ASM Articles Page

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ASM Website Pages - Click on applicable Title below to visit that page

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Click on selections below to navigate to that location on this webpage or to a separate webpage (annotated by *)

    

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Next Club Contest

 Click here for info on ASM's 2021 Virtual Contests

***  The April 3rd ASM In-Person Meeting has been Canceled  ***

 

2021 Virtual Contest # 3 is :

"BIG or small"

 

With entries due on Saturday May 8th

** New E-mail address for entries:  asmvmc2021entries@gmail.com **

Click here for Word doc version of the Contest ROE

Scale criteria is also included in the Sign above

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2021 Virtual Contest # 2 was :

"Open"

With entries due on March 6th

       

Contest Results will be posted ASAP !

       

 

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 Upcoming ASM Contests Info

***  See Contest Schedule for status of upcoming contests  ***

May 7th  - Theme TBD

For further details on upcoming contests, click on the link below to the

ASM Contest Schedule section of the website:  Contest Schedule

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Next Sponsored Contest

TBD for 2021

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Upcoming Sponsored Contests:

TBD for 2021

 

For further details on upcoming Sponsored Contests, click on the link below to the

Sponsored Contest ROE

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Upcoming Events Calendar

Please notify the ASM Webmaster of any additional events that should be included.

	2021 Schedule
Date	Event details will be posted as they become known, as will changes & cancellations
April 23-25 Postponed	StarFest 2021.   Science Fiction Convention, Postponed - Date now TBD. Marriott and Hilton DTC Convention Hotels, Denver Colorado.  ModelFest & model contest at StarFest, hosted by IPMS CoMMiES.
May 8	Modelmania 2021.  Stafford Center, Stafford Texas.  IPMS Houston, IPMS Region 6.
June 25-27	Albuquerque Comic Con, Albuquerque Convention Center, Albuquerque NM.  See ASM Trip Report from the 2011 event.  See ASM Trip Report for the 2012 Event.
July 24th	Houston Automotive Modelers Society 14th Model Car Show and Contest.  Cypress Creek Christian Community Center Form, Spring, Texas.  IPMS Region 6.
August 11-15	Star Trek Convention - Las Vegas 2021, Rio Suites Hotel, Las Vegas NV.  See Star Trek Trip Report from the 2011 event. Star Trek Trip Reports for 2013 and 2014.
* August 18-21 *	IPMS/USA 2021 National Convention.  Rio Hotel Resort and Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada.
August 20-22	Bubonicon 52 - Take 2.  Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention, Albuquerque Marriott Uptown, 2101 Louisiana Blvd NE (Louisiana & I-40), Albuquerque, NM
August TBD	New Mexico State Fair  ASM-Sponsored Model Contest; Model registration dates are still TBD at this time.  Will be two days from 9 AM to 5 PM each day. Judging probably on Tue or Wed the week following.  Tentative ASM Display-Only Theme: "The Korean War (1950-1953)"  The state fair runs Sep 9-19.  Model pick-up is on Mon, Sep 20 from 9 AM to 5 PM.
September TBD	ASM Model Display at the 2021 Folds of Honor Patriot Gala at location TBD
September TBD	ASM Model Display at the 2021 Air Force Ball at Kirtland AFB.  Theme TBD
October TBD	Sante Fe Comic Con 2021.  Dates TBD.  Buffalo Thunder Resort, Sante Fe, New Mexico
November TBD	ModelZona 2021  Location TBD.  IPMS Craig Hewitt Chapter, Region 10.
April 7-9. 2022	AMPS 2022 International Convention.  The AMPS 2021 Convention was rescheduled to April 7-9, 2022.  Marriot at City Center, Newport News, Virginia
	2020 Schedule
January 17-19, 2020	Albuquerque Comic Con, Albuquerque Convention Center, Albuquerque NM.  See ASM Trip Report from the 2011 event.  See ASM Trip Report for the 2012 Event.
January 24-26	Model Car Contest, sponsored by the Albuquerque Model Car Club, at Expo New Mexico, in conjunction with the 29th Annual Super Nationals Custom Auto Show.  Contest is on Jan 25th.
February 15	Model Fiesta 39.  San Antonio Event Center, San Antonio Texas.  IPMS Region 6.
March 28 Postponed to Aug 15	CoMMiESFest 2020 - Tentatively rescheduled for August 15. "20/20 - Sweating the Small Stuff"  Jefferson County Fairgrounds, Golden, Colorado, 9AM-5PM. IPMS CoMMiES, Region 10.
April 3 Meeting cancelled	"USS Iowa" Presentation by Kathy Meyer at April 3rd ASM Meeting
April 4 Canceled	Trinity Site Open to the Public.  The April 4th event has been canceled.  8:00 AM to 3:30 PM at White Sands Missile Range.
April 16 Postponed to Aug 22	Route 66 Model Expo 2020, Rescheduled for August 22.  Bixby Community Center. Tulsa Modelers Forum, IPMS Region 6.
April 25 Postponed to Sep 5	Best of the West 2020 Show and Contest.  Rescheduled for September 5.  East Side Cannery Resort and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada.  IPMS Region 8.
April 25 Postponed to Sep 27	Modelmania 2020.  Rescheduled for Septmeber 27.  "Call of the Wild"  Stafford Center, Stafford Texas.  IPMS Houston, IPMS Region 6.
May 1-3 Postponed - Now canceled	StarFest 2020.   Science Fiction Convention, Was Postponed - Now canceled for 2020. Marriott and Hilton DTC Convention Hotels, Denver Colorado.  ModelFest & model contest at StarFest, hosted by IPMS CoMMiES.
May 7-9 Rescheduled to Sep 24-26. Now canceled.	AMPS 2020 International Convention.  "Last Battles" Radisson Hotel Harrisburg, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania.  Was May 7-9 - Rescheduled for September 24-26 in Danbury, Connecticutt
June 5 Meeting Canceled	"USAF Air Superiority in the Korean War" presentation by Douglas Dildy at June 5 ASM Meeting
---	Squadron Eaglequest 29 - normally in June -  has been cancelled
July 29 - August 1 Event Canceled	IPMS/USA National Convention,  Embassy Suites and San Marcos Convention Center, San Marcos, Texas.  Canceled due to Corona Virus situation.  Will be rescheduled in 2023.
August 5-9 Rescheduled to Dec 9-13. Now canceled	Star Trek Convention - Las Vegas 2020, Rio Suites Hotel, Las Vegas NV.  See Star Trek Trip Report from the 2011 event. Star Trek Trip Reports for 2013 and 2014.  Rescheduled to Dec 9-13 at Caesars Forum Conference Center. Finally canceled on 13 Oct 20. 2021 convention is scheduled for Aug 11-15, 2021 at Rio Suites Hotel.
August TBD State Fair Model Entries - Fair has been Canceled	New Mexico State Fair  ASM-Sponsored Model Contest; Model registration dates are still TBD at this time.  Will be two days from 9 AM to 5 PM each day. Judging probably on Wed or Thur the week following.  ASM Display-Only Theme: "The Korean War (1950-1953)"  The state fair runs Sep 10-20.  Model pick-up is on Mon, Sep 21 from 9 AM to 5 PM.
August 15 Tentative New Date - Now Canceled	CoMMiESFest 2020 - Was March 28.  Tentatively rescheduled for August 15. "20/20 - Sweating the Small Stuff"  Jefferson County Fairgrounds, Golden, Colorado, 9AM-5PM. IPMS CoMMiES, Region 10.
August 22 Rescheduled Date	Route 66 Model Expo 2020, Was April 16 - Rescheduled for August 22.  Bixby Community Center. Tulsa Modelers Forum, IPMS Region 6.
August 28-30 Event Canceled	Bubonicon 52 - 2020.  Science Fiction and Fantasy Convention, Albuquerque Marriott Uptown, 2101 Louisiana Blvd NE (Louisiana & I-40), Albuquerque, NM
September 11  - Display Canceled	ASM Model Display at the 2020 Folds of Honor Patriot Gala at the Isleta Resort and Casino in Albuquerque, NM
September 18 (Date TBD) - Event Canceled	ASM Model Display at the 2020 Air Force Ball at Kirtland AFB
September 24-26 Rescheduled Date - Now Canceled	AMPS 2020 International Convention.  Was May 7-9.  "Last Battles" Radisson Hotel Harrisburg, Camp Hill, Pennsylvania.  Rescheduled for September 24-26 in Danbury, Connecticutt
September 25 Rescheduled Date - Now Canceled	Best of the West 2020 Show and Contest.  Was April 25 - Rescheduled for September 5.  East Side Cannery Resort and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada.  IPMS Region 8.
September 27 Rescheduled Date	Modelmania 2020.  Was April 25 - Rescheduled for Septmeber 27.  "Call of the Wild"  Stafford Center, Stafford Texas.  IPMS Houston, IPMS Region 6.
October 3	Trinity Site Open to the Public.  8:00 AM to 3:30 PM at White Sands Missile Range.
October 22 Canceled	Salt Lake City XX.  Miller Campus Salt Lake Community College, Sandy, Utah.  9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.  IPMS Salt Lake City Chapter, Region 10.  Canceled - hope to reschedule for 2022.
November 3 Postponed - TBD	ModelZona 2020  Red Mountain Community Church Gym Building, 6101 E. Virginia St, Mesa, AZ from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.   IPMS Craig Hewitt Chapter, Region 10.
December 9-13 Rescheduled Date New Venue	Star Trek Convention - Las Vegas 2020,   Was Aug 5-9.  See Star Trek Trip Report from the 2011 event. Star Trek Trip Reports for 2013 and 2014.  Rescheduled to Dec 9-13 at Caesars Forum Conference Center, Las Vegas NV.

 

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Notes and News Items

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ASM 2020 Virtual Model of the Year Winners

Virtual Model of the Year Juniors	Virtual Model of the Year Basic	Virtual Model of the Year Intermediate	Virtual Model of the Year Masters
No Entries	Mark Vaughn	Paul Fontenoy	Jim Guld
No Entries	Civil War Cannon	River Monitor Mosel	A10 Mk IA Diorama

Click here for all 2020 Contending Models

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ASM has won the 2019 Region 10 Chapter of the Year Award

and the 2019 Region 10 Website of the Year Award

           Region 10 Chapter of the Year Cup

     

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Current Articles

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Deadline to submit proposed ASM Newsletter articles to

Joe Walters is 10 days prior to the date of the upcoming club meeting.

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ASM E-Board Articles

Click Here for Recently Archived E-Board Articles

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Club Column

By John Tate, Acting ASM President

January Article

Tony Humphries stepped down from the club president spot last month at the end of his calendar-year term, and as club vice president I became acting president until our first in-person club meeting, when a new E-Board will be nominated and elected by the membership.  Tony deserves our thanks for serving competently as club president for several terms over the years, including and especially the unforeseen pandemic year of 2020, and fortunately he will be sticking around as an active modeler and club member.  Pro Tem E-Board member Dave Epstein has stepped into the vacated VP position with approval of the Board.

 So where do things stand with the club?  Well no surprise, we're still in limbo due to the pandemic.  Presumably at some point in the future, mass vaccinations and a declining infection rate will allow UNM to reopen its conference center, and we can resume in-person meetings.  How that will happen and what the new rules will be are of course unknown at this time.  Future events could still throw a monkey wrench into our reopening plans so flexibility will be the key.  However, there's a consensus on the Board and in the club that the UNM space is the one that best meets our needs, so we'll try to stay there as long as they will have us.

In the meantime, our club has no expenses and a bank account in the black; we're in a good position to get going again once the pandemic ends.

Modeling-wise, there are several virtual contests on the club contest schedule this year and an IPMS Nationals coming up in Las Vegas in August.  If you find yourself with some extra time during lockdowns, haul out some of those dream projects and start building; if you think about it, we'll probably never have a better time to get some scale modeling done than right now.

If you have any questions or concerns during our lockdown phase, feel free to contact me at abq95@hotmail.com.

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President's Report - The Fez

By Tony Humphries, ASM President

December Article

The Final Fez

Well, here we are with the last newsletter of 2020, a year that many of us would prefer to forget, I'm sure. We all know what's been going on in the news and I hope that everyone is taking this seriously now. I think that most of you are and I am relieved about that. Obviously, if you don't, that's your choice. Or your funeral, as we say in England. Maybe literally...

