Homepage Text - March 2009

Tuesday,   Mar 31  2009 
Pierre Christian Baudru has done an outstanding job building and finishing his 1/72 Hobby Boss F-86F-30.  Pierre did some scratchbuilding and then used 2 shades of Alclad to give his Sabre a multi-shaded bare metal finish.

Aaron Ronquillo has done plenty of extra work to improve the finished results of his fine looking 1/48 Hobbycraft Polikarpov I-16 (Type 24).  Aaron built his Polikarpov  with passion and that really shows when you read his article and then look at the finished model.  Nicely done Aaron.   

Laurent “Angus” Beauvais has gone the extra mile building and finishing his 1/48 Italeri SR-71 A Blackbird.  This included re-scribing the panellines before giving it a weathered look jsut like the real aircraft had.  I love how this Blackbird turned out. 

Istvan Hunyadi (Hunyo) joins us from Hungary with his 1/72 Italeri UH-34D Seahorse.  Istvan dirtied his UH-34 with pastel chalks to give it the realistic look and finished it in USMC markings to represent as it looked in the early 60's in Vietnam.  A nice touch was curving the blades to a more natural look.

Erik Kidd is here with something we don't see often enough.  This is his 1/72 ESCI MiG-29 finished off in the markings for the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force.  Erik custom mixed the paints and finished it with weathering to add realism.

Daco Products is currently having a Clearance sale on the remaining copies of their Eye On The Tigers book by Danny Coremans and The Tiger team.   This book is half price and currently selling for only 10 Euro.  Drop by their site and pick one up while you can.  There's a  review on ARC you can see by clicking here.

I have a review of the new 1/48 J35/J Draken resin cockpit set from Aires If you're building a Draken, then you really should consider this resin cockpit.


I have a review of the new 1/48 Lightning F1/F1A/F2/F3 Stencils from BarracudacalsThese stencils are a vast improvement over the kit stencils.


Monday,   Mar 30  2009 
This weeks Twobobs Newsletter is up.  Bob has a new Korean F-15 decal sheet in the works as well as an F-15A Satellite Killer decal sheet.  He's also got news on an upcoming F/A-18E Fighting Fourteenth decal sheet with some wild tail art.  I can't wait until the new Buckeye kit is released from Twobobs.

Alvis 3.1 starts your week with a model that is not silly.  This is his 1/72 Revell Ho-229 built up into a fine example of this German Flying wing.  I did notice Alvis used the #13 on his model. 

Jerry Hawhee (Old Blind Dog) has been busy build car models recently but today he's joining us with his latest aircraft model.  This is his 1/72 Tamiya F4U-1 Birdcage Corsair done up in Jerry's usual fine style.  Jerry has a very high opinion of this Tamiya kit. 

Manfred 'Fredy' Tukot is back on ARC with another of his scratchbuilt masterpieces.  This latest one is his 1/48 Scratchbuilt Yakovlev Yak-130 Mitten trainer done up completely from scratch.  Wow.....this is an amazing project and the finished model looks fantastic......thankfully he included plenty of photos.

Curt Waffle has been busy for the past 2 years creating his cut-away 1/48 Monogram B-29.  Curt did an extreme amount of work detailing the interior of his B-29......the research and work involved must have be staggering.  I really do like how this one turned out. 

Jesse Hosmer joins us with his sharp looking 1/72 Revell F-14A.  Jesse was inspired by one of my favourite movies and built his Tomcat as one of the F-14's from the movie Final.  A great movie and a great looking model

I have a review of the new 1/48 VF-101 Grim Reapers Part 2 decal sheet from Fightertown Decals This new decal sheet  includes markings for 3 different 1/48 F-14A/B/D's with VF-101 Grim Reapers.  

I have a review of the new 1/48 Supermarine Spitfire Part 3 decal sheet from Lifelike Decals.  This is Part 3 of  a series dealing with the Spitfire from August 1942 in England to March 1943 in Libya. 

Floyd S. Werner, Jr. is here with a review of the Army Air Forces Newsreels-1939 DVD from Victory Films.

