popeye the sailor

today is my appointment for the Covid booster. morning coffee........listening to news on google.....taking Gibbs out for his morning outing......got tired of doing that. I thought about the gun set up in the inner assembly for the gondola. I'd have to connect the lower pins in the rods for the hoist. after a bit of thought, I did just that......... the holes that are exposed are for the pivot pins, to be added after the top decking and pivot brackets are in place. when this insert is finally installed, as you see it here, the fork is to be cemented to the slide plate that sits inside. of course, you can't see it, but it's down there. I also was still think'in about the overspray on the inner surface of the truck body. I used a brush to paint the area that can be seen. I started to paint the base ....started out with the brown yellow.....left it as kinda blotchy, so some of the gray plastic can show through them I went over it sparsely with a darker brown, before another sparse coat of the D. gray the ties and rails will be different colors........more to add towards the finish. next was some flat umber and some green blotches. now it has to dry a bit........I'll show ya then the munitions wagon got some paint too. second coat and the parts I had added to it......still more to go with it. the error code prevents me from showing the last photo........ OK.......time to go hope I get a lolly

resident junkfood junkie.........at your service! the admiral has cautioned me about continuing after I retire it's the box for'em...........the big day is almost here and besides, his brother is doing the job quite nicely on his own it startled the neighbors when they saw two ten foot snowmen out there this year. usually, I fasten the base to a large plywood square.......I put the second one out {new in the box}, and one the legs for the base broke! I folded another one of the legs out and it came off in my hand.........two others broke because it shifted on me! so I just tethered him up and he stood out there on his own just fine. I tried, but I can't get those parts, unless I want to buy the complete set of innards, for about the price of a new one. so I'm going to come up with a base to attach them {him especially} to........either that or make up a set of legs for the base, which is nothing more than the main blower. I forgot to report this, but last week Sunshine decided to take flight. I was doing something and I nicked him with my arm. he hit the floor, but surprisingly, only received minor damage. I'm almost done with his repairs, and he should be back on the shelf in no time tomorrow, I'm off to get my booster shot.......the admiral's is on Friday....we're both at different places. yesterday, I wrapped all the rest of the gifts........where the admiral left off. we went out in the afternoon, and finished shopping.........more gifts to wrap! we wrapped them today.......and now we are totally done. sadly......no time to model thanks for look'in in and your kind comments......I'm tempted to get the other one....... it's a fun model so far hope you all have a great Christmas........hope you all find what you wish for under the tree

hey there Dan! very nice progress you've done on the Mig............look'in so cool the canopy looks great and an interesting way to weather........shows the panel lines quite nicely. don't be concerned with the decaling.......some decals are based on white image backing and don't allow the surface color to show through. depending on how prominent the base is, the better it is. it's a lighter color over a darker color....your going to see some amount of tint change. looks great none the less have a very merry Christmas!

hi Chris.......count me in please! look'in forward seeing what you do with the spit........if she come out look'in like the moth, she will be spectacular!

hello all.......the count down for the big day has commenced! I've taken tomorrow off for some last minute stuff. one of my inflatables ended up in the garage.......a giant snowman. I guess he decided to do the 'Frosty', and took off down the street after breaking free of his tethers. guess he forgot that the electrical supply was what kept him aloft we got our first snow......not what everyone was expecting........all it did really was make the roads really slippery. all is well here though. the elves wouldn't want me Ken.........they'd find my lust for elven chocolate disgusting I haven't said much about them Bug........my parent's cars each had six cylinder engines and the kit supplied V8's. I found the engines at a place in Australia.......they are on route here. my mother had the 1959, and my dad had the 1960 - both were Chevy Bel air models. the big joke here, was that my day told my mother, moving to the small town of Weare N.H., she would have to learn how to drive. dad was sort of brutish in telling her, which made her angry. she learned, and when she got the '59, she nicknamed it "Agnes", after his mother! the '60 has a story as well.......and I'll tell that one when I start the log. I've already done a few thing, picking at them here and there. they are a pair of Revell / Monogram kits.....one small quirk, but decent kits. you'll see them soon as usual, I did come up with a wish list this year. not too big, since my stash has grown from the last couple of years. mainly, just things that tie to other projects.......this one being one of them. really crossing my fingers on this particular wish......... I did do a bit more on Leopold. I also noticed another kit has appeared on the old model kit site.......I haven't done any research, but Hasegawa had another 1:72 kit of this rail gun, by the name 'Anzio Annie'. it's got the same box art, in which the name Leopold can be seen. so tempted to order it. the Scripto marker did a great job on the wheels. I will use it on the tracks for the display base later on.......the silver is not shiny, due to the combination of the flat black and likely the fact that it is a marker {not a paint marker}. very little touch up needed to be done on them. the deck of the front truck was dry fitted in place.......trying to get an idea on the camo for it. the wheels were installed on the trucks........hasn't happened to me before, but one of the pictures wouldn't upload. here is a shot of the rear truck sections of the truck decks are to be painted a wood brown. the munition shed was painted......needs another coat or so, but I added a few more parts I put the trucks on the display base to give you an idea of how they will look the gondola deck part got a second coat........other parts were painted as well. not sure if I can make any more progress till after Christmas. if I do, I'll be sure to post it if I don't see yuns..........have the merriest of the Holiday season! Merry Christmas!