Anyway, the current outbreak obviously means that we are still not going to be meeting in person any time soon. Even when we are able to do so, there are many questions that we still have to address. Will we only allow people into our meetings who have been vaccinated? If so, how do we prove it?
Maybe we can have a numbered tag stapled to everyone's ear in an agricultural manner? Well, okay, maybe that's going a bit far... Do we still require masks? Do we limit ourselves to, say, 20 people per meeting and continue to socially distance throughout? There are clearly many unanswered
questions currently, although the current (acting) E-Board have been discussing these already in the hope that vaccinations will soon become available and also that people will take them. If you refuse to do so or refuse to wear a mask then I don't know what we will do about that, as yet. I certainly wouldn't let you anywhere near me or my family, personally, but what steps the club will take remain to be determined.

There are some difficult decisions facing many of us in the coming months anyway both personally and within the hobby and many clubs of our size (or larger) are going to face some serious issues. There will no doubt be people who will not want to be told what to do and whether they are even able to
remain members of our own, or other clubs, or whether they will be allowed into regional or national conventions again remains to be seen. We don't have anything in our by-laws about that and I doubt that anyone who's not Mayan had actually foreseen this calamitous event or prepared their club for it. I think it's important for us to acknowledge that it's not going to instantly return to normal as soon as a vaccine is available. As I said, we haven't made any of these decisions as a club yet, but once we do, you can rest assured that you will be told about it as soon as we know ourselves.

You may wonder why I am discussing issues that may still be several months away. Well I thought I'd mention it since it was fresh in my mind, but also it's a discussion that I won't be involved in guiding or shaping as club President, as I am about to step down from that role. I had expected, honestly, that we would have elected a new E-Board by now and that many of us on the board currently could have handed over our roles and responsibilities to a new
generation of club members, to take the club ever onwards. None of us expected things to turn out the way they have though.

As far as my own reasoning is concerned, I have too many other things going on outside of the hobby at present (again) to be able to devote the time
and energy to this role that it both needs and the club deserves. Consequently, I am going to pass that mantle on to someone who does. I am delighted to say that I will hand over my current duties in the next couple of weeks to an exceptionally capable replacement in John Tate, our current Vice-
President. As you probably already know, he has been a member, both of ASM and IPMS, for many years now and is a talented, well-known, and widely respected modeler with a huge trophy haul to his name and a large number of contacts within the hobby, that can only benefit us as a club. He's also a thoroughly decent, friendly and approachable guy too, which also helps. There's basically nothing about this hobby that John doesn't know and I know that he will do a splendid job as President. I can't think of a better man for the job. He's been President of the club before, too, so what more could you ask for? I know he'll do a better job than I did!

Anyway, I will close here by saying thanks to all of you for your support over the past year-and-change and I wish you and your families a wonderful
Christmas and a Happy, prosperous and above all, safe New Year. Be careful out there!

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Webmaster's Tales By Mike Blohm, ASM Webmaster

The ASM Website pages are updated through the Jan - Feb 2021 Virtual Contest #1 at this time.  Note: there were no meetings in April, through December, 2020 and in January through February 2021.  The Contest Results and Model Pictures have been posted for the Virtual Contests that occured through those periods, but there have been no pictures to post on the Meeting Pictures webpage.  Pictures from the new Virtual Contests will be posted as they occur.  Special 2020 and 2021 "Virtual Model Contests webpages have been created to show the contests and their ROEs since they may occur across multiple months (i.e., Jan - Feb). 

The website's changeover to 2021 webpages was completed in January.  All of the "yearly" web pages (contest results, model pics, meeting pics, and model of the year) have been created and populated with the pictures and information for 2021. We are not currently tracking the 2021 modeler of the year because the virtual contets are non-points contests.  The 2021 pages have links to last year's info and to previous years, often going back to 2004.  Note that selecting any of the button at the top of the 2021 pages will take you to other 2021 web pages.  If you are on previous year's pages (for example 2018 Model Pics) selecting a "year" web page will take you to that same year's pages.  Note that selecting the Home Page will always get you back to the Home Page.  

There were some changes in Oct 2020 to the 18 hot link buttons bar shown at the top of each ASM webpage to make it easier to navigate to the more popular pages.  Added in the lower right corner were ASM Reviews, the New Mexico State Fair, and Website Updates.  The Website Updates link wording include the date of the last update (for example 10-24 for October 24th.  Review the entire article on the changes at ASM Website Changes.

Some reminders about the ASM website:

The “Marquee Banner” that scrolls across the top of the Home Page will always have the latest info on club activities – contests, events and speakers for the upcoming month, notice that new schedules and Newsletters have been posted, and whether an event has been postponed – so always check that out first when you visit the ASM website.  If the weather looks bad enough that the meeting might be cancelled - check that banner before you drive to the meeting.  We did use it once in 2011 when a meeting was cancelled by UNM due to a snow storm (all campus buildings were closed).  There will probably also be an audio alert (beeping sounds) that will go off when the page initially comes up if a meeting has been cancelled. 

There is an  "ASM Review Articles"  page link in the "18 Links" bar at the top of every major webpage, and also listed in the "Index" at the top of the Articles Page.  This page is an archive of all previous review articles authored by ASM members - it has links to different sections of the page based upon the review topic - aircraft, armor, automotive, books, etc.  Please take the time to write up a short blurb if you are building a new kit and submit that and some in-progress / final pics to the website and ASM Newsletter. 

There is also a "NM State Fair Model Contests" page in the "18 Links" bar at the top of every major webpage, and also listed in the "Index" at the top of the Articles Page.  This page includes links to separate  NM State Fair contest resuls pages from 2005 to 2020.  It also includes all the Section and Class entry criteria.  Current year information will be posted as soon as it is available.  Read through this information to learn what models you should be thinking about entering in 2021.  Note that ASM Master and Intermediate modelers are asked to enter in the "Professional" Class.  Please note that there is also a link in the  that will take you to the actual NM State Fair site. 

ASM Newsletters are available on the website going back to January 2004. 

We have other webpages going Way-Back to: Model Pics - 2006; Meeting Pics - 2005; Contest Results - 2003; Modeler of Year - 2003; Model of Year - 2005.

The “New and Potential ASM Members” web page has all the info that new and prospective members need to review to understand how ASM is set up and the policies that govern club operations – the By Laws, Contest Guidelines, etc.  The link to the New Member page is on the Home Page.  Both new members and “old heads” should review these documents every so often. 

Some of the links on the "Website Updates" page back to older article postings no longer work .  If you cannot find an older article mentioned in the Website Update listings, it would be best to check the "Archived Articles" page as it was probably moved to that location.  Articles moved to the Archives are always posted at the top of that page, so the most recently removed articles will be found at the top of the page.  Scroll down to go back in time - the ASM Time Machine. Note that the Archives were broken up into three sections (dates are listed) due to the amount of articles being archived.  Note that most articles now get posted in two locations, so they should be available after they get removed from the Articles webpage.  For example, trip reports get posted on both the Articles webpage and the Field Trips webpage.  Review articles get posted to the ASM Reviews webpage and the Articles webpage. 

As always, let me know if you have any ideas for changes or additions to the website, and please send me any articles, reviews, or trip reports with pictures that you’d like to post on the website - and also send your inputs to Joe Walters if you'd like your article  included in the  the Newsletter as well.    Thanks!

Website of the Year!

by Joe Walters, ASM Newsletter Editor

On July 24, 2019 the Region 10 Coordinator Mike Mackowski announced the 2018 award winners, and once again Mike Blohm was named Webmaster of the Year!  From Mackowski's announcement:

Mike Blohm (from Albuquerque Scale Modelers) is the R10 Webmaster of the Year for 2018. Albuquerque's site is very comprehensive, easy to navigate, promotes IPMS/USA on the main page, and has a specific page for people new to the hobby. Their self-nomination essay is attached and is very detailed.

Citation: For producing a sharp, easy to use, well organized website with useful and timely content including ready links to IPMS/USA.

Chapter of the Year was awarded to IPMS Craig Hewitt Chapter, which, considering they hosted the Nationals last year, was certainly well deserved!

Newsletter of the Year went to The Corsair newsletter of the same chapter, an excellent and deserving publication.

[NB: The ASM Newsletter is not eligible for that award, as only newsletters edited by IPMS members are eligible, and I’m not a member. -JW]

Congratulations, Mike! Best. Website. Ever.

 

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ASM Member Articles

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 ^{Jack Morris - In Memorium}

  ^{By John Tate}

 

Jack Morris, a longtime ASM member and friend to many in the club, passed away on Jan 16, 2021 after a brief illness; he was 80 years old.  Jack is survived by his daughter Amanda, and his friend Dianne Fogel.  Jack was a Colonel, USAF (Retired) and a Vietnam veteran who had a distinguished career in the development of aircraft munitions and weaponry.  Jack had resided in Santa Fe, NM since 1994. 

Jack joined IPMS/USA back in the 1960s; he had a coveted, low membership number of 716 and was an experienced national contest judge.  Our club membership records show him on the roster going back to 2000 but I recall first meeting him at a local scale modeling show in the late 1990s.

In retirement, Jack had a second career as a graphic artist, specifically producing aircraft profiles and decal sheets for the scale modeling hobby.  He was well known in our club for the custom decal sheets he graciously produced for club members; a 1/48 VNAF Criquet sheet he produced for me a decade ago is the most prized decal sheet in my collection.

Most of all, I remember Jack for his wit and comraderie, joining us at our after-meeting Village Inn diner gatherings and sharing a wealth of information about aircraft, the Vietnam War, scale modeling and IPMS.  His passing is a real loss for the club.  I once asked Jack what his favorite aircraft from the Vietnam War was, and without hesitation, he said it was the Phantom.  I can't think of a better tribute from ASM members than building a Vietnam-era F-4 Phantom II jet model this year to honor his memory.

Here is a link to Jack's obituary in the Sante Fe New Mexican:
https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/santafenewmexican/obituary.aspx?n=jack-morris&pid=197715312

1     2     3     4     5     6

 7     8     9     10     11

 

Pictures of Jack added by Webmaster.  Picture descriptions by numbers:

1. Picture of young Jack used in his Obituary

2. Jack's EC-47 model entry in the June 2006 ASM contest "The Best Two-fer" (twin-engined prop aircraft)

3. ASM members at the 2013 IPMS/USA National Convetion Awards Dinner

4. ASM members at the 2018 IPMS/USA National Convetion Awards Dinner

5 - 8. Jack at the February 2017 ASM Meeting

9 - 10. Jack at the July 2019 ASM Meeting

11. Military Memorial Service location for Jack at the Sante Fe National Cemetary held on March 18th (provided by John Tate who represented the club)

Jack will be missed!

 

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 ^{Colonel Fisher and his Skyraider}

 ^{By John Tate}

A Shau Valley, Republic of Vietnam, March 10, 1966 - a U.S. Special Forces base was under attack from the North Vietnamese and USAF A-1E Skyraiders of the 1st Special Operations Squadron were striking the enemy. One of the Skyraiders was hit and crash landed at an airstrip at the Special Forces base, its pilot, Major "Jump" Myers, taking cover behind an embankment. Major Bernard Fisher, flying another Skyraider, made a quick decision to land his plane under intense enemy fire and rescued Major Myers. On January 19th, 1967, Major Fisher was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism, by President Lyndon Johnson.

   

I first learned of Major Fisher, who retired from the Air Force at the grade of Colonel in 1974, from a Caracal 1/48 decal sheet on the A-1E Skyraider, which had markings for his plane.  Wanting to know more, I read Colonel Fisher's 2004 autobiography, "Beyond the Call of Duty," which was a highly readable and enjoyable book about Colonel Fisher's career, Skyraider operations in Vietnam and the circumstances of the famous rescue.  I was hooked, so had to build a model of his plane.

