johnsan

Definitely will get the 72nd sheet.

I built their LA-5FN in 73 or 74. It's fixed in my mind as I got married in 75 and I made this little nasty while single. I don't remember whether the La or their Dora came out first. Both were after the G-55. Don't remember when they stopped doing their own molds. Italeri's is a sad story. At one time, they were first rate, cutting edge even. No more. I must admit to like ESCI much more than Italeri and am glad many of ESCI's old kits are available under the Italeri label.

Really? Zvezda was around in 1973?

Isn't the Zvezda a repop of the Italeri?

Scale?

What Drewe said. You can also use Mr. Color Leveling Thinner to do this, but the Mr Color Replenisher works better. Hardy surprising as this is what it is designed for.

With the serial whining over the intertubes that 48th both dead and had been forsaken by Tamiya, I had come to hoping that it were true. Apparently not. Sigh...

Actually I liked the control surfaces. They look a bit more restrained than those of FineMolds kits. If these are too heavy, it will take only a few seconds with a sanding stick to bring them down. What really impresses me is the way Tamiya treated the reinforcement panels under the exhaust pipes, the delicate riveting on inspection panels, and the incredible little machine gun breech blocks visible in the cockpit. Then there is also the finely raised reinforcement panels at the rudder and on the fuselage aft of the wing fillets. The fillets for the tail surfaces are also very delicatedly ra

Tamiya's new Zero has been out for almost a week now. I picked one up last Saturday in Yokohama. I'm more than a little impressed. Tamiya's approach to the subject is very similar to FineMold's. Both kits are of the same model. It is almost as detailed as FineMolds Zeroes. The surface detail is much better. Cockpit detail I would rate as as good or slightly better. There is no option for dropped flaps and the exhaust pipes are not as extensive or as delicately molded as FineMolds. The fuselage appears to be slightly longer, but this may not show up due to how the cowlings are attached. Th

Ok. I picked up 3 today. I was only planning on getting 1. This is a really nice kit. I don't care much for the panel lines. Some are delicate. Some are a bit coarse. Some seem to fade. Better than Airfix panel lines. The cockpit is nice enough without adding their photo etch. The photo etch will really make it shine. Wheels and landing gear are very well detailed and delicately molded. Decals are Cartograf with options for 4 (or more depending on how you count) JASDF subjects. I would have preferred options for other nations, but what is provided is very nice. There are some panels and panel

Been waiting soooo long for this one. I think I know what will be making its appearance on my bench soon.

Yeah, I could go for a downscaled (should be right scaled) Eduard P-39. Or a Hasegawa one for that matter.

The underside of Airfix's kit is flawed also, as are the tailplanes. Then there are those trenches and lack of cockpit detail. I have one. I've filled and rescribe the panel lines, reshaped the tailplanes, cut back the upper nacelles, built up the lower nacelles, and have started detailing the interior. This has not been an enjoyable build. I'll not waste money on another Airfix 110. I eagerly wait for either Dragon or Eduard to release their 110s. I'm just not going to celebrate until the kit is in hand.

I'll say "Finally!" when they release the kits, not when they announce them (once again). Eduard doesn't have the best track record on keeping release schedules. I'm still waiting for their Mig.

Once again you produce a beautiful model, Patrick. I don't know if I'm more impressed with your modeling ability or your ability to finish just at the deadline. Great job on both.

Probably a good idea. A better decision is the one you can live with.<br><br>Why not show some photos of the paint job?

A very big thumbs up on this one, epv. Stunning model.

Cutting it close there, Mike. Paint soon?

Good looking model, Mawz. Are the decals from the kit?

Thank you, mawz.

Looks really good, Patrick. At your current pace, you should have no problem finishing on time.

Yeah, a protective overcoat that has worn that shows some wear. Finally finished.

Thank you, Aaronw. Actually, Fujimi has 4 Claude kits allowing one to make almost every model A5M. Their family lacks the A5M2b, which was an early model with a canopy and the A5M4K, a 2-seat trainer. They are all nice kits and well worth obtaining. I've been busy with work and travel. I've had precious little time for the bench. I do have a small update, though. The engine has been wired and added to the cowling. The prop has been painted it needs a wash and some warning stripes on the front of the blades. There's also the pitot and antenna, both made from brass rod. It's getting closer

Thank you, Deacon. I hope I don't disappoint. Somewhere in the last several weeks, I lost the tail wheel. I cobbled this from sheet plastic and wire. Tools used were punch & die set and a hot knife. I think it's decent enough replacement.

I've changed focus just a little bit. I came across an interesting book about IJNAF units in China 1938-1941. The book is chock full of Nakajima A2N, A3N, & A4N, Mitsubishi A5M, and only a smattering of Zeroes. Really interesting book. So no more Soryu Claude. Now it will be from 14 Ku, China 1939. This is the subject plane: and the book: From the caption, the numeral on the tail is 9-158.