Friday,   Mar 27  2009 
Here's the latest Hot Babe of the Week! photos from TwobobsThese EA-6B CAG Prowler from VAQ-130 photos were taken by Nick Mollenhauer. 

Jean-Charles GODDET starts your Friday update with his 1/72 Hasegawa Mitsubishi F-15J.  This is the famous Japanese white dragon paint scheme that has got to be one of the best looking paint schemes worn by the F-15.  Jean-Charles did a lovely job getting it looking right. 

Franz Galli (father) is here with his 1/32 Hasegawa P-51D Mustang.  Franz gave his Mustang a multi-shaded finish which really adds to the realism of this model.  

Federico Kunz is here with a  great looking little airliner.  This is his 1/144 Revell Avro RJ85 flybe which came out looking excellent.  I do like the look of this airliner. 

Carmel J Attard has done a very nice job on his 1/72 Pavla Models P-43 Lancer.  This is a limited run multi-media kit, but that didn't cause Carmel any concern.  He finished his Lancer in RAAF markings. 

Federico Kunz joins us from sunny Mexico City with his 1/72 Harrier Gr3.  This is one of the Harriers that served in the Falklands and  Federico explains what was required to build his Harrier to get such good results.

I have a review of the new  1/48 resin Jettisonable tanks or Air-to-Air rocket containers from Maestro Models Conversions and available from Rebell Hobby

I have a review of the new  Gloster Meteor in the Israeli Air Force book from IsraDecal Publications


I have a review of the new  1/72 Nanchang K-8 Karakorums decal sheet from El Presidente Decals


Thursday,   Mar 26  2009 

  Bangladesh Independence and National Day 

Renato Dias is here from warm Brazil with his Scratchbuilt Apollo Module.  Renato built this model just to practice his scratchbuilding skills and I must say I sure do like how well it turned out.

Raul Corral has a high opinion of the 1/48 Airfix Bf-109 F-4 Trop.  He built his 109 mostly out of the box and finished it off in the desert scheme I enjoy so much.  I do like how well he did the exhaust stains on the side of the fuselage.   

Chuck Sawyer has been busy building, detailing and finishing his 1/32 Tamiya F-16CJ. Chuck added Eduard photo-etched interior bits and Two Bobs decals to really complete his big F-16.  And then finished it off with just the right amount of weathering.

Brett Prusso is here with his first article on ARC.  This is his 1/48 Monogram AC-47 that he did quite a bit of extra work on and the finished model really looks much better thanks to the extra work Brett put into his AC-47.  Welcome to ARC Brett and I hope to see more of your models on ARC in the future. 

Boris Bilyk joins us from Russia with his 1/48 HobbyBoss A-10A Thunderbolt II.  Boris put extra work detailing his A-10 and the finished model looks fantastic. 

I have a review of the new  1/32 World F-8J Crusaders Legend of the Seas decal sheet from Zotz Decals


I have a review of the new  1/48 resin engine cowling for K-36 Cap (Czech built Fi 156) from  QuickBoost


I have a review of the new  1/72 F-18A,B,C,D paint masking set from Leading Edge Models


Wednesday,   Mar 25  2009 

  Greece Independence Day 

  Royal Navy - Sea Mosquito first carrier  landings (1944) 

Peter Athanasopoulos is here from Greece to mark the Hellenic Independence Day with his 1/48 Revell F-84G Thunderjet.  Peter shows he has much talent for baremetal finishes and his F-84 came out looking perfect......of course...Hellenic Air Force markings always look good on a  model. 

Giannis Doxas is also here from Greece to mark the Hellenic Independence Day with his 1/48 Hasegawa F-4E A.U.P Phantom.  Giannis added aftermarket parts for the gun, cockpit and exhausts to super detail his Phantom before giving it the flawless paint job I would expect to see on a Hellenic Air Force Phantom.  

Carmel J Attard joins us from Malta with another of his masterpieces.  This is Carmel's 1/72 Hasegawa Grumman E-1 Tracer that he did a huge amount of work to create.  Carmel is an advanced modeller that doesn't shy away from complicated projects and you'll see that when you read his article.  Amazing work Carmel.

