SPA Modeler

Very nice progress on your Tornado Stuart. Paint job look real sharp.

Stikpusher wrote: ↑Tue Mar 28, 2023 7:03 pm

Stuart wrote: ↑Tue Mar 28, 2023 5:21 pm Oh yeah, build more British, as British jets are cool!

Definitely! I watched Thunderball over the weekend and really loved the Vulcan scenes. Too bad there is no 1/48 Vulcan because that would be a must have. Not to mention that RAF recruiting video you posted a couple of weeks ago Stuart…

As John said,, that would be blooming massive!

I'd like to get the trio of Airfix V-bombers, no idea where the hell I'd put them though!

cbaltrin wrote: ↑Wed Mar 29, 2023 5:25 am Very nice progress on your Tornado Stuart. Paint job look real sharp.

Thanks CB. It's certainly coming along. I need to put a few more coats on though.

Stuart wrote: ↑Wed Mar 29, 2023 5:58 am
I'd like to get the trio of Airfix V-bombers, no idea where the hell I'd put them though!

That and the 55 gal drum of paint you'd need

I'm still plugging away with this - although I've yet to start the Sparkvark.

The main part of the Tornado is finished,



And I'm working on the underwing stores - not overly accurate (none of the stores that came with the kit are anyway), but should look okay visually. I'm probably not going to bother with any of the under fuselage stores as they're totally inaccurate, as are the pylons.



Cheers!

Well the finish line is just ahead for you on this one Stuart. How bad is the ordnance? The drop tanks look off a bit, but will the fuselage pylons even be visible once they are bombed up?

The main problem, like most kits of the Tornado, is that it was tooled when the aircraft was still in the prototype/testing stage, and therefore they don't really represent an operational aircraft, and the Monogram kit makes this worse by having oversized pylons under wings - but they're liveable.

I've mange to source a reasonably accurate Skyshadow and Boz pod, but the tanks were a challenge - they're not really right but were the best I could do - nobody does AM Tornado tanks.

The undersides though. It goes back to the prototype issue - most kits have the under-fuselage pylons bombed up with 8 iron bombs and they never carried that payload in service - and the bombs are pretty crap. I could probably modify the pylons but I'll have to source something else to hang off them.

Well the Tornado is 'almost done' - I've certainly finished with the Monogram part of the build. I have been wondering about what load out to give it, and after a conversation with a chap on another forum I've decided - he's currently in the process of designing and 3D printing me some WE.177B Tactical Nuclear bombs for it. It should certainly look different, although I' not sure if the Tornado could carry one or two.

Here's where I am now anyway - when I get my nukes fitted, I'll take some better shots. Overall I'm pretty impressed with this kit. Even though it's based on the prototype, just like a lot of other Tornado kits, it scrubbed up pretty nicely.




I need to get on with the Sparkvark now.

A real beauty!

Looks great! Are you on a swingwing build kick? BTW looks like the have ordinance on the swing wing - I assume they could fire from any position