ccoyle

Continuing with the wing, here we have the wheel wells added and the top cladding cut out. The finished wing framing is quite sturdy. Now the center wing skin is added, starting with the bottom to get the openings for the wheel wells aligned. Followed by gluing the top side down. The kit has optional parts for displaying the flaps down, but I will not be adding them, as it adds some complexity to the build, and I always think it looks just a little odd to show parked aircraft with their flaps deployed. Next up will be the outer wing sheathing.

Welcome aboard, Matt!

Welcome aboard, Mike! I would contact JoTiKa directly since the company is still in business. http://jotika-ltd.com/

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard!

You'll enjoy that kit. Cutters make very good 'step-up' projects -- they're proper men-of-war but without too much of the repetitive tasks that make larger projects a real grind to get through.

Welcome aboard!

We would've taken your word for it! 😉 That's a lovely model and display.

The way to find out if anyone has done this is to use the site's built-in search feature. I did and found 26 topics tagged as dioramas. https://modelshipworld.com/tags/diorama/

Nice work!

I agree!

Welcome aboard, Gary!

Continuing with the wing framing.

I got the final bits of fuselage added, which was a more demanding task than one might expect. The second-to-last section, abaft the gap for the horizontal stabilizer, is not simply oval in cross-section. Instead, it's a rectangle stacked atop an oval, but it tapers down to oval at the back. The skin for it is one piece, so a lot of work was required to get it to the right shape, and a lot of sanding was also needed to get the forward frame piece to fit into it properly. Following the numbering sequence of the parts, the canopy should be next, and I did start work on it. But I decided to check the written instructions to see if there were any potential pitfalls I should be wary of, and there I noted that the designer recommends leaving the canopy till later, which I agree is sound advice. So that was set aside for the present, and work commenced on the wings.

Close! They're called leeboards.

Welcome aboard!

I took the liberty of editing your title for you, since no respectable Bay Area residents I know of call a San Francisco streetcar a trolley -- they are cable cars. 😉

Welcome aboard! A fair number of us became acquainted with Mastini's book when we were starting out in the hobby.

Thanks, but you're looking at the second attempt!

Aft fuselage attached. There's some not-so-great seam work (the result of a botched gluing attempt) if you know where to look. 'Course, I didn't say where the botched seams are located, did I? 😉

Forward fuselage ring added. Aft fuselage done -- needs to dry before mating to main fuselage.

Whew!! The main cockpit skins went on fine -- fit is good so far.

You are oversimplifying the issue. It's not just a matter of copying a kit design -- the broader issue is something called intellectual property infringement, or IP theft. Manufacturers can get themselves placed on MSW's list for one or more reasons: copying an existing kit desgn using published plans or monographs to design a kit without obtaining the proper commercial licensing from the publisher of those plans aiding and abetting the sale of such kits (i.e., facilitating the sale of stolen IP). Doing any of those things will get a manufacturer (or seller) banned regardless of whether some of the kits produced by that manufacturer may be original efforts. The staff at MSW, along with many rank-and-file members, have been doing what they can to combat IP theft for going on two decades now, so trust me when I say that we are far more versed on this topic than you are at the moment. Some of the kits you have described as "not copied" are in fact well-known (and documented) examples of IP theft. As for what to tell the wife, I would tell her the truth -- there's no shame in admitting that the kits were purchased in ignorance of the IP issue. That's happened to many of our members, who are happily now much better informed on the topic. It's really quite simple: either you agree with us that IP infringement is theft and therefore immoral and act accordingly, or you don't. If the latter, then just know in advance that any builds of the kits you have thus far mentioned will not be allowed on our site. I sincerely hope you judge rightly.

I have only seen them online, but the artwork and drawings look good. They are available from Orlik and Model-Hobby, assuming you can get them to ship to the US in the current duties & tariffs climate. Card Army, a newer publisher, has just released a 1/200 heavy cruiser RM Trento. This is their first ship after a run of five aircraft. Their kits appear to be like Halinski kits on steroids -- even the float planes have internal framing, engines, and detailed cockpit interiors! Trento can be purchased by itself or as part of a set along with 7 sheets of laser-cut frames and 12 frets of laser-cut details -- a bit too rich for my blood.

When I check on build logs like this one, part of me always wants to shout, "Dude, slow down!" 😉