Eric Cook joins us with his SAAF 1/48 Italeri SAAB Gripen.  Eric has a clear thinking approach that helps him get things looking right on this project.  My hat is off to you Eric. 

Robert T. Rio dropped by the ARC Corporate offices in the Philippines with his 1/72 Academy Zero and Hobby Boss Hellcat.  Robert built both of his dog fighters in a  hotel room with very limited supplies, but that didn't stop him from creating something very special.

I have a review of the new  1/48 F-16A/B/N NSAWC & Topgun decal sheet from Fightertown Decals.  This new decal sheet  includes markings for 5 different 1/48 F-16A/B/N's NSAWC & Topgun.....these are the USN F-16's.  


I have a review of the new  1/72 Mil Mi-8 wheels and paint masks from Aires


I have a review of the new  1/48 Spitfire Mk I - Mk V Stencils from Barracudacals You get 2 full sets of stencils.


Tuesday,   Mar 24  2009 
This weeks Twobobs Newsletter is up.  Bob has news on the new Buckeye kit as well and new decal sheets that include Drakens, Cobras, F-15, A-7, F-18 and AH-64....there are plenty of great paint schemes on these upcoming decal sheets. 

Francisco "Manimal" Lara is here from sunny Spain with his 1/32 Special Hobby X-15A-2 Warlock.  This carefully weathered X-15 wears a fictional artwork on the tail for Warlock, a heavy metal band now called Doro.  Francisco custom made the artwork to get the X-15 he always wanted.

José Alvarez is here with his 1/72 Arii T-41 Turkish “Mescalero”esc. done up in the markings for the Turkish Air Training School.  I've built this kit and it is a nasty little kit as José found out, but he stuck with it and turn it into a great looking model.  

Michael Jack is here to blow your mind with his 1/144 Scratch built Apollo Saturn V Mobile launch platform.  This Mobile launch platform is 110cm (43.3") tall and made up of a huge number of pieces of plastic.  Wow......I'm stunned by the level of detail required to produce this 8 year project.

Jim Birchfield has done a marvelous job building and finishing his 1/48 Monogram A-26B Invader.  Jim has a talent for these older kit and I really do like the look of this weathered bare metal finish on his Invader.  And of course Jim made sure it had noseart.

John Huijding had a grand time building his 1/72 Academy F-86E Sabre El Diablo.  John has very high regard for this kit and the job he did on his 1/72 Sabre is quite exceptional.  His article will explain to you all the high points of the Academy kit and what he did to turn it into such a great looking bare metal Korean War Sabre.  And yes.......his jet does have artwork.

I have a review of the new  1/32 F-8J VF-24 Crusaders Nose art in Vietnam decal sheet from Zotz Decals


I have a review of the new 1.65mm OD Stainless Steel Tube from Fineline Model Products


I have a review of the new  1/72 Ki-84 Hayate Part 1 decal sheet from Lifelike Decals

Monday,   Mar 23  2009 

  Pakistan Day 

Fabien Antonietti joins us for the first time on ARC with his sharp looking 1/72 Hasegawa Lockheed F-104J Starfighter in Japanese markings.  Welcome to ARC Fabien, I look forward to seeing more of your models on ARC!!!  

Charles Johnson did some effective scratchbuilding and kitbashing to create his 1/72 Testors/Italeri RC-130A.  This is an A model Herc which required backdating the H model kit.  Charles pulled it off very well with great results. 

Boris Bilyk joins us from Russia with his 1/32 Tamiya F-16C Fighting Fulkrum.  This is the big F-16 kit in one of the better looking paint schemes worn by the F-16 and given an excellent weathering job.  He then finished it off with Twobobs decals.

Richard Chang did a beautiful job building, detailing and finishing his 1/72 ROCAF E-2T Hawkeye. Richard built his Hawkete as a Taiwan air force aircraft and he was careful to get the details right on his Tiawanese version of this aircraft.

Egerton Foster is here with his 1/48 Italeri Phantom RF4E.  Egerton finished his Phantom with his new airbrush and chose to go with the ever popular and great looking Luftwaffe markings.  Egerton  didn't find the fit perfect on this kit but that didn't stop him from turning out a first class model. 

