popeye the sailor

nope.......can't say as I've seen one either. ......a worthy endeavor indeed do you collect Matchbox? I have a site that I window shop that sells Johnny Lightning and replica die cast cars. sites like these are just the place to find older kits that have been reproduced or gotten from estate sales and such. I see so many kits that I built in the past...a walk down memory lane.

...you sure you weren't a plumber in a past life.....looks real good

hey there Johnathan........really nice job you've done....she's look'in great! really liking these pictures too

too bad I don't have a Dale figure..........I may have the site book marked though I do have a Glenn figure........Negan is also included { a dual set....I won't open the package}. I'm usually not a collector of such things, but I've amassed a small collection since last Christmas fun project........great to exercise the imagination. I gotta know........what's you motivation to build it? good use for the truck frame

along with the light house, I got a little more done on the Nine o Nine. for the waste gunner, I'll simply glue the gunners in place and cement the guns resting on the sill and in their hands...make it quick 'n easy. I glued the windshield in......it comes in two pieces. makes it easy with the way the cockpit is situated. .....and of course, the tail windows are in place. looks a little odd since the plastic is a bit thick and the window rests on the inner surface........gives them an indented look. the top gunner position is the oddest task of them all........that little tab you see is all there is. I'll get to that tomorrow.......along with my goof up. as I mentioned earlier, the stabilizer wings don't have any means of anchor, once set into the fuselage and the two halves joined. to arrest it, I came up with the idea to tape it in position, split the halves and cement it in place. little did I realize that it would ooze out when I put the two halves together for it to dry. now I have a bit of a mess to clean up

I haven't done much with this project lately..........too wrapped up with the B 17 and thoughts about how tedious this step is. putting all these truss cables in is a real pain. I think that holes in the pillars would have been a great help.......would have made it easier to run these buggers. I had started to install them when the model had a run in with one of the grand kids......snatched the screw pile off the jig and ran off with it. his father caught up to him before any damage was done.........I don't blame the kid. my stuff is all over the table, just waiting for something like this to happen. inspecting it this afternoon, it was confirmed that no damage was done so........while I was catching up with all the political B.S. on the computer {via video}, I continued with the center truss cables. I have 1 left to do.........between dropping the rods on the floor, and the CA not wanting to set quickly, it making for a long drawn out affair. there are six more pairs that go from leg to leg, in an 'X' pattern, just like the inner ones. I have one done already. this is when I realized that I should do the inner ones first....before I box the whole thing in. it would likely be 10 times worse. I have them all in place now and I started to cut the outer ones. I'll try to get them done tomorrow. I wonder if I can use this as a satellite dish? when this is done, it can be painted and I can seat it back into the stand.

considering the life span of a model, it may not be that big of a problem. painting it will buy you enough time I think a few pictures back, I do believe that the tubes can be seen down where the wheels will be located. I was going to mention it, but I figured this would come to light sooner or later. it is an interesting concept. that's crazy to supply parts that can't be used........someone had to have built the proto type model. I'm sure they might have had a few choice words about it. apparently it didn't cause them to use a much friendlier material. they're not the only model company to supply unacceptable parts.......the hoses on the Revell kits lead a lot to be desired as well.. the funny car I did showed that stiff tubes and broken locator pins.......I had to modify some of them.......even to the point of putting wire inside the hoses so they would conform to the shape I needed. as for the life span of a model......it varies. the wife dusted it and it fell apart........the cat bumped into it........the grand kids got to it.......the pratfalls are endless I do have 1 major birthday.......the Nordkap turned 10 years old this past June.

is there any sort of well where the structure is located? if so, you could frame it out, as well as these other wells.

awesome progress Greg........looks great!

excellent find! enjoyable.......didn't find the graphics bad at all kinda had that South Park feel I'm sure that there are many stories around........in war, I'm sure that there was a dash of compassion i have the tail windows in place now.......not sure what I'm going to do with the tail's front window. hoping I can use the window maker without filling the tail with it. that's what happened when I tried doing the side windows...they were simply too large to do. I'm still working on the French connection......selected another sheet of decals and am waiting to see when it is in route. the waste gunner's position is another small dilemma, with the gunner standing there and no placement for the gun. I may have to invent a pair of tripods for them. as soon as I can get that done, I can put the halves together and get the show on the road we'll call it "B 17 - the musical"

that might be hard to do.........I've only seen a couple shades of flat red. unless your using acrylics, then you may have more choices...I only use enamels. you might bring the anti glare on the nose down a bit.......mask from the canopy line, bringing it down even along the exhaust ports. really looking good though....the striping is awesome!

some kits are like that.......the photo etch seems to have a better chance of embellishment on ship models. planes are probably a second choice........seemingly split with car kits. much of it though is the manufacturer..how in tune are they to the added detail that would create a decent replica. molded detail is perhaps my biggest peeve.......a lot of it could have been 'stand alone', thus quelling the need for photo etch. you've added some nice aspects......the window canopies and such. did Trumpeter supply the faces for the gauges? outlining the detail of the pipes and knobs the way you did is nice........hard decision to make, especially when pictures show hardly any of that detail depiction. it's a good road to take though, highlighting detail in layers produces a stunning model in the end. I am quite envious that you have the Leopold

mine knows the way my mind works..........I slipped up and told her my thoughts on the B 17. she wasn't too receptive on that idea either

thanks mike.......I wonder if the older kit was a better fit there were a few bumps, but it does make for a really nice model.......I put up another shelf in the living room for it. I tried to convince the admiral that another, done in a different color scheme, would compliment the other end of the shelf..........she didn't buy it I appreciate ya look'in in and the nice comment

looking really good! what do you use the baking soda for? the interior is gonna be fun!

