More in the smaller scale

These are the latest addition to my small scale collection. These are my final three of the many that I have bought from Bangkok.

Decanting Tamiya Spray

Decanting aerosol rattle cans is worthwhile if you want to airbrush the high quality and readily available Tamiya synthetic lacquers such as found in the TS- series of spray cans. By decanting and airbrushing you gain the advantages of airbrushes which include finer control of paint flow and air flow and consistent operation.

Advantage of Decanting:

1. Readily available supply of quality paint;
2. Absolute control over the delivery of that paint to your subject;
3. Paint covers much more area because of less overspray and more precise delivery.

The easiest and cleanest way to decant spray paints is to fit a tube to the protruding tip of the spray nozzle and spray into a new container. Do not fill the bottle past 70% full.

Place the bottle with freshly decanted paint down gently and do not touch for at least one hour. Do not put the cap on the bottle. Leave the lid off the jar of freshly decanted paint and let propellant boil off for at least one hour.

Don't try to stir the paint or add anything like thinner or ball bearings; the slight temperature rise caused by these activities will cause the paint to boil vigorously, overflowing the bottle onto the floor and sputtering into the air. Just touching the bottle with your fingers and cause an eruption.

I usually wait overnight. I have forgotten about an open bottle of decanted paint for an entire weekend with no noticeable loss of sprayability.

3 in less than 2 weeks

After my trip from Bangkok way back in early Dec 2008, I bought quiet a number of pre-assemble model airplanes. I find quiet interesting and the finishing looks nice too.
Upon arriving back home, I put together 2 of the easy one.



After getting the feel, I decide to do another. Since the finishing was already done, to assemble the wings to the body was easy BUT to apply plastic liquid cement was tricky. Any mistake can damage the finish paint job.

Being out of the hobby for quiet a while after recovering from my chemotherapy treatments, I decided to assemble 3 more models. I still have 9 to go though.








Some of the model require little painting to finish it off. Some require decal application and the assembly was not as a easy as I would have thought. Building 1/100 and 1/144 scale are a bit tedious but judging with the end product, it was well worth it.

Tanks & Military Stuffs

Development of the FW190 series began in the Autumn of 1937, under a contract issued by the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (Air Ministry) for a single seat fighter to supplement the Messerschmitt Bf109. Two proposals were submitted by Kurt Tank, the technical director of the Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau (aircraft factory). The proposal using the then new BMW 801 aircooled radial engine was chosen. This tough and powerful engine was placed in a robust airframe and provided superb handling, well balanced control, and brisk acceleration. It entered service in 1941, flying alongside the Bf 109 and it soon took control of air superiority over the English Channel. Establishing itself as a mainstay fighter of the Luftwaffe, it outperformed the contemporary Spitfire Mk.V's in almost every respect and maintained this advantage until the arrival of the Spitfire IX in July 1942. The Fw190 fighter underwent constant improvement throughout its life. The A-3 version used the improved BMW 801Dg engine that produced 1,700hp. Armament was increased from four to six guns, consisting of two rapid firing MG151's in the wing roots; two MG FF's outboard of the landing gear and two fuselage mounted MG 17 machine guns. Throughout WW2, many Luftwaffe squadrons allowed personal pilot markings and distinctive squadron insignia to be used, plus lower cowl, wing tip and rudder color additions to the original paint schemes.


NOTE: Picture shows how small 1/72 scale model are. I am used to building 1/48 which twice bigger. The main challenge for me was to airbrush (paint) this particular scheme. I have to admit, few errors were made since it was hard to control the airbrush. Overall, I am happy with it (it is just a hobby).