Expat Tomcat

Shark bait hoo ha ha!

I have big plans for one of these too. Have one, and a 60% complete build and need the second to complete my Carrier Air Wing 3 JFK Desert Storm diorama. I'd be one of those you could count among a slam dunk for a sale. I got designs.on your F-14 intakes too. I be among the first to encourage you to get this one back into production as soon as possible and to urge others to buy them so you had a steady revenue stream. This correction helps turn a mediocre kit into a masterpiece if well executed. It is an essential buy to build an accurate model using the Trumpeter kit.

If you're serious about wanting a kit, there is a guy who comes every year to the two major Indy 500 memorabilia shows here in Indianapolis. He stocks resin Indy 500 cars and I'm relatively sure he makes them himself. If ANYONE would have what you want it would be him, his stuff is a bit pricey but not like the massively expensive Japanese Fanboy F-1 stuff. Probabaly every bit of a Tamiya P-51D in 1/32 though ($125-ish). He used to carry ALL the winners and some lesser known but unusual or some particulary historic cars too. I haven't been to the shows in several years because my Dad had to stop dealing in memorabilia because of his health, I'll ask around to see if I can get a name and a phone number or website for you if you'd like. PM me if you're interested.

from what I gathered on LSP there's a big fat problem with the engine fitting under the cowl on this kit and the F4U-1 kit . There's hope though because there's a AM cowl in the works by a LSP member. Here's the thread. http://forum.largescaleplanes.com/index.php?showtopic=29473&st=0

I would LOVE to do a PBY in 1/32 scale, there is a 1:1 cutaway PBY at the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola,FL. Probably one of the coolest museum exhibits EVER!!!!!! BTW, you can check out the visable PBY on the Museum's website.

I keep saying this and it seems to fall on deaf ears, but here I'll say it again. The product you need to use with pastels or any other dry media is a Krylon product called " Workable Fixativ". It is specifically for dry artists media like pastel, conte crayon, and charcoal. These dry media are refered to by artists as " volitile media" because they rub off if touched or rubbed. A "fixatve" is used to fix the dry media to the paper or "ground" so it no longer rubs off and becomes a part of the ground. These products dry fast, clear and flat, they retain a " tooth" so other media can be applied over it. There is also a "finish fixative" that dries with a gloss finish, these are not what you need, as there are other gloss finish products more appropriate for that purpose. But the "workable fixative" products are specifically for this particular purpose. A couple of light coats will best serve the purpose and without the running or severe darkening from other products. These products have served me well for many purposes for years without mishap.

Are those markings historically accurate?

I think I have solved at least part of the problem, I'm a former H.S. and college wrestler and I started doing the neck strength routine I used to do in my wrestling days. I'll do it every night for a couple of weeks and see if that helps on the long term, so far it has relieved the muscle tension in my neck enough that I don't wake up in the morning witha crick in my neck anymore. Thanks for the suggestions, I think I'll be investing in one of the light weight Opti-visors so this won't be such a literal and figurative pain in the future.

I live in Speedway and work about two blocks from the Castleton Hobbytown location. HTUSA doesn't carry a lot of the Eduard stuff, they do carry the Tamiya paints though. Big Four in Plainfied is a locally owned and operated shop, they have two focuses in their store, plastic models and trains. They carrry Model Master paints and which ever line it is that caters to trains ( the name escapes me at the moment). The two HTUSA locations have the best selection of modeling supplies in Indy, not great but a respctable stock. There isn't anyplace in town where you can go that has EVERYTHING, but I don't guess unless you live with Sprue Brothers in you back yard that a place like that exists. There are a few other little shops here and there across town but there's no other place that really competes with what's already been mentioned

It may take a bit of re-engineering but if you plan to display the model all buttoned up, you could avoid some of the fit problems with the cowling by eliminating installation of the engine. I think the oil cooler and gear box for the propeller could be installed to hold the prop in place without the engine block actually being there. The fit issues with the gun cover doors forward of the cockpit could be helped alot by thinning the covers or scratch building new ones from thinner stock or aluminum. To get all that buttoned up and the covers on without them sticking up is going to require everything to be just right underneath. Mark is spot on about the canopy issues, you might want to check out the rear canopy deck issue and decide if it makes enough of a difference to you to correct. The angle of the rear canopy and deck piece is wrong, comparison to the Trumpeter kits will bear this out. There was a WIP build over on LSP regarding this correction you might want to check out, it shows exactly how to deal with it.

