Welcome to mondo 72

A personal site dedicated to 1/72 1/76 scale miniature modeling

July 12, 2010

Back from vacation. I just realized that the Revell P-47D uses the wing of a P-47M so the air brakes need to be sanded off and a landing light added to the starboard underwing.
The Battle of Britain Me-109 E3 and the Pearl Harbor Zero type 21 have been completed and been added to the fighter and WW2 galleries.

June 14, 2010

A group photo of my late war Allied fighters. British, US and Soviet planes representing theaters thousands of miles from one another : Northwest Europe, Italy, Eastern Front, Burma, China, Central Pacific. The Typhoon and the two P-51Cs are not completed yet. Academy made a mistake in their decal placement instructions for the two Mustangs. The larger stars go on the wings not the fuselage. I fell for it and it just did not look right. It cost me two stars trying to move them. They had already been sealed with Future so that did not help.



June 7, 2010
More progress on the plane models though I am late on my schedule. I was planning to complete 12 planes by April 30 and then move back to armor and figures. I am now trying to get 10 models done by the end of June.
Tuskegee Airman Buddy Archer's P-51C is almost done. I lost one of the "INA the Macon Belle" decals so had to order another kit online. I did spend an hour on all fours looking for it. Academy decals are really terrible: thick, brittle, impervious to Microsol, plus they won't stay on without a final coat of Future.
The Pearl Harbor Zero is also almost complete. The wing fuselage join was pretty bad, which was a surprise to me as the rest of the kit falls together.
The Typhoon is still lingering pending rockets. The Pavla aftermarket rockets don't fit the holes on the model's wing... So I'm stuck with the kit's rockets. One consolation is that the Pavla rocket fins are almost as thick as the Academy ones (and the ones that come with the Tamiya Mosquito)
The other Mustang, "Princess", a P-51C from 311th FG in China in 1945 is undergoing a repaint job. I learned that spraying Alclad on bare plastic accentuates all the plastic flow boundaries. I have to reasearch why this is as the surface seemed totally smooth. In the end I sprayed gray primer over the Alclad and will start over.

So far only 4 models have been completed this year. Actually the 109 E3 needs an antenna wire. I plan to use 5thou steel wire like for the E1. I switched from fine fishing wire, the kind that retracts when heated, leaving a nice taut line. Problem is it slackens over time so you have to heat it again every couple months.




May 17, 2010
I finally completed two planes out of the 13 in flight. The 1939 Bf 109 E1 from the Polish Campaign and a late war Tempest V flown by French ace Pierre Closterman. The Airfix Spit XIX in wartime markings is almost done as well.



The Academy Typhoon is also well advanced. I need to add the rockets. The Pavla rocket mountings do not fit the holes on the kit, being spaced further apart, so it's back to the kit's rockets with the overthick fins. The Academy stripe decals were a disater, they would shed pieces if repositioned. The fuselage stripes were actually painted. The wing stripes only lost portions so I touched them up. In hindsight I should have removed the decals and painted them as well. I also learned through this that white cannot be touched up by brush.

I had hoped to finish all those planes clogging up the workspace by April 30 but it looks like it will take another month. It did not help that I started two more kits in the past months... Can't help it, I guess. The backlog is now:





Feb. 1st, 2010
Still working on the backlog of 1/72 aircraft. Updated the RAF aircraft model review page with more recent observations.

Jan. 8, 2010
!!Happy New Year!!
Having worked off some of the workbench clutter on the AFV side (11 models in 3 months, a personal record), I am completing some 1/72 planes that have been collecting dust for over a year, namely a Hasegawa Hurricane IIb, Tamiya Bf109 E3 and E7, RPM Bf109 E1, Academy Tempest and Typhoon. I acquired some CMR resin planes on ebay at about 1/2 price. The Spitfire IXe is incredible. You get 250lb bomb racks, two kinds of slipper tanks, two identical props ( 1 in one piece, the other with separate blades)and three single piece e-type wing assemblies (two clipped including one with wheel bumps and one standard). The kit includes photo etch details, paint masks and two sets of stencils plus 1/72 blueprints with full placement indications. Considering the spare bits, which would add up if bought separately, they are not that expensive.

Dec. 25, 2009
Merry Christmas to all modelers of good will and their ever patient families!!!


The MMS SdKfz 250/1 is finished. Well, not quite, I just realized I forgot the taillights. Moreover there seems to be some dust stuck to the hull on the right side.


