Hello folks. Just want to say Happy New Year to all of you!! I know I know, it’s already over due to our members in Eastern Hemisphere. I wish everyone a great and prosper 2005.
So how are everyone model works in 2004. For me, shame to tell, due to my tight working schedule I could only spare little time to build kits. I only achive a humble numbers. They are:
Hasegawa 1/48 SBD Dauntless
Hasegawa 1/72 Bae Harrier Mk3
Hasegawa 1/72 IDF Kfir
HobbyCraft 1/72 Canadian Sabre Mk5
Acedemy 1/72 F-6F Hellcat
With some armour kits I will share it in armour forum
Here are some sharing:
Hasegawa 1/48 SBD Dauntless
Pros[:D]: Excellent surface details. Fine fitting. Nice decals and cockpit( although AM is believed to be better).
Cons[V]: Boy, drilling that 200+ holes on the dive flaps was really some work.
Blunders[banghead]: After finishing the whole thing( with the canopy glued), the control stick in the cockpit fell off and get inside the fuselage.
Hasegawa 1/72 Harrier Mk3:
Pros[:D]: Nice surface detail despite it’s almost 20 years old. Fine fitting.
Cons[V]: Fitting the jet exhaust nozzles must be careful
Blunders[banghead]: I didn’t realize for the lower wing I had to apply the paint and decal first then the pylons. I glued the pylon first and end up had to offset the decal
Hasegawa 1/72 IDF Kfir
Pros[:D] Still a decent kit. Looks accurate in shape to me.
Cons[V]: Raised lines. Fitting gap between fuselage and wing
Blunders[banghead]: Well, at first I wanted to built the plane in landing position but the landing gear slip off from my tweezer and disappeared on the carpet. So I had to make it in flying position. Borrowed the pilot from the Harrier. Had to reconfigure the figure to make fit into the seat and with the canopy closed. Now I have a flying position IDF Kfir with a RN pilot dressed with lifejacket with his legs cut off and butt sanded off. To made me more mad, two days after I finished the kit, I found the missing landing gear.
HobbyCraft Canadian Sabre Mk5:
Pros[:D]: Fine recession lines surface. Fitting is fine.
Cons[V]: Instruction is not clear especially on assembling parts on the canopy
Blunders[banghead]Thanks goodness, nothing serious happened
Academy F-6F Hellcat:
Pros[:D]: Nice surface detail and fitting. Excellent quality/cost ration.
Cons[V]: Got to be careful when cutting windows for F-6F3. Wrong rockets provided, should be the US 5" rocket, the one provided looks like British 66 lb rockets used by Typhoon.
Blunders[banghead]Thanks goodness, nothing serious happened
Well I am sure you folks have more luck than me[:)]. Share with us your funny experience.