When it comes to modeling options for 1/48 A-1E Skyraiders, there's only one game in town, the four-decades-old Matchbox kit, re-released by Revell in 2013. It was very much a creature of its times, with toy-like folding wings and rudimentary representations of ordnance. But the good news was, it was generally accurate in shape and the cockpit was OK, at least with the canopy closed. So I got to work. Since I wanted a completed model I kept AMS to a minimum but still made some basic fixes and corrections for the sake of accuracy. One thing I didn't do was effect the suggested wing swap surgery with a 1/48 A-1H Skyraider kit; that was never going to look right and was more trouble than it's worth. Here's some of the work I did to the kit:

* Added seatbelts to the kit's non-ejection seats, correct for this plane in 1966.
* Added a reflector gunsight to the instrument panel coaming.
* Added a prop, wheels and wing pylons from a Monogram 1/48 A-1H Skyraider kit.
* Added "iron bomb" ordnance, mostly 500 pounders, from the spares box.
* Added a variety of antennas to the aircraft spine, to match period photos of A-1E's.
* Shortened the landing gear legs to give the model a proper "sit."
* Scraped and sanded the heavy side braces off the windscreen, which were not present on the real plane, and added internal braces.
* Added a scratchbuilt windshield wiper.
* Added a correct centerline tank and pylon from the Tamiya Skyraider kit.

                       

The biggest job was closing the folding wings but the task wasn't too bad, just tedious. When I got most of the work on the kit finished, I painted the model in an overall gray color, similar to USAF ADC Gray, which was correct for this early batch of Skyraiders, and added silver leading edges to the wings and horizontal stabilizers. Painting the "Blue Room" canopy was fun and easy.

The Caracal decals went on nicely, and were accurate for the plane, but make sure to check photos of real planes from the period to get placement correct.

I was proud of the model when I finished it, not because it's a contest-winner, but because I had to put some work into the model to get a nice replica, to honor a great aviator and American hero, Colonel Fisher, who passed away in 2014. With each year, the Vietnam War passes further out of human memory, and as modelers we can do our part to make sure history isn't forgotten. If you get a chance during the coming year, check your shelves for that Vietnam War model subject you overlooked, and like me, take a chance to learn something new about the story of the war and the men who served in it. 

 

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^{Kit Review - Bandai 1/12 Star Wars Stormtrooper}

 ^{By John Tate}

We all know these bad guys - Imperial Stormtroopers - so no further introduction is necessary; if you really need to know more about them, binge watch the incomparable Star Wars movie series, spanning more than 30 years. What is new, is the superb Star Wars model line released by the veteran Japanese model company, Bandai. The detail, accuracy and fit of these models is amazing and if you haven't built one, give one a try.

Among the many Star Wars model kits released by Bandai is a 1/12 figure line consisting of everything from General Greivous to Boba Fett. The Stormtrooper kit was irresistible so I picked one up from Hobby Proz and started building. The kit is finely engineered and for the most part can be built as a snap-together kit. That said, it's not kid's stuff; you need to pay close attention to the fit of tiny pieces as you put it together. If you take your time, you will be rewarded with an articulated figure that can be accurately posed alone or with other Star Wars figures. The only nitpick I had was the figure helmet had a seam line down the back which had to be glued, filled, sanded and painted. Not a big problem but to improve model appearance I took the time to address it.

The kit comes with a nice selection of laser weapons; I chose to pose mine with the "DLT-19" heavy blaster rifle. A neat feature of the kit is the selection of posable hands which fit over weapon grips.

Generally, movie Stormtroopers have a clean uniform so initially I was going to leave the figure unweathered but decided to add a little real-world wear with a light acrylic wash to represent a trooper in service at an Imperial outpost. Not a lot of pigment, just enough to highlight details. A small decal sheet is included with the kit but is unnecessary for the build.

A positive attribute of this 2018 kit is that the plastic seemed more tolerant of enamel paint than earlier kits, which crumbled like chalk when exposed to paint thinner. Still, I wouldn't press my luck- use acrylics when finishing these models.

The kit instructions were nicely done and the exploded views were helpful during the build.

There you have it - a great kit of a great subject. Seriously, even if you're a model airplane nut like me, give one of these kits a try - you'll have a lot of fun and a neat souvenir from the Star Wars universe.

           

 

 

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<sup>North Korean Prop Fighters in the Korean War

By Mike Blohm</sup>

<sup>This article covers the model builds and a short history of two Soviet-built propellor-driven fighters that saw service in the North Korean Air Force in the Korean War. These include the Yakevlov Yak-9, NATO-reporting name "Frank" and the Lavochkin La-11 "Fang." Model kits involved include the 1/72 scale Encore Models Yak-9D and the MPM La-9 / 11. These models were intended for ASM's "Korean War 80th Anniversary" display at the 2020 New Mexico State Fair, which unfortunately was a victim of the covid virus situation that shut down all of our planned displays for 2020.  Since I did get both models eventually built for our club's Virtual Contests, I decided that doing an article on them would be a good counterpart to the "F-86 Sabre Aces of the Korean War" article that I did at the beginning of the year.

The North Korean Air Force - the Korean People's Air Force (KPAF) - had Yak-9s, La 9s, and La-11 aircraft in its inventory during the Korean War. This article includes short histories of the aircraft, their operational history during the war, and the builds of the two kits.

Aircraft Histories

The Yakovlev Yak-9 was a single-engine single-seat multipurpose fighter aircraft used by the Soviet Union in World War II and through 1950. It was the last in a line of propeller-driven Yakovlev fighters that included the Yak-1, Yak-3, and Yak-7. The Yak 3 was the favored mount of the French Normandie-Nieman Escadrille that flew with the Soviets during WW II. The Yak-9 started arriving in Soviet fighter aviation regiments in late 1942 and played a major role in taking air superiority over the Luftwaffe's Focke-Wulf Fw 190 and Messerschmitt Bf 109G fighters during the Battle of Kursk in the summer of 1943. The Yak-9D was a long-range version of the Yak-9. Further development of the design included the Yak-9U in 1943 and the Yak-9P in 1946. which was the most advanced. Some sources state that the Yak-9 was the equivalent of, or superior to the P-51D Mustang. The Yak-9 remained in roduction from 1942 to 1948, with 16,769 total built (14,579 during the war). Many of the surplus Yak-9Ps were supplied in 1949 to satellite nations in the Soviet bloc, including North Korea.</sup>

Yak-3 of the French  Normandie-Nieman  Escadrille	Yak-9Ds of the Black Sea Fleet	Yak-9P of Post WW II Soviet AF

^{The Lavochkin La-11 was an early post-WW II Soviet long-range piston-engined single seat fighter aircraft. The La-11 was the last of a long line of Lavochkin propeller-driven fighters. The La 5, La-5FN, and La-7 were flown by Russia's top ace (also the top Allies ace) Ivan Kozhedub with 62 victories. Of note, Kozhedub was later the commander of the Soviet's 324 IAD (Fighter Air Division) on the China - North Korea border during the Korean War, which flew MiG-15s against U.S. forces. Kozhehdub was not given permission to fly any combat sorties. The La-11 was developed from the La-9 prototype to be a long-range escort fighter. It is sometimes referred to as the La-9M. To create this long-range aircraft, the La-11's armament was reduced to three cannons and it featured increased fuel and oil capacity. The La-11 was found to be poorly suited for combat above 23,000 feet. La-11 production ran from 1947 to 1951 with 1,182 total aircraft built.} 
 

La-7 flown by Ivan Kozedub in WW II	La-11 in Soviet markings	Soviet La-11 in flight

Operational History During the Korean War

When I decided to do this article I went in search of source documents that I own and also articles on the internet to determine the propeller aircraft types that the KPAF had in its inventory at the beginning of the Korean War. I was specifically looking for info on the Yak-9, La-9, and La-11. Unfortunately my search came up short. I then thought that a good source on the subject matter would be Douglas Dildy, as he has written several books on the Korean War and the KPAF. These include Fury from the North - the North Korean Air Force in the Korean War 1950-1953 (Helion & Company) and F-86 Sabre vs. MiG-15, Korea 1950-53 (Osprey Books). These are great books and highly recommended! Doug was able to provide me with a lot of very good info, which I have condensed into the paragraphs below along with other material.

The Soviet Union's Far East Military District transferred 84 Yak-9s to the KPAF in May 1949. This included 12 original Yak-9s, 9 trainer Yak-9Vs, and 63 Yak-9Ps. At the beginning of the Korean War (25 June 1950), the KPAF had 79 Yak-9s total. 42 Yak 9Ps were in the 56th Fighter Aviation Regiment (FAR). Yak-9Ps attacked Kimpo Air Base (AB) on the first day of the war damaging a U.S. C-54 transport, the control tower, and the fuel dump. They also strafed the Republic of Korea Air Force's L-4 Grasshopper (Piper Cub) and Harvard (T-6) aircraft at Yan-do destroying seven. On the second day Yak-9Ps escorted Il-10 Sturmovik bombers that attacked the railway station at Seoul. All but one of the Yak-9Ps were lost during the North Korean invasion and the U.S. and United Nations counter offensive. This single Yak-9P was withdrawn to Yani air base in the People's Republic of China. The 56th FAR was reconstituted in September 1950 with 40 Yak-9Ps from the Soviet Union. The KPAF also received 40 La-9s and 2 La-9UTI trainers. 38 of the La-9s formed the new 58th FAR in December 1950 through January 1951 at Yani air base. The newly renamed 56th Guards FAR deployed to Antung air base in China and Sinuiju air base in North Korea. These two units fought against USAF F-51s and USN F4U Corsairs during 1951 until their aircraft were replaced with the MiG-15. 56th GFAR losses were so heavy that they received 10 new La-9s in July 1951. In November 1951 the 56th GFAR had 9 Yak-9Ps and 10 La-9s and the 58th FAR had 21 La-9s.
 

Damaged Yak-9P at Kimpo AB in 1950	Damaged Yak-9P at Kimpo AB in 1950	Damaged Yak-9P at Kimpo AB in 1950	GIs guarding captured Yak-9	Damaged Yak-9P at Kimpo
Boy standing on destroyed Yak-9	Damaged Yak-9 in hangar	Yak-9 and IL-10 awaiting transport	Yak-9 testing at Wright-Patterson	Yak-9 testing at Wright-Patterson

^{The 56th GFAR was re-roled as the KPAF's first night fighter unit in June 1952 with 9 surviving Yak-9Ps and 14 new La-11 aircraft. The night fighter units initially intercepted USAF B 29 Superfortress night raids but the La-11 was ineffective because it was not fast enough, and this mission was switched to the MiG-15. The night fighter units also fought against the USAF's B-26 Invader and the USN's Tigercat and Corsair aircraft that had been conducting unopposed night interdiction operations against truck convoys and railroad trains in North Korea. The La-11s did escort Tu-2 bombers on several raids. The 56th GFAR and 58th FAR began training on the MiG-15 in October 1952 and their surviving 12 La-11s were transferred to the 3rd Night Bomber Regiment. The few surviving Yak-9Ps were transferred to training units. At the end of the Korean War the 3rd Night Bomber Regiment had 9 La-11s remaining. All the Yak-9s and La-9s had been transferred to 5th Air Division Fighter Training Regiment. This included 10 Yak-9Ps, 2 Yak-9Vs, 15 La-9s, and 2 La-9UTI (2 seat trainers).}

Yak-9P in North Korean museum in  post-war scheme	La-11 in North Korean markings in China Aviation Museum	La-11 in PRC markings in Beijing museum

^{USAF victory claims over these and similar propeller aircraft were as followws:  Yak-3: 4;  Yak-9: 12;  Yak-18: 1;  La-7: 3; La-9: 7; unidentified prop: 3.  Since the Yakovlev types and the Lavochkin types are visually similar, the breakouts of these numbers could be suspect. Yak-3 claims are probably Yak-9s and the La-7 claims are probably La-9s, as these two aircraft types were not in the KPAF inventory.  La-9 claims could include La-11s.  Note that the first USAF victory of the war was against a Yak-11 two-seat trainer by an F-82E Twin Mustang on June 27, 1950 that was attacking Kimpo Air Base.  Two La-7s and three IL-10s were also downed that day.}