I have a review of the new 1/48 F/A-18C VFA-94 Mighty Shrikes decal sheet from Fightertown DecalsThis new decal sheet includes markings for 2 different 1/48 F-18C's with VFA-94 Mighty Shrikes.  


Tom Stewart is here with a review of the new 1/48 Saab JA/AJ-37 Viggen Corrected resin Intakes from Two Mikes Resin Accessories.  


I have a review of the new 1/48 VMF-225/VMA-225 Part 1 decal sheet from Impact Decals This new decal sheet includes markings for 5 different 1/48 piston engined aircraft that served with VMF-225/VMA-225.  


Saturday,    Mar 21  2009 

  Namibia Independence Day 

  Chile - Anniversary of the Chilean Air Force 


Friday,   Mar 20  2009 

  Tunisia National Day 

Small Shop is having a St Patricks Day 10% off sale all this week on all their products.  If you use Photo Etch, then you owe it to yourself to add one of their high quality photo etch bending tools to your work bench.  I've got one and I love it.

Yufei Mao has gone the extra mile on his 1/72 Bilek MiG-19PM Farmer.  Rescribed panel lines and weathering and one amazing bare metal finish makes this Czechoslovak jet look fantastic.  

Mark L. Rossmann is here with his sharp looking 1/48 Accurate Miniatures B-25C Mitchell complete with sexy noseart using Zotz Decals.  This particular B-25 served in Tunisia .......which fit nicely with today's national day.

Dan McWilliams is here to make you grin with his BIG 1/32 Tamiya F-4D.  You've got to check out the weapons load on Dan's Phantom......this baby is LOADED!!!  Nice one Dan!!! 

Greg Long has been busy building a very sharp looking 1/48 Academy CH-46.  I really like how this one turned out.  Greg finished it off with Zotz Decals

Gokhan Eren joins us from Turkey with his 1/72 Academy F-16.  This is a Turkish Air Force F-16 in NATO Tiger Meet 2007 markings.  Gokhan added an LED light to the nose gear.  Wow....this came out looking very good.....with a great looking Tiger Meet tailart.  

Tom Stewart  is here with a  review of the 1/48 Saab JA/AJ/37 Viggen Corrected Nose   from Two Mikes Resin Accessories


I have a review of the new 1/72 F/A-18 Hornet elevators from QuickBoost.  


I have a review of the new 1/72 Fokker D.VII Part 1 decal sheet from  Lifelike DecalsThis sheet includes 4 different aircraft......one has Dragon artwork.


I have a review of the new 1/72 EC-135H, B-2A, A-37B, A-7K and F-100D decal sheet from Wolfpak DecalsYou get 5 different aircraft on this decal sheet including a B-2.


Thursday,   Mar 19  2009     
No update today. 

Wednesday,   Mar 18  2009 
I'd like to extend Happy Birthday wishes to ARC Super Moderator Terry Summer.  Terry is celebrating the anniversary of his 39th birthday..........for the 18th time.  

Here's the latest Hot Babe of the Week! photos from TwobobsThese F/A-18C photos include some interesting artwork. 

Yufei Mao is here with today's first model.  This is his 1/72 Zvezda MiG-31B Foxhound which has been seriously reworked and detailed and was the feature of a recent magazine article.  Grab a  warm drink and enjoy the photos. 

Pierre Christian Baudru has done a first class job on his 1/72 Revell RAF P-51B Malcolm Hood Mustang.  Pierre finished it in a multi-shade bare metal finish complete with RAF markings. 

Burt Gustafson is here with his very appealing 1/72 Hobby Boss A-7E Corsair.  Burt built his Corsair II out of the box and finished it in one of those easy on the eyes colourful paint schemes I enjoy so much. 

Rob Finn is here from Australia with one of the classic airliners.  This is his 1/72 Heller DC-6B finished off in the attractive colour of Ansett - ANA ( Ansett Airways and Australian National Airways).  Rob gave his model the proper finished with bare metal and weathering in just the right places. 

