Luft46's Blog

September disappeared in work with a change of software. Any modelling was only on weekends in what was a busy month that included a very short trip to Melbourne to see my team win a final. 
The trip included a visit to Metro Hobbies only store now the city one has been closed down. It’s quite a good looking store but nothing for me except some mud for dioramas.

 Its now only Hearns left in the CBD which is sad. The whole block was resumed for a new train station.

I also met Eisa from the TV show “The Chase”, very nice guy.

Before I left for my latest jaunt to melb via Adelaide I got 3 more KV2S and a detailing set for the Meng D9 dozer to reproduce the pistons in metal rather than trying to replicate these in plastic as well as another Model Collect kit

After some of the usual winter ills I have been doing some modelling again. I haven’t been doing any painting so there’s a buildup of incomplete kits. Lets do a quick review.

Me 262 Schnellbomber. This one has had some Tamiya rattle can RLM76 applied and now needs the camo airbrushed on. I have an Eduard vinyl paint mask ready for this

Next up is the  Modellcollect E100 withV1 launcher. This is up to needing a first coat of  Tamiya rattle can yellow. The tracks were a bit of a wrestle with some major issues in getting clearance around the front drive sprocket which needed some teeth removed to get the tracks to fit. The tracks and wheels have been pre painted ready for masking off when I begin the major painting. The tracks are Dragon style cream rubber band style. At least they glue ok unlike old style black rubber ones and they are a bit more solid. Individual track links are great until you have to glue a hundred odd of the bastards. Link and length if not too long are often the best bet in 1.72.

Next are a few Russian KV2S. You are going to see a few of these in the next few months. These are the Trumpeter kits. I have a plan involving using 3 of these but unfortunately ordered the wrong type of turret, one type is sloped at the front and the other is vertical. I ordered the sloped sort in error and I am expecting the right ones in about a month from HobbyEasy. In the meantime I am doing one as an ordinary KV2 , another’s as a 120 mm Stug with a spare plastic gun from a Modellcollect that also has a brass one and the third with a Pz IV turret I have spare. 

For the next batch I have one planned as a rocket weapons carrier and I have yet to come up with an idea for the last one.

 You will note the Stug gun in the middle has been broken by accident which was done when I was adding the etched brass gun brake. The major fault with the turret is the steps which are solid and will be replaced by wire.

Last up is 2 kits that I ordered with the KV2s. One is the E100 stug And the other is a very detailed E50 kit, hard to believe it is only 1.72 given the detail including brass . More on these later.

You buy a new slightly smaller Samsung tablet, but you cant find a proper protective case for it and you naturally just find some rubber that is lying around , cut it to shape and now it fits fine inside the old case.

You get your wife a piece of dress jewellery and she doesn’t like the clasp being silver and asks you to repaint it in gold paint and it looks fine!

Any time the right small tool is needed your kids immediately ask if you can help because that’s worked every other time in the past.

Etc etc.

Now most of the wheels are on things are looking up.

1. A nice rare warm winter day has meant I was able to come home and airbrush my tank. I’m happy with the results so far on this tank with one small exception. The main join along the top between the upper deck and the side panels did not work out and despite my best efforts I have had to resort to filling this join completely. As it is W46 no one can really call me on it anyway :).
2. And I managed to lose a wheel for which i have  taken one  from another kit. Hopawfully the concrete floor monster has not gobbled it.

   
   

   

This is my newish airbrushing mask. It cost about twice my old one but works much better. I was using a Tamiya rattle can last night which always leave a smell in the air for hours and I couldn’t smell a thing. As soon as I took it off the mask the smell was back in force. Well worth the money especially for your lungs sake.

See below. There was a review on http://www.themodellingnews.com that confirmed I would have to put the wheels and tracks on before adding the side skirts. My instinct is not to do so but the review implies that this is not going to be easy. I’m waiting for the second half of the review to confirm this. Anyway as the skirts are a little short at the front I will be able to fix this problem with some Evergreen strip. The review also pointed out that the wheels were mislabeled but I had already figured that one out from experience with other late war german tanks.

Regular readers of this blog blog if such a creature exists will know I go to Melbourne most years in June for the Model Expo. This year I managed a 4 day trip which I thoroughly enjoyed.

It was not all modelling with even a  bit of culture slipped in with a Van Gogh exhibit.

• I managed my usual visits to Metro Hobbies and Hearns without spending a cent.
• Also looked in on Mag Nation. This shop used to extend over 3 floors but they have closed off the top floor recently. Whilst the magazine offering used in be good this has fallen off mark and I won’t be going back again. My local newsagent does better and for a city one this is poor.
• I also went to Hylands bookshop which has moved again. This is the 4th location over the years. I bought 2 books with 1 being on Australian scorched earth plans in the event of a Japanese invasion in WW2. The other is yet another Justo Miranda L46 book. The move is not a good one. They are now located in a defunct movie theatre. Whilst the back wall has had the typical black material taken off the remaining 3 walls are black and being a theatre half is òn a slope with multiple levels. Whilst there are multiple lights on the walls trying their best it is dark in a lot of it. My camera flash worked overtime to get the shot.I think this may be their final destination. Finding it is not easy with no clear signage at street level and it is up an escalator , down a corridor and then up some stairs. I might have bought more if I could have seen the stock clearly. Bit sad to see this incarnation.
  

  

Off to Melbourne at sparrows fart tomorrow. Just got the deck on this kit. A fair bit of dremeling and fettling to get it flat over the engine section as I a opening up the back deck a little. Next time I might leave this stuff out for a quicker build. Sometimes I just cannot help myself.