Intermission – SnapTite F-4 Phantom – Day 4

Pierre LagacéLeave a comment

This might explain why it is sometimes hard to choose my next build.

Plane Dave had written this a few months ago on his blog.

Lockheed P-38G Lightning

This is the Tamiya kit.  It’s currently their newest kit.  My one word review is: WOW! I think I said that word every five minutes while building it.  The engineers at Tamiya are artists.  This is simply the best scale model kit I’ve ever seen in my life.  Make no mistake, any good thing you think when looking at these pictures is to Tamiya’s credit.  I’ll accept the blame for any shortcomings; that is, any place I didn’t do this masterpiece of a kit full justice.

Plane Dave was so convincing I had to buy it.

However the “WOW” Plane Dave had used was quite intimidating to say the least. How can I be up to the challenge with Tamiya P-38?

Reflecting on how to choose my next build last week, I found this model kit hidden somewhere in the basement since the early 1980s.

Source Scalemates

Why in the world I had bought it I can’t remember. I remember I had built Fujimi F-4 in the early 1970s as well as their A-6 Intruder. Japan was starting to invade North American markets.

Source Scalemates

Source Internet

Why I had bought this SnapTite F-4 Phantom? I had no idea, but now I know why. It was not at all intimidating.

Finding it in my workshop sitting there for almost 40 years, it was partly built. On the spur of the comment I decided last weekend to finish it instead of throwing it away in the garbage. I had no instructions and I forgot to look on Scalemates which had them on their website.

Anyway I did not need instructions to finish it and adding a quick coat of homemade acrylic paint and sticking the decals on.

I also had this Monogram SnapTite SR-71A model airplane in 1/110 scale which I did also in the 80s.

The stand and a tail cone are missing, but I will keep it anyway.

This 1/72 scale Arado 240 by Revell was built in the early 2000s while on vacation. 

Source Scalemates

 

 

If you look closely you will see I had used Scotch tape for framing the canopy. I keep those model kits simply because I had built them and I want to remember the good old days.

All my collection of built model kits are in 1/48 scale except two Tamiya 1/700 scale aircraft carriers.

What I will do with all my collection is probably what other modelers are also thinking about their collection.

I have been given some away. One was a gift I had intended to give to the niece of Gérard Pelletier, a Boulton-Paul Defiant air gunner who is still missing off the northern coast of England since September 3, 1942. I can’t give it to his niece right now because of travel restrictions due to the pandemic.

One more model airplane was given two years ago as a gift to a virtual third cousin-in-law who had researched a P-47 pilot killed in 1945…

One more, a P-61 Black Widow, was given to a friend blogger whose father was a paratrooper during WWII.

I wish I could give more away but sending them by mail is very risky business. 

One of my two sons has two. A P-47 D and a P-38. My other son had asked for a Me 109 two years ago. I still have to find the time to give him one. My grandson has two but I took his Monogram A-26 Invader and his Monogram A-6 Skyraider back to put them on my wall for safe keeping. 

It’s hard to let them go sometimes, but giving them is what I found best to have more space for the new ones. My brother has several German planes: Fujimi Me 109G, Monogram Me 262, Monogram B-25J, Monogram Ju 87G and Monogram Do 335. He has his eyes set lately on my ICM He-111H-3.

Sweet dreams…

The problem he will have is where to display it. Maybe I will just take a picture, put it on a frame and…

About what’s next in December?

I will be compiling the results of your suggestions dropped in the comment section for my next build. Your comments will be approved but your suggestion will not appear so no one will see what followers wrote. On December 14 the result will be known.

I just can’t wait… Waiting is what I do best before choosing what next to build. Until then I will hit the pause button on My Forgotten Hobby III and be practicing my airbrush skills on my SnapTite F-4 Phantom using this as reference.

I have modified my workbench yesterday and discarded my homemade spray booth which I found too cumbersome.

Who knows I might even finish up the Harvard. 

Intermission – Using the airbrush indoors – Day 3

Pierre Lagacé5 Comments

Last winter I had felt a little dizzy after I had used my airbrush indoors. That was the reason I was working only outdoors during the summer months.

I gave it another try indoors Tuesday afternoon with a mask on, an opened window and a running fan.

This is the same homemade spray booth I have used. I took this picture after my airbrushing session with just a little dizzy feeling again.

My North American Harvard had been waiting since early 2020 for its RCAF decals. I had found some leftover decals but I was not happy with the result as well as the shade of yellow I had used.

This would have been the shade I wanted.

So I decided Tuesday to repaint it. This is how the Harvard looked in June when the spurious decals were removed. 

