Ace-Garageguy Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 Sprung a few bucks for a cheap 1/48 scale Testors Supermarine S6B floatplane. I've always wanted a big-scale model of this aircraft, and though it's only 1/48, the plan is to use it as the source material to scratch one in 1/24, to accompany my big warbirds. I built lots of flying balsa models as a kid, so doubling the size of this little girl shouldn't present any real difficulties. I already have bunches of reference material on the thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 Ooh! Did I get a nice one in today's mail. Revell's Stearman Aerobatic Biplane. In 1:48 scale. Opening the box, all I can say is Wow! Obviously this is a kit made from a newer die. It's beautiful. The details and layout of the parts look to be very well thought out. Nothing in the instructions looks too tricky. And the decals look great. I've already decided I'm going to build version 2, "Barnstormer Aero Showes." Rather than the version 1, "Air Devils Stunt Wing Walkers." Man, am I impressed just looking at this kit. I can't wait to get this one done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 17 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said: Sprung a few bucks for a cheap 1/48 scale Testors Supermarine S6B floatplane. I've always wanted a big-scale model of this aircraft, and though it's only 1/48, the plan is to use it as the source material to scratch one in 1/24, to accompany my big warbirds. I built lots of flying balsa models as a kid, so doubling the size of this little girl shouldn't present any real difficulties. I already have bunches of reference material on the thing. Darn it Ace. Why did you have to go show the above to us? Just one look at the box art tells me I've got to have one now. The box art looks great. But, how are the contents inside the box? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 20 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said: Supermarine S6B floatplane.... I already have bunches of reference material on the thing. Does one of them have a definitive spec on the color? I have an old Brit model airplane magazine that has a feature-length story on that very topic, with references cited giving it as everywhere from about Richard Petty Blue to Blue Angel Blue. No definitive conclusion was reached. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 4 minutes ago, unclescott58 said: Darn it Ace. Why did you have to go show the above to us? Just one look at the box art tells me I've got to have one now. The box art looks great. But, how are the contents inside the box? It's a very simple kit--what you see on the boxtop is a good representation of what you get (if you want to "rig" it yourself). No interior whatsoever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) Went and found an original on eBay, and what looks like a complete, Hawk kit. Which of course is same kit as what's in the Testor's box. And your right Snake. It's obviously an old and simple kit of a very cool plane. Still I think it's awful that Ace forces me to do such things. And a British racing plane besides. Edited January 20, 2019 by unclescott58 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 (edited) 55 minutes ago, unclescott58 said: But, how are the contents inside the box? Snake's right. It's as basic as you can get. Two fuselage halves, two blisters for the cylinder banks, two strut assemblies, 4 float halves, a wing, two horizontal stabs, a prop, and a clear canopy. Plus decals. But it's the only game in town for reasonable money in a reasonable scale. 52 minutes ago, Snake45 said: Does one of them have a definitive spec on the color? I have an old Brit model airplane magazine that has a feature-length story on that very topic, with references cited giving it as everywhere from about Richard Petty Blue to Blue Angel Blue. No definitive conclusion was reached. S1595 is on display in unrestored condition at the London Science Museum. Original paint. Edited January 19, 2019 by Ace-Garageguy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 3 minutes ago, unclescott58 said: Went and found an original, and what looks complete, Hawk kit. Which of course is what's in the Testor's box. And your right Snake. It's obviously an old and simple kit of a very cool plane. Still I think it's awful that Ace forces me to do such things. And a British racing plane besides. This double kit? You need one of these, too... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 On 1/17/2019 at 1:31 PM, Mike999 said: For anyone who hasn't seen it - the 1991 movie "The Rocketeer" has some replica Gee Bees, along with other vintage aircraft (and cars). A real fun movie! Has some other pretty spectacular hardware too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 36 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said: Has some other pretty spectacular hardware too. Now I need one of those ☝️ too! Stop it Ace! And no, sorry to say, the Hawk Supermarine S6B I just purchased did not come Mister Mulligan too. Mister Mulligan may be added sometime in the future. At the right price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 2 hours ago, unclescott58 said: Went and found an original, and what looks complete, Hawk kit. Which of course is what's in the Testor's box. And your right Snake. It's obviously an old and simple kit of a very cool plane. Still I think it's awful that Ace forces me to do such things. And a British racing plane besides. The decals will be yellowed and probably fall apart when you use them, if you don't coat them with Micro Superfilm first. The Testor reissue has beautiful decals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 19, 2019 Share Posted January 19, 2019 2 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said: This double kit? I might have had that set as a kid. The box looks awfully familiar. 