I haven't weighed it, but it really doesn't weigh that much. Irregardless of it's weight, the fact remains that it's only after wearing it that I have the pain. Posture is probably a contibuting factor. I usually work at my bench for several hours at a time, But, I have also tried to change the angle at which I work on a kit so my neck is not bent down all the time. I'm thinking this is like a repetative strain injury and the visor is just aggrivating it further. And yes, I am getting old, and in this case it's not just the years, it's the mileage.

As I'm getting older, my eyesight is getting progressively worse and so a couple of years ago I bought an Opti-visor to help me see my work better. The problem is that now when ever I put it on, I pay for it later. I have pain in my neck and shoulders for 2-3 days after using it. I have bought a pair of x350 reading glasses to help with the magnification, and I have a magnifying lamp over my bench but it's just not the same as the benefits of the Opti-visor. The weight of it seems to be the biggest problem, it has lights on either side of the visor. I quit using them and removed the batteries to lighten it up. The strain seems to be on the back of my neck more than anywhere else and I'm thinking it's because the majority of the visors weight is thrown forward of the headband. I tried attaching a counter-balancing weight to the back of the visor but that just made the pain worse. At this point I'm willing to try anything, I've been muttlng through with the reading glasses and the magnifyer light but if I had to do any real detail work I'd be back to dealing with the pain. I need some suggestions because using the Opti-visor is an inevitability at some point. Have any of you had similar problems, I have been sore for several weeks now and it's beginning to effect my build, because I'm really not so inclined to be in pain.

Brian does that sheet include VA-75 Sunday Punchers?

One of the main problems with the kit is that the cowl and gun covers will have to be adjusted to fit correctly. The gun covers are particularly ill fitting, they may need to be thinned.Getting everything to fit under that cowling can be a real challenge. Numerous dry- fittings may be required before you actually get to glue it all together. I have heard that the angle on the rear part of the canopy is wrong. Whether or not you want to rework that problem is up to you though. One other thing, the mounting tabs for the landing gear could probably be cut and replaced with a piece of tube or solid round steel stock. The example I had, both tabs on one gear and one on the other broke off. The tail wheel oleo is weak and if you're going to do anything other than set it on a shelf once, then a stronger leg may be required. All the Airfix kits are notorious for dihedral and wing warping problems so just be aware. Jerry Rutman has had AM resin parts available in the past for that kit but I don't know if they're still available. He's phased out some conversions as production kits became available. Other parts such as gun barrels and wheels are available from sources you can access on ARC. The there are the Airscale guages that I have heard are wonderful. With a little work and some dry-fitting this Emil kit can be made into a respectable model. These kits are old, they're toy like in some aspects. The molding not up to modern standards, they lack the modern standards of detail, but with a bit of scratchbuilding it can be made into an outstanding model

Lighten up, Francis!! Believe me, as a vet, I am ALL ABOUT honoring MOH awardees, especially posthumus ones! The word "winner" is not exactly applicable in this circumstance as I'd hardly call anyone who died in battle a "winner". Hero or awardee, absolutely but not winner. As far as what you said above, you're entitled to your opinion. I'm not saying it makes a single shred of sense, but often perception doesn't. Sailors are a superstitious lot, and have been for as long as men have sailed the seas. Nicknames in the fleet stick like glue. Saratoga sank at the pier, she'll forever be the "Sinking Sara". Forrestal had a major flightdeck accident during the Vietnam war, she'll forever be "USS Forrestfire" in the fleet. Rumors persist, about the ghost of the DC CPO that was killed in the blast on the flight deck haunting the mess decks and kitchens because the walk-in freezers were used as temporary morgues. My point is on a ship with a name like USS Murphy ( I was specifically refering to the Audie Murphy suggestion), the first major incident like mentioned above that comes along and that's what is going to happen. It is an inevitability, and regardless of the source of the name, NOT a stretch of the imagination. Argue if you will, and I'm not saying the shouldn't name the ship after whoever. Let's just hope naming it after a posthumous MOH awardee that it doesn't end up being refered to as such.