 

 

After I had masked the Harvard, I sprayed a white basecoat to cover the yellow.

However it did not cover as much as I first thought.

It is now sitting there with a homemade batch of yellow waiting for a second basecoat.

I wonder if my airbrush will stay idle more than just one day,

I am also thinking about my spray booth set up which will be completely useless for painting my large He 111H-3 once I get there.

Intermission – What’s next in December? – Day 2

Pierre Lagacé6 Comments

What’s next in December?

Your comments fuel this blog. I have decided to let my followers more voting days. I really want your input on what to choose next since I have no idea. 

My ICM He 111H-3 is now on hold.

I want to use my airbrush but I want to do some testing before.

So I am reposting what I wrote yesterday.  One follower has already commented. I have deleted his suggestions so not to influence others.

Thinking about what’s next on My Forgotten III, I was looking at my list of unbuilt model kits and I have decided to let you decide.

Simple isn’t. With 19 followers I should get some most interesting suggestions.

Just write a comment in the comment section and the reason why you are chosing it. You don’t need to add a reason.

The model kit which gets the most votes will be built. In case of a tie both will be built one after the other leading us to 2021, and boy do we need to get to 2021!

Model kits in red are off limits for now since they have been already started, some even 30 years ago. The result of the votes will be known on December 14, 2020.

Now for the list…

Helicopters (3)

Monogram

AH-1S (almost completed 30 years ago)

 

Bell Huey Hog (bought many years ago)

AH-64 Apache (very little has been started 30 years ago)

Planes (72)

ICM (5)

Ju 88 A-14 (bought it on January 20, 2020)

Do 17Z-2 (bought it on January 21, 2020)

Ju 88 C-6 (bought it on January 21, 2020)

He 111 H-3 (bought it on January 22, 2020 and almost completed)

Me 109 F-4 (bought it on January 28, 2020)

Airfix (4)

Boulton-Paul Defiant (bought two in 2018, built one as a gift)

Battle of Britain and Hawker Hurricane Mk 1 (bought it in 2018)

Battle of Britain and Hawker Hurricane Mk 1 (bought it in 2018)

Messerschmidt Me109E (bought in 2018, almost completed)

Eduard (12)

P-39 (bought it in December 2019)

Spitfire Mk IX (bought it in December 2019)

F6F Hellcat Weekend edition (bought it in January  2020)

Spitfire Mk XVI Weekend edition (bought it in January 2020)

Me 110 E (bought it in January 2020)

Me 109 G-4 (bought it in February 2020)

FW 190 D (bought it in March 2020)

Me 109 E-3 (bought it in March 2020)

FW 190 A-8 (bought it in March 2020)

Hawker Tempest Mk V (bought it in June 2020)

P-51 D (bought it in June 2020)

Hawker Tempest Mk V Weekend Edition (bought it in June 2020)

AMT (1)

A-20 (bought it many years ago)

Tamiya (13)

Bristol Beaufighter Mk VI (bought it many years ago)

Hawker Harrier (bought it many years ago)

de Havilland Mosquito (bought it in 2018)

P-47 M (bought it in 2019)

F4U-1/2 Corsair (bought in August 2019)

F4U-1D Corsair with tug (bought in 2019)

Me 262 (bought in December 2019)

FW 190D (bought in January 2020)

IL-2 Sturmovik (bought in February 2020)

Bristol Beaufighter TFX (bought in June 2020)

P-38 F/J  (bought in June 2020)

P-51B

P-47D Razorback

Revell (2)

B-29 (vintage 1950s) (a gift)

B1-B (bought many years ago)

Monogram (31)

North American AT-6 (Harvard – almost completed)

Wright Brothers Kitty Hawk (a gift from a WWII veteran)

de Havilland Mosquito (bought many years ago)

de Havilland Mosquito (bought many years ago)

Hawker Harrier (bought many years ago)

Hawker Typhoon (bought many years ago)

SBD Dauntless (bought many years ago)

Vought Kingfisher (bought many years ago)

A-26 B Invader (bought many years ago)

B-24 J (bought many years ago)

B-25 J (bought many years ago)

B-26 (bought many years ago)

B-58 (bought many years ago)

P-38 (bought many years ago)

P-39 (bought many years ago)

P-61 Black Widow (bought in August 2019)

F4 Phantom (bought many years ago)

F-8 Crusader (bought many years ago)

F-9F (bought many years ago)

F-80 (bought many years ago)

F-84 (bought many years ago)

F-86 (bought many years ago)

Mig 15 (bought many years ago)

A6 Douglas Skyraider (bought many years ago)

