New record for monthly page views

Time for a little self high five. May of 2017 set a record for number of page views for a single month (2564), surpassing the December 2016 totals. I’d like to think that these were unique page views by people coming across the blog on the net and The Faithful following the surge in production that has happened in spring of 2017. However, the fact that a few mysterious spam turds have shown up in older posts means that there may have been spambots lurking on the premises as well.

But never let a few inconvenient facts get in the way of a celebration! It is still a record, and even the threshold of 100k distinct page views is on the horizon.

Academy Clarktor 6 and trailer, Hydraulics Intl MJ-1 bomb loader

Another small cluster of airfield support vehicles fell into the finished column today.

The first is a Clarktor 6 tow tractor. It came as part of the Academy kit AC13403, along with an ambulance (which will be making an appearance here in due time). As with many of these vehicles, parts count is minimal and construction was quick. I decided to put it in Olive Drab markings.

The second is also from the Academy box, and is a trailer (no manufacturer or model number cited in the kit) for hauling ordnance around.

Finally, from the Hasegawa kit of airfield equipment comes a Hydraulics Intl MJ-1 bomb loader. Again, not complex and easy to paint. The error in construction is clear when you see photos of the device (which I didn’t until it came time to get some more information online about it). At the time, it seemed like the only way to connect things under the fuselage. Ah well, live and learn.

These are completed vehicles #5, #6 and #7 (7 aircraft, 2 ordnance, 7 vehicles for the year 2017), finished in May of 2017.

Academy Republic P-47 razorback

Another completion in a long line of models: a P-47 razorback. There are aspects to the type that I really like: at least two nicely engineered kits and lots of decal sheets, each with some good nose art. What’s not to like?

I recently purchased DK’s latest sheet, entirely devoted to P-47s in the PTO (72-040). There are a lot of interesting markings schemes on the sheet, and the one that first drew my eye was in overall NMF with yellow and black wing and tail tips, and a yellow/black spinner as well. Sold!

I am familiar enough with the construction process for these Academy kits that there isn’t much new to impart. Painting was a rather drawn-out process: paint the yellow, mask, paint the black, mask, paint the wheel wells, mask, paint the Alclad White Aluminum. The DK decals performed as per expectations.

I was generally pretty pleased with this one, and will be glad to add it to my long series of completed P-47s. 

The aircraft was flown by Major M J VandeHey of the 78^th Fighter Squadron, 15^th Fighter Group, while part of the Pineapple Air Force in Hawaii in 1944. I’ve been referring to the snake on the cowl as a rattlesnake, but given that the nickname of the 78^th was “The Bushmasters” it probably means that the snake belongs to that species. VandeHey was apparently the squadron commander.

This is completed aircraft #474 (7 aircraft, 2 ordnance, 4 vehicles for the year 2017), finished in May of 2017.

Ready for decals (P-47s, Barracuda)

Bench time today was centered around adding various details to get three aircraft ready for decals.

First off were two P-47 razorbacks. These both had a long painting cycle, with their white tails and wing leading edges and variously colored cowlings. I added the landing gear, wheels, gear doors, and various externals like pitot and antenna mast. Props as well. They are now ready to receive decals for “Passionate Patsy” and “Pride of Lodi” respectively.

Then came the Avis EADS Barracuda. I added their rather complex landing gear (which when combined with their short-run nature, made for something of a challenge, especially the gear doors). Final touches were a couple of antennae and a (FLIR?) ball on the underside. Decals are next for this one too.

Finally, I added wheels and decals to another ammunition trailer, this one coming from a Hasegawa set. It will need a minor bit of detail painting and a coat of matte sealer and this one will be done.

Production is good at the 72 Land industrial heartland, though the weather here in the Great Northwest is going to be hitting the upper 80s the next few days, which usually means the head production czar is going to be spending most of his time sitting in front of a fan with a glass of lemonade. 

Hobbyboss Hawker Hurricane IIc

Today’s completion is yet another aircraft type that I seem to return to time and again. Yes, it is another Hurricane. I had one more Hobbyboss kit in the stash and thought I might as well finish it off. It is in their easy-kit line, so the number of pieces is minimal. It’s not a favorite of the engineers, as the nose is rather thin and undernourished. With the Revell 2c kit available, I think I will be sticking with that one for future Hurricane needs.

I am gradually working my way through the various foreign users of the type. I’ve done captured versions from Germany and Japan (with an Italian one on the way), civil and racer examples, and a number of other nationalities. This particular one is in Yugoslavian markings – actually 352 Squadron RAF as based in Libya in 1944. The decals are found on a Print Scale sheet, 72-022. More than likely, the Egyptian and Free French markings on this sheet will find a home in the near future.

This is completed aircraft #473 (6 aircraft, 2 ordnance, 4 vehicles for the year 2017), finished in May of 2017.

Painting (P-47s, ammunition transport cart)

Yesterday’s paint session helped to push a few projects toward completion.

There was yet another piece of airfield equipment (in this case an ammunition trailer) that needed a coat of Olive Drab. While I was using that color, I decided to buff and reshoot some portions of one of the P-47s. Specifically, the horizontal tail.

Once that was all taken care of, I moved on to the Neutral Grey undersides of both current P-47s. This includes the gear doors. The surface looks pretty good, so hopefully I won’t have to buff them out. The next step for these two will be adding landing gear, painting tires, and getting the engine and cowling attached.

Finally, there were some more small vehicles that needed a matte sealer coat. They’ll be appearing in the completion column shortly. 

Painting (P-47, Barracuda, vehicles)

Much of today’s painting involved repairing surfaces that weren’t quite up to code. The main culprit was the EADS Barracuda drone. There were a lot of little microspecks, and the surface just wasn’t smooth enough. This meant that some buffing with a fine sandpaper sheet was called for. Then, a thin new coat of X126 was shot. It actually came out looking fine, so I’ll be moving on to installing the landing gear next.

Another surface that required some work was on a P-47 razorback. I think I just thinned the paint too much last time, as coverage was a bit watery and there were some bubbles that appeared in the paint. As with the Barracuda, the surface was polished and a new coat of Olive Drab was shot. It looks fine now, so as soon as the paint cures I will be masking the upper surfaces and shooting Neutral Gray on the underside. There is another P-47 in queue waiting for the Gray paint as well. Since I was already using Olive Drab, I painted an MJ-1 bomb loading vehicle as well.

Lastly, two models received their overall sealer coats. I’ll be putting them on the blog in the next few days, once I have removed the masking on the canopies.