Clearwater Models: March 2020

Sunday 29 March 2020

MiG-25 SCRAMBLE FOR INTERCEPT (Hobbycraft)

This is the very small 1:144 scale Hobbycraft kit of a generic type MiG-25 interceptor. This is another in a series of COVID-19 models. It was done in under 72 hours just for fun.

This is an AIR DEFENCE EMERGENCY SCRAMBLE to intercept incoming U.S. Navy aircraft north of the Kola peninsula in about 1981. The aircraft is part of the 174th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment of the PVO-Strany at Monchegorsk Air Base in the Murmansk Oblast. The aircraft, yellow 43, wears the Guards crest, and is part of an Order of the Red Banner squadron named in honour of BF Safonov. The aircraft is named Mikhail M. Gromov in honour of the famed Soviet test pilot, long range aviator, and commander (1899-1985). The M.M. Gromov Flight Research Institute is named in his honour.

The MiG-25 was first flown in 1964, and entered combat squadrons in 1970, and was produced until 1984. This was the final aircraft designed by Mikhail Gurevich, and was meant to intercept the new USAF B-70 Valkyrie supersonic strategic heavy bomber (which never went into production). It was the second-fastest production aircraft in the world, and holds several aviation records. Today it is the fastest production aircraft remaining in service. Over 1100 were built in several variants.

Paint is Vallejo acrylics and decals are from the IPMS Ottawa decal bank.

MiG-25 air defence scramble at Monchegorsk air base, c. 1981

1:144 scale Hobby Craft MiG-25 interceptor

MiG-25 air defence scramble at Monchegorsk air base, c. 1981

Thursday 26 March 2020

TIRPITZ (Heller)

This is the extremely tiny 1:2000 scale tiny model of the nazi scum battle cruiser/ battleship TIRPITZ which was meant to compete with the growing French navy. This is another in my series of fun and fast build COVID-19 models. I received it as a gift and the lockdown was a great opportunity to get it off the shelf, painted, rigged, and out of here. It was basically a two day build just for fun. The kit (Heller #052) has 46 parts. The model is a mere 12 cm in length. The real ship was 241.6 m. For scale the photos show either my fingers or a one Euro coin. The base is balsa wood and the water/waves are gesso painted with blue and white.

The actual ship was launched by Germany in 1939 and commissioned into the navy in 1941. The only real task for the ship was as a raider against convoys moving towards Murmansk and Arkangelsk in the USSR, but even then it only managed two missions. It spent most of its operational life essentially in hiding -- blanketed in artificial fog, or covered by a forest of trees to evade British heavy bombers! Tirpitz was eventually sunk by RAF Lancaster bombers on 12 November 1944. More than a thousand crewmen died in the explosions and capsizing.

Tirpitz, in 1:2000 scale by Heller

Wednesday 25 March 2020

U.S.S. ENTERPRISE FLIGHT DISPLAY (AMT ERTL)

This is the goodness-knows-what-scale models of Star Trek's three U.S.S. Enterprise spacecraft from AMT/ERTL models. The kit comes with all three spacecraft and a clear disk for displaying the three in flight.

The kit came from a car boot sale several years ago and has been sitting in a closet. This is another COVID-19 model project. The spacecraft were painted with Rust-oleum bright finish metallic chrome to make them look like jewellery silver. I could drill a hole in the top of the disk so that the model display could be hung from the ceiling and totally out of the way.

Friday 20 March 2020

COVID19OSAURUS (Lindberg)

This is the stunningly bad Lindberg kit of a Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus dinosaur and a caveman (?!?!) in what is about 1:50 scale. Despite the fact that there is about 145 million years separating the two species, here they are in a single kit. Yes, that is biblical version of evolution for you from a US model kit company.

Right now I an stuck at home and am working on a lot of models, and working on models a lot. So this is my new COVID-19 model. Paint is all Vallejo acrylics, both airbrushed and hand painted. Moss is from Turkey via the dollar store.

I have entitled this one COVID19OSAURUS versus JUSTIN TRUDEAU, and it shows the COVID-19 dinosaur and the pathetic Canadian government response which is leaving the bulk of the population dangerously exposed with minimal assistance while pourings billions (and in the USA 3.8 trillions) of dollars into bank and stock support. Thanks Justin! Thanks Donald!

COVID19OSAURUS versus the Canadian government

For those of you in the USA, you might find this version more to your tastes:

Donald Trump versus the COVID19OSAURUS

COVID19OSAURUS versus the Canadian government

Tuesday 17 March 2020

HMS VICTORY

This HMS VICTORY cross-section model project began in early 2017 with a 1:200 scale wooden kit from an unnamed company in China. It appeared in this blog as a work-in-progress in May 2017. Three years later it is finally finished. The finish took one week, so it sat untouched for about three years taunting me.

This is a cross-section of the famous sailing battleship commanded by Admiral Nelson and victorious at the battle of Trafalgar in 1805. It is preserved as a national treasure at the Royal Navy Yard in Portsmouth. I first visited the ship in 1977.

What made the build so very difficult is that the box mailed from China did not have the instruction sheets in it. So everything is a guess based on photos of the real thing and of professional models of the Victory. It is an all-wood kit. Only the gun barrels are brass. The kit costs about $30. There are several parts remaining and without plans I have no idea what they might be used for! Most of the paint is Vallejo, with some yellow from Tamiya.

under construction at Chatham Dockyard,
which just happens to be in my spare bathroom