The Unofficial Airfix Modellers' Forum

Dazzled wrote:Looking good Rob but you do seem to have a knack for picking kits that are "interesting" to build.

I never intend to. I see it more as a gift.

I too have a soft spot for the Cobra,but my version of the TOKO kit ended up in the recycle bin.

celt wrote:I too have a soft spot for the Cobra,but my version of the TOKO kit ended up in the recycle bin.

Sadly, it's the good one unless you want to pay resin money and can track down the rare HiTech kit. The Aoshima P-63 is from 1969 and has all the problems of that time such as very heavy rivets, sparse cockpit detail and 'toy' features like retractable undercarriage. This joins the MiG-19 as a model that could do with a new tool, but I suppose it's a bit obscure for that.

Spaceowl wrote:

celt wrote:I too have a soft spot for the Cobra,but my version of the TOKO kit ended up in the recycle bin.

Sadly, it's the good one unless you want to pay resin money and can track down the rare HiTech kit. The Aoshima P-63 is from 1969 and has all the problems of that time such as very heavy rivets, sparse cockpit detail and 'toy' features like retractable undercarriage. This joins the MiG-19 as a model that could do with a new tool, but I suppose it's a bit obscure for that.

Hi Spaceowl,I agree,if you dont like mainstream aircraft the pickings are slim.

iggie wrote:The Kingcobra and the Cobra have always struck me as being the product of someone trying too hard to make a success of something doomed to failure.....I'm probably doing them both an injustice, but they have never appealed to me at all!

That said, I shall enjoy watching this progress (and the always informative narratives too!)

They were (apparently) just as good an aircraft as the P-40.

Sir T wrote:They were (apparently) just as good an aircraft as the P-40.

I think it was the host of whistles and bells that made them unpopular, like the car doors that made it hard to bail out and the poor acceleration, as well as the poor performance at high altitude. Of course, that's the P-39 - how many of these problems were addressed with the P-63 I don't know. Certainly at the time the French were using them they were still glad of anything with wings they could get, and it was only a lack of spare parts that grounded the P-63s in Indochina.

Speaking of which, the decals are on:



I can't recommend the decals very highly - although their colours are nice and dense, they were quite fragile and don't seem to like Microsol or Microset very much. For all that, they all went on in roughly one piece so I didn't need to resort to the back up decal sheet which means I've now got an extra set for the Hellcat when I get around to that.

There are still a few bits to rough in, but I think the next 48 hours will see this one finished. No hurry after all.

That's looking really nice!

That's got to be one of the hottest King Cobras to come down the pike in quite a while!

Talk about eye-catching!

The Great Auk

Looking rather nice mate.

The Kingcobra is complete and on Aviation Modelling now. There will be a short break from updates at the Roost now while I participate in the Scandinavian Group Build (again). Give it about a week.

Back from the Scandinavian group build!

As I don't have a Mosquito for the Normandie-Niemen Squadron build the just yet, I'm jumping ahead one to the Grumman Hellcat, which the Double N used until the end of their war in Indochina. Grumman being a mass producer of aircraft, unlike Bell, there was less of a spare parts shortage and the Hellcats apparently did yeoman service for the French Air Force.



This is the Heller kit which dates from 1977. Although obviously an older kit, it still has a fairly well-detailed interior and seems generally good, apart from the raised panel lines and of course, the bright blue plastic it was shot in, which doubles the number of coats of paint required to cover it up.

So far, I've just glued the parts that needed interior paint on them together and added a few scrap plastic panels on the fuselage sides, although I have a suspicion that none of it will be especially visible under canopy anyway. I've also added a couple of spare bomb pylons for bombs, which I prefer to rockets for underwing stores.

That Cobra looks fantastic, and who doesn't love a Grumman Cat? Nice work, sir.

Nice start on the Hellcat - I love the blue plastic!

Stuart wrote:Nice start on the Hellcat - I love the blue plastic!

I don't...

Some progress, despite the amount of paint you have to trowel on to bright blue plastic to get an even coat :



I made a few improvements - the gunsight scaled out to about six inches thick so I cut it off and replaced it with one made out of scrap clear PVC, and I painted buttons on to the side consoles. As stated yesterday, probably wasted effort all around as the birdcage canopy means next to nothing will be visible in there. It doesn't matter, I know it's there.

The fit on this one looks a bit slack, so tonight will be devoted to filling and trying to get the dihedral right.