^{Based on the information above, did the KPAF have any Yak-9Ds in its inventory during the Korean War? The "original Yak-9s" aircraft mentioned in sources may have included Yak-9Ds but this is unknown, and probably unlikely. I had built my Encore Models Yak 9D in KPAF's markings earlier this year based upon schemes that I had seen before I received this information from Doug Dildy. I did look at the differences between the Yak-9D and the Yak-9P to see if I could modify the already-built kit into the P version. Unfortunately, there are some big differences that would require major surgery, if able to be done at all. The biggest is that the P does not have the large under nose air intake--it was removed and replaced by a raised scoop that runs along the top of the nose. The P also received an additional nose-mounted cannon across from the single cannon in the D. The easiest fix to make is a plexiglass-covered bay on the fuselage behind the cockpit that contained an ADF antenna. Based on all this, I decided to keep the D as is. It is accurate as "representative of the Yak-9s used by the KPAF" and will work in a Korean War display. AModel does have a 1/72 scale Yak-9P kit with North Korean markings, so I may look at building that in the future so we have a totally accurate model.}

^{Yak-9D Build}

^{The Yak-9 model is the Encore Models (Squadron) 1/72 scale Yak-9D kit molded in the Ukraine and packaged in the USA. This model had been started years ago for an ASM contest but had never been completed. I had been planning to get it finished for our June 5th, 2020 "Korean War" Special Contest, and when that turned into Virtual Contest #1, I pressed ahead with the build. According to the Scalemates.com website, this model started as an Encore Yak-9DD/T/K kit in 1998, and was later reboxed as a Yak-9D (the kit that I built). It does come with two fuselages--one for the D and one for the DD. It was later reissued by ICM and a company called Alanger. The kit comes with three decal choices--all for Soviet schemes in 1942-1944. To build a North Korean aircraft I went to my decal sheet stash and found an old ESCI Korean War sheet that did include a Yak-9. These sheets are notoriously off-register, so it was a good thing that I had two copies in order to get six total stars and circles that looked good. Because I had started this kit years ago, I did not have in-progress pictures of the build. I do have a second Encore kit, so I was able to get pictures of the sprues for this article.}

Kit instructions - 1	Kit instructions - 2	Spues & decal sheet	Cockpit interior parts

^{Here are some comments on the Yak-9 build. The kit has decent sidewall detail in the cockpit, an instrument panel, floor board, control stick and a seat (actually the back portion of the seat attaches to a bucket seat on the floor board). There are no instrument panel or seat belts decals. It does have wheel well details on the inside of the top wings. The recessed panel lines are well done. There was some fit problems with the wings to the fuselage that needed some filler at both ends. The clear bullet proof panel behind the pilot's head needed some shaving to allow the canopy to fit over it. The canopy did not quite fit at the back end and needed some white glue to fill the gap. One hit on the kit is that the wings do not have the prominent air intake holes/ducts in the wing roots, and these have to be hand-painted on the model. I did a lot of looking at photos of North Korean Yak-9s to determine what shade of grey to use on the model. There were some color photos of derelict Yak-9s destroyed on the ramp at Kimpo Air Base during the first year of the war (see pictures). I eventually chose Model Master Flat Gull Grey and painted the aircraft overall in that color. Although I did not use the kit decals, they look pretty nice. The old ESCI decals were a challenge. Panel lines were highlighted with a black wash. Ground artist pastel chalk was used for weathering and engine exhaust stains. Overall the kit was a good build and looks like a Yak-9D. There may be better 1/72 kits of the Yak-9D out there now than this Encore model. As mentioned above, AModel does have a Yak-9P kit.}

^{Yak-9 Model Pictures}

^{La-11 Build}

^{The La-11 model is the MPM 1/72 scale Lavochkin La-9 / 11 kit. According to Scalemates.com, this kit was initially released as a new tool MPM kit in 1989 and was reboxed in 1994 (the kit that I built). The La-11 model build had also been planned for ASM's "Korean War Anniversary" display at the 2020 State Fair, but this was a new start this year. I wanted to make sure that we had enough North Korean aircraft in the display to go with a likely large number of US and Allied aircraft. I also had a Tupelov Tu-2 build planned, but that is another story to come. The model parts are on a single sprue, made in a very hard dark brown plastic that is difficult to sand. It has a clear, nicely detailed vacuform canopy--more on this later. The instruction sheet has a parts break down diagram of the sprue, and a single exploded diagram of all the parts with arrows showing what goes where. Usable but not great. It shows which parts to use if you want to build an La-9 or an La-11, the differences being the La-9 had a radiator scoop beneath the fuselage, a different cowl (no upper intake there), and an extra gun bulge on the fuselage. The La-11 had an upper intake added to the cowling, replacing the lower radiator scoop, and one less cannon. The kit decals include schemes for a Soviet La-9 in 1946 and a Soviet La-11 in 1947 both in overall gray, and a North Korean La-11 in a mottled dark green over gray in 1950. (As noted above, they did not get La-11s until 1952.) I ended up building an overall gray North Korean scheme using markings from the Siga Models La-9 kit, which I had originally considered building but passed up to go with the better detailed MPM kit.}

Kit instructions - 1	Kit instructions - 2	Decal sheet	Sprue & other parts

<sup>Here are some comments on the La-11 build. The cockpit is very sparse. There is a floor board, a seat and a control stick and a back wall that the seat fits against. This all sits up against a shelf that fits at the back of the cockpit cut-out. There is no side wall detail, but it has a nice instrument panel with recessed instrument details. There is no decal for this or seat belts, so I hand-painted the instrument panel and used some seat belt decals. There are no locating pegs or holes for any of this other than for the stick in the floor, so it was all fit-checking and gluing and a bit difficult to get it all straight when the fuselage was finally glued together. The floor board was too wide for the fuselage and had to be trimmed. It looks pretty good when finally put together (see pictures).

There were gaps after the fuselage was glued that had to be filled. The wing's trailing edges were too thick and had to be sanded down. The assembled wings did not fit well against the bottom of the fuselage. To fit the lower wing against the fuselage at the wing root without a huge step and gap, the fuselage needed to be cut back until the wing fit flush. This then left a pretty big gap that needed filling and sanding. After this surgery, all the fuselage and wing gaps were filled with Squadron White Putty and sanded (see pictures). The two horizontal tails had no attachment mechanisms (pins or holes) and were super-glued against the fuselage. These would be a problem later and needed to be re-glued several times during the painting process. The cowling's sprue attachment points were a problem and required careful cutting and then sanding. There were gaps when the cowling was glued to the fuselage. The gear doors had a lot of flash. The wheels did not have any mounting holes and were a flat gear end to wheel hub superglue job like the horizontal tails. The gear doors were provided in one piece and had to be cut into two pieces for a gear-down model. I mentioned earlier that the plastic was super hard and cutting through them was very difficult. And as would happen, the holes in the wheel wells for the struts were too small, and drilling them out was also difficult. The kit included a separate spinner piece in a different kind of plastic from what was on the big sprue because the original piece did not have the cut-outs needed for the propeller blades. That was probably a known mold flaw. This piece caused a problem later on.</sup>

Cockpit parts painted	Cockpit parts assembled	Fuselage to wing fit & gap problemt	Assembled & ready to paint - top	Assembled & ready to paint - bottom

^{The La-11 had the same paint scheme as the Yak-9 but I wanted to have a little variation so I added some Model Master Gunship Gray to the Flat Gull Gray, and painted it overall with that mixed shade. The kit's North Korean star with circles decals were off-register, so I elected to use the decals from the Siga Models Yak-9 kit. These had stenciled red and blue lines (not solid) surrounding the stars, and provided another good variation between the two aircraft. MicroScale silver stripe decals were used for the two metal bands around the cowling. As I mentioned earlier, the kit had a vacuform canopy. I did fit check the canopy from the Siga Models La-9 kit, hoping that might work, but unfortunately it did not. All the pieces-parts went together well at the end until I tried to glue on the canopy and the spinner. There must have been a problem with the materials they were made of, because the glue that I was using (Faller Super-Expert) would not work on them at all. Eventually I did get them to adhere, but the canopy did have gaps that needed filling with white glue, and a canopy re-paint was required. Washes and weathering were accomplished the same as the Yak-9. The model does look like an La-11 when it is finally all put together. Interavia also produces a 1/72 scale La-11 model but I do not know how good that kit is}

^{La-11 Model Pictures}

^{Pictures below show side-by-side comparisons of the two North Korean aircraft from a couple of different angles.  Comparisons with the IL-10 Sturmovik (a KP kit) and the MiG-15 Fagot (a DML kit) are also shown.  Next, there are pictures of the Yak-9 with two of the USAF aircraft that encountered it during the Korean War--the North American F-51D Mustang and the Republic F-84E Thunderjet.  1Lt James Glessner, 12th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 18th Fighter Bomber Wing, downed a Yak-9 on November 2, 1950 flying F-51D FF-736 (54-11736) as depicted below.  This is the Matchbox kit.  1Lt Jacob Kratt, 523rd Fighter Escort Squadron, 27th Fighter Escort Wing, downed a Yak-9 (reported as a Yak-3) on January 23, 1951 flying F-84E FS-493-B (51-493) also depicted below.  This is the Heller kit.  He also downed two MiG-15s on January 23, 1951, the first double MiG kill mission of the war.  Kratt was the top F-84 scorer in Korea with three victories.  The MiG-15 depicted below is in the markings of the top Soviet ace who flew for the North Koreans, Yevgeni Pepelyaev, the commander of the Soviet's 196th Fighter Aviation Regiment.  Finally, there is a comparison of the aircraft with the North American F-86F-1 Sabre, which bears the markings of 1Lt Joseph McConnell, the top US ace of the war.  The pictures below taken on the runway base show the actual grey scheme colors of the two models better than the light blue background.} 

     

        

^{With these two models completed, we now have a few more North Korean aircraft for our ASM display, if that ever happens. Perhaps the Korean War Anniversary theme might be a player for the 2021 NM State Fair.  Many thanks to Doug Dildy for the operational history information in this article!}

 

 

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New Angles to Old Battles

By John Tate

 

Like other kids who had the misfortune of becoming scale modelers, I went astray on the path of life when I saw the famous 1969 movie, Battle of Britain.  A cinematic sky full of Spitfires and Messerschmitts and Heinkels--wow, I was hooked. To indulge my budding airplane addiction, my dad bought me the then-new Revell 1/32 Spitfire I, which I built in a sunny afternoon or two that summer, and it looked great! There was no turning back.

Fifty-odd years later, I've built enough Spitfire kits to give the ghost of Lord Beaverbrook pause, and had every intention of knocking out a few more for the upcoming contest. In fact, I recently purchased the ultimate trifecta of early-mark Spitfires--from Eduard, Airfix, and Tamiya--to add to the pile, but finally, after all these years, couldn't bring myself to start in on yet another Battle of Britain modeling project.

What was needed was something new, a fresh angle on a well-known battle in a big war full of well-known battles. Then I remembered--what about the air arm that ended up as a footnote in the festivities--the Regia Aeronautica?

The Italian Air Force was at the height of its power and prestige in 1940 and Mussolini intended to get a slice of the fascist pie before his frenemy Hitler gobbled up all of Western Europe. What could be better than an operatic contribution of an air corps to the defeat of Britain? To that end, a small group of bombers and fighters--the Corpo Aero Italiano--situated itself on airfields in Belgium and got to work bombing English coastal towns. After conducting a number of raiding missions from late October 1940 to early February 1941, it was decided they had caused enough mayhem for the glory of Il Duce and headed back to sunnier climes.

One interesting note--the main Italian fighter, the biplane CR.42, actually gave a pretty good account of itself, holding its own in turning fights with Hurricanes, although it was of course hobbled by the same shortcoming as the mighty Messerschmitt--lack of range. Final score for the CAI was dismal though--twenty aircraft lost to various causes for no RAF aircraft downed.

The lesson here for modelers is that there's always another model subject to try out, even in representing a well-known battle that has been "done" a hundred times before. In scale modeling, look for the unusual and you'll always find an offbeat kit or subject to catch your interest. Next year, 2021, will be the 80th anniversary of a number of well-known battles--the Sinking of the Bismarck, Barbarossa, and Pearl Harbor, to name just a few. Ask yourself, what can I build now to shed new light on those events and maybe bring a second look to my model on the contest table? The research can be as interesting as the build.

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ASM Member David Paul Passes Away

^{By Mike Blohm}

David Jon Paul passed away from a heart attack on May 28, 2020. He had been an active member of ASM since August 2019. We have just recently become aware of David's passing because of the cancelation of our club meetings due to the Corona virus situation.