A7 Corsair (bought many years ago)

F-100 (bought many years ago)

F-101 (bought many years ago)

F-102 (bought many years ago)

F-105 (bought many years ago)

F-106 (bought many years ago)

F-117 (bought many years ago)

Mig-29 (bought many years ago)

Hasegawa (3)

P-40 E (bought in 2018)

Douglas Dauntless (bought in 2018)

Zero Type 52 (Minicraft/Hasegawa) (bought many years ago)

Trumpeter (1)

Vickers Wellington Mk III (bought in February 2020)

Ships (7)

Trumpeter (4)

Canadian HMCS Huron 1/350 scale (bought in 2019)

German Z-30 Zerstorer 1/350 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Lexington 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Saratoga CV-3 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

Tamiya (3)

USS Hornet CV-8 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Yorktown CV-5 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Saratoga CV-3 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

Intermission – What’s next in December? – Day 1

Pierre Lagacé10 Comments

What’s next in December?

Thinking about what’s next on My Forgotten III, I was looking at my list of unbuilt model kits and I have decided to let you decide.

Simple isn’t. With 19 followers I should get some most interesting suggestions.

Just write a comment in the comment section and the reason why you are chosing it. You don’t need to add a reason.

The model kit which gets the most votes will be built. In case of a tie both will be built one after the other leading us to 2021, and boy do we need to get to 2021!

Model kits in red are off limits for now since they have been already started, some even 30 years ago. The result of the votes will be known on December 14, 2020.

Now for the list…

Helicopters (3)

Monogram (3)

AH-1S (almost completed 30 years ago)

 

Bell Huey Hog (bought many years ago)

AH-64 Apache (very little has been started 30 years ago)

Planes (72)

ICM (5)

Ju 88 A-14 (bought it on January 20, 2020)

Do 17Z-2 (bought it on January 21, 2020)

Ju 88 C-6 (bought it on January 21, 2020)

He 111 H-3 (bought it on January 22, 2020 and almost completed)

Me 109 F-4 (bought it on January 28, 2020)

Airfix (4)

Boulton-Paul Defiant (bought two in 2018, built one as a gift)

Battle of Britain and Hawker Hurricane Mk 1 (bought it in 2018)

Battle of Britain and Hawker Hurricane Mk 1 (bought it in 2018)

Messerschmidt Me109E (bought in 2018, almost completed)

Eduard (12)

P-39 (bought it in December 2019)

Spitfire Mk IX (bought it in December 2019)

F6F Hellcat Weekend edition (bought it in January  2020)

Spitfire Mk XVI Weekend edition (bought it in January 2020)

Me 110 E (bought it in January 2020)

Me 109 G-4 (bought it in February 2020)

FW 190 D (bought it in March 2020)

Me 109 E-3 (bought it in March 2020)

FW 190 A-8 (bought it in March 2020)

Hawker Tempest Mk V (bought it in June 2020)

P-51 D (bought it in June 2020)

Hawker Tempest Mk V Weekend Edition (bought it in June 2020)

AMT (1)

A-20 (bought it many years ago)

Tamiya (13)

Bristol Beaufighter Mk VI (bought it many years ago)

Hawker Harrier (bought it many years ago)

de Havilland Mosquito (bought it in 2018)

P-47 M (bought it in 2019)

F4U-1/2 Corsair (bought in August 2019)

F4U-1D Corsair with tug (bought in 2019)

Me 262 (bought in December 2019)

FW 190D (bought in January 2020)

IL-2 Sturmovik (bought in February 2020)

Bristol Beaufighter TFX (bought in June 2020)

P-38 F/J  (bought in June 2020)

P-51B

P-47D Razorback

Revell (2)

B-29 (vintage 1950s) (a gift)

B1-B (bought many years ago)

Monogram (31)

North American AT-6 (Harvard – almost completed)

Wright Brothers Kitty Hawk (a gift from a WWII veteran)

de Havilland Mosquito (bought many years ago)

de Havilland Mosquito (bought many years ago)

Hawker Harrier (bought many years ago)

Hawker Typhoon (bought many years ago)

SBD Dauntless (bought many years ago)

Vought Kingfisher (bought many years ago)

A-26 B Invader (bought many years ago)

B-24 J (bought many years ago)

B-25 J (bought many years ago)

B-26 (bought many years ago)

B-58 (bought many years ago)

P-38 (bought many years ago)

P-39 (bought many years ago)

P-61 Black Widow (bought in August 2019)

F4 Phantom (bought many years ago)

F-8 Crusader (bought many years ago)

F-9F (bought many years ago)