Dec. 14, 2009
The Cromwell EasyEight is finished. I ended using Polly S matt varnish pure to get that dead flat dusty look:

Dec. 14, 2009
The improved Airfix Matador is completed:

The Cromwell EasyEight is almost finished as well:



Dec. 7, 2009
The Ford WOT2E is completed:



Dec. 4, 2009
The Daguet French soldier is done. I still have flat finish issues. I bought a Krylon spray can. It's pretty good but still leaves a sheen on the parts that were glossy.



Nov. 30, 2009
Another preview:
  • 1/76 SHQ Kettenkrad

    Nov. 25, 2009
    Another preview:
  • 1/76 Milicast Battlefield CMP 15cwt #13 cab Truck

    Nov. 20, 2009
    I found the missing crew member for the 250. It's almost done.


    Another preview:
    1/76 Convoy Adler W61 light truck

    Nov. 18, 2009
    Click here for the SHQ Panther D preview.

    The CMP truck is moving along slowly. The cab interior must be painted and the rear window glazed before the roof can be fixed in place. The roof was misaligned and full of imperfections. It took almost a dozen iterations of puttying and sanding to get it almost right. The crooked tilt cover is annoying but I don't see what can be done, it's solid resin.



    The 250/1 has been dry brushed and weathered a bit too forcefully so a couple pieces need to be rebuilt. More evidence on the perils of leaving unfinished models lying around, the painted standing figure I was planning to put in the rear went awol.

    Nov. 14, 2009
    Another LRDG preview:
  • 1/76 SHQ LRDG 1939 Chevrolet WA with 37mm Bofors Gun
    I also received the Panther D from SHQ, which is surprisingly good and the diminutive BA-64B also from SHQ. It only has a door on the left side, which I think is incorrect.

    Nov. 13, 2009
    I have a soft spot for LRDG vehicles and bought two recent SHQ releases depicting vehicles used in the early days of the group. Here is a preview of one:
  • the SHQ Ford 01 Pilot Car

    Nov. 11, 2009 - Veterans' and Armistice Day
    I am trying to clear my workspace of some of two dozen unfinished projects. The annoying part is that after a while you start losing or misplacing bits and piecess so you end up with a model that cannot be completed due to missing parts.

    Here are the ones closest to the finish line: an Airfix Matador with new 13.50-20 tires from a spare Airfix Scammell kit (a spur of the moment project which jumped to the front of the line), the MMS Ford WOT2 E and SdKfz 250/1, and two Cromwell Combat Ready models, a Sherman Easy Eight HVSS and a StuH42. These two last models have tarps molded on the engine deck and I am researching what colors they should be painted. It's probably some form of olive drab for the Sherman but shluld the StuH tarp be gray or dark yellow?





    Nov. 10, 2009
    Another couple previews:
  • 1/76 MMS Unic P107 with 2cm Flak 38
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready M26 Pershing Tank

    Nov. 6, 2009
    The JSU 122 is done. Still a bit shiny but I'm through.


    Another Sherman preview:
  • 1/76 Cromwell M4A4 Sherman V

    Nov. 5, 2009
    The JSU 122 is back in the workshop. I just realized it is missing a grabrail on the rear of the roof.

    Another Sherman preview, this one primarily used by the Soviets:
  • 1/76 M4A2(76)

    Nov. 4, 2009
    The JSU 122 is almost finished. I have lingering flat finish issues and it frustrates me to no end. At leasst I found that enamel thinner removes Polly S flat varnish without damaging the paint.



    More previews. There are well over 300 kits in the section now:
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready 3.7cm Flak 43 Moebelwagen
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Bren Carrier
  • 1/76 SMA Jeep

    Nov. 1st, 2009
    The SdKfz 253 is done. Despite several coats of Polly S flat varnish, it still has a dull sheen. Disaster struck yesterday. I was putting the final touch on the observer, which I had duly stuck to the vehicle when my fingers slipped and the model landed on the concrete garage floor. Fortunately the base and my feet cushioned the fall. So here is the model after repairs.



    Oct. 28, 2009
    I checked online vendors of vintage military tires and found that the dimensions of actual tires do not match my formulas derived from the tire size codes. They are actually 10 to 15% larger.I updated the tire size table accordingly and highlighted the tires for which I have actual data. I also found that different tire patterns have different sizes even though they have the same nominal size. That leaves some wiggle room for interpretation.

