popeye the sailor

no.....a lot of them don't. there are some that do and give the balance weight requirements for it........some will even supply the weight. it's a safe bet, that if the model has a nose gear, it will be tail heavy. there are two options......you can add the weight, but to do that much of the model must be at least dry fitted together, to determine the balance points , and then figure how much will be needed. the other option is either a stand, or a display base. I've done both the stand and the base......I prefer the base better. in the case of the PBJ, the kit supplies a saw horse to prop the tail up. for this kit, if I left the bomb bay doors open, in side where the bombs would be {there aren't any}, there is a slot where a stand could be used. the kit doesn't supply a stand, so if one plans to use it, it would need to be scratch built. the PBJ had framework on the top turret, so I added it on this one as well. I haven't seen a turret that didn't possess some sort of framework. I haven't really looked into the decal dilemma...... I will need to look into the "Raben's Ravens" decals sooner or later......so I may as well do it then {I'll slip them in the overall cost somehow } gonna enjoy that project for this B 25, as mentioned, it will be a simple generic plane.......I didn't have a subject in mind when I started to build it, and still didn't have one in mind when I painted it. how am I doing? pretty good actually.......no......I'm Covid free. I'd know by now I do have a date for the vaccine......the first of April. I can't wait to get it........the admiral's is on the third.......her birthday.

very futuristic!

making some really good progress OC........the kits look awesome! interesting to see the scope of a kit expand.......the project grows

superb looking model Patrick........ sweet weathering job! keep going..... gotta see more...........what's next!

thanks OC !

during the evening, the waist gunner's windows were painted........so were the wing lights the wheels were cemented in place as well. the tires have the weight depression on the bottoms, so I had to make sure they were all centered. very close to the end now.........likely to be finished this week

don't ask me why the last picture is there........I tried to get rid of it! happens every now and again anyway........as mentioned, there is an update on this project. before the work week, I did a bit more, adding the bomb bay doors and gear doors on the main gears. as can be seen, the two exposed bombs stayed in place.......it's the one inside that came loose, and is rattling around in the fuselage. more of the decals were added as well. I also put the finishing touches on the props...... the smaller door you see is for the nose gear....got to put the finish on it so it can be added to the model. on the other B 25, there is the same nose issue, concerning this small door.......already figured out what to do with it adding the fuel door decals to the model was a bit of a problem. they supply red circles for the ports......then red rings including the fuel door text to add over them. the fuel ports are indented into the wings, which make the decals look terrible. a solution to this was to paint the ports red and cut off the red circles, using just the fuel text decals. I painted the ports with a toothpick. more decals were added.....I think they are all in place now. not using any weights for the nose......this model too will be a tail dragger. I will make a base for her.......I think I will do something different. more to come.

yea.......you should have seen her... I got close to the model aisle and she barked right out "don't even think about a model!" ....didn't stop me from browsing though I didn't buy anything major.....some basswood sheets.......basswood strip {packs of five}.....and I saw the latest Testor's airbrush set. I didn't buy it though because it relies totally on the compressed air cans ....there is no way to adapt it to a compressor. what I did buy, along with a two pack of cement, was a Paasche EZ starter airbrush set. it can be run with a compressed air can, or an adapter to attach it to a small compressor. the kit cost me $25.00. kind of a silly buy actually.......I have one like this stashed away in my junk box. a friend gave it to me a long time ago. I saw an adapter for it at a HobbyTown some time ago and bought it. I have never used this one.... during my time using an airbrush, I've amassed a small amount of parts.......odds and ends more like it I've bought a couple of those Testor's 'amazing air' airbrush kits in the past......they are my go to airbrush. the thing about them, is that those caps you see in the box, do get ruined from time to time. I can order extra caps, but really haven't had to do so. another thing with these siphon feed airbrushes, is that they are made totally of plastic, and can get distorted, putting the air/feed out of alignment {I think exposure to thinners is the culprit}. one I've used a couple of times is this spraycraft airbrush, which is a gravity feed. my thing with it, is that you can't tip it.......I did and got paint on my hand. I've been using the compressor that comes with the airbrush, adapting the EZ brush to it. I think it could double nicely as an Aquarium aerator......but it does what it needs to do. it has two speeds, which gives the EZ airbrush a range of adjustment, which adds to the airbrush itself........an adjustable nozzle on the airbrush allows change to the air delivery. since I'm not one to field strip airbrushes, I find the EZ airbrush to my liking........I just wipe the excess paint out of the cap, shove the tube back in it, and attach it to a bottle of thinner, which I spray till clear. can't get any easier than that well....I think I've rambled enough....there is an update on the PBJ

