Beautiful Avenger build, Ernest! Looks great.

The destroyer is nice, Keith. Great details.

Simon, I assume that is a bomber command Halifax? Looks good with the mines in the bomb bay. Is this the Matchbox/Revell kit?

I am entering with a Halifax as well - However, mine will be from Coastal Command. If I can get those (very) old decals to work.

Does anybody know the colors? According to the instructions it seems that it is tan underneth with white on the sides and overall grey top surfaces. Does not fit well with the pictures I have seen below?

Hi Jesper,

Yes mine is a Bomber Command Halifax, 35 Squadron.

It is the Revell Kit, with the Freightdog upgrade to correct the errors in the props and radiators.

With regard to the colour scheme, I would go for white undersides, I can not recall seeing any evidence of a tan underside & white sides on a coastal command Halifax.

Si

Finished the Halibag.





Next build coming up, it will be a ship, I shall have to have a rummage in the stash.

Si

Well done Simon!

Your Halifax is a great looking plane. Any reason why it's called a Halibag or is that just your description of it?

cheers
Michael

Hi Michael,

Halibag was the nickname given to the aircraft by its crews, the reason if there ever was one apart from a corruption of it's name, is lost in the mists of time.

Unless of course someone knows different.

Si

Nice job, Simon. You did a fine job. I will be doing mine OOB.

Thanks Jesper,

Hope you enjoy the build, I built that one when it was fairly new, great old kit.

Si

Simon great looking Halifax there you do not hang about with your builds do you.
Jesper looking forward to seeing your build to
Mine is some what stalled at the moment still waiting for my hands to stop shaking after all the holiday celebrations but hope to get some work done this weekend

Keith

Thanks Keith,

Do have a little time on my hands at the moment.

Now thinking about a second build, something early war, looking at a lend lease four piper or a tribal or a J class.

watch this space.

Si

Thanks for the encouragement, guys. Appreciate it.

I am just finishing up a Stranraer for the flying boat campaign and then I will get started on the Halifax.

More to follow

After much deliberation, rummaging around in the loft, reading my not overly extensive library, net surfing and sinking some thinking juice. ...

I have come to a decision, HMS Jupiter October 1940, when she was acting leader of the 5th flotilla operating out of Plymouth, escorted HMS Revenge to bombard Cherbourg and covered the cruisers Emerald and Newcastle which sortied against German destroyers sent out to attack convoys in the SW Approaches.

The Kit, WEM ORP Piorun 1944 (Not losing the plot, of the two WEM JKN class it is the one with 4" MkV. I will save the extra AA and gun platforms for another build)



The Hull.



The etch, resin & white metal.



The colour scheme thanks to Christopher Langtree's excellent book, "The Kelly's"

The port side.



and the starboard side.



Hope to get cracking tomorrow.

Si

Made a start.

The hull halves joined, even with a fair amount of fettling there was a gap, so I have masked both sides of it to save on cleaning up.



Filler applied.



The separate section deck added, this is separate as the HMS Janus version of the kit has the after bank of torpedo tubes. The fit is not brilliant but has been filled with superglue.



The hull seam cleaned up.



Props and rudder fitted, not quite happy with the fit, will refit the props.



just that adjustment, then spraying time.

Si.

Nice choice.

Very cool camouflage. Looking forward to see that on the model.

Hi Jesper,

I do seem to like giving myself these "interesting" masking jobs at the moment, but I do like that scheme as well.

Si

Hi Simon,
That looks like a nice little build you have there.
And to echo Keith, you dont hang about do you!

Well, it took a bit of searching but I see it's 2 1/2 months since I posted any progress on my contribution to this campaign.
Summer and house renovations have got in the way but it is more my frustration with this kit that has lead to lack of progress.

But a New Year and I will revisit the wreck and see if I can get it back in the water, so to speak.

There are only 45 listed parts for this kit and nearly all need mending or replacing, but it was the challenge I was after.

Avoiding trying to actually do any of that I am playing around with the hull to create the effect of layered steel plates. This is all I will do but does give me confidence to try on future builds.

I thought I needed to replace the 20mm (well actually I did) and assembled 6 of Master's little jewels

but then decided a 1939 Achilles didn't have them so some surgery followed where the patient is still in recovery from the scapel

I couldn't any evidence of Achilles having these stern mounted 20 mm so

And to wrap up this progress for early 2015, I used a soldering iron for about the first time in 40 years, in one of those many replacement tasks, the mast stays


cheers
Michael

Great that you got the feel back for this kit. The details on the 20mm mounts are astonishing.

Good start - looking forward to see more.

Nice work Michael,

You are right re the 20mm, Great Britain did not get the license to produce the Oerlikon until late 1940, and the first guns being fitted in March or April 1941.

Meantime a quick update on HMS Jupiter.

During a break in the weather I managed to shoot some Halfords red primer, as a base primer and lower hull colour at the kit.



Si

Another quick update,

lower hull masked off and the boot topping sprayed in.



more soon.

Si

Hi Simon,

Looking good so far!

cheers
Michael

Looks good, Simon. You are making fast progress!

Looking forward to seeing the camouflage get started.

Thanks Guys, hope to get the base colour on the hull today, and start on the camo over the weekend.

Si

Made it, base colour (AP507C) on the hull.



More on the camo, maybe tomorrow, or Saturday.

Si

On with the camo,

The port side masked off, and the pattern drawn in.



The tape cut, any bits of the scheme that have an AP507b and AP507a area alongside each other I have cut the whole section out. (ease of masking)



The Stbd side cut, my cutting tool, a new toy, a "Gyro cut" is shown as well. The blade rotates freely making odd curves easier to cut.



AP507b (Tamiya TS66 Kirre Arsenal grey) sprayed and the masking redone and cut for the AP507a (TS42, Gunship grey)

Stbd side.



port side.



All done and the masking tape off. The rudder and one prop came off with the tape, bad have been salvaged.

Stbd side.



looking at the photo I shink the 507a patch under the 4" mount, (second from aft) should be 507b (mid grey) will sort that.

The Port side.



More soon.

Si