    Oct. 27, 2009
    I found my copy of Bart Vanderveen's Fighting Vehicles Directory and updated the tire size table

    Oct. 26, 2009
    This has been bugging me for quite a while and I finally put all the information I could gather in a spreadsheet. Click here for a list of the tire sizes used on common WW2 softskins and their scale equivalents in 1/72 and 1/76. For comments, corrections or requests, please email me at david@mondo72.com. Click here if you want to download the spreadsheet. Now we can spend some quality time measuring all the tires from our kits for accuracy.

    On a related topic I have replaced the Airfix Matador's tires with spares from an Airfix Scammell. Much better!

    Oct. 24, 2009
    The Cromwell Easy Eight is ready for paint. I now have 6 completed models in the paint shop, the 250, 253, JSU-122, a StuH42 (CCR, not reviewed, bought second hand , stripped of paint and rebuilt), and the Ford WOT2E. A record for me.



    Another preview
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready M3A1 Scout Car

    Oct. 12, 2009
    More previews:
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready 8.8cm Flak 18 gun on SdKfz 8 12-ton Half-track

    Oct. 11, 2009
    Two previews from long disappeared Custom Miniatures in 1/76:

  • Ford WOT6 GS 3-ton Truck
  • Austin K5 Westex Recorder Truck

    plus 3 Soviet machines from Cromwell, two variants of the T-26 and the formidable SU-100

  • T-26 B Model 1933 and T-26 S Model 1939
  • SU-100

    Oct. 10, 2009
    French infantry from the late seventies added to the French Army page


    ADV Mini resin French soldiers from 1991 and 2005 in the paint shop:


    Another preview : the 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready JSU 122

    Oct. 7, 2009
    The 253 is in the paint shop. I used Xtracolour's RAL8000 Yellow-Brown, which is a very dark greenish sand yellow. It takes forever to dry so I only managed two coats in 4 days. The 250 is catching up. I completed the interior and closed the body. It will be ready for paint after the lights and other accessories are added.
    I also used the same color on the 15cm SPG on panzer II chassis and will snap some pictures when it's dry.

    I bought more Cromwell kits on Ebay and here is a preview of something different, a "Panzer 1946" monster:

  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready E-1000 Krokodil with 17cm gun
    and the
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready 1920 pattern Rolls-Royce A/C

    Oct. 3rd, 2009
    The 250/1 and 253 are progressing. The 253 is ready for paint. It took only 3 days, a record for me. The 250/1 is taking more time, due to the interior and crew that need to be painted before the model is closed.


    Another preview:
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Panzer III J with short 5 cm gun

    Sep. 28, 2009
    I have turned my attention to the MMS SdKfz 250/1 and just noticed that the headlights are in the wrong position. They should be attached to supports jutting forward from under the fenders, not to the body. Further digging shows that the 252 and 253 variants (which both predate the 250 series)have the lights where MMS put them. Pictorial evidence seems to indicate that they were moved forward on the 250 series.

    Sep. 27, 2009
    The MMS A9 CS is completed :
    Actually it needs a commander figure to be 100% complete.

    Sep. 25, 2009
    The Fujimi 38(t) Ausf B is completed :

    Sep. 15, 2009
    I've learned to adjust exposure on my camera! Here are better pictures of the Soviet figures :


    and a bonus pic of a Matchbox Panzer IIF. Here is the good side. The left side has the antenna gutter but is missing the antenna stub and the antenna. The Matchbox Panzer III L has the same issue.


    Sep. 11, 2009
    Previews galore:

  • 1/76 Milicast Nashorn
  • 1/76 Ostmodels 7TP single and dual turret versions
  • 1/76 Ostmodels Marder III M
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Marder II
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Panzer II b
  • 1/76 Cromwell Panther A
  • 1/76 Fujimi Hetzer
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready CV33/35
  • 1/76 Milicast Flamm Hetzer

    Sep. 10, 2009
    Updated the UK air preview page with Spitfires, the XII from Xtrakit, Vb from Hobby Boss and the Airfix Vc:
    A bad picture of Soviet infantry, 3 Italeri, 1 ESCI, 1 SHQ :

    Still more previews:
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready M4A2 76
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready M4A3E8 with sandbags
  • 1/76 Nitto (now Fujimi) M36 Jackson GMC
  • 1/76 MMS 105mm M2 howitzer
    and the kit that started the hobby
  • 1/76 Airfix M4 Sherman