F-80 (bought many years ago)

F-84 (bought many years ago)

F-86 (bought many years ago)

Mig 15 (bought many years ago)

A6 Douglas Skyraider (bought many years ago)

A7 Corsair (bought many years ago)

F-100 (bought many years ago)

F-101 (bought many years ago)

F-102 (bought many years ago)

F-105 (bought many years ago)

F-106 (bought many years ago)

F-117 (bought many years ago)

Mig-29 (bought many years ago)

Hasegawa (3)

P-40 E (bought in 2018)

Douglas Dauntless (bought in 2018)

Zero Type 52 (Minicraft/Hasegawa) (bought many years ago)

Trumpeter (1)

Vickers Wellington Mk III (bought in February 2020)

Ships (7)

Trumpeter (4)

Canadian HMCS Huron 1/350 scale (bought in 2019)

German Z-30 Zerstorer 1/350 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Lexington 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Saratoga CV-3 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

Tamiya (3)

USS Hornet CV-8 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Yorktown CV-5 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

USS Saratoga CV-3 1/700 scale (bought in 2019)

ICM He 111H-3 – Day 30

Pierre LagacéLeave a comment

Day 30 was a day for mixing homemade paint with some leftover paint I had already made. I just mixed homemade zinc chromate with homemade dark grey and stirred it up until I had the shade I wanted…

How did it work? 

I tested it in the cockpit area…

I tested it on the bomb bay doors…

 

I tested it in the wheel wells and on the landing struts.

 

Finally I tested it in the bomb bay.

After all that testing, I still had lots of homemade RLM 02 acrylic paint left over that I can use when I will be building my next German model airplane.

 

Tomorrow maybe the biggest decision ever made on My Forgotten Hobby III.

ICM He 111H-3 – Day 29

Pierre LagacéLeave a comment

Day 29 was a day for “colorizing” the past. This is what I like to do in my spare time beside building model airplane kits. 

This is the latest one I did for his children using a black and white photo they had of their father. Looking at it I think I got the shirt color wrong. I will fix it later. If you are interested, what I wrote about Flight Lieutenant Thomas Oscar Meteyer is here. He is the reason I bought these two model kits of the planes he flew in WWII.

Getting back to my  build, this is where I am today.

The landing doors were added last Friday night. Before… And after…

The engines panels and the exhausts were added Saturday morning. Again I had fitting problems, but I’ll get over it.

The small parts will be added after all the painting has been done. That way I won’t break anything. Final unpainted photo of ICM He 111H-3.

Tomorrow I should mix some homemade RLM 02 or RLM 66 and test them in the cockpit area, on the bomb bay doors, in the wheel wells and the landing struts.

About Lieutenant Meteyer’s colorised photo… Can you spot “la différence”? Before…

After…

Thomas Meteyer

ICM He 111H-3 – Day 28

Pierre LagacéLeave a comment

Day 28 was a day of “remembering” the past. Remembering why I have been doing all this since December 2013…writing about a forgotten hobby.

It was written in the stars back in 1958 that I would start writing about my forgotten hobby in December 2013. I was then remembering the movie Air Force I saw as a kid, and I had started following Amateur Airplanes’ blog.

Amateur Airplanes was building 1/72 scale model airplane kits and his collection of what he was building, as well as his stash, was impressive.

I was learning a lot from him even the word “stash” which I had in the basement but did not know how it was called.  

Not my stash but I wish it was…

So this is how I started remembering in December 2013 that I had a  stash collection of unbuilt model kits in my basement, and also remembering all those model airplanes I had built starting in 1958.

The first one was Lindberg F-86.

Source Scalemates

Lindberg F-86 was state of the art back then. It was not perfect by any means but I did not know that in 1958.

Moving fast forward to 2020, this is my work in progress…

I remembered I had to glue these last parts to complete the landing gear assembly before I start painting. I had procrastinated long enough and for good reasons.

Tweezers were quite helpful and I had my hands full which is why I took no pictures showing the tweezers.

 

Next I moved to install these panels on the engine nacelles.

  And then there was checking on this. Solid as a rock! The side window was causing the problem with the fit. It was not glued tight leaving a bulge. With so many parts in that model kit, each part has to fit perfectly so all the others will fit just right.  There is still a gap but I will fill it with Testors clear glue. The other side looks fine with a small gap.

The model will be ready for the next step tomorrow when all the engines panels will be added as well as the landing gear doors.

I dry fitted some parts here to get a feeling of what it will look like before I start using my airbrush in a few days. So why I have been doing all this since December 2013…? I am still looking for the answer, but it might be hidden here.