Well…my birthday came and went and I am now sixty five and I should be collecting my state pension. Another eighteen months before I can claim that and if it is still extant then, an OAP bus pass. Mind you, the way things are going with this shower in power I might have to wait another couple of years beyond that to collect my pension! A quiet one as my back decided to play silly buggers and I wasn’t fit for going out. I managed a bit more on some model builds and the Heinkel He 111B is coming together slowly.

As per usual for blogger it has taken me three attempts to upload the photo but here we are. A first coat of light gray airbrushed on and the canopies brush painted and glued in with strong white glue. The build isn’t quite right as the undercarriage is slightly off and the rear stabilisers are wonky despite several attempts to correct them. It will do and next will be some parts attached, decals and weathering.

This build plus the ongoing Stranraer and a small Gloster Gauntlet have been difficult and frustrating at times so, I started a very quick and easy build today as a modelling ‘amuse bouche’ to take a break from the other kits. 

These are starter kits for those new to modelling especially children, a means to keep the hobby alive, attract more to the hobby as well as sell more kits. I have no idea as to the average age of modellers but I would hazard a guess at fifty five if not slightly older. Younger people are into Warhammer and Gundam models (I’ll leave it to you dear reader to look it up) although Spitfires and Me 109’s continue to be popular builds and it can’t be just us old duffers buying the kits.

Old kits like the two pictured above have a dwindling clientele and they aren’t too popular with regular modellers but I like them. I rarely build modern aircraft or vehicles as I have little interest in them and my preference is for older prop planes. I had built the Mk.1 Spitfire when I first returned to modelling but it was a mess with a couple of gluey fingerprints on the canopy and poor painting. This was a birthday gift so I leapt into it and I will see what progress I have made. I brush painted the interior but I intend to airbrush the external parts and see if I can use some spare decals for another Battle of Britain Spitfire.

Time for a welcome cuppa and sadly more pain killers.

TTFN.

 This current build of the Heinkel He 111B is fighting me all the way. Fit issues, large gaps and lots of cutting, sanding, repeat the same. It is coming on and I invest an hour each day and then leave it, usually for various cements or filler to set.

More sanding over the next few days before I can consider a primer airbrushed on and the undercarriage requires a reset on the port side. Both sides will need new scratch build parts as those in the kit are too short. All in all I am thoroughly enjoying this challenging build and creating solutions to each problem I encounter.

I have to stop myself eyeing up a new build as I still have the Stranraer and the Swordfish waiting in the wings (groan) and the latter just needs decals added. Lack of display space is holding me up and that’s after I removed several more armour builds into a box for storage / eventual disposal. I have a couple of armour kits which are spare copies of kits I have built and I am considering sending them to modelsforheroes.org.uk as they are unstarted and as new kits. I have a few other AFV kits but the majority are aircraft and that is my preferred focus for the future. 

Now for a welcome cup of tea and a trip into town as No.1 son said there is some classic car display on in town and surprisingly it wasn’t advertised in the local press. It has piqued my curiosity as he mentioned MG’s and other cars.

TTFN.

 The latest and now final update on the mysterious water puddle in the kitchen. It is not Winnie or any of the cats as Sue discovered our kettle has a leak. She tested it this morning and it proved to be the kettle…one new kettle now purchased and the ‘old’ one in the recycling bin. Poor little Winnie was getting blamed for the one thing she isn’t doing. Yes, she is eating the sealant from the double glazing, bits of carpet and paper towels / toilet rolls as well as slowly destroying my armchair with her brother Wilf. The latter has spent more time in these past two days as he doesn’t like windy weather and he’s not too keen on the rain which given the usual English autumn and winter weather…

The Heinkel He 111B ‘Pedro’ build (Spanish Civil War) is slowly taking shape.

I bought this kit a few years ago and only read the build reviews afterwards and all agreed, it is a difficult build with poorly fitting parts and lots of filler, sanding and patience required. They also recommended it is only suitable for experienced modellers. They were absolutely spot on describing it as such.

The fuselage would not close until I had hacked and sanded off much of the internal compartment parts and even then, once that is completed the pilots canopy doesn’t fit. Plastic strips and sprue goo applied and will be gradually sanded to shape.