    9/9/09
    More previews:
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready SdKfz 251 D with Pak40 (251/22)
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready SdKfz 11 with cargo body
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Panzer III A
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Humber Mk IV A/C
  • 1/76 Nitto (now Fujimi)Harley Davidson WLA 45

    The 38(t) Ausf. B has one coat of Humbrol 27 (too light and greenish) and one of 67. The Sig33 on PzII has been detailed with spare ammo and a sight. One coat of Xtracolor RAL8000 drying. First time I use this color, which is supposed to be the early DAK color. It looks pretty bright and orangey, close to Humbrol 94.



    Sep. 8, 2009
    More previews:
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready T34/76 1940 model with welded turret
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready 15cm Sig33 on PzII SPG

    The 38(t) Ausf. B is ready for paint.



    Sep. 2, 2009
    I am finishing a batch of WW2 figures, 5 Soviets, 1 Caesar French, 1 Airfix Japanese. In the process I went back and added gun slings to all my completed WW2 figures. They do look more realistic! No actual soldier would carry a gun without a sling so they are essential. The downside is that I'll have to reshoot all the pictures.

    Going through the backlog of previews:
  • 1/76 MMS Bishop 25pdr SPG
  • 1/76 Convoy Autocar U7844T / White 444T Tractor and 25ft Low Loader Semi-trailer
  • 1/76 Ostmodels M13/40 Light Tank
  • 1/76 MMS M8 "Greyhound" A/C
  • 1/76 MMS M20 Armored Utility Car
    There are about fifty more to go through.

    Aug. 28, 2009
    The 38(t) Ausf. B is progressing. Here are some pics to show off the Archer rivets on the cupola:



    As usual this out of the box build descended into scratch building as the stowage furnished withthe kit is incorrect for the ealry 38(t).

    The JB/Airfix Light Tank MkVIb is also in construction. It fits really well but the detail level is way more simplified than I imagined and requires a lot of attention before the rivets can be applied. Furthermore according to Bradford's drawing it is underscale by more than a couple percent.

    I actually completed some figures (8 actually), which gave me more satisfaction than the actual accomplishment.

    I also added the preview of the 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready Renault R35

    July 24, 2009
    New in the armor preview section, a kit that has been around for 30 years and to my surprise the only Airfix kit reviewed so far the venerable 1/76 Airfix T34. In hindsight it is because most are finished so I don't have unbuilt boxes (or bags) to review.

    Were also added:

  • 1/76 Cromwell Staghound MkIII armored car
  • 1/76 Cromwell Combat Ready M10 TD
  • 1/76 MMS Marder III Ausf.M
  • 1/76 MMS Grille 15cm SPG
  • 1/76 US Casts Renault AGK TTN-39 5t truck

    Finally here are two pictures of the most exciting recent development in modeling : Archer's rivet decals. These are actual resin rivets sealed in a decal sheet and applicable as such. Sheet 88001 has the smallest ones, usable in 1/72/76 scale. They are available at www.archertransfers.com.



    They come in three sizes (0.2mm, 0.28mm and 0.36mm) and each size comes in rows of three spacings. I will try these on the barenaked JB models Light Tank Mk VI. The era of home-grown misaligned rows of rivets has now come to an end!

    July 13, 2009
    New in the armor preview section" 1/76 Milicast "Diana" (SdKfz6/3 half-track with 76.2mm gun)

    July 11, 2009
    My only completed works this year , a T-34/76 STZ build and a Chinese WW2 soldier:


    May 18, 2009
    My day job has been keeping me very busy these 5 past months, but considering the economy, it's nothing to complain about.
    I bought a set of 25 Cromwell Combat Ready models on ebay at $5 piece, including some 3-piece sets! I will post reviews for each. It does confirm to me that Cromwell Models are a bit undersize. The Sherman roadwheels are noticeably smaller. My T-34 version build has made me more tolerant of size variations so I'll keep them in the collection anyway.
    They are all early castings with the solid block underside, which will require careful removal.

    I also bought an AZ models Hurricane I early to complement the Sword model. I intend to build one BEF and one Belgian version. To my initial surprise the AZ kit is a repackaging of the Sword one, albeit with an injected clear canopy. I also acquired some Belgian decals but they are not useable, the roundels and the fuselage insignia being wrong. Better find an old ESCI decal sheet.

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