Christmas Airfix!

Looking good. I’ve got a better airbrush than the eBay cheapy that i’ve been using, but i’m too lazy to clean it up. I shall have to give it a go now.

Meanwhile, I’ve been battling with the Revell Victor K2 and it is nowhere near as terrible as the reviews would have you believe. Well worth £15, but not something that can be chucked together over a weekend.

https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235051533-victor-frankensteins/

Finally, did anyone see the James May thing on BBC4 last night about Hornby/Airfix? Well worth a look.

I enjoyed the documentary.

LOLed at the brand new Airfix model having moldings 1mm out.

Destroying all of the old tooling was criminal. It costs nothing to keep them.

I like building old kits from my youth. If you buy one that was tooled in 1968 you have to expect that the detail will be a bit “off”, as long as you know it is old and the price isn’t “premium” then so what?

I would have thought that there would have been a market for them, as long as it still goes together and isn’t completely worn out, if they were branded in a way they that explained they were dated.

Airfix say on their web site that much of their old tooling still exists and they are in the process of re-releasing some of the old kits. Maybe its the really old stuff thats gone? (I didn’t see the TV show).

All the recent kits I’ve built have been very good in terms of fit etc. I did byy a Corsair in error which turned out to be an old tooling and that was shockingly bad in comparison!

But if you know it is going to be “shockingly bad” and are on a nostalgia trip then that is OK. I’ve got a Revell TA 152 from a 50 year old tool. It is rubbish compared to a modern one, but at a fiver I saw it is a challenge and it turned out OK.

Ancient kits in brand new boxes are a different matter.

Airfix and re-issuing the Saturn V. I had it as a kid, but can’t justify getting it again. Not because it is bad, but because i’ve got the Lego one. 😀

Daughter just joined a plastic kit building club at school. Is there a good source of discounted kits (high quality not a real issue but they must fit together well) that I can use? Which makes should I avoid?

Last thing I built myself was probably this

Get down to Aldi and hoover up any £5 airfix kits. They will probably include glue and paint too.

The only truely bad cheap kit I’ve had was a Hawker Hunter from Mister Craft. Absolute garbage.

Jadlam do cheap ones from Airfix, Revell etc with free delivery starting at about a fiver.

The Airfix Spitifire, Hurricane, Warhawk and A6M Zero are really good and cheap.

Oh yes and to be fair Airfix and not sneaking them out – the old kits are coming out in the original boxes and all the more recent ones have the date of the tooling on the side of the box.

Watch out for that metal paint – its looks great but it doesn’t like being handled much so I’d spray it with Klear or similar before you do much else to the model. It doesn’t like masking tape either, even the low tac stuff.

The Works have half-a-dozen 1:48 Revell kits on sale at the moment- every couple of days they seem to have a code for an additional 20% off (it was there for a few days last week, and back yesterday but gone now).

Thanks Vinnyeh, got The Works Revell F-16 Air Team and MIG-21 PF bundle** for £17 plus three quids worth of glue sticks and scissors (not for model making) to get free postage. Two 1:48’s seems great value as presumably they’re actually easier/less fiddly than a lot of 1:72 counterparts.

** Now to build a Tension in Kashmir diorama….

Watch out for that metal paint – its looks great but it doesn’t like being handled much so I’d spray it with Klear or similar before you do much else to the model. It doesn’t like masking tape either, even the low tac stuff.

It handled being smothered in Blutack ok, I did let it dry for a couple of days in a warm room first though. Need to mask a couple of bits later to correct some errors. I’ll report back.

Happy to report back that masking with Tamiya tape hasn’t pulled any paint off (yet), I’ll do more tomorrow.

Cool! Its impressive stuff that Alcald Metal paint. Stinks though. I set up a fan to keep the fumes away from me then managed to knock my bottle of thinners over! Being heavy they collected downstairs in the kitchen and lounge so I had to ventilate the whole house!

🤣🤣🤣

I was using Vallejo Metal Colour, it’s acrylic so it doesn’t stink.

So it doesn’t stink and it doesn’t peel off?

I’ve got a Lightning in the stash that needs a bare metal finish.

Try the Alclad metal lacquers, they look just like real metal. I’ve just finished a Lightning that I did in polished aluminium i think it was. It was a learning curve as it was my first go spraying large areas with lacquer but i’m very impressed with it.

photo?

Not at the moment, I’ll try and get one tonight.

Can you still get ‘Klear’ floor polish? Never seen it for years.
I’ve found an equivalent alternative though, acrylic floor polish ‘aquired’ from the prison service. It looks like milk but dries clear & quickly, needs 2 coats to put a glossy enough finish for decals.

Sainsbury’s sell it 😀 It’s now called Pledge Multi Surface Polish.

Liking that Lightning a lot.

Sainsbury’s sell it 😀 It’s now called Pledge Multi Surface Polish.

It’s not the same stuff, they changed the formula and it’s not as good.

The floor polish from Lakeland (green label I think?) is supposed to be nearer the original Klear.

The floor polish from Lakeland (green label I think?) is supposed to be nearer the original Klear.

Ok ta, I’ll stick to the free stuff!

Cheers Harry.

Pledge Revive It is said by some to be the same as the original recipe Klear. I haven’t tried it but if I ever find any of the mythical Aldi Airfix kits I may have a need, or if I ever buy that WnW Lancaster with its multiple canopies.

I’ve bought some of the Lakekand stuff to give it a try, I’ll report in! I was happy with the one from Sainsbury’s to be honest.

Do you use it on canopies?

If the canopies are scratched or not very good plastic it can make them clear and shiny again, so for a cack-handed person like me it can help the recovery process if you’ve had to scrape off excess paint, for example. Some people seem to use it regardless. Britmodeller has several threads on this, plus the quest for alternatives now that Klear is no more!

Britmodeller has several threads on this

Like a tyre debate on here!

What floor cleaner for a 1:72 scale canopy…

My current dilemma: what wire for the spark plug leads on a 1:32 Rolls Royce Falcon engine on a Brisfit, and will anyone be able to see them if I bother?

@Harry_the_Spider – I’ve got some photos that might be of interest, they’re of a Victor that’s parked up at Bruntingthorpe, and I had an opportunity to wander round the aircraft parked there one afternoon.

Thanks. Magnificent isn’t it?

I’ve spent the afternoon making all sorts of plasti-card “greeblies” and a desk for the rear crew. None of which you will be able to see once the fuselage is buttoned up.

None of which you will be able to see once the fuselage is buttoned up.

Ahh but you know It’s there Harry!

Ahh but we all know now!

Didn’t go mad on the seats because a) they are rear facing, b) I’m going to sit crew on them and c) you can’t see them anyway.

The rear bulkhead was plain so I thought I’d give Nav Radar and his mates something to look at.

Looks rubbish when blown up in hear, but see points a, b & c above.

No point going to extremes unless it’s on show Harry, done the same myself.
I got the Victor after you mentioned it but I’ll just clag it together!
(I’m busy making another Pigs Ear Mk1H, which should be finished soon but I wouldn’t dare show anyone) 😉

I got the Victor after you mentioned it but I’ll just clag it together!

When filling the MASSIVE GAPS in the wings remind yourself that it is £30 cheaper than the Airfix one.

Also remind yourself that some dickhead on STW is building two of them.

Rio, that engine looks incredible! Electrical solder would be good for wiring, easy to bend and available in very thing gauges.

This is the last of my Aldi Xmas ones.

And a nice little JP I finished on Saturday.

I’m afraid this is getting a bit out of hand now! I’m runnng out of space to display them and I’ve got five more in my stash and two on the bench being built.