David was born in Longview, Washington, on February 27, 1967. He graduated from Manzano High School in 1985 and received a BA in Business Administration from New Mexico Highlands University (Las Vegas, New Mexico) in 1990. David entered the US Army in 1990 and served in Germany working on the Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS). I am sure he could build a great model of that! He was discharged from the Army in 1994 and returned to the US to continue his education and work in the technology manufacturing business. He was interred in Longview Memorial Park, Longview, Washington, on June 22, 2020.

David started attending ASM meetings in August 2019, and entered models in the science fiction genre. Pictures of David at various meetings and his very nicely done model entries are included below. Of note, he won the Staff Pick for Favorite Model in Basic at the January 2020 Science Fiction, Real Space, and Fantasy Special Contest for his "Space Battleship Yamato Versus Gamelon Cruisers" entry. David's family donated his unbuilt kits to ASM and we hope to have a special tribute contest to David using those kits at a future in-person meeting sometime in 2021. One of those models was a 1/35 scale MLRS. He was a fine model builder and a good club member, and he will be missed.

Further details of David's life are available in an obituary online; click this link to see it:    

https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/abqjournal/obituary.aspx?n=david-paul&pid=196727580

Descriptions for pictures below:

1 - 3. David Paul at Aug 2019, Nov 2019 and Jan 2020 ASM meetings.  4. David's Battleship Yamato Versus Gameleon Cruisers entry  at Jan 2020 meeting.
5 - 6.  Daid receiving "Just Staff Pick Award at Feb meeting for the Battleship Yamato entry.  7 - 9.  David receiving award for entries at Mar 2020 meeting:
Comet Empire Cruiser and "Specimens of the Southwest" diorama.

1     2     3     4     5

6     7     8     9

 

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ASM Website Changes

By Mike Blohm

^{A couple of changes have been made to the ASM Website to make it easier to navigate to some of the more popular and important webpages.  The webpages index bar at the top of each webpage has 18 hot link buttons to our club's most important topics.  Three of these hot links have just been changed to different subjects.  These new links include ASM Reviews, the New Mexico State Fair, and Website Updates.  These changed links are all located in the bottom row/lower right corner of the index bar--see red box in picture #1 below.  The replaced links are shown in picture #2 below.}

^{The ASM Reviews webpage has it's own index of review genres (aircraft, armor, etc.) that will take you to that particular section.  As of November 2020 there are 125 kit/products reviewsc on that webpage.  The NM State Fair link takes you to the main State Fair Contests webpage, where you can select whatever year you want to check out (currently 2005-2019).  The Website Update link will take you to that webpage , where the updates are in chronological order with the most current on top.  Note that there is also a "date stamp" (for example "10-15" meaning Oct 15th) included at the end of the Website Update link box wording that will inform you of the date the last update occurred.  This small "date stamp" is only on the Home webpage.  All the newly added items on the Website Updates webpage have links to their specific location taking you straight to it.}

1	2	3

^{This new webpages index bar format (the 18 hot links) will be updated on all these 18 pages and will be found on everything 2020 related.  I will try to get all those webpages updated ASAP.  If you venture off into some past year's webpages, like 2019, you will still see the old format.  Note that as of March 2020 the ASM Website had 195 total active webpages going back to 2003.  There is a ton of stuff to see.  As always, if you are Lost in Space, hitting the ASM Home button always takes you back to the Home webpage.}

^{The three replaced topics and links are all still available for selection in the index section near the top of the Articles webpage.  See picture #3.  These subjects include Hints & Tips, Modeling Links, and Archived Articles.  There have not been many additions recently to these webpages.  If you have any favorite modeling-related sites or a tip you would like to share, please submit them and I will get them added.}

^{Most new monthly additions to the Articles webpage also get simultaneously posted on another applicable webpage.  An example would be a kit review that was simultaneously posted on the ASM Reviews webpage.  When these items expire on the Articles webpage, they are deleted there but will remain on the other applicable webpage (Trip Reports, ASM Reviews, Meeting Pics and Major Events, Model Displays, etc.).  They will not be posted on the Archived Articles webpage if they are posted elsewhere.  So if you are trying to find an old item, think about what it was best related to and search there, or fire me an E-mail.  Before the aforementioned process was adopted, items were just transferred to the Archived Articles.  There are currently three separate webpages for those going back to 2004.}  

   

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Wingnut To Mengnut

By John Tate

On April 17, 2020, the scale modeling world received shock news that Sir Peter Jackson's top-flight Wingnut Wings model kit company was closing down, with its staff laid off and assets to be sold. The Wingnut Wings website remained online but no new orders were being taken and, as the weeks dragged on without additional news, it appeared the worst was confirmed--they were gone forever.

Predictably, eBay prices for Wingnut kits began to creep into the stratosphere as hobby outlets sold off existing stock and the realization set in that those Wingnut kits hidden away in modelers' kit stashes were likely to be the last ever seen of these legendary kitsets. Today, it's not unusual for some of the more desirable model kits to sell for $500 or more.

There was speculation that another model company would buy out the Wingnut Wings operation and release its kit line at some future date but given the state of the world economy that was starting to look unlikely, at least in the short term. Therefore, it was a surprise to see Hannants' announcement on June 20 that Meng would release a 1/32 Fokker Triplane model from a Wingnut Wings future-release kit mold, as Meng was to have done the plastic parts for the kit.

   

That raises some interesting questions--what about the other blockbuster future kit releases announced by Wingnuts, such as the 1/32 Handley Page O/100 and O/400 WWI bombers, and the two Avro Lancaster kits? These would be major undertakings for any model company and even Meng might have difficulty marketing them; in contrast, the popular Fokker Triplane is a small kit in 1/32 and much less of a risk. So the future remains unknown not only for Wingnut Wings future releases, but their large existing kit range as well. Stay tuned--this is the most interesting story in the hobby world right now and promises to get even more interesting in the months and years ahead.

 

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Webmaster's Update:  With the cancelation of the 2020 New Mexico State Fair, this display is no longer going to take place.  However, USAF models might still be a player for the 2020 Air Force Ball in September.  If that gets canceled too, then we can use them in 2021.
Follow-on Update: The 2020 AF Ball event was indeed canceled.

   

Models for ASM's Korean War Display at the State Fair

 by Mike Blohm

 We are starting to plan the ASM display at the 2010 New Mexico State Fair. As far as we know the fair is still occurring. We request all ASM members please send Josh Pals and me a list of whatever Korean War models you have already built, or are building, that you would be willing to loan for the display. You can include pictures if you'd like to. We would like to survey what members currently have available and determine a good set-up. 

A second purpose of this list is to determine what types we do NOT have. If you are planning to build a model for the June - July "Korean War" Virtual Contest and have not yet decided what to build, I will provide a list of choices that are needed for the display. You can pick something from that. We will communicate that "need list" ASAP through Joe. 

 Please remember that we are looking for any subject, kit, or scale that fought on both sides during the Korean War from June 1950 to July 1953.. There were multiple countries involved in the United Nations forces. Dioramas would be especially nice, as well as figures and artillery pieces. 

Josh's E-mail is:  jpals871@gmail.com
Mike's E-mail is:  blohmm@aol.com

 ** Send your E-mails only to Josh and Mike so as not to compromise your model's anonymity if it is being entered in the Korean War Virtual Special Contest (entries June 20 to July 4). You can include pictures.  

Note: For the display - please let us know if you have a model of a type/subject that participated in the war, in a representative paint scheme, that could work if we have no other model available. It does not need to be in the scheme of a unit that actually participated. An example would be an F9F Panther jet in glossy dark sea blue with the markings of a squadron that was based in California, and not aboard a carrier off the coast of Korea. We can annotate the info card as necessary. 

^{Pictures below show Korean War models that were included in ASM's 2018 Folds of Honor display (left) and the 2019 Air and Space Fiesta airshow display at Kirtland AFB (right).}

 

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Jackie Cochran's Seversky Racer

 By Mark Vaughn

Through IPMS and the Cavalcade of Wings, I volunteered to make a model of Jackie Cochran's Seversky Racer for Steve Owen at the Western New Mexico Aviation Heritage Museum. This museum is primarily devoted to the TAT arrows and airmail beacons, having relocated a beacon with buildings to the Grants-Milan Airport. It also has several aircraft models of local historic crashed planes as well as some actual recovered parts.

   They have an exhibit about Jackie Cochran's record breaking flights that doubled back over New Mexico, which needed a model of her 1938 Bendix aircraft. Her career achievements are incredible and worth investigating (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacqueline_Cochran). She flew a Seversky AP-7 racer which was basically a P-35 with a more powerful engine. 

The P-35 was a prewar fighter with the USAAC. Some were sold to Columbia, Sweden, Russia, and Japan(!). When Major Seversky was thrown out of his own company, it was renamed Republic. The P-47 was a larger direct descendant of the Seversky racers and P-35, via the P-43.

Steve had a Williams Bros 1/32 P-35 S-2 (1970 tooling), which we rejected due to some issues such as cavernous sink holes, raised, inaccurate panel lines, and--most important--no appropriate decals. Also, it is slightly different from Jackie's plane. By happenstance, I had a 1/48 HobbyCraft kit of the 1938 Cochran AP-7 Bendix racer, complete with the appropriate decals, so we went with the more modern (but smaller) kit. Originally tooled in 1993, the kit is basically a hybrid between the Seversky racer and the P-35. The fuselage is slightly too long, the canopy too high, and the dihedral too sharp; all basically impossible to fix without major surgery. One of the great things about building for normal folk and museums is that the vast majority don't know or care about such "glaring" errors, like we do. I cannot stress how fulfilling it is to build for museums. They are universally grateful for whatever you can give them. Furthermore, your models get far more "views" than just sitting on your own shelf. And you end up with more shelf space.

I did fix a few of the easier issues. Jackie (and Major Seversky, an amputee) entered through a side window/door in the fuselage aft of the cockpit. The seat back folded down to permit this. The interior of the model fuselage is thus visible, since I polished and "Futured" the side window plastic. So I made a floor out of scrap as well as continued the internal longeron/frame structure aft.

The interior of the racer and the P-35 was unpolished bare aluminum. The racer had far less instrumentation than the P-35, resulting in a comparatively bare cockpit. I have no photos of the aft interior but a racer would have little or no equipment there.

There were a surprising (frustrating) number of sink holes and ejector pin marks. I missed one, as you can see. I polished the exterior plastic to remove as many blemishes as I could prior to the bare metal finish. I hate bare metal finishes since they always seem to make otherwise good models look toy-like, to my eye. I chose not to "enhance" the cockpit, due to the small scale and the closed canopy.

The canopy is quite a birdcage, requiring extensive masking for spraying. Assembly was typical for a kit of this vintage with gaps, sinks, and misfits. The wheel spats are especially ill-fitting and required surgery to get them to look this good (less bad). The engine was well detailed but basically invisible. According to my reference photos, the Bendix plane had no landing lights (these came later) but did have a ring antenna and radio behind the pilot’s head, not included and faked from my spares (the box art shows them, though). Also, the rear faces of the propeller blades were not blackened on Jackie's plane, for no known reason (a "glaring" oversight?). Later racers and fighters did.

The bare metal finish, Model Master buffing, looked okay to me. I hate bare metal finishes.  Here's the finished item (above).

Did I mention that I hate bare metal finishes? I left well enough alone and did not blacken the panel lines. At over ten mils, in 1/48 these are a half inch wide! The decals really perked it up for me. I left everything pretty glossy as the racer actually was constantly well buffed, see below. I figured most folks viewing the model would not understand the doped fabric control surfaces versus bare metal, so I left them matching, although I still twitch a little. The nice thing about the Racer is that it was brand new and meticulously cleaned for racing--no need for weathering!

Jackie painting her infamous number 13 right before the Bendix race. Shiny surface.

