Stuart's Scale Models

 Last one from 2020 Greetings Fellow Modellers! I recently completed Airfix's new tooling (2019) of Blackburn's famous naval strike aircraft, the Buccaneer. This kit was completed as an S.2D, which was a S.2C modified to carry the Martel Air to Surface Missile, with the aid of some additional parts from the old S.2B kit. This kit really was a step forward from the old Airfix kits that I've built in the past, the detail is superbly done, the fit and engineering (mostly) well thought out and the mould quality top notch - technically the best Airfix kit I've ever seen. Excellent stuff indeed? Generally the kit built really well and very easily (the fit is very very good in places) and I only really had a few minor niggles during the construction. I'll highlight them here for anyone considering building this kit in the future. The nose assembly - When you build up this kit yourself, you have to ensure that the cockpit and the nose halves are closed perfectly, othe

 Another old Post from 2020. Greetings Fellow Modellers! I recently finished a fabulous little classic kit - a 1/76 Humber Scout Car mk.II. Dating from 1973, this is one of the range of decent armour kits produced by Matchbox in the 70's and 80's. I'm not much of an armour builder, but the uamf have been holding a group build in memory of one of our fellow members, Steve, an avid military vehicle modeller, who passed away suddenly earlier in the year. These old Matchbox kits are perfect for someone who wants to have a go at this particular branch of modelling, low parts count, great fit, simple construction and they look pretty good when finished. The model was painted with old fashioned Humbrol Enamels, and the base (which comes as part of the kit) was flocked with sand from the Citadel range. Normally I would have drilled out the barrel but this one was so small I left it how it was. A bit of post paint weathering was carried out with some Citadel washes and some

Recently I've been re-posting a few posts from my old Wordpress blog 'Mediocre Models'. This one was originally posted back in the dark days of Covid in 2020, but I think it still stands... Greetings Fellow Modellers! During this highly unusual time of ' Staying at Home ' and ' Keeping Safe ', what better way could there be to pass the time* than digging that long forgotten Airfix kit out of the attic**, getting a tube of glue, some brushes and paint, rolling out newspaper on the kitchen table, turning the clock back to the 1980's (showing my age here) and building a scale model! In future posts I may well put up some thoughts for basic tools and methods, review a kit or two and share some of my own work in progress. All with the aim of helping someone new or returning to this wonderful hobby get into it. I'm also going to add a page up with some links to various websites and forums where you'll be able to get the stuff and help you need. So welc

The sharp eyed amongst you (yeah, like anyone is reading this anyway) will notice a bit of a leap in time between posts - obviously I might have missed posting up a few builds... ...So here's a catch-up on what late 2023 produced.  Airfix 1/72 Fiat G.52bis - an oooooolllld kit, but one I've wanted to build for years. Airfix 1/72 Supermarine Spitfire mk.I (Aldi Special) Airfix 1/72 Hawker Hurricane mk.I (Aldi Special) Airfix 1/72 P-80C Shooting Star - I was REALLY pleased with this one. Esci 1/72 N.A. F-100D (D? or was it an E? or an F... I can't remember) Super Sabre - I DO hate that bomb though, I need to remove it.  Airfix 1/72 Lockheed Martin F-35B Starter Set - In what if markings as a 1980's tactical camo'd aircraft in 617 sqn markings.  Special Hobby 1/72 D.H. Vampire mk. Something  - In what if USSR Markings. We did sell them jet engines after all, why not aircraft as well. I really must do a Mig-15 in RAF markings to go with this.  Monogram 1/72 Panavia &#

Although it was never to see battle, the Handley Page Heyford, the mainstay of the Royal Air Force's bomber squadrons of the mid 1930s, will forever remain famous for being the first aircraft in history to be detected by the means of reflected radio waves. To accompany my post about the Birth of Radar , here is a brief look at the history of an aircraft that played a vital, but often overlooked part in the defence of Britain. The Heyford is most notably the last biplane heavy Bomber operated by the RAF. It was also the last of a long series of heavy bombers built by Handley Page going all the way back to 1915 with the 0/100 and the 0/400 in 1918. 9" A Handley Page 0/400 in 1918 - with a greater range and a larger bomb load than those of its predecessors, this night bomber was intended to 'give it back' to Germany after the Zeppelin and Gotha raids over London. The Heyford could be considered the ultimate RAF biplane bomber. Designed by Handley Page's lead design

 This is a re-post from my old 'Ratmobile Adventures' blog - which can still be found  here!  Hopefully it'll be the start of a few aviation history posts I might write as the mood takes me.  Greetings Fellow Adventurers! It always amazes me what you can find by the side of the road. Our countryside is peppered with little plaques, memorials and notice boards, all giving an insight into the rich and varied history of our country, the events big and small that helped form it and the people who created it. There is one such memorial just off the A5 near Daventry. It marks the spot where, in February 1935, two men drove a Flatnose Morris van into a field near Upper Stowe in Northamptonshire. They erected two sets of wooden poles, rigged wires between them, connected them to some receiving equipment in the back of the van and set to work, and in doing so they changed the course of history. The Memorial in question with some of the much needed hills behind it - read on During t