SPA Modeler

Looking good Lyle,

I don’t believe I have ever had any type of kit with such yellow sprues!

- Kari

KSaarni wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 9:11 am Looking good Lyle,

I don’t believe I have ever had any type of kit with such yellow sprues!

- Kari

Kari, thank you.

Yes, it is loud and it is proud.

Gary Brantley wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 9:09 am

LyleW wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 8:01 am ...and often times way, way over my depth of capabilities! I fuss/cuss/holler and sometimes Pam will ask why do you do this. I tell her is is fun and relaxing.

That's so funny! I bought some Eduard vinyl canopy masks for my MiG-3 and they arrived yesterday. Hell, I can't even see the various shapes on the little sheet of vinyl! They are die-cut, but I have to basically "feel" with the tip of a #11 blade and see what lifts up. I'm sitting here with coffee now, sort of dreading that task, but in another way, I'm sort of anxious to get on with it. Anxious is the key word here. Note: the coffee will no doubt be of great help in guiding my steady hands.

Humans are made of contradictions. Have more coffee, it will help steady your hands and sharpen your eyes. Build more models: that will keep you calm and relaxed. And no one will understand how these contradictions work really in the end but they do work every time. When someone tells me they only drink coffee in the morning I wonder if that’s a rule I never learned properly. Build on, gentlemen, it is a fine day for the sweet stink of glue and that sharp click of cut styrene is sweeter music to the ears.

Gary Brantley wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 9:09 am

LyleW wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 8:01 am ...and often times way, way over my depth of capabilities! I fuss/cuss/holler and sometimes Pam will ask why do you do this. I tell her is is fun and relaxing.

That's so funny! I bought some Eduard vinyl canopy masks for my MiG-3 and they arrived yesterday. Hell, I can't even see the various shapes on the little sheet of vinyl! They are die-cut, but I have to basically "feel" with the tip of a #11 blade and see what lifts up. I'm sitting here with coffee now, sort of dreading that task, but in another way, I'm sort of anxious to get on with it. Anxious is the key word here. Note: the coffee will no doubt be of great help in guiding my steady hands.

When I had the Eduard canopy mask for the He-111, I couldn’t see the outline of the window masks. Do what I usually do… peel off at the corner of the mask template slowly and carefully. You should leave behind the actual masks for the canopy on the paper. Some might pull away from the main template. Use a hobby knife or tweezers to keep them from pulling up from paper.

speedgraflex wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 10:23 am

Gary Brantley wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 9:09 am

That's so funny! I bought some Eduard vinyl canopy masks for my MiG-3 and they arrived yesterday. Hell, I can't even see the various shapes on the little sheet of vinyl! They are die-cut, but I have to basically "feel" with the tip of a #11 blade and see what lifts up. I'm sitting here with coffee now, sort of dreading that task, but in another way, I'm sort of anxious to get on with it. Anxious is the key word here. Note: the coffee will no doubt be of great help in guiding my steady hands.

Humans are made of contradictions. Have more coffee, it will help steady your hands and sharpen your eyes. Build more models: that will keep you calm and relaxed. And no one will understand how these contradictions work really in the end but they do work every time. When someone tells me they only drink coffee in the morning I wonder if that’s a rule I never learned properly. Build on, gentlemen, it is a fine day for the sweet stink of glue and that sharp click of cut styrene is sweeter music to the ears.

Coffee for me is a must - especially at work. I’m a natural grump in the morning. Everybody knows it too. Can’t stand cheery chipper good morning attitude first thing in the morning. I like to say a variety of comments….

I drink coffee because murder is wrong

Less talkie, more coffee

Careful… haven’t had any coffee yet and I running out of places to hide bodies

And my favorite one - especially if I’m really grumpy due lack of coffee or haven’t had a cup yet….


If you’re looking for somebody bright eyed and bushy tailed, get a squirrel.

BlackSheep214 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 6:07 pm

Gary Brantley wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2025 9:09 am

That's so funny! I bought some Eduard vinyl canopy masks for my MiG-3 and they arrived yesterday. Hell, I can't even see the various shapes on the little sheet of vinyl! They are die-cut, but I have to basically "feel" with the tip of a #11 blade and see what lifts up. I'm sitting here with coffee now, sort of dreading that task, but in another way, I'm sort of anxious to get on with it. Anxious is the key word here. Note: the coffee will no doubt be of great help in guiding my steady hands.

When I had the Eduard canopy mask for the He-111, I couldn’t see the outline of the window masks. Do what I usually do… peel off at the corner of the mask template slowly and carefully. You should leave behind the actual masks for the canopy on the paper. Some might pull away from the main template. Use a hobby knife or tweezers to keep them from pulling up from paper.

Had a small brainstorm yesterday afternoon. I "dusted" the sheet of vinyl masks with some gray pastel chalk and voila, there are all the individual mask pieces, high-lighted by gray lines. Hooray for a little victory!

good idea, Gary. The yellow tape masks are no better.

Day 1,723 of working on the chassis. Either there is a light at the end of the tunnel or it is a train heading straight for me. It is 60/40 hoping it is a train. There are some 420-ish parts in this kit. I am sure about 600 of them are in the chassis. '

Top, favoring the right side:



Top, favoring the left side:



Bottom:

Wow that's a lot of parts for just the chassis. I have an M-ATV MRAP that is just as bad.

Great progress Lyle. Man that's a lot of detail