I was aided in the details by two books: Sever the Sky, by Edward Maloney; and Thunderbolt, from Seversky to Victory, by Warren M. Bodie. The former has several errors, but has a lot of good photos. The latter has a little on the racer but takes it through the P-47. If you would like to learn about an amazing pilot, Jackie Cochran the Story of the Greatest Woman Pilot in Aviation History by Maryann Bucknum Brinley is a quick read. I was ignorant of her amazing career--I had thought Amelia Earhart was the big deal in women's aviation. Cochrane was the first woman to break the sound barrier, and founded and headed the WASPs. Her list of aviation records is incredible. All the while she headed a very successful cosmetics company. She saved LBJ from dying and often hosted Ike at her ranch.

It was not all smooth for Jackie. In the 1938 Bendix race, she all of a sudden had fuel feed problems from one of the wing tanks, causing severe balance issues. She rocked her wings, and tilted the plane which eventually decreased the problem, still finishing first. A wadded up piece of paper was found in the tank, blocking the outlet. Accident or misogyny, no one will ever know. Well, get the book if you want to know more.

Steve was well satisfied with the model and kept offering payment, which was refused, of course. I did accept the Williams kit. Since it’s an S-2 racer I'd have to do the metallic green Frank Fuller racer (did I mention I hate bare metal finishes?). I may also do the Cochran racer with the later P-47 style landing gear (and landing lights) with the part kit I have left, or just make one for me. The model is on display at the museum 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Saturdays--check before you go (http://www.cibolahistory.org/airway-heritage-museum.html). 

 

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Ken's Armor Files

Mud

^{By Ken Piniak}

   

I have heard, and read, other modelers comment that tank modelers have it easy--if they make a mistake, they can just cover it with a bit of mud. Now I suppose that some modelers may do that, but most of the time they don't. In fact, it's more the opposite, especially with today's very detailed suspensions and lower hull detail--you end up covering up a lot of detail that you put a lot of effort into building. However, the simple fact is tanks attract mud and will find mud anywhere and everywhere. Be it the hottest, driest desert, the cold Artic north, the wettest winter, or driest summer.

   

So at this point the real question is: how much mud is too much mud?  Honestly, there is no such thing as too much mud. Exactly how much mud you as the modeler want to add is entirely up to you, and the situation you want to model.

           

Tanks and AFVs can get stuck in the mud, buried in the mud, and covered in mud.

               

It can be wet watery mud, thick sticky mud, hard dry mud, or any combination of mud and dirt.  It can clog up tracks, wheels, and drive sprockets.

                   

In winter, the mud can even freeze up, immobilizing the vehicle. Any vehicle can get muddy, but tracked vehicles seem to get it the worst. And it is not just US vehicles (although that is where my experience comes from); mud happens to everybody.

                       

So, how does this relate to your armored masterpiece? If you are putting it on a scenic base or in a diorama, add mud (and dirt) to match the base and the story you are trying to tell. If your model is on a plain base (or no base), add mud as you desire. I am not going to go into how to make or add mud; there are plenty of tutorials around for that, check out YouTube. Use photos to help you decide just how much mud you want and where. You can find plenty of good photos in books, online, or use some of these. The recent movie Fury is a great reference, showing tanks and other vehicles moving and operating in a great muddy setting. And above all, have a little fun with it!

  

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Sabre Aces of the Korean War

Modeling the F-86 Jets Flown by the Top U.S. Aces

 

 by Mike Blohm
 

This article is an incentive for ASM members to finish their builds for the "Korean War" Special Contest that is currently scheduled for June 5, 2020 and also for the ASM display at the 2020 New Mexico State Fair in late August. The article covers the model builds of the top five United States Sabre aces of the Korean War. It also includes a brief history of each of the ace's service in the war and their later careers. These models were completed for the Aces Gallery at the USAF Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado and the builds for these five particular models range from 1975 to 2001. All the kits used are in 1/72 scale with a wide range of kit manufacturers. These include Hasegawa, Fujimi, Testors, Heller, Matchbox, Hobby Craft, and Academy. I have not yet built the new Airfix F-86 kit, but that is in my stack. Comments will be made on the kits used in the builds below. For me, the Fujimi kit is the most accurate of this assortment. F-86 decal sheets in 1/72 scale for Korean War aces have unfortunately been minimal. Microscale put out six sheets in the mid 1970s that covered a few of the top scorers sprinkled in with other Korean War or Vietnam aircraft schemes. You can sometimes find these on eBay. Eagle Strike Productions and Print Scale have both produced a sheet recently, but unfortunately they repeated schemes already available and did not cover some high-scoring pilots that definitely should have been included. Some of the F-86 model kits in 1/72 scale do come with decals for aces (Fischer, Jabara, Moore, and Jolley). But I have had to do a lot of hand-painting and decal-bashing of codes and serial numbers to get models of the 41 Korean War aces built. Of note, the Fujimi kit has four different USAF schemes and therefore you get a nice set of properly sized numbers to cut and paste with. Getting back to the subject of this article, the top five Sabre aces are covered below. Between them they scored 72.5 total victories.  Refer to captions below based upon picture numbers.

1     2     3     4

5     6     7

1. F-86 Sabres of the 51 FIW on the ramp at Suwon Air Base (K-13) near the end of the war.
2. "MiG Alley - 200 Miles" sign at the gate to the 4 FIW flight line at Kimpo Air Base (K-14).
3. Map showing "MiG Alley" in northwest corner of Korea adjacent to China and the Yalu River.
4. Photo of restored F-86 and MiG-15 at 2013 Planes of Fame airshow showing similar profiles
and relative sizes that prompted U.S.to employ ID bands.
5. F-86s from 335 FIS "Chieftains" of the 4 FIW, highest scoring squadron (218.5) in the war.
6. F-86 flight from the 25 FIS of the 51 FIW. Red tail stripe on vertical fin denoted the 25 FIS.
7. "MiG Maulers" poster showing the Sabre aces of the Korean War ranked by their number of
victories, except for Charles Cleveland whose fifth victory was not confirmed until April 2000.

 Joseph C. McConnell, Junior

 

Starting from the top, the highest scoring U.S. ace in the Korean War was Captain Joseph C. McConnell Jr. with 16 victories over MiG-15s. He is the 33rd-ranking American ace (tie), and 27th in the USAF (tie). He was the 27th U.S. "jet ace" with his 5th kill on Feb 16, 1953. His age at that time was 31. He served with the 39th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (FIS) of the 51st Fighter Intercept Wing (FIW). He scored all his victories in a five month period in Jan - May 1953, including three victories in two sorties on May 18, 1953. His jet was hit in combat on April 12, 1953 by a Soviet-flown MiG-15 (per some sources) that he eventually downed, and McConnell had to bail out over the Yellow Sea. He was immediately picked up by a USAF Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw helicopter--there is a famous picture of that rescue (see below). He was withdrawn from Korea after scoring his 16th victory on May 18 and had flown 106 missions at that time. Of note, McConnell was a B-24 navigator during World War II and flew 60 missions with the 448th Bomb Group in the ETO. He had wanted to go to pilot training but was instead sent to navigator training. McConnell was killed in a flying accident while testing the F-86H Sabre at Edwards AFB, CA on Aug 25, 1954 due to a controls malfunction. You might remember that a similar tragedy occurred with Major Richard Bong, the top U.S. ace in World War II, who was killed during a flight test of the P-80 Starfire at Burbank, CA on Aug 6, 1945. A movie--The McConnell Story (1955)--and book--Sabre Jet Ace (1959)--came out after his death, and McConnell AFB in Wichita, Kansas was named for him (and his brother Thomas, also a USAF pilot and veteran of WW II). 

8     9     10     11     12     13

8. Captain McConnell in flight gear next to checker-tailed 51 FIW Sabre
9-10. McConnell during publics relations photo shoot after 16th victory
11. McConnell after mission. Note 39 FIS "Cobra" and 51 FIW patches on his flight jacket.
12. McConnell being rescued from the Yellow Sea by a H-19 Chickasaw helicopter.
13. McConnell's F-86F FU-910 "Beauteous Butch" on the ramp at Kimpo Air Base

McConnell's F-86F-1 model depicts his scheme in May 1953 (see pics 14-18). This 1975 build was a modification of a very early Hasegawa kit that was available at that time. Called the "F-86F" it is actually an F-86F-40 that was flown by the Japanese Air Self Defense Force, and had an extra one foot length at the wing tip added to the "6-3 wing." To resolve this, the rounded wing tips were cut off, the appropriate amount of wing removed, and the wingtips glued back on. A relatively minor piece of surgery to get the F version flown in Korea. I think that I may have used some tips in an IPMS/USA Quarterly or Update on this procedure. For 1975 this was a pretty decent F-86 kit, but it had minimal interior detail. Also, the external tanks had different fins and pylons that were not the type used in Korea and these had to be modified. There is no engine detail down the inlet and no exhaust pipe--basically it was see-through end-to-end, so that was corrected. What I did not catch in my limited reference material back then--I built this when I was stationed at Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base in Thailand--was that the jet should have had small wing fences added on the leading edge of each wing. The newer F kits do have these fences. This was a "hard wing" bird without leading edge slats, which provided a better turn radius at high Mach numbers and allowed the F-86 to turn with and inside the MiGs. The model was finished in overall natural metal (silver) with light gray interior and wheel wells, and black instrument panel and ejection seat. The decals were from Microscale decal sheet 72-103 F-86E Sabre Aces. I believe the Korean Theater (Far East Air Force) yellow identification stripes on the wings and tail were hand-painted, as was the blue nose flash on each side of the intake. The checkered tail indicates the 51st FIW, and the yellow tail stripe the 39th FIS. This jet and several previous were named "Beautious Butch" after his wife Pearl "Butch" (Brown) McConnell. It originally had diving red MiG-15 silhouettes for the kill markings (see profile at top of this section). After his 16th kill the jet was repainted for public relations purposes and the silhouettes were changed to red stars and the name incorrectly misspelled as "Beauteous Butch" as shown on this model.  Note that the Eagle Strike Productions sheet 72-059 includes this scheme.

14     15     16     17     18     19

14-17. Model of McConnell's F-86F-1 Sabre "Beauteous Butch" using the Hasegawa kit.
18-19. 39th Fighter Interceptor Squadron patch and 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing patch.
The 39 FIS was the fifth-ranking squadron in the war with 101 victories.

James J. Jabara 

Major James J. "Jabby" Jabara was the second-ranking U.S. ace in Korea, with 15.0 victories over MiG-15s. He served two tours with the 334th FIS, 4th FIW. He also scored 1.5 victories (Fw 190s) in World War II during two tours and 108 combat missions in the ETO flying the P-51 with the 382nd Fighter Squadron (FS), 363rd Fighter Group (FG) and the 355th FS, 354th FG. He also had 4 probable victories and 5.5 Ground kills. His overall victory total of 16.5 makes Jabara the 29th ranking U.S. ace (tie), and 24th ranking USAF ace (tie). Jabara was the first U.S. jet ace of the Korean War and the first jet versus jet ace, scoring his 5th and 6th victories on May 20, 1951. His age at that time was 28. He scored these two victories while he had a hung fuel tank still attached to his wing, for which he should have avoided combat and returned to base. He was ordered back to the U.S. at that time as "too valuable to risk in combat" after scoring 6 victories in just 3 months. He returned for a second tour in Feb - Jul 1953, where he scored an additional 9 victories. His score included four "doubles." After the war Jabara held various squadron commander positions and in 1958 he flew combat missions over Taiwan in the F-104 Starfighter. He later flew the B-58 Hustler in the 43rd Bomb Wing and flew at least one combat mission in Vietnam in the F-100 Super Sabre. Jabara was killed in an auto accident on Nov 17, 1966 while serving as 31st TFW commander at Homestead AFB, where he was flying the F-100. He was the youngest colonel in the USAF at that time. An airport just northeast of Wichita, Kansas was named the Colonel James Jabara Airport in his honor. 

 20     21     22     23     24     25

20-21. Jabara standing in the cockpit and near the tail section of an F-86
22. Jabara deplanning after a mission. Note the cigar - he was also known as "The Ceegar Kid."
23. Jabara being carried by squadron members after his 5th and 6th victories.
24. Jabara pre-flighting F-86A FU-257 on his first tour.
25. Jabara deplanning from an F-86F on his second tour.