2 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said: You need one of these, too... HAHAHAHAHAHA! That might be the coolest use I've ever seen of the old Hawk Spitfire 22, a neat little kit in its own way. No interior, no landing gear, just a stand, and they originally sold for 39 cents. I believe the last time it was issued was by Testor in the mid-'90s, and only as part of 4-kit set with the other models in that series, a Bf 109F, FM-2 Wildcat, and A6M5 Zeke. The set sold for $10 with a few little bottles of some kind of paint and a cheap paintbrush or two. Here's one I built and painted in about an hour as a teenager. The only gray paint I had on had was Pactra Steel, so that's what I used. I cleaned it up and restored it as a survivor a few years ago. It's molded in bilious Sub Lime green, if you can believe it. I've picked up a couple more of them over the years, and now have one molded in orange and one molded in burgundy. About the time I restored my childhood one, I built a new one from the 4-plane Testor set (molded in boring light grey) and squirted it Floquil Old Silver just to show off the Spit 22's beautiful lines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 ^^^ My lord, that's a beautiful airplane. I wish somebody made that in 1/32 or 1/24. Damm that's pretty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 Guess what? I found a Testors' reissue of Mister Mulligan, complete, for under $15 on eBay. I didn't see it at first because I only searched for models titled "Mister" Mulligan. Later I did a search under "Mr" Mulligan, and I was offered a few more options. The Testors' repop is titled "Mr. Mulligan" on at least one later edition. Under "Mr" Mulligan I found one I liked both the condition and price on. So I plonked down the coin. And hope to have it sometime next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 By the way, I can not find anyplace online, why Mr. Howard named his plane "Mister Mulligan." Does anybody out there know why? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 1 hour ago, Ace-Garageguy said: ^^^ My lord, that's a beautiful airplane. I wish somebody made that in 1/32 or 1/24. Damm that's pretty. They did, about 30 or 40 years ago. Believe it or not, you can still Buy It Now at a VERY reasonable price: https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=Spitfire+22&_sacat=220&rt=nc&Brand=Matchbox&_dcat=220 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 20 minutes ago, Snake45 said: They did, about 30 or 40 years ago. Believe it or not, you can still Buy It Now at a VERY reasonable price: https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=Spitfire+22&_sacat=220&rt=nc&Brand=Matchbox&_dcat=220 THANKS !! Got heem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 47 minutes ago, unclescott58 said: By the way, I can not find anyplace online, why Mr. Howard named his plane "Mister Mulligan." Does anybody out there know why? I'm almost sure I've read it. Somewhere. Somewhen. But if the answer is anywhere, this book probably has it. https://www.windcanyonbooks.com/product_info.php?products_id=1164 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 8 minutes ago, Ace-Garageguy said: THANKS !! Got heem. I see you did! NOW I'll tell you: This kit has a reputation of being a real b-youknowwhat to build, particularly the fit of the separate cowling pieces. (I know one guy claimed he used half a tube of Squadron Putty on the nose.) But since you'll probably never build it ANYWAY (), what difference does it make? (Or, as you'll soon be saying in your new home, "Lo mismo da?") And if you DO by some miracle actually decide to build it, I figger there's nobody on this whole board BETTER than you to wrestle it to the ground. (That's a compliment, BTW.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 20, 2019 Share Posted January 20, 2019 5 minutes ago, Snake45 said: ...And if you DO by some miracle actually decide to build it, I figger there's nobody on this whole board BETTER than you to wrestle it to the ground. (That's a compliment, BTW.) Thank you, sir. If nothing else, at least it will probably get me to finish the other 1/32 Spit I was doing (back in 2012) in the prototype sky blue livery. Unlike car models, I usually actually finish an airplane before I start another one...but I never unpacked the airplane stuff after the last move, figgerin' I'd either be gone pretty quick, or be too busy renovating this dump to get to them. As it turned out, neither option came about, and they'll have to wait 'til I get to sunny Az. My luck, the day I unload the last truck out there, I'll fall off my perch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 22, 2019 Share Posted January 22, 2019 A couple of good looking Lindberg airplane kits joined the collection today. First the Gee-Bee Air Racer. Second the Laird-Turner Meteor. Also arriving at the same time a copy of Edward H. Phillips' book Beechcraft Pursuit of Perfection - A History of Beechcraft Airplanes. First impressions after opening the two kits? Wow! They are big. As Ace noted, the Gee-Bee has to be bigger than the 1/32 scale claimed on the box. The Laird-Turner Meteor also looks too big for 1/32. With the quick glance, both kits look pretty nice. No flash. Nice decals. They both look like should be fairly easy builds. I'm particularly impressed that the Bee-Gee comes with wire to do rigging. A nice added bonus I did not expect. In general I'm pleased. They both look like very nice kits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 36 minutes ago, unclescott58 said: ... As Ace noted, the Gee-Bee has to be bigger than the 1/32 scale claimed on the box. The Laird-Turner Meteor also looks too big for 1/32. There's no mystery, secret incantations, or rocket science here. The wingspan of the real Gee Bee R1 is 25 feet. Measure the wingspan of the model. Divide that into the wingspan of the real one. You'll get close to 1/26. Simple arithmetic. The wingspan of the Meteor is 25 feet, 3.5 inches. Same drill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 On 1/16/2019 at 11:37 AM, Ace-Garageguy said: Love that Russkie "Spitfire", man. I need to find one of those. Some friends of mine brought one into the USA in a crate, disassembled, mostly covered in cosmoline, years ago. Fair bit of P-51 influence too, with the wide landing gear and belly cooling system arrangement. It's supposed to be a pretty good kit. I guess we'll see when the time comes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 Another Christmas raffle gift arrived a few days ago. This was declined by another member, so I snatched it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 And in the box was a real nice additional prize for me, one that had originally not been included with the gift. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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