the cannon looks really neat Phil.......very creative

the loco is coming along nicely! the General was fun for me, but seeing your with a 'military spin' as the subject is really neat........much more fun too the freedom must be a lot more liberating as well great job thus far.......lots of nice detail !

thanks.......took 'em out of my book mark list

thanks Nino.........there aren't a lot of them, but yes, they've been around for quite a few years. I'd love to get another one........they are a really neat project.

I was looking at the booklet that the decals came in........it's a nice touch. it gives paint and decal placement information. I know that I didn't run the gray up to the stabilizer wings......nor the underside of the cowls....I can live with that. but, what I didn't know was that the black walkways on the wings....are actually blue. I'm not going to change it now.......nor try to ascertain what color blue it is. I also think that the 'sweet 'n lovely' is a beautiful aircraft. I did have to chuckle though.........side view shows the waste gunner's windows so you can see through the fuselage....but in the overhead view, you see that these windows are actually diagonal of one another. leave it to me to see something like that?!?! sweet 'n lovely is B 17F

Dale's camper?........the Walking Dead? I'm in!

I never keep track of that ........thankfully, we have folks there who will do it automatically at checkout they are a great place to buy kits! I've told them that they ought to expand their selection because they are about the only place to buy them {that I'm aware of}. as a matter of fact.........I believe I can get these decals at 1:48! dunno........I may try...........I may try {hands shaking as I write this!} see what ya done now.......ya gave me the jitters! this little update is about size......... while thumbing through pictures yesterday, notice a mistake I made on the wings. I added the deice panels on the wings...I tossed around the new revelation, and decided to go for it. I discovered that the black walkways don't go over the nacelles like I have them...they are blank. there is also a short black dash aft of the vents along the fuselage line. I really should have done it with the airbrush, but I used a brush....had to spend a bit more time doing touch ups. I also tried to find what color the lights on the wings were........I was thinking the port and starboard mentality, as with ships, but I ended up dabbing the cavities with flat yellow paint just to stay safe. I don't have them in place at this time though...this is where I left off. what I ended up with are these......... now to get the fuselage together and get this show on the road I received the decals from mega hobby yesterday.......very quickly, I might add. they will be my new 'go to' place from now on! now these are just the call letters and the nose art, but that's OK........I will be using the insignias from the kit sheet for that part of the markings. I'm sure that some are wondering why I'm using 1:72 scale decals, since the kit is 1:64. it's very hard to find decals in this scale.......I haven't seen any yet in my searches....I've made a few. the only choices I had are 1:72 and 1:48........1:72 being closest to the scale. price was no object........these cost close to $20.00. the above choice is 'sweet 'n lovely........this nose art thing......so easy to fall into a binge with this plane! there are so many available....1:72 and 1:48 it has the swastikas too.......note the Collin's foundation notation. to lay it up next to the supplied decal sheet, there is a noticeable difference... ...but image to image, they will look fine used in combination I can use the supplied tail emblem if needed {not the red border ones since I painted the rudder}.........likely use the 1:64 emblems for the wings and use the other scale for the rudder....sounds logical the sheets I'm getting from 1001 will be used as back up......I'm thinking ahead here....I'm sure there will be other aircraft down the road that will need markings {I tend to go 'off road' a lot}. the prop emblems and a few other markings will be needed anyway, so I will complete that transaction. now........had I gone the other way and ordered the 1:48 decals, I would be going back to the drawing board........they are way too large. the nose art alone tells the story........note the window cut outs on the Nine o Nine decal........there is no film flash on it either.......it is exact! amazing looking decals!

I had to chuckle over the plane featured in the background. I'm going through a B 17 tangent right now

it's one of the reasons why I love the older kits....especially if I've built it before. seeing what it looks like as opposed to what I did then........you really see how you have evolved

I've never tried vacuum forming........I am looking at other ways to form the cello. I may try it.....good idea though with the vacuum......thanks Roger I have been embroiled in the decal fiasco, since I found out that 1001 models didn't have the key decal sheet I need. I have since put an order in at Mega Hobby for them......they are or have been shipped. just to get the transaction completed at 1001 models, I substituted the out of stock sheet, with a sheet of call letters and numbers in 1:72 scale. of course, I may have confused the issue by telling them why I needed the decals........it seemed to drag it out a bit further. anyway.......last night I answered the last {hopefully} email between us.........the decal sheets should be on their way within a day or two. I was looking through the selection of decals at Mega Hobby last night, and I saw something that grabbed me. it gave me the urge to get another B 17 model and build it it's called the Wulf Hound and belonged to the 303rd bomb group. I can get the decals for her, which is super........and there is quite a bit of info. Wulfe Hound 303rd Air Expeditionary Group - Wikipedia note the missing belly gun turret............it was damaged when it belly landed in the field, and the Germans never restored it.