that's quite a squadron you have there Chris! you've done a masterful job on the Tiger...hat's off to you! awesome look'in plane! which one screams the loudest?

hey bud!........thanks it has a short life span though........my son called.......want to go Christmas shopping with me. we do it every year........share a few laughs........hard to believe the silly things we see I'm trying to hang here for a while.......but I feel like taffy.....I want to work on it, but I want to see all you gents too. oh...oh..........I opened a bag of gourmet caramel popcorn..........and I'm beginning to feel all peckish and giddy .....a sugar high!!! 😵

but that's the beauty of it.......there are many aspects{of any war} that are looked over, overshadowed by the bigger picture. to think.......just one of these minor altercations may have been the true cause for the turn out of the entire war! to shed some light on these lesser known actions {or subjects} is refreshing........it's new.......and perhaps new insight on the war >subject< you wish to model. I get more enjoyment going off on these tangents, than I do buying a run of the mill kit. you mentioned the tires being different sizes? notice that they are on the front.....steering. larger tires rotate at a slower rate that smaller diameter tires, so it would greatly improve steering over sandy terrain. in one of the pictures, the tread looks to be ribbed. tires on early farm tractors were made that way to better navigate the furrows cut by the plows. did you figure out the problem with the rear tires and the running boards? just trim the boards away to clear the tires........it won't look bad and you have the freedom to do it {it will still look right}. super job....really like what you've done so far

hi all......just your resident spook, in for a visit.....He...He.... we're getting closer to the holidays......the feeling of the red face rush is beginning to swell. you know........when you really begin to feel like there is just not enough time in the day to get everything done.... too much to tell here.... I have a couple of side projects that took a dramatic turn........I ordered the six cylinder engines for the '59 & '60 chevys. I showed the admiral again, just browsing through some of the past thing of this year..........and I was told that I was told to order them a while ago. say what!?!?!?! I guess I don't have enough brain cells to recall such things so, to quell any further negative discussion {and while the gett'in was good}.....I did so. nothing real special about the project, except that they were the cars my parents owned when I was a kid. the other involves the Ghostbuster duo I've been tinkering with since 2016. it only amounts to a couple of times, considering the amount of other projects I have ongoing. I was going to the Ecto 1 from the first movie, and the Ecto 1A from the second movie.......but the direction has changed due to a desire to hone my butchering skills. the initial attempt has been pretty good.......more on this soon. it's the same 'ole story Patrick.......the thing where you know it didn't work the first time, but the subliminal didn't get the memo like water on a dry sponge......it'll sink in sooner or later...... Hi Bug........I wish I did too.....I have enough of it I'm just glad that it's still good.......I'm really liking this paint, although it's not the White ensign....it's the Humbrol paint that I'm working with at the moment......the dunkel gray is the White Ensign. it's just that the paint has sat for so long. the Billing paint was an ordeal too.......but it was easy to tell if it was bad or good. I had the chance to do a little this morning......I had already given the deck and body of the gondola a shot of the brown yellow. I have to divide this into three sections.........the front deck, the gun's anchor brackets, and the rear deck. it needs a second coat, which I did this morning. the inner surfaces wont be seen once the internal part and the decks are in place, so I wasn't too fussy about masking. the underside was masked because it was painted in the dunkel gray. the trucks got their second coat and have had plenty of time to dry. a side view of the trucks give you a good example of what I mean about shadowing. it's a nice contrast this last picture stems from an idea I got the other day at work {of all places}. I was thinking of ways to paint the contact points of the truck wheels, where they meet the rails. a paint brush would have likely proved messy.......a lot of touch ups. I recalled having a metallic silver marker pen. I do have to wipe the tip off due to a combination of the tip getting dirty {from the paint} and from drying out, but it seems to be working out. it doesn't have much of a shine as it goes over the flat black. so far, there are only a couple of touch ups it doesn't need to be consistent......some ghosting from the flat black looks to be a nice touch I'm going to try and do some more........

thanks.......the one nice thing about it, is that they disappear with just a spritz been in and out since posting......I am so far behind on what you all have been up to. I should do a redirect with the morning coffee. doing the re paint kinda blew my afternoon anyway....I wanted to get the brown yellow on the gondola. oh well....it is what it is, I suppose. I hope to have a more robust update for you next time thanks for look'in in gents........meanwhile, I'll try to catch up.

very nice work......coming together very well

looks futuristic........ a rare subject I've built a few Roden.....they build up pretty good with not a lot of fuss. you'll have fun.