The starboard wing halves didn’t fit at all and again required cutting and sanding whilst the undercarriage was short and skewhiff. Once glued in and clamped, the large gap was filled with a mixture of superglue and talcum powder. This was left to dry overnight and sanded back and I will cut new panel lines and use a rivet wheel to make new rivet marks. 

This morning I worked on the port wing halves which wasn’t as bad for fit except for the undercarriage again which is a mess. I will sort that out once the wings are attached to the fuselage but that is where the next major issue is. Huge gaps as the wings are poorly aligned and more filler and sanding will be required. It’s interesting because the on-line modelling discussion I joined last night discussed how some of us like old poorly made kits and the challenges they present whilst others want everything about the kit to be a simple straightforward build. I am taking my time with this build and that of the Stranraer flying boat as I want to do a decent job on them. 

We are seeing typical autumnal weather with heavy showers, wind and sunshine. As I look out of the window I see a slate grey sky but looking through to the kitchen and the sun is shining. I managed the last grass cut this week but rain has stopped any further work and we have late blooming roses again, large pink ones. The last of the tomatoes will be picked and my plan is to clear some of the larger pots ready for planting next year and once the wild flowers have dies back, I will clear the space and finally paint the fence. Sue has asked me to clear the flower beds up to the roses and we will consider what plants to put in. The small cherry tree will be bedded into one of the large pots as will the Fuschia which is thriving. We are looking at low maintenance plants because both of us struggle in the garden. I might put some extra paving in to place the pots on and have a slightly smaller lawn. That also needs digging out and reseeding where weeds have invaded.

I also renewed my TV and internet package and saved fifty pounds a month. It appears they have cottoned on to customers moving to other providers who are cheaper and when I enquired I was offered this deal. I am pleased although at a future date I would like to cancel the TV altogether including the TV licence. It speaks volumes when I watch old TV sitcoms from thirty years and more ago because the drivel that is offered is such poor quality. But the rain has stopped, the sun is shining and I might chance a brief spell outside.

TTFN

 We had an incredible rain downpour a couple of days back and the leak that happened as a consequence but, following rain yesterday I discovered the removal of sealant by the youngsters lets water leak in. I will have to address that as a priority but cat wars (Mindy and Winnie) has other undesirable consequences as they are both marking territory in various corners of the house. 

But another very strange thing happened on four mornings last week and left us both scratching our heads. A pool of water each morning on the side of the unit in the kitchen. We checked and it is water, not urine. No leaks anywhere from the cupboard above or through the wall. The kettle is nearby but no water around the kettle and it is switched off at the socket every night. This morning there was no water puddle and we had closed the kitchen door on each of the nights to prevent the cats going in as the oldies (Maisie) have peed there in the past. Most odd and once we had ruled out the kettle and the cats we are left with no answer to this strange conundrum. Poltergeist? I don’t think so but we now move the kettle away since last night and this morning it was dry in that spot so I still wonder is it the kettle but how, especially if unplugged and with little water in it? 

Progress made on three of the current builds with the above pictured Japanese Zero finally completed, a Tamiya 1/72 scale kit. A delight to build as every part fitted well and I brush painted, clear coated and decaled with a final coat of thinned Matt clear.

The Fokker D VIII is now decaled and clear coated and awaiting the rigging which is thin steel wire included with the kit. This is a Dragon kit in 1/48 scale and has been a slow and delicate build, especially the lozenge camouflage decals but they went on like a dream.

The third build is the old Matchbox Swordfish in 1/72 scale which has just been rigged with stretched sprue. Apply a flame to an old length of sprue, stretch when softened and hold at a reasonable tension and a thin enough length is ready to measure up, cut and glue into place. The aluminium paint was brushed on and will need a further thin coat before I add the aftermarket decals. As an old kit (1974) the decals were toast and beyond rescue. There are collectors of old kits with Airfix and Matchbox being popular. They don’t build them, just collect the kits and mint kits cost a lot. This kit was cheap and many of the smaller aircraft kits in the stash are cheap and cheerful.

Listening to Genesis this morning as I model and looking out the windows, it is dry, sunny and big enough white fluffy clouds. I think a slow gentle stroll with fresh air after sniffing glue might be in order.

TTFN.