Warren Osborne has done an exceptional job on his 1/48 Airfix Buccaneer.  Warren detailed his Buccaneer, dropped the flaps and posed it on section of the deck of the HMS Ark Royal.  Warren has a very good trick for attaching the tail ...read his article to learn more. 

I have a review of the new  1/72 TBM Avenger wheels and paint masks from Aires This latest release features 2 resin wheels and painting masks for the TBM Avenger from Hasegawa.  


I have a review of the new  1/32 VF-101 Grim Reapers F-14A/B/D decal sheet from  Fightertown DecalsThis new decal sheet includes markings for 3 different 1/32 F-14's with VF-101 Grim Reapers in 7 different paint schemes.  


I have a review of the new  1/72 Mad Ducks decal sheet from Wolfpak DecalsThis new decal sheet includes markings for 7 different 1/72 aircraft with Duck markings....B-25B, B-1B, FB-111A, CH-47D, B-52G, B-24J all with some sort of artwork.....including 2 B-25's from the famous Doolitte raid. 


Tuesday,   Mar 17  2009 

  Ireland - St. Patrick's Day 

Small Shop is having a St Patricks Day 10% off sale all this week on all their products.  If you use Photo Etch, then you owe it to yourself to add one of their high quality photo etch bending tools to your work bench.  I've got one and I love it.

Roy McKay begins this very special day with his massive Irish Air Corps Collection.  Wow.....I am in total awe of the huge selection of aircraft used by Ireland.  You rock Roy.....Happy St Patricks Day!!!

Roy McKay is also here today with his Irish Aviation in 1/144 scale.  If you build airliners then you're going to love these....also one of them is in Jaguar markings for you Jaguar car aficionados.  Nicely done Roy.

Artur Oslizlo is here with his wonderful looking 1/48 Italeri SH-60B Seahawk Scorpions.  Artur added interior and exterior photo etch sets to super detail his Seahawk and then finished it off with a colourful and weathered paint job. 

J.C. Bahr is here to mark St Patricks day with his 1/72 Special Hobby North American F-86H Sabre Hog.  And yes......this sharp looking Sabre has a Shamrock on the tail....gotta' love that. 

Stefan Costel has done a great job on his 1/72 Hasegawa RA-5C Vigilante.  Stefan folded the wings and tail as it would appear on the carrier.  These are quite the big jet. 

I have a review of the new 1/48 SB2C Helldivers decal sheet from Victory Productions.  This new decal sheet includes markings for 17 different options for the late model Helldivers in 1/48 scale.  Buy it before it is sold out.


Tom Stewart is here with a review of the new 1/48 Saab Viggen Intake Covers from Two Mikes Resin AccessoriesThese resin intakes covers drop into your kit intakes for that parked aircraft look. 


I have a review of the new 1/48 A6M5a Zero Exhaust resin set from QuickBoostThis latest release features a complete set of resin exhausts for the A6M5a Zero from Tamiya.  


I have a review of the new  1/48 resin Short Intakes J35A/B/C from Rebell HobbyThis new set of resin intakes permits you to convert E/F Draken into a J35A/B/C with the short intakes. 


Monday,   Mar 16  2009 
Rafi Ben-Shahar has taken his 1/48 Eduard Focke wulf Fw 190A-5 and added a fully detailed resin engine to his 190.  Wow......this must have caused more than a bit of grief to build this project.  Rafi did it up to his usual very high standards. 

PJ from Brazil joins us with his excellent looking 1/48 Airfix Canberra B (I) Mk 8.  PJ finished his Canberra in the markings of a jet from the Fuerza Aerea Peruana (Peruvian Air Force).  PJ also tells the ill-fated story of this plane and it's crew. 

Frank Harmon is here with his dramatic photos of his very nicely done 1/48 Revell B-17F.  Frank did some digital editing to his photos to create a scene of a crippled bomber making for home..... 

Juno Oh has taken the 1/48 Italeri F-22A and turned it into a beautifully done Raptor.  Juno tells how he did the paint scheme on his F-22....which is always a tricky thing on the F-22. 