you've done well.........sweet look'in tank

today I sprayed some brown yellow........one can tell that the paint has sat a while.........stirring the can, I thought for sure that it had solidified on the bottom! I did this with two tins of it.......using a stick, broke it up and stirred it for quite a while until most of it was gone. then periodically, it was shaken to further blend the pigment and suspension.........I've been shaking them off and on for a couple of days now........I think it's ready to use. I will likely have to do the same for all the other tins I have from this lot.......good to know that the paint is still viable. I'm sure I'll fair better than with the Billing's paints.... .....I'd open those bottles, to find that the paint either had a skin over the top, or was solid throughout {I was still satisfied with the ratio of paint that was useable}. I painted the bottom of the gondola, waiting since I painted the inside first...that is the Dunkel gray. the tops of the trucks were next....this is the base color they are still wet......still other colors to add. the truck bodies them selves were interesting to do....as mentioned, I wanted to be sure to 'shadow' the wheel bearing aspect of them. as for the ghosting I wanted to avoid.......I wish I had masked the inside of the truck bodies. I failed miserably. last was the gun barrel.......I'll give it second coat. the hoist mechanism parts will be the Dunkel gray.....whatever will remain below the gondola deck. ......and then I walked away.... story of my life.......I get an idea, and off I go. thinking of the second coat on the gun barrel, I went and did it. but.....I really need to move things I painted out of the booth.......the gondola was still in there!!! the bottom was speckled with the brown yellow so I had to repaint it.........to do it though, I had to prep more paint. I'll smarten up one of these days.....

I got some build time in on this session. I noticed that I was a little off on a couple of the front bulkheads for the inner assembly of the gondola....had to cut them free and reposition them. installed are the piston and the rest of the bulkheads for it. the actuation rods are not to be cemented. one of the caps for the piston pivot pin, interferes with the actuation rod.......I'll see how much of a problem it is when the guns is in place. before turning to the sand color, I added a few more parts to the trucks. the tops are just dry fitted....I don't want any ghosting from the sand paint {this is a Humbrol color #94 {AA1047) brown yellow}. the inner assembly was cemented together.....all this will be painted in the Dunkel gray these are the bulkheads I spoke of earlier.......there is a slight angle that I didn't take account of, which allowed them to become offset at the top deck line more to come

pardon for being such a ghost......it's been quite busy of late. Christmas is coming so fast it seems. I've managed to pick away at some of the painting though.......the colors I've chosen look to be pretty good. Hasegawa also produced a second 'box art' for this kit, calling it 'Anzio Annie', besides the Leopold kit...not sure which one came out first. I did express an desire for this kit......but I think I got shot down, right along another idea I had. I figured I'd better stop at this time, before the eye lasers came out so I started off with the flat black.......painting the wheels and the undersides of the trucks. with these dry, more can be done......move on to the gray. the wheels are done....may need touch ups, considering the way I have them here the outer surfaces are done in the Dunkel gray....the under side was done in the flat black, along with the wheels. more to follow

superb job on the paint.........wonderful progress

I have done little since I last worked on her.......as for an update with her progress. I left off thinking that the lighting I was using was too large and may be the factor in the deck fitting issue. as I was messing with fitting the deck, the guy wires that support the funnels began to come loose. I was surprised by it, seeing that I used CA to cement them in place. if I need to re rig the funnels, it will prove to be a huge task........I'll have to pull it out and see what I will need to do to proceed. in the meantime, I'll dig up the instructions and make copies.

glad to help, but mine is 1:400......his is 1:95..........I've not seen the kit in that scale. are they the same?

we've already seen snow here........just a little though but it means that it's right around the corner! a lot of the model company names that I'm used to are gone........I've had to adapt too

wow! looks superb..........really nice job on the paint work my complaint as well.......just because the model is a smaller scale, doesn't mean they can sluff off on the added detail back in the day, there wasn't much one could do with molded detail........now with the add-on kits out there, the molded stuff can be removed and enhanced....hand tools, grab handles and the like. you've done a super job with highlighting them.......

the tiger is coming along nicely Chris! perhaps you can adjust the pin on the wing to compensate. really like how cleanly done she looks what are those two protrusions back at the stabilizer wing? I've not built one of these......curious I know what you mean.......between Thanksgiving and Christmas......don't know which is worse. either I'm the cook's assistant, or the chief decorator. we just got our tree this afternoon. tomorrow.........the inflatables, and a jaunt for my oldest grandson's birthday

hi there I feel at a loss since I don't speak the language

good info........but I think I covered that.......rail guns have been around since the civil war. naval guns were used due to most artillery not having the capability of firing shells over great distances. they were also used for 'pill box' installations along coastal battle fronts. only a few variants of the Rail gun ever left the tracks.......the Germans were in the process of developing one, but it was abandoned towards the end of the war. the rail gun was intimidating, but not very functional given their handicap. not much to report at the moment....turkey time folks.........have a Happy Thanksgiving

sweet look'in model........pull'in up a chair for this one