What Next?
UPDATE 3/4/2012: Voting has wrapped, and the winner is Revell's PV-1 Ventura. Stay tuned! The Tamiya and Revellogram Jugs are done. The Fiat G.55 is heading into the painting stages.…
On the Bench: 1/350 BB-56 USS Washington
The USS Washington - BB-56 Guadalcanal is usually associated with Marines and bonzai charges, but it was the Navy that bore the brunt of the casualties in the waters off…
On the Bench – 1/48 Airfix Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3
The Messerschmitt Bf 109E-3 What can possibly be said about the 109 that hasn't been already? There have been books - and series of books - dedicated to the 109.…
On the Bench: Tamiya 1/48 Ki-84 Hayate
UPDATE: Due to user error – my installing the cowl gun deck backward – looks like this kit is unfortunately going to be living out its days as a paint mule. I will be tackling the Ki-84 in the future, as I have two Hasegawas and plenty of markings options.
The Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate (“FRANK”)
For all my interest in World War II, Japanese aircraft, like Italian aircraft, have been something of a blind spot. Pretty much everyone knows what a Zero is, and I can recognize several of the Allied codenames – Tojo, Val, Kate, Betty, Tony, etc – but the actual aircraft, their capabilities, when they served and whether it was with the Imperial Navy or the Air Force, yeah, nothing.
I don’t know why, but I’ve just never been interested in Japanese aircraft. Growing up, it was enough for me to know they were what attacked Pearl Harbor, and what Wildcats, Hellcats and Corsairs knocked out of the sky. I’ve never built a Japanese aircraft, and until recently, had no desire to do so. But seeing several fantastic builds coming out of the Japanese group build on the FSM forums, well, it piqued my interest.
In particular, the Ki-84. (more…)
Of Wingscale, Wing XL, H-K Models and Big-Ass B-25s
Last year at this time, one of the hottest stories in the modeling world was Wingscale and the imminent release of their massive 1/32 B-25J Mitchell (and announcement of a…
Razorback Giveaway – Winners!
A hearty congrats to Rodney Anderton and Reamon Keener, winners of the Tamiya and Monogram Razorbacks respectively! I'm building both right now, and can say without hesitation that they're both…