Terry Chan has been busy doing an exceptionally nice job building and finishing his   1/32 Trumpeter F-100D.  Terry went with a silver finish and Terry tells all his tricks to how he pulled of such a great looking finish on his big Hun.  Nice one Terry!!!  

I have a review of the new 1/32 F-8E/H Crusader resin cockpit set from Aires This new release features a complete resin cockpit for the 1/32 F-8E/H Crusader.  

I have a review of the new  1/32 VF-24 Renegades Last Rage decal sheet from Fightertown Decals This new decal sheet includes markings for the same jet at 2 different times during it's operational career with VF-24.  


I have a review of the new  1/72 IAF B-17G 'Flying Fortress', PBY-5A Catalina and Bristol Beaufighter decal sheet from  IsraDecalThis decal sheet includes markings for 12 aircraft.


Friday,   Mar 13  2009 
Here's the latest Hot Babe of the Week! photos from Twobobs.  These photos feature a special Gloss Black F-14D. 

Amanda Jones is here with her first article on ARC.  This is her 1/48 Hasegawa Typhoon Mk.1B complete in D-Day stripes which I enjoy so much.  Amanda built her Typhoon out of the box with airbrushed stripes and weathering outstanding results.  Welcome to ARC Amanda and I look forward to seeing more of your work on ARC in the future!!!

Fabrizio Frassica has been busy with his 1/48 Tamiya Me-262 A1 which is finished in the markings for one the the Luftwaffe's top scoring Aces.  Fabrizio used a black base coat before applying the camo, which makes it possible to get creative on shading the camo paint as you'll see on this very well shaded paint job. 

Dave Lochead joins us with his brightly painted 1/48 Racing Mustang "Red Baron".  This is a special kit from Kiwi Resin by Darryl Gardiner.  These racing aircraft were modified to improve performance and as you'll see with this Mustang......they are quite different from the WW2 fighters and the paint jobs make them really stand out.  I really like how this one turned out.

Jean-Charles Goddet is here to make you smile with his great looking 1/72 Italeri F5E Tiger II.  This special VFC-13 Fighting Saints F-5 is painted in the adversary paint scheme which is always a treat to see.  The decals are from TwoBobs and are just one of the many Adversary decals available from Twobobs. 

I have a review of the new 1/48 J35F1 Red Dragons decal sheet from Twobobs Aviation GraphicsThis sheet features two complete sets of stencil data and aircraft markings for these very colorful, red Drakens.


Thursday,   Mar 12  2009 

  Mauritius Independence Day 

Bill Bunting has done a marvelous job detailing and finishing his 1/48 Tamiya A6M5/5a Zero.  Bill has high regards for this kit and I must say I sure do like how his Zero turned out.

Istvan Zoldag has done an outstanding job building and weathering his 1/48 Revell F-15E Strike Eagle.  Istvan added Eduard photo etched parts to complete the detailing on his sharp looking F-15.

Alex Kontiveis is here with spectacular 1/24 VFS P-40C Tomahawk.  This is not just any P-40....this is one of the P-40's that got off the ground during the Pearl Harbor attack.  Alex tells the whole story as well as what was involved building his limited run model kit. The detail Alex added has to be seen to be believed.

Leonard Prakasam joins us with an article that was originally intended for India's Republic day.  This is Leonard's 1/72 Revell Hawker Hunter F56 finished off in one of this excellent looking camo schemes worn by the Indian Air Force. 

Gareth Phua joins us with his very nicely done1/48 Hasegawa RAF Phantom FGR.2.  Gareth added some resin seats to dress up the cockpit and then gave it one of those beautifully shaded paint jobs and finished it off in RAF markings.

Here's a first look at the new 1/32 F-8 Crusaders Legends of the Seas decal sheet from  Zotz Decals This 1/32 decal sheet features 2 different F-8J Crusaders.....one is a USN bird from 1972 with and the other is a jet with the French Navy in 1999. 


I have a review of the new 1/48 resin SAAB Viggen Corrected Intakes from Two Mikes Resin Accessories.  Viggen accessories....way to go Mike!!!