 I did some research and bought this…

The CD player is portable, it has built in speakers and a little remote control allowing me to use it in any room but especially as I am modelling. The sound is good enough for me but I shan’t be using the earbuds as headphones are my preference. I found that I spent more time reading the comments as I listened to podcasts online whilst modelling so I wasn’t fully focused on the model build. So listening to my choice of music rather than adverts or inane presenters on the radio also helps. 

We had a monsoon yesterday afternoon with associated thunder and lightning. Unfortunately, I left the bedroom window open (cats can’t get out) and water came in. The first we knew of this was when water dripped through the ceiling! Window closed and mopping up operations commenced. Drying the windowsill out and I realised the two small rascals had removed sealant and scratched the paint off the wooden windowsill.

Winnie, nearest the camera eats the bloody stuff which reinforces her special status necessitating we keep her indoors. She couldn’t be any more different from her brother Wilf who is generally chilled and always returns home after time outdoors. Winter should be interesting as all five of them will be indoors during bad weather although the oldies tend to find quiet spots away from the youngsters. Unfortunately, the two scallywags adore Sherlock and he often wakes up to find one or both of them sleeping beside him. Bless him, he’s old and sleeps very deeply so he isn’t aware they have crept over to join him. 

Anyhow, back to the music, feet up and entertaining the little sealant munching miscreant.

TTFN.

 Since I quit spotify I have missed listening to music and I considered what to do next when the penny dropped. After a rummage around the spare room which No.1 son seems to have turned into a garage for his car tools I found a small pile of somewhat ropey CD's which I realised belonged to No.1 son and Sue. Racking my brains I was sure I hadn't got rid of my CD's and I then found the large container full of aural delights. David Bowie now playing loudly on the computer and I might have to buy a cheap CD player as the little attached DVD / CD player is the only player in the house and I would prefer to play music as I model or just chill out in my armchair. I may have become a Luddite as I will stick with CD's and DVD's and save money by not paying for on-line music I don't own and I quite like playing CD's in the car. Having stored them away a few years ago it is fun rediscovering the music I have in the collection. When I received my nurse registration all those years ago I immediately bought two things, a CD player and a lovely mountain bike, a Marin Muirwoods in bright fluorescent pink. Sadly the latter attracted ne'rdowells who stole parts off it but for getting around London and the home counties that bike was excellent.

It's quite an eclectic collection with diverse offerings such as the usual Beatles, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, De La Soul, Blues, Arabic music and British Folk music plus a collection of Punk music. Given that today is somewhat dull and very wet out listening to music helps to bring some of the light in and brighten up the place. That and the thunder of various cats racing around the house is possibly making it a noisy household today although it has started to thunder outside as well.

This is the progress thus far on the Supermarine Stranraer with the centre and sides of the upper wing dry fitted after a bit of a struggle to glue the cabane struts to the lower wings and align correctly. I also drilled some holes and superglued some elastic thread in for the rigging. I plan to disassemble it and airbrush the paints on as the brush painted effort doesn't look good at all.

Back to Bowie and fuss Wilf who isn't happy with the thunder. Do you still listen to CD's or records and yes, I still have a small collection of LP's which occasionally get an airing on the cheap record player which was a Xmas present several years ago.

TTFN.

 A new month and apparently we are now in autumn with the heavy clouds and showers over the last couple of days supporting that. I am currently suffering from an infected tooth and since my dentist closed down I have spent today so far trying to book an emergency appointment. I was offered one appointment in two weeks time by one dental practice! If needs be I will try to source antibiotics from the GP and chase up a dental appointment.

As the weather has been up and down with heavy rain at times I have spent time working at the model table.

The Fokker D VIII now has the wing, spars and undercarriage cemented in today using CA glue. I will leave this to set and then look at further painting and clear coating.

The Zero is fully painted and awaiting the decals and I will lightly weather it.

The Supermarine Stranraer is a slow work in progress and I have not been able to find suitable decals to replace the toasty decals that came with the kit. I have spare odds and ends in my decals spares box which I will use and I will attempt to paint the other markings in using homemade templates. The RAF crews nicknamed this aircraft the “Whistling shithouse” and I’ll leave it up to you few readers of this rubbish to look it up!

TTFN.