I have an update for the bomber.....really not much left to add to her now. all of the glass has been framed out.....even the top turret glass which had no frame to speak of...no detail. so I gave it some, added the guns and cemented it in place. the rest of the glass, with the exception of the waist gunner's glass has bee added, along with the gear wheels. the tail gunner's glass didn't have framing either...that was also ad-libed. since the model is a tail dragger, I will make a base for it. it might wait though till I can get some decals for her. until then

hi all........still haven't given up hope on the tank. I've been looking around for wider rubber bands, ones that will span the width of the bogies, but I haven't found them so far. I did happen on some that are used on painter's easels {or something like that}, but I think they are too wide, and I'd have to cut and stitch them together, for a pair of workable tracks. in the meantime, I've cut two lengths of stiff wood strips, in an effort to stretch the original tracks. I'll put them on one of the heat registers for periods at a time, to heat them up and try to relax the rubber. the thing with this, is that it's no permanent.....sooner or later the rubber will shrink back and cause the same problem. but who knows.......it may work

very nice progress on the bike........the carbon texture looks very cool nice looking model for the future........what a body style!

I have a Fender/Squire bass in my collection.....plays just as good as an original Fender nice progress on the house.......you may find that scratch building gives you more freedom and will expand your imagination. I find some instructions so 'dumbed down'

the tank looks superb! the rule is.......if you can't see it, then it's not cheating quite a stash of decals you have there!

awesome progress Kev........are there to be railings along the edges?

beautiful work my friend! your effort really shows as you add the finishing touches

that's an interesting bit of info......the book talks about the testing of the aircraft before putting them into service, but I don't recall the name....I'll have to see if they mention it. there are a few planes shown that are in the book........the B 17 {7+8}.....I believe that was either 'down 'n go' or 'Mr Five by Five'..... ...tell ya better when I browse there were no C47's that I saw, but the two P 38's are in the book too........funny that they are in the same order as the book. the first one stopped for fuel at the wrong airfield........the second one is a brand new plane...just put into service. the KG 200 book does mention that the pilot was later tried for his crime the book doesn't list any P 51's though.......but I'm sure there were some......they were a common aircraft used this period. the KG 200's purpose was to run secret mission, reconnaissance, and transport saboteurs and spies to their locations / missions.

....wasn't too great an evil. she's like dirty Harry........she has her limitations......

super progress James! how tall did you say he was again?

they're really gonna add to the dio.........the roads look great!

well.......I guess they will be an interesting log when I get to them being a Billing Boats fan, I knew of the larger kit.........I had no idea that they also produced the smaller kit. I'd have to pull it back out to confirm it.....wait.......... yes......there is one motor in the kit, as well as most of the running hardware. there are no servos though, so I will have to buy the rest of what I need. for the price of the kit......it was a very good buy this will be my first dealing with an ABS hull....it's about 28 inches long. the kit was produced around 1982......the smaller kit around 1990. the smaller kit lacks the wood framework that the larger one has.....that puzzles me somewhat, since it too can be made into an R/C the Missouri and the Shokaku can be motorized, but as static models, I think it would take away from their looks, so I have no plans to do it......I do have motors though. the sad thing is that there is no favorite body of water that I frequent.......other than my older son's pool {if he continues to put it up every year}. I took a look through the KG 200 book to see if there were any captured B 25's, since the British ....and even the Russians had them during WWII, but I found no records of one. a further search didn't find one either......B 17's and B 24's were the most common to be captured. time period might be a factor, but I think the B 25 was more commonly used during the war with Japan. the Mo

very nice progress.......half tracks are pretty cool only one I ever done was Rommel's Rod

Devil Dog Squadron :: it was easy to find the decal sheet for her the biggest obstacle was the nose. I showed the props.......I forgot an important aspect, the yellow tips. that has been corrected. got a bit more done, but got side tracked with another trip to H.L.. it was the admiral's choice.....not mine {her fault I bought what I bought }

is that your model.......can't tell for sure if so.......you nailed it!

thanks....I thought the nose was going to be the problem. it came out better than I hoped

I know about kit world.......most of my decal purchases are from them {actually from Mega Hobby}. yea.....I'm still gonna leave this one as a generic bomber.......the kit really isn't that good to begin with. to top it off, the decals that came with it are junk! these are the old style decals where you need to cut close to the images.......the entire sheet is layered with the film even with the decal set, they seem to be lifting around the edges. looking through my decal pile, I don't have any others either.......I do have some that have the red outlines, but one, they are from another period, and two, they are 1:48.......way too big. it looks like I'll have to order decals for this one no matter how I look at it. the overheated wallet.......it was worth it check these out.... I also got these two......the larger one has the motors and running hardware