Italeri Tornado GR.1 in 1:48

[scotthldr]

Just been catching up on the forum after my holiday and I'm absolutely elated that you've decided to return to the hobby and the forum

You have been missed not only by myself over the last two years but the forum on as a whole, and I look forward to reviving the old "banter" and seeing some more of your great builds appearing in the near future, for those that don't know Matt he is a very honest and accomplished builder and the site will benefit greatly from his return.

Also delighted by the news of the future "mini Laker" my second is due in October.

Welcome back mate

[mattlaker]

Congratulations to you too!!! Thank you for your kind words! That is why I have missed this forum- I look forward to the banter...

Have made a start on this build again...


Here are the decals I will be using- look really high quality and hope they are as easy to apply as they look...


the bit just behind the pointy end has gone together ok, just needs a bit of rescribing on the underside... a bit of a mess behind the rear seat tho- should need a bit of scratch building to tidy that up a bit and make it presentable. Have not worried too much about the back seat display housing- I know that it is wrong, but I can live with it- this is just a build to get me back into building again, and clearing the WIPs... Mind you, I may change my mind as things progress...


Paragon tail correction is in place, and attached- was sad to hear they have gone out of business...


Finally, bang seats painted up- these I shall simply drop in later on near the end of the build.

Thanks to my Nan passing away, I am now the proud owner of my late grandfather's tools, so now I have a dremel type thing to make life a lot easier. Would rather they were still alive, but waste not, want not...

Thanks for looking! Feedback welcomed!

[Craig]

They do look very nice indeed, small bit of constructive criticism though, the tube on the side of the headrest on the seats should be black. Worth painting as it's a 5 second job and breaks up all that grey!

[mattlaker]

Well spotted! I missed that one! Thank you!

[mattlaker]

Sorted!

[Prime77]

Made a nice start to this one. Don't think we have seen a desert scheme tornado on this forum.

Shame about Paragon. Hopefully Relish will bring out the parts I missed as Paragon parts go for silly money on eBay.

[Craig]

Great stuff, glad to be of help

Agreed totally on Paragon, I'm lucky enough to have the Jag access ladder in the stash for when I build that, but the fin correction and a few other bits would be very welcome! So much they did that just isn't available now

[mattlaker]

Anyone know what happened to Paragon's tooling? I luckily got the Jaguar flaps and slats, burner cans, weighted wheels and bang seat before they went bust but their stuff was first rate! Right, signing off for the evening as morning sickness isn't just confined to mornings apparently

[scotthldr]

As far as I know Neil still has all the masters and has no intention of selling them on or to start reproducing his products If you look hard enough you can still find bits here and there. The only outcome of this will be copies of his products starting to appear on places like Ebay for stupid money.

[mattlaker]

They do look very nice indeed, small bit of constructive criticism though, the tube on the side of the headrest on the seats should be black. Worth painting as it's a 5 second job and breaks up all that grey!

Just pastel-washed the seats and they came out a treat! I haven't tried that before as they are pretty fragile, so was pleasantly surprised! Thank you for the tip!

Scott, that is a real shame... hopefully he will change his mind one day...

[Craig]

Look forward to seeing the pics mate bet they look the business!

Real pity about the Paragon moulds and seems a strange choice that doesn't benefit anyone. He must have his reasons, but from the outside seems a strange one. His stuff is definately much missed!

[mattlaker]

definitely a strange choice... our loss sadly, but he must have his reasons

My non-aviation expert expert Charlie's words were 'They look really realistic...' and that is good enough for me!

James sent me across the paragon sheet via scan, so can get looking at the wings soon! Massive thank you there! Just need to get my head around the actuator screws for these- have got an idea of how to fabricate these tho... watch this space! Oh, and James also suggested the wash on the seats- great call there!

[Jamesv9820]

the actuators can be made from wrapping thin fuse wire or wire from a electric cable around a thin rd such as a straightened paper clip. I am not sure if when heated a little these would stay in place more - Personally I never really bothered with the actuators on my two but if i did it, this would be my method to do it

No worries about the advice on the seat - if you need shots of the real ones, I have a tonne from numerous walk around

[mattlaker]

Was thinking fine gauge wound guitar string- either a D or G would be about right? Found some good walkrounds online for the positioning of these How is the finger?!

[Jamesv9820]

Sore! Only hurts when I point! Its all bandaged up now so hopefully it'll heal in the next few weeks!

Guitar wire should work quite well..

[mattlaker]

Don't point then

If I can get a thin enough gauge it should do the trick? Will know more when I get the wings together, although I will be applying the measure twice cut once approach to make sure I get them right. Watch this space!

[Deacon]

Where did all this progress come from!

Tub and fin looking great mate.

Alan

[mattlaker]

I haven't made that much progress- it's a trick of the light! The tub and seats were already done, had to repair the fin due to a moving house packing error, so all I have done is buy bits for it, and close up the front bit, fit the fin correction, fit the fin to upper fuselage, wash the seats with a pastel wash, paint some hoses and today I knocked together the intakes and fitted the wheel wells... hardly scratched the surface!

[mattlaker]

Ok, the Tonka is going back on the back burner- for some reason, I can't get into it. Will carry on with something I am a little more passionate about to get me back into the swing of it.

[Prime77]

Matt, shame to hear you have put this one on the back burner, was looking forward to seeing it come together.

Better to put it aside though until your enthusiasm returns to it