Jabara's F-86A-5 model is the Matchbox F-86 kit and depicts his scheme in May 1951. F‑86A coded FU-259 was his personal jet during his first tour. This kit was built in1997 and was the only 1/72 scale F-86A model kit at that time and might still be. The canopy interior and wheel wells are very sparse. Instrument panel and seat belt decals were therefore found and added. The kit does not have any wing tanks. One issue of the Matchbox kit did come with Jabara's exact scheme of FU-259 but unfortunately I did not have that one. However, most of the kit decals could be used to make Jabara's scheme. These include the black and white ID stripes used by the 4 FIW at that time--based upon the D-Day invasion stripes of WW II--before the yellow ID bands became the Far East Air Force standard in early Spring 1952. I wanted the model collection to have some A models with the black and white stripes, and not be made up of just yellow wing bands. Of note, there was a period of time when the 4 FIW was changing to yellow band that they retained the black vertical tail stripe, and also when they had nothing on the vertical tail at all - just wing and fuselage yellow bands. The correct number codes and serials for FU-259 were made using a Superscale or Aeromaster letters and numbers decal sheet and the winged-star name plate was hand-painted. The model was painted overall with Model Master Aluminum Plate (Buffing) paint with a light gray interior and wheel wells. During his second tour Jabara often flew an F-86F-1 that was coded FU-857, which was also flown by ace Manuel Fernandez. Microscale sheet 72-245 Korean War Sheet #3 has decals for Jabara's final F-86F-30 coded FU-513 that he flew in Jul 1953. This scheme is also in the Hobby Craft F-86F-25 Sabre kit. Note that this F-86A model was used in the Korean War portion of ASM's year-long "50th Anniversary of the USAF" display in 1997 at Kirtland AFB before it went on display at the USAF Academy.

 26     27     28     29     30     31

26-29. Model of Jabara's F-86A-5 Sabre using the Matchbox kit.
30-31. 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron and 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing patches.
The 334 FIS was the second-ranking squadron in the war with 142.5 victories.

 

 

Manuel J. Fernandez, Junior

 

Captain Manuel J. "Pete" Fernandez Jr. was the 3rd ranking ace in Korea, scoring 14.5 MiG-15 kills. He was the 26th U.S. jet ace, scoring his 5th kill on Feb 18, 1953. His age at that time was 28. He served with the 334th FIS, 4th FIW from Sep 1952 - May 1953. Fernandez scored mostly single victories but he had 2 "doubles" and one 1.5 kill sortie. Fernandez competed for top scorer with Jabara and McConnell. Fernandez enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps and received his wings in Nov 1944 but was an instructor in the U.S. and saw no combat. He re-enlisted in the USAF and provided air cover for the cargo planes with the 23rd FS, 36th FG during the Berlin Airlift in 1948-1949. Prior to wrangling an assignment to Korea, Fernandez was an advanced instructor at the Nellis Air Force Base Gunnery School in Las Vegas, Nevada and was an expert at deflection shooting. Fernandez was ordered home from Korea at the same time as McConnell. Fernandez won the Bendix Trophy Race in 1956 flying an F-100. He retired from the AF Reserves as a Major in June 1963. Fernandez was killed in a flying accident on Oct 17, 1980 near Grand Bahama Island. 

32     33     34     35     36     37

32-33. Fernandez in front of and in cockpitt of an F-86. Note colors of his flight gear.
34. Fernandez boarding his F-86F, likely FU-857. Note 334 FIS patch.
35. Fernandez being congratulted by Jabara after Fernandez's 5th and 6th victories on
Feb 18, 1953. Note exposure "poopy" suit worn by Fernandez.
36. Fernandez deplaning from a mission.  Note back-pack parachute.
37. McConnell and Fernandez meet President Eisenhower in May 1953 after returning to U.S.

Fernandez's F-86E-10 model coded FU-830 was his first aircraft and depicts his scheme in March 1953. This jet was wrecked while Fernandez was on R&R in Japan. This model was built in 1975 at the same time as McConnell's using the early Hasegawa F-86F-40 kit. The same surgery was performed on the wings and external tanks, depicting an E model with the leading edge slats. The model was painted overall natural metal (silver) with a light gray interior and wheel wells and black instrument panel and ejection seat. The decals were from Microscale decal sheet 72-100 F-86 Sabres, Korean War. I believe the Korean Theater yellow ID stripes were also hand-painted on this model. Some sources showed the background color of the 334th FIS patch as gold instead of yellow--as the decal came--so I painted that gold. Note that the 4th FIW's Sabres had their squadron patches painted on the fuselage sides below the cockpit. The 51 FIW's Sabres had a different colored rudder stripe for each squadron, and not squadron patches. Fernandez also scored 6.5 victories flying an F-86F-1 that was coded FU-857. 

38     39     40     41     42     43

38-41. Model of Fernandez's F-86E-10 Sabre using the Hasegawa kit.
42. Fernandez's F-86E FU-830 taxis out for mission at Kimpo Air Base.
43. Fernandez with Bendix Trophy that he won on Aug 31, 1956 flying an F-100.

 

 

George A. Davis, Junior

 

Lieutenant Colonel George A. "Curly" Davis, Jr. was the 4th ranking U.S. ace of the Korean War with 14 victories - 11 over the MiG-15 and 3 over Tu-2 bombers. Davis was also an ace in World War II with 7 victories, flying with the 342nd FS, 348th FG "Kearby's Thunderbolts" in the Southwest Pacific Theater. His total score of 21 victories make Davis the 17th ranking American ace (tie) and 13th ranking USAF ace (tie). Davis is a member of the "Inner Seven" made up of pilots who were aces in both WW II and Korea. Major Davis served with the 4th FIW and became the 334th FIS squadron commander in Oct 1951. His 14 victories were scored in a 4 month period from Nov 1951 to Feb 1952. Davis scored his kills in groups, with a "quadruple" on 30 Nov 30, 1951 when he downed three TU-2 twin propeller-engined bombers and one MiG-15 making him the 5th U.S. jet ace of the war. His age at that time was 31. He also scored 5 "doubles" that included 4 kills in 2 back-to-back sorties on Dec 13, 1951. Davis was killed in action during aerial combat on Feb 10, 1952 when he was outnumbered 6-to-1 but still engaged the MiGs in order to protect a B-29 formation. He downed 2 MiG-15s but was himself shot down. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for this action, the only Sabre pilot so honored in the Korean War. Davis was the leading USAF scorer at the time of his death. He was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. More details on Davis, his WW II history, and his model build are available in an article that was previously published in the August 2019 ASM Newsletter and is posted on the ASM Website on the ASM Kit Reviews webpage. 

 44     45     46     47     48     49

44. Major Davis next to F-86. Note 334 FIS patch on his helmet.
45. Davis in front of F-86A after his 4 victory mission where he became the 5th U.S. "jet ace" on
Nov 30, 1951. The F-86's four victory markings were scored by Maj Richard Creighton.
46. Davis standing in F-86 cockpit indicating a two-vicory mission.
47. Gun camera footage for one of Davis's MiG-15 victories.
48. 1st Lieutenant Davis in his P-47D Thunderbolt in late 1944.
49. Captain Davis in his P-51K Mustang in early 1945 in the Phillippines. 

Davis's F-86A-5 model coded FU-225 is the Matchbox F-86 kit and depicts the aircraft he was photographed with after his 4 victory mission on Nov 30, 1951. This aircraft was actually the usual jet of Major Richard Creighton, who made ace on Nov 27, 1951. This build occurred in 2001 and is the same kit as described in the Jabara build above. The model was painted overall with Model Master Aluminum Plate (Buffing) paint with a light gray interior and wheel wells. The light gray nose cone is the actual color of those parts without paint. Davis's early 4 FIW scheme with the black and white ID stripes could almost be completed using just the kit decals, needing only a small change to the code letters and serial. An Aeromaster letters and numbers decal sheet was used for the correct numbers. Some pictures of FU-225 show red star kill markings, which were Creighton's victories.

50.     51     52     53     54     55

50-53. Model of Davis's F-86A-5 Sabre using the Matchbox kit.
54-55. F-86A FU-225 on the flight line at Kimpo Air Base and taking
off on a mission to MiG Alley.

  

Royal N. Baker

 

Colonel Royal N. "The King" Baker was the 5th ranking U.S. ace in Korea with 13 victories including 12 MiG-15s and 1 La-9. Baker also scored 3.5 victories in WW II. His total of 16.5 victories make him the 29th ranking American ace (tie), and 24th ranking ace in the USAF (tie). Baker was the 21st jet ace with his 5th kill on Nov 17, 1952. His age at that time was 34. Baker commanded the 4th FIG from Jun 1952 to Mar 1953, flying 127 combat missions. He was the leading Korean War scorer for much of his tour. His biggest day was Dec 7, 1952 where he scored 1.5 victories. During WW II he flew Spitfires with the 308th FS, 31st FG in the Mediterranean scoring 2 Fw 190 and 1 Bf 109 kills. He later flew P-47 Thunderbolts with the 493rd FS, 48th FG in the ETO scoring 0.5 Bf 109 kills. Amongst his assignments after Korea was director of testing for the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB in 1957. Baker was later the 7th AF Vice Commander in Vietnam in 1968 and he flew 140 combat sorties, piloting every kind of USAF combat aircraft based in Vietnam. He was 17th AF Commander in Germany from Jul 1969 - Feb 1971, and retired as a Lt General in Aug 1975. Baker died in Apr 1976.

56     57     58     59     60     61

56. Colonel Baker in the cockpit of his F-86. Note the "Crown" painted on his helmet.
57-58. Official photos of Baker as a Colonel and as a Major General.
59-60. Baker's F-86E "Angel Face & the Babes / The King" on the ramp at Kimpo Air Base.
Baker downed several MiGs flying this Sabre.  
61. Baker with his crew chief A2C Holland and his F-86E the afternoon of his 13th victory.

    

Baker's F-86E-10 model is the Heller F-86F kit and depicts his jet in Feb 1953 when he had scored 10 victories. This is a pretty good kit with decent detail without the wing fences and has two types of tanks, nice wheel wells, and open speed brakes. There is a Luftwaffe box top kit and a USAF "MiG Mad Marine" box top kit. The decals for John Glenn's scheme is in both, but the Luftwaffe kit does not have the yellow ID stripe decals. The USAF kit does, but unfortunately they have the incorrect shade of yellow (too orange) and those will need to be sourced elsewhere. This kit was built in 1997 in Baker's F-86E scheme. Like the other builds, the model was painted overall with Model Master Aluminum Plate (Buffing) paint with a light gray interior and wheel wells and black instrument panels and ejection seat with seat belt decals. Decals for his scheme came from Microscale 72-244 Korean War Aces #2. These have been included in both the later Eagle Strike Productions 72-059 Wings Over Korea sheet and the Print Scale 72-079 American F-86 Sabre sheet. The name on his jet is "Angel Face & the Babes" after his wife and children and is located below the gun troughs (ports). His aircraft has the patch of the 336th FIS "Rocketeers." Baker also had a large crown surrounded by a blue ribbon with "The King" (his nickname based upon his first name "Royal") located on the side of his jet behind the canopy. Microscale 72-244 shows this crown on both sides of the jet and that is how I built it. However, the recent Eagle Strike Productions 72-059 and Print Scale 72-079 sheets both show the crown on only the left side. I have seen lots of pictures of the left side of his jet, but none of the right side to confirm this. This F-86E model was also used in ASM's "50th Anniversary of the USAF" display in 1997 before it went on display at the USAF Academy. 

 62     63     64     65     66      67

62-. . Model of Baker's F-86E-10 Sabre using the Heller kit.
66. F-86 flight from the 336 FIS "Rocketeers," third-ranking squadron with 116.5 victories.
67. 335 Fighter Interceptor Squadron "Rocketeers" patch.

I hope this article has spurred you on in your Korean War builds, as well as providing some historical background on the men and aircraft that fought in that conflict. The USAF Academy display currently has 13 Korean War aces in the collection with 12 Sabres and 1 Corsair night fighter. I am working on F-86 models flown by Lt Col George Ruddell (8 victories in "MiG Mad Mavis") and Major James Hagerstrom (8.5 victories in Korea in "MiG Poison" and 6 in WW II, another member of the Inner Seven). I hope to have those done for the June contest and the State Fair. There may be a follow-on article later this year that covers additional aces from the Korean War. I recommend the following sources that I used for further reading on the Korean air war. 

