itself? Did you find your patience tested by any of the build sequence? Excellent job on a beautiful aircraft. Lynn

Mr. Rechliz, as I posted to you on Hyperscale, to whom did you speak about this issue when it arose, and what redress did you seek with IPMS Tidewater or the venue prior to your multi-forum posts? I have received no communications from you prior to your postings on various internet forums about this issue, and it is generally considered good form to offer the other party the opportunity for redress prior to taking your grievance public. For instance, if I had received poor service from Phantom Hobbies, I am certain you would want me to contact you first prior to airing my grievances publicly

And I want to thank BOTH of you guys for busting your asses for us, especially with the registration network issues on Wednesday. Bruce, we literally could not have done this without you, and I cannot overstate how much we appreciate your efforts in making the registration process so painless. You guys rock. Lynn

Oh s**t, the Nats are THIS WEEK? Jeezus, I better get crankin'! In all seriousness, I've been running around like a madman since Saturday prepping the Ritgerwaffe for a maximum strength show, in between bottle feedings, diaper changes, doing dishes, cleaning the house for ANOTHER round of family visits to see the new kid, and trying to fit the occasional meal and nap in there. And I'm trying my best to have one new project on the table for the show... it's probably not a winner, but it IS a doozy and will certainly turn a head or two. :) See you guys out at the Beach!

Not sure I understand your question... the convention hall is open to the general public for a nominal fee, whether you are an active IPMS member or not, and the fee structure is the same either way. If you wish to compete, however, then you will be required to register, and this does require you to be an active IPMS member in good standing. I hope that helps... let me know if there are further questions. Lynn

Hi Tigger- A few answers: 1. IPMS memberships are honored worldwide, so far as I know, and I'll be sure to get a firm answer for you from Charles Landrum, our chairman. 2. If you pre-register for the convention, you will not need to pay to enter the venue again. 3. Such subtle weathering should cause no concern whatsoever, especially as we are intimately familiar with such deposits here on the Atlantic coast! That rule was put in place several years ago because a former member entered some graphically disgusting work... I won't elaborate, but suffice it to say it was incredibly offen

Hey Craig- I've got it from Dave, and will post it on the website shortly. Cheers, Lynn

Good question, Don... I'll check with the Reg folks and see if the process should change for those not entering models, and let ya know. Cheers, Lynn

After testing and feedback by other committee members, I have now pushed the online registration component of the IPMS National Convention website live as of tonight. The process is slightly different than previous conventions, in that there is no immediate payment link... you fill out your registration form and submit it to our Registration team, and they will then enter you into the database and send you a confirmation page with a link to the PayPal account we have set up for the Convention. After we have received confirmation that payment has been submitted, your registrant number will be

Bah, I've tried Crown and don't much care for the taste, although it's light years better than Jim Beam. I will confess to enjoying an ice-cold shot of SoCo now and again, though... but ya gotta be careful, because that s**t will screw you up good. :) Besides, Crown Royal was what screwed up Stevie Ray Vaughan for so many years- he finally got out of his alcoholic haze a few months before died. /SRV for the win

Waco, I upgraded from JD to Makers Mark a couple years ago, and haven't looked back. JD recently lowered the alcohol content of their bourbon and started charging more for it... that was it for me. I've found MM to be a smoother bourbon anyways, but I won't hate on Jack... we've had too many years together, LOL. Lynn

Legend Brewery in Richmond has an outstanding array of beers and ales, and kegs are available via Total Wine. http://www.legendbrewing.com/beerLoc.php If you try to bring Budweiser, I will do what I can to ensure the doors are locked and no one can get in... NO ONE should be forced to drink that swill. ;)