I have a review of the new 1/144 F-14 VF-84 VF-103 Jolly Rogers decal sheet from Fightertown Decals.  This new decal sheet includes markings for 3 different 1/48 F-18F's with VFA-103 Jolly Rogers....including Santa Cat markings.  

Wednesday,   Mar 11  2009 

  Lithuania Independence Day 

  Train bombings in Spain 2004  

Cuneyt Ozen joins us from Turkey with his 1/72 Academy F-16 Kaplan Filo.  This F-16 is done up in the usual nice quality we expect from Cuneyt Ozen and finished off in the markings for the Turkish Air Force.  BTW....for those of you that don't know.... Kaplan Filo is Turkey's Tiger Squadron.  Kaplan Filo (Squadron 192) was established in 1948 flying P-47's.

Mario Araneda is here with his first 1/48 scale model.  This is his 1/48 Hasegawa Chilean (FACH) P-47.  Mario did some extra scratchbuilding in the cockpit to dress up his FACH Thunderbolt.  It's always good to see aircraft in Chilean markings.......variety is the spice of life.

Warren Osborne is here to show you what a beauty the 1/48 Airfix Lightning F6 model kit is.  Warren built this one mostly out of the box only adding a resin seat.  Markings include a sharks mouth but the real beauty is the job he did pre-shading the panel lines before completing his weathering and finishing job.  Wow....this one is a beaut!!! 

Jim Birchfield has gone the extra mile on his 1/48 Monogram B-26K Nimrod.  Jim used a variety of aftermarket items to reworks his model and also added scratchbuilt detailing to his B-26 before finishing it in US SEA camo.  Nicely done Jim!!! 

Tuesday,   Mar 10  2009 
Alessandro Biagetti joins us from Florenz, Italy with his 1/72 Italeri Fiat BR.20 Cicogna.  Alessandro dressed up the interior with photo etch and gave it one of those great looking camo schemes the Italians were famous for during WW2.  Alessandro displayed his Fiat on a  diorama base complete with an Opel truck. 

Dennis Brackett is here with something very special today.  This is his 1/72 Fujimi TA-4J painted up with the silhouette of a MiG-17.  This may look easy......but it's actually a very difficult paint job to pull off.  Dennis weathered his jet and displayed it flying the desert canyons of it's natural environment. 

Jeremy Spradlin has a passion for the F2G Corsair and today he is here with his 1/48 Accurate Miniatures F2G Corsair.  Jeremy wasn't satisfied just building this kit out of the box, so he folded one wing and did plenty of other detailing to bring his Corsair to life including engine detailing....with very good results.
 

Derrick Ng joins us for the first time on ARC today.  Derrick is from Hong Kong and this is his 1/72 Tamiya General Dynamics F-16D made up into a very fine looking 2 seater F-16.  Looking Good Derrick.....welcome to ARC!!!  I look forward to seeing more of your work on ARC in the future. 

Here's a first look at the new 1/32 F-8J VF-24 Crusaders decal sheet from  Zotz Decals.  This 1/32 decal sheet features 5 different USN VF-24 Fighting Renegades F-8J's in high viz markings from 1972. 

I have a review of the new 1/72 F-14A/B Grim Reapers decal sheet from  Fightertown Decals This new decal sheet  includes markings for 3 different 1/72 F-14's with VFA-101 Grim Reapers.  


Monday,   Mar 9  2009
I've added a link to MasterCasters to the ARC links pages.

Juno Oh gets things started on your Friday update with an excellent looking 1/48 Italeri Mirage 2000C.   Juno did some extra work to fix a few small details but Juno did have good comments about this kit from Italeri.  Juno then finished off his Mirage in French Air Force Tiger markings.

Gabriel Stern is here with another of his vacformed masterpieces.  This is his 1/72 V.L.E Models vac/multimedia Fokker T-2 Coast-to-coast Flight.  Gabriel offers plenty of tips in his article for making vacformed models.
 

Rodrigo Mazzoleni joins us from warm Brazil with his 1/72 Airfix Vickers Wellington Mk VIII.  Rodrigo did some extra detailing on his Wellington including rescribing to create a very fine looking example of this classic WW2 bomber.