Sources:

1. Stars & Bars - A Tribute to the American Fighter Ace 1920-1973 by Frank Olynyk, Grub Street, London, 1995.
2, MiG Alley - Air to Air Combat Over Korea by Larry Davis, Squadron/Signal Publications, 1978.
3. Korean War Aces by Robert F. Dorr, Jon Lake and Warren Thompson, Osprey Aircraft of the Aces #4, 1994.
4. F-86 Sabre Aces of the 51st Fighter Wing by Warren Thompson, Osprey Aircraft of the Aces #70, Osprey Publishing, 2006.
5. F-86 Sabre Aces of the 4th Fighter Wing by Warren Thompson, Osprey Aircraft of the Aces #72, Osprey Publishing, 2006.
6. F-86 Sabre in action by Larry Davis, Aircraft Number 33 / 126 (revised), Squadron/Signal Publications, 1978/1992.
7. Multiple Wikipedia articles on the Korean War aces in this article.

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July 2020 Sponsored Contest

 

"Models That Support the Folds of Honor Display"

The subject for the sponsored contest hosted by Matt and Mike Blohm at the July 10 ASM meeting is "Models That Support the Folds of Honor Display." The idea is to increase the number of model subjects that the club has on hand for our Folds of Honor (FoH) display every year, as well as other displays that we conduct. Entries can be models of any genre (aircraft, armor, ships, figures, dioramas, etc.) and any scale that fits what was/is being used by the US military (any Service) from September 11, 2001, through the present (2020). Entries for this contest need to be new builds. We are hurting for armor and ship/submarine models for the FoH display. Note that modern USAF subjects (2001 – 2020) can also be used for our "Air Force Ball" display each year. Awards will be given in each division with potential splits (air, ground/sea, etc.) based upon the level of participation. If the July meeting is canceled, we will reschedule the sponsored contest later this year. We need the models completed for the two displays in September.  Click here to see articles on previous Folds of Honor displays:  2018    2017

Note:  The 2020 Folds of Honor event was canceled due to the Coid-19 situation.
ASM did complete a 1/48 scale F-35 model for the charity auction.

 

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Cobra Cage Match: Who Kits the Best P-39?

 by John Tate

There are three 1/48 model kits of the iconic WWII P-39 Airacobra fighter plane, from Monogram, Eduard, and Hasegawa. How do they stack up? Having built all three, here's what I found.

Monogram. Although forgotten today, this was the first 1/48 super-kit, an accurate replica with open panels and a detailed cockpit. Released back in 1967, it marked the transition in 1/48 scale from toys to detailed models. I remember as a kid building one of these kits in the late 1960s and it was impressive - a load of detail and options. Monogram re-released the kit several times, finally with a ProModeler update in the late 1990s, and its successor Revell did a final reissue in 2011, based on the ProModeler version. This is the reissue I'd recommend.

As a model it's easy to build and accurate, but with enough correctable issues to give you a chance to use your modeling skills. I upgraded my model to a Russian P-39N, using extra parts from the Hasegawa kit, but I'd recommend building the model the way it was intended, as a P-400 with open access panels -  follow this strategy and you'll get a nice replica with a minimum of trouble.

Eduard. This kit also made a splash when it was released in 2000, and I built "Air-a-Cutie" from it not long afterwards. The kit had extra parts allowing construction of any P-39, from a P-400 to a P-39Q. It was accurate and detailed and even came with a nifty nose weight. Decals were first-rate. However, it had some problems when constructed, notably the wing trailing edges being too thick. But with some work a nice replica could be obtained, and with Eduard re-releasing this kit many times over the past twenty years, it's easy to find and affordable.

Hasegawa. This kit was supposed to be the final word in Airacobras when it was released in 2006 and it was very nice in the box, with finely detailed parts and options in various releases to accurately build every P-39 version. Building it, though, uncovered the classic Hasegawa conundrum - the parts guy didn't talk with the fit guy, resulting in a troublesome build. If you stick with it you can get a nice replica but be prepared to come up with fixes to fun problems like the canopy being too skinny for the fuselage coaming. I made it work, though, and finished it as a red-nosed Russian P-39Q, using a Print-Scale decal sheet. Be forewarned: finding these Hasegawa P-39 kits is not easy and even second-hand they can be expensive.

So which kit comes out on top? I'd choose the Revell/Monogram kit for an early P-39, the Hasegawa kit for a late P-39 (Q or N), and the Eduard kit for the best overall value. Each of these kits is buildable and worth your time, so don't shy away from them if you have them in your model kit stash. With the aftermarket and decal options available now for 1/48 P-39s, you can't go wrong with any of them. With these kits, it's a lucky three-way tie with the modeler as the winner.

 

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2020 Supernationals Model Car Contest

 by Chuck Herrmann

The biggest model car show in Albuquerque each year is held as part of the Albuquerque Supernationals custom car show. It is put together by our fellow local model club, the Albuquerque Model Car Club. This year the show was held January 24 - 26 at the New Mexico State Fairgrounds Expo New Mexico.  This year there were about 100 models entered in the contest as well as on display. There are multiple classes; winners are picked by club members. There are also some Best of Awards and the People's Choice. See photos and caption numbers below. 

1     2     3     4     5     6

1.  The Special Theme for the event was Bonneville Salt Flats or Land Speed Record cars. 

2. The winner of the Bonneville Theme was Dave Allin's Studebaker Avanti, a fully detailed replica of a real car.

3-4. Best in Show was Jason Schofield's 1953 Chevy Nomad. This is not a resin body but a kitbash using Vette and Nomad kits.

5. Best Detail Winner was Brad Smith's 1957 Chrysler.

6. And the Best Paint and People's Choice Trophies went to Mitch Hudgin's Cherry Bomb.

7-21. Here are a few more photos of contest entries.

7     8     9     10     12     13

14     15     16     17     18

19     20     21

This year the featured guest at the Supernationals was Chuck Miller, a designer and car builder. He built the original Red Baron (from Tom Daniels design) for Monogram, and recently built a second replica which was at the show. He also graciously signed many autographs, including on this contest entry of the Red Baron (pic 19). Also he signed several members' kits, which were put on display (pic 20).

Red Baron Trivia: Through 1973, the Monogram Red Baron had sold over three million kits! It has been reissued many times, including about seven years ago.  It is hard to believe nowadays, but back in the late '60s the plastic model industry was so big that model car companies and car show promoters commissioned builders like Miller to replicate the big selling models as real cars, which were used to promote sales of the plastic kits and attendance at car shows.

The Red Baron was also popularized in the Peanuts comic strips, and was a huge selling record, Snoopy and the Red Baron, The novelty hit song was recorded by The Royal Guardsmen in 1966, ultimately making it to #2 on the charts. The band recorded several other Red Baron and Snoopy themed records, including Snoopy Vs Osama in 2009!  Most recently, the original song is briefly featured towards the end of Quentin Tarantino's 2019 film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.   

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 Last of the Flying Tigers

 by Mike Blohm

Frank Losonsky, the last surviving member of the American Volunteer Group (AVG) "Flying Tigers," passed away on Feb 6, 2020, at the age of 99. He served as a crew chief maintaining the shark-mouthed Curtiss P-40B Tomahawks (actually Hawk 81-A2s) flown by the 3rd Pursuit Squadron "Hell's Angels" of the AVG. Losonsky had served in the US Army Air Corps for two years before signing up with the AVG in May 1941. The AVG initially consisted of 100 Aircraft and 311 members, and Losonsky was one of the youngest.  The 3rd Pursuit Squadron's aircraft had a red tail stripe and were numbered 67 through 99. The Flying Tigers were organized within the Chinese Air Force. The AVG began combat operations in December 1941 and had shot down 297 aircraft and produced 20 aces by the time they were disbanded on July 4, 1942.

Losonsky returned to the US when the AVG disbanded. He later returned to China as a mechanic with the China National Aviation Corporation, a quasi-civilian airline that took part in logistics operations flying supplies between India and China over the Himalayan Mountains ("the Hump") after the Japanese had cut the Burma Road. After the war Losonsky became a pilot with TranAsiatic Airlines in Burma. Losonsky and his son Terry wrote Flying Tiger - A Crew Chief's Story: The War Diary of an AVG Crew Chief in 2004.  Pictures below (see numbers and captions) show Losonsky with the AVG in China and in more recent days, incluing some pictures from when he flew in a P-40 at the 2016 Atlanta Warbird Weekend, when he was 96.

 

1     2     3     4     5     6

7     8     9     10     11     12

13     14     15     16

Picture at top of article - AVG patch
1. Formation of 3rd Pursuit Squadron P-40Bs (Hawk 81-A2).  Chuck Older in the lead in number 68. 
2-3.  Two variations of 3rd Pursuit Squadron "Hells Angels" patch.
4. 3rd PS ground personnel in front of P-40. Frank Losonsky is in front row, second from right.
5-7.  Pictures of Frank Losonsky in cockpit and on wing of AVG P-40.
8.  AVG crew chiefs working on a P-40 underneath camoflage nets.  3rd PS P-40s were number from 67 through 99.
9. Lonsonsky in front of hanger; may be while with the China National Aviation Corporation.
10. Losonsky shaking hands with USAF member during a visit to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Sep 2017.
11-14. Losonsky at the 2016 Atlanta Warbird Weekend, where he flew in a two seat P-40.
15. Color photo of 3rd Pursuit Squadron P-40Bs (Hawk 81-A2).  Chuck Older in the lead in number 68. 
16. Another version of the AVG patch as carried on the sides of their aircraft (without red circle). 

Further information on the AVG is available in an article on David "Tex" Hill and a model of his Hawk 81 posted in the Aircraft section of the ASM Review Articles webpage:

 

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Kit Review

1/350 USS Indianapolis by Academy/MRC

 By Mark Vaughn

   

Before we lost Harry Davidson, I built a 1/350 USS Indianapolis to commemorate his cousin from Clovis who was lost when it was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. There is a recent movie that covers that event. Harry wanted the model for display in Clovis, so this was built straight out of the box as a museum display piece.

While I was thinking more of an old Revell type kit, this one has about 500 parts, many smaller than a grain of rice! Of course, I got the photoetch railings too. At first, I did not believe the color scheme. She was fresh out of a refit, new paint, with dark blue decks and a dark blue lower hull stripe with the accustomed gray upper vertical surfaces. This free build was starting to get serious!

As I usually do, I carefully fitted a piece of basswood along the keel with slow curing epoxy. I have heard tales of molten polystyrene using the fast curing variety. I have certainly melted plastic mixing bowls with it. Since I wasn't using the (spindly, almost useless) kit stand, but rather a wooden base supplied by someone else (with little varnishing skill), it was necessary to provide wood or something like it internally for screws. Like weight in the nose of aircraft, it's easy to forget this (ask me how I know). I turned some brass pedestals on the minilathe. I had a local awards outfit make a nameplate.

           

There were a few kit criticisms. The radar antenna was solid which I faked as best I could with dry-brushing. Also, the crane was solid, and again, I did my best to make gray "openings." This seemed absurd to me, since the catapult was detailed. I made a few replacement parts on the lathe, either because the plastic ones were too spindly or were lost in the carpet. There are a few cockeyed parts in the masts that should have been remade. One thing I like to do on portholes is use a mechanical pencil and rub in "glass". The graphite does a good job of darkening while giving the portholes a little gloss. I used G-S Hypo Cement to attach the photoetch railings. Tackier than CA with a longer pot life, I find it easier to use with the hypodermic needle applicator it comes with. And you can’t glue your fingers together with it.

I debated with myself whether there should be an ensign, but since it was torpedoed at night, decided against it. They never seem to look right anyway to my eye. I didn't rig the superstructure as, at 1/350, a one-inch cable is invisible at three mils. What I remember most about this build are the disagreements with Harry about colors. Fortunately, there are online refit photos showing the color scheme, particularly the coloration of the raft floor webbing. In the end, Harry (and the museum in Clovis) were pleased.

     

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USS Bataan and the Cavalcade of Wings

 By Mark Vaughn

Albuquerque Scale Modelers (ASM), the local IPMS chapter, supports the Cavalcade of Wings both monetarily and through the efforts of some of the members. In and