J.C. Bahr has put quite a bit of effort into his sharp looking 1/72 Academy North American F-86F-2 Sabre.  This is a jet from Project Gunval and J.C. tells the whole story behind Project Gunval as well as what is involved to create your own Project Gunval Sabre. 

Thursday,   Mar 5  2009 

  Spitfire - Maiden flight of Spitfire in 1936 

Simon Buckland joins us from New Zealand to mark the Maiden Flight of the Spitfire with his first article on ARC.  Simon has recently re-entered the hobby and this is his beautifully done 1/24 Airfix Spitfire Mk1a. Welcome to ARC Simon.....I look forward to seeing more of your work on ARC.  Your Spitfire came out looking spot on. 
 

Ido Barnea has done an outstanding job detailing and finishing his 1/48 Hobby Boss F-105D.   This 105 is finished in the famous Pussy Galore markings.  Ido added plenty of aftermarket detail items but the thing that really sets this model off is the high quality of the finishing.  It came out looking very good.

Phillip Steele has some real talent for building biplanes.  Today he is here with his 1/72 Roden Fokker D VI complete with one of those wild paint schemes from WW1.  Check out the prop blade......it sure does look like wood.....but it isn't......amazing.  Phillip did quite a bit of work to his little Fokker.

Jean-Charles Goddet is here with something different for him.  This is his eye-catching 1/72 Hasegawa F/A-18A Hornet finished off in the colourful markigns for the RAAF 20 Years.  Read Jean-Charles to learn what the stars mean on this plane.......interesting.....I always wondered the answer to this.

Wednesday,   Mar 4  2009 
No update today......I've been overly pre-occupied with the small lingering problems on the ARC Forums. 

Tuesday,   Mar 3  2009 

  Bulgaria National Day 

  Morocco National Day 

Fabrizio Frassica joins us with this excellent looking 1/48 Tamiya He-162 Volksjager.  Fabrizio tells the story of this part wood part metal jet created in the later stages of WW2.

Andrew joins us with his Aircrew display.  This is a special stained glass display cabinet that you must check out.  With the use of mirrors and stained glass, there is the illusion of a complete roundel on one side of this display case.  A very cool effect.  Plus you get to see some of Andrews top notch figures.

Peter Athanasopoulos dropped by the ARC Corporate office in Greece with his very nicely done 1/48 Revell F-84F.  Peter has done an exceptionally nice job building and finishing his Thunderstreak and finished it off in Hellenic Air force markings.

Tigre del Aire is here with his Avia S.199 Mezek.  This is one of the more interesting aircraft flown by the Israeli's ands it was also one of the most dangerous for the pilots.  It's good to see Tigre del Aire's Avia on ARC today. 

Monday,   Mar 2  2009 
Jeff Hamel gets things fired up today with his stunning 1/48 Hasegawa F/A-18F Super Hornet.  Believe it or not.....Jeff's Super Hornet is built out of the box.

Massimo Giugnoli is here with his Italian 1/32 Hasegawa Bf-109 G-6/U4.   Massimo actually took 2 model kit to create this very special kitbash.  Read his article for the full story on this unique model.

Timothy Choi has been busy doing a very fine job on his 1/48 Hasegawa J35F Draken.  Timothy is usually a ship modeller, but this doesn't mean he can't build an aircraft with the best of them.  His Draken came out looking very nice indeed. 

Cuneyt Ozen is here with one of my favourite kits.  This is his 1/12 Italeri F-16 Cockpit full of all the rich detail you would find on the real 1/1 scale aircraft.  These cockpit kits really are quite cool. 

Here's a preview of the new 1/48 SB2C Helldivers decal sheet from Victory Productions It’s based on the ProModeller/Accurate Miniatures release of the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver and features 17 options; from fleet units to post-war Naval Reserve squadrons and focuses on the -4, -4E and -5 aircraft. 


I have some news about the AZTEK® Airbrush System from Testors.


Sunday,   Mar 1  2009 

 Wales - St David's Day